celebrating southwark's best kept secrets
Macro Unit
After last week’s discussions we decided on focusing on the first idea – collecting local people’s recommendations for hidden gems in Southwark. We designed postcard-style cards with questions and space for answers. During the weekend, we went to the library in shifts to gather responses from visitors.
the postcard - front & back
collecting responses in the library
Looking back, we realised a few things we could’ve done better. The font size was too small, making it less accessible for older people. Also, we had marked the ‘answer space’ too dark, and most people avoided writing there. Another learning: we discovered a bustling weekly market near Elephant & Castle Park—perfect for collecting responses, but we only found out about it after our activity & couldn’t engage in discussions there any further due to the late hour, as well as the fact that we had used all the cards. In future, we plan to use that space for any similar public engagements.
recommendation Analysis
On monday, we analysed all the responses we had received the previous week. We noted down every place that was mentioned along with its frequency. For the final itinerary, we focussed on places that had value in terms of history or story behind it, present look, feel & condition, how underrated or ‘hidden’ was that place from the limelight, because we want to give something new to the users.
To do this, we separated all the places into 6 categories, & we researched about it in depth! We focussed on some fundamental questions during our research, to make sure our research was comparable.After finalising the spots we started designing the zine.
However, we had to reconsider this direction. The idea was, on completing all the 6 stamp collections, the zine could be unfolded into a poster to keep as a souvenir. However, prototyping revealed usability failures; on unfolding it, two pages were upside down, diminishing its aesthetic and collectible appeal.
From Zines to Wallet
We iterated on designing a suitable medium to collect stamps, which would feel like a book but could also be preserved as a souvenir or a collectible. We tried a card and wallet system. Users would collect stamps on location cards and store them in a foldable wallet that could be displayed. The ‘wallet’ also helped us address the issue pointed out last week, about ‘passport’ being a politically loaded term.
Next steps & questions to think about
It was noted that we missed the part of the brief that asked for the design to be ‘inspired by the library’. This was a major oversight on our part. There were also questions about our use of gamification, with some viewing it as a negative — a perspective I do not fully agree with. Additionally, we were encouraged to find stronger ways to incorporate a digital element.
We received feedback suggesting the experience could be more open-ended and dynamic, with less emphasis on structure. However, as Alexander (1964) notes, a design without structured coherence cannot function successfully. For this reason, we chose to retain the structured nature of our design.
Alexander, C., 1964. Notes on the Synthesis of Form. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
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