Using the grid in an AR environment to explore embodied spatial design

Abstract
Mobile devices changed everything - to be able to carry our computers everywhere we go was truly revolutionary. The question I ask is: Can we get AR environments to people everywhere they go? Safely? Can we bring these experiences outside our living rooms or outside curated events and schools? Can we do to AR what laptops did to computers? Can we do to AR what responsive design did to websites?   With a billion different surface dimensions - how do we use the grid in graphic design to make responsive AR posters optimized for a positive experience in each setting? Dimension is just one part, then there are the needs in public and private spaces, lighting, and the visual clutter of the environment - factors that will all dictate the quality of the experience. How do we account for all these considerations in the future?   What considerations would need to keep in mind as a designer for better communication in this new media - typeface, material, size, dynamic spatial layout, physics, music etc..  

Research
Of what research has already been done in AR, it is more interaction design research and less graphic design research.

For example, there are studies done on the most efficient directional interfaces for wearable AR (circular compass, HUD, North-up maps, forward up maps etc), but not on the colours and typefaces that are more legible in AR.

So, as prelimiary design research, I conducted little experiments with AR posters every day during the class 100days. Then used the learnings along with user research to inform my project.


Technical Details
For the final exploration, I used Paula Scher’s Public Theatre poster and recreated that in different settings. The five different settings were chosen - two indoor and three outdoor. Both the indoor ones were tables, one round and one rectangle. The three outdoor ones were two rectangles with different proportions (one at a park, one on the sidewalk) and one at a roundabout.

Illustrtor -> Blender -> Reality Converter -> Xcode (ARKit, RealityKit)