See-Saw – Day 1

Yesterday morning I headed over to Gaffa Gallery to begin the 2 day See-Saw project (a part of Sydney Design 2010). The 4 students I’ll be mentoring over the 2 days received the brief, basic design materials (paper, card, tape, pens, knives et.c) and a room to work in (a video camera in the room projected our progress in real time into the main Gaffa Gallery space).

Our theme was typography and semantics and our brief was fairly open ended. After an hour or so of bouncing ideas around we ended up de-constructing the golden mean into basic shapes (like a tangram) and using these basic shapes to form a typeface which we’re also creating in 3D for people to play with on opening night next Saturday.


Basic materials we were given to use. No computers? Oh noes!


Our progress was projected all day into the main gallery space which was open to the public.


My team (is awesome).


No compass set. Irina and I creating the golden mean with the tools we were given.


Tracing the logarithmic spiral.


Using the ancient Chinese tangram game concept we cut up the spiral into basic shapes.


Lunch break on the rooftop (so good to get out of the studio!). Food was supplied by The Commons in Darlinghurst (yum yum).


Kids these days, so hip.


Back in the studio we started designing our typeface using the various pieces we cut out of the golden mean.


Numbering the separate parts of our tangram made documenting each letter design easy.


Cressida working on the letter “a”. We made a grid using string and tape and using cardboard cut-outs of our shapes we started laying out our typeface in the gallery.


Ben working on the 3D element.


Yerevan working on 3D element.


One 3D shape almost done.


Type wall almost done.

Yesterday was a blast. We’ll be at it again today from 10am – 6pm so feel free to drop in and say Hi! Otherwise be sure to check out the final show on Saturday where the results from all 5 groups will be on show.

For more information visit: http://www.sydneydesign.com.au/2010/index.php/exhibitions/see-saw-a-collection-of-short-stories

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