Coming Full Circle[final opus]

Final opus: Because of the fact that this is my final opus of the year I have decided to take this assignment and reflect over the whole semester instead of just over the past week.

Coming full circle:

Community: In relation to community in design and in my experience over the past semester in learning about design I have found that community is a very important aspect in design. We have learned about community in my studio class when we were working on group assignments such as our pathways, edges, and boundaries, assignment. Also community has played a huge role just in the studio as a whole. When working in a studio type of classroom and workspace you have to have community you have to be respectful of others and their property the advantage of this is that there are people to help you that you can bounce ideas off of and that you can get to help you. In my drawing and studio class I have found the same thing to be true especially with the group project in my art class. The idea of community has taken a huge role in my learning this past semester and I would not have been as successful had it not been for the help of others by learning different techniques and ideas and so forth. Community in relation to my history and theory of design class can be talked about more in the sense of the community of architects and how architects build off of each other to move away from the past but also in design the idea of communities have in their own specific style. Roth talked about the architectural community here “Architecture, in contrast to all the other durable arts, requires the services and contributions of many hundreds of participants in large buildings.” (Roth 12) The photograph below is of our community of first year interior architecture students.
Stewardship: Stewardship is a good word in relation to this past semester. The word stewardship means how you handle what you have been given. When we are given an assignment in the design world we have to treat it like we are designing for ourselves you can’t approach design with the idea of oh I’m just going to throw something together and be done with it you have to get into your clients shoes and design from their perspective. “Certain blind termites build soaring arches of mud, starting at two distinct springing points, pushing their sections upward until they meet the air. (Roth 3) this quote speaks to innovation to me because if blind termites can find way to build a working living environment then we can to.

Innovation: The term innovation is something that relates to design when well. Being innovative is what design is all about. Design is about finding new ways to make something. An example of this would be in my studio class this last project that we did was to make a graduate lounge by only using built in furniture. We had to find innovative ways to make this lounge by designing all of it out of our own custom built ins. Roth defines architecture very simply and innovation is architecture “Architecture is the science and art of building.” (Roth 7)

Authenticity: Authenticity is a word that in a way goes back to the idea of community. When working in a group or in a studio as is the case for us, it is important for people to be authentic. When designing you can’t steal designs from other people you have to come up with your own design and your own ideas. Over this semester we have talked about authenticity especially about citing our sources. Roth gave us a good idea of what architecture is and as long as we stick to that Idea we should remain authentic “Architecture is understood to be the whole of the human built environment, including buildings, urban spaces, and landscapes.” (Roth 5)

Here are some pictures from the end of the semester projects.

[Paring] down

Meditation/Celebration- Meditation and celebration are terms that we talk about a lot in interior architecture. Recently in my environmental design class we are designing a public/private area for the graduate students. It has been a challenge to distinguish between the two spaces and to make them seem like two separate spaces but still be unified into one space. This space that we are designing is all about meditation and celebration. The private part is focused on meditation and the public part is focused on celebration.

Light/Shadow- Light and shadow is something that is very important to design you always have to consider the way the light is going to be playing with your design and the way that shadows are going to be cast throughout the space that you are designing. The graduate lounge that we are currently designing is focused on light and shadow it is we are taking inspiration from our previous light habitat projects that we did. My design was 3-D triangles with cutouts this directs light and causes shadows in my graduate space I try to include more light in the public space and more shadow in the private.

Literal/Abstract- In my opinion all design has some form of literal and abstract parts to it. In a design you usually have an idea behind it or a story and then you abstract it into an idea for a design. In history and theory of design we talk about how modern design is often times abstract and clean lines. In designing my graduate lounge I have had to take and abstract my light habitat project and turn it into a design idea for my space.

Monologue/Dialogue – Monologue and dialogue is something that is really important in design it is about how the different aspects speak to each other and how you communicate with the design. In history and theory of design we talk about how buildings speak to you about how the idea and shapes relate to the past for example we talked about how the insurance company goes back to the pyramids. When communicating with a client you have to have good monologue/dialogue the monologue is your description of your ideas and the dialogue is the speaking back and forth.

Transpose/Juxtapose- Juxtapose is when something is put side by side for comparison transpose means to rearrange something or to change it around. In my history and theory of design class we have been talking a lot about modern buildings. In doing this we talk about transpose and juxtapose in the since that we compare a lot of different buildings and designers to each other. We have been comparing a lot of Frank Lloyd Wright’s designs from his bungalow inspired designs to his later designs such as falling water.

