And The People Said...

I decided last minute to go ahead and do a survey. I had been thinking about it from the beginning but I had a million reasons not to and why it wouldn't work. In the en,d I decided to do a short little online survey. I invited an array of people on facebook to just fill some things out. I wanted to just get some kind of feel for my hypotheses and the truth of the state of people's thinking.

 As far as the margin of error goes, I'm not giving a great deal of importance to the survey because it isn't the highest in quality. Good thing, because the site deleted a question and replaced it with a repeat question. Oops. BUT I did see some interesting things. 

People are thinking... just not enough. They aren't very critical thinkers. Few people are really mapping out their decisions. They are making them, but not cognitively. They have reasons, but they are more like excuses: tame and irrelevant. A few people REALLY thought things out. You can see it in just a few words. Others are only regurgitating what they've heard. And some even admit to not cognitively giving their choices a chance! 

So now my campaign is really motivated by getting people to CHOOSE to think cognitively. Not just a flashing whisper before it's gone to hardly ever be recalled again.

Think for yourself.

SO... I have been working like mad on my creative samples. After talking with Peter about the logo and ad pieces, I realized that I had already created a strong language, but I wasn't using it well. So after working on them, I finally re-worked the visual language. I think it's very strong and succinct. It has a natural hierarchy, and flows very well. Each piece does say a lot, but I think I have simplified them as best as I could. Let's face it, there's so much to say!

I wanted to to inspire people to really think with this visual language. It may be an ad, but I'm not jsut telling you something or giving you a small fact. Don't just file it away. Think about it! There is something to be learned, and there is something you c

an implement into your life. I will definitely defend this creative work because my goal isn't to just load people up with information and make them do what I want. I really do want to incite some introspection. If anything, I'm telling them NOT to buy into anything just because I say so. Go ahead... think about it.

Without further ado, here is one of my creative samples. This one is for "Think for yourself." This branch is about people taking care of things in their personal life: emotional AND physical health.

Clarity

Perhaps I haven't been clear. I keep getting comments about the one logo for re-think, which is wonderful, however, there are three subcategories with different names. So each column is a group... I'm looking for comments on the cohesiveness and design of each of the 4 columns... Any other comments, suggestions, preferences, or ideas...

Re-think the Way You Waste

Here is a sample of my creative work. The idea behind it is that people who work for the campaign spend the Saturday collecting litter in a park. By Monday morning, it's been piled up and a sign is beside it showing just how much the public has littered and how much of it was salvageable but not biodegradable. The poster itself would be an edited picture of the actual event/trash heap. The idea is to make every ad piece relevant to the lives of those who see it. Because we don't just want them to stop and ponder only to walk off and forget. It's supposed to invade their space a bit to really make them think about the world that includes them every day. Once again, I know it isn't the best quality but all of the creative information had to be smushed up to fit into this blog. Comments, questions, concerns...

Logo Loco

At the request of some... I am posting some samples of my logotype work. I will post some creative pieces once I've refined them. But for the time being, just enjoy these tantalizing tasty tidbits. Mmmmm... 

Personally, I think I would like to go with the different colors for the subcategories. [It's got more flav-ah!] BUT feedback is always welcome...

P.S. I know the quality is a bit dodgy but they are a bit compressed. I promise I used more saturated colors and a much higher resolution :)

With One to Spare

The goal of my project is to motivate a shift in behaviour while having a minimal impact on the environment. I am designing a campaign called “think.” It will get young people [16-25] thinking… about everything. We make mall choices every day that have a major impact on our lives and the world around us but we don’t always realize it. So this campaign will use digital media as well as some very basic daily objects that will become their own voice to inspire earnest introspective thinking in young people. When that starts, their choices will begin to change.

I realize that I don't always speak clearly. Thus far, I'm not too sure if anyone has a clear vision as to where my project is headed. I know that someone must be wandering what ever happened to me "series of maps." Well... I stopped needing them. Things just started popping into my head. I know my notebook is going to be rather incoherent, but it all makes sense to me. I had considered a few different directions to take my campaign. 

1] The Feisty Lemming! [Playing on the common misconception that lemmings follow without thinking. So be different and mix things up by thinking for yourself.]

2] Looking Back: "The mistakes of history [Let's not repeat them!]"

3] Looking Back: "If they had[n't]... things would be different."/"What if they had..."

