[PAIRING]down

meditation/celebration
For our final project in studio we must use the space that we have been studying in drafting class and design a celebration and meditation space for grad students within it. I am excited about designing the space and creating a presentation board to display my work. I have been working with creating a sense of celebration and meditation without simply putting furniture in a room. By using built-ins, hopefully I will be able to achieve this sense of place.
This works with what some believe to be the meaning of architecture. “ Its purpose is still to bring the material world into harmony with human life” (Roth, 547).




light/shadow
Our studio project will also focus very heavily on light and shadow. We are to take inspiration from our window projects and use them to design a space that celebrates the light of both night and day.
We have been studying light so intensely in order to learn that it can make an enormous change in a space. Massey writes “the thick concrete walls are pierced by small coloured windows to create the dramatic effect of shafts of coloured light falling on the congregation” (Massey, 152) to show us how colored lighting can affect a space.




transpose/juxtapose
This week we learned about tactics such as transpose and juxtapose (changing the relative position and comparing something) by learning about a computer program called SketchUp. This program allows designers to create a space from scratch in a three dimensional environment. As an assignment this week, we created our celebration/meditation space in SketchUp.

Another computer rendering(NOT SKETCHUP)
.

literal/abstract
For our final project, our drawing class and history class will be combined for the completion of the precedent analysis project. We must create a composition for our building that allows it to speak without us having to explain it. I think this is important because we are not literally reporting on the building, such as giving measurements, dates, etc. On the contrary, we are abstracting the project into a kind of visual report on our building.


Perspectives like this will be used in the composition.

monologue/dialogue
Also for our history exam, we will use monologue and dialogue to dicuss our final projects in a critique. A monologue can be considered a composition in which a person speaks about a piece (or the piece speaks for itself). We will use dialogue to exchange our ideas and opinions about others’ compositions.

Overall, this week has been very busy. With due dates looming, final projects are taking a toll on many of us. All I can do is continue to push forward through the next week.

ACTION VERBS

speculate
To speculate is to engage in thought or reflection or to meditate, We did so this week in history be reviewing drawings for our precedent analysis project. Each person was instructed to complete two draft drawings their building. After the review I wished that I had drawn more detailed pictures, rather than architectural drawings.





compose
This week, we moved into the final stages of our composition for Monticello and Fallingwater. I chose Monticello for my composition and used Chartpak markers on marker paper for my medium. This was a scary, yet exciting experience. I had never used Chartpak in a vast composition, and suddenly I had to learn how to master the markers.

energize
For our final projects this semester our drafting and studio classes have been combined. We were assigned a new project, which involved creating a space. For drafting we have to take the offices in rooms 118 and 120 Gatewood and create a model, section, and plan of the space. For studio, we must take this shell and create a meditative and celebrative space for a graduate student in the IARC program. I am very excited about this project because it is the first time we have really gotten to design a space all year!



shape
For our final window project in studio, we
had to focus on exploring two effects of light. For my project I chose to focus on the strength of natural life and the contrast of diffused light. I used ¼ inch Medium density fiber board to create several panels that hang from the top of the window, and several others that stand in the bottom sill. This composition creates a maze of light that still uses two effects.
Winston Churchill realized how important shape was to design. He stated “we shape our buildings, and afterward our buildings shape us.” (Roth, 515)



stretch
For studio, we have been encouraged to stretch the limits of design by being inside a set of restrictions, yet still thinking “outside the box”. We also have to use the three materials that we were assigned earlier in the space. This will be a big stretch for many of us because we are used to thinking about designing a room as picking furniture fabrics and paint, but now we are encouraged to think about designing SPACE.

I chose to redesign this piece of furniture into a wall unit for storage and celebration of work.


Overall this week, we have been focusing a lot on being better designers. By working with composition, energy, shape, and stretching our limits, we are beginning to broaden our horizons as interior architects. I am excited to see what the future holds in learning more about becoming a better designer.

