“Many people love the idea of noodling with visuals, but lack the skills to do so. This tool is perfect for them: a sandbox for visual play that anyone can use.” —juror Eric Karjaluoto
“What a great way to celebrate Formica’s new customization service. You can explore the limitless possibilities of algorithmic pattern generation for days and days.” —juror Ginny Golden
Overview: Formica is taking do-it-yourself interior design to the next level with the Formica Envisualizer, an interactive tool that enables users to create beautiful, intricate patterns from the simplest of gestures. It’s a platform for generative art that encourages exploration and sharing, but it’s functional as well: users can create custom patterns for use on their own countertops.
• The Formica Envisualizer launched in beta at the HD Expo 2014 in Las Vegas.
• Users can adjust line thickness, rotate a design and change scale with click and drag gestures.
• Users can choose to create with patterns, a kaleidoscope tool or brushes for free-form drawing.
Comments by Your Majesty Co.:
How did you approach the project? “We began with building a functional prototype to test and demonstrate how tools and palettes could be used and experienced, with a focus on dragging and dropping images into a kaleidoscope and creating unique patterns with simple click and drag gestures. The prototype was a critical step in our process, as it served as proof of concept for us, for our client, Formica, and for ad agency Northlich. It gave everyone a good sense of the product’s potential, guiding our next steps in bringing the site to life.”
What was the thinking behind the navigation structure? “We focused on two key mandates: keep it unobtrusive and intuitive and create plenty of space to explore, experiment and imagine. We built a gallery that enables people to browse, share and export their creations, as well as to order physical samples of their individual designs from Formica.”
Are there any other technical features you'd like to call attention to? “The platform is engineered to grow over time with added algorithms, brushes, symbols, tools and color palettes, and new functions will continuously be developed as the open source community contributes ideas for how to improve the product.”
