· Signage, Process
Pictograms that survive salt spray
Notes from the ferry project on drawing pictograms for a moving deck, and on the signs we chose not to redesign.
A passenger reading a sign on a moving deck has about two seconds and often a bag in each hand. That set three rules for the 38 pictograms Marta drew for the Narrow Bay ferries.
One figure, one object
Each pictogram shows one person and at most one object. A figure carrying a suitcase up a ramp became two separate signs: one for the ramp, one for the luggage rack.
Draw at the smallest size first
We drew every pictogram at 25 mm, the size of a seat-row plate, before drawing it large. Details that disappear at 25 mm were left out of every size.
Do not redesign the safety signs
Life-jacket, exit and warning signs follow international standards. Passengers already know them, and a stylish version is a worse version. We matched their surroundings to them instead, and kept every other sign away from their colours.