the jarques invasion

Da Country

2009-10-04T10:38:00.001+02:00

Sunday afternoon watchin no country for old men and listenin to the Avett Brothers.

The XX

2009-09-18T01:03:00.000+02:00

Its been awhile

2009-09-18T00:51:00.003+02:00

Sooo Germany came and went, I had some good times there and i did a good project. Unfortunately it will be awhile until i can legally show you anything I did for it. Which is unfortunate. I guess i had always imagined that was going to be the topic for the bulk of my blog posts. That said Holland is great! So wonderful in fact I think I will return after school is done.

Awesome at room tempurature!

2009-08-18T23:35:00.000+02:00

Dario's Installations

2009-08-12T13:48:00.004+02:00

My friend Dario did some installations at school a few semesters back in his foundation courses. The were done so well they still adorn the hallways today. He documented his process with a video camera and posted the results on youtube. Dario's Installation For all of you interested in coming to Germany, here is a brief glimpse of the hall.

Twitter

2009-07-27T15:27:00.003+02:00

So I've known about twitter and have been a member for some time now, that said I've only recently made any attempt at getting into it.

Anyways my user name is jlaramie. Come and follow me!

The List

2009-07-25T17:09:00.002+02:00

Here is a list of firms that I have applied to and where they are located.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

1. Studio Edward van Vliet

2. FOC

3. Droog

4. Marcel Wanders Studio

Rotterdam, Netherlands

5. Dutch Design House Demakersvan

Veldhoven, Netherlands

6. Sander Mulder Studio

Eindhoven, Netherlands

7. Nacho Carbonell Studio

San Francisco, USA

8. Mike and Maaike

Chicago, USA

9. IDEO

Folionine = Portfolio 2009

2009-07-24T21:23:00.008+02:00

Without further ado here is my new portfolio. Please comment!

School here

2009-05-21T16:42:00.000+02:00

I’ve been here a month and I must say school here is awesome. It just gives you so much more time to think and prepare your ideas then back home. It is stressed that your ideas be backed up and solid. There is always a discussion about the terms along the way.

The first week we were here, in our sponsored studio, we were given the project statement by the company itself. We were shown examples of the quality of work we were going for.

After this we went to lunch. Came back and began to discuss research that would need to be done which would be presented in two weeks. The conversation was lead by the teacher and what resulted was a list of 13 different research topics ranging from brand language to personas, to future technology. The class was then divided into groups of two or three and assigned one of the topics... before we left. One of the students opted to create a template for the research.

A week later we all came back and presented our findings in what was supposed to be 5 minute presentations (aside from Kristen and me) everyone was near 15. And that's not to say we did it incorrectly, in fact I think we had a very thorough presentation at about 22 pages. After each presentation we opened up a discussion to isolate problems, issues or areas where improvements needed to be made. At the end of this day the list was refined and re organized into 5 groups with about 3 presentations in each. We were all assigned the task of looking at our presentation and defining questions and opportunities.

5 days later we all met late at night to run through the refined presentations without the professors, all the questions and opportunities were collected. One or more of the students created 5 boards for the five groups and listed the opportunities. We were all instructed to put the questions at the end of each of our presentation.

2 days later we went to the company head quarters and presented our research. The presentation went well but it was not the only thing that happened. It was a two day event in which we learned about the company, their beliefs, technologies, engineering methods, testing methods, etc. all in house.

When we came home each of the students were given one of the actual products that we are to redesign to have and test. I can’t get into details but the products are not cheap and so it caught me off guard. From there we were to create 25 global concepts, which we presented a week later. These are concept ideas, not form ideas or ideas for how it should look. For example flip phone vs. candy bar. The concept is the flipping mechanism. The professors talked with the professors of the graphic school and had a template made in which we could present our concepts on, with inspiration.

After we presented our twenty.5 we started to create a set of categories for which the products concepts could fall under. Like mobility, cleaning, high end experience and we were asked to think about these categories and attempt to describe them, find examples, and bring them in.

What I enjoy most is the fact that each week we are able to think and refine our ideas... we have the time to really attempt to trouble shoot.

Good Design - Dieter Rams

2009-05-10T18:26:00.000+02:00

Good design is innovative
It does not copy existing product forms, nor does it produce any kind of novelty for the sake of it. The essence of innovation must be clearly seen in all functions of a product. The possibilities in this respect are by no means exhausted. Technological development keeps offering new chances for innovative solutions.

Good design makes a product useful
A product is bought in order to be used. It must serve a defined purpose – in both primary and additional functions. The most important task of design is to optimise the utility of a product.

Good design is aesthetic
The aesthetic quality of a product – and the fascination it inspires – is an integral part of its utility. Without doubt, it is uncomfortable and tiring to have to put up with products that are confusing, that get on your nerves, that you are unable to relate to. However, it has always been a hard task to argue about aesthetic quality, for two reasons.

Firstly, it is difficult to talk about anything visual, since words have a different meaning for different people.

Secondly, aesthetic quality deals with details, subtle shades, harmony and the equilibrium of a whole variety of visual elements. A good eye is required, schooled by years and years of experience, in order to be able to draw the right conclusion.

