Wayfinding Illustrations in Context

Exhibition Poster - Grid and Layout

When creating the A1 Exhibition Poster, different grids and layout were experimented with , to achieve the most suitable hierarchal grid in order for the poster to be communicated to the general public best. Modular, Hierarchal and column grids were experimented with before reaching a conclusion to use a modular grid, as this allowed for the most versatility and movement within the design, whilst also allowing it to remain structured.

Subjective Symbols

Objective Symbols

Colour Choices

Symbol Association

During an interim crit, I asked which symbols are best associated with each of the different types of shops; Health and Beauty, Fashion, Jewellery, Food and Drink, Specialist Shops and Gift Shops. An overwhelming number of people stated that the semi-circle reminded them of Food and Drink, using words such as refreshing to describe the symbol, and liking it to that of a shape of a fruit. Jewellery was most associated with the star shape to the intricacy of the shape and the likeness to diamonds and gems. The black and white contrasting square, most people associated with Fashion describing it as chic, classy and modern. The flower shape, was mostly associated with health and beauty, describing it as whole and balanced, similar to Frutiger's idea of a circle implying life and birth. The cross which originally was used to represent Health and Beauty, is now going o be allocated to gifts as most people thought that it best represented gifts, due to the net shape of a box and the delicate, detailed shape.  Finally the square is left to be the Specialist Shops, as Frutiger's idea of the square being the strongest symbol, makes sense to use the most forceful shape. 

Interim Crit - Wayfinding - Studio Brief 01

- One outcome of the crit is that the symbolic, numbered system could become quite complicated, therefore maybe just use one symbol for each of the shops. To overcome this problem, place a large supergraphic map on the floor, which using colour coding directs people towards the shops both directly opposite and above them, whilst still incorporating the shapes and symbols found within the architecture of the exchange.
  - An idea for the use of colour, would carry out research or personal knowledge as to which c
colours are associated with the different types of shops.
  - Another idea for further research was to revisit the corn exchange and count the number of units within the building, to see how many sides the shape needs for direction.
- To overcome the issue of the balcony and ground level, maybe an idea is to place a signage system on the steps, directing people up or down the stairs.
- An additional concept was to create symbols for the different events and shows which are held within the ground floor event space.
- Due to the constant movement of shops in and out an idea was to have a interchangeable lettering system, as in the light up boxes, with changeable letters and then create the symbols to be placed within the box as well. Therefore the type will not be fixed and will no longer need to be changed every time.