Rebecca's First Year Blog.Folio

Second Year Blog

2009-09-11T14:07:00.000-07:00

Since I had so much just from one year of architecture, I have decided to make a seperate blog for 2nd year studio and other IARC classes.

The address is: http://rebecca-ladd2.blogspot.com/

Summer Sketches...

2009-07-12T13:01:00.000-07:00

Since first year is over and I do not have school, I have started another blog called my Summer Sketch Blog for all my summer sketches and works.
Have a look!

Also this will probably be the last post in this blog, I am planning to make another one for Second Year work. :3

Drafting [Portfolio Posts]

2009-05-11T13:19:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the late submission, I only just in the last hour got the email about the due date change.

Lettering Quiz

Book perspectives

Book Perspectives

Overall Grid

Exterior Grid

Interior Grid

Critroom Perspective

Sacred Space Model

Stair Report

Sacred Space sections

Sacred Space Sections

Sacred Space Plan

Precedent Analysis [Final]

2009-05-08T02:10:00.000-07:00

The unusual and intricate building along a street of discord that is reminiscent of a dragon is called Casa Batlló, a structure designed by Antoni Gaudí and constructed from 1905 to 1907 in Barcelona, Spain. The interest in this piece that made it of notice in architecture is mostly for its air of fantasy, extraordinary curving facade incorporated with engaged and decorative columns, and inspiring brilliantly colored mosaic walls throughout the building made simply to be categorized as an apartment building.

The man behind the unusual design of Casa Ballto is Antonio Gaudi, born in Reus, Spain in 1852. The Spanish architect’s work was most classified in the modernismo period and even into that of the Art Nouveau style of the 19th century. Casa Ballto and its counter part Casa Mila are late examples of Gaudi’s commercial design beginning construction in 1905. The building itself is still in the same condition as it was the day it was finished and it a popular tourist attraction in the city of Barcelona, Spain. Tours are given of the main floor, Piano Nobile, where the Ballto family who owned the aristocratic apartment lived and the attic terrace on the roof where the chimneys and elaborate roof is located.

When brought up in conversation, the most elaborate and recognizable part of the building of Casa Batllo would have to be the front Façade seen from the streets of Barcelona. The pillars and balconies are depicted to many as having a bone like appearance leading to its nickname of the “House of Bones”, sometimes it is also described like teeth of some yawning beast as well. Stain glass windows and Catalan style mosaic tiles adorn the front of the structure as well adding to the fantasy aspect of the building genre and making it all the more appealing to come up to, especially in the sunlight. It is thought that the inspiration for this idea came from marine life, especially when talking about colors of natural coral. The front façade of Casa Batllo has a very contrasting designs as opposed to its sister design, Casa Mila which is smoother and more stone like appearance with beige monochromatic colors. Continuing through the building, Casa Batllo does not disappoint on the interior in comparison to the exterior front façade, the theme of irregular shapes and curves is continued in the doorways, hallways, stairwells, and ceilings as the building builds from its base to its peak. Great attention to detailed was paid throughout the building from the wooden curving doorways to the designed to be in it to the fireplace that looks like it was carved right out of the wall. More mosaic accents mimicked from the outside are brought inside as well to continue with the colorful theme of the apartment. The final and more ostentatious part of the building would have to be the rooftop terrace. The rooftop itself continues the curving hill like pattern adorned with colors and textured stones that make it look like the back of a dragon according to authorities on Gaudi’s architecture, many think it may be associated with the medieval story of St. George and the dragon with the bone like items on the front façade being the remains of the dragon’s victims.

All designs have to start from somewhere in the realm of architecture, many designers and architects take inspiration from old designs of ancient times and sometimes the influence is unintentional because these old designs were the building blocks for the new. Casa Batllo and its elements that make it so successful mimic many different proceeding buildings from the past as Gaudi made it in a more modern style for the future. The idea of using mosaic tiles came from the Romans when they created the Roman public baths for their citizens, the tiles added an element of delight then as they do now with Gaudi’s design when reflecting the sunlight and lightening a room. The idea of the roof top décor being based of the story of St. George and the Dragon is a medieval concept from art in the Early Christian Byzantium period where the cross like form of the elaborate chimneys represents the sword that slew the dragon. One more interesting precedent comes from the French Baroque ideas in that frivolous curves dominated the style of architecture and played on the idea of Trompe L' oeil, also known as a fool of the eye with shapes and structure. This is mimicked by the vortex like ceilings and fontal façade of the ‘creature’ within the building. Going aside from the ostentatious designs and elaborate ideas of Casa Batllo, even the most basic layout of the apartment itself has precedent to the past. The whole idea of porch, court, and hearth adapted first by the Romans with their temples is still emulated even in Gaudi’s design: the porch being the frontal façade and balconies of the structure, the court being the main floor and staircases since they would be the most used by either the family or the other renters, and the hearth being the fireplaces or central parts of the ceilings that seem to be like swirling whirlpools that bring the viewer to the center of the structure.

[Explorations]: Summary

2009-05-06T16:06:00.001-07:00

Cathedrals of the Gothic Period [Amiens Cathedral]

Cave Formations, the art of nature

My Cornish Rex named Meddle, with her uniquely curly fur and persona.

Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles in France.

Yellowstone National Park's Blue pools.

Japanese Woodblock Prints

Casa Batllo

The Pillars of Creation, stars and galaxies.

My mother's necklace.

Cloth and how it can be arranged into various folds and cast amazing shadows.

[Sources]
Google Images (Click on Pictures to go to source.)

Casa Battlo Process

2009-05-06T13:10:00.001-07:00

Elapse Time: Two Days

Coming Full Circle [The Last Opus]

2009-05-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

My studio project has a sense of community in that it was designed for graduate students to have a place where they could relax and perhaps even interact with each other in a way so that they could leave work breifly behind and clear their thoughts.

The term community in a town. In design, many terms share common ground with each other and in turn form a community of a language used by designers when thinking up designs or creating designs. “One of the notable aspects of critical regionalist reactions to imported Euro-American Modernism was the reaffirmation of community, or creating environments for groups of people living and working together in ancestral traditional ways.” [Roth 607] Community was an important element in the Euro-American Modernism part of design and designers recognized this as a habitual way of life and therefore made strides to incorporate this idea into designs for residential spaces. A notable work that is a good example of the community aspect is the Fathy’s New Gourna rehouse project of an entire village area using the elements of consisten comes from the Latin language as a meaning of sharing in common with something, many times in everyday like we think of community as being the general area in which we as people interact in like with a neighborhood community or the general populationt design in relation to families and an appropriate scale in organization for the residents living there.

With the building Casa Battlo in Barcelona, Spain, and example of sustainability and stewardship is shown through taking an older building and renovating it rather then using precious resources to rebuilt something just for the sake of an artist's design ideals.

The taking of responsibility of ones property or actions other than their own is what is known as stewardship. This term can loosely refer to just about anything from taking care of our natural resources in our environment as a human race to taking care of a neighbor’s cat while they are away. In the case of stewardship in context to design, this can include ‘building green’ to conserve resources and energy and even projects of other designers when re-designing an area or space. “A sustainable approach to materials is enhanced by the careful use of energy. Interior designers can, for example, make better use of natural light and exploit the latest technology is glazing design, choosing photochromatic, thermochromatic or electrochromatic glass for windows.” [Massey 222] Stewardship relates to sustainability when it comes to new designs by designers who have a passion for helping the environment and limiting overuse of materials. Designers attempted to use different materials and design alternatives in order to limit energy use and consumption of materials in the twenty-first century.

Authenticity is something designers have to think about everyday, in studio, we as design students must create our own authentic designs so that we may create something uniquely our own. Though inspiration may be taken it cannot completely dictate our design lest it is no longer authentically ours.

Authenticity is the concept of credibility in a statement or action when referring to an object that was created or something that was said and whether this item of interest is authentic or not. Authenticity in design history and theory can refer to different period pieces in architecture and deciding if a building was built in a certain authentic period [like the ancient Greek architecture] or if it was a reenactment of the period [neoclassical period].

In creating our sacred space project, the screens in my rendered perspective are of my own design and instead of opaque panels on the inner parts of them, fiber optic fibers replace that to let more light into the room when the light cannot light the windows enough to light the room.

A creation of something new from a person’s mind that can be a result of a scientific or technological experiment is something known as innovation. Innovations have been happening every since people have been searching for answers and ways to change things in their own way of life, from the light of a candle to the creation of the light bulb, innovations are always being made to make everyday life simpler. Innovations in architecture were much the same in coming into creation whenever someone had the mind to make something simpler or more refined. “In general, the boundaries between architecture, fashion, graphics, fine art and the interior have become less rigid. Architects have become more interested in interior design, and artists are exploring the building environment as part of their creative practice…” [Massey 219]In exploring the boundaries between architecture and the fine arts along with all the items in between innovations with architects could occur as new designs were created as a result of these broken boundaries. For example the House by Rachel Whiteread 1963 with the interiors of the Victorian terraced house. “Other individuals and groups, such as Buckminster Fuller, Superstudio in Italy, the Archigram program Group in England, the Metabolists in Japan, created ‘hyper-celebrations of the supposedly liberating possibilities of endless technological development’ that ‘swept away any tendious connection with reality.’” [Roth 567] In favor of innovation in the late twentieth century of architecture in the post-modern period groups were created to celebrate new ideas and supports for designers as technology advance and met its own pitfalls with experimentation.

This opus of coming full circle represents the details and facts of design in architecture and interiors as it advances from the past based on ideas that where needed since the very beginning. Community is a basic element of life and interaction for people and the architecture designed for them to live in, and with this idea of community especially in the architect circle as innovations were approved of more and more comes the idea of stewardship and taking responsibility for one’s own environment by making innovations in things like design to combat wasteful ideals or mistakes. Authenticity for me was a little harder to make a connection with, but I think it has to do with being able to take from the past without copying completely, taking a design basically and making it your own despite the influence you may have had from another space or place.

::Sources::
Interior Design Since 1900 By Massey
Understanding Architecture By Roth
Drawings and Photographs By myself

Light Habitat

2009-05-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

[Pair]ing Down

2009-04-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

To meditate on something is to think deeply and thoughtfully on something in order to understand an idea better while celebration is when you put something upon a pedestal to show off or commemorate. The full process of meditation and celebration is present in the design process in the spaces we as designers design and in the process of getting to that final successful design. Designers meditate upon ideas and models made to create that unique design before they chose to celebrate the design in a critique for the view of viewers and critics. Spaces themselves begin to take on theses properties when certain colors are chosen or even when a space becomes more enclosed and private from a celebration space that is open and vibrant. “The plan allowed for a double-story living room and balcony for each flat. Le Corbusier’s influence was also paramount for the individual domestic interior, notably with his decision to leave internal brickwork and concrete exposed in the Maisons Jaoul at Neuilly (1956).” [Massey 152] Celebration of the more structural elements of Corbusier’s building was notable and different for the time of post-war modernism, rather then just celebrate the space itself, the designer chose to celebrate the simple things like brick and concrete as well rather than just have them covered.

Light and shadow is a pair that is in constant company of each other, sometimes doing battle and sometimes commiserating harmoniously. Light on its own represents a sense of delight in its brightness and how it lights up spaces while shadow can cause a sense of contrast and a more darkening of a space, creating an entirely different mood in a room or area of a design. In many cases shadow cannot be produced without light and light cannot be celebrated as well without shadow, making the pair important when considering a space whether one being more than the other or visa versa. “Inside the chapel [Notre-Dame-du-Haute] the thick concrete walls are pierced by small colored windows to create the dramatic effects of shafts of colored light falling on the congregation.” [Massey 152] Light can be a real dramatic element when it is focused through something as opaque as concrete, the concrete being so solid creates a form of shadow while the light filters through and casts brilliant colors upon the congregation. Just having all the light alone wouldn’t make as big a contrast as the light and shadow together.

The act of transferring something and perhaps changing them in the process and the act of placing something side by side to something else most of the time for comparison reasons are two terms known as transpose and juxtaposition. Both terms mean to move something from one place to another in some way, shape or form.

The two main divisions when talking about categories of design is the difference and similarities between abstract and literal in a design and in idea. Literal meaning a straight forward interpretation of an object or idea that is present, while abstract being the opposite as an interpretation of an object or idea that is more in-depth and not straightforward in answer. “ The interior working-space was opened up, with rows of desks and small dividing-screens replacing corridors and small office rooms.” [Massey 146] In the era of post-war modernism, the spaces created are more abstract because they hint to separate spaces with the dividing screens being used rather than walls while still being literally a place of work in an office or firm like the ones designed and arranged by SOM.

In vocal and written ways, a monologue is an extended speech made by a singular person to anyone and its opposite, a dialogue is a speech or conversation between two or more people where interaction takes place in the form of a discussion. These two ideas can happen in design based on how a design communicates or interacts with people or the designs around it as well as the story it tells.

In conclusion, each pairing made in this week's opus are together for a reason, some of them are opposites like monologue/dialogue and others cannot make a complete composition without the other pair like with light/shadow. Abstract and literal, while being different still need to exist for the sake of comparison when trying to decipher a designs story or true symbolization. Its the same way with transpose and juxtaposition as you move and transfer information or design elements around to make comparison. Finally meditation/celebration are two ways to display a design in order to create a certain effect or function, this can tie into the other four pairings by using them so that a design can be meditative or celebratory.

::Sources::
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Blakemore
Understanding Architecture By Roth
Drawings and Photographs By myself

[Action] Verbs

2009-04-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

To speculate about something or someone is a verb meaning to think about critically and analyze something to understand deeper meaning. A lot of times as designers ourselves we are told to looked at a structure built by someone and find the deeper meaning as to why it might have been built symbolically or the idea behind the structure that is not what it may seem. From the precedent analysis we are told directly to speculate on this idea of meaning by using the buildings we selected months ago in advance. Casa Batllo in my opinion was built as a result of a new forming style, Art Nouveau, and a new way of thinking by the designer Gaudi as a way to push the envelope of normal building structure with the energy of its curves and forms in the building itself. “Since the dawn of human symbolic thinking, architecture not only has provided utilitarian shelter but also has silently expressed how humans view themselves in relation to the cosmos, to their gods, and to each other. “ [Roth 519] Symbolic thinking of architecture and designers is what causes the action of speculation; the way people and architects think and speculate causes new ideas in architecture and design to blossom and in turn create new stylist movements.

To compose something is a verb meaning to create something or put together something out of existing materials. This idea of composition is a common term to use for musicians when writing music in terms of a designer it may be used as a verb when composing a presentation board with images/sketches for a presentation or critique like we’ve learned in Suzanne’s class. Datum lines, clean/readable text, and thoughtful composition of pictures can make or break a presentation in terms of being successfully translated to the viewers. “Mass production was now established as a means of manufacturing consumer goods, and Modern Movement theorists were inspired by concepts or rationalization and standardization. New materials and building techniques were to be used to create a lighter, more spacious and functional environment.” [Massey 63] As design style hit the Modern movement in architecture and design, the act of composition in spaces was drastically changed and reformed based on new materials and an idea for more spacious and functional design in order to make designs more successful.

