Introduction

The ‘Ways of Seeing’ module comprised of a series of mini projects, spread across four weeks, all gathered into a handmade sketchbook. The projects all focused on drawing and its use as an expressive tool alongside research into what character is and what makes us who we are.

Blind Drawing

To introduce the module and to start drawing immediately, we worked in groups of four and started to make quick 20 second blind drawings of each other, layering each person’s face 3 times in different colours.

This allowed us to freely express what we saw onto paper without hesitation or worrying about getting every detail perfect. In reality, none of these drawings were anywhere close to matching the person’s actual face, however they did have certain likenesses which could be traced to the original subject.

By the end of the activity, I felt more confident in my ability to quickly get a representation of something to paper. This is an incredibly useful skill to have as a designer as it is important to be able to mark out  sketches as well as being able to express an idea in a very short space of time for personal use or for presenting to a client.

Quick Interview

Our second activity advanced on the blind drawings and involved taking longer to draw out a person while also incorporating an interview to build up a bigger profile of our subject. In twos, one person sketched a portrait of the other while their partner conducted a small interview to gather more information on who they were talking to and what makes them the person they are. After 10 minutes, both switched roles and ended up with a drawing and a list of answers which combined into a bigger profile.

From my own interview, I was able to find out more about what my partner’s interests, past experiences and their future ambitions. Combined with the sketch, I felt as if I knew much more about them than if I was left to naturally start talking to my partner, with the drawing adding to my understanding of their physical make-up.

This introduction to quickfire interviewing allowed me to start developing my inquiry skills to extract useful information. A skill used by every successful designer to work with clients and design to best suit their needs.

Conductive Ink Drawings

Moving into new territory, our next task was to create a drawing of the person we had previously interviewed with embedded LEDs using conductive ink. This opened a new door into electronics and circuitry as well as continuing to develop the range of portraits in our sketchbook. To begin I sketched out a basic portrait from the front and side, on one side of paper, connected in the bottom corner of the page. Upon this, I made a basic circuit including a red and green LED and a button cell battery. Using the conductive ink like wire, I applied it over the intersecting lines on my drawing and placed the LEDs and Battery onto it. I then used a small piece of copper tape to act as a switch, bridging the gap between the final line of ink and the top of the battery. This could be lowered or raised  to turn the LEDs on or off.

Although the circuit worked and the LEDs lit up when the switch was closed, the light emitted was barely visible and couldn’t be seen from more than a few centimetres away. This was a result of the ink’s resistance being too high for current to flow through effectively. To counteract this, I had to use more of the copper tape as wiring to allow the electricity to flow better, making the LEDs much brighter.

I enjoyed working with LEDs and circuits as I now know I can apply those skills to other projects to create a greater visual impact in models and add a level of interactivity.

Layered Visual Profile

To conclude the interviews for the week, a final task was given to create a layered portrait of another person, incorporating interview answers within it. For this we set off in pairs and asked each other questions like before. Then after gathering answers, we started to plan out and make our layered portraits.

Using the answers from my partner, I decided to make a 3 page, transparent layered face, with the upper layer being a simplistic representation of the person’s face, the middle being a collection of images that make up their interests and a skull on the bottom, filled with words and phrases relating to answers given. I used clear acetate to draw on and stick cut out paper to allow parts of each layer to be visible simultaneously from the front. I also constructed a frame in order to view them spaced apart at different angles to make the most of the transparent acetate.

Reading Week Mapping + Observation

Over reading week I had no timetabled classes and therefore was given a task to complete in my spare time. For 5 days during the week away, I had to draw something notable and a visual representation of where I went each day. The resulting 10 drawings collected into a representation of my week and explored different ways of expressing a journey.

I drew various objects and places throughout the week, ranging from pizzas to showers and even concert stages, each representing a part of the day I deemed memorable. At the same time I created a range of visual maps in different styles to communicate my travels and actions for each day. These included treasure maps, illustrated streets and even more abstract clock like drawings, with my journey documented around the face of it.

At the end of the week I was able to reflect my entire journey from the Monday morning to the Saturday night (excluding Thursday). While simple and straightforward, it allowed me to practice being creative when it comes to communicating mundane information.

Visual CV + Career Planning

For the second last project, we had to create a creative, highly visual based ‘CV’ outlining our skills, experiences, interests, influences and our aspirations for the future. This involved reviewing all previous skills gained in the run up to studying at DJCAD as well as those gained in the first couple of months. It also made us start to think about where we want to be after obtaining our degrees and creating a plan of how to achieve this.

