The Challenge Series

The Challenge Series tells the story of the people and the work behind the planning, designing and building of Vancouver's Olympic Village. For the past few years, I have had my eye on the site, wondering how it would all unfold, not knowing how involved I would get in learning about the site's history, policies and the development process. A crash course in urban design and sustainable community building.

Beginning last April, I began working for this project, brought on to essentially manage all the visual information for the seven chapter publication that would launch each new chapter monthly. Each chapter covered a different topic from History and Policy to Public Space and Infrastructure, Architecture, Water and Building Landscape, Energy, and Community.

There were thousands of images to sift through, collect, review, and choose. I worked with illustrators from Letterbox Design Group and Cobalt Engineering to develop schematics. I created each chapter's wireframe for publication, liaised with writers (New Climate Strategies) with respect to appropriate images for each story. I liaised with graphic designers (Mizu Creative) with respect to each chapter's wireframe, image hierarchy etc. and I put forth recommendations for the front and back covers.

All in all it was a fabulous project to be involved with– great people full of optimism and passion.

You can access all chapters here. I recommend downloading the low res pdfs for a more graphical / magazine type experience.

mirror/drink by maia love

Riddle: What am I? Transparent in a tipped glass, glistening on your lower lip before cascading down your throat, nourishing your cells. Melting off a mountain ice-block, somersaulting over stones, pooling in a mirror form before streaming down your pipes to land splash into your glass. As wealthy as diamonds, precious as platinum, rare as air. Escaping skyward as we gently slowly heat our globe-shaped home . . .

Dance piece by Maia Love.
Filmography by Hans Christian Berger.
Video edit by Moira Simpson.

Performed at the Vancouver Design Nerd's Jam at Recollective, April 2009.

Public Potluck Picnic

Spinning off from the last Design Nerd Jam which focussed on the convergence of a green and creative city, our group decided to organize an informal unstructured potluck picnic on the luscious grassy hill beside Science World. Fredrick who I met randomly in my group was keen to help organize and he put together the invitation. I sent out some emails and facebook invites and prayed to the weather Gods. They listened. It was lovely afternoon with a great little spread of tasty food and delicious conversation. Next time, more activities like kite flying, music playing, croquet and Frisbee. One highlight was Bruce showing up with his electric bike and mini sound system. Nerdtastic.

green green green NOT

Since finishing school I've quickly made the transition to full time at Ci (conscientious innovation) where we have just conducted a comprehensive study across North America to find out what 5000 people are thinking about sustainability (issues, values, barriers, motivations, etc.), the brands they buy and the messaging that comes with it. The most relevant finding (I think) is how people rate things that I consider to be very important in terms of how i live my life (global warming, organic food) on the lower end and things like balanced life and connection with family, friends are WAY up in the high 80's.



We are getting press!.. mostly local for now (Vancouver Sun, Vancouver Province), also a great story in Environmental Leader that headlines - Green Marketing Campaigns Not Sticking, and in Sustainable Brands that headlined - Why Your Green Marketing May Be Hitting the Mark. A press release is posted on Kierstin's blog with some additional insight.



I've been busy making all of this data visual.. looking at the likes of Edward Tufte and Richard Saul Wurman and Kevin Kelly. All say the same thing - "What changes the world is not information alone, but communication" - and "Understanding information is power". This means my job is not only about visualizing these loooooong data runs, but trying to relate it to real world pressures i.e. cultural relevance and dare I say... business opportunities.

!These images are © Conscientious Innovation Ltd. 2008. All rights reserved.

RAFT :: being held hostage in gallery

Conceived as a floating structure, built mostly of salvaged materials, the project component of my thesis (RAFT) is used as a way to test and work through the creative possibilities that surround slow design. I use RAFT as a research tool – a conceptual and physical sounding board to uncover and develop a template for practicing slow design. The method was conceived primarily for industrial designers, and therefore more often than not includes a physical product output. It has the ability to transfer to other forms of sustainable design and production.

primed - opening!

Thanks to mandroid for taking these!!!

down in front!

Emily Carr Institute becomes Emily Carr University!

RAFT as platform

Updated sketches coming soon to a scanner near you. and who is YOU? aha I get a kick out that question. It's very Modest Mouse.

slow moments

been thinking more about this notion of the moment. they happen all the time. life is after all an infinite series of moments. i'm talking about the ones that change the way we think and feel. the ones that show us that another world is possible. they can be planned but often i think they happen due to a series of events, thoughts, influences, and of course timing.

so i had a 'moment' while biking home in the rain yesterday. since i've been getting into researching slow design again, i've been wondering about ways to invite (or force) people to slow down. so i was biking and the car behind me was unable to get around me. he just stayed behind me and i'm not sure if he was getting frustrated or not with me. either way i successfully slowed down that car for just a few minutes. all by myself. made me smile.

convergence

Something(s) From Nothing But Time
salvaged materials, time and energy
spring 2007

what happens to an object, a relationship, a community in disarray when you put something as simple as time and energy back into it? simple actions reproducible by anyone with access to the proper tools offer opportunities for new life, and another story.

the table and chairs.
because my research is focused on notions of collaborative and ecological design, the table, for me, is where it all happens… the table here was restored and assembled from salvaged materials: the base was found in a Mount Pleasant alley and the surface was found in a very old and scary Strathcona basement. the chairs were adopted, used, broken and are now in the process of being repaired and therefore diverted from the landfill. the table invites us to slow down and appreciate. conversations. the exchange of ideas. the mapping of information. the sharing of food. it may simultaneously connect us to - and differentiate us from - other creatures, places, and times.

the nests.
each nest above you was woven not by a bird, but by a student or faculty member from the Emily Carr Institute for a workshop called Finding Home, which took place at the SFU WOSK Centre for Dialogue on February 22, 2007. a truly collaborative effort, the materials were gathered from various locations around Vancouver, the North Shore and the Gulf Islands -- many from the fallen trees hit by this winter's storms. Through the act of weaving, of adapting, of working with the physicality of natural materials, these nests served as a metaphor for each of our own journeys in creating a sense of home for ourselves, our families, our communities, our world. The metaphor extended to being playful, local and resourceful.

How About That Weather
digital print, cardboard
spring 2007

this time map delineates the two years I will have spent at Emily Carr. It is a work in progress designed to help me see where I am, where I’ve come from and to suggest where I might be going… . . evolving concepts and influences such as new genre public art, the spime and the changing role of time within the design process are plotted on the bottom forming the foundation which supports my work, my community involvement, my experiences, my everyday observations, my life.

the big one

its funny to learn what people hear about and associate with vancouver who do not live here. mostly, i think, it has to do with our bizarre weather, urban planning, and west coast life style. it was brought to my attention last night that over the next two weeks, the likelihood of our long overdue earthquake is significantly heightened.

now here's an opportunity for some what would happen if? analyseez.

one word > water.