Good design helps a product to be understood
It clarifies the structure of the product. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory and saves you the long, tedious perusal of the operating manual.

Good design is unobtrusive
Products that satisfy this criterion are tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained leaving room for the user’s self-expression.

Good design is honest
An honestly-designed product must not claim features – more innovative, more efficient, of higher value – it does not have. It must not influence or manipulate buyers and users.

Good design is durable
It is nothing trendy that might be out-of-date tomorrow. This is one of the major differences between well-designed products and trivial objects for a waste-producing society. Waste must no longer be tolerated.

Good design is thorough to the last detail
Thoroughness and accuracy of design are synonymous with the product and its functions, as seen through the eyes of the user.

Good design is concerned with the environment
Design must contribute towards a stable environment and a sensible use of raw materials. This means considering not only actual pollution, but also the visual pollution and destruction of our environment.

Good design is as little design as possible
Back to purity, back to simplicity.

German Board Games

2009-05-09T12:05:00.002+02:00

About a month ago i read the article Monopoly Killer in the April 2009 issue of Wired magazine. In which i learned of the so called German obsession with board games and further of one of the greatest board games ever created, "The Settlers of Catan." Needless to say i had to play it. So when i saw my friend martin next i asked him about board games and if we could play some sometime. He was very for it and later that evening took both Kristen and I to a local bar to play some board games. Yes, you read that correctly, a bar. This bar was a "sports and games bar" and true to form had a big screen and a handful of flat screen TVs with soccer constantly playing. There were also three really nice, tournament grade Kicker (fuse ball) tables, a few pool tables and two floor to ceiling shelves packed full of just about every board game known to man!

Why Jarrrrrques?

2009-05-04T22:59:00.000+02:00

Many of you have asked me why I spelled my name with an "R" and not a "C." First off its not a spelling mistake... well actually it was but it was not my own. When i worked for Ethicon Endo-Surgery a year ago, we were all issued RF-id badges with our pictures and names printed on them which we could wave in front of doors we wished to enter. It was spiffy i know! Unfortunately, the little security lady at the front desk misspelled my name on my first day their when she was printing my badge.

Though I must admit of all the ways you could misspell my name (and believe me I've heard them all, or at least though I had) she did a fantastic job! I used to tell people that Jacques Laramie never worked at Ethicon, some crazy guy named Jarques did!

"JARRRRRK!!!" -- Molly Sullivan

It was a hit! And still is!

If I can get a copy of that badge I will be sure to post it!

Couchsurfing.com

2009-05-01T17:17:00.000+02:00

If there were ever a social-network that I feel truly serves a greater purpose it would be Couchsurfing.com. This is a wonderful website that brings lovers of travel from all over the world together. If you have a couch and you like, no love to travel and meet new people and expierence their lives, then you were meant to be a couchsurfer.

Couch surfing is FREE, (for the most part, though you may be compelled to tip, but that is up to you) and in my opinion is one of the best ways if not the best way to experience the world. Not only do you get to visit a new place for free, you have the opportunity to make new friends who are true locals, and truly discover cultures you may never have had to chance to find and enjoy otherwise. But the real purpose seems to be much greater! Couchsurfing.com represents the belief that man is innately good.

When using CS you must remember this is not a site for cheapskates! These are not free beds, these are people, not things. So when asking to stay remember to ask to be hosted, and address the person you are asking not the couch they own. Again these are not places to crash!!

After attempting to use couch surfing for my trip to Milan, i learned a valuable lesson: PLAN AHEAD! Start writing people the day you know you are going to be traveling somewhere. This is good practice because it gives you time to get to know your host better before you are there, it also give them time to plan and prepare for your stay.

Please visit my couchsurfing profile by clicking the link:
http://www.couchsurfing.com/mapsurf.html?SEARCH[skip]=0&view=detail&sid=5ae3737bea8934e84faf1aa7549ffee2

Business Card 2009

2009-04-30T22:26:00.002+02:00

In preparation for Milan I’ve been working on my Business card. I know it doesn’t have that much, but I don’t know where I’ll be in the next couple of months and figure this is the best way to go about it.

I may link to my Blog, and or I may create a new blog solely for projects, if I really had some time on my hands I would make a personal website, but I don’t sooo yah.

Check out the rest of the designs for this year’s card by clicking on the picture. While you’re there tell me what you think by commenting on the ones you like. As of right now I like Card number 8 which is the one you see here!

Intensions Behind Milan

2009-04-21T23:43:00.000+02:00

In one week I will be flying down and going to the Milan Furniture Fair. With over 400 designers and firms attending, I’m a bit overwhelmed but extremely excited. The truth is I don’t study designers, only their creations, and if asked who made what, I would not be able to tell you… This soon will change!

Preparing for this fair has not been easy, since the entire fair is not held solely in one location but scattered over some 475 different buildings, galleries, backyards, not to mention one really enormous convention center. Next week Milan will be taken over by designer and their designs.

