October 26

Hours total: 104

I found this poster, and it gives me a lot to contemplate about the future of libraries in the larger scheme of things culturally.

October 24

Hours total: 98

Here is a sample page of author endcap signs, which is what I've been working on most of the last month:

 

October 22

Today I've logged 4 hours, total of 86.
Here are a few samples I'm working on for the author endcap signs, using a monochromatic palette...

October 19

I've logged 81 total hours.

Here are a few samples of what I've worked on today:

Below I created a sample page to see which layout I thought might work better.
My main question I think I need to tackle, is what will a patron be drawn to? The portrait? The name? The quote? Color? My assumption is that a "face" and color, is going to be the first thing anyone will notice from a distance naturally. Then the name, finally a quote. I think a strong case can be made for a monochromatic appearance, as the face will merge with the color, as opposed to convexly popping out. I feel for the Bexley Library, which is often quiet and has a calmness in its surroundings, I think the more minimal, and contemplative, the more appropriate. Large text I think is out. I would rather think, the image would draw the curiosity of library users, and they will be curious enough to approach the face, and find out who it is, and then read the quote. I also don't want text and image to compete.

Ultimately the goal is to make the stacks a more rewarding and warm experience for users.

October 18

Today I'm continuing to work through the author signage; finding quotes, cleaning up images, and creating consistency to fit Bexley's overall aesthetic scheme. I'm also working on bookmarks. Here's a couple to start with:

And here are a couple of author signs for the endcaps I'm in the process of making:

Hours total: 76

October 17

I've tallied 9 hours this week so far, and 71 in total.

Still working on endcap signage, and have been in contact with both Rachel and Mackenzie about a photo shoot they are planning for the staff. I'll be the beneficiary of some of these shots, and can't wait to get to work on the Welcome sign.

Below are some great quotes I'm thinking of using for some of the author signs:

“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.”
― Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

“To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation.”
― Yann Martel, Life of Pi

October 15

Hours logged: 66

Perhaps this would clash with the architecture, but the use of banners on the outside of the building ("Enlighten," "Engage," "Inspire") would be a great way to get the library's mission out in the public eye. Below is a quick sample of what I mean. For expediency sake, I re-used the same face for all 3 images, although if fabricated, I would presume we'd want variety here. The chosen colors are again, just for sample sake. The height and size of the text too is alterable...

October 13

Hours total: 60
Today I've put in 3 hours, creating signs of Roberto Bolano, Charles Bukowski, Ann Brashares, and Jorge Luis Borges. Here's some experimenting I'm doing below. The color image is the straight-forward, more likely image I'll use, the black and white, might work well with a slight metalic sheen, and then a monochromatic version, which I like, and gives the image a more unobtrusive look. Plus, it'll be easier to fit the image into the color scheme that the library is going for. We'll see!

October 12

Hours total: 55

Over the last two days, I've had to slow down my progress with creating endcap signs. I spent a long time creating the Jennifer Egan sign, and finding good hi-res images of Saul Bellow in color. I also perused a hundred or so quotes from Margaret Atwood for her sign, and narrowed it to two. I've also created a Atwood bookmark.

This has primarily been spent creating signage templates for a "welcome" sign which contains the library code of conduct, new dewey cards and endcaps for all of the general fiction collection. I've located HI RES images of fiction authors (which will include credits to photographers), and am perusing wayfinding books.

October 11

Total hours: 50

Currently working on bookmarks, including a template.
Considering the architectural style of the Bexley Public Library, this particular article seems useful in looking at the balance of maintaining historic tradition, yet still modernizing:

Many people want nothing more than the comfort and quiet dignity of a traditional style when they go to the library. These projects, many of them historic restorations, offer just that.

 

This renovation manages to balance the solidity and historic style, yet adds a "pop" of color as an accent.

 

 

 

 

This reading room reminds me a bit of Bexley's, and yet an added natural element (the plants), brings in accents of color without resorting to artificial means. 



October 10th

Hours total: 47

Grisham!
Couldn't have just McSweeney lit stars could we? I'm trying to get as wide a variety of authors for the endcaps as possible, which includes the automatically recognizable. I found a nice image of John Grisham, from the photographer Daniel Mayer. The second author I've been working on this afternoon is Hari Kunzru, from a photo by Michael Lionstar.

