Road Signs

We see them every day and take them for granted: our road signs.

They are perfect examples of well-designed, visual instructions. And to be read and understood at a glance.

I found this article again at my dentist and tore out the page from a Readers Digest. It describes the work of typographer Jock Kinneir and art student Margaret Calvert, from initial motorway signage in 1957 to eventual completion of all road signs in 1964.

Next time you’re out and about, have a little closer look at the road signs and marvel at their simplicity and clarity.

The Decision Book

Michael Krogerus and Roman Tschåppeler have written a very useful compendium of 50 visual tools for decision-making.

Most are well–known, some of which have been given a visual representation for the first time. Others were new to me. Together they are a highly practical reference point for any manager.
And even for teachers. Many of these tools could be used as part of a problem–solving activity.

The book has an accompanying website where more frivolous and humourous examples are given, one of which is shown below.

References:
The Decision Book: fifty models for strategic thinking, by Profile Books, ISBN 978-1846683954
http://50topmodels.wordpress.com 

How to ski

Back in 1947, champion French downhill skier Emile Allais and photographer Pierre Boucher teamed up to produce this highly innovative instructional book on skiing techniques (“How to ski by the French method: Emile Allais technic” )

Just a few years ago José de Souza used this example in his PhD on visual instructional techniques. Visit his website to see more examples (http://publish.wordpress.com/2008/11/02/how-to-ski/#comment-1179).

Apparently this is quite a classic and copies can go for as much as £700 in antique bookshops.
Notice how the background has been cut out, predating the Dorling Kindersley method,  in order to reduce visual noise and accent the signal. Also note how the images and annotations work well together.

The Photographer

Yes, another Christmas present story. The Photographer is an astounding book. It’s 250 pages of photojournalism and comic book drawings of a Médecins Sans Frontiers/Doctors Without Borders project in Afghanistan starting from 1986.

I’d never seen such a combination of photographs and drawings. The drawings themselves are a form of Ligne Claire style, formulated by Hergé the originator of the Tintin stories.

It’s a magnificent book and I recommend it highly.

Reference:

The Photographer (2003), E. Guibert, D. Lefevre & F. Lermercier, First Second,

ISBN 978-1-59643-375-5

Meccano

A couple of months before Christmas I announced that I had bought my son a very old fashioned toy. It’s one that my father, back in the 1920s, played with and attributed to his decision to become an architect.

That toy, as you can see, is a Meccano set. And in this instance it is of a seaplane from the Tintin story Shooting Star. As you can imagine, it’s all part of the big sell-on arising from the recent Tintin film.

But back to the point. Just look at the fabulous visual instructions. So very clear and simple to follow. The isometric projections allow you to see exactly the positions and relationships of all the parts.

Of perhaps some interest to some of you, Meccano was invented by Frank Hornby (of train set fame) in 1901. And that the term Meccano stemmed from Make and Know.