installation inspiration | LOUISE NEVELSON

Tommy passed along the name of an artist whose work we should all have a look at as we move forward with our store displays: Louise Nevelson. Described as a Russian-born American Abstract Expressionist Sculptor, much of Nevelson's work revolves around the idea of grouping unlike objects and creating unity with color...sounds familiar doesn't it?


See many, many examples of Nevelson's work here.

WHAT'S RED AND WHITE AND MAKES A STATEMENT?

Found these posters from The London Design Festival in keeping with our SA Select concept. Have a look here and get inspired.
via Race of Style

SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING T-SHIRT

Which happens to fall during our class time :
Given our interest in t-shirts and, more broadly, the journey of clothing this semester, this might be a nice lecture to sit in on. Let me know if you want to take some time tomorrow to attend this talk.

week five | PRODUCT PLACEMENT

photograph by [auro]

THE ART OF DISPLAY

Feeling inspired? Based on what you’ve learned this morning on your tour of Anthropologie and the new Salvation Army Select your job this weekend is pretty simple…

DREAM.

But not just any dream, a BIG dream for what you can bring to the Salvation Army Select. How do you make this store truly one of a kind? How do you make used goods feel special? How do you challenge the preconceived notions of thrift stores? How do you make a statement that encourages people to talk about the store with their friends?

For Monday write a Haiku, do yoga, dance the Electric Slide, compose a symphony, take a hike, shop ‘til you drop, bake a cake, see a movie, get a massage, ride a train, swim the English Channel, fly the friendly skies, roast marshmallows, take a nap…FIND INSPIRATION.

And then SHARE that inspiration with us via a beautiful [and thoughtful] presentation of sketches and photos on your blog.

M [9.21] : group discussion; guest presentation
W [9.23] : mid-week review
F [9.25] : guest review
M [10.5] : promotion wrap-up

week four | being SELECTive

rendering by Debbie Nestvogel + Matt Jones

PRO:NOTIONS

As you enter the job market, you will often find that your versatility is your strongest asset as a designer. Particularly in small firms, you will wear many hats, some days as a interior designer, others as a branding strategist, and yet others as a pillow fluffer… This week you will put on your marketing hat, moving away from store fixtures to store promotion.

As we discussed on Friday, donations, sponsors, and customers, as well as community and university support, are key to the success of the new Salvation Army Select store. As a result, the time is right to draw on the skills you’ve developed both as a student and as a consumer to help this cause.

Over the course of the next three weeks, you will each generate, create and promote one idea for raising awareness about the new store. Your idea, which must have some physical component, may focus on drawing more donations, bringing more attention to the work of the Salvation Army, showcasing the partnership between UNCG and the Salvation Army, highlighting community partners, etc.

Salvation Army’s slogan is “doing the most good” – as you develop ideas I challenge you to ask yourself, is this plan “doing the most good” with the time and means available?

If you determine that the efforts of more than one person are needed for your idea to be a success, by all means, engage others. However, be aware that you will all be evaluated on the amount of time and energy that went into your idea AND its response.

M [9.14] : brainstorming…
W [9.16] : pitch your idea! group discussion with ivan cutler
F [9.18] : anthropologie, salvation army select
M [9.21] : group discussion
M [10.5] : promotion wrap-up

detailed delivery

Check out these drawings by Greneker Solutions, a company that's mission is to provide retail clients with "exciting solutions, conceptual ideas and manufactured products." While it appears that Greneker is most known for it's production of mannequins, I enjoyed looking through it's portfolio of "thematic presentations." What was most impressive to me were the drawings used to illustrate some of their themed fixtures and interactive displays.




Look how clearly the designers' ideas come across. These are the quality of drawings we should all attempt to produce in order to explain the details behind our ideas this semester.

mark your calendars

Wednesday, September 30 at 6 pm Bill Grant, President and Creative Director of Grant Design Collaborative, will speak about *branding* in a keynote address at the Triad Design Leadershop.  The event is *free* and will take place in Harrison Auditorium on the campus of N.C. A&T State University. 

Please join me for this learning opportunity.

blogging tips : themes

I've noticed that many of you are tweaking the layout of your blog based on the feedback you've received.  Cheers to this.  Way to follow through! Remember this digital interface will serve as your first impression to many people.

