roankristofer

[roankristofer]

A social engagement project that caught my eyes is “Refind”. In this project the company take unwanted glass and repurpose them to become an art peace

The definition of Social Engagement in design is that Social engagement design focuses on creating experiences, products, or systems that encourage meaningful interactions among individuals, communities, or organisations. It leverages user centred design principles to inspire participation, collaboration, and connection, often with the goal of addressing social challenges or fostering a sense of belonging.

Even though this project is appealing to me, there are some parts that i would change, The prices for each repurposed glass are quite pricy, I wouldn’t want to spend that amount. My solution to this is instead of selling the glass by itself, i suggest that it can be sold as a course. You can make ur own glass art and keep it afterwards for a reasonable price.

I think that in every great social engagement project there needs to be a great amount of empathy.

Empathy is the cornerstone of social engagement design, ensuring that designs resonate with people’s emotions, experiences, and needs. By deeply understanding the perspectives of those affected by or interacting with a system, empathy fosters meaningful connections and empowers solutions that truly address real-world challenges.

Another key aspect of social engagement design is community building, i do think it is important to be able have good sense of belonging and collaboration when it comes to social engagement.

Community building is a key focus of social engagement design, aiming to foster connections, shared identity, and collaboration among individuals or groups. Effective community-building initiatives create spaces physical, digital, or social where people feel valued, empowered, and united around common goals or interests.

In conclusion, social engagement in design is vital for creating meaningful, inclusive, and impactful solutions that resonate with communities. It ensures that designs are user-centered, addressing real needs while fostering trust and collaboration. By involving communities in the design process, social engagement promotes inclusivity, empathy, and a sense of belonging, empowering individuals to contribute and feel valued.

This approach enhances participation, encourages diverse perspectives, and drives innovation by uncovering unique challenges and opportunities. Socially engaged design builds stronger communities by creating shared spaces, facilitating meaningful interactions, and celebrating collective achievements. It also amplifies social impact, enabling communities to advocate for change and address shared challenges. Ultimately, it transforms design into a tool for connection, collaboration, and sustainable progress, ensuring solutions serve people and enrich their lives meaningfully.

[roankristofer]

CTS Week 11 (Manifesto)

In our group’s manifesto we can clearly see that we all have our own different mentality when it comes to our design. For example, i like to keep my design simple, to let white space do most of the talking, because i believe that what ever my design assets are, it will stand out no matter what. Although my group sees my point, some of them sees my practices situational or even unorthodox. I do think that when it comes to design, most of it is subjective, subjective to the consumers or subjective to the designer.

The reason for why i believe in my manifesto is that In a complex world, simplicity is a form of elegance. Effective design distills complexity into clear and accessible forms, allowing the audience to focus on what truly matters. This approach cuts through the noise, creating designs that communicate efficiently and create space for meaningful engagement.

I do think that design is a powerful tool for addressing challenges, creating impact, and improving people’s lives. The manifesto begins with the belief that design serves a purpose beyond aesthetics, it is a problem solving approach that generates meaningful solutions to real-world issues. In this way, each design decision is a step toward achieving positive change and advancing society, not just beautifying it.

In saying this, i also thinks a good design works hand in hand. Collaborative mindset in design is a mindset where designers embrace shared ideas, open communication, and teamwork as essential parts of the creative process. It goes beyond individual effort, focusing on bringing together diverse perspectives and expertise to solve design challenges and enhance creativity.

Another aspect of my design manifesto is adaptability in design, this is the ability to adjust ideas, processes, and solutions to meet changing needs and challenges. It involves flexibility with ideas, responsiveness to feedback, embracing new tools, proactive problem solving, and an iterative mindset. Adaptable designers are resilient, responsive, and open to innovation, making them better equipped to create effective, user-centred, and future ready designs.

Ultimately i do think that this is all part of critical thinking, for me critical thinking affects all key parts of my design, An example of this is for my Studio project, We are tasked to rebrand an existing festival that is local to Singapore. Baybeats Music Festival requires us to think a a lot about the people who are involved in the festival like the target audience and even the promoters and a realistic budget for the festival. Initially me and my partner were making designs to our liking not considering these aspects, but when we were told that thinking like this can prepare us better for our future, we instantly started re-designing our rebrand to be more realistic.

[roankristofer]

CTS Week 06 (Critical Self-Reflectivity)

I think that critical self-reflectivity in design is the practice of continually examining one’s own perspectives, assumptions, and decision-making processes to enhance one’s work. It goes beyond merely reflecting on past projects; it involves actively questioning one’s values, biases, and design choices throughout the entire creative process. This kind of introspection helps designers become more aware of how their personal experiences, cultural contexts, and professional influences shape their design outcomes. By engaging in self-reflectivity, designers can better understand their impact on the people they design for and the ethical implications of their work.

