An A3 visual and tactile floorplan for Cardiff Museum, in sighted Welsh and Welsh Braille. The colour image at the top is the visual element of this illustration. The black and white image at the bottom is the transparent tactile element. White represents the raised, tactile areas; black the negative space, the surface of the substrate.
An A3 visual and tactile floorplan for Cardiff Museum, in sighted Welsh and Welsh Braille. The colour image at the top is the visual element of this illustration. The black and white image at the bottom is the transparent tactile element. White represents the raised, tactile areas; black the negative space, the surface of the substrate.
This was a commission from the Dogrose Trust for Ludlow Museum. The model of the castle was created with Autodesk 3ds max and then exported as four machine ready .stl files. It was necessary to divide the model into four parts on account of the capacity of the rapid prototyping machine (3D printer). Manufactured out of nylon, the model is very tough. Designed specifically for the blind; no aperture smaller than 3mm, at this scale, was represented. This is because holes and recesses less than that size are not detectable as tactile features. The battlements are not featured for the same reason: a smooth top edge to a wall represents undamaged areas, where a ragged top edge represents damage. The Braille and MOON labels and information panels were supplied by the Dogrose Trust.
The toposcope shows the view, north of Ludlow town wall. Created by Alan Duncan and myself; Alan had the daunting task of producing the simple outlines of the landscape from a variety of visual sources, including a range of photographs and maps, as well as his own keen eye. My job was the overall design and to create a labeling system, with clear instructions for blind and visually impaired users.
The Braille instruction, in the top right of the toposcope panel reads: “This main panel depicts the landscape directly before you. The thicker lines, that lie below, represent the contours of the hills and valleys. Above them are place names in both sighted text and Braille. Under each Braille place name is a thin horizontal underline, each of which curves round into a vertical line. These vertical lines indicate the locations, west to east, that the place names refer to.”
This is the artwork for the toposcope. The raised tactile elements are white. Each area of colour has to be encapsulated by raised elements, to “hold” the paint; the same principle used in the manufacture of enamel badges.
The Keep (the national archive of the Mass Observation project) commissioned a metal Braille / tactile panel depicting its floor plan, along with a maple wood fitting. This illustration of the finished work, which was created in Autodesk 3ds max and Adobe Photoshop, enabled the client to give approval to the overall design before it went to manufacture.
I developed a new set of tactile / visual symbols for doors, for this project. Each symbol clearly indicates a door’s type or status: open to the public, fire exit, alarmed, limited access and closed to the public. These symbols have been used on other projects as well and it is my hope that through usage they become a de facto standard. They are free for others to use, on a commercial basis, although I do retain the right to identify myself as the inventor.
This portable map, showing the same floor plan as the panel, was also commissioned by the Keep. Printed on A3 vinyl, this Braille and tactile map could be carried round by Blind and visually impaired visitors; so they did not need to keep returning to the larger metal panel.
The original of this portrait of the Madonna is in Wolverhampton Museum and Art Gallery. Here it is presented in three visual forms; each of which is overlaid by a transparent tactile representation. This tactile form is depicted in the bottom right, the white representing the raised tactile elements.
As many blind and visually impaired people consider themselves as “merely being very short-sighted” they often do not take advantage of the material help available for them. The idea here was to present a single image in three versions: a straight forward reproduction, a simple high contrast colour interpretation and an ultra high contrast black and yellow version; each overlaid with the transparent tactile representation. In this manner a user would naturally be drawn to the version most appropriate for their actual sightedness, while at the same time becoming acquainted with the “language” of tactile representation.
Deux Tahitiennes by Paul Gauguin, is presented here in three visual forms; each of which is overlaid by a transparent tactile representation. This tactile form is depicted in the bottom right, the white representing the raised tactile elements.
As many blind and visually impaired people consider themselves as “merely being very short-sighted” they often do not take advantage of the material help available for them. The idea here was to present a single image in three versions: a straight forward reproduction, a simple high contrast colour interpretation and an ultra high contrast black and yellow version; each overlaid with the transparent tactile representation. In this manner a user would naturally be drawn to the version most appropriate for their actual sightedness, while at the same time becoming acquainted with the “language” of tactile representation.
This sign includes my improved disabled person symbol. The colour image at the top is the visual element of this illustration. The black and white image at the bottom is the transparent tactile element. White represents the raised, tactile areas; black the negative space, the surface of the substrate.
The colour image at the top is the visual element of this illustration. The black and white image at the bottom is the transparent tactile element. White represents the raised, tactile areas; black the negative space, the surface of the substrate.
The artwork or a sample tactile metal panel, for Acuity Design, featuring a Trilobite and an Ammonite.
The finished sample tactile metal panel, for Acuity Design. A tactile illustration, such as this Trilobite and Ammonite, should reduce its subjects to their very essentials. Not only is this important for clarity; it results in a more elegant design, in a visual sense. Sighted children can also interact, with this work, by taking rubbings with paper and wax crayons.
Created in Adobe Illustrator; this is the artwork for the floor plan of the World War 1 Gallery, in the Imperial War Museum, in London.
The manufactured panel, depicting the floor plan of the World War 1 Gallery, is first painted a uniform black. The coloured areas are then filled in by hand.
After the floor plan panel was painted, its surface was given a machined finish.
The completed floor plan panel, in place, in the Imperial War Museum.
This is close up of a sample, hand painted, metal panel; captured by a desk top Epson scanner. Although the machined white metal seems darker than it actually is, this image does show the accuracy of the manufacturing process. The graininess of the black background, un-machined, surface is actually advantageous; as it helps to add definition and enhance tactile clarity.