ROAD TRIP

Roots
Looking back at the root of the word, Monticello means “hillock” or “little mountain”. This is a fitting word for Jefferson’s Estate based on its location in the hills of Virginia. This week I have been studying Monticello for in terms of drawing. Monticello is not easy to draw architecturally. The many porticos and decorative elements make this home not only beautiful, but an architectural wonder as well.
If we look beyond just the meaning of the word, we can also see that Monticello is rooted in the style of Roman Architecture. "Jeferson specifically selected a Roman temple, the Maison Carree, in Nimes, southern France, as his model, since he believed it to be an example of superior Roman architecture and therefore symbolic of republican self-government." (Roth 460).



Congruence
When working on my window project for studio, I decided that congruency could be a neat element to work with. I designed a window box with angled slats in it to go in my window. In the center of these slats will be jewel-toned translucent paper. Although the sides are congruent, they also offer different affects on light.



Concept
For History class this week, we had to do a precedent analysis for our building. I studied the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. This building had an interesting concept because it combined a new building with and older one. The older building was formed in the style of traditional Beaux-Arts, which is “[…] the definition and expression of character (a concept fundamental to the Beaux-Arts)” (Roth, 520). The other is of contemporary glass lenses. Although the two concepts are very different, many believe that they work well together.




Materiality
For our studio class, we were assigned three building materials to research. I was assigned Rice paper, Walnut, and Ceramic tile. Each student was instructed to make three material boards depicting what we learned about the product. It was a very interesting experience for me because I got to learn about three new materials. This will help me in the future as I add to my knowledge of building materials.
In the late 1800s, designers were also learning about the new materials glass and iron. “Compared to the massive masonry of Roman and even Gothic construction, the greatest work is done by the least amount of material.” (Roth, 489). This was important because it allowed for less difficult, and less expensive construction.




Compression : release
Most of the time in drawing class, we are taught to compress our drawings into only what is needed to communicate an idea, but this week we have been working on the composition project. This project requires us to create a sense of place through a collage of images based on the class trip to Fallingwater and Monticello. This is like a release for our drawing because we must fill an entire 18x24’’ sheet with this compilation. So far, these are turning out very well.

Overall this week there has been a heavy focus on our drawing and history class. I am excited about our final project in which we will be able to merge the many techniques we have learned this year into a final composition.

Between Silence + Light

craft
In studio this week, our light projects were reviewed to determine their success. The biggest problem with my “water box” was craft. In the woodshop, I struggled to get the measurements close enough to make a seamless composition. Although the box looked decent overall, a closer look showed that my craft needed more attention.
Craft has always been important in design; for example, “craft guilds, organizations that trained apprentices, set standards of conduct and workmanship,” (Roth, 327) We can see that even in rural Europe, the craft of a design has always been important. This is why today we still strive for commodity and firmness through our craft.



public/private
After reviewing Fallingwater, a home by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, I found that public and private space were very important. Fallingwater is a great example of organic architecture, and harmony with nature. The home is designed for a family to live in, yet there are both public and private spaces. It is intimate in the private areas, yet informal and spacious in the public areas. Also, Wright’s design urges the inhabitant toward the outside, the most public space of all.
Like Wright, Mies Van Der Rohe’s Tugendhat House is separated into public and private space. “The study is separate from the living area by a Malaga Onyx partition…”(Massey, 77).



technique
In History class this week we learned about the 18th and 19th centuries great advances. One of the most important advances was the implementation of glass and iron in architecture. This was an age where steam ships and trains were introduced; therefore, information and knowledge traveled faster than ever before. This was the early Industrial Revolution: iron could be easily manufactured at a large scale to be used in construction. Many different iron forms could be mass-produced in factories, and later glass was used extensively with these iron frames. “Architects also were presented with new building materials, cast and wrought iron as well as glass, in quantities never available before, thanks to improvements in mass production.” (Roth, 471). One of the most famous examples of this technique is the Crystal Palace in London. The structure is made entirely of prefabricated materials, including illuminating plate glass and enormous iron trusses.



