175 minutes w/ nils rotgans

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Admin

Category: Project
Tags: Activism, interaction design, Interim, Mixed Media, Morality, Nils Rotgans, Politics

Well hello, could you perhaps briefly introduce yourself?

I’m a graduation student interaction design. My focus is to make design with new media and old. Im very interested in information design and interaction design. To combine design and new media to com to a new elegant designs.

How is the whole graduation experience doing it for you?

on the academy we always had a instruction to make a project from. I think we had a lot of freedom but with the last project you could do everything. I thought that was very hard at start. But it is so fantastic to start research project just smal and make it to something big. I have loved the journey the most. Every time an other way to explore. And a totally unexpected end of the project. About the time pressure I think that is very personal, I actually work better with a fast deadline coming up.

Could you tell me something about your research project and what it’s about ?

Well it’s about my dislike on text. And how the dutch politic system and the media around it. Every time there are elections the political parties bring out a book about everything they promise us. That was the start of the project. I’m a person that is very match visual thinker. I don’t like reading a lot. And have a hard time to read every book that the parties give to the public. I wanted to make a visual interface that trimmed every personality and fake promise from the system. A honest image of the dutch politic system. without opinions and promises. Just show what the politic really is doing.

What were some important references for the project?

I had a lot of inspiration in data visualizations from the british and american money streams. And the most of my data i used is calculated by CPB and CBS. That are dutch agencies that keep track of the data what the politic generates.

Does this project to you feel like your mona lisa of projects?

Well, this is my biggest project jet. So in that perspective yes. But it is far from finished i need to find the time, money and energy to make it something real. The part that is now ready is just been researching. It is not reachable for everyone.

Could you tell me a little about your thesis?

Well, it’s could interactive architecture. Its about the media art in public locations. and what the artists do with the fact that more and more of our public space get more cameras and security. The big CCVT spaces that is slowly coming up. We get scanned and put in a archief. we don’t have any control about that and we don’t now about it. With my design i did the same. People that come in to the graduation expo, every one of them i photographed the face. Without their knowledge. after i took the picture i made a “offline” archive. I Printed the faces. My aim was to distribute knowledge from my thesis. So every time a person came in the room he printed his face with the text of my thesis. The person who did’t want his or her face to by in the archief needed to take my thesis.

Where did you do your internship?

At Art+Com a berlin based interactive media studio. They make a lot of installations with new media. i liked them because they work with big project and smal and the design is mostly indoors. it was a great way to learn a lot. A lot of different professions are working there. architects, interaction designers, graphic designers, hackers/developers ect. All to make conceptual work with new media.

Did doing an internship also influence some beliefs you have about design? and how did it change you?

Yes, but i was there for 6 months a lot of time to learn about a lot. I think my work did get a lot more mature. I cant say exactly what changed in my design, it is more the overall look and feel. The thing that did not change was my information design. That was the thing they did not have.

Did they serve avocado’s during lunch?

Ha!? not that i recall. sorry not of the top of my head. its already a year ago.

Next up is the practical assignment, could you tell me a little about that?

Sure!, we worked together with GoShort a short film, film festival in Nijmegen. We were ask to make a new sort of comment system. Like you find on soundcloud, youtube, reddit ect. Well you run fast in problems if you try that. we all know a lot of sh*t get on the internet and we did’t want that. so no text. also there needed to be a way to simple make a commend on a movie. In the and we came up with an idea with drawing a simple line. the hight of the line represented how good you think it was. and the width position with the timeline of the movie. People who went to the festival could do that on there smartphone and on ipads in the main hall, for each movie. In the main hall where also 2 big interactive posters that showed the last commends, best movie until now and stuf like that. On the last day the best movies always get an award. This year every winner of an awards did get the average line from there movie back. we 3d printed that at the last moment for al of the winers. this line was every interesting because you say what part of the movie the public found great and what not so much.

Five years from now, what will you be doing?

I dont know. i want to start same day my own little studio. but i want to work for a nice big studio until than. i want to go back go berlin. but there is no work for my at the time.

Do you have some tips or advice for upcoming graduate or new students?

Listen to this! all day all night https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCy7lLQwToI

i dont realy have any tips. its your own “Journey”.