I have decided to go with number 3. The first was just coming out to goofy and childish and was more fun than it was thought-provoking. The second was a bit austere. It was starting to look like "When the people of Germany felt lost, they all supported the Nazis and Hitler for their visions of a better Germany. Unfortunately, they never really considered exactly what policies were coming into place..." You get the idea. It was just too harsh and painful. I would like to hope that unwittingly voting for the star candidate is NOT like a vote for Hitler. So the third seemed the best. Look at what has happened, and how relevant it is to you! Such great things happen in small numbers that we are a part of every day.

If you would like a hint of the tone/attitude of my campaign then take a look at the truth campaign website. This campaign is against the lies of the tobacco industry [they aren't actually against smoking, just against the propaganda of "big tobacco"]. The recently re-branded the campaign to "The Sunny Side of Truth." It's a rather satirical approach to what the tobacco industry tries to cover up about the effects of smoking such as expecting mothers who smoke. Their babies suffer from defects and life-long health issues. But a tobacco executive was quoted as saying that some women would prefer smaller babies. Granted, the actual birthing process might be less painful [the sunny side], but these children are born underweight and unhealthy setting them up for future health problems [the truth]. Of course my campaign will not be exactly alike, and I will not really employ much satire or sarcasm BUT I thought this might be a fun prelude to my work. Enjoy.

This Year In Design

So... after our day trip to the museums I realized two things. 1] I do not like Alan Aldridge as his work reminds of everything I dislike about the 60's/70's. [Although his illustrations of The Beatles lyrics were conceptually wonderful.] 2] Everything you need to know about a period of time can be seen through design.

Alan's style is just too much for me. It's like he took my favorite elements of design and abused them. His sense of line is just too much. He takes something so simple and instead of making something complex he just repeats himself over and over in a million ways in ONE design. Also, he has taken Rousseau's sense of color and watered it down with accidental color mixings. And, no, I do not mean color combinations. I literally mean it's like he took a blue marker, colored over fresh ink of another color, or pencil, and continued to color as if nothing was wrong. For his lack of appealing to the eye, he certainly is a creative fellow. Conce

ptually, I love some of his work. He is truly a creative designer and I definitely respect his creative vision.

Surprised! Tiger In A Tropical Storm by Henri Rousseau 

[He is one of my favorite artisits, by the way. See how he blends his colors in a way that looks more based on a prism than anything else. Well, Alan just musses that whole blended prism up.]

What's funny is how everything I always envisioned disliking about the 60's and 70's was always something like and Alan Aldridge nightmare. IT might sound funny that I could have pinpointed everything I thought about a place and a time through the work of a designer, but it's true. No matter how forward and creative a design, it still reflects current culture. The Cold War Modern exhibit was a perfect demonstration of that. By comparing the USA and Russia, you could really see similarity in the differences. The work spoke of the times. Both countries were pushing new technological boundaries and trying to create a desireable new world from the ashes of depression and war. 

Both societies produced work that was the propaganda of hope. American work blossomed under the idea of expansion and free market, but all of it was based in a stretch for something greater and better than anything before. It was the first real step out of the unique singularities produced by antiquity into cold, hard, and shiny mass-produced modernity. Russian work showed a reformed old world. While there was a focus on objects, the work clearly reflected the new government... a new life for people of the old world. Even when Lenin recognized the Russian people's desire for products of the new world, the design still focused more on the life surrounding the objects and not the objects themselves. Between the two, you see a society moving forward through capitalism, and a society reaching for a future better than its past. At least that's what I saw...

Anyway, I guess what I really took the most was that whatever work I create as a designer will say far more about the world I live in-- the world I want to live in, than it will ever say about me alone. All design is a social commentary.

These Few Words

It's about time I defined my project and where I am headed. At this point, I think I've got it cleared up for the most part.

The goal of my project is to motivate a shift in public behaviour. The idea is to have maximum impact on my audience while making a minimum impact on the environment. My target audience is young adults 20-30: active people who notice things but don't always get deeply involved. My goal is not to motivate them to make a difference within themselves. They vote, they recycle, and they might even work out from time to time; but do they know why they do any of it? The focus of my campaign will be to get them to be more introspective. Todays choices change tomorrow's outcome... don't let it be a surprise. If we don't start thinking for ourselves now, we won't be able to later. 

