SB2 - The threat posed by artificial super-intelligences

Viability 

The risks and benefits of AI is are relevant to everyone, and the product could be targeted at either the general public (to raise awareness), or those at the forefront of AI research (warning them). 


Existing information

There a number of AI research and development organisations in existence, a number of which have the backing and co-operation of large names and companies, such as Google, Facebook, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Stephen Hawking. 


Any businesses/organisations involved? 

OpenAI is a non-profit artificial intelligence research company. Their mission is to build safe AI, and ensure AI's benefits are as widely and evenly distributed as possible.

Collaborative - Market research

Anna had the idea to distribute the questionnaire during a morning lecture to afford it maximum exposure. I put the questionnaire together and printed three out, to be put alongside the lecture register. 

Some of the most illustrative things that remind people of their childhood: 

Gameboy

PS1

Bike

Hopscotch 

Monopoly 

Ball games

LEGO

Stuffed animals  

SB2 - Three issues

Climate Change

Earth's climate is changing as a result of the human emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases are named so because they prevent the heat that reaches Earth from escaping back into space, resulting in a warmer atmosphere. 

Rising sea levels, habitat loss and species extinction are major issues as a result of climate change. Potential scenarios vary in terms of destruction and loss, though even the best case scenarios result in huge disruption. Negative effects include rising sea levels, habitation loss, human displacement, food and water shortages, the propagation of war and an increase in frequency of extreme weather events. 

More malign scenarios would see a global sea level rise of 10m, and the displacement of 1 billion people.  


Artificial Intelligence

Many tech leaders and researchers, including Elon Musk, Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking, have called for more regulation and research into the threat posed by artificial super-intelligences. Though there are many positive futures for hyper-intelligent, sentient machines, there are an equal number of existential risks posed. The possibility of human enslavement or destruction by an intelligence vastly superior to our own is a threat we cannot give enough precedence to. 



Antibiotic resistance 

Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today. It occurs when the bacteria becomes resistant to the antibiotics we use to fight them, and the trend is exacerbated by the over-use and wrong application of antibiotics when not needed or effective. A worst case scenario could result in the death of 10 million people per year. 

Collaborative - First Meeting

In our first hour-long meeting we discussed initial ideas, agreed on tasks and objectives, and researched the brand.

Brand

Targeted at young professionals + adults

Gender neutral

Reminiscent on childhood 

Sustainable, locally made and produces

Small scale 


Initial Ideas

Made from sustainable materials?

Useful after used? E.g. make origami, use as a poster etc. 

Augment the current colour scheme with patterns 

Create a mystery around the outer packaging 

The locally handmade asset is important, and could be used in a similar way to tech companies e.g. "Designed by Apple in California", "Handmade in Harlow" etc.

Described as a "Luxurious occasional treat"; what does this mean for the packaging?

Create a pattern which utilises the existing colour scheme + items reminiscent of childhood (with the suggestive shape of chocolate?) 

Packaging has the same aspect ratio as a bar of chocolate

We could allude to mystery by creating the effect of a torn chocolate bar wrapper, with most of the sleeve being white, but with the torn area revealing what would be the chocolate. We could apply the chocolate-esque pattern here. 

Two patterns: One based on the ingredients used in the bars, another based on items which remind people of their childhood. 

This mockup, made by Megan, allows us to physically assess exactly what space we have to design with. It helped us realise that the border of the tray is a more important space than the bottom of the tray, since the bottom will be obscured by chocolate when it's opened. 

Tasks/Objectives

Nicky

Create and distribute a questionnaire to find out what items/activities remind people of their childhood 

Assess what elements of the design could be located in the white space of the sleeve


Megan

Create some initial ideas for the pattern designs to see how the hidden chocolate idea works


Anna

Research competitor packaging and see which segment The Grown Up Chocolate company sits amongst them 

SB1 - Inspiration from Californian graphic design from 1936-86

California has always been seen as a forward-thinking, progressive corner of the world, and its graphic design has always reflected this, from the letterpressed, gradient-ridden posters of the 30s to the minimalist design language of Apple. It'd make sense to turn to this for inspiration for the Zeppelin poster, since that too was a progressive and exciting event. This was an amazing proof-of-concept for an emerging, previously-inconceivable form of transport.

