Research day by day

The internet was really a mess this week. We are still facing problems with the connection and nothing is getting better. The library closes at 9 and we have little time left to finish our writings. But despite of that, this week was full of challenge trying to meet all the organizations that wouldn't reply my emails or calls. I went today to Finsbury Square in Liverpool, just thought that I could meet with the "rethink" organization without a meeting as I used to do back in my home country. But the secretary over there gave me her email and with that i reached the team leader through email and asked for an appointment.I wrote him a few words explaining what i exactly need from their organization:
"Dear Brian ,Thank you for your reply.In fact I am doing a research about a mental health in university specifically schizophrenia. I thought maybe I can have a meeting with you just to show how broad and important is your association "rethink" to many people; people with schizophrenia, people who do not have an idea about schizophrenia... I need to come up with a design that could help schizophrenic people self manage and let them know they are not alone.It would be of great help if you just gave me an appointment where i can videotape our conversation asking you those questions: How do you define schizophrenia? What kind of help do you offer schizophrenic people? What are the medications that are used for a treatment?Any side effects? Do schizophrenic people talk about their experience without any fear? Thank you Well this interview is important for both us advertising the hard work you face everyday and the help you are donating for millions of people. Please do give me a call on ****** to set a date for our meeting."
Meanwhile i was talking infront of my friend that i need case studies about schizophrenic cases. And she asked her brother. His friend was indeed a psychologist who deals directly with those cases in a hospital. I asked for his email and I was able to get it just today morning.

"hi Lara i will be most greatful to be of service to you with the research. i dont know how you want to go about the research interview but i will try to be flexible.i live and work in london.if you are in London then we can link up. i am off work today but i will understand if this is too short notice so feel free to suggest another date. txt me on *******.

hope to hear from you soon

regards

denis m

ps: does RSA stand for the Republic of South Africa?? and by the way am just wondering why a Graphics designer is researching in Psychiatry !!!!!! just wondering."

I replied saying that graphic design is related to everything and sky is the limit.
Everyday I was adding new information to the research we've created in class until i reached to this :

mapping
ideas about
schizophrenia

side
view




more shots while mapping

other mappings of different ideas

mapping using sticky notes

WHAT IS SCHIZOPHRENIA?

HOW IS SCHIZOPHRENIA TREATED?

WHO ARE THE SCHIZOPHRENIC PEOPLE?
WHERE COULD WE FIND THE ORGANIZATIONS DEALING WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA?
WHAT IS THE FINAL SOLUTION TO HELP BUILD STRENGTH?

path to solution


WHAT?

This mapping shows all the details about a schizophrenic
person:definition,causes,symptoms,statistics.

HOW?

This mapping shows how the long term mental health is treated,

how the illness changes with age, how many people are affected by schizophrenia
and how the medications have side effects on the person himself directly and indirectly.

WHO?

This mapping shows who are the schizophrenic people, real cases
and stories told by each of them. for example: James talks about
his self experience and being able to survive and fight schizophrenia.

"Eventually, you put your experiences to use and talk to others about life with a mental illness. After a while, even the painful times can be talked about without tears; times you believed you were the Messiah, the next king of England."

WHERE?

This mapping shows where we can find organization who are good
research centers for schizophrenia. They provide help for schizophrenic
people and other people surrounded by schizophrenic people.
It talks about decreasing discrimination
is work and in society in general.

WHAT?

mapping is very helpful to find the final solution.
after my interview with Denis i found that a diary
is very suitable to give strength to schizophrenic
people showing stories of real people.

some ideas

steps to the final

DIARIES

After combining many diaries together in photoshop i came up
with this mood board showing vernacular writing
in people's diaries. I think vernacular is important
to be present in the diary "soulmate" since it gives
the sense of reality and truth.

TRIALS

When i knew about vernacular i started to
write my real stories in my own way and
in my own handwriting but then i found out
that it lost legibility so i thought that maybe
i can only write titles or names of the people
with schizophrenia in a vernacular way. i believe
that i chose the format to be an A5 to target 20 year
old audience who have schizophrenia and those who
do not know about schizophrenia. Both are able to use
the diary in an efficient way. The diary is interactive
since anyone can write his own feelings and thoughts
in it.it is related to charity when purchasing it.

VISUALS

Visuals are part of the diary.Why include visuals?
Well the visuals are related to the illusions, delusions, and
hallucinations of schizophrenic people. So if anyone is seeing
the diary, he will know how schizophrenic people really see
or hear things. WE MIGHT HOLD THE BURDEN AND MISERIES
OF SO MANY SCHIZOPHRENIC PEOPLE BY GIVING THEM
STRENGTH AND LETTING THEM BE PART OF OUR SOCIETY.
The illusions can be photography or paintings or illustrations.
Trials shall be made soon .

ILLUSIONS


1.After concentrating too much on the black dot,
then the gray around it will disappear
.



2


3. For this optical illusion to work, stare at the center
crosshairs and move your head in and out from
the screen. Sometimes when you just look to the
side or relax your eyes a bit, you'll notice the spiral moving.




4.Both central dots are the same size


5

6.Circular snakes appear to rotate 'spontaneously'.

those are full circles

A and B have the same color

illusion of having the curtains as women dancing behind the chairs

optical illusion of room and shore


baby trapped in Mac.


