memphis group | Becoming a Designer.

project 2/ hats

Posted on October 20, 2013 by Nicholas Jones PD

as part of our third project we have been asked to use our design ethos, our understanding of materials and technology to product three concepts of a hat and model them out of card and paper, using folding techniques.

as my design is driven but the inspiration from Philippe Starck and the Memphis group my designs consist of a metal (steel) look and bright colours mixed with odd shapes or modern shapes, ive tried to make my ha appeal to me more than others meanwhile balancing that with functionality and purpose.

this is the start of my hat model, this is a imitated steel frame that is there to support the construction workers head. after I made that I added the back panels on to my model, this is where the back of the head will be situated as you can see there is two layers, the underneath layer is to keep the head in place and provide protection and is made from plastic and the top layer is like a band of steel that rises from the underneath layer this is to absorb a shock from a falling object or machinery equipment. and the last picture shows the front of my hat, the front is a flat surface on a angle and I’ve made it flat.

My design ethos (nicholasjonespd.wordpress.com)
Project 2: The Brief. (2) (liamsturgessblog.wordpress.com)

Here are the three concept drawings I’ve done for my hat design, the first one is the one I modelled out of paper, it’s a quarry worker safety hat/helmet, it also can be used for machinery drivers for the quarry workers they can have a torch attached to the front or a gas detector and a solar panel which would be connected to the torch etc also it can be used to power a wallow talkie so workings can give each other information. The other key feature about it is the fact I have added a flat steel plate on the back to act as a shock absorber to prevent injury to the back and front of the head if something fall down on top of them, the second one is just a futuristic hat that also doubles up as a virtual video game/ console, and the last one I designed is a standard SnapBack shape but made from a strong cotton based fabric to prevent wear and tear also I have added fold down head phones for the teenagers who want to listen to music but can still wear a hat.

here is the second model I made of one of my hat designs. I like the colours and the shape however it is very fragile so i cant wear it< unfortunately

My design ethos

Posted on October 11, 2013 by Nicholas Jones PD

I’m now going to write about my design ethos and the inspirations that enhance my own work to a certain extent.
Firstly I would like to talk about a designer that is a massive influence on my work. The designer that I would like to talk about is Philippe Starck, he has inspired my work since I discovered his work during my gcse years, the first ever product I found of his was his “hot Bertaa” this product was a Kettle however you couldn’t use it but that is besides the point I’m not so much into his functional products but more into his aesthetically pleasing products that really attract consumers but I’m not saying I only design aesthetically pleasing products because I think it’s vitally important that I balance function over aesthetics, I love the materials he uses to make his products such as brushed and polished steel, these materials are very appealing materials they look clean and add a lovely futuristic look on his products, the other thing that inspires my work is the Memphis group, I love the range of bright colours and obscure shapes to form a product, I think their work is more of a art statement however if you mix it with function and form you can create life changing products.

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