Bright lights at the Hayward Gallery

The new exhibition, Light Show, has opened at the Hayward Gallery and oh my GOODNESS its good. The installations are incredible, some of them really play with your sight & trick your mind. I'll admit I've never actually been to an exhibition at the Hayward Gallery before, but this was an amazing first visit.

Infinity mirrors

This collection of three rooms really played tricks on your eyes. When you got used to one colour, e.g. red, and walked into the next room, e.g. blue, your eyes took a while to adjust to the new coloured lighting... but after a while they did adjust and the light begins to lose its vividness. You walk back to the red room but again the colour is really strong... the cycle repeats itself endlessly and you can't help but keep walking back & forth between the rooms to make your eyes try and fight the transition.

And the food market that was on this weekend just outside the Hayward Gallery was great, it was impossible to walk past all the street-food stalls without getting hungry, so Churros it was...

Hula-Spirograph

I'm currently in the process of making a music video and my team's idea for it involves lots of visual patterns, so we made a giant spirograph-maker from a hula hoop!

No Noise at Selfridges

The No Noise windows are amazing, they cleverly put across the idea behind Selfridges latest initiative and concept store. "As we become increasingly bombarded with information and stimulation, the world is becoming a noisier place. In an initiative that goes beyond retail, we invite you to celebrate the power of quiet, see the beauty in function and find calm among the crowds."

The Silence Room that is the main part of the No Noise initiative is a modern re-creation of Harry Selfridge's Silence Room in 1909 where busy shoppers could "retire from the whirl of bargains and the build up of energy." It is really odd at first; you have to take off your shoes, put all your stuff away in a locker and then walk along a dark corridor, but when you enter the softly lit room is is really relaxing. Selfridges say that the room, "Designed by Alex Cochrane Architects, this reincarnation of the Silence Room has an insulated inner-sanctum, shielded from the noise and human traffic of the store." 

I had to buy some of the de-branded Marmite from the Quiet Shop..

Dissertation Done!!

Handed my dissertation in last week, so good to have it done and out of the way. The title is 'A Diamond is Forever? How have De Beers changed the way in which they sell diamonds?' Here is a few images of the inside, and some of the key advertisements I used and analysed..

Valentino: Master of Couture

Beautiful exhibition at Somerset House. The layout of the exhibition has been done so well, the first room is a display of letters, correspondence, photographs and sketches which sets the scene of luxury. It  also works well that you don't see the outfits straight away, it creates a bit of a build up and makes the catwalk presentation of the clothing more special. 

Christmas

Feeling really christmassy and I spotted this book of vintage christmas graphics in the library at uni (easily distracted from dissertation, oops) These are some of my favourites in the book..

Rain Rain Rain

Yesterday I went to see Random International’s Rain Room at The Barbican Centre. The installation requires a lot of trust, the rain is torrential! But you are in control, when you slowly walk into the rain cameras sense your movement and the rain directly above you stops so you stay completely dry. It is a very surreal experience and it felt great to be so involved in what was happening, I think it takes interactive design to a new level.

Only about five people are allowed in the rain at one time so the queue to get in is pretty long, I queued for an hour but thats not too bad… some people I know have queued for three. I think it does kind of work in the installations favour anyway, there is a sense of build up and anticipation and when you finally get into the room you do really take the time to appreciate the whole installation. 

The Future of Food

One of the projects I'm currently working on at uni is for an evening event at the Science Museum all about the future of food. I'm working with my flatmates on exploring 3d food printing and what might happen if 3d food printers become an everyday appliance in our kitchens at home.
Over the weekend we turned our kitchen into a mini photography studio, which seemed very fitting based on the subject of the project..

The event takes place on the 13th Nov so not long now at all, I'll be posting the final outcomes afterwards.