Synopsis-This week’s opus focuses on the ides of words the complement each other and words that oppose each other. Often times in the design world you have to think about certain pieces and how they relate or how they dint relate. For example you have to make sure that light and shadow complement each other you cannot look at shadow without looking at light.

Action Verbs

Speculate- Speculate means coming up with an idea of what you think the end result of something will be. In my design studio class we have been working at designing a window installment that works to manipulate light. In order to be able to design something you have to be able use models and drawings to speculate about what the final object will be. The image below is of my window design. Massey talks about how the Modern Movement is looking toward the future or speculating the future of design “The exhibition put Modern Movement design on the map, presenting an international front for designers who shared the same aesthetic.” (Massey 79)

Compose- To compose something is to create or to come up with an idea. Composition is something that is extremely important to design. When you are designing a room or a product you have to be careful about your overall composition you cannot just put pieces together you have to make sure that they relate well together and that the end result will be a pleasing cohesive design. The following image is a design composition of Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright. In this image it was really important for me to focus on the composition because the board needed to read as one overall piece not a board with many different images. Massey talks about how a composition in the Modern Movement was different than that in the past it was simple. “Inspired by a new machine aesthetic, Modern Movement stripped away unnecessary ornament from the interior.” (Massey 63) I do not currently have the image for this word my teachers still ahve it but I will add it as soon as I get it.

Energize- Energizing something means to bring back to life or to give it that pop of color or a grabbing feature. In my history and theory of design class we talked about the question what is modern. We discussed the idea that there are two different types of modern. The first type of modern is modern in the since of industry or new inventions. The second type of modern is modern design. The modern design movement gave new energy to design because it was something new it was something that people were not used to seeing. The following drawing is of the energizer bunny. I think that this bunny represent modern in the sense of industry and inventions. Massey talks about the Modern Movement and about how it energized or brought on new political thinking “As the Modern Movement became accepted by the international avant-garde it acquired new political connotations.” (Massey 87)

Shape- To shape something means to create or to form an idea. In my history and theory of design class we have been talking about Art Nouveau and how it shaped design for France, Italy, Germany, and Australia. All of these design styles have shaped the way that we look at design today and the ideas behind the modern day design movements. In my studio art and drafting classes we have been working to shape our brains to think in a different manner so that we can learn to design in a different light than what we have been used to. The following image from my precedent analysis is of the Walt Disney Concert Hall. I am using this drawing as a basis to shape the rest of my precedent analysis. Roth talks about shaping design “Turning away from symbolic allusions and national building traditions, the purely pragmatic and utilitarian approach to design was to let functional requirements and structural solutions determine the results.” (Roth 521)

Stretch- When talking about the word stretch in relation to my history and theory of design class we have been talking about our precedent analysis and how we need to stretch our brains to a new level and to look at our buildings in a different manner we need to make sure that we are being more analytical. The image here is of a detail drawing from my precedent analysis. Roth talks about stretching our ideas about design “There were, however, other architects in the 1910s and 1920s who believed, conversely, that architecture is much more than a utilitarian appliance-that it can and should be primarily a vehicle for evoking emotional, even mystical states of experience achievable in no other way.” (Roth 535)

Summary- In review of all of these words it is important to remember the actions. All of these words are about moving forward to new design and to new ideas in thinking. These words are words to think about when designing you need to ask if the design can be built upon or improved for the future.

roadtrip

Road Trip
Roots : When talking about roots in relation to my studies of interior architecture I would define roots as being something that everything evolves from it is the beginning or the inspiration for today’s design ideas. This past week in my history and theory of design class we talked a lot about the city of Chicago and about the origins of sky scrapers. We looked at how glass metal and concrete were used to build these buildings these buildings are major roots for the many skyscrapers that are so common today. In reading Roth I found that Sullivan played a large part in the modern architectural movement. “Sullivan’s rational analysis of the moderns office tower, applying the essence of his Ecole training, laid the basis for the modern architectural movement, as early historians of modernism recognized.” (Roth 503)
Congruence: The definition of congruence is the agreement or the relation of things to one another. In my history and theory of design class this past week we have been looking at Frank Lloyd Wright it is interesting since we went to Falling Water to see all of the similarities from Wrights Falling Water and his other designs. Roth talked about how Wright used the idea of horizontal lines in the majority of his designs this cause the congruence of his work. “As Wright built suburban residences in the flat prairie land around Chicago, he began to stretch them out into the landscape and to emphasize their horizontal lines in his designs.” (Roth 496)
Concept: Concept can be defined as the original idea behind something or the inspiration for something. In my history and theory of design class we have been talking about the concepts behind buildings. I am currently working on a precedent analysis on the Disney concert hall in which eh concept had to do with the flowing movement of music. Roth talked about concept “This associationalism became an underlying concept in the stylistic eclectism that pervaded the nineteenth century and the later rise of historicist Postmodernism.”(Roth 469)

