COMINGOuT

4 sides of Warsaw – a city guide

Studio of Exhibition Design

> Zuzanna Płudowska

In my designs I strive to achieve the greatest possible power of expression by minimisation of the applied means. I am interested in dynamic, simple, and pure forms. I look for inspiration in the world around, in organic forms and the geometry of a city. I admire the works of such architects as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Frank Lloyd Wright.
In design, just like in art, content and context are highly important – I strive to ensure that every element in my design is justified and serves a specific function.
I try to use natural materials, such as wood, concrete or metal, as their raw beauty appeals to me. I am fascinated with colour and it often appears in my designs as both a detail and a dominant element. The colour sets used by me are a combination of neutral colours – white and greys and vivid colours –
orange, red, green.
In exhibition design the subject of an exhibition is crucial. My aim is to highlight the character of exhibits through the form and colouring of the developed space. I try to find unusual solutions and highlight the uniqueness of each exhibition.
I love modular solutions – unification of design elements opens up numerous composition possibilities, reduces implementation costs and also allows for changes in the system over time.

>Professor Henryka Noskiewicz-Gałązka

In her degree piece Zuzanna Płudowska addressed the issue of a tourist information system in the urban space of Warsaw, designed for both city inhabitants and the increasing numbers of tourists visiting Warsaw.
The guide designed by the degree candidate aims to present the urban space of Warsaw in the light of historical events, which in many cases dramatically left their marks on its architecture and urban planning, and indirectly led to negative impressions being formed of Warsaw, which is considered an ugly and unattractive city.
In her diploma piece the degree candidate proposed four specific sightseeing routes, entitled: Historic Warsaw, Fighting Warsaw, Warsaw in the times of the People’s Poland, Walk alongside the Vistula River.
Each route is an approximately five-kilometre-long walk with five or six information booths on the way, located in city squares and near tourist attractions, which discuss the most important events and popularise the history of Warsaw. The booths are modular; some of the material in them is universal for the entire guide, but there is also considerable diversity in the substantial content, colours and details they contain. The graphics, texts and multimedia included serve as a commentary to the urban space of Warsaw. The attractiveness and clarity of the message both in the day and at night is worth mentioning.
An appendix to the degree piece was created in the Studio of Visual Communication; it is a visual identification system for the entire guide and particular routes. Each route is represented with a different colour and symbol, inspired by objects existing in the urban space of Warsaw.