ABSTRACT

different photographs showing abstract shapes and figures





Experimenting photography and abstract visuals
I did some experiments using photography
of some visuals that meant something else
according to the viewer's way of seeing things.
For example the "legging" i used and tried to
tear in order to explore other visuals.
I thought that this is exactly related to how
schizophrenic people see things. They see
them in a different pt. of view, in a more
special and unique way.





this is a shot of a leg with teared leggings from the top




this is a zoomed shot of a bent arm. the line
is the space between the wrist and the forearm.






again experimenting abstract in photography


ideas

combining between the key and a cracker i was able
to see the image in a more virtual way exactly
like schizophrenic people see it.

also combining palette of colors and light bulb
to form a palette in the form of a bulb



DUMMY OF "SOULMATE"

INTRODUCTION:PAGE1

1- Defining soulmate:Soulmate is a term sometimes used to designate someone with whom one has a feeling of deep and natural affinity,friendship,love,intimacy,sexuality, and/or compatibility.

A related concept is that of the twin flame or twin soul – thought to be the ultimate soulmate, the one and only other half of one's soul, for which all souls are driven to find and join.

- someone you love, and would do anything for, and someone who loves you, and would do anything for you. And in that love, nothing is required for either person, because everything is already given

Soul sister/brother - someone belonging in the same soul group as you and therefore having an unusually strong bond and likeness to you

Classical – Greek mythology – Originally humans were combined of four arms, four legs, and a single head made of two faces, but Zeus feared their power and split them all in half, condemning them to spending their lives searching for the other half to complete them. This theory was presented as a half-serious story by Aristophanes in Plato's Symptosium, after all the participants at the Symposium ("drinking party") were charged to philosophize on the topic of love.

Spiritual and religious – concepts of reincarnation and karma. Soulmates have spent many previous lifetimes together.

Karmic soulmate - someone who has a special mission or influence on one's life

Companion soulmate – People with whom one has made a connection

Twin soulmates – Very close friendswith whom one has strong bonds.

Twin flame soulmate – A popular romantic belief that there is only one true soulmate.

Scientific soulmate – (If) a relationship can be quantified, and scored according to an internal happiness scale. A scientific soulmate is the person with whom you are the absolute happiest. You would therefore be less happy with any other person in existence.

Balance partners and messengers – The people you meet along the way who help you create balance in your life.

Divine complement – A new colloquialism for a 'match made in heaven', a twin soul, who holds inborn potentials that match and complement one's own and who is linked eternally through a signature in the heart at the dimension of the spirit.

TRIALS


this is the first trials for the title of soulmate. Using vernacular shows reality in the story of schizophrenia.

ORDER
TTTLE
SUBTITLE
STORY1:PAGE2
VISUAL: PAGE3
BLANK SPACE:PAGE4
PAGE5
PAGE6
STORY2:PAGE 7
VISUAL:PAGE8
BLANK SPACE:PAGE9
PAGE10
PAGE11
.
.
.
.
.
.
CONCLUSION PAGE 30
LIST OF MEDITATION:PAGE31
+VISUAL




this is an A5 trial of a cover
showing the soul and mate
interacting together as typography.


this is an introduction page of Soulmate and the
keywords were highlighted in grey.







this is inside paper os the diary showing the
story of James and letting the owner of the
diary interact with it. The owner can write
his daily life on the lines below.






collage of diaries






integration of watercolor painting(how
schizophrenic people see images in a
special way, different way than normal
people do) and collage of diaries.
But IS THIS VISUAL RELATED TO THE TEXT IN
THE DIARY OF A SCHIZOPHRENIC PERSON????

BRIEF

Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder characterized by personality disintegration and distortion in the perception of reality. It is characterized by hallucinations and delusions, personality changes, withdrawal, and serious thought and speech disturbances.

In order to have insights into people’s minds and their way of living, different researches were done by a list of organizations like Rethink, mind, shift and others specifically to treat schizophrenia.
As a result, I believe STRENGTH should be given to people with schizophrenia in the form of a diary showing real past experiences with schizophrenia and reminding them that survival is the only solution and escape to a better life.
This diary called “Soulmate” defines how people gain confidence to take ownership of managing their condition. Soulmate is a product, a service, and an interaction. Soulmate is a product that is interactive because people with schizophrenia and without it implement their lives in this diary by writing and by reading other people’s real experiences with schizophrenia. The visuals inside the diary reflect how people with schizophrenia see life, in a different way, in a more special and unique way. Soulmate is a service since it shows the types of medicines schizophrenic people should take in order to feel better and how these medicines should be used.
The target audience of soulmate range from 20 years old and above; including both people with schizophrenia and people without it.
Soulmate is designed to improve information and communication about schizophrenia since many people don’t know what is it.

We need to realize that “we are not alone” and that Soulmate is able to be a companion in every moment of our lives and every state of our mind till infinity in order to give hope, strength, and a better understanding to what schizophrenic people endure.

LOGOS TRIAL

in these logos, i am trying to combine between

soulmate and other words like cure,line,time...

because these words are what make the diary.
















this logo "my mind" is what i thought i would
call my diary instead of soulmate. What do u think??



experimenting visuals with typo...


these were supposed to be posters for the opening ceremony
of the diary soulmate or mymind. But the visuals of vegetables
mean that the individual had a mind of vegetables so i changed
them according to what r the items in the diary like tunes,line,
relax,diet,calendar,institutes and others shown beneath...

then i changed them into visuals...

i did those visuals as a series to show how soulmate
can be of one entity and of a molded product that
defines strength and stigma to schizophrenic ppl.