With this in mind, I thought you'd be interested in this article on blog themes over at Blogging Tips.

time stops for no one

Chances are, if you've done any searching, you've already found this link. But in case you haven't, here you go! May these examples inspire you to sssssssssssstttttttttttrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeecccccccchhhh the ways in which you calculate time.    

I look forward to seeing your BOLD ideas tomorrow.

week three | HANDS ON

photo by Helga Weber

Who forces time is pushed back by time; who yields to time finds time on his side. The Talmud

Time is literally of the essence in this short project.

Drawing inspiration from the story of your retail space, as revealed through your materials board, your challenge this week is to design three options for signature timepieces for the space that speak to the essential qualities of your conceptual framework.

You are to present your ideas through a series of high-quality rendered orthographic views. These drawings, complete with helpful annotations, are due on your blog.folio for presentation at the beginning of class Monday, September 14.

F : mini-review with a minimum of 5 sketches/models, guest presentation
M : project deadline + presentation

digital paint samples

In class today I shared with you one of my favorite blogs:  Making It Lovely.  I really enjoy the way Nicole Balch, the author, approaches presenting material inspiration and hope you will take note of her techniques as you move forward with your projects this week.  Many of you were curious about how Nicole created the paint splotches on her boards... Lucky for us, Nicole has shared her secret here.

developing a color palette

Along the same lines, I think you might find this post from a past 5th year studio helpful.

PHOTO:SHOP

I've found that a good place to begin a project like this one to compile images that speak to the qualities you are seeking. Check out these inspiration boards courtesy of Style Me Pretty as...well...inspiration! While these are geared around weddings, you can see how they begin to paint a picture of qualities that could easily be translated into an interior environment.

Don't forget to record these early stages of your design process on your blog. They are just as important as the final results.

week two | INSTAMATIC SCHEMATIC

carpet tile design for Mannington by IARc alum Heather Miller, read more about the concept behind Heather's design here

Image and perception help drive value; without an image there is no perception. Scott M. Davis, Brand Asset Management

In your first assignment you investigated and developed a personal brand. This week you will test how a brand can be expressed in materials.

In an effort to update the shopping center’s image and redirect its appeal to a new market of consumers, the owner of Seasons Greetings Town Centre has hired your firm, Revisioning Retail Design Consulting, to evaluate the possibility of exchanging several of the shopping center’s less-successful chain stores for high-end specialty boutiques. Using given products and concepts as primary reference, your firm must complete a series of conceptual/feasibility studies for new mall stores.

The owner of Seasons Greetings wishes to present your initial ideas, in the form of exploratory material boards (24”x 36” mounted), at a meeting with the shopping center’s board of directors Friday, August 29 at 4 pm. As you will not be present to explain your ideas, it is imperative that your design suggestions speak for themselves with appropriate annotations. Well-executed, high quality graphic and formal techniques are expected in order to sell your design.

Following approval from the board of directors, you will begin a more thorough study of specific store components beginning Wednesday, September 3.

W : mid-week mockup review
F : project deadline

Throughout the semester you will embark on a number of case study investigations. The purpose of these exercises is to heighten your observation of details in the retail environment, thereby increasing your body of knowledge for future projects. For each case study you must write a succinct 500-word analysis. The analysis should be complimented by a series of quality annotated/captioned sketches and photographs (if allowed by the store : be sure to ask permission!) that expand upon your written investigation. Each case study is to be presented on your blog with appropriate links and citations prior to the beginning of class on its due date.

Your first case study assignment, due Monday, August 31, is to review the material components of five retail stores.  How do these materials express the store’s brand?  What are key elements?  Are the surfaces smooth? Textured? Rough? Reflective?  How does the lighting work to highlight particular aspects? Do the materials change throughout the store or stay constant?  Be careful in your selection of stores to choose ones with interesting qualities/features as these will be the most helpful to your design development. You can choose to study stores in a variety of locations (malls, downtowns, retail parks, etc.) as well as those found in books, magazines and online (eek...did I just say this?) as long as they meet this criteria. Make sure, however, that you visit at least 3 of the sites in life. Not finding what you're looking for here in Greensboro? Try a little road trip.