I want a very simple campaign: mostly outdoor [they can be digital], and internet advertising. It will be highly visual to kickstart the cognitive process [sometimes we listen better to pictures than words]. I want it to be somewhat lighthearted- more like satire instead of blatant. If The goal is to get people thinking, ask them to think, make them think... don't think for them.

Schedule Goals:

15 November- solidify underlying theory

17 November- creative brainstorm

19 November- choose creative direction/begin creative work

27 November- refine creative work

01 December- final drafts

I'm actually really excited about this now that I've got a real sense of direction. I used to be so focused on the theory of behaviour motivation and concerned about people's laziness... but I think I am really going to come through the other side of this. 

Winnow: [v] Reduce Down To The Best

So I am beginning this week with a list. Thus far, I've come up with a few different topics for my RSA project. Time is running out and I need to figure out what it is that I want to focus on. You can't really create any kind of campaign if you have no focus. So I am going to list my ideas, and by the end of the week, I will have winnowed it down to the best of the best... in terms of what would be good for me to work on.

1] The Little Things: small ways that we can make an impact on our environment without going out of our way

2] Think Before You Do: being self-aware is the best way to contribute to society... know what you believe and what you want for yourself.

3]Better Choices: things to look for to reduce the negative impact of our consumption without changing volume.

4] Know Before You Vote: don't accidentally change your future; learn about what you're choosing before you choose it.

5] Identity: be a factor of your environment- not a product.

I think in general you get the idea. I am trying to motivate young people to THINK FIRST. There are too many ignorant choices made in a day. How many of them are affected by what we really think and believe, and how many are just a product of what we have [or haven't, for that matter] been told? Also, we make choices that affect our future, and we say we don't care, then down the road we're upset with the outcome. Let's start using our minds ad change our future instead of becoming a victim of our own choices.

Get Motivated

It's about that time... for a new map! This one is very simple. It's not confusing by any means, but it is quite relevant in the evolution of this project. I have been thinking about the different ways people are motivated to action. Subjective and Objective. Subjective means that they need or want substance. These are your people who just need the information... they need to hear the word and a cause is good enough for them. Objective refers to people who need more than information, or little information at all. They are object driven people whether it is some goal to attain, or a prize. There has to be something tangible/relevant to them for them to get going. So what it really comes down to is I need to create a campaign that is highly informative without using millions of words. It needs to be simple and clear for the subjective people, but there has got to be some sort of splash for those who need something different. The people that I really want to reach are the ones who know little or simply aren't motivated.

So based on my subject, I may look to provide incentives from partners. Like for those who buy reusable plastic mugs and cups instead of buying bottled water, receive a discount every time they bring their cups in for a fill. Or perhaps the country's goal is to recycle a certain amount to beat the country next door. Of course it's an important cause, and many will join regardless of the prize, but some people are going to need a bit of fun. So now the question is content. What direction am I going to take this? What do I want people to get involved in? Time will be running short soon enough, so I should have an answer next week...

Ignorance Is Not Always Bliss

*Disclaimer: this post is intended to be an objective view on beahviour patterns in relation to subject v. object motivation... not a political commentary.

In light of all of the voting controversy going on, I have been privy to quite a few youtube videos, and other online articles. One in particular had me interested. Howard Stern [I am definitely not his biggest fan] discussed some research on his show. Someone [I'm not sure who] went out to Harlem to find evidence toward the hypothesis that black people would vote for Barack Obama just because he is black. Give it a listen...



So people who actually knew absolutely nothing about Barack's views, or choice of VP [his is Senator Joe Biden by the way], were adamant about voting for him because they agreed with "his" values. Aside from the obvious political implications, it piqued my interest in how people are motivated.

How is it that such a major decision could be made based on such little information? At the beginning of this project, it occurred to me that people may be objectively motivated, and important information and great detail may not work. People need something more simple to cling to. In my opinion, this small experiment definitely proved that theory. So if we can't reach people with the information, how do we bring them to a cause? The answer: connect with them on a basic level.

Once I've decided on the subjective focus of my project, the real challenge will be to connect people objectively to the cause. The people who want to know all of the information can get it and will find it. They will connect. But those hard to reach people are the ones who know very little, and won't try to know more... Just like the voters who don't know much about Barack Obama's stance, but feel they have connected with him and support him.

