Story and photos by Russ Grayson
Design ideas for community gardens…
SIGNAGE is important in community gardens. Placed at the garden entrance, it helps to establish an ambience, a feeling, around the garden.
Official-looking signs are neither welcoming nor unwelcoming. They lack emotion, but emotion is important to how we experience community gardens. Informal signage welcomes visitors and gardeners.
That, a welcoming informality, is demonstrated on these signs at the University of Tasmania’s city centre campus. Notice the use of graphics. They disclose what happens in the garden. Graphics can be a substitute for words.
Notice, to, that the lettering is large enough to be read from a distance and is a contrasting colour to the plywood background, making it readable.
Well-designed signage educates and welcomes.
