In Case Of Fire, Break Symmetry

The campus at Sweet Briar College has many beautiful buildings, many date from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some are quite similar to buildings at Princeton University, and they were designed a hundred years ago by Princeton's official architect. There is much symmetry in the architecture, so much that this small detail caught my attention as I passed by.

This blind arch near the entrance to an art gallery frames a later addition of a fire ax in a glass case. It is obvious that utilitarian additions like electrical boxes, gas pipes, air vents, air conditioners, and a large number of etceteras are installed by working men who do not seem to notice or care about the visual effects of their handiwork. But this frame is so even and symmetrical that I was forced to wonder whether the ax was not purposely hung off center. It is interesting to me that the height of the case is very correct to my eye, the top just above the line of the white blocks. I cannot say that I dislike the composition, since I have a preference for asymmetry, but I wish I knew whether it was placed here long ago by a visually literate rebel, or an uncaring Physical Plant employee. And when did they stop hanging fire axes by doors, anyway?

Symmetry yrtemmyS

I have been driving past this sign for several years. It is on Highway 29 South at Lovingston, VA, and it is probably one of the most symmetrical signs in the state.
Driving is very much a visual-spatial activity for me, and I spotted this marker driving alone to work. Nowadays my wife rides with me, and I am forced to partially inhabit the left side of my brain so I don't miss anything she says in case there is a pop quiz at a later date. Who knows what visual roadside wonders I am missing now?

A mirror image of the left side of the sign

Bilateral symmetry

Radial symmetry

Venison Again

A Sweet Sign

This is the Colleen Drive-In in Colleen, VA, about 45 minutes south of Charlottesville in Nelson County. It has a more typical sign out front, no images, just hand-painted vernacular lettering. But the Ice cream cone is what everyone sees. How can anyone pass by without stopping for an ice cream?

Gustnado At Commonwealth And Greenbriar

It has been several months since this sign was damaged by high winds. I like the way it turned out, an expressionistic sculpture commemorating a moment of dramatic weather. Perhaps the Virginia Department of Highways has left it in place as a sort of monument? They more likely spent all their budget on snow removal last winter.



The weather reports called the wind events "downbursts", which are localized areas of damaging winds caused by air rapidly flowing down and out of a thunderstorm. The smallest ones are called "microbursts". There was some controversy about this call, apparently insurance companies pay out more for tornado damage than for downburst damage. I heard a local weatherman was grumbling that the companies had applied some pressure to the media concerning the name of the event.



The propellor shape of the signs makes me think that the wind was certainly spiraling when it hit.

Hey, I Said No Parking! #*^!

This is a companion piece to the first photo posted on this blog. It is another car whose action was a puzzling and incorrect response to the posted signs.

Control Your Pets

No Sign, Good Design

Here is an example of good design. Simple, useful, inexpensive, a clean stainless steel shelf above the urinals. This is in the Student Union at Boise State University.

Watch Out

More Falling Stuff/Figure Study

I was thinking about realistic vs symbolic figures, and their relative expressivity. These versions were collected from various signs warning us not to slip, fall, or touch electrical wires. Interestingly the most rudimentary figures often take the most dramatic (and informative?) falls, while some of the less geometric ones look like Al Gore dancing in a mud puddle.

Speaking Of Fallen Signs

The fallen sign in the previous post reminded me of this one that I sketched a while back. It still stands but the damage is evident.

Another Sign That Does As It Says

I liked the yield sign that suggest the shape of the letter "Y". Here is a sign in the Spanish village of Belchite. Destroyed over 70 years ago in a battle during the Spanish Civil War, it was left as a monument to the fallen soldiers. Many buildings still stand, missing façades to expose rooms, like dollhouses that have been left exposed to the elements.

The sign warns of falling debris, stones, plaster, roof tiles, and wood beams. Ironically, the sign itself has fallen to the ground, but with its last gasp it bravely landed face up to continue warning visitors to watch for falling buildings.

Yield, I Say

"Today's versions of the yield sign bear the shape of an inverted equilateral triangle. With the pole, the overall shape is that of the "Y" in YIELD."

According to wikipedia. I didn't notice that when I made this sketch.

That Spanish Guy Again. ¡Qué macho!

Another Fine Gent

Here is a retro looking sign I caught in San Sebastian last summer. It shows another well-dressed Spaniard, actually a Spanish Basque. Note how the white shirt, blue jacket, and tie are indicated with just a few lines. That blue and white logo created from the letter E is a bit strange, not sure what that's about.

Boinas Elósegui are the best txapelas made in the Basque country (I think they are in Tolosa), and apparently the French like them too.