82 minutes w/ Marjolein visser

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Admin

Category: Project
Tags: Activism, Book Design, Graphic design, Identity, Marjolein Visser, Morality, Open internet, Politics, Social Engagement, Speculative Design

Hey, could you briefly introduce yourself?

Hi, I am Marjolein Visser, 25 yrs old. When I was a little I told my mother I could do design better. There it all started.

So how is the whole graduation experience doing it for you?

I think its fine, unfortunately I had some delay during my graduation but in the end its all turned out good. Mmm, first I thought it would be like that, the biggest, nicest, greatest world reformer project ever. But in the end… it’s not. I chose something I like doing, so that’s good!

Would you tell us about your research project?

My research project is about Vladimir Putin. Its about Modern Propaganda. I think he conducts propaganda with is own pictures, in a modern way. He is making his own cult of person. He is living in his own lie. He wants to be an Übermensch for the Russian people. I compared his pictures with different images. Art, Internet culture and movies. This to show how bizarre the pictures of him actually are. It’s also a wink to what he wants to emit to the rest of the world.

What were some important influences for the creation of your project the way it’s constructed currently?

I think Oliver Laric, with one of his projects, called Versions, made in 2010, was a great inspiration for this project.

Does your graduation, to you, feel as like it’s your ‘Mona Lisa’ of work so far?

Yeay – its not really directly related to graphic design. It’s about political art in public space. In my thesis I write about five different artists who make political art in public. I compare them with each other. It’s a very interesting subject. I think for example art in public space is way more effective than art in a museum. It’s more confronting.

Would you like to continue working like you did now, in the future?

Well I really like politics. Politics are always a main subject in my projects. I was curious what other forms of art uses Politics and how they are doing it. I think you can always learn something from other disciplines. So I did with my thesis.

Could you tell us about your practical assignment?

I’ve made the Master Architecture Catalogue of 2013 in collaboration with Simone Pieterse. It went really well. They where very happy with the result, we where even ask to do a new project for them. In this catalogue there are 16 graduates. We’ve made 16 books. Every graduate has his own book. There is no particular order, you can arrange it yourself. Every student gets the same attention in the catalogue. We also used architecture terms on the books and in the box, to summarize the projects.

Where did you do your internship?

At the Jongens Ronner in Rotterdam. It’s not the most famous studio on the planet, but it was really instructive for me. They where very relax. I felt like a full employee in the studio, which was very nice. I designed a book and even came up with the title of the book.

What did you learn or change about yourself during the internship?

I became more secure of my designs and learned a lot. I also use more colour in my work. I also became more interested in modern typography.

Did they serve avocado during lunch?

Yes! Of Course! And peppers, fresh salad, very huge hagelslag and other nice stuff. We played also some table tennis to relax.

In what sense do you see yourself working these methods you’ve used the past few months in the future?

Graphic Design is changing a lot. Its way more digital now then before. You can also see this in the study and the change of heads in the study. I think its good to prepare the students for the digital stuff that’s coming up. But I still really like designing books!

What will you be doing in 5 years from now?

I’ll be sailing around the world next year. I am also running my own business –called Vrisser. I hope I can do some work experience while visiting other countries. I like to work at an awesome studio somewhere on this planet!

Any advice or tips for upcoming students?

FOLLOW YOUR HEART, LIVE YOUR DREAMS, DON’T DREAM YOUR LIFE, etc, etc!

71 minutes w/ pleun gremmen

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Admin

Category: Project
Tags: Activism, Architecture, Cartography, Digital design, Graphic design, Hidden Data, Mixed Media, Open internet, Pleun Gremmen, Politics, Social Engagement

Could you briefly introduce yourself?

Well, I’m Pleun, a graduation student at ArtEZ Arnhem.

Pleun, how is the whole graduation experience doing it for you?

It’s been like a rollercoaster ride. One day i’m really stressed out and panicking and the next i’m totally fine. It is exciting and terrifying at the same time. There can be a lot of pressure, but I guess that depends on myself really… and if my rollercoaster goes up or down at that moment.

Would you tell us something about your research project?

I’m building a little local network with a wireless router to start a discussion about net neutrality and control over the internet in general. In my project I try to make people understand certain parts of the structure of internet better because I believe that when you understand something better, you can try to control it better, or your actions with it anyway. I choose a wireless router because it’s one of the smallest nodes in an internet physical structure. By zooming in I hope to make it a less complex problem.