Materiality: Materiality defined is the act of being material or the relevance of something. The materials that we have been focusing on in history and theory of design class is glass concrete and steel. Roth talks about these materials “Another result of this factory building system was the de facto standardization of prefabricated parts in the cast-iron columns and wrought iron beams.” (Roth 486) “The rapidly developing technology in building in iron provided the answer, allowing extremely light trusses to be made of wrought-iron bars and rods.” (Roth 489) In my studio class we also talk about materials we have to use a variety of different ones such as MDF or wood or paper.
Compression: Release: Compression is the idea of putting things together usually with the intention of storing or making something new. In design compression is pulling ideas together and making something of your own. The act of using the compressed ideas would be the release. In relation to my classes an example would be my precedent analysis or my drawing board for Suzanne because we are compressing a lot of information together and coming up with a final overall result/ display of the information.
Synopsis: IN review of these words I see a relation between the words especially to my precedent analysis. When making a precedent analysis I have to compress information have an overall concept have congruence of ideas all tied to roots or in this case the building being analyzed.

between silence + light

Craft- Craft is a word that is talking about building something or putting things together. In my design class craft is something that is important to consider you always need to make sure that you are making clean cuts and that you are building or making things that are well crafted. Over the weekend we went on a class trip to Monticello and Falling water. The craft of Monticello and Falling Water was very advanced for the time when they were built. We talked about craft when reading Massey especially in relation to the arts and crafts movement “The most important design reform movement to affect the interior in the nineteenth century was that of the Arts and Crafts.” (Massey 7)
Public/Private-This past week with Interior architecture we went to Monticello. This house designed by Thomas Jefferson is a great example of public and private space. The house was specifically divided up into parts Thomas had a whole half of the house just for himself and then he had public areas for guest and other family to use. At falling water Wright put in small and dark halls to the private areas of the home to discourage people from going into them. Massey talks about how Gaudi worked in public and private design “Antoni Gaudi expressed his religious beliefs and fervent nationalism through his design for apartment blocks and churches.” (Massey 46)
Technique- this word can be used in reference to the way that something is made or the way that something is done. While at falling water this weekend we saw the different techniques that were used to build this house the same is true for Monticello. Falling water used glass and concrete and utilized space by putting in built-ins. At Monticello beds were placed in niches to utilize space.Massey talks about techniques that are used “This was a conservative style, inspired by French classical architecture of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and in interior decoration was marked by lavish use of carving, gilding, rich marble and extravagant lighting, well suited to provide an atmosphere of grandeur for large hotels, department stores, opera houses and the ostentatious houses of the wealthy.” (Massey 31) Massey says that lightign was a new technique that was used "Tithe auditorium is noteworthy in the history of interior design because it is here that the electrical was used for the first time as a design-feature.” (Massey 49)
Language- Language in architecture is something that is shown through materials and styles. While we were at Monticello we saw the vocabulary of the time wood glass and stone. The same is true for Falling Water except Massey talks about how certain designs speak hear she talks about how the artistic spoke to having money “The ‘artistic’ interior became a mark of wealth, status and good taste in the 1880’s” (Massey 28)
Virtual-While we were at falling water and at Monticello we experienced virtuality by the windows they were used specifically to bring the outside in. Thomas Jefferson while designing Monticello wanted to bring the outside in and to make the outside spaces more important than the inside the same is true with falling water.
Synopsis- Overall this weeks opus was influenced greatly by our trip to Falling Water and Monticello. Moving on in our new unit in History we are talking more about buildings that are more relevant to our modern day life.