Energize is a verb that means the activity that causes energy and activity in a person. Energize can also be used as a verb in making ideas, projects or compositions more interesting by adding a stimulating pattern to something or using a brilliant color to accent something. The holes drilled into my Light Habitat project, used to give interest to the windows of studio on the second floor, give a sense of energy to my idea that cut outs of organic shapes does not. A sense of movement energy from the compact to released areas of holes and different hole sizes cause light to move in interesting ways. “The Fauves, or ‘Wild Beasts’, were a group of painters including Matisse, Derain and Vlaminck whose work between 1950 and 1908 used vivid colours in shocking contrasts. Such colour combinations were adopted by designers as a reaction to the insipid pastels of Art Nouveau.” [Massey 95] Shocking contrast and dramatic color schemes brought energy to designs in rooms and structures during the Art Deco period as a reaction to the pastels of the older style of the Art Nouveau.

To shape something is a term that is very similar to the idea of composing where something is created or manipulated from an existing element. With our Light Habitat project we had to manipulate or shape a rigid form of MDF so that light could pass through the opaque substance and change the shape of an existing large board. “Modernism is the umbrella name for a bewildering array of movements – Cubism, Expressionism, Futurism, Dadaism, Serialism, Surrealism – and ideas – abstraction, functionalism, atonality, free verse – most of which appear shortly before or after the First World War.” [Weston 2] According to Weston what shaped the period of Modernism was a combination of ideas and/or periods of design used as elements for form or shape a whole new period of architecture and art all together.

Stretch is a verb meaning to bend limitations or ideas past their normal shape or idea, kind of like a rubber band with its elasticity. Many times in design architects and designers stretch the boundaries of styles in architecture and pushed the envelope to provide new design ideas and ascetics that moved the ideas of architecture from style to style. “This conviction that new technical means and aesthetic forms were needed to express the new life being created by industrialization grew steadily during the nineteenth century, informing the development of all the arts.” [Weston 5]New technical means and ascetic forms helped designers to stretch the idea of expression and style in architecture and design starting initially with the Industrialization of materials in the nineteenth century.

Reflections:: Summary

2009-04-16T23:41:00.001-07:00

[The Crystal Palace: a beginning in using new materials and a doorway to future ideas in design.]

For the unit of reflections, the major idea behind the designs and structures would have to be the continuous change of style and historic influence from other countries such as Asia and that of ancient times. Newly formed trade routes, revolutions, and revivals of ancient styles helped to contribute to new junctions of ideas and stylistic elements as well as pave the way for the idea of should architecture be revived in old styles for the sake of revival as a leading idea for the new section called explorations.

The section begins in France with Place de Vosges in 1605, the idea of a middle class is a relatively new concept in the world. For this design, the middle class homes in the area unified their frontal façade to make their home seem more like one big palace like that of the grand Versailles. This alignment of the all facades to look like a big palace of the middle class was called lenfilade, it also incorporated the idea of public and private space with the apartment homes and the public square it was built around. Classical revival was still in full force in France, yet Jacques-Germaine Soufflot built another replica that mirrored ideas from the Pantheon called the Panthéon. The structure was more about structural ideas rather then that of design ascetics.

Moving from France with the revival of the classical and middle class grandure ideas, England was experiencing similar epiphanies as to using classical influence with an English twist to it. Palatio, using his influence with the classical world, helped other architects like Indigo Jones and John Vanbrugh re-worked the idea of landscape architecture with the Queen’s House and landscapes of Castle Howard. The English idea was to use the natural part of nature to create beauty in design rather then make nature more ornate then it really was. This less formal idea was also transferred to the United States because of its simplistic appeal. In the United States, revolution had spurred change like so many others, though this revolution was that of independence from Britain rather than an industrial or intellectual revolution. Parson Capen House [1683] and the home of Paul Revere were just a few of the examples of 18th century architecture and design with the ideas Palatio perceived from Europe. In visiting Thomas Jefferson’s house and UVA we as a class got a better understanding of the architecture up close and a better feel for the stylistic period.

Revolutions continued in many different forms in the 19th century, iron became a new form of building material and design element accompanied with glass. This new material also created new building forms such as greenhouses, arcades, train stations, factories, and exhibition buildings. The Crystal Palace created by Joseph Paxton was a modern marvel of the time it was created, people didn’t know whether to even categorize it as architecture because the material was so new to them. The Crystal Palace was an exhibition building for the World Fair, countries and cultures from all over the world came to exhibit their works and riches, spurring an interest in foreign ideas that would later affect the design world itself.

Going further into the 19th century, the tail end of gothic revival was being used in New York with the creation of the Trinity church by Richard Upjohn and then the second Trinity Church in Boston by Henry Hobson Richardson. This revival style was that of a Romanesque feel and was a linking of the past as well as a creator of questions as to how and when ancient styles and revivals should be made in architecture itself. The 19th century principles as it progresses were that of social changes, the need for meaning, romantic pasts, and new materials. Going into new materials in the United States lead to the creation of early skyscrapers as the architects built upward, which in a way rivaled the reaching heavenward idea that the Europeans used when building bigger and more ornate cathedrals. The only new difference was the glass and steel used, which was especially important to the big city of Chicago after the fire of 1871.

Overall this section was about revival style influence and new materials that would lead to newer ideas and designs for the budding country of the United States and the always-prevalent European nations. While history was important it was not the most important thing as nations striven to move forward in design and their own history.

Opus: Roadtrip

2009-04-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

Roots refer to the precedent of something or older influence of a style or event that indicates how something is created or why it was created in such a manner. In design, this is common especially when talking about Roman and Egyptian influence in designs from other architects. In using these roots, new designs are created that mirror some traits of ancient time buildings.

Congruence in mathematic terms is when two objects are alike in shape and composition but not necessarily in shape or color. The quality of something like a design agreeing with another element or material, also called coinciding is a better definition when talking about design and architecture. If two things are not congruent they conflict, causing flaws or errors in a design that make it less successful in commodity, firmness, and delight.

Concept is a basic idea in the beginning stages of development into something greater or even more successful. This idea of concept is seen in the design process when creating iterations of work in the forms of sketch models or drawings that depict the idea before it is finalized. Depending upon the designer and the design itself, several concepts could be gone through in order to reach the ultimate goal of success.

Materiality is the quality or state of being; also it refers to materials the noun itself. As designers now and in the past, materiality is rather important when taking into consideration the location of the designed building and the needs of the design itself to become more successful.

The method of compression and release is when something, such as air in a compressor in the wood shop, is pushed inward or together with something past its normal limit while release is the sudden let go of pressure. This idea, while not talking about air, can also be used in design where if a person was designing for a small space they could compress their design in order to fit the needs of the consumer or release it into a more grandeur scale depending on the space itself.

[Trading+Spaces] Iarc Style

2009-04-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

Before

After

First drawing by Iliana Menendez, second one by me. For class we had to take someone else's rendered perspective and change it how we saw fit.
Media: Prisma Markers, white pen, ink

Between Silence + Light

2009-04-08T08:32:00.001-07:00

The term that measures a quality of work on an object or put into a design, used a lot in our own studio class itself is known as craft. Good craft is the essence of a successful and understandable design when presenting a body of work to someone else who may or may not know the project as well as the designer. In studio, good craft is a must when presenting everything from iterations to the final presentation. The first image is an example of bad craft because of the rough edges and pencil lines present on the iteration from the third skin project. The second image, also the final product, represents good craft in woodshop with smooth, intentional edges and clean planes that do not distract the viewer from the idea of the project or what it is ‘saying’. “C.F.A Voysey (1857-1941) was an architect of the next generation who designed houses and their interiors with the Arts and Crafts regard for the vernacular and honest workmanship, and extended his interest to designing wallpapers, textiles, carpets, and furniture for his schemes.” [Massey 17] Voysey’s dedication to his designs with everything from the walls to the floors to the things within his houses exhibits a big level of craft in everything he does in order to make his design more successful.

When talking about design and architecture there are two main categories when talking about how people interact with a space, these genres are known as commercial and residential but can also be called public and private. Commercial buildings such as shopping mall and corporation buildings are a good example of public places because people frequent in and out of the space, though doors are present as a more private element it still does not deter from the fact that there are frequent meeting of people together in general areas throughout the space to have meetings or socialize. And example of a more private building would be someone’s home or to go even farther magnified, a person’s own personal room. Residential homes do have guests that can frequent in and out of rooms as well as the people living there but there still is a private aspect of the structure that has the air of a sort of sacred place for the people who actually live there. “ Much of Wright’s early career as an independent designer was devoted to houses in and around Chicago, described as ‘prairie houses’ because of their proximity to and sympathy with the huge, flat expanses of land in the Midwest.” [Massey 50] An example of a residential (private) designer would by Frank Lloyd Wright and his prairie style homes that he built in his early years. Within these homes Wright designed everything the family would need to make the home completely personal and private to the individuals themselves. Arts and Crafts was a big implement in the design to be more homely rather then seem public and machine made. “In Mains Street Mackintosh created an intimate atmosphere in his dining room with the somber brown of the walls, which were covered with coarse wrapping paper.” [ Massey 53] The designer Mackintosh used color to implement the idea of a more intimate and private setting in a residential dining room.

The element that makes a design unique depending upon the architect or designer is the technique used in implementing a design or constructing something. Everyone has a specific technique or trick used to create a signature piece or to create a design in general, whether it be a way to use adhesive into your design rather then just use it to stick things together or it be a signature design used in all your designs techniques just make everything unique. “ The style [of the Belgium and French] is characterized by the asymmetric whiplash line that gives a sense of dynamic movement wherever it is applied: to furniture, wallpapers, stain glass and metalwork.” [Massey 32] The art of forming designs out of the new material, metal, needs a certain technique that at this time only the French and those from Belgium had mastered because of their experimenting. When rendering artwork, everyone has their own techniques they use to make something successful. In Suzanne's class I used Prisma markers to emphasis my design changes to Illiana's room design such as with the fireplace and the dark colored walls.

Language is a description for a method of communication between two or more people when trying to convey a message or idea. The process of conveying architecture and design is a language all its own that goes beyond the barriers of verbal languages like French, Japanese, and English. Vocabulary terms such as juxtaposition and vernacular are just a couple examples of the elaborate language used by designers to describe an idea or design to a person or client trying to understand. Each designer/architect has their own way of using this intricate language, as unique as the techniques they use to create their designs even.

The existence of something without actual being there is known as the term called virtual. When I think of the word virtual I automatically think of a virtual reality video game where it feels like you are actually inside the game play for the character when really your just wearing a helmet that projects visuals to make your brain think your actually there when your actually in a regular room. On our trip to Falling Water in Bear Run, Pa; Frank Lloyd Wright achieved this idea of virtual with all the glass panes that littered the walls of the structure, making it seem like you were actually outside because of the lack of solid walls when you actually have a barrier from the outside and protected from the elements. “He [Gaudi] designed complete interiors with organic or flowing, lava-like forms.” [Massey 46] Though this is a short quote, it give a snip of the idea of something virtual, the swirling forms as Gaudi’s Casa Batllo are virtually lava-like in appearance without the presence of actual lava. Anything that can be mimicked from nature by a designer can be described as virtual because the actual item of inspiration isn’t actually there.

::Sources::
Interior Design Since 1900 by Anne Massey
Drawings and Photos by Me

Precedent Analysis [First Pass]

2009-04-07T12:41:00.000-07:00

[3]rd Skin Final Photos

2009-04-02T23:48:00.000-07:00

[Re]Visions

2009-04-01T08:35:00.000-07:00

In the dictionary, the word rotation is mostly defined as the act of something turning as if on an axis. In one way this describes how our earth turns on a tilted axis at the north and south poles to show changes in days and nights around the world, the earth itself is rotating slowly around the sun as well as having rotation on its poles that causes change in seasons. A rotation, or rotary motion, in terms of the history of design can be more described as a planned reoccurring sequence of events or movements in architecture and design. “What precipitated these fundamental social changes was a cycle of interrelated sweeping reorganizations and upheavals that collectively can be labeled “revolutions”. These revolutions are so interconnected that they can be thought of as operating in a circle, each feeding off into the next.” [Roth 439] This idea of the rotation of reoccurring events helps us to better understand why rotations in design happen, some based on rising organizations or even political stand points, all of which influence design and architecture itself.

Reflection on previous work or a finished design is a crucial part of getting better as a designer with further analyzing. In reflecting on the first result of my 3rd Skin project in studio, I was able to pick out key elements that made the design successful and interesting to look at, namely the organic tendril like shapes that were mimicked about the whole structure. Though this idea alone was not completely as successful as I had thought for the final it was still a step in the right direction because I reflected upon what I had and how I could further a design. “ A complete union of the landscape with residence was sought. The landscape became even more important than it had been in the Baroque period, during which the landscape was conceived as a continuation of the mansion’s classical rule.” [Blakemore 250] Reflection on past ideas such as landscaping can lead to new ideas and goals as they did in France around the time of Early Georgian, England. Looking back on the way monarchy always utilized these massive landscape designs lead the way to a change into landscaping for more residential areas as a continuation.

An item that is a basis of inspiration or point of reference is usually referred to as a source, especially in the world of architecture and design. An example would be something along the lines of life drawing or even figure drawing, the subject you are drawing being the person or object being used as a source for the design of a drawing or painting. “Palladio’s Villa Rotonda (Villa Capra) at Vicenza appears to have been the model for some of the residences designed by Colen Campell.” [Blakemore 248] In this reading in Blakemore, Palladio’s villa is mentioned as a source of inspiration for preceding buildings built after it years later, showing that its influence on society was very successful to make other designers use his design as reference.

This is even related to current day designs in the furniture field of design, even successful designs like the ones we browsed about in Suzanne’s class for perspective is used as sources of inspiration to create something similar to the precedent or something entirely different.

Movement is much like the idea of transition from the previous Opus entry of Grammar:Syntax, it is the transfer from one place to another or one subject to another over a period of time when talking about architecture and its history as styles and ideals evolved. “Jacques Ange Gabriel (1698-1782), as a leader in the neoclassical movement, represented the French tradition since he was descended from a long line of architects and received training from his father.” [Blakemore 284] Here, the neoclassical period of art is identified as a movement because it was a period of time where one specific style reined over other in a specific part of the world; the neoclassical style itself is a revival of antiquity designs of Greece and Rome. In studio, we use the concept of movement as a dynamic element when adding interest and delight in a design. The flow of a design can be interpreted in many different ways, for example, my finished product in the 3rd Skin design was imitative of a root system under a standing tree that flows in a downward movement as the tendril branch out to brace the structure and interact with light in its environment.

