Studio Brief 2: Life's a Pitch

I feel the presentation went really well, I was really nervous before we did ours as it was quite a last minute decision that me Kat and Danni should present instead of each of us individually presenting the pieces of work we had done. I presented on behalf of me, Lily and Jess so spoke about 'defining the departments. This included Jess' designs of the men playing on toilet signs and mine and Lily's mock ups and concepts for the sensory way-finding system. The sensory immersive concept was well received and I felt was a great positive, as well as the 3-dimensional model we made, a mock up of the new student union.

I also made this graphic featured above on the concept slide, of the 5 senses. As a brief visual introduction I feel this works quite well however the image has been embossed in the process of creating the presentation which I don't feel works as well as it doesn't align visually with the other graphics. 

Feedback we got from the above slide concerning Jess' 'men' was questioning why they were indeed just men, these figures are meant to be representative of stereotypical practice associated with each disciplinary area. They're a humorous play on symbols with the toilet symbol however feedback did beg the question why they were just men and seems to much of a literal representation, however I feel it was better than using arrows or numbers or something really quite obvious.

The inspiration for the rooms are taken from scenes in a Clockwork Orange, outdoor spaces, planetariums and other soothing places. The futuristic 60's patterns and colours from the Clockwork Orange inspired room were particularly well received and I feel is a strong element, alongside the other influences which would work really well with the focus of calming students down as well as inspiring them further with the games room, where students can interact and spark ideas through digital games as well as more simple concept like the wall being a white board.

Feedback from John was correct in that we could've exercised the sensory stimulation elements further, including other elements such as smell as other groups incorporated this in their presentations such as the smell of lemons, researching this I found smells that increase productivity:

• Rosemary encourages clear thinking, improves memory and energises the mind.
• Citrus – grapefruit can help to fight mental exhaustion, lemon is uplifting, orange can ease stress and bergamot oil can even be used to help treat depression.
• Lavender reduces stress and anxiety.
• Peppermint is energising and refreshing and can aid concentration and stimulate the mind.
• Cinnamon can help to fight mental fatigue and improve concentration.

This could've been elaborated further with the herb garden in our 3d model concept as I only mentioned the texture and sight, this was a strong point however particularly as a means to upgrade the garden area right by welfare, I was pleased with feedback from John as he thought it was key I mentioned little details I'd spotted, the most unsettling being the big metal cube there that has death engraved into it that has been abandoned there. This being the complete opposite of what you'd expect to see in a garden right next to welfare.

I was really proud of the fact I was able to present on behalf of three people's work, I was incredibly nervous prior to the presentation, but overcame my anxiety and pushed myself and I feel it really payed off, I apparently seemed relaxed and got positive feedback from my peers on the precision of my execution. I feel far more comfortable presenting now in front of such a large group and on behalf of others.