OUGD404 - Emergency Exit Mini Brief

Tuesday 4th November Today we looked at symbols or images to communicate specific messages. One of the most important symbols we can consider is that of a ‘Fire Exit’ and how it is, as many warning elements potentially another vital element in visual communication. Not only will it have to consider language, culture and way finding (to a degree) so this  can be a difficult one to address in such a short time. We are all aware of the existing symbols, are we  happy with them? Is it time to revisit them. Now we can in a limited time (it concentrates the mind). Consider all the elements you need to address and see how ‘different’  you can make this. Colour, legibility and scale. These things are legally required and can  in some areas and scenarios have a detrimental effect on the building in which the are positioned. 1982 Japanese exit sign ("running man") designed by Yukio Ota in 1979 Published as ISO Standards in 1987, it is standard sign in parts of Asia-Pacific, Europe, Canada and New York City (LL26) We were asked to redesign the fire exit symbol. Therefore as a group we all sketched out some ideas we thought could possibly work however it was incredibly challenging to recreate something that already works perfectly without the need for change. We therefore looked at existing emergency exit signs and looked at what worked and what wasn't necessarily needed.  We went with a red triangle as it is a globally known warning sign. We then worked with various different arrows to symbolise movement to the exit.  After coming up with a few ideas as a group we then digitalised them.  After all agreeing on the top left design as being the most effective, we developed an extra red box to make the sign more legible. After experimenting with the designs and fonts we came up with our final idea below Here are some of the experiments along the way.