Illumination is a verb used to describe highlighting an object or space within a composition in order to make it stand out or take high importance in the overall picture. This can be done with color, light, hierarchy, or other surrounding features that are different from the object or space that is most important.“What these Englishmen were trying to do was to recreate in real materials, ins soil, water, and carefully arranged masses of trees and plants, the pastoral Classical landscapes described by the Roman author Virgil.” [Roth 453] When recreating the space of classical landscapes of old, the English wanted more natural elements to be illuminated or displayed in the overall design in residential spaces. This in turn gave new way to style in landscape architecture, showing that it was more than just fancy fountains and perfectly trimmed trees, it was about the beauty and even imperfection of nature being celebrated.

In conclusion, these words for the week of [Re]Visions seem to be based on architecture and how it is celebrated or revived from period to period in design. The constant rotation of old being converted to new brings new ideas to the table for reflection as to what can be changed in a design and what can be done to better a design based on references from sources of other designers. New movements in architecture are not to be forgotten for their importance as they are the plethora of new ideas that keeps coming and going through the process of design, each idea illuminating a topic of discussion more then the next depending on what the society is faced with politically and socially.

::Sources::
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Blakemore
Understanding Architecture By Roth
Drawings and Photographs By myself

[3]rd Skin

2009-03-31T19:19:00.000-07:00

[The Inspiration]

[The Iterations]

[The Final Product]~ 1/4" MDF=Medium Density Fiberboard.

~Structure is 12" high at the peak.
~Circle diameters vary as they get higher.

Perspective Spaces [One-point]

2009-03-31T14:07:00.000-07:00

It all started with a grid...
Then the furniture was arranged on the grid to keep perspective.
The detail was added to turn the blocks to furniture.
And then it was time to put rendering skills to the test, watercolor pencil, watercolor, prisma marker, and colored pencil.
My favorite two would have to be the watercolor one and the marker one, my favorite design element is the lowered ceiling that I used as a dividing point between the kitchen/hall area and the living room itself without a wall that would block moments in the room.

Alternatives :: Summary

2009-03-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

The alternatives chapter was all about the drastic transition of styles in architecture and art mostly dealing with the epicenter countries of France ad Italy. The Italian and French renaissance was a time of following the rules and applying them in every building as a standard for completion and the French and Italian Baroque followed in with completely conflicting views on following written rules and norms of architecture, most of the time bending or even breaking the rules to create something new and frivolous.

To begin the journey into the chapter of alternatives, we started in Venezia: City of floating stone in Venice, Italy with mostly the villa forms and the example of prime renaissance present in the geometric elements of the buildings and sacred places. Prime example of the rules would be the St. Maria Novella, also known as the building of lace and glass because of its appearance, built from 1456-1470 in the renaissance style, which is known to be an skewed version of the classical style itself and takes parts of ancient ideals like the column orders. Another important piece of architecture during this time was the Ospedale Innocenti, or the Foundling Hospital, designed by Filippo Brunelleschi. The building ideas and elements were what made this building a classic renaissance style in Florence, Italy: its rhythm, symmetry, balance, and arches in the repeating geometric patterns and column forms made it pleasing to the eye and exactly according to the written rules as to how Architecture should be designed. To give a better picture on the style and air that Venice presented, it is easier to think of it as something like New Orleans here in the United States.

The next important part of this chapter was the transition or junction between following the rules of the Renaissance and breaking the rules completely in the Baroque. Within this transition, designers of the time were testing boundaries and pushing the limits of the previous written rules of architecture during the Renaissance. Structures like the Pazzi Chapel that contained roman influence and classic Renaissance elements of reviving the ancient world and formal décor were being contrasted with the new forming style in the Laurentian Library Vestibule designed by Michelangelo with a more flowing, frivolous style. This was no surprise in itself because Michelangelo was one of the most famous designers to test boundaries until they were bent or broke. Another example of his was that of the fresco ceiling of the Sistine Chapel where its hard to tell were the wall ends and the ceiling begins because of his attempt to fool the eye, a direct violation of the clear-cut and definite boundaries of the Renaissance.

Baroque in full swing was quite the sight to behold for its curly and vague style as we transitioned from the Renaissance. The biggest building of note being St. Peter’s Piazza, also know as the Vatican in today’s world. This building contained the holistic view that spurred the out of the box thinking that made this period so successful and interesting. The piazza was redesigned by a couple of different designers to get where it currently is today; one of the ones of most note is that of the artist Bernini. The church form sits at the top of the form, frontal façade looking over the city realm and then goes into a curving and almost enclosed colonnade structure that contains the piazza itself with the obelisk in the center of the “square” and the fountains on its sides. The biggest theme was that of having a sort of civic space available to the people of the city, which is what the piazza itself was along with a similar structured civic space like the Baldacchino that was also designed by Bernini. While themes of the Romans were still present they were not the main concept as they were in the Renaissance and only became more and more inconsequential as the Baroque period progressed.

Grammar : Syntax

2009-03-25T13:19:00.000-07:00

A revision is when you take a physical item or an idea and make adjustments to it to improve it or make it more stable rather then just starting from the beginning again. Revisions happen everywhere, especially in the workplace of studio. In studio multiple projects are given and over the course of time in those projects we as students make multiple models or iterations in order to revise our idea and make it into something more appealing or more successful. “Stylistic consequences yielded renditions that emphasized drama, contrast of light and dark, movement, and the use of vigorous diagonals and curves.” [Blakemore 152] This idea of revision to a previous style in architecture and its effects on design elements occurred mostly in the Italian baroque period of architecture where more stylistic architecture occurred as a result of bending the rules. This renovated old architectural techniques and brought in that of the flourished baroque. An example of revisions in history of theory and design in the Baroque/Rococo is the Piazza of St. Peter’s in Rome, Italy. The currently named Vatican was built first redesigned by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and then the piazza walls were added on by Carlo Maderno later to give the piazza its form. There was no tearing down of previous building as the design of it progressed, just the add on to make the design all the more successful.

A group of spectators or people observing is also known as an audience, this term is used a lot when talking about people who are watching a movie or play. The audience is a tool for performers or artists that can be used to gage the success or failure of a work or performance. The ultimate goal is to be successful and pleasing and therefore the challenge is to make something appeal to many different people in many ways. Architects are like performers in a way that they create wonderful pieces of architecture based on their period of design that is appealing to an audience of peers and spectators who interact with the space. "This kind of mystical presence [Glory of St. Ignatius] appealed greatly to the southern Germans, who remained loyal to the Church of Rome and rejected Luther's reforms. In the richly embellished pilgrimage and mosaic churches built in Bavaria in southern Germany in the early eighteenth century, such rhapsodic illusionism was pushed even farther." [Roth 405] The illusions produced by Padre Andrea Pozzo on the Cathedral ceiling was a huge hit with said audience of southern Germany, its wonderful fresco paintings were something new and interesting to the people and therefore made it quite a successful addition to the overall architecture.

A character is an element in a story or situation that can affect an outcome or situation in said story. Character can also be used as an adjective when describing something or someone, when a person says something is unique or interesting they said it ‘has character’. In a way our new nature/celebration project in studio can be described as having character because each and every one in unique because everyone chose different pieces of nature as inspiration, like my stick-cell phones formatted drawings on my natural objects. Also I found character this week in the images we had to look up when examining furniture from various blogs in Suzanne's class, each piece different from the next as we picked out the ones we wanted to draw. "... Nicholas Fouquet, had assembled to build and landscape his own private country house outside Paris at Vaux-le-Victomte in 1657-1661. Fouquet had made the fatal strategic error of building a chateau much finer than anything owned by the king..." [Roth 417] A real character in the story of the French Baroque period is that of King Louis XIV, he was very prideful and because someone had a much finer home/palace then he had he devised a way to confiscate the home for himself so no one could live better then the king himself. This character effect made way for the construction of the Palace of Versailles and the gardens that expanded across France's town of Versailles. "[Cappella della Santissima Sindone] On this ring rests a hexagonal arcade that forms the base of a dome. This done, however, was unlike anything ever built before, for it consists of six segmental arches resting on an arcade, and six smaller segmental arches resting on the crowns of the first six..." [Roth 413] The entire period of the Baroque/Rococo was a time of character, everything was built in order to break the rules and become unique to the people and in accomplishments, the architect of the Cappella della Santissima Sindone and its dome, Guarini, created a dome unlike any other that had character in it based on its complex structure.

A transfer or bridge between an event or happening is called a transition, this method of change happens especially when talking about the history and stylistic changes for architecture’s history though is not always very drastic. A big example of this is the drastic transition between the tightly wound rulebook of the Renaissance to the frivolous Baroque in Italy and France. “Following a period when the emphasis was on strict instructional approaches, a new religious mood evolved characterized by its emotional, ebullient impact.” [Blakemore 152] Blakemore talks about the differences between the two periods of architecture and art, suggesting that maybe religion had a play in this emotional transition that lead to pieces like the Palace of Versailles in France and San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane.

According to Dictionary dot net, a datum is, “Something given or admitted; a fact or principle granted; that upon which an inference or an argument is based; -- used chiefly in the plural.” Or also, “The quantities or relations which are assumed to be given in any problem.” Frankly I had a hard time understanding these definitions until I put in design terms of how something called a datum line is a horizontal measured line sued for reference in a space. This concept of datum is used a lot in surveying land and as a design element to connect a space together like when I used in the wall project a while back.

In conclusion all these words are great synonyms for describing the period of the Baroque and Rococo in Italy and France and its transition from the set rules if the Renaissance period of architecture. [Re]visions were made to these set rules so the transition in styles could happen, the changes were created by important motivation characters in politics of the countries and the architects with their views. Along with these characters that created and commissioned these structures came the audience that experienced the datum spaces back in time and even know as people tour to learn of architecture and its history as styles changed.

::Sources::
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Blakemore
Dictionary Definition By www.dictonary.net
Understanding Architecture By Roth
Drawings and Photographs By myself

Precedent Analysis [Planning]

2009-03-19T20:34:00.000-07:00

[O]utline

I. Introduction to Essay
A. Casa Batllo Itself

B. The Building Design

C. The Precedents

II. Casa Batllo itself
A. The history behind the curves.

B. The Architect/Artist Responsible.

C. Whats going on now.

III. The Building Design
A. Front Facade
1. Curved Balconies and Exterior

B. Courtyard Area
1. Mosaics and layout

C. Interior Layout

D. Roof
1. Mosaics
2. Story behind it.

IV. The Precedents
A. Roman Baths and Homes v. Casa Batllo
1. Mosaics

B. St. George and the Dragon v. Casa Batllo

C. Porch : Court : Hearth Themes and Casa Batllo

D. French Baroque Style to Spanish Modernism
1. Technique of Fooling the eye. [Trompe L' oeil]

[D]rawings

+ Front Facade (One-point perspective) [Watercolor & India Ink] 8.5"x 11"
+ Roof Perspective [Watercolor & India Ink] 8.5"x 11"
+ Floor Plan View (Drafting) [Pencil] 18"x 24"
+ Interior Perspective [Watercolor & India Ink] 8.5"x 11"
+ Ceiling Detail [Prismacolor Marker] 3"x 3"
+ Section View (Drafting) [Pencil] 18"x 24"
+ Elevation View (Drafting) [Pencil] 18"x 24"
+ Interior Detail [Pencil] 3"x 3"
+ Courtyard Perspective (Two-point perspective) [Watercolor & India Ink] 8.5"x 11"
+ Exterior Detail [Watercolor] 3"x 3"

[Q]uestions

[MHRA] Diagrams

2009-03-19T10:13:00.001-07:00

[P] Week

2009-03-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Periphery would define a boundary or border on an area, space, or structure for some sort of reason or meaning. A good example of this would be the instilled border between states or countries, its not physically a perimeter or margin but it is an idea that is known to all the countries or states so that they can distinguish where one area ends and another begins, making this a practical periphery. “This desire to stretch human limits and to match building achievements of the ancients was boldly exemplified in the dome Filippo Brunelleschi completed over the crossing of the cathedral in Florence, Santa Maria della Fiore.” [Roth 356] in history the example that most exemplifies periphery is the need for architects and designers of the Renaissance to surpass or press the limitations (Peripheries) to achieve something great and worthy of a notable human accomplishment. In Roth, Brunelleschi had done just that by creating a dome form as a commission for the first time since the ancient architects of the past.

In relating to the work in the major of interior architecture, a portfolio is a physical and/or digital collection of the body of works done in a semester. A portfolio can be rather useful when it comes to showing a designer’s process in something like drafting from one date to another, it also is something that can be presented to other to receive feedback on work or praise even. The use of blogger in studio, drawing, and drafting is a great way for work to be displayed as a digital portfolio for our professors and for others to view our designs to give feedback.

The journey or process of a designer is the stepping-stones to being able to create a successful design, for one does not just come up with a brilliant idea and make it perfect the first time. The continuous quest of creating something truly extraordinary is the main, if not the most important, part of a designer’s product. Even the final can be rivaled in importance to the process made to get there, for process shows how you came to the idea of making something like a place for a leaf. With the translation series of projects this current semester in studio process is very apparent as the class went from creating a wearable artifact out of a fairytale to a full blown outside portal based on the processes of all the projects in between. When all this work is out together, process in successful design should be easy and awe to follow. This method of process is not only important to designers, but that of writers and artists as well. "Italy was the springboard for the Renaissance in architecture and the visual arts, beginning in 15th-century Florence. In other western countries stylistic progression was from Roman to Early Christian . . . However, Italy (except for Venice) had not adopted the Gothic style." [Blakemore 91] Process not only can be made with in the design process now, but it was also a key idea in the past histories when dealing with the progression from one style to another. Ideas and designs from past styles helped to influence newer styles to continue the process of change throughout countries, though the most drastic of the changes would have to be the ones occurring in the Renaissance and beyond. "Since the Gothic style was so thoroughly entrenched in France, the full influence of this new classical vocabulary was slow to emerge. At first, in a transitional period, the new decorative motifs were applied to medieval forms." [Blakemore 113] Process from one style to another in history is not an instant happening, sometimes it takes longer for some styles to be replaced if they have been instilled as the main method of design as seen in France with the Gothic style as the country turns to its own Renaissance.

Perspective is a point of view that can differentiate depending upon who is viewing an idea or design. With the concept of art, perspective can be broken up into three types: one-point, two-point, and three-point perspective. In the picture above I have illustrated the main points in creating one-point perspective with the use of the horizon line and focus point to create perspective to the eye with the boxes. This point of perspective and different views can also be referenced in drafting to give the viewer more information of what is being viewed. “The Italians, especially the Florentines, began to view history in a new way. They perceived human history not as a divinely ordained continuum but as a series of successive periods, some characterized by great human accomplishment.” [Roth 353] In reading the book Understanding Architecture by Roth, the Florentines of Italy had a different perception of history then that of people in France or other’s countries at the time, they believed in the idea of broadened horizons and human success in time rather then something previously ordained to occur.

