Digital Mood Boards

Ok one and all.  I have had a couple of emails regarding the mood board assignment and in looking at the work and analyzing them it has brought up a few pointers which I am going to now talk about.

My apologies for not having the chance to do this sooner, especially as you probably all will have wanted to work on this through the week end.  I spoke to most of you on Thursday about your presentations and each of you highlighted an issue which I hope I have listed below

1. Firstly show a plan of your design.  This can just be a sketch, a visual squiggle if you like but show it within the boundary shape.  That 'squiggle' has to show a connection to the site or else the client does not know what the relationship is; the size, scale and overall visual impact.

For the mood board this can be by hand, you don't have to do this on Sketchup or CAD.  It is just something to convey your basic concept.  The only reason I originally suggested you did the plan using CAD was for the experience of using the software and the fact that this will be a starting point for you entering the second assignment.

• The digital side of this exercise is to evoke as many of the senses as possible on screen and communicate your idea.  Remember Powerpoint may be basic, but you can animate and create movement, you can add sound for another level of emotion.  Just controlling the speed a slide changes adds a subtle level of the experience. (ie clicking from slide to slide or gently fading from slide to slide makes a difference) 

2. Looking at some peoples work I can see the type of thing you are going for.  What you need to do is find images that link with what the concept is.

For instance, if you have a bench that is quite organic, why have you chosen for it to be so.  Is to represent wavelike forms of the sea, or a twisting current perhaps?  If that is the case, then show an image of waves with it.

If the memorial style you have chosen is very minimalist, show an image to illustrate what connection that has to your concept. If it is to illustrate the calmness after the storm as it were, then show some calm water or something else that you feel visually describes serenity or tranquility or the relief of being saved.

3.  You need punch line text on each slide.  Single words though; short and punchy.  But don't put 'Materials', we can see its materials!  Put 'textured', 'organic', 'etched', for a physical connection and again descriptive words such as 'entangled', 'released' or 'elation' for emotional connection. (These are just examples as I don't know what your concept is.)

The colour of the text and the font style also add another level.  So don't just do black in Ariel unless there is a reason for that.

4. You don't have to fill the page with images but you need to balance imagery and text dependent on your concept.  What I mean is the way the images are laid out also can give backing to your ideas.

For instance, if you are trying to get a feel of the crashing of waves against the rocks and the disorientation of a person battling for survival in those waters, arrange the images in a busy way.  Fill the pages with lots of stuff to show the ciaos.  Use Powerpoint to its full and lets say have three or four slides animated flashing up one after the other, just long enough to almost subliminally give the viewer a blast of that ciaos.  Maybe on each of the slides, just one image is larger and more defined than the rest, so although its a 'busy' group of images the most important stands out and is remembered.  That is the image the client will take away with them, but the emotion of that image is intensified by the ciaos of the other images around it.

5.  Be careful what background colour you display behind images.  For example green might be a confusing choice.  It is very woodland like, definitely land based and perhaps the opposite of what the brief is about.  However if you have a good reason for that colour thats fine, but you must convey that through the images and captions and the very least be able to explain that clour choice if questioned after the presentation.

6. Be careful with planting images that they are not too specific.  For instance, you want to convey what the style of planting is communicating to the public and you need to sell this idea to the client.  If the plant choice is to create a relaxing space for contemplation, then that is the imagery you need.  Find images which show a scene containing the form colour, texture or movement you want to convey.  Again you are creating an emotional connection, you are not specifying a planting list.

7. Mix the images.  I know many of you will do this, but you dont need a materials slide and a planting slide.  What you need is a slide about where people are sitting perhaps or a slide to convey the initial emotion when you first enter the garden.  Each slide needs to be selling one element of the design.  So if you want the client to think the first thing you feel when you enter the space is the overwhelming loss of life, then that is what that first slide should illustrate.  You show that by highlighting the materials, planting, and reportage which instantly sells that story.

If you were inspired by an object or piece of art, then show an image of that.  For example if that inspiration was twisted and organic and created the basic shape of your pathways, then visually explain why that is. Take that image and put it along side a material the path might be made from.  Place a sketch of the plan next to it showing how that shape relates your object of inspiration.  Show how that relates to maybe the twisting currents in a tidal estuary.  All those different images are now describing an element of your design.  Add the punch words to define and connect them.  Add colour to evoke the right emotion.

• Start your presentation with a bold slide that encompasses everything you want to say about your concept.

• Finish with an image or a set of images that encompasses everything you want to say about your concept.

• You want your client to remember your ideas above everyone elses and for it to stand out amongst your competitors.

Dont panic!  Thats alot of info. I know.  But just take a few minutes to write down the main elements you want to get across, then make sure you highlight one of those elements in each slide.

By the time you have successfully generated that depth of information in your slides, you may not necessarily need to talk about it much at all.

Last of all and most importantly......practice talking through your presentation.  It is 6 minutes long!  You have a lot to get across.  But use those punch words as bullet points to remind you what you are delivering and the important points you want to highlight.

Contact me if you need more guidance and ......good luck!!