What or who were some important influences for the creation of your project the way it’s constructed currently?

I think my internship had had influence in the way that I’m working on it and the new possibilities I see. And I think the class Network Cultures we had last year also had a big influence. My project subject has an overlap with my subject now and I really learned new ways of researching. Lastly Vincent and Lucas have had an influence, my boyfriend and a friend of mine. They taught me programming and helped with parts I couldn’t do myself.

Do your graduationprojects, to you, feel as like it’s your Mona Lisa of your work so far?

I hope each of my projects are slightly better than the previous ones. So far then yes, but I have a lot to learn still. I wouldn’t dare compare my work to Mona Lisa though.

Onto a new topic then, could you briefly inform us on the subject of your thesis?

My thesis is about two fields within graphic design: research & design and information design. I’m researching the gap between those two and trying to see if parts of the fields can combine into a new one.

Has your thesis had a certain influence on deciding on the research assignment? If yes, in what way?

Not really, but it has influenced the way I look at and use design method in general. I guess you could say my graduation project fits in the new field that I am proposing within my thesis.

To what sense would you like this project, and it’s methodology, to correspond to your practice after graduation?

I think I will look back at my project as a learning process and try to improve the methodology I used. I do like these fields in graphic design, research & design and information design. I can see myself making more projects similar to what I’m doing now.

Where did you do your internship?

My internship was at the studio Catalogtree in Arnhem. They’re specialized in information design and do lot’s of very interesting assigned and free work. I think the biggest change they made is that I try to be more relaxed while doing projects. At Artez I’m often very stressed out, and they were so organized and relaxed. I really try to work more like them. Also they have great inspiration outside graphic design itself and lots of ideas all the time. And of course they learned me a lot about doing infographics, which I’m really excited about.

Did they serve avocado during lunch?

Haha, no, not that I noticed. But that is one of the few things they didn’t serve. The lunches were quite amazing, and we took turns in cooking them. We even tried to come up with theme weeks. We had a ‘circle’ week once, and we were still talking about a CMYK week, but we couldn’t quite figure out what would be cyan enough.

Could you inform us on your partner, client and type of assigment for the practical assignment?

I’m working with Stan the Natris on my pratical assignment for Valiz, which is a small publisher in Amsterdam. They mostly publish books about art, research and critique and we were asked by them to publish a few books out of a series of ten online. We were asked to research the possibilities and choose a method that we thought was most fitting.

The collaboration has been super so far. I think we work quite well together. Although I’m a bit chaotic and he’s super organized, haha.

Five years from now, you’ll be doing what?

I hope i’m working in a small graphic design studio somewhere in the world or collaborating with someone in a studio of my own. But first i’m going to take a long holiday!

Any tips for upcoming graduate students, or for new students?

For new students: DON’T. Haha, or at least be prepared. It’s going to be a hell of a ride, but as I said, it is worth it and you are going to learn a lot and meet some wonderful people. As for graduation students I guess I would say try to pick a topic close to what you already love and know stuff about. And relax! it’s going to be fine in the end.

207 minutes w/ maartje de goede

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Admin

Category: Project
Tags: Activism, Graphic design, interaction design, Maartje de Goede, Mixed Media, Politics, Social Engangement, Spatial Design, Speculative Design

Hi! Could you briefly introduce yourself?

Hi! I’m Maartje, I’m 21 and live in Utrecht. I think you can call me a graphic designer even though
I still don’t know what that means. Through my work I try to make the world a nicer place.

So Maartje, how is the whole ‘graduation experience’ doing it
for you?

It’s less stressful than expected! I haven’t even done an allnighter yet and only had the occasional ‘oh my god, what will i do with my future!’–panic attack. It’s fun. And I really like the free printer in our own classroom. Also the plant.

Would you tell us about your research project?

I’ve researched the impacts that our society would suffer if we’d go from being a welfare state to
a participation society, as our current government would like. As a response to the things that would deteriorate, I’ve come up with inventions. They’re products that help people participate in society, Dutch citizens can build them themselves with the manuals I produced. The collection of inventions is shown on a website* and will keep growing with suggestion that people can submit themselves. During the graduation expo I’ll show all the products that have been invented till then.

