I S L A M I C PAT T E R N S FOR B AT H R O O M T I L E S

Islamic Patterns for Bathroom Tiles

Dina Hany, 16-741, 9th Semester WS 2012/13 Interaction Design and Sign Systems with Jochen Braun

Table of Content

01 Introduction

01 06 06 07 08 12 12 12 12 13 13 14 14 18 16 20

02 Research
02.01 Research techniques 02.02 Existing Solutions 02.03 Scenarios and core problems

03 Concept
03.01 User engagement strategies 03.02 Customer analysis 03.03 User-story 03.04 Use-cases 03.05 Wireframes

04 Design
04.01 Brand Identity System 04.02 Interface Image 04.03 Visual language

05 Final Screen Design

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01 Introduction

01.01 Why Patterns?

This project started off as a passion for patterns. I wished to understand what was so fascinating about their nature and why they have such a strong universal language that resonates with all people. In particular, I was more drawn to abstract geometrical shapes. The willingness to firstly understand and then commuinacte this language is what drove the initial part of this project. Afterwards, I chose to focus on 1 family; Islamic Patterns as they are widely spread and embedded in the history of Egyptian culture. Usually these patterns are rich and complex with star or floral motifs. They carry an air of sophistication and craftsmanship. Also, since these patterns are considered old and somehow part of a forgotten heritage, I wished to make these designs as contemporary as they are accesible.

01.01 ORIENTAL FLORAL PATTERN

01.02 If Patterns could Speak

While some patterns carry no message at all and are simply for visual pleasure, others may hold symbolic value. As patterns vary from one culture to another, they carry a different meaning with relation to the attitudes, philosophy and spirituality of their people. In Islamic patterns, for instance, it carries a message of unity expressed in the diversity of shapes, beauty that is essential for mans surroundings and truth that is expressed in the precision and strictness of the line work. Due to their prestigious air, they are regarded as cryptic decorative motifs in places such as mosques, grand architectural monuments and sacred spaces. My main motication for this project was to find a way to communicate these shapes interactively and in an easily accessible way inwhich I may be able to revive and evolve these designs with a modern look and feel. The challenge was to decipher or in other words, make the communication process less cryptic and more easy on the eye without reducing or taking away from the pattern.

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01.02.01 CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF ISLAMIC PATTERN

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02 Research

02.01 Research Techniques

Throughout the research, my main focus was to gather as much visual documentation as possible. There is plenty of visual data concerning Islamic Patterns in the past. However, research was important inorder to know what is out there interms of contemporary designs related to the same subject inwhich case there is but a few. The imagery is mainly collected through research over the Internet and creating an archive of patterns using similar keywords. Some pictures were also scanned from several historical books and contrasted with the more contemporary visual data. By contrasting old and new, I segmented them into key moodboards depicting each style or family of patterns. Also, there are moodboards that are not necassarily Islamic but are gathered together due to similarities of shape, colour and overall charachter.

collecting visual data for primary moodboard, keywords such as: earthy,light & unified

VISUAL RESEARCH MOODBOARD 02.01

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kitsch exaples of moderns Islamic pattern design

02.02 Existing Solutions in the Market

Most examples of modernising Islamic pattern were restricted to bright, pop artlike colours. As a culture clash beteween the oriental and occidental, it is as if two styles fighting to meet yet the result is a visual clash verging on kitsch. However, throught my research I found a recent brand named Drumstick design which produces beautiful patterns that are neither strictyly overwhelming in complexity nor colourfully kitsch. The company provides home soloutions for houses on a budget or rented houses. There is more than one line starting with tile stickers and socket covers where the idea was to provide a visual identity to an otherwise white space. Each collection is based on a different Egyptian/Islamic design and the overall concept is to celebrate ones own culture by inviting it into the home or Interior space.

WALL STICKERS BY DRUMSTICK DESIGNS

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02 Research

02.03 Research Outcome Scenarios & Problems

The first scenario to analyse was the visual language of Drumstick Designs. Colourful, saturated and strickingly bold, the patterns are repetitive for an overwhelming visual effect. Although their bold colour and style make them less classical to the older Islamic patterns, they somehoew still retained a quality that still adhered to tradition. To solve this problem, I gathered more visual data that does not retain to Islamic pattern and collected designed several examples for moodboards that are inspired by Islamic pattern and fused the two inorder to visualize possible outcomes for a new visual language.

