DAI 227 Week 15

Andrew Redoble

DAI 227 Rethinking Digital Visual Media

Week 15

1)     In the article "Between a Blob + a Hard Place" Steven Skov Holt & Mara Holt Skov argue in the File InCA_Spring05.pdf (on page 20) that the 'blobject' phenomenon really took off in the ID (industrial design) profession in the 1990s. Why?

According to Steven  Skov Holt and Mara Holt Skov, the ‘blobject’ phenomenon took off in the ID profession in the 1990s because of the increasing power of CAD, modeling techniques, new materials, and production methods and rapid prototyping. It was possible to apply these to push the expressive possibilities of plastic. The year 1998 included the release of many famous blobjects such as the new VW Beetle and the Apple iMacs.

2)     Which year in the 1990s was a watershed?

The year was 1998.

3)     What three other products were introduced this year that were good examples of blobjects?

Three products that were introduced in the year 1998 were the new VW Beetle, the “five flavor” Apple iMacs, and the Triax watch from Nike.

4)     On page 29 of "Shaping Things" Bruce Sterling describes when a 'gizmo' becomes a 'spime'. Copy the sentence here.

“Suppose, however, that you become genuinely interested in gadgets – not as symbols of wonder to be deployed as sci-fi stage props, but as actual, corporeal physical presences. It may dawn on you that you are surrounded by a manufactured environment. You may further come to understand that you are not living in a centrally planned society, where class distinctions and rationing declare who has access to the hardware. Instead, you are living in a gaudy, market-driven society whose material culture is highly unstable and radically contingent.”

5)     On page 45 of "Shaping Things" Bruce Sterling describes a defining characteristic of a Synchronic Society. Quote him here

“A synchronic society generates trillions of catalogable, searchable, trackable trajectories: patterns of design, manufacturing, distribution and recycling that are maintained in fine-grained detail.”

DAI 227 Week 13

1.       Squash and Stretch- As the ball is stepped on by Luxor Junior, it squashes and stretches according to the amount of force applied to it by him.

2.       Timing and Motion- As the ball rolls towards the lamp it bumps off and rolls away a small distance. This action shows that the ball is lighter than the lamp, and is too light to push it and instead bounces off.

3.       Anticipation- This principle can be seen when Luxor Junior wiggles his behind and prepares to jump on the ball.

4.       Staging- When the ball pops and is flat on the floor it is obvious that Luxor Junior is saddened by this, with the pitiful push,  the lack of music and the shaking of the lamps head.

5.       Follow Through and Overlapping Action- The cord of Luxor Junior responds to the hopping and waves about in relationship to the hops.

6.       Straight Ahead Action and Pose-to-Pose Action-  Luxor Junior is the definition of Straight Ahead Action. The younger lamp bounces around from left to right or right to left, creating wild scrambling actions. When both lamps interact with each other, it is crucial to have excellent timing in order to get the idea across (for example, a sad Luxor Junior who comes to realize the death of the ball after interacting with the older lamp).

7.       Slow In and Out- The varying speed of the ball displays this principle. From the initial hit to the descending speed, this shows the subtlety of timing and movement.

8.       Arcs- Luxor Junior constantly jumps around in an arc. Also, the pivoting of the lamps’ heads is in an arc.

9.       Exaggeration- The wave effect on the cord of Luxor Junior is exaggerated, but to the right amount so that it does not appear unrealistic. It is exaggerated to Luxor Junior’s excited hopping accordingly.

10.   Secondary Action- The cord, which is an example of many principles, is also an example of secondary action. It is a response to the actions of Luxor Junior.

11.   Appeal- The reintroduction of another ball to ensure that it is a happy ending. In addition to the happy ending, it is also an even bigger ball that gives it a more amusing finish.