Reflection

Phase 0
I started out in September knowing that I wanted my project to have something to do with our food supply but not much else. This open brief meant that I found it quite difficult to narrow down this huge topic into something more specific.
My initial ideas were based around how few people actually know what’s in their food and how it’s produced but when looking into this I became far more interested in the massive environmental impact of food production.
I then spent time immersing myself in this subject – looking into the impact of different types of food, looking into areas such as ‘food miles’, and comparing this to other more familiar environmental polluters.
Also at this time I was starting to think about what kind of design process would be appropriate and what the end result might be. I took inspiration from Dunne & Raby’s critical design projects and felt that a tone similar to this could work really well with the subject matter. Critical design uses designed artifacts as a critique or commentary on an aspect of culture or society. Both the designed artifact and subsequent use are meant to aid reflection on existing values and practices in a culture.
By guru’s day I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do – I knew that I wanted it to be a critical design piece (which would try to change existing habits and behaviours) that focused on the environmental impact of food/food waste. Through conversations at guru’s day itself I added another element to the project – that it would somehow incorporate how much other people’s perceptions of our ‘eco-friendliness’ influenced our behaviours.

Phase 1
At the start of phase 1 I produced a 100 word summary and a timeline for the project – this helped to organise my thinking and give me milestones to aim for.
I was having some doubts about my initial ideas – I was scared to fully commit to a critical, conceptual based approach as I always imagined the outcome of my final year project would be something more pragmatic. I sat on the fence for some time about whether I would be happy with the outcome being more of a statement/comment making design rather than a practical object. When I started doing the PeDeTe sheets I decided that my product would most likely be something which would exist in the kitchen – some way of encouraging and helping people to waste less food.
Towards the end of phase 1 I was beginning to worry that I didn’t really have a solid idea of what my project would be – I was floundering around coming up with product ideas which I felt were gimmicky and which wouldn’t really address the issue seriously or properly. I was also still apprehensive about fully committing to a more theory based approach to my final outcome.  It was at this point that I had an important chat with my tutor and was reminded that my final design didn’t have to be something new. This was a major turning point in the project as I felt that I had wasted almost all of my time in phase 1 trying to push my project forward in a way that I didn’t think was right.
Going into phase 2 I decided on what would be my final concept, using the more critical tone that I had lost throughout phase 1. I was much happier and more comfortable in this area/tone and felt it was more appropriate given what I was trying to achieve.
As my project had almost come full circle back to where I started at gurus day if I was to re-do my PeDeTe boards they would look very different now.

Phase 2
So at the start of phase 2 my main decision points were the materials, the style and the final form of the food waste bin. I began looking into what makes people value objects and what makes people really think ‘wow, a lot of effort has gone into that’ as this would be crucial. I took inspiration from lamps, made by my grandfather, which had always been around my house. These lamps communicated the obvious skill and effort involved in making them. They were clearly items which had been painstakingly hand crafted. I felt communicated the obvious skill and effort involved in making them – very much not something that could have been anything other than hand crafted. I then chose the materials (walnut and sycamore woods) after some quick initial prototyping as they looked expensive and would be something which people would cherish. In making mark 1 I spent time researching and learning the techniques involved in making a piece in the style I had decided upon and made a few prototypes of the shape. Looking into and acquiring these skills and agonising over the small details was probably the most fun and interesting part of the project for me.
When the ‘mark 1’ prototype was finished I was fully decided upon using that style for the final piece. I then worked on how people would actually use and interact with the food waste bin. I wanted to try and make it apparent, just from looking at the bin, that food can only go in but not come out – I took inspiration from post boxes for this as it’s something that almost all people are familiar with and would be able to understand. I also really the liked the interaction and idea of scraping food from a plate through the slot and into the bin – I feel it emphasises the thoughtlessness as the food is so obviously being wasted. The next decision was what information would be on the bin itself and how would it be displayed. I felt that a short introduction to the project would be most appropriate and sort of back up the conceptual/critical tone that I was aiming for. I opted for a sort of worn brass plaque to go below the slot as I felt it really fitted in with the visual language of the project (as well as reiterating the post box metaphor) – giving it a sort of valuable antique feel contrasting completely with the fact the bin must be disposed of when full (hammering home the whole point of the project being a comment on how much we take our food for granted).

Overall, it’s been a long and sometimes stressful process but I think my final design achieves what I set out to do and I’m really happy with the outcome. I’m also happy that I eventually committed to a statement-making gallery style of design (which I think will work well at the degree show and new designers) rather than producing a sort of bog standard kitchen utensil and not being content with it.

Plaque

The next big decision was what was going to be on the plaque below the opening. I’ve decided that it will be a sort of short introduction/summary of the project as a whole. I think this will help as it will make it more apparent what the bin is for and the what the thinking behind it is. I’ve not decided on a final material for it but have done a quick mock-up of what it might look like using some plywood. The user would remove this to keep as a memento before the bin is discarded. Almost like a small ornament which would remain in the home to remind people to be more appreciative of their seemingly endless food supply.

This plaque will be placed just below the opening – again echoing the design of a post box.

I only had access to the laser cutter at the last minute today, so the wording of this will likely change – right now it is a slightly updated version of the 100 words that I submitted for the degree show.

Degree Show Catalogue

Although the project is not over, we have all been asked to submit a short (under 150 words) summary of our project along with a picture which represents it to be used in the degree show booklet. As my final piece isn’t completed yet the picture I’m using is quite ambiguous and just shows some detail of the wood working/style. Summary:

A critical design project based around the amount of food waste that we all produce. The project aims to make a statement about how little we think about the effort and resources that have gone into producing our food and how carelessly we throw it away.
Simply, it is an intricate food waste bin which can only be filled – never emptied. Each bin is painstakingly crafted using traditional decorative woodworking techniques – making obvious to the user the amount of effort expended in constructing it. It is sealed so that once filled the bin must be disposed of along with the food waste inside – instantly and visually equating the obvious wastefulness of discarding the object with the more abstract wastefulness of the resources and effort used in producing the food which we have taken for granted.

Timeline and Brief

For the start of ‘Phase 1’ we’ve been encourage by our tutors to come up with a 100 word summary or brief for our project (expanding on the 50 or so words we already had for gurus day). And also some king of visual plan for the next few weeks so that we remain focused and have something to work towards. My 100 summary is:

My project will focus on the sustainability of our food supply – specifically the amount of food that we waste. I am interested in what role other people’s perceptions of our own ‘eco-friendliness’ play in our actions and decisions concerning how much food we use or waste. I am also interested in whether simply being more aware of the amount of food that we waste (and therefore the wasted resources used in producing that food) can change people’s habits and behaviours. The overall goal of the project is to decrease the amount of wasted food on an individual basis.

And here’s a picture of the visual plan that I’ve come up with for the period up until the Christmas break: