Carlos Rosa
Carlos Rosa is a graphic designer, design professor and the Head of the School of Technologies, Arts and Communication at Universidade Europeia (Laureate Group in Lisbon)
He has been working in Information Design and as a theoretical researcher since 2002.
He has a PhD in Design focusing methodologies to create better formal systems and better communication strategies in order to improve quality in international public spaces, like pictograms. He is focused in applied research and he is publishing scientific articles all over the world.
He was involved in signage design and wayfinding research in several projects.
He received the Biennial National Graphic Design Award 2009/2010, by Portuguese Design Centre.
He was shortlisted for the International Institute for Information Design Award, for Design Research in 2011/2012.
Personal website:
www.carlosrosadesigners.com
Faculty website:
www.europeia.pt
Address: Av. D. Carlos I, n.4
1200-649 Lisbon
PORTUGAL
He has been working in Information Design and as a theoretical researcher since 2002.
He has a PhD in Design focusing methodologies to create better formal systems and better communication strategies in order to improve quality in international public spaces, like pictograms. He is focused in applied research and he is publishing scientific articles all over the world.
He was involved in signage design and wayfinding research in several projects.
He received the Biennial National Graphic Design Award 2009/2010, by Portuguese Design Centre.
He was shortlisted for the International Institute for Information Design Award, for Design Research in 2011/2012.
Personal website:
www.carlosrosadesigners.com
Faculty website:
www.europeia.pt
Address: Av. D. Carlos I, n.4
1200-649 Lisbon
PORTUGAL
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For all this questions we must considerer the architectonic and ambient configuration to help user orientation and circulation. But this is not enough. The user needs to have a space intelligibility revealing a clear relation between space functionality and cognitive mapping.
To improve the quality of way finding in hospitals we have centred our research project on a multidisciplinary approach of space, a sum of methodologies from other disciplines, regarding improvement of the individual experience in space.
We gathered methodologies from Social Psychology, Cognitive Ergonomics, Classical Physics and Space Syntax aiming to achieve a comfortable way finding in complex structures with a specific social meaning and without a program of signage – Portuguese Public Hospitals. Although all this methods are independent fields or disciplines, gathered by the design problem, became, as whole, a design research methodology.
In fact, that determines that cognitive ergonomics is useless without Space Syntax when you think not of orientation but in making an intervention on orientation. This means that the necessity of producing design objects or a design system triggers the linkage between the disciplines otherwise; design wise useless.
Design projects have several levels of complexity and they demand a series of phases. From the conception up to the achievement, passing through study and experimental phases to development, Design confirms the level and the capacity of answer of the project to the identified need.
Graphic designers should look after all of us! They should protect commuters worldwide!
The graphic designer is like an earthly god who has the power to guide us.
The first of such gods was Otto Neurath! With Isotype, he invented a graphic language for different cultures. Aicher did the same! In 1972, the german designer guided all cultures through the Munich Olympic Games.
Designers who have worked for AIGA conquered their space in history!
However, when some designers want to be bigger gods than others, they become part of the problem!
We must understand that some public places are more propitious to innovation than others. Some of these areas are universal facilities, therefore we must think big, whenever such cases are in question! In other words, we should think of all cultures!
Once we start playing around with international codes, with universality, we are not doing a good job!
We have to identify our public. Does the public consist of Olympic Games’ visitors, airport users, or is it simply a person going to the corner café to have a beer?
Of course we can have our own style of pictogram calligraphy if we wish to innovate, improve and make it different. But, in this kind of language, “different” should mean legible!
We should aim to become an Otto Neurath, an Aicher and a Josep Maria Triás. But, can we do it well in this technological era, in which everything is digital and connected to a LCD screen? Can we keep it legible and clear? Can we keep it pictographic?
The designers of the past 40 years, who created pictograms for universal events, could do it!
What about us? Can we do it?
The advantage of using pictograms and symbols over text is that they are concise and universally decipherable, crossing the barriers of individual languages or even literacy.
In the beginning of the 20th century Neurath believed that sign language is the medium of all knowledge: empirical facts are only available to the human mind through symbols. Approximately 40 years ago, Otl Aicher drew an extensive series of pictograms that emerged as a completely standardised visual language, i.e., his drawings were designed according to strict mathematical guidelines/rules.