October 9th

Hours total: 42

Alright so I got an opportunity to make some headway with finding authors for the endcap panels.
So far today, I've spent close to 5 hours putting these together on CS5. Although I've not nailed down a typeface, font size, or quotes from specific authors, I do have the bulk of the following completed:
Margaret Atwood, Michael Cunningham, Philipa Gregory, Mat Johnson, Etgar Keret, Yann Martel, Haruki Murakami, Julie Orringer, Jodi Picoult, Karen Russell, Danzy Senna, Zadie Smith and Colson Whitehead. Not a bad start!

Basically I've created templates in CS5, inserted a large pdf, HI-RES image, and trimmed and arranged as necessary. For example, here's a photo by Christa Parravani, of the author Julie Orringer. I've eliminated the background, and right-justified in order to leave room for name, and quote. My goal here is to tie-in with the color scheme of Bexley Public Library, and yet keep the focus on author "faces" which I believe will increase the warmth, and stimulate interest and dialogue among browsers.

October 6

Hours: 36

I popped into the library today to work for a couple hours on finding author images for the fiction endcaps. Here's a sample with the author Zadie Smith, whose recent novel NW, has garnered critical praise from fellow novelist, Ann Enright.  "NW represents a deliberate undoing; an unpacking of Smith’s abundant narrative gifts to find a deeper truth, audacious and painful as that truth may be. The result is that rare thing, a book that is radical and passionate and real. "     

My goal is to use somewhat muted "quiet" backgrounds, with accents of color, which seems the best fit for the Bexley Public Library's aesthetic. I've yet to nail down a specific typeface and font size, as for now it remains somewhat inelegant.

Close

Share

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Google+
• Tumblr

• Linkedin
• Reddit
• E-mail
• Permalink

October 5

Hours logged: 30

Great article!

Bad signals

Want to create a hostile library environment? Follow these simple steps:

• Put up as many signs as you can that contain words such as “no,” “must,” “forbidden,” “only,” “prohibited,” and “do not.” And do not neglect the good old circle-slash symbol.
• Use plenty of italics, underlining, and bold-faced text. Better yet, use all three at once.
• Do not scrimp on exclamation points!!!!
• If you splurge on color, be sure to use plenty of red!!!!
  
  
  
  (What would a customer experience? What would they "feel?" The space is rich, warm, clean and clear.)

More great advice:

What are the core components of poorly designed and low-quality signage?

• The sign, or the lettering on it, is the wrong size—either too small if meant to be read from a distance, or too large if meant to be read close-up.
• The sign is too wordy to take in at a glance.
• The font is not highly legible.
• There is not enough negative space around the lettering.
• There is poor contrast between the color of the lettering and the color of background.
• The meaning of the wording or symbols used on the sign is unclear.
• The sign is made from cheap materials, i.e., paper.
• The sign is poorly mounted: crooked, hung on a uneven surface, or attached with tape or thumbtacks.
• The sign is placed where it is difficult to see or not placed at the point of need.
• The sign is so old it has become shopworn or information is out of date.

October 4

Hours: 24

Last night I got started work on a template for the dewey decimal signage, that will fit Bexley Library's sign holders. I would have considered replacing these, however they appear to be brass and screwed to the shelving units themselves. The dewey cards that will slide into these brass slots, will be 3x5, and I'm considering color, font size, typeface and what variety of paper they should be printed on. I sent an email to Mackenzie about the Bexley's "official" typeface if they have one.

Today I've been able to get in a good hour or so working on filling in the dewey cards for the stacks.
Currently, the library has extremely specific labels for each row, in which they use actual author names to indicate what (more precisely who) is in that row. For example, "Abbey-Baltuck"/Balzac-Boccaccio." I appreciate this idea, however it's not particularly practical as it doesn't include the entire range of the alphabet. So with the revisions I'm creating, I'm simplifying to:

"A-Bal"/Bal-Boc"

Using up to three letters allows for larger font size, and therefore more readable from a distance.
I finished the templates tonight for the fiction stacks. Luckily I had about 4 hours to work on it. By the way, I'm using Photoshop CS4.

I also began searching for HI-RES author media images for the endcaps. The quality of the images will determine, to some extent, what gets used. So far, some very nice images of Margaret Atwood, Haruki Murakami, Junot Diaz and Ian McKewan.

For inspiration...

October 2

Hours: 18

Although it's an overwhelming thought, juggling multiple tasks for my practicum, I've decided to try and clarify (for myself, if anyone), what I need to focus on. I've got a lot of ideas, however, I need to think them through, and make small headways each day.

Today I'm going through several books on library branding, wayfinding, and customer experience design.