Visual Techniques

1. UNDERSTATEMENT: The Accurate, by Crispin Jones

2. BALANCE: Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman, by Charles and Ray Eames

The Accurate by Crispin Jones is one of my favorite designs of all time. As a watch enthusiast I think this specific watch removes all superfluous elements and focuses on the most important aspect of time in our lives, how much of it we have left. Time itself is somewhat of a made up concept; seconds, minutes, hours are words and units made by man to measure the days that pass. Most of us look at our watches to tell us how close or far we are from an unimportant number or event. The Accurate is "an object designed to remind us that life is brief and that we should seize the moment while we are here". It has been designed with minimal elements removing time and numbers, only leaving small tic marks on its mirrored face. The three hands spin by and tell you your life is slowly passing by, this makes the numbers seem trivial and unimportant. 
The polar opposite design but also an inspiration to me is the Eames Lounge Chair. The Eames Chair is one of the most famous chairs of all time and for good reason, simple balanced design. The chair looks and functions just as it should. visually we can see the strurdy metal base firmly planted on the ground, from there the warm wood tones curve and provide structure and support. Above that thick, supple leather appears to be comforting and soft. This design physically embodies all aspects of what a lounge chair should be. Simple, grounded, sturdy, supportive and yet luxurious and inviting. 
Charles and Ray Eames designed an arguably perfect chair that does exactly what it should do. Mr. Jones on the other hand has designed a watch that has thrown out the principle function of a watch but has instead replaced the boring and question of "what time is it" into the much more important question "How much time do you have left and what are you going to do with it".




Links:
http://www.mrjoneswatches.com/watches/
http://www.hermanmiller.com/products/seating/lounge-seating/eames-lounge-chair-and-ottoman.html

Movement/Motion

Melting Light, by Daniel Becker

The Melting Light implies motion in several ways, the first and most obvious way is that it appears as if the light bulb is falling from the shade. The shade itself also appears to be moving because of its undulating form. The top point of the light bulb and the center point of the shade look as if they just separated and cause a ripple to pass through the shade above. It is not just the curved wavelike for that implies motion but also our former experiences and visual associations. Most people have seen photography of water drops creating expanding waves and this lamp is very much visually similar to those images. we associate those concentric circles with ripples in the water expanding out as they become larger in radius but smaller in height, just as the shade of the lamp does. We attach those experiences and expectations to this piece and it gives it the illusion of motion.

Abisko Washbasin, by Eumar

This innovative washbasin implies motion in a few different ways, the form itself appears to be moving. It looks as if it has melted or been pulled towards the ground. Its smooth rounded curves and the angles of its descent make the form similar to that of a slide. Because of the form you can imagine the water rushing down the slope and towards the drain, falling from the edge of the basin and into the drain. The washbasin was Named after the Abisko national park in Sweden, famous for its clear waters and mimics a the flow of water in a stream. Unlike most washbasins which are just designed to trap or drain water this form is designed instead to catch water and then move it towards the drain. The product is designed to create movement and its form reflects that design intention.



http://www.danielbecker.eu/melting.html
http://www.liquidsculpture.com/images/water-drop-1.jpg
http://www.elledecor.com/design-decorate/wild-style-melting-decor-58815-4#slide-2
http://www.wethink.se/abisko/