Design - Ankh Morpork aesthetic (research)

Decided that perhaps my process could benefit from quickly analysing some sci fi images, pulling out some moods or elements and briefly talking about why them.

Quiet, weekend evening
20th century reimagined in near future - some historical influences but contemporary road
Outskirts
Starting to become poorer area, more run down
Structures unaltered - any stylistic changes are attachments
Feels quiet, calm-after-storm, removed from bustle, well-put-together and solid underfoot, airy/breezy, coldish, damp,

More futuristic; distant city more unusual in form, more intricate and more structurally imaginative

Colder, more blue light (a 21st century sci-fi colour)

Midground outskirts more degraded - more blatant signage, hotel sign more run-down, 

Almost organic - tree-branches, etc

Transport between structures important

Historical base with Asian market-street-style clutter (red colours, hanging lanterns, dragon/roof forms, 

Less glamorous and less obviously technologically advanced future

Modern streets underwater

Hard industrial forms below, residential and commercial above

Added clutter increases vertically

Feels busy, crowded, noisy, solid center at the core but outer shapes rickety, not very windy,

General structural strength shown by neat patterns of load-bearing wires, etc

Also tension - firm

Project Planning - Revising Development Plan

Decided to add some more controls from my imaginary AD.

Cut back on the Pseudopolis Yard development and decided to go in and define the general style of the city first - break the task up into manageable bits.

Plan;
Compile two lists - things that must be included, and things that we are trying to explore with the design process.

Compile a list of adjectives for the character of Ankh Morpork that we are trying to capture

Take all of the references collected in Pinterest and set them up for easy viewing.

Sketch out a bunch of ideas - real blue-sky painting - while looking at references and taking inspiration.

Select three to present to the client. Clean these up and develop a little further. Create mood boards for presentation as well.

Deadline - Tuesday Morning
Stress and self doubt got in the way of this deadline. We're pushing it further onwards.



Elements to try to include (definite elements):

• Influence of European architecture (using Prague/Tallinn refs as well as general Medieval Europe refs)
• Elements that support the adjectives listed below
• 
  

Elements to experiment with (flexible elements):

• Aesthetics of technology
• Amount of visible technology
• Sophistication of technology
• How the European architecture and aesthetic is incorporated into the design
• The general aesthetic tone

Adjectives for Ankh Morpork from a previous post

• Dirty
• Smelly
• Shallow wells
• Mercantile city
• Service city
• Working city - factories, workshops
• Markets - cattle, veg, slaughter, spice
• Cabbage fields
• Some disrepair
• Some affluence
• Hidden dictatorship
• Thriving
• Increasingly Diverse in Species and Races
• Increasingly industrial
• Increasing Restoration of State Services
• Advancing with Technology
• A glorious past (no more)
• Skilled at being bystanders to dramatic public incidents 
• Welcomes anyone with money
• Cosmopolitan
• Thieves
• Violent streets 
• Regulated crime (Guilds for licensed crime, Watch for unlicensed)
• Squats on the Sto Plains
• Continually revised due to fires
• Rats, fleas, roaches
• Wood, thatch, stone
• Physically sloped
• Shades less controlled by Guilds and Watch

Links to the Pinterest boards to use for idea inspiration

• Ankh Morpork Historical Reference 1
• Ankh Morpork Creative Reference 1

Thinking I need to know what makes a european building distinctly european

Adjectives from References - elements common to European aesthetic

• Maze-like
• overlapping and non-gridlike views
• cobbles - perpendicular for road, parallel to walls for sidewalk
• stone archways in plaster walls
• wall mounted lamps
• stone and plaster buildings side by side
• quite light plaster tones - creme, white, yellows
• shingled rooves
• narrow winding streets
• some gothic arch influences
• some jutting buildings
• steps
• non-parallel buildings 
• tapering spaces
• cobbled squares
• mansard roofs
• gable roofs
• terraces
• wood and plaster
• Cobbled streets

What makes a building look non-European?

Asian

• squat roofs with prominent decorative ridges
• less dominant visual chimneys 

Rethinking the approach to the project.
Take the brief. Take

Design - Pseudopolis Yard (research, development)

Aim - to define Pseudopolis Yard

Essential adjectives - characteristics desired and what we know about it

• previously residential
• upmarket, posh
• city real estate
• protector
• growing, improving
• respectable
• Ankh-Morporkian (so still a bit grubby, etc)
• defendable, sturdy (?)
• blue lamp over arch outside
• pigeon roost
• multi-species but all 'one force'

My open/ongoing Pinterest boards relevant to this design

1. Ankh-Morpork Historical Reference - Tallinn and Prague
2. Ankh-Morpork Creative Reference
3. Pseudopolis Yard Historical Reference - Police Stations 

Adjectives that can be played around with in the design - mostly aesthetic and some mood

• How much visible sci-fi technology
• Intricacy of technology - bulky technology or more intricate and cluttered
• Seriousness/grittiness
• How visible is the original European-fantasy aesthetic

Create 3 distinctly different mood boards (pick 3 from the following list):

1. Less visible technology, bulkier, darker, grittier, clear influences of original European aesthetics,

2. More visible technology, intricate, less darker and grittier, clear influences of original European aesthetics

3. Less visible technology,  intricate, less darker and grittier, less influence of original European aesthetics

Project Research and Development - Notes regarding Technologies in the Story

Don't want to add technologies that would significantly alter the logic or opportunities within the plot. Some technologies do exist that we can design analogues for.