Graphic designers can use different “calligraphies” to support their pictogram design, (like many designers have done for some Olympic Games after Munich or like Paul Mijksenaar have done to Schiphol airport), but they shouldn’t create pictograms in a self-centred and/or inconsiderate manner.
Aicher´s work influenced the “calligraphy” of pictograms because of his systemic approach. Not through the grid. His grid was a reference for the pictogram design, but it wasn’t the most important. We will see this in this paper.
So, how can we understand the Olympic pictogram’s design? Is that cultural, local, traditional or universal?
I can say that it is al about the “calligraphic styles”.
In this paper we will “deconstruct” analyze and understand universal pictographic systems and their construction rules, by applying a systemic approach.
For all this questions we must considerer the architectonic and ambient configuration to help user orientation and circulation. But this is not enough. The user needs to have a space intelligibility revealing a clear relation between space functionality and cognitive mapping.
To improve the quality of way finding in hospitals we have centred our research project on a multidisciplinary approach of space, a sum of methodologies from other disciplines, regarding improvement of the individual experience in space.
We gathered methodologies from Social Psychology, Cognitive Ergonomics, Classical Physics and Space Syntax aiming to achieve a comfortable way finding in complex structures with a specific social meaning and without a program of signage – Portuguese Public Hospitals. Although all this methods are independent fields or disciplines, gathered by the design problem, became, as whole, a design research methodology.
In fact, that determines that cognitive ergonomics is useless without Space Syntax when you think not of orientation but in making an intervention on orientation. This means that the necessity of producing design objects or a design system triggers the linkage between the disciplines otherwise; design wise useless.
Design projects have several levels of complexity and they demand a series of phases. From the conception up to the achievement, passing through study and experimental phases to development, Design confirms the level and the capacity of answer of the project to the identified need.
Graphic designers should look after all of us! They should protect commuters worldwide!
The graphic designer is like an earthly god who has the power to guide us.
The first of such gods was Otto Neurath! With Isotype, he invented a graphic language for different cultures. Aicher did the same! In 1972, the german designer guided all cultures through the Munich Olympic Games.
Designers who have worked for AIGA conquered their space in history!
However, when some designers want to be bigger gods than others, they become part of the problem!
We must understand that some public places are more propitious to innovation than others. Some of these areas are universal facilities, therefore we must think big, whenever such cases are in question! In other words, we should think of all cultures!
Once we start playing around with international codes, with universality, we are not doing a good job!
We have to identify our public. Does the public consist of Olympic Games’ visitors, airport users, or is it simply a person going to the corner café to have a beer?
Of course we can have our own style of pictogram calligraphy if we wish to innovate, improve and make it different. But, in this kind of language, “different” should mean legible!
We should aim to become an Otto Neurath, an Aicher and a Josep Maria Triás. But, can we do it well in this technological era, in which everything is digital and connected to a LCD screen? Can we keep it legible and clear? Can we keep it pictographic?
The designers of the past 40 years, who created pictograms for universal events, could do it!
What about us? Can we do it?
The advantage of using pictograms and symbols over text is that they are concise and universally decipherable, crossing the barriers of individual languages or even literacy.
In the beginning of the 20th century Neurath believed that sign language is the medium of all knowledge: empirical facts are only available to the human mind through symbols. Approximately 40 years ago, Otl Aicher drew an extensive series of pictograms that emerged as a completely standardised visual language, i.e., his drawings were designed according to strict mathematical guidelines/rules.
Graphic designers can use different “calligraphies” to support their pictogram design, (like many designers have done for some Olympic Games after Munich or like Paul Mijksenaar have done to Schiphol airport), but they shouldn’t create pictograms in a self-centred and/or inconsiderate manner.
Aicher´s work influenced the “calligraphy” of pictograms because of his systemic approach. Not through the grid. His grid was a reference for the pictogram design, but it wasn’t the most important. We will see this in this paper.
So, how can we understand the Olympic pictogram’s design? Is that cultural, local, traditional or universal?
I can say that it is al about the “calligraphic styles”.
In this paper we will “deconstruct” analyze and understand universal pictographic systems and their construction rules, by applying a systemic approach.