third skin

[Re]actions

Rotation- Rotation is a term that is used often in history in reference to the fact that history repeats itself. In my history and theory of design class we talked about how furniture made a rotation it started out very simple and then it moved to being very curvy and elaborate and then bake to simple straight lines and then finally back to elaborate again. Blakemore talks about his idea of rotation “during the empire period there was a tendency to more accurately revive classical models: whereas in the early neoclassical period of Louis XVI, designers consciously, freely adapted and interpreted designs based on antique sources of influence” (Blakemore 337) Rotation in design would be the idea that a room or a building or anything that you design is rotational meaning that all sides and all views are designed you don’t just design one wall of something you design the whole space. The picture below is of a drawing that I did of a cardboard chair I thought that this chair represented rotation because of the fact that this chair is made of recycled cardboard and it is basic and simple.

Movement- Movement can be interpreted in two different ways relating to design. The first way that movement can be seen is the way that we talk about in my history class which is moving on and developing designs and ideas. We have recently been studying early America which is all about new things and moving from England to the new world and creating new designs. One of the biggest movements that we talked about this past week was the glass and iron movement. Glass and Iron opened up a whole new realm of possibilities in the design world. Movement in the other since of the word can be used as the actual act of moving. In my drawing and my drafting class this past week we have been working on designing a room that incorporates a living area an eating area and a kitchen. In designing this it has been essential that we focus on movement in the space. People must be able to move throughout the space without obstacles getting in their way. In my Blakemore readings he talked about the idea of the fireplace being the center of the home and everything revolving around it “the chimneypiece was the focal point of the Early Georgian interior, and considerable attention was lavished on it in terms of the ornamentation of the architectural elements as well as its position in the room.” (Blakemore 260) In my studio class we have been building things that manipulate light so movement is seen in the form of controlling or moving nature to fit you desires or needs. The following picture is of the room that I have been working on for drafting and drawing it is a processes picture the final design has not yet been completed. The picture below is of the space that i have been designing for my drafting and drawign classes. This space represents movement by the layout and the way that you manuver troughout it.

Reflection- Reflecting on the past and the history of design is extremely important to understanding design now. Most of the ideas in design if not all have come from the past and the majority of the ideas have been around since the beginning of time. If we do not study these ideas we cannot design now to our full potential. Also reflection is something that is talked about in regards to your work. For example in my house design that I am working on for drawing and drafting the design is something that reflects who I am as a designer. In my studio project with manipulating light the idea of reflection was a good place to start when coming up with my design. In reading Roth I found a quote that I think very strongly represents reflection “Architecture was intended to communicate its purpose directly to the observer, to be l’ architecture parlent, or literally, “speaking architecture.”.” (Roth 448) The picture below is of the crystal palace this building really reflects the period that it was built the industrial revolution when iron and glass were first being used.

Source- This past week in my history and theory of design class we have been talking about colonial America and early America. In talking about this we talked about how America got most of its ideas of design from England so often times in looking at early American design the buildings could be found in either location. America used England as their design source. This past week we also talked about how glass and iron could be mass produced this was during the industrial revolution when lots of new ideas and sources of materials and information were becoming available. In my drawing and drafting assignment of designing the house we had to find furniture and appliances to put in our designs. Often times in design you have to take things from different sources to incorporate into you design. In my design studio class we are building the object for manipulating light and in coming up the design we had to think about our source of light and how it would work with our design. The following quote talks about how these people took inspiration from a painting “Taking their inspiration from the seventeenth-century landscape paintings of Nicholas Poussin and Claude Lorrain, numerous wealthy gentry reshaped their country estates in the manner of these paintings, damming streams to create irregular lakes, and [planting groups of trees so as to frame asymmetrical vistas of meadowland across the landscape, dotted with classical pavilions.” (Roth 453) The drawing below is of one of the pieces of furniture i found to use in my space.

Illumination- My interpretation of the word illumination in reference to design is a building or an object that stands out from its environment. Roth talks about how this house stands out because of its stark design “The stark geometry of the administrator’s house was emphasized by over scaled details, particularly the columns of the portico built up of alternated cylindrical and square blocks of stone.” (Roth 451) In my history and theory of design class we have been talking about the industrial revolution in which country’s were competing with one another to make the biggest and the best designs the prime example of illumination is the Crystal palace whose design was later repeated by America and France. These iron and glass buildings also let in a lot of natural light illuminating the building in a way that had not been experienced before this time. In my design studio class we are playing with illumination with our designs of objects that manipulate light. The drawing below is a symbol of illumination it is a light and without light there would be no illumination.

