More Hopeful than Speculative

Front of ridiculous invitation.

When did we realize that Singapore is experiencing a swelling, feverish property bubble? Was it one of our friends was offered a mortgage equal to about 16 times her annual salary? Was it when property prices surpassed the record levels of 2008? Was it when the government announced another massive release of state-owned land to developers for the purpose of building more subsidized apartments to ease the speculative clamor in the private market?

Back of ridiculous invitation. Act now.

Nah. We knew that property dealers and buyers had become overenthusiastic when every flat in our building received this invitation, pictured above, to attend a sales pitch about buying condos in the capital of Mongolia.  Condos not houses or greenfield sites; Mongolia not China or Hong Kong.  Click on the images to enlarge the postcard.  Maybe global realtors CB Richard Ellis believe Ulaanbaatar has serious potential, or maybe they believe Singapore houses a profitable number of suckers.

"Signs, Signs, Everywhere the Signs"

New York's Penn Station is as charming and welcoming as it is navigable.  This diagram shows the Long Island Railroad platforms deep underground.  Passengers connecting from LIRR to a NJ Transit or Amtrak train should head for the shaded are at the top left.  However, this map doesn't show any doorways or stairs there.  Trust me, the building doesn't feel any simpler in practice.  Image from MTA website.

The online magazine Slate began a multi-part series this week on signs.  The articles focus on how people use signage to find their way around locations.  Author Julia Turner says that the great increase in travel, mostly by air, has spurred architects and planners to think carefully about how they direct people, many of them on a tight schedule and unfamiliar with the local language, to move to their desired destinations.  In some circumstances, like driving at speed down the highway, quality signs can be a matter of life and death.  

The mobility of the post-War era explains why signage has proliferated and improved, but to me the real interest is in how these systems are bettered.  Placards on the wall represent only one example of the indicators by which we navigate.  Humans can also sense environmental zones, which is why we go to a building's high-roofed multi-story lobby to look for the elevators.  That big lobby also serves as a mental centerpoint when walking around the rest of building, whether or not it is actually centrally positioned.  Also a sign can't help if it hangs in the wrong place or contains no relevant information.  This is why hospitals have big red exterior drive-thrus for patients needing emergency treatment and no banners and arrows outside for those visiting the dentist on the twelfth floor.  For these reasons specialists in directions do not refer to their craft as "sign-making" but "wayfinding."

Slate's series does more than satisfies my appetite for visual analysis, but it chooses New York and London as two of its test cases!  Why is Penn Station so confusing?  How can anyone get from A to B in London town without an A to Zed?  The Legible London project might make it possible.  Bonus: The pilot program(me) by the Mayor's office follows the incremental testing and rollout methods advocated by Michael Blastland in Analysis last week on BBC Radio 4.  Art, design, podcasts, Anglo, American  -- trifecta!  Did I mention I am not the mathematical one in this couple?

 

One of the Legible London signs on Oxford Street.  Image from wayfinding firm Applied Information Group (AIG).

Global Pop

Auditions for Singapore's 2009 version of the international phenomenon drew big crowds this month.

Simon Cowell & Simon Fuller – a ruthless media partnership bent on world conquest. Who can stop him? Did I mention that Simon Cowell is also responsible for Il Divo?