The highest level of achievement and ambition for anyone in any major or job would have to be the level of professional. Professionals are highly revered and listened to when it comes to the task or trade in which they prove their professionalism. But to archive this practiced standard, it takes more then mere skill the way I see it. Professionalism is also in the way a person presents himself or herself, like for example: critiques in our very own studio hour. Dressing appropriately and cleanly makes gives an air of professionalism to a presentation and makes the audience for which you are talking to feel like they should or could listen to you. If someone came to a critique in something so causal as sweat pants or pajamas even they would less likely have the undivided attention of their audience. In work of Suzanne’s class, our groups for buildings on campus were assigned to create a professional and clean display board for our drawings and diagrams using what she had taught us about griding work and not going over extravagant. Above is an image of our group’s display and the diagram I helped to create. I think our display is very professional because it’s clean and neat when it comes to layout, not too cluttered on the board so the viewer is not distracted and clean cut to make it look sharp. "Francesco di Giorgio (1439-1501 or 1502) was influenced by the works of Vitruvius and the treatise by Alberti. He was, however, more practical in his method. . . Di Giorgio was committed to classism and on his visits to Naples he drew antique artifacts." [Blakemore 92] professionals often influence others as well, from history as the Renaissance took full force in architecture and art we see great designers and artists influencing other, this chain reaction helping to make the Renaissance in Italy to be the greatest movement progression between styles in history.

The words used in bold in this week's Opus shared many similarities other than the fact they all started with the letter "P" as the title states. These words mostly have to do with people and how things are viewed and interpreted. Periphery speaks of limitations, I interpreted this as limitations based on perspective of the people as to weather they would obey these rules or break them for the sake of design and process of change in history starting with the Renaissance. Portfolio and professional go together because they define designers with their work and their own personalities. Once more perspective of others is present and process is shown in the form of the portfolio work. People are the main theme in all these words and these words are still an important part of today as they were in history of changing architecture.

::Sources::
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Blakemore
Understanding Architecture By Roth
Drawings and Photographs By myself

Gateway: The Final Stages [ Drawings ]

2009-03-16T15:06:00.001-07:00

The final stage drawing for the Gateway island in the parking lot, we don't need to do anymore casting of stepping stones because we as a group decided to space them out rather then push them all together. There are 42 stepping stones, the variety sizes of semi-spheres will vary depending on the final instillation of the concrete objects.

Drafting [Axonimetric/Plans/Sections]

2009-03-16T12:13:00.000-07:00

Pencil Drawing

Pat's Furniture Elevation Views

Pat's Furniture Section Views

Critique Room Floor Plan

Jeff's House Plan/Section

Jeff's House Section

Jeff's House Isometric View

Other Drafting Assignments
Pat's Axonimetric Drawings
Pat's Plan View
Lettering Assignment

Portal :: Great Wall :: Inspirations

2009-03-05T19:35:00.000-08:00

Macro to Micro

2009-03-04T11:33:00.000-08:00

Composition is a specific arrangement of elements or items in an overall perspective with a goal to be cohesive and successful. This idea of composition can be found as an element in architecture when talking about decorative elements, exterior elements, and anything else that makes sense in the structure and makes it pleasing.

In the beginning, this terminology came from the Greeks and how they built their temple-like structures for their gods and for their own domestic homes. Every home had a porch area that was usually in the front of the home or structure, a court in the central part of the home, especially when talking about villas in Pompeii, and the all-important hearth are that was the central importance of the entire structure. With this method of categorizing spaces in structures being so used and successful, is found in nearly every structure now in existence. In a modern home for example, the porch is in the front of the house before you enter the structure, the court is your central part of the house perhaps being the hallway were everyone walks to get to places in the home, and the hearth is the most important place in the house being either your kitchen or your living room depending upon what is important to you family. “ The secular basilicas for hearing litigation had been entered from the middle of the long sides, In the new church basilicas, entry was from one end, where a vestibule, or narthex, was created, with an alter placed at the far end in the semi-circular apse. Outside, preceding the narthex, a large atrium forecourt ringed with colonnades…” [Roth 282] Taking reading from the Early Christian/Byzantium chapter, just reading the very description tells the placement and ideal of porch, court, and hearth. The porch being the large atrium outside the narthex ringed with colonnades, the court being the narthex, and the hearth being the alter where the priest leads worship and all-important services are held by. In the middle ages reading another example is exposed, though not in a building you would expect like a apartment of the middle ages. “On entering a palazzo a gate or front door at which a guard was stationed was followed by a standard progression of spaces. The main entrance opened onto the vestibule, from which one entered the cortile, surrounded by an arcaded colonnade; behind this were summer apartments, shops, kitchens, bathrooms, storage areas and so on." [Blakemore 94] Once more, the idea passed from the Italians in the 15 century has a porch (the main front gate from which you enter), a court (being the main entrance to a vestibule and cortile courtyard that leads to everything else), and the hearth (where one can enter into the important areas such as the kitchen and bedrooms).

A diagram is a pictorial presentation of an area or building that helps the viewer to gain a better understanding of the building’s context and circulation patterns. It is hard for the common person like me to understand the full extent of what a building looks like when I can’t visit it myself. Also diagrams are great especially when getting a better picture of buildings of old that may not be standing anymore. “Merchant bankers became new patrons of architecture, and the late buildings of the Middle Ages were buildings they commissioned- their residences, guild halls, and town halls. The large house of Jacques Coeur in Bourges illustrates this new urban type well [14.50,14.51].” [Roth 346] This building from the middle ages is rather complex in its design, because of the visual representation given of the floor plan/section of a merchant’s home a person can perfectly visualize the rooms and towers the adorn the building as major characteristics. Along with reading on the Middle Ages we learned how to construct proper diagrams of our own assigned buildings. For my building, the MHRA building, we had to consider things like diagrams of context that describe the exterior around the building like topography and current standing elements to get a better sense of what is around the building.

The affect a certain item or idea has on one person to another is typically what is described as impression. Though in the case of history and theory of design a better way to say this would be from one culture to another rather just one individual person. In the time of the middle ages, not only was there creation of new ideas and ways to build and decorate spaces, but there was also excavation on the past sites of ancient Rome. “Excavations of Roman sites yielded marble for reuse, stone calcined for lime, and artifacts for collectors. From these, designers either copied or were inspired to adapt Roman decorative detail such as the candelabrum, grotesque images, the compartmentalization based on Pompeian organization for such areas as the ceiling, and the decorative use of classical orders.” [Blakemore 93] The excavations made a vast impression on some of the middle age design society, according to Roth enough so that it made an impression on the culture enough to influence their architecture and decorative elements. Column orders, ornate Roman designs like that of Pompeii and other elements were used as decorative pieces once more in the time of the middle ages even after the fall of the Roman empire.

When talking in the context of details upon a building, details are often extra things added to a particular structure in architecture that add often to its delight, though in some cases like that of columns can also add firmness. Details when describing Gothic architecture are often thought of to be ostentatious and ornate. “In France, this attention to ornament appeared in decorative forms, particularly in the stone tracery of stain-glass windows. The tracery had the wavy fluidity of flames; such curvilinear forms were said by the French to be flambant, “flaming,” or “flamboyant,” a word still used to convey a sense of extravagant excess.” [Roth 342] Front facades of Gothic cathedrals were notorious for being highly detailed in what the building stands for: god, the apostles, and the most common last judgment. The flamboyant cathedral talked about above is Saint-Maclou in Rouen, France; a country in which the Gothic style thrived. Details like that of the MHRA building can be defining details that can only be found in that one building. The circular lowered ceiling is a zoomed in detail that categorizes the unique detail in the Moore Humanities Building.

These words together: composition, porch:court:hearth, diagram, impression, and details, are all words that basically compliment or describe a piece of architecture or artwork. Details in the composition of a building facade or layout help to add visual interest for the viewer and fulfill the ever difficult attempt at delight. Details can create definition to structural placement like the porch:court:heart ideal via different ornate details or colonnades as defining features. Because of these appealing details, impressions on other cultures and other designers are made and it is either recreated or used as inspiration for something new. Finally, diagrams can help document these elements to give the view a better or new perspective on something created in or on top of the structure.

::Sources::
Plan/Section Cathedral Picture and Quotations
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Roth
Understanding Architecture By Blakemore
Drawings and Photographs By myself

Process the Portal

2009-03-03T15:24:00.001-08:00

Process pictures for the portal presentation, room 107.

Artifact to Passageway

2009-03-03T10:26:00.001-08:00

Prototype to my actual gauntlet design .Top of final gauntlet design

Bottom of final gauntlet design

Skeleton of Wall

Interior design of the wall displaying my artifact.

First model in the passageway project
Second model in the passageway project

Third model in the passageway project

Final passageway project model

First iteration of the portal project

Second iteration of the portal project

Three Best [MHRA] Drawings

2009-03-03T00:45:00.001-08:00

By John Yancy at an ML Graphic Conference

My rendition of John Yancy's style with the front facade of the MHRA building.

A participant of an ML Graphic Workshop

My rendition of the participant's style using a perspective view from the interior of the MHRA building.

Chad Moor, Bloodgood Architects, INC. [The far top left corner]

My rendition of the Bloodgood Architect's style using an interior of the MHRA building on the second floor.

::Sources::
All inspiration images listed can be found in Mike Lin's Designing and Drawing with Confidence book.

Junctions :: Foundations

2009-03-01T21:41:00.000-08:00

Abstractions of Junctions
[Still Working On]

Junctions can be found in and between design along with the culture that influences it. A junction by a definition that is not abstract is a place where two or more things come together, I think that this can be interpreted in a physical state or in the abstract sense of something not so literal in interpretation.

Artifacts

Artifacts themselves are story telling tools for past and present on how a space or something in nature can be categorized as a junction. A literal interpretation are street signs at a major interception, one or more roads coming together, telling the people interacting in the area where to go and how to go safely as artifacts for the space.

Nature

Junctions can occur in natural things as well as things that are man-made. In the beginning of the idea of creating something successful in architecture and design, the early Mesopotamians used nature incorporated with their designs by utilizing the land's curves and building with the land. It wasn't until the Egyptians, later leading to the Greeks and Romans formed a rift in this ideal and started building against the land or on top of it that a junction or crossing of ideas in the way things were thought to be successful design, two ways of thinking, one a more dominate change for centuries to come in the world of design and still a major influence in our own lives and how we view design itself.

People

A way to think about junctions in terms of people makes me automatically think about when we delved into the Roman chapter and learned about the Romans and their superior idea of building things to glorify Rome and make Rome most important. Though a system of roads isn't really anything of great grandeur it is considered a junction in a physical sense because the large distance the roads expand to intersect with neighboring cities and towns to connect all the Roman empire together. It is a junction in that people are constantly walking through the intersections of road and seeing others.

Space

Space withing pieces of architecture can create junctions for people as an idea of circulation through out an area with many people interacting within it. As a modern day example, the Moore Humanities building [MHRA] has a sense of junction within a spacial area. People come and go throughout the normal class day, interacting and intermingling with people coming ad going to class as well as teachers coming in and out. The train terminal of Grand Central station is the epitome of a junction as a space with the coming and going to trains and other systems of transportation from place to place with people in and out of New York City.

::Sources::
Roman Road image and added information

Foundations :: Summary

2009-03-01T10:49:00.000-08:00

In this chapter, the origins of design was established and explained so that the reader could better understand where the foundations of design occurred that influenced our modern day construction of buildings. From the basic building forms and building blocks created by the Egyptian culture, advanced for their time, to the Greek column order structure later borrowed by the Romans, to even the first pass at the basilica form of the Byzantium in modern day Constantinople. All withstanding the test of time and a utilizing the elements of design: commodity, firmness, and delight, to show what truly makes a successfully designed structure.

The first culture in the design history and process explored was that of the Mesopotamians that inhabited the continent of Europe. Key pieces in this beginning puzzle of design and its elements reside in creations like the infamous and mysterious Stonehenge, a circular form of post and lintel stones arranged in a peculiar formation that even today archeologists and designers speculate upon. The structure may hold a form of delight the manner in which the materials contrast with the green hilly landscape but one thing is for sure; the structure does emulate the idea of firmness since it has withstood time from its competition in 3500 BC.
Egyptian culture in the foundations section of our class played a major part in the architecture’s commodity, firmness, and delight. The belief that the afterlife was more important than the life lived before the people and their kings drove designs that could withstand time, house the dead for their trip to the afterlife, and show the glory of the buried royalty and their accomplishments to the people of Egypt even after their death. The pyramids of Giza are the prime example of this religious ideal of celebrating the afterlife of the pharaohs specifically; the massive scale pyramids can be seen for miles on the dry, desert landscape.

Greek and its post culture, Roman, continue to emulate this idea of foundations to architecture through their perfection of the post and lintel system in the form of the temples created to honor their gods and goddesses. The Greeks continue to create and perfect an order of columns: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian; and the Romans take what the Greeks created and perfected it even more along with their own creations of arches, coliseums, and vaults. Along with learning about the different structures and building types we discovered the symbolism behind them such as the ‘bread and circuses’ concept involved in keeping the masses entertained and well to distract from peril or problems in the cities or political power.

The last cultural change and design movement was that of the Byzantium with emperor Constantine, the age where Christianity became a dominant part of religion and also a major influence in architecture and design with the church and basilica form. The Basilica form, the precedent for the future Gothic Cathedrals, visited in the Roman architectural period and was the dominant new building idea of the time. Using the strong structural elements of vault and arches along with the materials of stone and plaster to create firmness, commodity was the basilica to be used as a place of worship and exultation of the religion pairing with delight of the many mosaics that adorned the walls and windows that let light shine through to create amazing patterns of light and shadow.
The design elements of commodity, firmness, and delight were the most important concepts I discovered about past structures. These elements, combined with the precedent that these structures play in present and future structural elements make them critical to the overall understanding of design theory.

::Sources::
Stonehenge picture
Column Order picture
San Vital picture

Group Analysis: Cathedrals

2009-02-27T06:49:00.001-08:00

A cathedral comparison done by Kathy Blair, Kristin Sylvia, and I with Cologne Cathedral in Germany verses Salisbury Cathedral [England], Duomo Cathedral [Italy], and Amiens Cathedral [France] for Design history and theory.

Here is what I wrote to contribute to the group:
In learning about Cologne cathedral and other associated cathedrals, physical properties of these ‘dark age’ structures can give way to details such as the time they were constructed and the reasoning of the designer’s and user’s construction. Cologne cathedral in Germany was a traditionally built structure with the common crossing of vaults and arches, that create massive light elements, done in mostly right angles in composition while the Italian cathedral of Duomo in Florence tends to focus more on a central basis of creating light within the composition with the help of a centralized dome that is unique and closest to is precedent, the Pantheon’s oculus dome built by the Romans many years before. When discussing the elements of the Salisbury cathedral in England and the Cologne, there are sharp contrasts in composition of the space’s layout. While the crossings are similar in the detail of both interior naves and crossing groin vaults, Salisbury Cathedral is more linear in it’s construction composition with protruding elements balanced on its sides while Cologne Cathedral has a more curved affect because of the radiating chapels that appear on the back façade. When looking to find a more similar comparison for the Cologne in Germany, the Amiens cathedral in Amiens, France is almost identical in composition and crossing with its structural elements of vaults, radiating chapels, and towers. Flying buttresses hold up both sides as the vaulted ceilings are built to be taller and taller to reach up towards heavens, leading one to believe they were built around the same time period. The only contrasting detail to these two cathedrals is the fact that Cologne is slightly larger in crossings and overall plan while Amiens is narrower in crossing with a single distinguishing longer radiating chapel aligned with the central axis of the church.

