Mid-term Assessment and Berg Talk

Design & Interaction pathway (which is what I'm in) had to do a 5 minute pdf presentation for our mid-term assessment. Above are my slides. 39 slides to go through in 5 minutes sounds pretty crazy (7.69 seconds per slide!) but my timing went perfect. My strategy was to say somewhat one sentence (or one concept) per slide and that way timing became easier to predict and it was easy to memorize the entire script.
This assessment was all about looking forward rather than looking back. Situating Your Practice.

That leads me back to Berg talk we had last month.

The talk was given by Matt Jones and he mentioned just like how physical materials want to become certain forms, technology also wants to be in certain form. Sometimes it's weird to explain that, because people think technology is this thing that human have the power to manipulate in whatever ways, but it also has a voice. Just like a sculptor listens to the voice of wood or metal, same goes for technology too; we can listen to its voice when working with it.

I personally don't have much desire for self-expression nor I don't come up with an idea that I'm eager to create. I'm sort of more into obtaining a dialogue with a concept, and for instance Explaining Relativity project was all about listening to a material, and giving form to an abstract concept in a way that felt natural. That process is different from self-expression, answering client briefs, or solving problem. It's not that one is better than another or they have clear separate division, but I do think they all have different processes.
Ever since we worked on the Taschen for Tablets, we've been thinking about what feels natural for digital technology. I think listening to material is as exciting as listening to people. What Berg seems to be doing well is that even though they are tech-savvy company, they are being very friendly to technology. And by being friendly to technology, they are somehow making technology friendly to people too.

Here are some notes taken at the talk:

素材の声を聞いて造形する。「形を作る」というより、「形を見つける」。彫刻家に限った話ではない。例えば、テクノロジーでも、「テクノロジーがどんな形になりたがっているか」に耳を澄ますことで生まれる作品には、優しさがある。
そういうことをしている会社が、Berg。

私も、「こういうの作りたーい！」とか「すごいアイディアひらめいたー！」というよりは、データやらコンセプトやら素材やらと向き合って、「ふむふむ、どういう形になりたいのかい」とカウンセリングを繰り返す方が向いている気がする。デジタルもアナログも、素材として捉えて、どうやったら素材を活かせるかなと、向き合いながら対話するのが楽しい。素材と向き合うのは、クライエントの要望に沿うのとも、問題を解決するのとも、また違った楽しみ。

Taku

Taku working in his studio. He's a shoe designer, who now does a lot of bag designs. I've known him since I was 18 and there are countless things that I've learnt from him. Though in the end, it comes down to a simple fact that it just is very motivating and inspiring to see someone around you working extremely hard. Seeing him immersed in work certainly makes me want to work harder for what I do too; to work hard for design.
He has influenced me tremendously. He has all my respect.

靴やバッグのデザインを手がけるデザイナーのタクさんの工房。彼は、私が最も影響を受けた人のひとり。

The AMP Studio

It's been a little while now but I went to visit Ayako, Michelle and Pip's studio–The Amp Studio–in Hackney.
It's a newly set-up studio by three CSM graduate jewellery designers. I think AMP is such a great name for a collective, with reference to amplifier and ampersand. They certainly had a lucky initials.
When I went, they were still waiting for their tables and so I had the privilege of seeing an empty room with Michelle working on the floor... which was really cute.
It's a lovely space with lovely people who make lovely jewellery. Pip, whom I met for the first time, taught me how to knit. I would love to work or collaborate with them in the future.
More information about them can be found at http://theampstudio.tumblr.com/. They are planning on having open studio and workshops so stay tuned.

この夏にセントマを卒業した３人のジュエリーデザイナー、Ayako、Michelle、Pipが新しく開いたハックニーのスタジオThe Amp Studio（アンプ・スタジオ）に少し前になるのだけれど、遊びに行った。まだ机が届いていないにも関わらず、たくましく床で作業をする後ろ姿が可愛かった。
早速、ニットの仕方を教えてもらったのだけれど、この先ウォークショップやオープンスタジオなどを企画するそうなのでそれも楽しみ。素敵な３人のガールズのスタジオで、是非一緒に何かコラボレーションがしたいな。
詳細は彼女たちのウェブサイトにてhttp://theampstudio.tumblr.com/

Richard Kindersley Studio Visit

Carving on stones sound like something from ancient times, but if we think about it, it still happens all the time. Richard Kindersley is a designer who specializes in typography and carving. We were lucky to have a chance to visit his studio last week.
What he does certainly has got a lot to do with craftsmanship, but at the same time he is a problem solver and a challenger, so what he does is 'design' without a doubt. He shared a lot of interesting stories with us but one thing that stuck with me is how he emphasized the importance of constantly pushing yourself to do new things. Clients come to you because they liked what you did in the past. They ask and expect things to be done in a similar way as how you have previously done. That, however, means that you are stuck with the same way of doing things. It's important for you to keep on trying something new as your personal projects, so that when client comes, you can show them not just your past but also your future.

「石に文字を掘る」なんて昔話みたいだけれど、当たり前だけれど今でもこうやって手作業で行っていて、そのような文字を石に掘るデザインを多く手がけるのがRichard Kindersley。彼率いるデザイン事務所に見学に行く機会を得れたのだけれど、これが意外とおもしろかった。割りと職人的な行為なのに、そこにあるのはれっきとしたデザイナーの姿勢で、新しいこと、おもしろいことにチャレンジし続けるかっこいいおじいちゃんデザイナーでした。
考えてみたこともない職業の話を色々聞けて、なるほどと関心しまくり。例えば、建物に掘る場合だと、例えイギリスの冬みたいな最低の気候（雨、湿気）でも、毎日現場に通って、少しずつ文字を掘らなければいけないとか。英語の文字の綴りを間違えた失敗談とか（石を彫るとなると、間違いを正すのは至難・・・）。ロンドンは空気が汚染されているから、深めに掘らないと、すぐに石が削れて文字が読みにくくなるとか。