Technological limitations in Jingo to take note of

1. No conventional firearms - only bows and crossbows (longer reload times and/or physical strength required)
2. No instantaneous long distance communications - Clacks/semaphore not yet invented (conflicting information)

Technologies and props within Jingo that we can make analogues for

1. Imp-based cameras
2. Land transport (horses, carriages, camels, etc)
3. Klatchian flying carpets 
4. Sail ships
5. Street lamps
6. Military strategy sand tables
7. Libraries
8. Armours
9. Swords

Problem - a properly futuristic society would have many things that AM doesn't have in the books. Many of these things feel necessary for it to be considered sci fi (computers, electricity, etc). A whimsical computer (Hex) was created by the Wizards in one of the books.

Do I stay faithful to the books and figure out a way to make it seem sci fi whilst limiting the available technology, or do I take an 'alternate history' route?

I think that staying faithful will dominate far too much of my time at this point, given the vast amount of negotiation that will have to take place to ensure that things I add or alter do not have implications in other Discworld novels. Anything that is essential to the integrity of the plot as it is written here will remain the same. Otherwise, changes can be made.

Remind yourself of the purpose of this exercise: to explore the translation of a fantasy text into sci fi using concept art - the main focus being on developing design skills in response to a pre-written text and the creation of a series of designs that work together as a coherent whole.

Design - Ankh Morpork (research, adjectives)

Compiling a list of adjectives and small notes for reference for the character and mood of the City of Ankh Morpork as well as the character of the City Watch.

Sources: Previous notes, the book 'The New Discworld Companion' (approached with caution due to being released long after Jingo) and a flick through Jingo for some period-accurate information.

Ankh Morpork Adjectives

• Dirty
• Smelly
• Shallow wells
• Mercantile city
• Service city
• Working city - factories, workshops
• Markets - cattle, veg, slaughter, spice
• Cabbage fields
• Some disrepair
• Some affluence
• Hidden dictatorship
• Thriving
• Increasingly Diverse in Species and Races
• Increasingly industrial
• Increasing Restoration of State Services
• Advancing with Technology
• A glorious past (no more)
• Skilled at being bystanders
• Welcomes anyone with money
• Cosmopolitan
• Trading Hub
• Thieves
• Violent streets 
• Regulated crime (Guilds, Watch)
• Squats on the Sto Plains
• Continually revised due to fires
• Rats, fleas, roaches
• Wood, thatch, stone
• Physically sloped
• Shades less controlled by Guilds and Watch

City Watch Adjectives

• Quickly increasing size
• Increasing importance
• Increasing no. of duties
• Increasing multiculturalism
• Increasingly efficient police force
• Few specialists, mostly generalists
• Mismatched equipment
• Battered equipment

Pseudopolis Yard Adjectives

• Old upmarket city house
• Fronts large open space
• Blue light over archway
• No carpets
• stairs visible from door
• possibly largeish open room

Research List - Translations between Sci-Fi and Fantasy in various media

An open list of media products that are based on technologically driven fantasy, science fiction, or a translation of a text into science fiction. The list can be used later as a source to pick out a media product to look at more in-depth.

Aims:
to see how other people converted one text into sci fi
to spawn ideas for how to retain the feeling of a dirty, grubby, lived in world with the conversion to sci fi
to get an idea of contemporary cultural products in order to help create something that feels fresh
to see what other people are changing, leaving in, leaving out, etc, in their translations

The List:

• A discussion on Gamefaqs.com about books and literature that showed hybridity between fantasy and sci fi
• The translation of the Orc race in Warhammer Fantasy (tabletop battle game) to the Ork alien race in Warhammer 40,000 (tabletop battle game)
• Games in the Final Fantasy series often shows some sort of interplay between magic, mystical creatures and technology and science
• Lots of Steampunk (or similar) media that involves archaic technology (steam power, etc) being used to construct modern day and/or futuristic technologies (steam-powered computers, etc)
• A steampunk adaptation of Peter Pan
• The 2012 video game 'Dishonoured'

Project Planning - Thoughts on planning, research methods, etc - 8/08/13

Progress is slow on the Discworld project

• 3 days a week dedicated to this project
• 2 days a week at internship
• 2 days a week split between figure drawing, visual library development and design theory research

Might be good to compress the figure drawing/visual library/design theory research into ONE day and add another day to the Discworld project.

Currently time spent on Discworld project has been dedicated to planning my semester, planning the project and researching. 

Ideally, I'd like to begin compiling mood boards and maybe even start designing today. 

Need to remember that this is a compressed and not entirely realistic design schedule - some processes, like research, will have to be compressed and not perfected so that work can be done. Perhaps I will learn also how much research is enough, and what sort of research is essential.

So today

1. Finish preliminary research by 2pm 
2. Begin compiling mood boards and have these completed by 5pm
3. Pick a mood to continue on with.