SB1 - 1931 Graf Zeppelin flyover in Leeds

The decision has been made to base the project around the 1931 flyover of the German Graf Zeppelin in Leeds. Thousands of people watched the flyover from Hyde Park, so it'd be appropriate to focus the posters on that space. 

A zeppelin flyover in the 30s had a profound economic and cultural impact - not only did the local area benefit from a boost in tourism and national recognition, but they felt the excitement and intrigue of seeing a major feat of human innovation up close. Similar feelings to that of witnessing a rocket launch, flying on a plane for the first time, or viewing a major skyscraper. 

SB1 - Public Spaces in Leeds

Hyde Park

Roundhay

University of Leeds

Park Square

Millenium Square 

The Headrow

"A public space is a social space that is generally open and accessible to people". 

Leeds has a myriad of recognisable public spaces. Public spaces help to shape the identity of a city, and can play a major part in the history and culture of the area/ 

SB1 - Historic events in Leeds

Nelson Mandela visit
Thousands of well-wishers packed Leeds’s Millennium Square in 2001 to greet former South African leader Nelson Mandela during his first official trip to the north of England. Five thousand well-wishers yesterday travelled from far and wide to pay tribute to the former South African leader on his first official trip to the north of England, creating global recognition for Leeds and giving a huge economic boost. 

Graf Zeppelin flyover
On August 19, 1931, the Graf Zeppelin airship flew over Leeds. 

Unveiling of the Black Prince
Though the colossal equestrian statue of Edward the Black Prince was initially controversial at its unveiling in 1903, it had a huge cultural impact by providing the first major figure with a historical association to Leeds.

Collaborative Brief - Initial research into limited edition packaging

Limited edition packaging often utilises a distinct colour scheme or pattern to differentiate it from the standard brand products. It's important to assess what established brands do as The Grown Up Chocolate Company don't want a brand refresh, or even a packaging refresh, but packaging concepts for a new product which utilises the pre-existing brand and packaging guidelines. 

Collaborative - Brief

The brief is to create an original packaging design for a new product by The Grown Up Chocolate company. The company's audience and identity is based around adults reminiscing about their childhood, so the chocolate and current packaging is created with that in mind. 

Since the chocolate bars to be housed inside the packaging are fully customisable by the customer, we will only be designing the outer sleeve and tray where the chocolate sits

SB2 - Design used to incite change

Design has a fundamentally large impact on culture and society, in both direct and indirect manifestations. Design can, among other things, be used to make people more likely to buy products that serve more good (hedonistic sustainability), make people more aware of an issue and so more likely to take action, and make people more likely to demand or vote for something when they see a visual representation of existing support (sociological conformity). 

How design helped a President win 

The Barack Obama "Hope" poster is an image of Barack Obama designed by artist Shepard Fairey, which was widely described as iconic and came to represent his 2008 presidential campaign. 

The design was created in one day and printed first as a poster. Fairey sold 290 of the posters on the street immediately after printing them. It was then more widely distributed—both as a digital image and other paraphernalia—during the 2008 election season, initially independently but with the approval of the official Obama campaign. The image became one of the most widely recognised symbols of Obama's campaign message, spawning many variations and imitations, including some commissioned by the Obama campaign. This led The Guardian's Laura Barton to proclaim that the image "acquired the kind of instant recognition of Jim Fitzpatrick's Che Guevara poster, and is surely set to grace T-shirts, coffee mugs and the walls of student bedrooms in the years to come."

How design swung an election 

It is widely agreed that the poor design of the butterfly ballot paper in the 2000 presidential election may have cost Al Gore the election. 

The ballot paper had names down both sides, with the punch holes in the centre - and was likened to a maze. The design led to thousands of people mistakenly voting for the Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan when they meant to vote for Democrat Al Gore, or spoiling the paper as they tried to correct their mistake. Al Gore's name was the second name on the left of the ballot paper, but voters had to punch the third hole to vote for him (see picture). People wanting to vote for George Bush had fewer problems, as his name was top, and conveniently corresponded to the top hole.

