Cop2 Practical - Design Development 1

Considering my research into supergraphics, and my initial ideas, I decided to look into the use of colour. Research into existing supergraphics on buildings showed that using colour can make a building stand out from its surroundings, and is a great design tool for drawings peoples attention.

When considering colour, I didn't want to simply choose any colour that was bright ad would grab attention. As the brief asks to strengthen the identity of the museum, I thought the use of colour for the exterior graphics could utilise some of the existing colour schemes within the museums branding. I looked at the images I had taken whilst at the museum, the colour schemes they used for their Wayfinding and banners, to get an idea of their current colour scheme, and how I could reinforce it with my exterior graphics designs.

I experimented with the colours on my illustrations. As the illustrations represent different galleries within the museum, I thought I could utilise colour to highlight the distinctions even more. 

Colours derived from museum's wayfinding.

Colours derived from museum's banners.

As the galleries within the museum are distributed only in 4 out of 6 floors, I found that linking the colour scheme with the Wayfinding system only gave me 3 colours to work with. This did not provide a clear distinction between the different galleries, but actually made the illustrations seem confusing as the viewer would not understand why the 'oriental' illustrations are in the same colour group as the 'self-defence' illustrations. 

Colours derived from the museum's banners, however, proved far more effective. The colours distinguished the 'oriental' gallery and the 'hall of steel', but grouped 'self-defence' and 'hunting', and 'war' and 'tournament'. These groupings are a lot more appropriate and make sense. The colour pallet also extends into 4 colours instead of one, which makes the visual story more interesting.

I tested the colours and illustrations against a grey background. This was because the exterior/architecture of the museum has grey walls, and as I am designing graphics that could be applied to the existing structure, testing my designs against a grey background allows me to gain somewhat of an idea of how they might look in reality against the concrete grey walls of the building.

I decided to experiment with colour further, by assigning a different colour to each gallery, to distinguish and highlight the difference even more. I found that although this was effective, the colour scheme mow became over-crowded and too complex. It would take the audience too much concentration and effort to memorise/remember what each of the 6 colours represent, and would become too much of a hassle for them. Also, this introduces colours to the museum that don't already exist in their branding, which would cause an issue between the cohesion of the exterior and interior.

Assigning different colours for each gallery.

Assigning 4 colours between all galleries, grouping 'war' and 'tournament', and 'self-defence' and 'oriental'.

I realised that the grouping of 'oriental' and 'self-defence' was inappropriate, so this was later changed into 'oriental' standing on its own, and 'self-defence' and 'hunting' being grouped. 

I briefly looked at how the illustrations would be without outline colours, and found that against the grey background, which represents the concrete building wall, the illustrations would not stand out as much and their details would fade. This is why I choose to keep the white outlines on all illustrations.

After all my experiments and considerations, the colour scheme I decided to go with was the one influenced by the banners within the museum. These colours are: green for the 'Oriental' Gallery, Blue for the 'Self-defence' and 'Hunting' Galleries, Purple for the 'War' and 'Tournament' Galleries and Yellow/Orange for the 'Hall of Steel' Gallery.

I went on to colour in all the illustrations I had created according to this colour scheme.
The repetition I have created for each illustration derives from the 'Hall of Steel' Gallery. It is not like this throughout the museum, however, the 'Hall of Steel' Gallery is arguably the most impressive and memorable part of the museum. That's why I thought it would be impactful if the other illustrations followed this same repetitive pattern. This would intrigue people who have not visited the museum before as it would make them question why each illustration is repeated, and also make the one's who have visited the museum feel special and appreciative, as they are able to understand the idea behind the repetition. The repetitive illustration idea could easily become somewhat iconic for the building, just as the 'Hall of Steel' Gallery has.

Cop2 Practical - Initial Ideas

Because the brief asks to design exterior graphics for the building that communicate and strengthen the identity and impact of the museum, my idea was to create graphics that would directly communicate what the museum has to offer for the audience, and to intrigue them into visiting.

To do this, I thought that providing the audience with a 'sneak peak' at the museum would be most effective. I decided to create minimal illustrations that reflected each of the galleries the museum has. In doing this, I will be able to intrigue the audience not only by giving them a preview, but also by showcasing what a vast collection the museum has to offer.

Looking at my primary research of visiting the museum, I thought it would be the most accurate to derive the illustrations from the photographs I had taken. I did this by simply tracing the outlines and main features of some of the most interesting and inviting pieces within each gallery.

Having created illustrations for all the galleries, I decided to explore the exterior architecture of the building, to begin thinking about how these illustrations could be applied. I did this by also creating illustrations of the building. This helped me to gain a better understanding of the shape of the building, and what potential it has for applying supergraphics. It allowed me to start thinking about the size the illustrations could be, and how they would form around the building, its windows, doors and corners.

Cop2 Practical - Supergraphics Research

As the brief asks to design a supergraphic/wall art that could be applied to the existing building of the 'Royal Armouries Museum', I decided to research into existing buildings with supergraphics. This gave me a broader understanding of what supergraphics is, as well as gave me inspiration for how supergraphics can be used to communicate a message, and draw people's attention.

I found that the use of colour and imagery was a big part of supergraphics, as these elements can make the building stand out from its surroundings, as well as tell a story. This inspired my ideas to make illustrations as part of the supergraphics for this project, as this would also allow me to tell a story/send a message to the viewers/audience.
I also realised that a lot of the supergraphics utilise the building's architecture/form/shape to apply the supergraphics in a way that works with the building and compliments it, rather than covering it. This is something that not only look visually appealing, but also enhances and highlights the architecture of the building. From my essay, I know that working architecture and graphic design into a coherent whole has the biggest impact, therefore this is also something I was inspired to do for my designs.

Large typography is used so it can be read far away/reach a wider audience.

Colour used to make building stand out/highlight the entrance.

Illustration is used to give the buildings character.

Supergraphics seen from different angle's/target audience and viewer are considered.

Supergraphics work with and around the building to highlight its character.

architecture/materials are utilised to create graphics.

The building's architecture is utilised, the supergraphics work with and around the building.

Colour is used to make the building stand out/catch people's attention.