Through our analysis of the Cathedrals from all around europe in the Gothic era of architecture, I learned that each church is unique in construction and design. In the Italian cathedrals the design on the outside was more geometric in shape rather then the amorphous yet ornate designs or a cathedral in France. Light plays a huge part in the awe factor to the cathedral and the composition of a church. Each also carried a symbol to the people worshiping there as to what exactly they were praying or preaching for, the cathedrals were a symbol of hope and the quest to build heavenward in the world of religious design.

3x3 Details MHRA

2009-02-26T05:52:00.001-08:00

Reference picture that explains the feature in the building I was drawing details for.

I made two attempts at creating colored details in the detailed pictures of my building MHRA: one with watercolor in one color [blue] in different saturations to create light and dark and one in marker [Warm Grey].

Voices

2009-02-24T12:53:00.000-08:00

The affect a building has on a person, place, or thing is known as presence. If a structure is built to be massive compared to a person on a smaller scale then the building seems intimidating in presence. A best example of this first time this was realized is with the Giza pyramids in Egypt, the Pharaohs wanted everyone to know the might of their accomplishments and therefore build colossal structures for their own afterlife that would still hold that same captivating and awe inspiring presence against the test of time. “In terms of furniture display, while the Greeks were concerned with refining types where form and proportion were of major import, the Romans focused on ostentatious display, often through extravagant ornamentation.” [Blakemore 46] Romans used the affects of presence in a more ornate and extravagant way through the elaborate decoration on their buildings, furniture, and the column orders used like the ionic and Corinthian column orders were utilized as more a decorative element to help tell a building’s story then a support element, an example of this being the Maison Carrée in Nîmes, France.

Presence can also be referred to when talking about the assignment of Suzanne's class where we had to emulate an artist's style of drawing. Using my own drawing of the MHRA building interior the presence of the artist's style was shown rather then that of my own.

A precedent is similar to a prototype of something, it is the precursor or beginning idea that influences the structure and design of a more current or modern structures or items. Greek and Roman cultures are the source of this influence of precedent in most all of the structures that are around today because they are the basis of structure and design that we use today. For example the MHRA building still houses design elements like the column in it's own design to achieve a certain affect, though the column cannot quite be distinguished between a Doric or Ionic it is still a precedent from ancient times. "After Constantine, however, this emphasis of Roman life on the here and now was gradually replaced with a different concern for the hereafter through the influence of a new religion that reshaped the way Romans began to think about the world and themselves." [Roth 275] Though the precedent of Roman and Greece was slowly more influenced by religion after the time of early Christian and the Byzantine the themes and style of Roman architecture still existed within the new churches constructed: arches, vaults, and columns still existed as an important part of architecture in the changing world. The drawings done in another artist's style can also be identified as a precedent in that the inspiration drawings influenced our own drawing style in order to achieve a desired effect.

Moments in a piece of architecture or artwork are visual ideas present in a design that make the structure successful or make the structure stand out or just give the moment meaning like the break room in the MHRA building that provides a moment of relaxation for people. "Outside, preceding the narthex, a large atrium forecourt ringed with colonnades was added where the unbaptized withdrew during the Mass of the faithful. At Saint Peter's entrance to the atrium was through an imposing propylon or gate." [Roth 282] The mere description of this basilica overflows with visual images of moments that give the places in the church symbolism. Moments like the imposing gate and the colonnaded atrium make the structure visually successful in the feelings the basilica was to convey. Outside of the world of architecture, creating our black and white original models in studio, it was assigned to create thumbnails of the model that illustrated the moments present in the structure. For example, the many curling white tendrils of paper and the triangular cut outs are considered moments because they help to illustrate the concepts from class like contrast of colors and shapes and duality of dark and light that are present in the story.

Duality is when something behaves in two different ways or has two parts or meanings to it. We see this occurrence appear a lot in architectural spaces in current times with a living room in someone's house and that of history with the amphitheater in Athens. By the term of duality, application can be to something physical like a convention center with two or more different uses for a space to something symbolic like a place for bathing and a place to socialize in Rome with the Baths of the Diocletian."The ceiling plane in the hall was the most prominent focal point of this space and when it was, in addition, the most decorative of the open trusses, the amount of attention it commanded was intensified." [Blakemore 73] Even something as basic as a truss in a piece of architecture in the middle ages could be defined by the vocabulary of duality, it provided a focal point and strength to the structure while also becoming a decorative piece to be admired by visitors. When talking about the passageway project, my creation had duality as well because it could be described by two words, hierarchy and contrast because of the contrasting shapes and colors along with the swirls in the background and triangles popping out in the foreground.

A common unit of measurement for an object or piece of architecture when helping to describe the scale of something is considered a metric. The scale of something like a metric is very important in that it helps produce a picture to someone as to just how massive or minuscule something is. In talking about the Baths of the Diocletian metric can be used as a way of thinking about a certain building system and how they show dualities. The Baths are huge in scale compared to a scaled person and in order to better understand this a unit of a metric or metric system would be needed to understand proportion and the reason for it. “As functional and social needs shifted over the course of the Middle Ages, So did the placement and measurements of the structures.” [Blakemore 71] Metrics are not always set in stone, they can always change depending upon new needs of a structure as described by Blakemore about the middle ages, the same types of measurements and structures cannot always just exist as they once did if the needs and commonality changes over time, sometimes things must change in order to sustain. Another example relating to metric and even presence as well is the Church of San Vital in Rovena, Italy, its unbelievably high ceilings caused by the valted structures and large windows make one to feel like they have stepped into a powerful and heavenly place of worship because of the metric scale causing this implication.

All these words are 'voices' for the structure we have covered, metric being the voice of translation when describing meaning and use. Precedent the voice of the past to knowledge of why things are built the way they are and what has presence in buildings that exist now along with how they make a person experiencing the space feel. Moments in a structure can help to create dualities in meaning and function depending on how a space is viewed and what is successful.

Pat's Axonimetric Drawings

2009-02-24T07:54:00.000-08:00

Plan Oblique View

Isometric View

Elevation Oblique View

Photo merge in Photoshop was being uncooperative today so I only have the furniture piece itself and alittle bit of the grid. I will try and fix this alittle later so that the entire picture may be displayed.

Thumbnails with Style!

2009-02-24T05:49:00.001-08:00

::Precedent Project::

2009-02-19T14:29:00.001-08:00

Casa Batlló

For the precedent analysis project I chose to do the unusual and intricate building called Casa Batlló, a structure designed by Antoni Gaudí and constructed from 1905 to 1907 in Barcelona, Spain. I took interest in this piece of architecture mostly for its air of fantasy, extraordinary curving facade incorporated with engaged and decorative columns, and inspiring brilliantly colored mosaic walls throughout the building made simply to be categorized as an apartment building. This building contains the elements of architecture: commodity because it houses people like it is built to and firmness because it is still standing through time and shows no signs of wear. But the last element that this building directly epitomizes is the element of delight, for it is pleasing to the eyes from each and ever angle.

I think I can compare and contrast many aspects of this building from things I have learned in Design History and Theory, things like as mentioned above, elements of architecture: commodity, firmness, and delight; and also ideals of elements and designs from Greek and Roman times like vaulted elements, hearth of the building, courtyards, and pictorial mosaics. in my eyes Gaudí's Casa Batlló is one of the inspiring marvels of the 20th century.

::Sources::
http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Casa_Batllo.html
http://www.architectureweek.com/2002/1113/culture_1-2.html
The Story of Architecture by Jonathan Glancey

Parts : Whole

2009-02-17T16:20:00.000-08:00

A source is the origin of information, when trying to find things out about a piece of architecture or other important information from some sort of authentic documentation. The Romans, the preceding civilization to the Greeks, used the Greek architecture as a source of reference for their own buildings. Instead of using their architecture for commodity and firmness like the Greeks did, the Romans used it as more of a delight factor to their building forms, for example, the Theater of Marcellus in Rome. "The outer curved wall was opened up by the super-imposed arcades of travertine faced with engaged orders -- unfluted Doric at the lower level and Ionic on the second level..."[Roth 265] Each level of arches is adorned with two of the three orders of columns: Doric and Ionic, these columns are engaged and used for stability reasons. An opposite example of this would be the Colosseum in Rome where the columns are sliced columns or pilaster columns that are used for decoration of the building. Though imitation is the highest form of flattery, I think that maybe the Romans were actually more intimidated by the Greek style and worked hard to master it as their own to show they could be just as good as the previous culture’s achievements. "Classical Greek and Roman architecture has had and astounding influence on both structurally and decoratively in subsequent periods, especially beginning with Renaissance Italy." [Blakemore 28] Just as Greece influenced Rome, later periods there after and even now are still being influenced by past architecture and design.

When drawing from life with scale figures and interiors, a source of reference is always useful tool to make your drawings as realistic as possible and as detailed as possible. For example, when working on scale figures with thumbnails, the MHRA building on campus, the people currently in classes and the building itself are a source of reference to draw from rather then to memorize the space and try to draw it again later. Photographs can also be good reference but they do not compare with real life drawing when it comes to detail.

Archetype can symbol or meaning of something represented by something else entirely different usually. Archetypes can be represented not only by objects, but colors and shapes as well. When designing the fairytale artifact from Studio a couple weeks back, I took archetypal story colors into consideration to make my object stronger and more meaningful. The two colors I used were blue for loyalty and wisdom in the story and red for courage and sacrifice that was important to the story. In Design History and Theory the Colosseum in Rome, or amphitheater as it is also called, is an archetype in the whole fact that it was constructed as a way to entertain the masses of Rome to divert them from the true troubles that the city may be facing at the time weather it be economic or political. A “bread & circuses” technique that keeps the people happy even in times of hardship with performances and fights between man and beast. This was not only an occurrence in Rome, it was adopted from the Greeks who also built structures like the amphitheater, the theaters the Greeks constructed where more incorporated into the land rather then built against the grain of the land itself. "...the Pantheon is, as David Watkin has put it,'the symbol and the consequence of an immutable union between the god, nature, man, and the state.'" [Roth 259] Other buildings other than the Colosseum were considered symbols to the Greeks and Romans, the Pantheon was a symbol of the accomplishment of man, the gods that guided them, and the triumph over nature in the eyes of the Romans. An ideal brought to life by Greek culture is the archetype of the column orders. It is thought that the Doric order column represents female because it is a larger column and is thought to represent matronly strength while the highly decorated Ionic order column is thought to represent male. The last major column identification is the category of the Corinthian column, which is a combination of the Doric and Ionic columns with even more ornate decoration along the capital. The Corinthian column is also an example of something known as a hybrid, which is a combination of two or more currently existing objects or elements to create something new with similar elements and visuals as the elements that created it. In studio, a combination of the black and white thumbnails and the theme of 'pathways' helped to create a cohesive project in the form of a hybrid of ideas.

The prototype is known as the precursor for an object or building existing now or that had once existed. Greek, Egyptian, and Roman architecture and style is a highly used precedent even in today’s architecture and design. Their buildings are the basic building blocks of our own because these cultures were the ones that invented elements of architecture like commodity, firmness, and delight. In Greece, the Temple of Hera i & ii along with the temple of Athena in Paestum constituted as the precedent to the all important standing acropolis in Athens. These structures were built first and helped the Greeks to achieve an ideal structure to be used to glorify their gods and goddesses.

A following of people or objects that follows an important element or person is known as an entourage. The many people in the MHRA building I observed when creating thumbnails in Suzanne's drawing class formed an entourage with the interior space accompained making for an interesting arrangement of things to draw. On the infamous Greek acropolis of Athens, the buildings upon it could be considered and entourage to the all-important Parthenon that is a temple attributed to the goddess over the Greek city Athena. The Parthenon being the most important element and building in Greek belief and society and the other buildings like the Erectheon, the theater, and the Athena-Nike temple, while still important, a mere entourage centered around the center of the acropolis. These buildings were built after the Parthenon and accentuate its meaning and the story behind it, for example Athena-Nike and how it is the supposed watch temple of the messenger to Athena.

The term hierarchy is a series of groupings of people or things within a system that can be on physical elements or values. On the acropolis of Athens in Greece a hierarchy is established based on importance of buildings arranged on this important uprising landmass. The Parthenon being in the central area of the plaza because of its importances with the belief in the city's protector and founder, Athena, all the other buildings on the plaza face this important building. Hierarchy is also see established in class between the three big cultural societies: Egypt, Greece, and Rome. "Treatment of floors ranged from the simply utilitarian to decorative. Compacted earth floors were used by families of all economic levels, but the wealthier homeowners of the classical period often used plaster, painting, or mosaics."[Blakemore 34] The higher class you were, the more ornate your home was. Mosaics on walls and floors and furniture of marble and imported wood informed others of high status while stone walls and dirt floors just portrayed the commodity and firmness needed to keep the structure together rather then the delight of the rich. "Egyptian society was highly stratified. At the top of the hierarchal scale was the pharaoh, or king, whose powers were divine and who represented god on earth. Along with the king, princes and those who could trace their origins to royal family wielded political power at this level. [Blakemore 3]Hierarchy was also measured from royalty to the peasants in Egypt, same with later in Greece and Rome with their emperors and the common folk. If you were born into the higher class of a royal family you automatically got the high status that came with it.

Order is a description of a grouping of a vertical element of architecture known as a column, there are three main types of orders when it comes to columns: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian columns. This order of columns was first an idea in the time of ancient Egypt, starting with the basic Doric style used in temples and tombs, and then was modified and perfected by the Greeks and Romans as strength and decoration for many of their buildings and temples to the gods. The first in the order, and more basic and firm in design, is the Doric column. This column though basic in design emphasizes more of the theme of strength and stability and the commodity to hold up lintels or anything else it was designed to hold. A later modification to the basic column and next in the order is the Ionic column, a more ornate and tall column that could still hold its weight and create a sense of delight when gazed upon. Its thin vertical property and the ornate scrolls that adorn the capital can easily identify this column.

All in all, the five words are inter-related, when talking about column order it can relate to hierarchy in relation to how ornate a column is decorated on a building, order can also be used in a more literal sense where going from highest to lowest when it comes to the class scale that can be described by hierarchy. Entourage describes the interaction of space and people and how they are affected by the hierarchy and order depending on class. Sources are the basic theme because every culture borrows or is influenced by another's ideals or precedents like the use of the ordered columns as a more decorative sense rather then a structural one. Though sources are used they are interpreted in different ways through archetypes and can create hybrids of these ideals by combining one or more.

::Sources::
History of Interior Design and Furniture By Roth
Understanding Architecture By Blakemore
Drawings and Photographs By myself

Thumbnail Inspiriation

2009-02-17T06:44:00.000-08:00

Chad Moor, Bloodgood Architects, Inc. from the Designing and Drawing with Confidence.