language
In drawing class, we are beginning to study the language of drawings. For the trading spaces project, we used one of our classmates’ drawings and redesigned the interior. In design, our language is our concept. We found that developing a concept allows us to create a more cohesive design that is easier and more enjoyable for someone to read.
In the 1800s designers used “Classical ornamental details in favor of a personal, invented, ornamental language[…]” (Roth 503) This allowed the designers to effectively communicate with the person viewing the design.



virtual
Since I did not go on the class trip to Monticello and Fallingwater, I was still able to experience the beauty of each home. For Monticello, I found an online virtual tour of each room in the Jefferson estate. “the computer now makes possible the virtual creation of building projects that were never executed.” (Roth 611). It was exciting to see what my classmates had seen in their tour. Because I still had to produce drawings from Monticello, I drew this fireplace in Jefferson’s bedchamber from the virtual tour.



Overall this week I learned alot about Monticello and Fallingwater. Even though I was not able to go on the trip, my classmates have been able to recreate the experience for me. I have also learned very much about the 18th and 19th centuries as they relate to design. As a whole, this week has been very informative and I look forward to learning more.

[RE]ACTIONS

R O T A T I O N
Rotation was important this week as we learned about Architecture Parlent, which is “speaking architecture”. This was an expressive and bold form of architecture that was rotated into the design repertoire of many French Architects. Etienne-Louis Boullee is one such architect known for his “boldly scaled and austere architecture whose symbolic forms would evoke a sense of function.” (Roth 408).



M O V E M E N T
In studio this week, we built our natural light fixtures. For my project, I turned the focus on moving the light. For my natural light fixture I built a “water box”. Because my natural element was water, I wanted to portray fluidity and translucency through my project. I created a boxed frame, which housed hot glue sticks in the center. Also, I dripped liquid hot glue onto the outside of the box to create the look of water droplets on the surface. My fixture was successful in conveying my natural element; it also bent and distorted the light successfully. The only thing I would change about the project is the frame, which wasn’t as thoughtfully integrated.



We learned about movement in Design history class by studying Bernini’s Piazza of St. Peter’s in Rome. “Inside, one discovers that the line of movement is along the short axis of an oval plan,” (Roth 367). This was important to learn because it allowed me to see that movement is important in all design; not just designs that focus on it.



R E F L E C T I O N
In our drawing class this week, we have been working on one-point perspectives of a room we designed. In my opinion, this was the most fun project we have had all year! I was excited about finally getting to design an interior. I especially liked this project because all of the rooms were different. It was a reflection of each of our personalities, which showed each person’s creativity and design abilities.



Reflecting back on the French Architecture partlent, we find that “Architecture was intended to communicate its purpose directly to the observer,” (Roth 448). I see this as the architecture reflecting the creator’s intent and emotion through the design of the space.

S O U R C E
For the drawing project, we had to place furniture in our rooms. This was interesting for me because I had the opportunity to research and use others’ furniture in the room I designed. I visited several different websites, searching for sources of furniture designs I liked. Although I changed the forms of some of the pieces, these sources were important for finding shape, dimension, and precedent.
We are not the first to use a source or precedent to create our own designs. “[…] in the early neoclassical period of Louis XVI, designers consciously, freely adapted and interpreted designs based on antique sources of influence” (Blakemore 337).


Drawings of furniture I used as sources to design my space.

I L L U M I N A T I O N S
This week I learned about illumination in a whole another way with our studio project based on natural light. I learned that there doesn’t need to be a light directly on an object for it to illuminate an area. Design can be simply illuminating.



“Baroque architects derived special satisfaction from the molding of sequences of interior spaces, alternately light and then dark, some confining, some expansive.” (Roth 385). Roth is showing us that through all design, perception of light and illumination is important.



Overall, this week has been about different ways of looking at design and the transformations design takes over time. Learning about changes in architecture was very interesting, while using information about the past to create new things was even more fun. I learned very much in history this week about Baroque France, the Enlightenment, and Architecture Parlent. I am excited to see what next week holds.

