Hi everyone, this is a bit of a general request for help. The town I live in is putting up a ‘chatty bench’ - basically designating a public bench as a place that, when someone sits there, they are inviting people to come and chat with them.
I’m struggling to come up with an appealing layout for the plaque that is going to be fixed to the bench, and I wondered if anyone had any inspiration or suggestions? Colour and words are all flexible, overall dimension is about 200mm by 150mm. This is the best I have come up with so far:
I quite like the ‘smile’, but I am really struggling to come up with something I am happy with.
Any comments or sketches gratefully received. This is the text for copy/past if it helps anyone:
Welcome to this Happy To Chat bench Encouraging communication, understanding and friendship in our community. Combating isolation and loneliness. If you think more people should visit this bench, why not post about it on local social media pages? Sit here if you don’t mind someone stopping to say hello A Tadley Men’s Shed initiative, with kind permission of Sainsbury’s Tadley
This is a great idea. I pass a social bench on my way to my placement with Mind.
The design looks great. Just thinking: I wonder if ‘happy’ and ‘chat’ would look good in place of the eyes and ‘to’ as the nose? Although that might eliminate your middle paragraph.
I like that idea. I wonder if the design of the bench would play a factor as well, maybe something curvy and comfortable instead of the straight line bench that’s associated with sitting on your own (a sudden thought, I wonder if the straight line mathematical layout of structures in society contribute to a mental separation as nature is naturally full of curves and imperfections). A bench surrounded with flowers/plants is quite attractive, and maybe something there to break the ice (something silly that might take peoples minds out of serious mode and back to here and now). But yea I’ll think of a graphics design (green and browns are a warm color, and maybe the writing could be done by hand to make it more personal).
The bench already exists, we’re trying to think of how to make it stand out more but the self-adhesive vinyl we’ve trialled doesn’t stick well enough… new slats have been suggested (it’s currently blackish self-coloured composite).
I think shapes and simple symbols stand out more that literature, a thought popped in of an image of two pac-men facing each other with a slight curve of a smile to their mouths.