A participant at ML Graphic Workshop from the Designing and Drawing with Confidence.

John Yancey, ML Graphic from the Designing and Drawing with Confidence.

Jose Louro from Urban Sketchers website.

James Hobbs from Urban Sketchers Website

12 MHRA Detailed Thumbnails

2009-02-16T12:53:00.000-08:00

Our group had the MHRA building, the 3"x3" thumbnails above are of the second floor of the building and the 3"x3" thumbnails below are of the first floor, third floor, and outside of the building.

Pat's Workspace/Table/Chair Elevations & Sections

2009-02-16T11:09:00.000-08:00

The next part in the drafting of Pat's Workspace/Table/Chair models. Done in 1":1' scale drawings with dimensions of the form and a scale model to show the scale of the piece of furniture.

Sections of cuts in the drawing to show more information are also done in 1":1' scale, darker sections are identified as the places where the section cut begins.

2D Black and White

2009-02-15T23:17:00.001-08:00

It started out as 25 thumbnails abstracted of my previous black and white 3D representation of my sculpture from my fairytale, The White Snake. Done in permanent marker, pen and ink, and a splash of watercolor. I chose red and blue because they were the archetypal colors I used previously in my fairytale for my artifact. Blue meaning wisdom and loyalty and red meaning courage and sacrifice.

And then ended with choosing 5 thumbnails to be drawn at a 5"x5" scale. Done in permanent marker and pen and ink.

3D Black and White

2009-02-15T21:04:00.001-08:00

The first iteration and test model of my 3D black and white creation.
The directions were to construct a black and white 3D sculpture/representation of either our fairytale or of a creation story used in our wall vignettes using a 8"x8" black plane, a 8"x8" white plane, and an uncut linear element of our choosing. I chose to use my fairytale because I knew the details better and because I felt there was more to work with.

I chose to craft a pyramid out of black illustration board, white bond paper, and a left over skewer painted to match the black paper. I chose to represent to perils and triumphs of my fairytale along with the lights and darks. The dark jagged and sharp shapes the black paper takes represent the perils of the story and darkness that tries to cage in the light and quell the good things in the fairytale while the white curly tendrils represent the light and the good things that happen through the story. The white tendrils weave in and out of the jagged triangular cut outs to show that though there is darkness, there is still light and good things going on and one side of the pyramid is exploding outward allowing the 'light' to b unrestrained to represent the fact that good triumphs in the end of the fairytale. The linear element excentuates the exploding light by directing your eye with the contrasting light white color rather then just providing structure to the product like the first iteration did.

Also I chose to have the light exploding out the side rather then the top of the form because I thought it created a stronger effect and emotion. Also it made it look less like a volcano exploding and more like a 3D piece that told a story.

Opus #3

2009-02-11T11:12:00.000-08:00

Scale is a measurement of an object or drawing that interprets and makes sense of something to the person reading it. Scale can be used to help understand and determine how big or small an object or person may be in space compared to other objects or structures. When designing a wall to understand the construction of the wood frame a 1":1' scale was used to build a model of the real wall face in order to get a better understanding of the construction without actually building a real wall. Full scale size plays a big part in Design History and Theory in making something noticeable or for something to stand out like with the Pyramids of Giza and the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. To give a general idea of just how big a scale these pyramids are Roth states, “The pyramids are virtual mountains, at the time the largest buildings in the world, hauled block by block from the Nile. The base of Khufu’s pyramid covers just over 13 acres (5.3 hectares); it is big enough to contain the plans of the cathedrals of Florence and Milan, the basilica of St. Peter in Rome, as well as St. Paul’s and Westminster Abby in London, and still have room left over.” (Roth 197) The scale of the Pyramids can literally swallow many of the other pieces of architecture created long after, so the scale compared to a human even is almost unimaginable. The reason for this extreme scale is that the Pharaohs wanted people to know the superiority of the pyramids even after they were long gone, building a pyramid was a huge accomplishment and took a vast amount of labor. So essentially the bigger the structure, the more memorable accomplish it would become. "The enormous scale of the monuments was due to the nature of the material and the methods of excavating the stone blocks, transporting them, and lifting the blocks into position." (Blakemore 2) Blakemore suggests that the reason for the extreme scale may also be the materials available to the Egyptians when constructing these massive structures. I think this might have been an attributing factor, but I also theorize from what Roth said and what was in class that it may also have been used to establish a form of hierarchy to the people in Egypt and to other people in the world to portray Egypt's thriving society.

Aside from the extreme scales of people and architecture in Egypt, interiors and the people that interact with them can be more of a realistic scale. In the watercolor vignette above the scale of people and their surroundings in and with architecture give a sense of scale and understanding to a space in everyday life with figures.

The collaboration of items or parts in design that makes sense to a person and design wise can only be best described as unity. Unity can be portrayed with shapes, color, & format of design. Unity of colors in a simple sketch vignette can create unity throughout a piece of artwork that can help to lead your eye around the page and keep interest of the observer like with the reoccurring orange color in the vignette above that moves from the walls to the seating in the restaurant portrayed. Unity can be interpreted as a united group of people as well, like with the Greeks in History and Theory of Design. " The agricultural economy of the Greeks was based on small farms individually owned and operated, and both this economy and the rugged landscape prevented consolidation of the many separate Greek city-states into a single centralized nation. None the less, the Greeks shared a common religion and a rich subtle language that set them apart..." (Roth 217) Before the people of Greece, there were various greek speaking city-states that could not come together into one nation. But with the combined ideas of the similar Greek city-states similar ideas would go for the perfect ideal in which Greeks attempted to achieve through their architecture with the Megarons and later the temples to gods like the Parthenon.

A cut view that helps a person to understand information better from a view that is not normally seen unless the object is cut in half is called a section. In drafting during the drawings on Pat’s Chair/Table/Workspace section drawings were done so that information could better be interpreted as to what the piece of furniture looked like. If there was a hidden support not normally seen from the elevation views or the plan views of the drawing the reader of the drawing would be able to better understand the construction of the piece of furniture. For example, in my section of Pat's furniture piece there are horizontal and vertical supports in sections of my desk/table that can be seen better from a section view. Without the section this would not have been communicated. Sections are present in the book History of Interior Design and Furniture in the form of architectural sections to help the reader get a better understanding of the space that had existed at one time in ancient Egypt and ancient Greece, not just the outside layer but the inner parts of architecture and how rooms and such where structured.

Boundaries are defining lines that can dictate the beginning and end of something in architecture or in a piece of artwork even. In a watercolor vignette, boundaries aside from that on the paper are unclear. The idea is to let the color fade off into the white of the page and give the illusion of a boundary. Boundaries were apart of Greek ideal and architecture as well. "Running around the building [Knossos Palace] was a sophisticated plumbing and drainage system. In places, the palace walls were four and five stories high in a series of setbacks around light courts and stairwells." (Roth 217) Boundaries can also be physical as referenced from the Knossos Palace, walls can be boundaries to keep things in, keep people out, and even mark territory as the Greeks did. "The Megaron consisted of an entry porch formed by projecting walls framing two columns, a vestibule, and the throne room, nearly square, with its roof carried by four columns (virtually the same arrangement was found at Mycenaean and Pylos)." (Roth 218) Another example of boundaries being used are shown in the planning and building of the Megaron, the precedent to the temples. The walls created on the structure are boundaries to those who are not priests to the building out of the sacred structure since Megarons and later temples where considered to be used for religious purposes.

Vignettes are drawings that have no definite boundaries, when using vignettes with watercolor the idea is to let the color fade out to give the illusion of other objects or boundaries in the composition. Vignettes are not only in watercolor, they can be done in mediums of pen and ink, graphite pencil and colored pencil. Vignettes are considered stories without words, ideals and views of different cultures can be similar to the description of a vignette because there is no definitive ideal, everything and every culture is different and the lines of right and wrong are faded and unclear. Greek ideals and Egyptian ideals are different already because of the different views on what is important such as between what you do in life and what you do in the afterlife.

In short, scale is an important aspect of consideration in architecture and design as well as when drafting so that information can be better interpreted to the person reading the drawing or understanding the structure. As well as scale, sections can also help to give more information to a person to help better the understanding of the structure, of a piece of furniture, or even how a society's way of life was like from those interpretations. Boundaries give limit to structures and property while the unity of colors, scale, and shapes makes a piece of architecture successful with the information given. Vignettes mold into the concept of boundaries, scale, sections, and unity into drawings and architecture via mediums like watercolors or cultures like Egypt and Greece.

::Sources::

History of Interior Design and Furniture By Roth
Understanding Architecture By Blakemore

Wall Vignettes and Artifact Wall

2009-02-11T05:52:00.000-08:00

Wall vignettes, three of my artifact and three from the creation story called the Golden Chain. I did all of them in the form of walls that could represent my story or that inspired me.

Drinking and Drawing

2009-02-10T08:17:00.000-08:00

5 Scale Figure Drawers

2009-02-04T11:16:00.000-08:00

In researching different ways to show scale figure drawing in other people's work, I stumbled upon the work of Matt Jones on the Urban Sketch Artists blog. He incorperates a couple different techniques in figure drawing to scale with the backgrounds, when people are closer he draws more detail to them, but when they are farther away there isn't even a distinguishing between male and female figures. It also conveys a sense of depth with the scale of the background architecture.
Samantha Szaza also has an interesting way of presenting her figures, in the image above of a market scene she draws figures that are in the foreground with much detail and begins to fade the still detailed figures in the background out in the drawing like a vignette.

I took an interest in Veronica Lawlor's work with figure drawing because of the signature splash of color she seems to add into her work that draws my eyes to the center of the page. The couple of examples of her work that I've seen are mostly large crowds of people depicted to show the scale of a large object like the New York City Christmas tree or a large are like a skating ring. Though its hard to distinguish all the figures in the background because its such a large crowd it gives is an abstract feeling in a real life drawing.

James Hobbs is another example of another type of scale figure drawing, rather then draw the details of the people in the composition, he draws very basic figures that cannot be distinguished between male and female but give you a good notion of the scale of the image and the structures in the background.

Greg Betza's scale figure drawing is more focused on the background work, mostly with architecture, the figures have basic shape to them and minor details like out line of clothes and hair. And just like Veronica Lawlor's work, he adds splashes of color to his, though his are more thought out to the light and shadow of the sketches.

Opus: Guide to Successful Architecture

2009-02-03T15:46:00.000-08:00

To illuminate something means the focus of something in a piece of architecture or piece of artwork based on what we have learned in classes this week. This can be done through, color, light and shadow, or even placement in a formation, like in vignettes where certain colors can be used to highlight certain parts of a composition for effect. In Design history and theory, we learned about how the Giza pyramids in Egypt were crafted of white sandstone to make the gigantic structures stand out amongst the sands just for the corpses of kings to celebrate the afterlife. “ In other words, the pyramid was the King’s launching place, the mountain whose gilded summit would catch the first rays of the sun, from which the soul of the pharaoh would rise to greet Ra in his eternal endeavor to ensure ma’at, the never-ending rightness of all things for his living subjects below.” (Roth 201) The pyramid tombs are illuminated in the vast landscape of desert because they are an important structure to be seen and marveled, because the Egyptian culture found the afterlife to be more important than the life on earth.

In the Webster Dictionary interpretation of idiom is a phrase whose meaning may or may not be determined by the literary definition of the phrase its self, so this means something that can not literally be interpreted The ground plan of a simple house, or pr, might stand for the word for ‘house.’ These are called ideograms. We do something similar when we use a picture of a heart to represent the word ‘love’ in this sentence ‘I love New York.’” (Marie Parsons) Egyptian hieroglyphics are the epitome of this idea because the pictures that represent words to tell a story do not always mean what they seem, a bird carved in stone does not necessarily mean ‘bird’ it might mean ‘son’. Things are not always as they seem; it all depends who translates. Egyptians would know because it is from their culture while we in this age would not know the true meaning and would have to discover it rather then just assume.

Materials can come in many forms; most are physical and can be used to create new materials or forms. For example, if you lived in an area with a lot of one type of stone like the Egyptians with sandstone or the stone builders of Stonehenge and their “great stones”, then what else could you build your structures out of if you only have the materials around you. Of course the other thing about materials is that they can be moved and imported even to make even more forms. "Egypt is the gift of the Nile, and to understand the land, its ancient inhabitants, and the architecture they created, we must first understand the river and the geography it traverses [10.5]." (Roth 188) Roth's quotation continues to explain how an area's geography can affect the materials used in certain architectural constructions. The Nile helped Egypt to survive, it also helped to trade goods and other materials throughout the time of the pyramids and temples. In present times sustainable materials such as the Design Studio ICF wall being used in construction of “My Sister’s House” by third year Iarc Studio, are not materials used because they are found in the area, but because they a smart design wise to the construction of the structure.

The power of three: commodity, firmness, and delight are three architectural design elements defined by Vitruvius used to create a well designed space or structure.
Commodity, being the term used to describe something that has a purpose and fulfills that purpose, like the bicycle shed mentioned at the beginning of the class in history of theory and design, the structure does give bicycles a place to be put and keeps them dry and safe from any weather. The great Giza pyramids are also an example as they are the structures used to support the pharaohs when they die and the riches for the afterlife. That is just how they were constructed, though the Giza pyramids also share in common with the bicycle shed the element of firmness to withstand the effects of climate and weather, both are sound structures that keep their contents safe from rain or harsh desert winds. "The houses of the workers who built the dolmens, the barrows, and Stonehenge were most likely made of timbers, hides and thatch and have long since disappeared. We do have a remarkable survival of at least one village, however, dating from about 5,200 years ago and abandoned about 4,200 years ago." (Roth 174) Another example of this element of firmness resides in the neolithic stone village, Skara Brae, abandoned about one thousand years after it was built but still standing even in the present. Last but not least is the element of delight in a structure. "This is the most complex and diverse of all the components of architecture, for it involves how architecture engages all our senses, how it shapes our perception and enjoyment of (or discomfort with) our building environment." (Roth 67) Delight is also complex because our perception and senses can be complimented by many different ways whether it be color, texture, proportion, scale, rhythm, ugliness, or light. It can maybe be all the items at a time.

All these ideas and properties covered are elements that make up or make a successful piece of architecture or art piece. Different materials such as textured brick of the Baker House or color choices and pigments on a canvas of architecture piece can lead to delight in a structure as well as the firmness and commodity if those materials are chosen to withstand the test of time and help to fulfill their purpose. Illuminating anything in design can help to draw attention to some specific item or the overall piece, completing both the commodity if the object's purpose is to be viewed and the delight because it draws people to it because of the visual pleasure. And idioms can be used to be embedded in materials (hieroglyphics) or used with materials (paints) to fulfill the commodity of telling the object's story or purpose and the delight of decorating and celebrating the object.