The Spanish Gentleman

Here is the metal sign I photographed in Spain. It says "Don't Touch" above and "Danger of Death" below. The image is quite clear, a falling figure paired with a symbol for electric shock, or perhaps a lightning bolt. Most people would glance at it quickly, get the idea and move on. But looking closer I appreciated the patina, and the amount of detail. The man has nicely detailed hands and facial features, dress shoes (notice the heels) and a suit. Is this the class of person likely to be fooling around with a fuse box or electrical transformer? (And shouldn't his hair be a little messed up?) And the lightning bolt isn't clearly directional; is it entering or leaving this poor man's chest?

Of course Spaniards have always dandies. Take a look at this print of a Spanish Gentleman from the 16th century:

This engraving has even more detail, and the gentleman is obviously proud of his costume. I borrowed the man and the lightning bolt to create other signs, perhaps I can use his great grandfather's image one of these days.

Recycling Images

A professor in design school once ranted about the human figures depicted in signs. Why make such rudimentary drawings, with circles for heads for God's sake, when there are so many art students graduating each year? Can't they just hire one to draw them a more realistic person for their sign?

Many images are simplified yet still elegant, while some are unnecessarily simple and become ridiculous. Sometimes a figure can be quite expressive, and a certain amount of detail helps. I found the man in the above picture on a sign in Spain with a lightening bolt shooting out of his chest, or into it. It was a warning about the possibility of electrocution, but I have taken the figure and the bolt of electricity and used them for several small projects. Here is one that recycles the Spaniard dressed in his suit and nice shoes (they all wear nice shoes), and a car image in a new context.

#%!*$

This is a sign somewhere in Seville, Spain, photographed by my friend Celeste Delgado-Librero. It is a beautiful piece made of ceramic tiles, the cracking only adds to the patina developed over time. I suspect that it is in a bar, although it could easily be in a public space like a market or a small plaza. The message here is "Blaspheming Prohibited". In english we would probably write "No Swearing" or "No Cussing".

Blaspheming is a particular kind of swearing, of course. It means showing irreverence or contempt for God or sacred personages, and it comes from the Middle English blasfemen. Before that it was Old French blasfemer, Late Latin blasphemare, and Greek blasfemos, and so on to the Indo-Europeans who apparently enjoyed the tradition of profane speech. Our verb "to blame" comes from the same root, and blasphemy in many cases is blaming God (rightly or not) for causing or allowing something to happen. Like when I hit my thumb with a hammer.

George Carlin used to say that there are no "bad words", just bad intentions. In these politically correct days there is a movement to protect us from things we do not want to hear, and the Christian Right has appointed itself Hall Monitor to the world (did you hear the one about Haiti and the Devil?).

I think we need to lighten up a bit.

With all good intentions, I created a new sign. Instead of telling you what to do or not to do (signs can be so bossy), this one is more of a request or a suggestion. After all, blaspheming is an ancient tradition.

When early man discovered fire (or received it as a gift from God), how long do you think it took him to burn himself? And what words do you think came from his mouth when that happened? Cussing was old hat long before the Indo-Europeans invented their own root word bha.

Street signs usually warn us about something (watch out for the deer that like to congregate just around this bend in the road), or they give us information related to traffic (HOV – high occupancy lane), or that may be useful to a hungry traveler (McBurger's three miles on right).

Signs rarely or never offer an opinion or ask a question. Bumper stickers are mostly about opinions and affiliations, and occasionally ask if you have found Jesus (is he lost again?) or urge you to Question Authority (they are not asking, they are telling).

This sign asks an age-old question. One that brings to mind many possible answers, and many variations on the question itself. Material for cogitation and reflection on our commute to work.

What Do You Mean?

When I was in design school one of the hot topics was semiotics. We spent a lot of time trying to understand the meaning of objects because, I guess, a cigar is not just a cigar. We also attempted to imbue our product designs with meaning, ideas relevant to their use, origin, or signals of some underlying philosophy.

It is no coincidence that SUV's seem masculine, aggressive, and look like a huge, fierce animal in your rear view mirror. Designers made them look that way. (A closer look often reveals a tiny blond soccer mom at the wheel, cell phone in one hand and Starbucks in the other.) It's enough to make you run off the road and let her pass by in a cloud of dust like the bulls in Pamplona, "outta the way, pipsqueak!". After all, they really do have to get to that stop sign ahead of you.
Everything you buy, eat, drive, do, tells the world something about you. A Prius versus a Hummer, an NRA sticker versus an NPR sticker, a PC, a Mac, red meat, tofu, a suit and tie, Starbucks coffee ...

All these help us identify and pigeonhole ourselves and others. They are all signs, although they may have very different meanings to different people.

Anyway, I love this photo that I took early one Sunday morning. I don't know what the hell it means, maybe a tiny woman in a big car ran this car off the road to get to that stop sign first.