GRAMMAR : SYNTAX

[re]visions
In history we learned about Baroque France, a form of architecture that evolved in the 15th century. This was a revision of traditional French architecture in which the main rooms of a building were emphasized as the hearth with side wings of less importance. Also this revision included the integration of gardens into residential homes.
Much like the French, " The Italian royal palaces featured those of marble mosaic. The tops we often in laid with geometric designs in the pietra dura technique and were therefore, very costly; tables constructed and decorated in this manner were valued and used in princely palaces all over Europe." (Blakemore, 152)
So we can see that throughout history and in many different places revisions are constantly made to design and architecture.


I created several different patterns to revise my ideas for the light project. (4 separate drawings)

Audience
As we developed our “lights” in studio, we had to not only think about who would be seeing our projects but where they would be viewed. This week I learned to look at things besides people as an audience. For example the way light is manipulated as it passes through each project is an effect our project is having on the audience. I am trying to think of light as an audience in the way it is being presented through my project.


A sketch model of my "light"

character
This week we learned about character the most in history when we studied the Davids. One, (the most famous) is Michelangelo’s David and the other is Bernini’s David. We studied how Michelangelo’s David is one that is not in motion, but rather posing after winning his battle. On the contrary, Bernini’s David is in the middle of the action. Although the two sculptures are of the same person, the character of each is very different.





transition
For studio this week, our project has been taking natural found pieces (I chose a few flower blooms, twigs and water to work with) and transforming them into a celebration of light with ¼ inch medium density fiberboard. I found this a huge challenge because I chose pond water as my final natural object. The idea of making the transition from something as fluid as water to something with no form beyond a rectangular board was intangible to me. I then decided to use a clear linear element to join the two and I am now developing a light fixture/window treatment using clear glue sticks and the MDF.


Capella Coranaro by Bernini uses light and theatricality to make hard materials portray fluidity and emotion.

We also learned about transitions in design this week. For example: “When Louis XIV reached maturity in 1661 and assumed personal control of the government operations, he began an extensive enlargement of Versailles.” (Roth, 417)

datum
This week, we used datum lines most frequently in our final presentations boards for drawing class. My group presented the Ferguson building, using a brick graphic made of cardboard, placed on yellow matte board with a composition of black and white and colored drawings. Datum lines were imperative for keeping our project looking neat and professional. We focused on using a grid to make the arrangement easy to follow. Overall, I found our presentation extremely successful.
Datum also exists in architecture. For example, Blakemore writes,"[...]the ceiling was deeply compartmented with an emphasized center- an oval, a circle, a rectangle or other complex contours, surrounding this centerpieces were anciliary divisions." (Blakemore, 154). These divisions created a datum and sense of balance and organization in the design.


Planning our board on a grid with a central horizontal datum.


The final product (Photo courtesy of Christy Wallace)

Overall this week, I have learned the most about transitions through design. I have also learned the importance of other elements such as character. Most of all, though, I have taken with me the thought of revision. Before entering IARC I bareley revised any work, but I have learned the hard way that the first iteration is always WRONG.

[P] is for [PARIS]

Professional
In Suzanne’s class this week we learned about professionalism through designing presentation boards for our building project. We each created a design or our board, and as a group we decided on a layout. Overall, out design worked well and was not only practical, but was visually appealing as well.

This is my diagram of hierarchy, it needed to be more professional to compliment the board we were putting together.


Periphery
Periphery is defined as the external boundary of any surface or area. In our studio project we worked with boundaries by replicating the columns of the Propylaia using cardboard. The boundaries of our portal created a feeling of immensity and grandeur, which was so evident in the Propylaia. Apparently, we grasped th concept of boundary well based on our professors' response:
"propylaia : the perpendicular fins shape an experience that has depth and surface variety. we find this to be parallel to the experience of the propylaia. we appreciate that the group explored multiple views in their work. the graphics lack clarity."
(theopusproject.blogspot.com)

Columns are the most common form or architectural "boundaries".


Our portal...the cardboard boundary.


Process
Process was also important in the project we have been working on for drawing class. This is because our presentation board is essentially a compilation of each group members’ work throughout the process of studying each building. I found that the more our group studied the Fergusson building, the better our drawings got. Also throughout the process we went back through and improved on drawings throughout our process to produce a more pleasing final product.