::Sources::
+Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History, and Meaning
By: Roth.
+ http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/writing.htm
+http://www.merriam-webster.com/
+http://www.richard-seaman.com/Travel/Egypt/GizaPyramids.jpg

Group Photo and Drawings are credited to me.

Pat's Workspace/Table/Chair Plan

2009-02-03T09:55:00.001-08:00

My first drafting piece for Pat's furniture, it is the plan view of the furniture. Based on my design for the piece there were very little areas of hidden lines to be drawn so darkened lines played a big part in depicting height of the area.

After many attempts at Photomerge this picture was the best merge I could get, I shall keep trying and edit this post if I can get a better one. I think the reason why it is having so much trouble finding connections is because there is so much space in the original vellum drawing.

Artifact Vignettes

2009-02-03T05:23:00.000-08:00

Using pen, watercolor and colored pencil, I created three vignettes out of three different artifacts made by my classmates. Katie's hat and Arnis' vest are just watercolored and Kristina's bracelet is watercolored and combined with colored pencil.

Artifact Multi-views

2009-02-01T12:28:00.000-08:00

The most detailed side of the gauntlet modeled after my fairy tale "The White Snake".

Fairy Tale Artifacts...

2009-01-29T07:53:00.000-08:00

First project of the new semester, I was assigned a fairy tale written by the infamous Grimm brothers. Based on this story and notes made in our opus/sketchbook I had to make an artifact that embodied our story without putting it in a completely literal sense.

The Three Snake Leaves

With courage of the youth, wisdom of the snakes, and loyalty of the servant, the youth himself was able to survive the perils thrown his way in the story.

When considering the story, I focused more on archetypal story means, and even more on archetypal colors to help me create my artifact. Since courage was something I took as most important in the story for the main character, I automatically thought of a knight in armor. With this thought I decided to create a knight's gauntlet, but instead of making it armor-like I made it more as a glove/fabric piece and in the final model used red (symbolist of courage and sacrifice) and blue (symbolist of wisdom and loyalty) as contrasting colors in my piece.

Items: Fabric from give-away box, blue soft ribbon, blue/red/white thread...
Ribbons are adjustable to fit just about anyone's arm, including my own. :)

Artifacts of Mine...

2009-01-28T11:57:00.001-08:00

Artifacts were one of the major words of our first week back to the semester, our first assignment was to find 5 artifacts that mean alot to us and or define us in one way or another and draw them with an ink pen alone and choose one colored pencil color. My color was green of course!

Most of my artifacts have a story about them and not all of them are things, one is an animal. Meddle!~ :3

5 artifacts: Game Boy Color, Sapphire Heart necklace, Legacy sunglasses, Class ring, and Meddle the cornish rex.

Express: Design::Tell: Story

2009-01-27T18:46:00.000-08:00

::Annotations::

Stories: Stories are events that can be fictional or true, they can be the story of a person's life a tale of fantasy told down for centuries and centuries. Stories can be used for entertainment purposes with tales of magic and dragons or can tell life lessons with morals of courage and wisdom.

Artifacts: Artifacts are relics or items of importance to the past or present, this item can carry a story with it as well and helps as a visual aid to depict the story. The picture of my cat drawn in Design Graphics is an artifact as well because it is something important to me and it defines me to other people. An item such as an artifact can represent someone or something and can be a person, place, or thing. "A bicycle shed is a building, Lincoln cathedral is a piece of architecture." ( Nicholas Peusner's Quote) Between the two 'artifacts' there are two different meanings for their existence that acts as a relic for future generations to look at. While the Bicycle shed is more functional and the cathedral is more symbolic they are both considered artifacts to which people associate meanings and storied with year after they are built.

Multi view: Multi view is a way to understand the information via different views and view points, mostly it is referred to when talking about an item. In the multi view of an item for one to get the full description of it they must look at the top, bottom, front, and sides to understand something fully. Every view is different. In the reading by Roth, "The Vitruvian three-part definition of architecture, incorporating utility, firmness, and beauty begins with the element that, on the surface, would appear most straightforward, but that, since the mid-twentieth century, has proved extremely troublesome." (p. 12 Roth) He describes that the definition, though seemingly straight forward, may have several multiple views in its meaning when interpreted by different people.

Cycle: Is a selection of events that reoccurs over and over again in a pattern like form. When I think of cycle I think never ending, always something happening like the seasons. There is never and interruption and one of the four seasons always happen. Cycles make things a bit more predictable for those who can figure out the pattern in them. " In architecture, as in all operative arts, the end must direct the operation. The end is to build well. Well building hath three conditions: Commodity, Firmness, and Delight." ( Sir Henry Wotton Quote) There is a cycle when creating architecture along with three conditions, the end being the most important part of this design cycle and process because it is what is commonly seen and remarked upon.

Translation: Translation is taking something and interpreting it in one's own words so that understanding can occur, for example, a foreign language spoken to someone who doesn't know that language holds no meaning because one cannot under stand the meaning. If one translates this to something understandable there is a better chance for the message to be passed on. Some translations are harder then others, even abstract ideas can be translated by a person willing to find the meaning. "What was it for [Stonehenge]? The effort of many generations, extended over so many centuries, was undertaken for some compelling purpose." (p.172 Roth) Stonehenge as Roth describes is a prime example of a piece of existing architecture that has many 'translations' by many people, was it a burial ceremony structure or was it used to tell the position of the stars. We may never know but that does not keep people from trying to come up with their own translations of the stone wonder.

::Reflections::

Stories, artifacts, multi view, cycle, and translation can all be inter related. Stories can have many translations just like design in architecture. No two people have the exact same idea about how to translate them because each is different. Artifacts can have a story attached to them that may or may not need to be translated in order to get the moral or entertainment across to others. The constant telling of stories is cycled throughout the generations and in many different translated variations for the same artifact and story though the story may change through each cycle.

"Beauty will result from the form and correspondence of the whole, with the respect to several parts, of the parts with regard to each other..." (Andrea Palladio Quote) This quote in History + Theory of design was interesting to me because it describes how its not just the final product of the design that is important, even though it is important in a cycle to get to the end. It takes all the parts of the architectural piece to make it beautiful.

Timeline Project

2009-01-27T10:22:00.001-08:00

:: 1200 AD::

Institutions:
+ Naples University is founded.
+University of Paris receives charter from Philip II of France.
+ Emergence of the Collegiate System in Islam.

Technology:
+ Alcohol was used for Medical purposes.
+ Arabs create Aromatherapy
+ Clothing buttons are invented.
+ Movable type where block printing was concerned was invented and widely used in Korea.
+Caravel Ship was invented in Al-Andalus.

Governance:
+ Development in Feudalism develops in Western Europe.
+ Magna Carta is signed by King John of England.
+ Saint Francis of Assisi, a rich Italian Merchant gives up wealth for the life of a poor man.
+ Qutub- ud- Din Aibak founded Islamic State in Northern India.
+ King John of England marries a 13 year old Isabella of Angouleme at Bordeaux.
+ Mongols are defeated in Northern China.
+ Fourth Crusaders conquer Byzantium and sack Constantinople.
+Crete falls to Venetians.
Commerce:
+ The Islamic world and china dominate much of trade in the 1200s, business was carried out Expansion of this trade is assisted by advances in navigation and the use of Arabic numerals.

::1200 BC::

Institutions:
+Tale of Two Brothers by an Egyptian Papyrus is scribed.

Technology:
+ “Wet Chemistry” and other sophisticated techniques are being used by the Egyptians.
+ Metal swords are being used in Europe primarily for combat as well as ceremonial purposes.
+ Chariots appear in Ancient China.
+ Earliest writing that survives exists in China.
+Simple plow develops in Europe.

Governance:
+ Theseus, legendary King of Athens, is deposed after a reign of 30 years and succeeded by Menestheus.
+ Olmec civilization in Mesoamerica started.
+ Collapse of Hittite power in Anatolia with the destruction of the capital.
+ Aramaic Nomads and Chaldeans become a big threat to the former Babylonian and Assyrian Empire.

Commerce:
+ Massive migrations of people around the Mediterranean and the Middle-East
+Mesopotamian tablets are thought to be the first economic documentation of food and other trade. This developed across the ancient world from Babylon to India and China.

::Sources::
+http://www.answers.com/topic/1200
+http://www.criticalthinking.net.au/Resources/Flash/middleAges_timeline.swf
+http://ezinearticles.com/?History-of-Aromatherapy---Arabia-800-1200-AD---Africa---Europe-Middle-Ages-500-1300-AD&id=1538958
+http://history-timeline.deepthi.com/india-timeline-history/india-history-to-1400.html
+ http://www.jrmooneyham.com/lostcv4ref.html
+http://www.urbandharma.org/udnl3/nl072704.html
+http://www.wikipedia.org
+http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/road_to_riches/timeline/timeline.swf

A B C... Easy as 1 2 3!

2009-01-27T10:03:00.000-08:00

First lettering assignment of the spring semester...
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Do at least 10 lines of each size required. One line was 1/4" lettering with a 1/8" space and the other was even smaller at 3/16" lettering with a 3/32" space. I basically filled the 18X24 sheet of vellum for this assignment.

Moving the display

2008-12-08T18:24:00.000-08:00

Today was the day we had to take up our concrete forms from the Critique last week, a group of us came down at about noon today and began moving all the concrete forms, even those not in our own groups, out to the outside area of the wood shop. Tristan lent out his car for our purposes and we were able to get all the forms safely covered and put away til spring semester.

The Workers
Sharon
Tristan
Aubrey
Kristina
Phillip
Hailey
Hannah
And myself

Thanks for your help everyone!!!!

Final Results of Pathways+Edges+Boundaries

2008-12-08T16:36:00.000-08:00

A week of casting and many stepping stones later as the sub-group of 'ground plane' in the Gateway group we were ready to set up one and a half of the two paths planned out for the critique after thanksgiving break. In my group I helped pour concrete, mix concrete, build molds for stepping stones with Sharon, make negative space forms to create circles, and blogged about the process on the group blog.
The hardest thing for us was waiting for the molds to try so we could pop them out and make the next batch of stepping stones, also we had a hard time deciding how much pea pebble aggregate to use but we soon found the magic amount and it made our stepping stones strong without the expense of wire mesh.

Here are some pictures of our displays for the entire class part of the project, Pathways.Edges.Boundaries. Each group within the project, Gateway, Oasis, Mirage, Desert, & Living on the edge contributed drawings, models, and process pictures for the display.

For the group presentation, I did a throw-up sheet and a section drawing of one of the stepping stones, also Tristan's pictures and my pictures combined made up the process picture section.

Working with Vellum [House and Chapel]

2008-12-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

The last two assignments for Stoel's rotation were the most challenging and admittedly the most fun to do. Starting with an elevation view of a house, we were to measure it at 1/8":1' scale, double that amount and then draw it in 1/4":1' scale. After which we got a chance to do some major poche-ing on the house and in the foreground and background, along with lettering from a paragraph in the book.

The last was of a chapel, and this one was by far the hardest one to draw to scale for me, I had to start over various times because the roof measurements didn't add up and therefore the whole building was wrong. We used the same process in scale with the last assignment and then in the end got a choice between one poche-ing method or another along with more lettering.

Elevation Pans and Sections

2008-11-20T16:21:00.000-08:00

Moving on from the exercises to get us back into the swing of drafting, we started plan views of various houses in our Design Drawing book. One house was a sectioned-perspective view and we had to turn it into a plan view in the scale of 1/4":1'.
The next house we did was already in the form of a plan view and only needed to be converted to 1/4":1' scale. The added thing Stoel gave us was that we also had to poche the walls of the house on vellum paper using a marker of some sort. Almost like tracing what we had just done.

The Last Theory hour

2008-11-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

This was the last Studio Theory class of the semester and it was based on projects the 5th years were working on for their studio. In groups they had to come up with a do able project to help promote sustainability at UNCG, in the town of Greensboro, and at a national standpoint.

+ For the UNCG standpoint on Sustainability they group focused on finding a way to replace the plastic bags used at the EUC, Outta Here, and Spartan Grill. They came up with the solution of 'green bags' that were affordable for the school to purchase and easier to recycle. By the end of Fall semester or the beginning of Spring semester these bags will be put into use!
+ The next concept was on a national level and was about voting green from the current election. The group gathered information on each candidate in the election and put it all together into a newsletter so that the people would be better be able to understand what green issues the candidates stand for since it is and will be a big issue in the environment.
+ The next group titled their project "Pro CFL" and it focused on the local level on informing residents that compact florescent light bulbs save more energy and are a better recycling material then incandescent bulbs. They worked on this project in the local Farmer's Hardware store with a booth and information flyers to give out to the people who shopped at the store.
+ On the city of Greensboro level a group worked on recycling better in the city. They did a study on if the coloring on the cans made any influence on the amount of recycling. They also revamp the recycling sticker so it was less cluttered to read and was still informative hoping people would be more likely to recycle their cans, bottles, and magazines.
+ The last project was a community newsletter on "Green" issues and also a chance to get the message out. The group also initiated a community garage sale to go along with recycling old stuff to be bought by other people.

Though the number of people decreased in attendance as time went on I am happy to say that I found some of the speakers to be very informative, I was glad to have gone to learn about things like the Proximity Hotel in Greensboro (LEED certified Platinum), Entroprounships, and Global Environmental issues.

Drafting [Orthographic and Plans]

2008-11-18T12:36:00.000-08:00

For the restart of Stoel's rotation we once again started with a familiar orthographic drawing exercise in creating 2D work of a front view, a left side view, a right side view, and a top view along with drawing out a 3D version of the figure based on the views.

The next assignment was to practice the drafting layout format, draw 12 north directional arrows in a creative way, and draw three different types of scales in two different ways each.

[Scales Here]

Gateway: Casting Process

2008-11-17T08:03:00.000-08:00

Sunday was our first casting day, Sharon, Phillip, David, and I where there and in truth four was a good number for casting concrete, not too few and not too many.

Aggregate: Cat Litter (Tidy Cats brand)
Mortar Mix (1/2 a bag)

As for molds we just did a couple of tests from what Sharon had found at Target and what Stoel had brought for us to get a feel with. One bowl, two square bowls from Walgreens, two Chip n' Dip bowls, a cake top, and other various objects. The pouring went relatively well and we tried three different types of mixes, one with more water added then the other to test which would be stronger. As of today the cement had not yet cured enough to break from the mold, we hope to see the results tomorrow so we can make final adjustments to the molds and get to finishing the project.

Aggregates to Try: Sawdust and/or Perlite
Drawings to work on:
+1 plan/cut view of our casted object for the project.
+ 1 scale drawing of our parking island.
+ 1 scale view of entire lot.
+ Various other drawings.

Mmmmm..... Yum, concrete with a hint of cat litter. ;)

[[Access-Crossroads-Gateway: Scale Model]]

2008-11-14T23:24:00.000-08:00

~Currently~
+ Semi-Circle edges: Cast in plastic bowl
+ Ground Plane: Cast in smaller tiles and then put together. (Spacing them and putting pebbles between?)
+ Cylindrical Seating: Cast in cardboard tubes or paint cans.
+Concrete Sphere: Cast with a exercise ball(?) [Alternative: Cast another cylinder with an interesting cut to it]
+ Space between two paths: Green space, oriental grasses from donation.