MOODBOARD 02.03.02

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02.03.01 DRUMSTICK DESIGN PATTERN

MOODBOARD 02.03.03

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02 Research

MOODBOARD 02.03.04

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MOODBOARD 02.03.05

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03 Concept

03.01 Concept & User Engagement Strategies

The concept is to create this missing modern look and feel for Islamic patterns through engaging the user with their philosophy in an interactive iPhone application where the end outcome is a sticker for blank interior spaces such as bathroom tiles. The main strategy used to compel interms of visual language is the unusual nature of the patterns. In order to do this, I chose to focus on patterns full of space and simple,clear lines as opposed to classical and complex shapes. From the reasearch, value is also added to shape as well as colour. For instance, Lotus patterns express calmness and quiet. By introducing a variety of patterns from the lotus family and explaining further what they stand for, the user is further engaged in the philosophy behind his or her choice of pattern instead of being a passive viewer of somewhat cryptic shapes.

03.02 Customer Analysis

The target group is applicaple to all ages. Customers are interested in products with social/cultural value and pertain a sense of local pride. They are interested in individualizing their products through a DIY approach.

03.03 User Story

Mahmoud and Jenny are a newly-wed couple on a tight budget. They like their peace and quiet. They just moved into a studio appartment they wish to furnish to their taste. Their bathroom has boring white tiles and they cannot afford to tear the walls down and the tenent will not allow doing so as the appartment is rented. Jenny switches on her iPhone searching for any decorative patterns for her new home and finds this App offering her to customize her own patterns. As she browses through the App, she is surprised the patterns carry an additional feature describing the symbolic value of each pattern. Intruiged, she wishes to know more about each one in specific. She selects the shape and colour she finds most suitable to her bathroom curtain and adds it to her shopping cart. 3 days later, she is the proud owner of a calming, peaceful and visually entertaining bathroom.

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03.04 Use Cases

The stickers are applicaple to newly furnished houses or small rented spaces where individuals are charachterized by being more on-the-go rather than owning a stable place. This can be true to the following: 1. Beach Houses 2. Studio appartments 3. Rented houses Much like a catalogue,the user is engaged in customizing his or her own tile by picking their prefered geometrical shape. The patterns are non-repetitive and therefore suit the prefered number the user wishes according to how many tiles he would like to view them. The purpose of the application is to present the pattern in the most unique way. It is important to deliver this message visually. By doing so, the Interface aswell as the patterns must be aesthetically pleasing, culturally symbolic while being mobile and easy to remove, thus the user acknowledges the accessibilty of purchasing a sticker. The application should easily communicate how to customize ones own pattern and what options available there are.

Wireframes 03.05
Sketches HERE

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04 Design

04.01 Brand Identity System

The main visual aspect of the brand is utilizing white space as part of the design. The patterns as well as the interface are minimal, thin lined and use the circle form as a grid base. Colours are light and earthy for a natural look and feel. In return, the core values within the design of Islamic pattern are not lost, neither are they resisting a more modern touch. Instead, they maintain a humble aesthetic identifying with both Islamic and Universal pattern. This is acheived by th fusion of several families of pattern and making each family recognizable through one colour. In the below example, the lotus family is visualized in green, the dotted flower family in pink and the seed of life in purple.

designing Islamic patterns while maintaining a modern & elegant look & feel

04.02 Visualizing Core Values

The opposite page is my most prefered moodboard inwhich core values are visualized. Simple, clear and to the point. The colours are inspired by the dusky time of day. The thin lines are inspired by spirograph detail line work and finally the shapes are extracted from the universal shape of several types of fowers and are thusly named after each shape.

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04.02.01 FINAL MOODBOARD

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04 Design

inspiration for colour, shape and style of the lotus pattern

04.02.02 LOTUS FLOWER

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04.02.03 MINIMAL INTERPRETATION OF LOTUS PATTERN WORK

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04 Design

04.03 Interface Image

The visualization of the interface takes upon the same language as the patterns. Colour palette is light and natural complementing the earthy feel of the pattern work. The typeface chosed is Avenir Light, a strict, long and geometric font as the style of the visual elements inside the App.

simple, strict geometric fontsustaining brand image

AVENIR TYPEFACE
04.04 Visual Language
The logo is simple and minimal in form. It is based on the primary grid of any Islamic pattern. I chose the colours purple and greygenerally because they are earthy as the visual language of the app but more in particular as purple is the colour of wisdom symobolically. This light shade mixed with grey gives a feeling of a simple and deep essence. The title is to the the point describing the function of the App with no inuendos.

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I S L A M I C PAT T E R N S FOR B AT H R O O M T I L E S
04.04.01 LOGO

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05 Final Screendesign

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