It does present another question though... how do we motivate AND educate people. In this case, the information these people apparently didn't know is rather easy to come by... so why didn't they know it? As a designer, we are responsible to the audience to motivate and educate... not just enlist lemmings to a cause.

Let's Get Political

I know. I know. Politics. Bleh. I hate them too, but as today is November the 4th, I only think it appropriate that I say SOMETHING about it all.  I probably won't know who my next president is until late Wednesday or early Thursday. But this is definitely a momentous occasion. We will either have our first non-caucasian president, or our first female vice president. In America, both are a big deal as we really tend to stick to our stereotypes and expectations. Unfortunately, people tend to see those physical markers as definitive political information. [Which is exactly why it's a big deal in the US. People have such a hard time looking beyond the physical.] But I'm not going to rant and rave about any of my political stances or beliefs. As a matter of fact, I prefer to not discuss them because most people prefer arguing. And arguing gets us nowhere as the sole intention is to shout without listening or understanding. No thank you. BUT having the right to vote is a big deal, and it's always wonderful to see children being taught an unbiased view on the importance of government and democracy. So without further ado, I give you: You Can Vote However You Like. [Cute AND funny.]

But How?

As I await responses from some other sources and organizations, I have decided to take a more academic approach. I actually found a document written about motivation and behaviour and I'm really excited to get into it. Hopefully, this document will give me a more grounded approach to the relationship between the two. As I prepare for the next step in my series of maps, I have to get pat the question of how. How do I helpp people? How do I motivate them? By the end of this week, I hope to have a better more decisive course of action on how to motivate people. Am I really going to encourage people to DO something, BUY something, CREATE something, SHARE something, etc? So for now, my research is really focused on how. But by next week, I am really going to start looking at what... What is it I am trying to motivate people to do?
Clearly I did a bit of editing, but it's apiece of a photo in my backyard at home. We have alot of greenery and this is actually my least favourite. I hate Bogenvilla because those crazy pink flowers get everywhere, but not here. I just cropped it out of a photo because I thought it looked so rmoantic. I had a painting professor who once said that ina painting, you should be able to just crop out pieces, and each piece should still be visualy stimulating. So I've started to look at every design, and every image in that way. Well, I thought this piece was more than stimulating... it's lovely. It's like a bit of serendipity. An accidental moment of loveliness that hardly ever gets noticed. Now that the plant has been trimmed, and the umbrella thrown out, I'll never see it again. But it was there, and I almost missed it.

It's Not Over Yet

I noticed this weekend, that the Brits do Halloween just a bit different. In America... it's all about the build up. Decorations go up October 1st. There are haunted houses everywhere. The amusement parks get all decked out and pay actors dressed as ghouls and zombies running and hiding around the parks to give customers a proper fright. Comoe Halloween, it;s all about the parties and the trick-or-treating. People spend loads of money to get the best costume they can and party it out. But all of these activites have fixed dates. The fun starts October 1st, and people only where their costumes to trick-or-treat, or to attend the Halloween parties. There is no "Halloween Weekend." But here, I've noticed halloween-lovers Thursday to Saturday. There aren't very many decorations, but 2 nights in a row, I went out and saw people in costume!!! [I saw costumes on Saturday... November 1st!!!] So for all of the people who aren't ready for Halloween to end... here is a lovely mixtape from my favorite design blog. Enjoy!

Contacts [People-- Not Lenses]

So I've made a few contacts. As part of my research I was required to make contacts, which, of course I did. But when I first re-evaluated my map, I realized that my research was going to need some really basic background that wasn't based on an idea. So I looked at making contacts in a whole new light. I started thinking that I needed more than an organization or two that already accomplished something I was trying to do. It's not just about what they did and how they got there. There are other motivating factors. Why does their organization even matter? What about the people they affect? How can we really meet people on another level? Many organizations are affective in reaching people, but usually they affect those who are already interested, or friends of people who are interested. The idea of my RSA brief is to change behaviour. I'm not interested in minimal change a little bit of motivation. What can I really do to change? How can I get a better look at people? What are some of the observations of modern behviour, especially the behaviour and attitudes of those who are apathetic?

So I am hoping that the contacts I've made [and am still making] really give me some background... some insight into moving people. I don't want to just teach people something minor, and make it look bigger than what it is. I want change for good to REALLY BE CHANGE for good.