Class Tuesday November 11 and Today

2008-11-13T10:38:00.000-08:00

[One point Perspective Drawing]

[Object in Shadow Drawing]

[Two-Point Perspective Drawing]

[Vanishing Point Going Up]

"Gateway" Group

2008-11-09T21:33:00.000-08:00

[Insert Throw-up sheet]

Access-Crossroads-Gateway.
As the group dubbed the ‘Gateway’ we decided that our name needed more then just the noun of a gateway, though through discussion we decided that in a way gateway was something we had to keep. Our advising professor, Stoel, suggested that we think about the word ‘crossroads’ as a add on and as a group we kept gateway and researched other words for entrance, which was basically what our group was. We ended up with the word ‘access’ and dubbed ourselves Access-Crossroads-Gateway to complete the name.

When first looking at the space one of the first things brought up was the worn down areas of dirt within the curb where people had walked the most to get to the Gatewood building or throughout the parking lot, Sharon took it upon herself to become our official ‘people watcher’ and watched the patterns in people to tell us where exactly people where walking throughout the week. We already knew that this would be one of the things we needed to address in out project, a designated pathway for people to use to direct them. Next we thought a lot about seating on our space, the ‘butt receptacle’ was located on our island and we wanted in a way at first to make the smokers more comfortable so they would stay the designated 25ft away from the building. While we did not want to encourage smoking we didn’t want to neglect that part of the population. From these idea we began to form ideas on what all could we could accomplish, what sculptures, seating and pathways would be needed and in what way they would be accomplished, organic or geometric? In brainstorming we started out with a geometric idea based on the connection with the Oasis group’s path

Class Tuesday November 03 and Today

2008-11-06T22:26:00.000-08:00

For these next couple classes we put our perspective skills to the test, we had to take photos or come up with photos for class:

+One of an exterior (One or Two point perspective)
+One of an interior (One or Two point perspective)
+One with a vanishing point to the top or to the bottom of the photo
+One with an object in shadow

For me these are fun, but very time consuming because I like to put in alot of detail.

These drawings are due by Tuesday November 11th at 2...

Class on Thursday October 30

2008-11-04T20:16:00.001-08:00

For homework from the previous class we had to experiment with two-point perspective again drawing our desk area in perspective and drawing our room in perspective. The room was alittle more difficult for me to draw in perspective and at first I thought I wasn't drawing right with the desk because it looked almost like an areal perspective, I later learned from Nadia that it was just the fact that my perspective points were too close together.

This next class we turned our focus from two-point perspective to one-point perspective, for some reason this perspective was easier for most of the students but I know I had a very hard time with only one point.
Once more we practiced using our desks and the items left on them.

And we drew a non-square-like item in that perspective as well for more practice.

Class on Tuesday October 28th

2008-10-30T09:23:00.000-07:00

After fall break we started back up into groups for Design Drawing, South side and half of Mid-Town was put together into a group and started in Nadia's group first. We were continuing with contour drawing but we were also incorperating hatching and shadowing in our drawings. In the image above we had to draw a view of our desk and then hatch a couple areas to give the affect of shadowing.
After drawing our desks we went up to the Crit room and were given a box to draw the contours of. This lead to our next lesson and studies: How to draw things in perspective... I had dabbled alittle in this knowledge back in my high school art classes but I felt it would do me well to learn it again because I had never really incorporated it into my drawings before hand.
Taking the same box we drew free hand before, it was put into two-point perspective (keep in mind I did not have a ruler at hand) along with shadowing from a light source and where the shadows would go.As more practice we drew a corner of the room in two-point persepective, it was really hard to draw a corner in this perspective and still make it look like the corner was concave instead of convex. It took me several attempts to get to this drawing above.

Property Site Plan

2008-10-26T11:48:00.000-07:00

Site Plans taken from the book in two different ways:

And then for homework we had to use Google earth to find our house and draw a site plan of it based on the bird's eye view we were provided with.
And here is the picture I drew from:

Final Dialog Pictures

2008-10-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

Dialog Final & Critique Notes

2008-10-22T14:46:00.000-07:00

Here is the final Dialog structure, along with this we had to do sketches of two different elevation views, a plan view, and another sketch to represent our model. And also we had to create a new Dialog graphic to add to the presentation.

The Presentation method at this critique was switched up from the norm of being in groups, saying alittle about the project and process, and then having other students and instructors critique it. This time we were given a paper with a series of questions and in groups previously posted we were given one question that we had to answer with our project.

1.) How is Dialog created?
Dialog is created using spaces in the different projects in different ways to describe the the viewer what the 'conversation' of the piece would be. Like in Kalani's Dialog project, his consisted of two separate pieces, one taller then the other, that could be arranged in different ways in order to give the viewer the affect of two duel spaces.

2.) How is the sense of space/place defined?
Space is defined by the planes and skewers and in what way a designer arranges them to for said spaces in their project.

3.)How is the idea of system generated? (This was my question!)
System is generated by how all the materials are arranged based on concepts like negative space and structure and in what way they are used to define the structure. For example, Chey's project.

4.) How does joinery support the project concept/ strategies?
Joinery can make or break the project literally because it holds the spaces together with a certain amount of strength to give a definite dialog to the viewer in concept and the stratagies are so you can fully develop those concepts and build the structure. An example of well crafted joinery includes Illyana's project. Her project resembled that of a fan and she used that shape as a strategy to create her concept of dialog and create two spaces. Her matter of joinery was used in the middle of her fan-like project and was intertwined in the folds of the fan as they came together to give it strength and create two spaces of dialog.

5.) How is scale utilized in the project?
Scale can be utilized to enhance the design of the project and also can help you when you're taking a previous project and attempting to remake it.

6.) How do two dimension images add to the understanding of the project?
Drawings can show and enhance close-up details to give a different perspective as to the project so you are not distracted by the 3D properties that are just background noise in what you are trying to understand. Also one can build a model on the instruction of drawings.

7.) How did the initial project idea evolve?
For this question I'm going to talk about my own project, the project evolved mostly because of me playing around with the 12 planes and skewers using a box-like form that had way too many spaces then two. I also did some sketching keeping my idea of using two cubes from my box-like form to create and overlapping effect while still having two spaces and having an interesting structure.

Architectural Details

2008-10-15T08:07:00.000-07:00

On the last day in Nadia's rotation we had to pick three architectural details within the Studio Arts building and draw them at three different angles like we did with the lights. I did the ceiling, joints on the glass of the gallery on the first floor and beam joints on the studio level.

Like with the light drawings, we had to pick an architectural piece and draw it at a larger scale. I really like the joints holding the glass and so thats why I decided to draw it.

Dialog joints and First Graphic

2008-10-14T14:01:00.000-07:00

Graphic number one for our Dialog project, it depicts the jist of my process from the first model to the second. As you can see in the bottom left corner, my precedent for this project is a box kite.

These pictures are of one joint in my project, Stoel informed us last week that we would need to make one for Monday and had to make it in the best craft possible. To keep the two bristol board pieces together I had to use glue dots to set them and then rubber cement along the joint to hold them. And then for the last of it I used rubber cement on the skewer to create stability. This joint is a repeating design in my Dialog models and will continue to show up all the way to my final design.

Light Drawings

2008-10-13T07:03:00.000-07:00

For the second installment we had to find three different lighting fixtures in the Studio Arts building and draw them in three different angles along with whatever might be in the background behind them. I had alot of fun doing the wood grain the middle-left one.

And with the drawing above we had to pick a light angle we had drawn and draw it on a bigger scale.

Dialog

2008-10-12T08:51:00.001-07:00

With the conclusion of our "Understanding Unity" project we got into "Understanding Dialog", the instructions once again called for 12 skewers and 12 planes of Bristol Board but now we had the constriction of only having two spaces. As for the definition of spaces we had to figure ourselves when making the project. The picture above is my first attempt, basically it was the shape of two squares ontop of each other one opening facing one way and the other facing the opposite way giving the definite look of two spaces. The craft was poor in this first model and so it kept falling apart and the way I had the 4 skewers on the inner part of the squares actually created more spaces in the eyes of my instructors though I was told I had something with the dualing space idea.
And so keeping in mine the dueling space idea brought about my next sketch-model. This one was made with much better craft and was much more interesting, the issue I ran into was not with the skewers, but with the planes, in my design I had two planes left over which are on the very top and bottom of the structure. Sure they go with the designs movement but it seems like the could have a better place. That is the next challenge I'm tackling, how to take a perfect 10 plane-12 skewer structure and turn it into a perfect 12 plane-12 skewer structure by Friday!

Unity Final

2008-10-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

Third Rotation

2008-10-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

The last rotation we are participating in before fall break is Nadia's, and as our first assignment we had to fine three architectural items in the Gatewood Studio Arts Building and draw then in three different ways: contour, cross-contour, and shading. I picked things like hinges on doors, the push bar on the door, and an electrical outlet.

Our next assignment that I'm currently working on is to draw three different lighting fixtures in the building in any style we want but in three different angles.

Unity Project II

2008-10-10T15:08:00.000-07:00

After the critique in class on Wednesday, the Understanding Unity project has officially come to an end. For this project I ended up making 5 different models to finally reach my goal. In the first model I started out doing a stacked box and plane shape that was more in characteristic of geometric shapes (The middle one in the picture above), but as I got half way through it I got frustrated when the design continued to fall apart and so I gave up on it and began trying to think of another, stronger, unity design. I thought about the other sketch-models I had seen already finished, most of them were based on geometric shapes as well and so I tried to come up with something more organic and curvilinear. In the end I ended up with a project with 12 curves, 6 on one side and 6 on another with two skewers used as the mid-point axis and the other 10 placed in the curves of the model. Also the model was laying down on its side, but in playing with it even more I found that it could stand on an end and make a diagonal axis.

For attempt number three I just remade the previous model and tried to do something different with the 10 skewers that weren't supporting the middle axis of the structure, I ended up alternating them up and down in a zigzag pattern to give more the effect of unity in the project and movement of the sticks with the curves. Though with this model, maybe because of the weight balance, I could not get it to stand up on its diagonal axis.

For model number 4 I decided to tweak my project even more by making the curves different sizes to make a sort of staircase effect using gradation, starting big at the beginning and getting smaller and smaller near the end. I spent most of this model experimenting with measurements and drawing markers on the inside of the curves to get the balance and placement of them just right without the structure being crooked. A problem I found was keeping measurements accurate in order to keep the two axis skewers from going sideways instead of staying parallel. Also I went back to making the structure stand diagonal, though it was unstable that way. As for the ten skewers, I ended up putting two on one end and two on another to give the feel of compression and also to keep the curves in place and then did the same arrangement of one over the other in the middle three curves.

And then there was the final for the critique. Not only did we have to have a finished product, but also we had to have a graphic and drawings of the plan view and elevation views of the structure as well as contour and gesture drawings.

((On the graphic where it says 'glue dots' and 'rubber cement' I put an example of each since I had all my materials up for the project, they just didn't show up when scanned for some reason.))

Cellphone and Stick III

2008-10-07T12:54:00.000-07:00

Finally to the last part of Suzanne's rotation we had to take the 32 stick and cellphone thumbnails and then condense them down more into 16 thumbnails of stick and cellphones.
From there we condensed stuff even more to 8 thumbnails...

And finally in a 19x19 square we had to do four images of stick and cellphone.

Compare and Contrast "Unity Projects"

2008-10-06T20:09:00.000-07:00

Today in our studio critique we discussed the elements of Unity in our “Understanding Unity” Project. Our task was to make a unified structure out of 12 4x6 Bristol board pieces and 12 10” bamboo skewers. We could not cut the paper and we could not cut the bamboo skewers.

My project was biased off unity via repetition of shape. The curves in my project are constantly repeated on the length of two bamboo skewers at an equal proximity, to give the project interest and motion I tapered the continuous curves to the very end of the sticks.

In comparison to my project, Katie’s “understanding unity” project was also biased of a curved shape, hers being more about circles then just regular curves. Both of our concepts of Unity had to do with repetition, mine in the pointed curves and hers in the circles within circles. Instead of being on a horizontal axis like mine was, hers was on a diagonal and supposed by a sort of base to keep its shape. Our projects also varied in scale in the concept of hers being more taller and longer and mine being more longer then taller.

Another project I picked to use in comparison to mine was Christy’s. Christy also used the repetition of a shape like I did but her shape was a geometric triangle rather then my organic curve. Her form was more about the triangles stacking upward while mine was about the curves moving the length of the bamboo skewers. Another difference is in the axis placement of the project, mine still being on a horizontal axis while hers was on a diagonal to keep interest in the unity of her triangles.

Cellphones and Sticks II

2008-10-03T19:28:00.000-07:00

Next installment of the stick and cellphone drawings, from the 16 and 16 before we had to create thumbnail drawings, 64 for the cellphone and 64 for the sticks. I did not photomerge this time so you only see a few of the 64 that actually exist. (And this is were I started to run out of sharpies)
After the two 64 thumbnail drawings came the 32 thumbnail drawings of both the stick and the cellphone parts coexisting with each other in each panel. These exercises were to get us to simplify over and over again.

Unity Project

2008-10-01T07:45:00.000-07:00

The newest model in the Unity project. The point of this project is to assemble anything we want with 12 bamboo skewers, 12 planes of 4x6 Bristol board, and rubber cement as a binding agent in the project. While figuring out ideas we also constantly keep unity in mind. As the picture shows, I went a more organic and curvilinear shape rather then geometric and angular. After first creating it out of frustration of a previous idea I realized it looked alot like Christmas ribbon candy, so that became my precedent.I'm hoping that this precedent can help me to progress my project othen then with use of color since we were told to avoid color. For now my things to work on include craft of the paper and rubber cement and trying to decide if the project should be tilted on an axis to represent the idea of gradation or on its side to represent the idea of level.

OR
???

Cellphones and Sticks

2008-09-30T14:04:00.000-07:00

The first installments in Suzanne's rotation started Friday and was for homework if we didn't finish...

"Box" for Twelve Twigs Final

2008-09-30T10:31:00.000-07:00

Final pictures of my final project of a "box" for twelve twigs, completed after the critique on Friday September 26th. Now onto the next project of Understanding Unity!

Class on Tuesday September 23

2008-09-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

Beginning exercise for Tuesday went from drawing objects to people contours, but not only the people you see first in front of you, but also those behind them to practice perspective. It was suggested to draw at least 3 to 4 people but I ended up doing about 8 in my process of using up all the time. I focused on how the people were sitting and positioned.

The work above was homework from the previous class as we started orthographic drawing, still working on perfecting photo-merge since this was a big piece of paper, I'm getting better at it though. :)

To go along with our homework from the night before we worked exercises in the book by seeing only two sides of the views and having to create the last side and the figure itself. Its challenging but fun all at the same time trying the visualize the picture within.