definitions :
meditation - continued or extended thought; reflection; contemplation (dictionary.com)
celebration - to observe with ceremonies of respect, festivity, or rejoicing (dictionary.com)
In Design Studio, we are to design a space for graduate students to be able to go and have a sense of meditation and celebration. Creating this type of space for a student is very important, especially an IAR student. From a long day and night of stress day after day, it should be essential that one can go and reside to a place of comfort and relaxation: to refuel. The space, however, should also be a place of social and pleasing situations where students can go and converse with each other. The room that we are testing our design skills on is located in the Gatewood Studio Building, which creates restrictions of how much we can do with the space. For me, I find the water and anything related to the ocean very relaxing, but it is also a place of pleasure and comfort to just hang out. The ocean soon became my inspiration for my meditation and celebration space. To separate the conditions in a public and private sense, I created a glass wall with stones in it to be natural, but also a barrier. The private space being a place for meditation has minimal furniture, low qualities of light and open space. My celebration space is more for those who want to go to chill and socialize, which is why I created the entrance way to lead to this space with box chair seating. Many of the forms and shapes of my design are organic, which I feel can be incorporated into both a meditation space and a celebration space. Using color, light and shapes have all contributed in my design for a spectacular space under these certain emotions.
[LIGHT : SHADOW]
definitions :
light - an illuminating agent or source (dictionary.com)
shadow - a dark figure or image cast on the ground or some surface by a body intercepting light (dictionary.com)
Considering light is greatly important in design because it effects moods and casts shadows that influence the design. In the space that I created for graduate students, I used light and shadow in developing a meditation and a celebration space. My celebration space is a large open room that is full of light, but the light is dulled because of my window fixtures of frosted glass with small holes that let light shine through. Instead of letting light blaze through, the holes create intricate lights of color on the floor. The meditation room, however, is located in the east, not allowing a lot of light shine in at any hour of the day. For this space, I decided to keep the windows regular, letting in as much sunlight as possible. I also created a clear wall with rocks in it that allows for some light to stream into the private space.
[TRANSPOSE : JUXTAPOSE]
definitions :
transpose - to change the relative position, order, or sequence of (dictionary.com)
juxtapose - to place close together or side by side, esp. for comparison or contrast (dictionary.com)
Transpose and juxtapose are greatly reflected in my Precedent Analysis building for Patrick's Design Theory and History class. In a March 1999 article of the Washington Post, journalists questioned whether "[Can] a single building bring a whole city back to life? More precisely, can a single modern building designed for an shipyard by a laid-back California architect breath new economic and cultural life into a decaying industrial city in the Spanish rust belt?"The city of Bilbao wanted to emphasize culture in its efforts to attract new businesses, create a tourist industry and maybe even support new jobs. The Guggenheim Museum became that key component for this Revitalization Plan of Metropolitan Bilbao. This city plan aimed to transform the city into a service metropolis within a modern industrial region in the European arena. As the saying goes, “location is key”, the Guggenheim accomplishes this theory very well by bringing the community to the water and attracting tourists from all over as it juxtaposes the surrounding city. It is also an industrial area providing the focus for numerous other urban regenerations that are transforming the city and is a catalyst for development in the former warehouse district. Juxtaposing the Guggenheim with the surrounding city of Bilbao, the effect creates a transformation that is needed and wanted.
[LITERAL : ABSTRACT]
definitions :
literal - following the words of the original very closely and exactly ; not figurative or metaphorical (dictionary.com)
abstract - expressing a quality or characteristic apart from any specific object or instance (dictionary.com)
If I were to explain one concept that first year IAR has taught me was to be abstract instead of literal. Coming into the program, I was creative, but now I am a different creative. Our first assignment to create a space for a leaf was the hardest battle I had to face yet so far. The assignment seemed so foreign to me because it required you to think "outside of the box". My first ideas and sketchmodels were extremely literal, as were many of my classmates. During critique, Tommy made many of us realize the difference between the two ideas. My final product ended up being a window or pocket that only let part of the leaf be shown, which allowed us to view the beautiful qualities of the leafs' veins. As the year went on, IAR has now trained me to think differently and now it is hard to go back to a literal sense. The most recent abstraction that I created was the window project, but I feel my celebration and light model incorporates more on an abstract image clearer. With its random shapes colliding into one another creates this image that can be interpreted in many ways according to the viewer. No one way is right with an abstract image, but a literal image has a general meaning. For example, most of my drawings for my building board are literal images - exactly like a photograph.
abstract --^
literal --^[MONOLOGUE : DIALOGUE]
definitions :
monologue - a form of dramatic entertainment, comedic solo, or the like by a single speaker ; a prolonged talk or discourse by a single speaker (dictionary.com)
dialogue - conversation between two or more persons (dictionary.com)
The intention of my design for the window project was to create a piece that served as a monologue and a dialogue keeping in line with the requirements of light effects. I accomplished these qualities in my design through its shapes and structure. The different sized squares complement each other in the structure creating a certain monologue within the design. The shapes and components speak to each other in an orderly and meditative way. Even though they are organized in a disordered way, the simple shapes hold harmony throughout it the overall project. To expand even further, I designed the structure in a way to create a dialogue with the exterior view outside my window. In some of the boxes, I put a backing on them with holes that were drilled through to mimic the silver cylinder that is connected to the outdoor metal shop. The way my boxes frame and mimic elements of the outdoors creates a reaction of celebration for the exterior moving beyond the expectations of the project.
[IN SUMMARY]...all the words from this week are determinants of design and its elements. By saying this, I mean that they are all terms that can be used to describe a design and what to consider when you are designing.
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