Way Finding Critique

For my critique on my way finding I was in a group and I presented my ideas using a presentation. I got some useful feedback that would help me to adapt and finalise my ideas

My inital Ideas were to change the font to something that is more readable and relevant. I did some research and came to the conclusion of using Bodoni. This is because it is an old font that was used for high end companies and was know as being classy and elegant and well and it was used a lot in fashion settings. I thought this was perfect for the Victoria Quarter because they want to portray class and elegance while keeping the history. I also wanted to change the colour scheme as I thought the gold was difficult to see. I came up with the idea of black and white because it has an old fashioned feel that is also high class and bold. Also when looking into the logos of some of the shops I noticed a lot of the logos and signs are black and white or work well in monochrome.

 When I visited the Victoria Quarter I saw that there were some plaques on the walls that talked about the history of the place. I decided to experiment with having parts of a map on a plaque on different walls around the quarter. I wanted to keep it a simplistic design because it would be carved into the plaque. I started by using a Simple line and ordering the shops but I think it looked cluttered.

 My second design was to slant the shops which I think is more successful because you can differentiate between the shop names better. Finally I thought of having a box structure that shows the order and rough size of the shops. I think this makes it look more modern but less simplistic.

I Also decided that a leaflet would be a good idea because people can walk around using them and take them away. I decided to put the logos of the main shops onto the map instead of doing every shop and making it to cluttered. I think this map is good for getting a general idea of where shops are.

I then used the Bodoni font on the original shape signage and applied my ideas to my photography of the quarter so I could see if it would work in the real setting. I believe it is more readable and effective than the current signage because it is easier to read from a distance.

This is some of the feedback I received:

• Clean and clear. Good concept behind redesign. Monochrome scheme works well. Definitely lacking a map. Well considered design. Look at doing a stand alone map or similar.

• Much more appropriate typeface choice, very classy & elegant. Choice of black & white works better, it has a better contrast. consider maybe backlit signs it could stand out more.

• Colour scheme is good Monochrome makes it look very high class. Map is good simple and clear. Uses of the shop symbols are good as they are recognisable due to designer brands. Shapes are good to outline the building.

• I like the map where the names of the shops are angled. Leaflet did look cluttered make the map the leaflet.

• Like the more contrasted black and white, try silver, would be more classy but would stand out more than gold. Keep the maps consistent in the typeface Bodoni.
  
  To move on from this feedback I am going to experiment with using silver and decided on a final plaque and leaflet design.