Visual Direction | Isa

Our group of five focused on creating maps as part of the larger wayfinding system. I was initially very active in leading the group’s direction, especially in the early research and visual development phase. I brought moodboards, led discussions about what styles we liked and needed, and created a lot of initial sketches. Later in the semester, I stepped back from the map group to take over the style guide as an individual project, but the foundation I helped build in the beginning carried through to the final result.

From the start, I pushed for an illustrative, playful approach rather than a classic, serious map style. I did a lot of research looking at different kinds of maps — some fun and experimental, some more scientific and minimal — and I brought these references to the group to help define our direction.

The final style ended up being illustrative for the buildings, with minimalistic detail for the rest of the map. The buildings are drawn with character and personality, while the surrounding areas stay clean and simple so the information doesn’t feel overwhelming. I didn’t include icons or symbols to indicate specific places inside VorOrt — instead, the map relies on clear labels and the overall visual language to communicate what’s where.

First maps VorOrt to Uni | Isa

My initial sketches were very close to the final result, which felt like a good sign that the direction was right. I produced lots of variations exploring different levels of detail, though this became frustrating at times and even felt like wasted time and drained motivation; but I later understood that it was a very necessary part of the process.

I had strong opinions about what was crucial to include on the map and what wasn’t necessary. For example, I believed the connection between the university, VorOrt and additional „student ladmarks“ like mitte and KIOSK was essential to show, because it positions VorOrt as part of a larger creative ecosystem rather than an isolated space. I also felt that overloading the map with too much information would defeat the purpose — it needed to be clear and inviting, not overwhelming.

I used a mix of hand drawings for the initial concepts and illustrations, Google Maps for references and spatial accuracy, and Procreate for the final sketch execution. Other team members worked with Rhino and other tools, but my process was largely analog/digital: sketching by hand, then refining and finalizing in Procreate.

First maps VorOrt to Uni| Benjamin

The idea behind these initial maps was to see how different types of information – such as streets, buildings, parks and routes – interacted with one another. To do this, I used several colours, as well as different shades within those colours, to see which pieces of information stood out the most.

After that, I created several colour scales so that I could experiment with this information. My aim was to try to create a map that was neither too complex to understand nor too simple, so that users would know how to use it.

I then decided to render the map in three dimensions to get a little closer to the style presented by Isa and to see whether or not the hierarchy of information changed depending on the angle of the map.

It was at this point that I decided to render the map in black and white to see how the shades of black and grey influenced and drew our eye. I concluded that, when there were too many roads, they could distract us from the map’s main purpose, and that a balance needed to be struck between the different pieces of information.

First Maps VorOrt to Uni | Enie

After brainstorming some Ideas we got into trying out some of our visions. I tried some versions with the true view of a Map (but forgot to take true north into account). In my head it still made sense because for me the starting point is always on top and your finish point at the bottom. 

It was very clear that some part of the map would be a light pink since that is one color already existent at VorOrt which was supposed to be incorporated in our Designs. 

At this point there wasn't a yet a color scheme so I just did some experimenting.

You can also see sketched building which was an aspects of our maps we were sure would stay. It didn't.

We decided the Map to the VorOrt should be displayed as a poster in the hallway of the Lyzeum. This is the first design for that Idea. 

The signs group had already decided that their signs all should be circular so we thought that I should incorporate the circle to be coherent. 

You can also see that the colors are now more defined.

This map is now true north and tells you how long it takes till you're at the VorOrt and also what you can do there.

Things like what information do we really need and how do we portray what were starting to gat clearer at this point.

Buildings | Benjamin

As for the buildings, we decided to model them and then export the outlines to Illustrator. The advantage of this technique were its flexibility: thanks to comprehensive modelling, we could alter the viewing angles of the buildings without having to redo them all, whilst maintaining their proportions.

We decided to model the key elements along the route, namely the campus, the station, the station bridge, the UCI, the VorOrt, the Mitte and the kiosk.

The modelling was carried out in Rhino 3D. To do this, I took photographs of the various buildings using a reference point whose dimensions I knew. This enabled me to model them in Rhino by using the images as references and constructing the shapes directly on top of them. The aim was not to add too many details to the buildings, so that they remained recognisable without providing too much visual information.

I then placed the buildings in an isometric view and exported their outlines using a Rhino 3D command, originally designed for creating plans and exploded views of technical objects. Once in Illustrator, I cleaned up any unnecessary strokes, then used the ‘Shape Builder’ tool. This allowed me to create different faces, which I then organised into several groups based on the colour they would be assigned.

After that, we adjusted the colours to give the buildings a luminous effect and bring them to life.

The first part focused on the colour palette I was going to use for the buildings. To do this, I took the base colours and then darkened and lightened them to create different shades. I carried out several tests on all the buildings. Despite this, we encountered a problem: the most harmonious colours did not allow the details to stand out sufficiently. We therefore had to add fine pink lines to highlight certain elements and improve their visibility.

Finally, I created a pattern to determine which colour each face would be assigned. The aim was to use lighter shades for the front faces and darker shades for the rear faces, to create the illusion that sunlight was illuminating the buildings. This helped to bring these isometric buildings to life.

Mental Maps | Enie & Benjamin

More than halfway trough Brigitte told use we should do some Mental Maps to find out what points along the way are memorable and important to find your way to the VorOrt. It helped to find the simplest version of our Map and narrow down what elements were really necessary and which owe could get rid of.