I started by writing a list of all the information I wanted to include from work experience to the designers I like before deciding on presentation. I thought about a diagram of a person with the information inside their body, but instead opted for a building with each floor having a different section of the CV. I preferred this idea as I could have past experiences at the bottom and as the floors went up the information became more present until the top floors where my future intentions were presented.

I then drew a quick diagram with the relevant information on each floor with furniture and objects relating to the themes. Finally, I used computer drawing software to create the final, digital CV.

The final iteration cut back on descriptive comment to provide a more visually stimulating graphic while maintaining a basic level of information. I feel this worked better as the appearance of this CV contributes most to its success.

I really enjoyed this project as it allowed me to start planning my future well in advance, which was something I had never previously considered. This preparation will help me throughout my time at university and for years after when deciding on career paths and how to achieve my goals.

Arduino Flatpack Persona

The final project of the module combined skills and knowledge gained across the prior three weeks.

In preparation for it, we undertook an Arduino workshop, learning how to code microcomputers to power LEDs in a variety of ways. This introduced us not only to the Arduino board, but basic coding and circuit building skills which could then be improved upon and advanced in our spare time.

The aim for the week was to create a ‘character’ using only paper, which could be flattened out to fit into our sketchbooks and reassembled with no other tools or adhesives. The paper models also had to involve some form of Arduino controlled LED lighting to animate the character and bring it to life. This model didn’t have to be restricted to an alive, animated being but instead could have been a space, product, object or something else. The main criteria was that it had to have some form of persona that gave the character a deeper significance than the surface appearance.

I started out by constructing a small, pre-designed paper person from an online template to get into the mindset and get a feel for what sort of outcome I could produce. I then used this as inspiration and set about quickly drawing out a paper ‘net’ which could be cut out and folded and tucked into a three-dimensional person.

Unfortunately, the model didn’t hold itself together well and had to be assembled using copious amounts of masking tape. The internal size also didn’t allow much space to mount the LEDs and so I had to reconsider the construction methods for my character. Whilst researching and practising different paper folding and modelling techniques, I started to reconsider my the idea of using a person and instead a space or inanimate being such as a tree.

At this point I opted for a small forest scene, with glowing and fading LEDs in the background to create an eerie atmosphere, making the forest feel alive. I messed about with cutting up paper before discovering how to curve a piece of paper, twist it and then bring it back on itself to create a small, enclosed space with an open end. I then set about cutting out trees to place in the opening before finally cutting slits in the top of the curved paper for the trees to poke through. This prototype gave me the final shape and scene that I was looking for but was comprised of multiple pieces of paper stuck down with tape. Looking for an extra challenge I decided to create the final model from a single sheet of paper which could then be folded and curved into itself to form the scene.

Whilst working on the final design, I started to play about with an Arduino and some RGB LEDs. I used some pre-existing code in the Arduino software for fading 2 pin LEDs and adapted it for use with the more complex 4 pin RGB LEDs. I then duplicated the code and renamed the variables to allow for a second LED to be added and controlled independently. From here I randomised some of the timings for how long it took the LEDs to fade in and out and set each one to different brightness levels to make a natural, random fading pattern.

Finally, after figuring out how to make the last paper iteration, I assembled the LEDs alongside the paper model to produce a small portal into a forest with mysterious green lights fading in and out of the background. I used a piece of semi transparent paper to diffuse the harsh light from the LEDs into softer glows and a black piece of card as a shroud to create a more atmospheric scene.

 

I was incredibly pleased with the final outcome and how it all fit together in the end. One feature that I took advantage of such as the cutout shape of trees on the paper looking like shadows cast by the green light. This coincidental discovery added to the depth of the model and made it feel more atmospheric.

This final project proved to be the most enjoyable by far and allowed me to start to properly invest time into learning about Arduino and coding (something I have been hoping to do for some time). I loved the model making task with the ‘flatpack’ restriction as it forced me to be creative in order to end up with a successful character.

Overview

The Ways of Seeing module has proven to be invaluable in the skills it has taught me and the way it has improved my confidence in drawing and planning for the future. From Arduino and LEDs to interviewing and reflection, many skills picked up or developed will be highly useful as I continue my studies and in the world of work thereafter.

Sketchbook Tour

This module began with the construction of our very own personal sketchbooks, which were filled up, taken with us and bashed about for 4 weeks. This video tour looks through the entire contents of the sketchbook, giving an insight into every task and project from the module, compiled in order.