*departicipatiepraktijk.nl

What were some important influences for the creation of your project the way it’s constructed currently?

I think ArtEZ itself was a big influence. I have never really found my way in graphic design… aaand… the school has shown me that as well. I’m not just that into typography and ‘contemporary design culture’. I’d decided I wanted to make something fun and I didn’t think school was fun last year, so I took a big leap and made my most non–graphic design project ever and that really worked. It’s what I want to do. My internship** has been another big influence, over there I learned how to make art projects real and get the public to participate in them.

** Circus Engelbregt

Does your graduation, to you, feel as like it’s your ‘Mona Lisa’ of work so far?

Nope, very much not the Mona Lisa in terms of aesthetics. It is my most real and accesible work so far though, and since that’s what I aspire I guess you could say it feels like my best project.

Ok, well let’s go to another topic. Could you briefly inform us on the subject of your thesis?

I could! My thesis is about aesthetics in grapheme synesthesia–visualisation, which probably makes most people none the wiser. Grapheme–synesthesia is a condition which I have that makes people read in colour: all digits are connected to a specific colour in the mind of a synesthete. For example, in my mind I see the letter A as a forest green, and the number 3 as orange.

This has helped me a lot with learning languages and could help people that have trouble with reading and learning languages, because it adds another factor to help remember words. People have tried to visualise this experience in both science and art for ages, but it’s never exactly right. In my thesis I look for a way to visualise this form of synesthesia on the border of art and science. The thesis is a source book for typographers who wish to make a coloured typeface that can visualise synesthesia and in that way help people with readingproblems.

So yeah, it has absolutely nothing to do with my research project.

Has your thesis had a certain influence on deciding on the research assignment?if yes, in what way?

It hasn’t had any influence. I briefly thought about making a synesthesia–font as my research assignment but then I remembered that I don’t really like typography and that there are people around that are way better than me at that, that’s why it’s a sourcebook.

To what sense would you like your this project, and the methodology used, to correspond to your practice after graduation?

Oh dear, here come the future–questions, I’ve been trying to avoid them for weeks. I do think about them, there’s just so much I want to do!

I would like to make more projects like this one. I’d like to work together with people who care about the same things as I do, and create things in which people can participate, and projects that get their own life after they’ve been introduced to the world.

Where did you do your internship?

At Circus Engelbregt, former EGBG, the studio of Martijn Engelbregt in Amsterdam.

In what way has the experience of doing an internship changed you, or, your (design) beliefs or (work)habits?

I have learned so much during my internship! It was an amazing experience. I’ve come to realise that a lot is possible if you just act like it’s a normal thing to ask, do or make. I still have the same ‘designbeliefs’ but they’re expanded to the belief that I can do whatever the hell I want if the story’s good enough. Spoken and unspoken design rules are very breakable if you break them consciously.

Also: yoga and holistic worldviews!

Did they serve avocado during lunch?

Hahahaha. Yes, all the time. I’ve come to appreciate avocado very much.It’s the ultimate designerfood.

Onto another one of the projects of graduation: could you inform us on your partner, client and type of assigment for the practical assignment?

I worked together with Vincent Hammingh for the IABR (via Catalogtree), we made a publication about Carbon Added Tax, a great solution for climate change problems.

The corporation went really well, I think we complement eachother well in our work! (Fortunately, Vincent is very good in typography and I in turn can handle lots of data) The assignment went great and smoothly. Besides that, it was about saving the world, or at least the climate, so that’s great anyhow.

We had a lot of fun (Oh! And if I can I’d like to thank Walter from the printing work place here for his patience with all our weird printing technique–wishes).

Five years from now, you’ll be doing what?

OH DEAR LORD REALLY?

Okay… I’ll either be singing in a traveling folkband in Scandinavia, or be chained to a tree somehwere, or be making extremely succesful art projects or I’ll have written ten books and will live in a castle with all my friends and adopted pets and actually I have no clue whatsoever, but I hope I’ll be saving the world in some way.

And last but not least: any tips or advice for upcoming graduate students, or new students?

Run away, run away! Or the all–time favourite: be yourself, or at least try to find out who you are and what you want and don’t let anyone tell you that that’s not enough. And be healthy, sleep and sanity are more important than good grades. If anyone says otherwise: screw ‘em.