IAR 222: Reading Comprehension 1

Question 1:

The Tugendhat House, designed by Mies van der Rohe, is a great example of Wottens definition of good design having commodity, firmness, and delight. This house has commodity because of the way the interior is set up. There are no dividing walls, but planes separating spaces instead. This creates function by making it easier to get to one space from another and providing an organization of space. The materials used in the building represent firmness. Steel columns are used throughout the house providing stability for the structural load. The Tugendhat House has delight for many reasons. The steel columns are covered in a stainless steel finish, showing that it is luxurious and stylish. The way glass is used also shows delight. There are glass walls that look out towards a beautiful rural view outside, also bringing natural light inside. The way the overall space is composed is also delightful to look at with the curved wall planes.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/22/garden/22mies.html?_r=3

Question 2:

China and Japan have influenced the West in so many ways, especially art and architecture throughout the years. Nature is a primary design used in Eastern art. In this contemporary textile, I specifically see influence from China. There are many bright colors used which is common to Chinese art to highlight motif. Blue represents heaven and green represents prosperity, both are used in this fabric. Natural is also common in artwork in the eastern world. Flowers are often used; typical kinds of flowers are the lotus and chrysanthemum. I can’t tell what kind of flower it is in this fabric but it looks like it might be chrysanthemum. While the bold colors and flower motifs from China are most apparent in this fabric, there are some Japanese influences that are noticeable as well. The Japanese prefer a more asymmetric look whereas Chinese focus more on symmetry in art. This fabric shows an asymmetric pattern that is balanced by swirls around the flowers that inhabit the bottom part of the pattern. Japanese motifs include whirlpool designs, waves, swirls, and circular forms – all of which are present in this contemporary textile.

http://allfreed.ru/uploads/posts/1111/13071208612479_495009.jpg

Question 3:

Everyone who is in IAR 222 is familiar with the smaller scale seating and overall lack of space. Hall says that we have to start seeing man as in a conversation with his environment, and architects are creating with no reference to man’s spatial needs (Hall, 6). Our classroom was clearly built like this – without reference to spatial needs. The seats are not only not wide enough for comfort, but there isn’t enough foot room when having a book bag on the ground, and not enough overall space between the next person.


Question 4:

"More awkwardly still, architecture asks us to imaging that happiness might often have an unostentatious, unheroic character to it, that it might be found in a run of old floorboards or in a wash of morning light over a plaster wall – in undramatic, frangible scenes of beauty that move us because we are aware of the darker backdrop against which they are set.” – Alain de Botton

To me, this quote sums up what the article was all about. I agree with Botton that there can be architecture of happiness. A building or object doesn’t have to necessarily look pretty to make a person happy. I think most everything has memories that come along with it. A house may be ugly, but if a person grew up in that same house, it probably makes them happy and therefore is happy architecture to them. The attached photo is my parents’ house and my home to go back to when I’m not away at school. I don’t really love the design of it and I hate the floorplan. But it makes me happy to be there and go home to.

Photo by: Patti Leisure

Extrapolating the Human Body - Part A

"This exercise introduces the student to observe and document the human body through anthropometric and ergonomic analysis which are fundamental to the principles of spatial design." -First sentence on the assignment sheet. This assignment has 3 parts. Part A was basically an exercise to help us get to know our body and gain an understanding of scale and how we really are. We were to devise a measuring system that we could use in any situation and overall develop an awareness of our own bodies through time.

FINAL

Full body drawing to scale with dimensions.

Sequence of time and movement, with height relation of my heal to hip measurement and the trash can.

This is my drawing that shows my measuring system and overall interest in ergonomics and how everything is designed with the human body in mind, even when we don't realize it. I use the length from my heal to my hip (35") as an easy measuring devise for me. I can go up to anything and stand there and analyze where it relates to the height of my hips, and be able to tell the approximate height of the object. I studied images of myself in various positions and found it interesting how geometry plays a part in design. While sitting on a stool with my feet on the lower bar, my knees, feet, and bend in my midsection makes a 30, 60, 90 degree triangle. While leaning over to drink out of the drinking fountain, my mouth, the fountain, and my bend makes a 45 degree angle.

PRELIMINARY WORK

Guggenheim

After learning about Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim museum in history, I've been inspired by the design and look of it. In NYC, this museum was a big controversy when it was made because the architecture was so curvilinear and completely different than all the skyscrapers and city buildings. I just love how FLW took chances and wasnt afraid to have some people hate him. SO here is my little sketch from a picture I found on the internet :)

some quick sketches

So I had planned on doing a lot of drawing this summer but I havent been in the mood until just lately (yes I am ashamed). So here are some VERY quick sketches I have done when I've had some time and been in the mood!

Who doesn't love blind contours?!

This is the fountain that my parents have in our backyard. I would like to spend some more time on another drawing of this, showing more of the pretty flowers all around it. Maybe another day this summer!

Autonomous: My Design Process

For a project we've had since the beginning of the semester, we had to somehow document out design process. I chose to document it professionally in the form of a book, rather than doing something that would take up more space that I couldn't easily carry around if i needed it for show.

A Step by Step Production

Share

A guide to my design and the steps I took to get there.

Exploration

This is the first step to my design process. Analyzing the assignment and getting out all my thoughts. I typically do this in my head and make little notes or bullet points like i showed here. When I get down all my thoughts, I can later edit them and take out the bad and keep the good. Also by doing this, I can really let my thoughts flow and transform. For this project, I knew I wanted to design some sort of hotel or residency. I started out with this and thinking about who might stay there and where it would be located. I eventually came up with the idea that I wanted to make a residency condominium with apartment space. This complex would be for young professionals in a big city.