This practice contributes to producing thoughtful, user centred, and meaningful designs. It helps designers identify blind spots, recognise when they might be imposing their own views on a design, and pivot toward solutions that more genuinely address user needs. This reflective approach encourages a commitment to lifelong learning, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of one’s role and responsibilities as a designer, fostering a culture of transparency, inclusivity, and ethics within the design field.

An Example of this is a designer working on a wellness app may realise e that their own fitness preferences like competitive tracking are influencing the design, potentially alienating some users. Through critical self-reflectivity, they recognise this bias and conduct research with a more diverse group to understand different wellness needs. As a result, they adjust the design to include features like self-paced progress and supportive resources, creating a more inclusive app. This example shows how critical self-reflectivity helps designers address biases and create solutions that better serve a wider audience.

[roankristofer]

CTS Week 02 (Connecting Theory & Practice)

I think connecting theory and practice in design bridges the "why" and the "how," enriching both the reasoning behind choices and the practical application of ideas. Theory offers foundational principles, from aesthetics to psychology, helping designers understand human behaviour and guiding them to create work that resonates on a deeper level. Practice, in contrast, is the testing ground where these ideas are applied, refined, and adjusted to real-world contexts.

By integrating theory and practice, designers create work that not only meets the immediate needs of users but also anticipates future challenges, advancing the field as a whole.

Moreover, theory emphasises empathy and user centred design by highlighting human needs and experiences, which makes designs more thoughtful and effective. This is particularly important in creating adaptable and sustainable designs that evolve alongside trends and technologies, maintaining relevance over time.

I think that theoretical knowledge also broadens the designer’s approach to problem-solving. It encourages me to view challenges from multiple angles, evaluating potential impacts, and crafting solutions that are ethical and impactful. Ultimately, merging theory and practice in design not only meets users’ immediate needs but also anticipates future ones, advancing the field by creating work that is innovative, sustainable, and profoundly meaningful.

In my conclusions, Integrating theory with practice in design creates intentional, adaptable, and user-centered work. This connection enhances problem-solving, fosters empathy, and enables designers to create solutions that are impactful, sustainable, and future-ready, advancing the design field by merging purpose with practical innovation.

[roankristofer]

CTS Week 01 (Creative Practice & Creative Thinking)

I think creative practices directly correlates to critical thinking in design. For me my creative practices are walking around in places where there are many opportunities for creative marketing for example shopping districts. In doing this i can further understand what works for me as a consumer and what i should aim for as a designer. Examining the challenges faced and empathising on the consumers needs i can further improve my creative thinking. By simply walking around an area there are many design aspects i can learn from, through problem solving and ideation i can better reflect and ideate.

Cultivating a collective mindset further empowers designers in the problem solving process, fostering collaboration and diverse perspectives essential to creating well-rounded, effective solutions. A collective approach means welcoming input, sharing ideas openly, and viewing design as a team driven journey where each voice and experience can inform the outcome.

Ultimately having a collective mindset is one of the most important skill when it comes to solving a design problem. designers who prioritize critical thinking become equipped to deliver solutions that are not only visually compelling but also meaningful, sustainable, and capable of making a long-lasting impact. By approaching each project with curiosity, analytical rigor, and a willingness to challenge conventions, designers can elevate their work beyond the ordinary, setting new standards that push the entire field forward.

[roankristofer]

SUMMERY OF WOII

Throughout the weeks of Woii i have learnt many things about design, Being able to look at design in a much more efficient and in depth way help better myself and my future projects and madr me more proficient in terms of design. A take away that impacted me most is topic about postmodernism. The topic on postmodernism has helped me evaluate my work and improve on tackling projects with a fresh new take in design. The Week on aesthetics has also helped me understand design better, as an aspiring designer i need to understand aesthetics, knowing how to interpret once taste is surely an advantage as i would need to understand the cientels needs and wants.