As a result, Gore lost between 15-25,000 votes. This is over 10 times the number he needed to have won. 

How design was used to inspire national health and fitness 

Change4Life was launched in January 2009 as the social marketing component of the Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives cross-governmental strategy for England. 

The anti-obesity campaign from Public Health England works with a coalition of partners, including many of the familiar brands and retailers people experience during everyday life. These brands amplify campaign messages and help influence positive choices at the point of decision so people start to choose healthier foods in the supermarket. To help people get more active in their communities, leisure organisations work to make it easier or cheaper for people to get active.

Change4Life had a large impact on public health awareness and nutrition through TV, print and digital campaigns. 

SB2 - Issue-Orientated Design

Design 
Social, Environmental, Economic Issues

Global and Localised Issues
Climate change
Democratisation of artificial intelligence 
Air pollution
General pollution 
Child soldiers 
Nuclear proliferation
Food/water sustainability 
Slavery
Human trafficking 
Sexism 
Abuse
Racism
LGBTQ+ equality
Lack of sanitation 
Disease
Torture
War

Design is used as a tool to catalyse change; offer representation, awareness and shift, give hope and understanding, and to shape people's perceptions

Collaborative - OUGD503 - Studio Brief 2

Collaborative Work 

Motivation
One of the major motivations is competitive - to win the competition and the recognition afforded by it, and to create good collaborative work to showcase your talent. 

Communication
Communication can be done on multiple levels and platforms, both digitally and physically. The first stage was to meet physically as a group, then to create a Facebook group chat. Digital platforms can often facilitate physical processes, such as to organise meetings. 

Diversity
The diversity of our group will prove an asset in the collaborative working process; we are 2 graphic designers and 1 illustrator with 3 different skillsets. 


In our first meeting together we worked on the team contract, seen below. Unfortunately Anna couldn't attend, but we completed what we could and then filled Anna in on what we did so she could catch up. 

Responsibilities:

Nicky

UI/UX

Typography 

Layout

Theoretical research

Megan 

Pattern design

Illustration

Net development/paper engineering

Primary research

Anna 

Typography 

Layout 

Pattern design

Secondary research

Small Brief 1 - Sustainability Award - Pearl

Sustainability Award:

"This award is open to all current students studying at Leeds College of Art. The award recognises innovative and outstanding work that addresses environmental, social and ethical issues with sustainability running clearly through the thinking and approach.

To be considered for the award students need to submit a piece of work, based on their interpretation of “sustainability”, reflects the aims identified in the College sustainability framework. Students should address how they have arrived at their solution."

1. What is the issue?
Global air pollution. 

2. Why is it important?
Air pollution causes 55,000 premature deaths in the UK, and 7 million deaths worldwide.

3. How will their work influence new thinking?
The app will allow users to easily view the air quality in their local area, and contact their local politician to either praise them or demand action. 

4. How does the work address sustainability and, specifically, which of the three pillars (social, economic and environmental) are addressed, and how?
It entices environmental sustainability through its visual identification of localised air pollution, and by providing a tool to help solve the problem. 

Pearl 

Air quality monitoring mobile application 

The 'Pearl' moniker was chosen as a metaphorical representation of the beauty and fragility of Earth.

Small Brief 2 - NEST Space Submission

It seemed appropriate to combine my desire to become proficient in 3D software with the opportunity to respond to a brief. The upcoming Nest magazine will have the theme of 'Space', and this provides a very broad base to go off. 

Space could be visualised through a sense of scale, proximity, colour and shape. It could be taken more literally in the theme of outer space, or more asbtractly through the concept of space as a "the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction"

The illustration began with the creation of a sphere, the most visual representation of objects in outer space. Textures and colours were then explored until a striking, ambiguous and unique image was created. 

Multiple feedback sessions were held to discover what people relate the image to, and what is makes people think of first. An asteroid, a sub-atomic particle, an exploded-view mountain range and an ice planet were all mentioned. These all relate well to ideas of space and scale, and so the illustration was deemed appropriate for submission. 

Visually it also links well to NEST's identity, which if often monotone, and makes good use of black and white.