Aside from the light project we did the summer of our pre junior year, I have never done anything furniture. Since I’m going to miss out on the chair project that we do the summer of our junior year, I see landing a job in the furniture field as a good opportunity to get my feet wet. If all goes well, I will meet some designers showcasing their stuff, and set up a job for the fall. If all really goes well this could be my opportunity to actually create a chair/furniture, versus, spend a lot at school for a one off design.

German Dance Parties

2009-04-17T22:30:00.000+02:00

It is now my third week of being in Germany, and thus far I've gone to two German dance parties. And well Ive got to say they are not what you might expect. The first place we went to was a club in down town Wuppertal. We were told it was the place to go on thursday nights, so we went. Though the bier was cheap around a euro until midnight the dancing was sub par. In Germany people dance by themselves with about 2 feet in all directions. It was as if i had gone to a grade school dance, where all the boys and girls stand arms lenght away from eachother swaying back and forth.

It was so comical to us, that we were tempted to just start grinding on people, to see if we could get them to liven up. Before we could do so, our German buddy, Martin warned us Kristen and I that it was not such a good idea. If a guy were to approach a girl and start getting close, she would mostlikely slap you. But if a girl does that to a guy, she is saying hey i like you lets take this further, RIGHT NOW!

I thought it might be a fluke but just two days ago i went to a birthday party being held here at the dorms (apparently the dorms are where alot of good parties happen) No different, in fact worse! When Kristen, myself and our English friend Berry tried to get the party started by requesting music like MGMT and MIA we actually did quite the opposite. We honestly cleared the dance floor twice, it was quite hillarious. Im sure everyone at that party thought we were so strange! HAHAHA MERICA F@#% YAH! HAHA

Fresh Air

2009-04-17T01:07:00.000+02:00

Today, Martin picked me up and took me to the first day of a drawing seminar, held for the Industrial Design students! Unlike typical ID drawing which comes from our heads, the students were asked to draw from real life. On this day we produced architectural drawings of the University using compressed charcoal nubs. As a designer, I never get the opportunity to use charcoal, but I really enjoy it for its looseness and gestural quality. The juxtaposition between the medium and the subject matter was simply a breath of fresh air.

The Schwebebahn!!!

2009-04-10T18:52:00.001+02:00

The Schwebebahn, is Wuppertal’s gem. This suspended rail transit may seem like something out of a city of the future, but its actually over 100 years old, dating back to 1902. This engineering marvel remains in operation, traveling up and down the Wupper (the river the runs below it) all day long. Achieving speeds of around 60km/hr and banking around turns, the Schwebebahn is a pretty fun way to ride around town.

I have been told that a few years back, whether or not to keep the Schwebebahn running or shut it down, came into discussion. It was old and parts of it were becoming more and more unsafe. There were also parts that obstructed the traffic flow in the city with its bulbous support struts. Luckily though the city decided to keep the famous transit, and fix all the parts that were breaking. As for the the obstruction, the city decided to replace that part of the track, and instead suspend the entire track itself.

In Retrospect

2009-04-07T13:38:00.000+02:00

Thomas Kelley, author of "the art of innovation", IDEO employee, wise man, brother of IDEO founder David Kelley, discusses the value of failure.

1. Fail often to succeed sooner
2. Noble failures
_Keep companies on cutting edge
_Keep you pushing the barriers
_Believe that a mistake may not be a mistake
_Teach risk takers which rules can be broken and which are there to teach you a hard lesson

With this in mind I will document my failures, as 23 year old American male out of his element, running amuck in Europe, in a part of my blog I am going to call "In Retrospect". You will be able to find all the posts which fall into this category by searching the tag "In Retrospect" in the search box on my blog. All things considered it should be pretty funny but hopefully at the same time informative and insightful.

My First European Flat

2009-04-02T08:00:00.001+02:00

The first thing we did when we arrived at the university was go find my room. The rooms here are amazing! They are big, come with nice wood floors, each has a radiator (if not more then one, my mini flat has 3). A kitchen with a small fridge, two burners for the stove, a sink, and storage. Since I was fortunate enough to get an end room, I lucked out with what equals a small apartment. My room is separete from the kitchen and little two person kitchen table area, and bathroom. The end room also comes with a roommate, who room is also off of the kitchen.

Martin told me that the dorms are coed and there is a chance that H. Feuvrier maybe a girl. But for now I think I’m safe to assume their French.

My First Day

2009-04-02T04:08:00.000+02:00

I arrived at 7:19 am in Dusseldorf Germany, exactly 23 hours and 59 minutes late. Ooops! But its cool, i dont foresee the conquering of Germany taking that long anyways. That day was just extra.

All things considered the flight was not so bad. I knew that we were arriving around 7:20am so sleep would probably be the most wise thing to do. Lucky for me, DAAP has trained me well in the art of sleeping when i need to, lights on or off, sun up or down, music on or off, if i need to sleep i just do, and if i unable to i wont.

Kristen Beck, had arrived the day before me and wrote me an email which i read before i left telling me she would be there with our German Buddies Maike and Martin.