Mini-thesis: Storyboard 1

Mini-thesis Research Paper: Outline

A. Introduction
i. Introduce topic:
Connection between human experience and design of environment or space
ii. State arguments
a. Design creates an atmosphere for space through the design of ambient elements including lighting, sound, and aesthetics
b. Design impacts the human experience of space and produces psychological, sociological, and physiological responses to and behaviors within environment
iii. State thesis:
Elements within environmental design have the power to transform and create a sense of atmosphere for space, as well as influence the overall human experience, behavior, and response to the space.
iiii. Summarize supporting points
The arguments will be supported through examining precedents in set design, interior design, and venue design, as well as the aesthetic significance and ambient elements of each. The arguments will be further supported through exploring the factors that influence human behavior and response to the design of different types of environments or spaces stated above.

B. Body
i. Define Environmental Design
a. Creating the everyday environment in which we live involves complex systems of cultural meaning, visual communication and the use of tools, technology and materials. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_design)
ii. Basic functions of Ambient design
a. Set Mood
b. Engage senses
c. Encourage social interaction
d. Communication
e. Branding



C. Introduce Precedents
i. Classical examples
a. theatre, set/scenic design for the stage
b. interior design and architecture
(http://www.bartkresa.com/)
c. new media examples
projected/interactive environments
(http://www.2minds.de/phyletic-museum.107.0.html)



D. Discuss links between human needs and environment (http://www.wbdg.org/resources/psychspace_value.php)
i. Social
a. comfortable meeting places
b. attributes that encourage social interaction and engagement
c. attributes that attract people to the space
ii. Cultural
a. celebratory spaces
b. cultural symbols
c. sense of uniqueness
iii. Psychological
a. control level of social interaction
b. privacy or distance
c. informal social spaces to encourage relationship development
iv. Aesthetic
a. interesting visual environment
b. design inspired by nature
c. organic patterns, layout, and form
v. Natural
a. light
b. sound
c. space
vi. Sensory
a. light
b. color
c. pattern
d. texture

E. Discuss human response to environment
(http://www.usace.army.mil/usace-docs/design-guides/dg1110-3-122/c-2.pdf)
i. Influential factors
a. sociological
b. psychological
c. physiological
ii. Psychological Reponses
d. perception
e. cognition
f. spatial behavior
F. Closing: Restate the thesis and summarize the entire analysis; share final thoughts

Sources
“Environmental Design”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_design

“Psychosocial Value of Space”, by Judith Heerwagen
http://www.wbdg.org/resources/psychspace_value.php

BARTKRESA Design
http://www.bartkresa.com/

“Creative Venues: Designing for the Experience”
http://www.iaam.org/Facility_manager/Pages/2004_Aug_Sep/Feature_3.htm

“Human Behavior and the Interior Environment”
http://www.usace.army.mil/usace-docs/design-guides/dg1110-3-122/c-2.pdf

Robert Seidel “Phyletic Museum”
http://www.2minds.de/phyletic-museum.107.0.html

Social Change Project: Prototype 2

Concept

We created a piece of street art to be wheat pasted within the Lower East Side (near Tompkins Square Park) commemorating the 1988 Tompkins Square Park Riot, that is representative of how the music and the people influenced and created social change in the area.

We want this piece to remind people of the events that occurred, why they occurred, and what happened as a result. The style and imagery aim to show the current residents the historical significance the square has had to music and society. The tree is a metaphor for how the events branched out, and how social change is so deeply rooted in the events of that night. The social change that resulted was a conglomerate of different ethnicities, musical styles, and social classes. The people who currently live in the area, are not necessarily connected each other than their geographical space, thus the tree becomes not only a symbol of the park, but also a way of unifying different groups within a single space.

Mini thesis concept/pitch

Concept: Create a narrative that explores the relationship between sound and image by composing a piece of visual music.

Visual music is a way of using art and design to interpret sound. The narrative will exist in the form of a “living canvas” in which I will create a painting that follows a musical composition in order to illustrate sound. The visual part of the composition will require documentation of painting through either video or photography, and then converted to digital media for further manipulation. The style of the piece will include techniques that range from fine arts to stop motion, and motion graphics. The music will inform the visual, and the visual will be interpreted from the point of view of the artist. Change over time in the story will be depicted in the build and transformation of paint, as well as in transitional elements of the sound. While the piece will be non-representational, a sense of narrative will be developed in the tone of the music, as well as in the different characteristics and emotions that can be expressed through paint.

Example: "One", Michal Levy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qypqwcrO3YE