[roankristofer]

WEEK 11 POSTMODERNISM

To me “postmodernism” in design is almost like breaking the rules, it is about going “out of line”, it is like to solve a problem with an obscure solution. In a way postmodernism is like modern art, breaking away from traditional academic painting and sculpture. It encompasses a diverse range of movements, including Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, and many others, to simply put it, it it against tradition. Postmodernism in design also emphasizes self-reference and irony, with designers incorporating elements of past styles and motifs in a playful and sometimes subversive manner. This can manifest in architectural forms that mimic historical buildings but with exaggerated proportions or unexpected materials, or in graphic design that references popular imagery in a satirical or irreverent way. The art movement “dadaism” is what made modern art possible. Dadaism had a significant impact on the development of modern art, influencing subsequent movements such as Surrealism, Fluxus, and Pop Art. Its legacy can be seen in the continued use of unconventional materials and techniques in contemporary art, as well as in the ongoing exploration of the boundaries between art and everyday life. In relation to me, i do struggle with ideation at times when it comes to my design, i tend to have an art block and only being able to think simply, unable to think outside the box. One of the ways tend to solve problems is basically to be a little bit ‘crazy’, to do something i usually woudnt do, wether its putting two colours that normaly dont work together or something else, i will then make my brain work and result in a uniqe and personal design.

[roankristofer]

WEEK 4&5

Analysation of design is important, it involves understanding its purpose, functionality, aesthetics, and cultural context. Evaluate usability, effectiveness, visual elements, emotions evoked, material quality, societal reflections, user experience, uniqueness, impact, potential improvements, and ethical considerations. Through this holistic analysis, gain insight into the design's significance and potential for evolution. Cultural and symbolic meanings uncover societal reflections. User experience analysis focuses on engagement and intuitiveness. Comparative analysis identifies unique features and innovations, while assessing impact gauges effectiveness. Future considerations explore potential improvements, and ethical and sustainable practices ensure responsibility. During the class activity we are tasked to bring random items then put together and categrized based on what we can identify the items by in groups. This activty helped to develop a sense of orginisation and abled myself to look for similirities in puroposes in the design of items. On week 5 we were tasked to take pictures of art, exhibits basically anything that slightly amused us. This excersice was so that we are able to practise analysis of design found on objects, posters and many things we are able to find in a museum.

[roankristofer]

WEEK 03 SEMIOTICS

The way i understood “semiotics” is that it is a way of communication, Using signages, gestures, logos and other linguistic and non linguistic ways to exchange informations. My 2 main understanding of semiotics is signfied and signifer, A signifier can come in 3 types, icon, index and symbol. To me as an aspiring designer, its important to understand semiotics as it is essential to the world of design. Symbols play a pivotal role in design, serving as powerful tools to convey messages, evoke emotions, and communicate complex ideas efficiently. In graphic design, signs are used to convey messages, advertise products, and build brand identity. From billboards and posters to digital banners and social media graphics, signs capture attention and communicate information effectively through typography, imagery, and color. A well-designed sign not only grabs viewers' attention but also conveys the intended message clearly and memorably. Signs to me are a succesful way to covery and communicate something to someone, signs usually consist of signifiers and signified but there signs that only requires a signified, to make it more universal and easier to undertsand. Understanding semiotics enables analysts to decode cultural texts, uncover hidden meanings in advertisements, dissect the structure of language, and grasp the symbolic dimensions of human behavior. It's a powerful tool for interpreting and critiquing the myriad ways meaning is constructed and communicated in society, shedding light on the intricate web of symbols that shape our perceptions and interactions.

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[roankristofer]

WEEK 02 AESTHETICS

My understanding of aesthetics is the experience of our senses, it's like a question of beauty and pleasure. Aesthetics to me is the understanding of one's taste, whether it is pleasing to the eye. When doing my artworks, l often ask for criticism and feedback, whether my work is pleasing or what i can improve on, this of course is very subjective, each person has their own opinion. What I usually do is ask a few people what I can improve on and ideate their comments that compliments my style of work. During the class activity, we were tasked to photograph signs that shows the difference of whether the designs have the aesthetics of form and factors. My group mostly agreed on which signages work and don't work but there were some signs that were debated on, which I think shows that aesthetics and finding anything that are of beauty and pleasing is subjective.

[roankristofer]

Week 01 Phenomenology

Phenomenology in art is a philosophical and aesthetic approach that emphasizes the direct, subjective experience of the artwork rather than focusing solely on its objective qualities. To me phenomenology in art is more of a thought process, in my design I try to look at it in a less physical and practical way, I try to implement designs that brings up questions, question that are out of curiosity, "What was the artists mood when he was doing this?". Even though I haven't yet practice this "art style" enough, I do try to have a sense of mental effect on the people seeing my work, to not just see my work with their eyes but also to be able to have their own thoughts and understanding of my artwork. By prioritizing the viewer's lived experience, phenomenology in art contributes to a more profound understanding of aesthetics, challenging traditional notions of beauty and pushing the boundaries of artistic expression. It encourages a shift away from an object-oriented focus to one that recognizes the dynamic, evolving relationship between the artwork, the artist, and the observer.