Produce

In this step, I take a final idea I had from exploration and brainstorm it. I produce more ideas and expand them to further develop the topic of interest. I considered what the residents would need, as well as what they might want. They need things like work space, parking, laundry, and anything else a professional might need. They may want things for relaxation such as a pool, spa, gym, etc. and also a restaurant in the complex and maybe a rooftop deck and courtyard.

Organize

Next, I take my thoughts from produce and organize them by deciding what I definitely want to include in the space. Some of these are pool, spa, gym, outdoor space, roof space, restaurant, bar, conference/meeting area, and a coffee shop. Another thing I noted is my final decision to have the top floors be for the condos, a few middle floors for any apartments, and the bottom floor be for the public spaces.

Inspiration

Now that I knew what I wanted to do, it was time to do research and find inspiration. Here, I showed a few things that I specifically did research on, roof top decks and courtyards. I really liked the use of fire pits that are shown in both of these inspiration photos.

Experiment

This is one of the most important stages in my process. I like to draw thumbnails to transfer my ideas from words to drawings. Through this, I can experiment with my different ideas to see what works and what doesn't work. I experimented with what would happen if i put the pool on the roof as opposed to in the courtyard. And experimented with the same two spaces for the lounge and fire pit.

Edit

Next, I look at my thumbnails and decide what I liked and what worked for my design concept. I decided that the pool would be better on the roof because there is the most sunlight up there/ The courtyard would be best for the lounge and fire pit because the walls would not only block the wind from blowing out the fire, but also they would keep the warmth in. Having the lounge in the courtyard, it can be easily accessed by many different parts of the complex.

Present

My next step is to make a final showing of my idea. This can come in many formats - here, I showed it in perspective drawings of a few spaces. The space shown here would be the courtyard lounge. With warm colors and several fire pits to complete the look, this space is great for young professionals as a place to relax from a long day at work.

Here is the rooftop pool and bar. Another space that would be a great amenity for young professionals and focuses around the concept of relaxation. A rooftop space like this is unique and luxurious, especially with a full bar included.

This is a glimpse at the restaurant with a dance floor and stage.

Finally, the coffee shop which looks out into the courtyard with access so a resident can take their coffee and sit out by the fire pit.

Final Presentation Reflection

There were several things I learned before, during, and after the presentation of our final project. One thing specifically is preparation. I am usually nervous when I present and end up stumbling over my words. This time, I wasn’t nervous and felt like I could communicate my thoughts to the audience well. I think a lot of it has to do with the way I prepared. I thought about what I wanted to say prior to the day I presented. I didn’t want to make a script that I could read off of. But rather have some guidelines in my head of points I wanted to make. This helped me a lot because I knew what I wanted to say next, instead of thinking on my feet completely. Another thing I did was spend a lot of time constructing my board prior to the presentation. I felt very confident in my design, as well as my board. I am also in love with my design! I think this definitely helps make a successful presentation – loving the design you present. I was really excited to share my design with everyone. Of course, I do think I can still improve on my communication skills.

Aside from myself, I also learned from other students’ presentations. One thing I learned is that it’s extremely noticeable when people don’t put time and effort in their projects. It shows when they aren’t prepared and looks unprofessional. On a positive note, it also shows when people put everything into their project. While it may take long nights at the studio, it definitely pays off on the final product. Another thing I learned is that speech and communication can make or break a presentation. I think it really helps to have your friends smile at you to help break the ice once you get up to present. Another thing that goes along with being prepared is the set up and layout of the boards. Good organization and the ability to tell a story through the layout is a necessity. People may not be able to make the presentation and just look at your board at a later time. It is important for it to be easily understood by anyone.

Versatile Movement - Final Design for Artist Studio

This is my final designs for the artist studio we had to design. The artist I chose is Joanna Eberts, a student at Rochester Institute of Technology. She does all sorts of art but focuses on illustration. The versatility that she has in her art style inspired me to create my final design around the concept of versatility. I incorporated a strong use of sliding glass panels that I had used in my original thoughts and designs. Because Joanna has such a broad style, using bright colors as well as gray scale in her artwork, I used this as inspiration for my color palette - shades of gray with a green accent color. The space is able to be completely opened up to circulate around the central port of the space - the bathroom. The bathroom walls are the only interior walls in the space. When the sliding glass doors are "closed" the space suddenly becomes more private because the glass is frosted to make it translucent and not completely see thru. I originally designed the sleeping area then modified it slightly after seeing Monticello and Thomas Jefferson's bed. It is designed so that the user can get out of bed on either side depending on what they want to do - slide the doors open on the left to enter the studio, or get out of bed on the right to go to the living, kitchen, or bathroom. The private entrance that I added is located in the bedroom, and is an exterior door.

This is my final board on presentation day.

My final model of the space, structurally.

Hand rendered perspective of lounge looking towards the studio, bathroom and exterior door.
Hand perspective of kitchen and lounge
Hand perspective from lounge looking towards the bathroom and studio through the glass panels
Sketchup perspective from studio looking towards bedroom and kitchen
Sketchup perspective from bedroom looking into studio with sliding doors open and view of ceiling installation

Sketchup perspective from exterior door/bedroom looking towards kitchen
Floor plan of proposed space

Materials: Stone flooring, and bamboo wood for ceiling installation
Precedent images

Me feeling great after presenting!