Beauty of Form
Brief: This project that stemmed from my dissertation topic -
"Life is a beauty contest, but who is the judge"
- which covered the topic of beauty & the body, in particular how the notion of beauty and the invention of an 'ideal' has influenced us, our thoughts, actions and feelings towards our body over time and space.
From this I progressed to investigate the aesthetically pleasing qualities of basic forms.
Brief: This project that stemmed from my dissertation topic -
"Life is a beauty contest, but who is the judge"
- which covered the topic of beauty & the body, in particular how the notion of beauty and the invention of an 'ideal' has influenced us, our thoughts, actions and feelings towards our body over time and space.
From this I progressed to investigate the aesthetically pleasing qualities of basic forms.
I compiled a questionnaire done both physically and through online servces and asked people to respond. People were keen to get involved and often a discussion followed once I'd struck up conversation. They were interested in the project and its development, I believe the topic of beauty even in its most abstract of forms can be touched and reflected upon in so many aspects of our life.
Outcome
My final piece complied all the result I had collected from the surveys in one large sample book/photo album inspired book. I knew I needed the shapes and some way to identify the 'winner' but I also wanted as little distraction as possible to distract from the elements. The forms were thus simple embossed straight into the pages with corresponding results in number form as a percentage out of 100 places underneath and all collated together in a simple Japanese bound wood and leather hardback book.
My final piece complied all the result I had collected from the surveys in one large sample book/photo album inspired book. I knew I needed the shapes and some way to identify the 'winner' but I also wanted as little distraction as possible to distract from the elements. The forms were thus simple embossed straight into the pages with corresponding results in number form as a percentage out of 100 places underneath and all collated together in a simple Japanese bound wood and leather hardback book.
Within this book you can see for yourself the 'truth' - you can browse the results and choose for your subsequent work either to go with the mass by using the most appealing forms or whether to go against the stream with the less appealing options.
Each shape was hand embossed into the page and the number stickers applied accordingly, a pain staking process but lethargic and rewarding at the same time, the results were well worth it, simple by effective.
Note: With this it was the distillation and consolidation of my findings that interested me, I wanted to start debate, not necessarily answer problems myself but to open people's eyes and encourage dynamic and constructive discussions and outcomes.
