Week 5 - Friday

Personal issues hindered my from making it to class on time on Friday, but when I arrived Lee was very comforting and helped me get back up to speed on the day's session. My class mates also gave me a hand running through what we'd been up to and were kind enough to stay with me after class to catch me up rather than going to Exchange.

I had already chosen my brief before class which was good as it meant I was able to run myself through the 20 in 20 exercise they were completing when I arrived.

I also checked out the video on the Troy library which was really interesting and was nice to see how differently people can approach things.

I have chosen to move forward with the brief: Wilma in the City.
This brief really interested me as it was really different from all the rest - which was a nrefreshing change as a lot of the briefs from the other streams were all student based. Which is interesting as our stream was told to stay away from student targeted briefs as they were too easy.

Anyway, with my new brief in mind I went through the 20 in 20 exercise, but rather than sketching used it as an ideation session to generate ways to respond to the brief.
1. You only had $10 dollars to make it? (cost)
volunteer handouts of Meet Wilma

2. You had to wear your response? (materiality, performance)
tshirts - "WATCH OUT" I'm Old!

3. It had to be inside a shipping container? (space)
Different sense for people to engage with that showed the deterioration that occurs with aging.

4. The whole digital world collapsed and there could be no digital component? (materiality)
Group sessions/conversations between young and old, somehow incorporating the use of the old school round dial phones.

5. It needed three different touch-points to communicate the one message? (narrative)
Video, device, poster all depicting the deterioration experienced by the elderly.

6. The target audience was 5 year olds? (audience)
Relate to their grandparents - holding hands whilst crossing the road. Safety. Also empowers the children as they see it as helping grandma or grandpa not as I'm being held onto a not responsible enough.

7. The primary colour was orange? (semiotics)
Orange in this context to me would be used to symbolise being unsure. Orange lights are really equal to a question mark and everybody sees them differently - speed up and quickly make that light or stop because I can safely do so?

8. Your audience had 1 min to engage with the project? (time)
Video depicting deterioration.

9. The project had to be viewed from the sky—what is it? (perspective)
Coloured strips at crossings for fast/slow lanes.

10. The project could only be used in the dark? (time)
Same idea of lanes at crossing but lit up rather than coloured paint.

11. You had $1 million dollars to make it? (cost)
Make devices so that people can experience the deterioration of being old.

12. You had to use ten screens? (materiality)
At traffic intersections - mirrored screens to show all the other people waiting at the intersection, try and encourage communication and knowledge of your surroundings.

13. You were only allowed to use headphones? (audio)
Audio that exemplified the deterioration in hearing when you get older, and then clarity.
Or pitch test (at this age you can hear this pitch etc)

14. If the response was an interpretative dance, where is the stage? (placement)
Wellington Waterfront - busy area, how do people manoeuvre around the dancing as appreciation vs when manoeuvring around elderly people there is more frustration.

15. The target audience was an elderly widow? (audience)
Create a buddy system for trips to town.

16. The project was a sign on the side of the road with three words? (distillation)
Age Affects Ability.
Young vs Old.

17. The target audience had a full day to engage with the project? (time)
Base at Wellington waterfront where there is an interactive exhibition with guided walks around the waterfront and activities to engage the young with the old.

18. The project was an installation at the waterfront? (placement)
Windows along the waterfront with signs - view at age 5, age15, age 25, age 40, age 80. The view is the same but your perception at each age changes.

19. You had to use 100 drinking straws in the response? (do they make something? do they bring people together? are they used for drinking or something else?)
??? Stumped me.

20. It was at Disneyland? (placement)
An 'elderly' section, like the kids areas.


After this I also spent some time identifying the opportunities I could see having read the brief and came up with:
* transportation - buses
* connection - young/old interactions, buddy systems
* traffic crossings
* waterfront/around the bay
* magic of youth dissolves, and then returns again when you age