After Mental Maps | Benjamin

I then decided to create isometric maps based on the buildings. As the buildings were yellow, pink seemed to be the most suitable colour for the map. So, as with the first maps I’d created earlier, I had to strike a balance between the simplicity needed to make the map easy to understand and a sufficient level of detail to allow users to recognise the route to follow.

This work was quite complex and required several rounds of feedback as well as numerous discussions.

Following this feedback, we decided to break away from the rigidity and visual clutter caused by excessive detail and roads that were too straight. To remedy this, we made the map more fluid and gave the roads a much more organic feel. Ultimately, the isometric perspective was already sufficiently evident through the buildings and did not need to be emphasised by the roads.

We then reduced the number of roads and simplified the train track graphically. This enabled us to create a clearer map, incorporating various landmarks such as buildings and parks, whilst ensuring a clearly visible and easily understandable route.

After Mental Maps | Enie

This was how the Map looked after implying the mental maps. It helped to get rid of many of the streets and also abstracted the Map. 

Furthermore you can see that our sketched buildings (Which we were very sure of in the beginning) are gone. they got exchanged for very nice isometric buildings. 

Benjamin designed this buildings in a 3D program and was very kind to let me use them.

Map Trials VorOrt to Uni | Enie & Benjamin

While imagining where our Map should go we came across the glass display boxes in the hallway of the Lyzeum and Brigitte said it would be nice to put the map in there. 

The idea expanded. So now the Map was als supposed to include Mitte and Kiosk. 

Benjamin and I decided it would be best to work together since we were getting close to the deadline. Since he was good doing the isometric houses that became his job and I took care of the Map.

Final Map VorOrt to Uni | Enie & Benjamin

Our final map includes VorOrt, Mitte and Kiosk, the time it takes to get to each of the locations from the Lyzeum, important buildings and street names you need for your way there and the respective websites and Instagram. 

Above the map is a lot of space so you can put posters and flyers of the locations above so you are always up to date on events.

Final Map VorOrt | Laura & Charlotte

Here are the various maps we have produced. They showcase different experiments with colour, shape and perspective. These initial versions enabled us to explore different angles of view. We chose to use the same buildings as on the other map to ensure consistency between the two. This is why the latest versions incorporate yellow and pink. This choice helps to add contrast and depth to the various buildings.

Finally, we decided to round off the VorOrt site so that it better matches the circular shape of the medium on which it is presented. We have also swapped the colours of the terrain and the building: the terrain is now pink, whilst the building is shown in yellow, which helps to highlight the architecture more effectively.

Installation

To install the card, we had it printed on matt foil at the print shop. We then cleaned the metal surface before sticking it on. There were three of us working on this stage, as it required a great deal of precision, patience and, above all, several pairs of hands.

Charlotte was in charge of sticking the poster onto the board using a splendid ‘Intermarché’ loyalty card (a French supermarket chain, a bit like REWE in Germany). Laura was responsible for holding the adhesive side so that it didn’t stick to the board before Charlotte had managed to position it correctly. Meanwhile, Benjamin, following Charlotte’s instructions, removed the protective plastic film from the foil.

Thanks to this technique, we managed to apply the poster neatly, despite a few air bubbles and the slight unevenness on the board.

As for the VorOrt map, it was installed by the production team. We recommend you take a look at their post to find out how they carried out the installation!

For our part, we simply provided them with the final map.

In Retrospective

Isa :

I’m happy with how the maps turned out — they’re very similar to my initial sketches, which made me feel like my contribution was genuinely helpful. The research and moodboard work I did at the beginning also helped define everything the group was doing, which gave me a sense of ownership over the visual direction even after I stepped back in order to make the style guide.

If I could do the course differently, I would have split the large group into smaller teams that each developed the whole concept in different ways. That way, we could have explored multiple directions in parallel instead of trying to align five people on one vision. I also learned that the experimenting phase is really important — you need space to try things without being pulled back and forth too much. And in a big group, communication has to be extremely clear, or things get lost.

Benjamin :

I enjoyed this course. As an industrial design student, it was a real leap into the unknown, as I’ve rarely had the opportunity to work on signage. I can therefore say that this course has genuinely provided me with new knowledge and experiences.

The course was interesting, although at times difficult to organise, particularly in terms of communication within such a large group. One solution might be to draw up a set of guidelines before the course begins and enforce them from the outset, so that they serve as the backbone of the project. This may seem somewhat restrictive for creativity, but in the context of a large group, it strikes me as necessary in order to make progress more efficiently and coherently.

Charlotte :

I found this course particularly interesting, especially as it allowed me to discover a new way of approaching design. The work on signage was quite different from what I was used to doing and gave me a better understanding of the importance of legibility, information hierarchy and graphic consistency in a project.

It was hard to communicate and make decisions with so many people. The numerous discussions and feedback sessions were very (too?) important, but they did enable us to develop the project and challenge some of our ideas. I think a clearer structure from the outset, with rules and objectives defined in advance, would have made this process easier whilst still leaving plenty of room for creativity.

Laura :

I found this course particularly interesting, especially because of the way it encouraged us to develop a multi-stage project and to constantly question our choices. I appreciated being able to experiment with different ideas, test them against the group’s feedback, and see the project gradually evolve.

The various discussions and feedback sessions enabled us to improve the project and take a step back to assess our choices. I think clearer organisation from the outset would have made the work easier, particularly with a better division of roles and objectives defined in advance. Despite this, the experience was still very rewarding and helped me develop my approach to working in a team.