AFNAN (MA in Design for Communication): Task 2 (Environmental designs)

Out of Kinnington Station, I randomly walked to see the area around me and came across Strata. This project isn't complete yet, but I appreciate the idea that one can easily spot their location although they haven't used the globally known signage system such as arrows. They depended on size and the location of the logo.

Clearly states the timings at which it opens.

I carried on walking on my way to the University of London, and I stumbled upon this building known as the 'Friends House'.

Finally, I reached the gallery building that I was hoping to see.

Despite the fact that the gallery was professional and interesting, I am credible that the signage system couldn't have been more harmonious with the gallery. It is very clear, but none the less it doesn't look professional. It wasn't well thought of, as though someone just stuck regular A4 papers with arrows, which will tell us the way, but it certainly does't create a nice image within the gallery that will be attended by many students and other guests from various countries. This gallery was a mixture of photography, graphic designs and videos, so the signal system could have been more creative to represent the atmosphere.

This is what it looked like outside the gallery room.

SOAS is practical with way finding in a sense that you will easily find it around the streets. It has these banners across many areas of the streets, making it easily possible to flow them all the way to the building. Moreover, the posters and banners are collectively consistent and appear to be coming from the same entity, which is important for an identity.

Prêt A Manger

Adrian Kilby founded the Foundation in 1994. This design foundation designed many award winning identities. They won several awards for the identity creation of Pret from various authorities including New York Festivals and London International Advertising Awards.

Pret A Manger is expanding globally, scattered throughout the UK, the USA, and the Far East. Unlike many fast food restaurants or shops that produce ready-made meals, Pret is well reputed for its clean organic hand made meals.

General characteristics

The colors are bright, eye grabbing but elegant. The language usage is informal, friendly, with various typefaces that range from italic to straight sharp capitals. The typeface is specific to Pret, which is tall and bold, and that implies their confidence of the quality. Nothing looks serious, as it is meant to be inviting and mentally comforting for the costumers.

Organic:

A major characteristic of Pret is that the food is organic. This is conveyed through the posters that are framed with the wooden architecture that stretches throughout the interior of the restaurant. The posters are modern; they contain a lot of negative space, which makes the poster clean, easy to read and eye grabbing. Consistently, in the center of every poster, different kinds of foods are juxtaposed to create a shape of an organic element. Coffee beans are used for rain, and apples and limes to create a heart shape. Under each demonstration, there is information about their products and from where they are brought. This signifies their confidence in the authenticity of their healthy clean and high quality sources of hand made meals. The interior is a brick wall, with many wooden frames for the posters, which generates a warm, organic and cozy environment. Signs with casual language are scattered throughout the restaurant. On the exterior of the restaurant, a band of text runs across that indicates what kinds of food one can purchase.

Like most public displays, the name is name for attraction, with stars to symbolize elegance and high quality.

The green apple and lime create the heart shape, giving the design a fresh, healthy and loving look.

'Organic Fields' is clearly readable on the wings of the butterfly, that is composed of a coffee beans and recycled looking fabric.

The italic font in tis case is used for fluency, and since it isn't related to the logo or the food menu, and is simply a statement to promote the food, is it created with a different appearance in order to stand out.