This is an example of my improvement throughout the Ferguson Building study process.





Perspective
I found perspective important this week when reviewing our Portal Panel projects. Our project was overall very successful, but I found that it was even more successful from certain perspectives. For example, from either side, our portal was very dramatic and communicated well. Yet, from the front, it was hard to see the radial effects we used in the cardboard. Depending on the viewer’s perspective the portal communicated differently. I imagined drawing this portal in perspective and considering the station point which is “A fixed point in space representing a single eye of the spectator.” (Ching 202) I realized that the perspective of our portal would change drastically from various station points.

This perspective is not as effective as others


From the side, the portal seems more successful.


Portfolio
Most artists, designers, and writers know that it is important to keep a portfolio. I learned the true importance and value of a portfolio by going to the Design, Art, and Technology Symposium at High Point University. The topic was “Design Matters”. While at HPU we learned about a designer named Alexander Julian who spanned his work starting with clothing design, and then moving into furniture design and even paint. He showed the audience his extensive portfolio, which included many different designs. This was very enlightening to me because I realized that I needed to better prepare my portfolio for future reference.
Here are some pieces of my portfolio marked with corrections. In the future I will be able to avoid mistakes by looking back at my portfolio.

A graded drafting project keeps me from repeating any mistakes.


Overall this week, I think the "P" words were very much about several important traits of a good designer. In the future, I will strive to make all of my work look more professional. I also want to learn to refine my process and better compile a portfolio. This week was very enlightening for me because it allowed me to see what I needed to work on. I am looking forward to using these skills in the future.

macro to micro

composition
The Basilica di Santa Maria della Fiore (Duomo Cathedral) located in Florence, Italy is a excellent example of a successful composition. The cathedral is built in the form of a Roman cross and is most distinguished by its enormity. The Duomo boasts features such as large bronze doors, stained glass windows, and internal buttresses. Yet, the most notable feature of the Duomo is the dome itself. “On the basis of traditional medieval building practices, the proposed dome vault seemed impossible to build.” (Roth 357). Yet it wasn’t: this enormous stone dome has an octagonal, double walled design. It is mounted on a drum, which allows the entire dome to be built without the need for scaffolding. It was the first large dome to be constructed without centering.


porch : court : hearth
“When the Renaissance began about 1400, there was no single Italy, but rather a series of duchies, republics, and kingdoms along the Italian peninsula.”(Roth 354). Over time, Italy began to use more private money to fund public projects, giving merchants and guilds higher power. Public and private spaces that had once been undefined began to converge into a unified center. This is most evident in the design of Italian towns. For example, in Italian towns such as Florence, surrounding homes served as a porch, markets functioned as the court and the cathedral acted as a hearth.



diagram
In Suzanne’s drawing class we learned about the use of diagrams to convey the importance of spaces within a building. A good example of such a diagram could be a floor plan, which shows the parts of the structure. In the floor plan of t he cathedral in Amiens, France, we can see that “The plan shows the increasing size of the choir in High Gothic cathedrals[…]” (Roth 335). This was also important to our history lesson because we were able to use our knowledge of diagrams to study and learn our assigned cathedrals.



impression
This week in history we studied the cathedral Amiens, France. Amiens is a breathtaking structure that serves the most pure vision of Gothic style. It is an extremely massive cross-shaped building that towers over the surrounding city. The cathedral in Amiens, France makes a huge impression on the viewer with its size. It is also the first cathedral to use flying butresses (Roth 333). It features an exposed exterior structure, which reveals the “story” of the building. Also, large iron doors, columnettes, flying buttresses, and a labyrinth characterize breadth, length, height, and repetition to intensify the magnitude of the space.



details



In both our drawing and history class we learned how details make a building special, and the fact that we should be able to recognize a building just based on a small detail. In drawing, I found details of the Ferguson building to draw. I focused on zooming in and capturing what makes the detail important.
In history, we learned about details in gothic cathedrals and the use of ornamentation. For example, the “great vaulted naves of Saint-Sernin[…]” (Roth 323) used the power of mass and size that blocked light, yet emitted a sense of power.