Synopsis- This week’s words focus a lot on the way that things are viewed for example illumination is about lighting and showing off and rotation is about showing all sides and completion. Reflection can also be tied to the idea of things being viewed. Then movement rotation and source are all tied together with the idea of moving forward progressing and developing new ideas in design and architecture.

grammer: syntax

Audience- An audience is someone who sees your work and takes part in it. In design everything that you design is for an audience you are designing something that is going to be seen and interacted with. In my studio class we had to become the audience of nature and go and a nature hunt to find things in nature that we like and that inspire us. In my design drawing class we had to make a presentation board that we used to present our work to an audience. In my history and theory of design class we read about the traditional roles of spaces Blakemore talks about how the a space is used to house an audience in this since in a non traditional manner.“Charles II is said to have used his bedchamber not only for receiving visitors but also for dinning.” (Blakemore 196) The picture here is of one of the natural elements that I found. http://icons-pe.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/s/snow25/389.jpg

[Re]visions- Revisions is a term that I would describe as being taking something and correcting it to make it better, you revise it. It could also be interpreted as taking something and finding a new vision for it and making it something new. We have been talking about how design is constantly evolving and transforming from year to year civilizations take something and revise it to make something better. Roth talks about this concept. “The last phase of baroque architecture in France moved away from the heavy architectural decorative elements and deep colors of the early seventeenth century in favor of more slender decorative features and a much lighter palate of colors.” (Roth 429) In all of my IARC classes we work a lot with revisions when you design something you can never let the beginning be the end you have to take what you have and revise and improve so that in the end you have a clear and successful design.

Character- The word character can be interpreted in a lot of different ways the first way that pops into my head is a character in a story, play, or a movie. However character is a term that can also be used in relation to design for example you can say that a building has character. In my history and theory of design class this past week we have seen character in all of the buildings that we have looked at. There is some sort of character to be seen whether it is the architectural details or the story behind the building. Also in my design drawing class we have been studying the Foust building which is the oldest building on the UNCG campus this specific building shows character through a lot of different architectural details. One specific detail from this buildings past is the fact that it was originally used for an all girls school in my opinion this fact adds a lot of character to the building. Blakemore discusses different elements in design that help to add character “Plaster with fresco, exposed beams with small painted patterns, and white and gold stucco were prominent in the rendition of the interiors.” (Blakemore 177) In my studio class we had to find character in nature when we went on a nature hike, we were looking for inspiration for a design project that we will be working on. The image below is of a door knob in a house I was in that i felt showed a lot of character. .

Transition- Transition is a word that stands for something moving from one thing into another thing or something becoming something new. In my history and theory of design class we have been studying through the whole semester about transitions in architecture and how different styles and time periods have moved on to become a new style with new ideas. Often times past civilizations would take inspiration from others and use them to move into a new style “Influenced as they were by the French and Dutch, the English selectively took continental ideas and modified them to suit their taste.” (Blakemore 201) In my studio class we had to come up with patterns and when doing this you start out with thing and you move over you transition to new ideas by thinking abstractly. Transition is a word that describes my time at this university I am here to transition myself from schooling into the work force. Roth talks about how transitions can be in parts “Above this is a transitional level, with four pendentives that rise for a deeply coffered oval dome.” (Roth 411) The images below are of my patterns transitioning from the object to the pattern.

Datum- The definition of datum is something that is used to draw a conclusion, or it can be used as a line used to make reference points from, when surveying or drawing a plan. In history and theory of design we talk a lot about how in the past civilizations a lot of the cities would build their cities and design them on a datum line meaning they would make all the roads straight making them a direct shot to where they are leading. All of the buildings would be placed along these lines. In my drafting class we have been talking about drafting in perspective and when doing this you have to establish a datum line to make your perspectives from. In my design drawing class this past week we had to make a project board and we talked about datum lines in reference to the lining up of pictures and things on the board the teacher recommended that we draw a datum line and line all of our drawings up with it on the board. The image here is of a house showing datum lines.

Summary- This week’s opus words are all about moving and becoming new things and people interacting with design. Design is always progressing and will continue to. The way people use design has stayed the same as far as living and working however the interaction with the design is constantly changing.