Sure, that’s a pretty stupid question (it’s one of the things a bank is for, after all), and I’ll admit right away that I’m a bit of an idiot in these kinds of situations, but still always on my best behaviour. The lesson she gave me in “How Not to Treat a Customer” was totally uncalled for.

(more…)

3D Logo

Results from an experiment with 3D typography, lighting and camera mapping. Simple model made by extruding paths from illustrator in Cinema 4D. The background is from a photo of a parking garage.

Camera mapping projects a texture map from the camera point of view, which I used for the floor. The reflection in the water/oil stain was made by creating a reflection map directly from the texture photo.

Can’t remember exactly how long it took to render, but I think the lighting setup made it take about seven hours on my previous pc (when it didn’t crash from overheating). Sheesh!
]]> http://www.kakofon.com/2008/01/14/3dlogo/feed/ http://www.kakofon.com/2008/01/14/soup/ http://www.kakofon.com/2008/01/14/soup/#comments Mon, 14 Jan 2008 06:16:54 +0000 Christer http://www.carlssondesign.no/kakofon/?p=36

What, now?

Project from the third year at AHO. We used one semester on developing one product that could be whatever we liked. I also took a theme course about problem solving and idea making called “Exploring Creativity”. I decided to combine the two courses and make a product that would boost your creativity when needed.

I ended up making a card game inspired by “trading cards” and the IDEO Method Cards. In short, it is simply a deck of about fifty cards separated into six color categories: green, yellow, red, blue, white and black. On the face of each card is an image and a task, and you can use these individually or in a sequence. The categories are based on different “mindsets” used in problem solving, and each have a distinct graphical style.

The green cards are “Creative”, tasks that can be rather random and spark ideas, represented here by the banner image above.

The yellow cards are “Optimistic”, generally cards that bring positive thoughts to the creative process. These cards use colorful, simple and happy images.

Red cards are “Intuitive”, problem solving based on gut-feelings and intuition.

The blue cards represent “Leadership”, a category that deals with decision-making and getting an overview.

White cards are about “Research”, where you consider facts and explore realistic options.

The last category is “Evil”, to counter-balance the yellow cards. These cards will make you kill your darlings.

Toys!

Imagine the surprise when you enter your classroom and discover that all the desks are littered with LEGO playsets. This happened in the second year at AHO, when we got the assignment of designing and prototyping new toy concepts. I got to try my hand at project management, collaborating with Silje Søfting and Øyvind Berven. After presenting a few themes for the teachers (one of which was a LEGO designer), our motorcycle concept “Choppers vs. Ninja” got the thumbs up.

Below: A concept that we all loved, but didn’t get approved. I suppose “The Godfather” isn’t really suitable material for kids…

The idea was that of rivalling biker-gangs, one with choppers and the other with streetracers (”Ninjas”). Part of the course was about rapid prototyping, so we made some brand new LEGO-parts with SLS. Thanks to Silje’s Catia-expertise and Øyvind’s dexterity with model making, this went like a dream.

Above: Sintered model, straight from the lab

Above: Painted model with existing LEGO-parts

Let me know if you find a LEGO-chopper in your local toy store - in that case, I know a certain Danish toy company that owes us some royalties!

Spanish lesson

Download Quicktime version

Assignment:

As part of learning Processing the previous fall, we had to design and program a game. Peder Torget and I made a two-player game where one person plays a whale fisher, while the other plays a whale. The fisherman wins if he manages to catch the whale without being sunk by protestors, the whale’s goal is just to grow big and survive.

Balancing the game was our biggest challenge. We tried to force the whale up so there would be more player interaction - if it could just stay out of the whale fisher’s reach it wouldn’t be a very exciting game! To make that impossible, we made the whale dependent on air and fish. The whale’s nimble enough to make it hard to hit, but since the fish only appear within reach of the harpoon, it has to stay dangerously near the surface (and fisherman) to survive.

We programmed the to grow a little for each fish it eats. The fisherman can widen the reach of his harpoon by shooting them. That way the whale becomes an increasingly easy target and gets less “safe space” in the deep.

When the harpoon hits the whale, the game turns into a button-mashing tug of war as it is reeled in by the fisherman. The protestors (green boat) are constantly closing in on him, though - if they get too close, he will have to release the whale and use his harpoon to sink them instead.

Above: Sinking activists (whale doesn’t seem to care)

Below: Splash screen (no pun intended) with characters/HUD-graphics by Peder

Though whaling may be a touchy subject for some, the setting was first and foremost used because we found it funny, not because we wanted to express any political views about it - choosing sides is a matter left to the players. That said, players seem to like the “cute whale” more than the “evil whaler”. Damned spermwhales, they’re just too cuddly!

By Play Design

In the first year at AHO, my classmates Balder Onarheim, Gunnar Bothner-By, Thomas Brødreskift and I formed a group we named Play Design, and entered a design contest held by Porsgrund Porselæn. The contest was about designing a crockery set for restaurants, and focusing on how it was received by the guests.

The plates and bowls were designed with one flat side as a distinguishing feature. We also made some graphics that were to be printed underneath and “leak” onto this side. The thought was that the guests would catch a glimpse of it when they were served, and be intrigued by the piece of visible graphics when the plates were on the table.

The graphics were “urban collages” made from photos taken in downtown Oslo.

“The Living Room”, Details:

(The banner says: “Girls, Wine, Songs”)