gaming

Creativity

These are models right?

Came across this video and it's got that odd feel of the real and the fake. I love it.

The Sandpit from Sam O'Hare on Vimeo.

AK47

Dave Gray-Knowledge Games: A Grammar for Creativity and Innovation from Interaction Design Association on Vimeo.

urban psychology part deux - best things come in threes

I have written about social attraction and leaders forming paths for others to follow in a previous blog. I have been on the look out for another example and came across this (you can see another shot here) tonight in the pouring rain. For me these are the fascinating parts of society and how we interact with our environment. It leads me to thinking about the concept of bins again (a recent obsession), and what in some peoples eyes what bins represent. Is it that by using bins it is a sense of being conformist and so people rebel? or is it just plan being lazy?

NOTE TO SELF: I must do something with this.

Homebase adverts

I saw this on the tv the other day. It's very bizarre how we have been talking about train stations in ARK for the last few months. Hope you enjoy it.

Fascinated with Barcelona

I have finally visited the city that is Barcelona, I managed to get out there for four days. over the weekend just gone. To many people the fact that I didn't see the cathedral or any gaudi stuff would have ment I wouldn't have had a good time. But for me I wanted to get a feel for Barcelona in a local sense. I was lucky to be staying with friends who have been there now for about half a year or so so they pointed us out to different areas which were really great places.

It's an interesting town in the sense that it is only european city i can think of that seems to have been planned. And funny thing is, it actually works. I because quite interested in this aspect of the city and have thought about alot since. I was particularly interested in the idea of public pride in the city, which in many ways feels very similar to the Welsh sense of pride. This is born out in their love of their team Barcelona and also for me the refuge system was of great interest odd I know but the whole different approach to it struck me.

Due to the wide streets large bins which are cater for different material waste are set up along the roads, so in essence removing 'bin day' allowing the streets to be cleaner as litter is not pulled apart by animals in the night, and everyone looks after the bins everyone is responsible rather than just looking after your own.

Specialisation in sectors and businesses'

NOT A BLOG ABOUT BIKES.



On friday I went to one of the Pierhead Sessions. I managed to get a ticket for the George Monbiot's keynote lecture. (thank you @harri80 for the ticket). For me it was interesting to hear someone who I had recently quoted in my MA thesis. While most of the speech was about climate change and the impact of Carbon Dioxide is having on the planet. I was particularly taken with a small section of the lecture around the concept of specialisation. The sheer complexity of climate change and the science surrounding it has made the language in Monbiot's words, almost impossible for people to penetrate and understand the scientific facts. To such an extent that 'even the scientist don't understand what another scientist means'. There are a number of points that I have been thinking about around this subject;

Over the last few years Hoffi has moved from a company that has tried to do everything for everyone to a much more focused approach where we target branding both on and offline. This specialisation is then introduced throughout all market sectors. It is a classic way of structuring a business. For example can provide many different services for a particular sector or you can provide a specific service for all sectors.

Although it has been documented before this, it is probably Kevin Roberts book 'Lovemarks' that discusses the idea of brands moving away from the traditional attention advertising, to an attraction economy. This is taking place through many different portals both on and offline but there are two things that seem to be a re-occurring themes. The first being storytelling and the second is conversation. So for me the interest lies in how companies / brands / scientists / governments / people, communicate complex issues to the correct audiences in a way that they understand yet do not feel spoken down to or unengaged / uninvolved?

My final part of this brainstorming ramble is the 'missing link'. Recently my work with ARK and investigating other similar co-design programmes such as dott and creative co-op I have come to think that maybe there is a group of people that could be the link between these groups of people. As translators these people could bring information together and then tailor them to the reader. In someways this has been what 'designers' have done for years. However traditionally they have done it through a physical response. It could have been a website, brochure even an tv advert. But what if the designers role were to change from being a 'maker' in this sense and move more to facilitator? The rise of co-production or co-design are some examples as to how this maybe slowly taking place. The role of a designer could ironically become more and more specialised to allow for people to understand each other? Some designers choosing a traditional craft approach. With others using socialising as their 'craft'.

I do believe that people may have differing views of this and indeed if there are groups of people that are this missing link it would be great to hear about it.

"Owning stuff is out," says fashion trend forecaster

According to Fashion Futures, a report by trend analysts Forum for the Future and denim brand Levi's, we will exclusively source our clothes locally or in vintage shops by 2025.

"Owning stuff is out," the analysts said in one of their four animations depicting fashion scenarios for the future. Instead, we will be swapping our clothes with each other, buying them in vintage shops or leasing them from companies due to astronomical prices for new clothing, they predict.

"Luxury [will mean] stuff that is good for people and the planet," Fashion Futures stated. Amid the continuing popularity of sustainable clothing, the report also says that consumers will increasingly demand that business be transparent, while shopping less, locally and in higher quality if they shop at all, and invest in vintage pieces for variety.

Another way of dealing with the higher prices of clothes, the analysts explained, will be bulk-buying and sharing with communities. Already, self-sufficient communities exist to alternatively tackle resource shortages in all kinds of fields, but by 2025, this will also be the case for fashion. 'Clothing libraries,' as the report calls them, might develop where people can borrow clothes just like books in a conventional library.

Early examples of these trends can already be observed: there are several designer clothes rental services, such as Wear Today, Gone Tomorrow (http://www.weartodaygonetomorrow.com) and Rent me a Handbag (http://www.rentmeahandbag.com) in the US, the Australian Dressed Up (http://www.dressedup.com.au), or the British service Girl meets Dress (http://www.girlmeetsdress.com), and clothes swapping parties among girlfriends or on a broader scale - such as Shop my Closet in Paris - have gained popularity internationally.

http://www.forumforthefuture.org/

Source: The Independent

the Virtual Revolution

I finally managed to catch the last in the episode of The Virtual Revolution TV series on the BBC. I have to say this is one of the best series' I have come across in a long time. The amount of people they managed to get to speak about the subject is incredible. You can see the last episode here.

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - RGM version