I attended Focus Interior Design event for the second year in a row. This event is a great opportunity to see so much high end design in one place. In addition it is wonderful to be able to look round look and touch objects, textiles and furnishings that I rarely get a chance to see. The best thing about the event is to attend talks and workshops with professionals providing hints, tips and advice or explaining their companies working methods on particular topics.
On the day in which I attended it appeared the topic focused on sustainability and wellbeing, areas which I am very aware of and have an interest in.
Although I think there is a long way to go it was good to hear that designers are taking sustainability and environmental issues into account and working in new ways to try and combat waste, and unethical resources.
Event designer Fiona Leahy discussed going to efforts to ensure materials and resources used in events go to other sources after the event, rather than being dumped, which was quite shocking to hear was something that previously happened.
Anna Burles founder of design company Run for the Hills explained that she now goes to efforts to ensure materials are sustainably and ethically sourced, although she may have to incur the additional costs this may bring.
I also attend a talk with KLC tutor Anna Whitehead regarding Biophilic Design, this is something I have a real interest in and try to incorporate in my own home and interiors which I have had some involvement in the design of in my work place. I hope to get the opportunity to look further into Biophilic Design.
I was so pleased that my tutor commented on my improved drawing skills as this was an area I myself felt I had improved in, particularly the bedroom sketches I had undertaken.
My tutor had previously asked me to reference others work more often, which he noted I had done – but which I must keep up.
The comments about my cube studies were better than I expected, I initially struggled with this exercise but I persevered and spend a lot of time to aim for better results. Again, my tutor gave particularly positive feedback about my collages, in particular the digital collage, this was very reassuring and encouraging.
Although I had very positive feedback about my bedroom perspective my tutor was a little more negative about the ellipses on my lampshade – which when reviewing I can see why – some more practice required in this area!
I sensed a little disappointment with my actual assignment piece, which I think is fair as I struggled to get a strong sense of what I was aiming to achieve. He suggested I experiment a little more with media, explore and find what works best, also to annotate the preparatory work which I displayed as part of the assessment, also to think about the structure in the real world. All feedback which I think is fair and I will aim to improve on/include in future work.
Assignment 4
Assignment 4 Reflection
This
has been an enjoyable and enriching part of the course as I can see progression
in my work, particularly my drawing abilities.
Having
not drawn for years my initial attempts felt childlike and with little skill.
Although I have a long way to go the practice I have been doing, along with research
into techniques I believe has benefited me and I can see improvements.
During these exercises however there were times when I got frustrated with my attempts, particularly during the texture exercises. In the midst of my frustrations I wondered why I need to sketch with any ability when we have computer packages which can do so much of the work for us? I read that Le Corbusier “used sketches to record things he felt a camera could not, such as concepts, underlying structure or feelings experienced in a space” (Spankie, 2009:51). Reading this at the at the time I was struggling helped to spur me on and appreciate that sketching is more than trying to create a picture.
When
I did manage to create a texture or sketch which bore some resemblance to that
I endeavoured to portray I felt very satisfied which further helped to motivate
me with my drawing.
Learning
one- and two-point perspective felt like a real skill to have and is hugely
beneficial in achieving realistic drawings. It made me think that perhaps one
day I can whip out a sketch book and undertake a quick and accurate sketch for
a client, which can help to shape the beginnings of an interior and assist with
clients perceptions – not something that is so easy to do so quickly with a
computer – and a task which can easily and quickly demonstrate a level of skill
to a client.
Using
a variety of media has been valuable. It has provided me with an opportunity to
understand different mediums and get to know which I work best with and can provide
the look I aim to achieve.
I
spent time looking at sketches of Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Norman
Foster and Zaha Hadid which made me see real benefits of sketching as it allows
the designer to provide their thought processes, through diagrams, sketches and
text – and which can also be very beautiful. Zaha Hadid’s are so full of movement with some
sketches only showing squiggles and fluid lines – I expect to express the
fluidity she intends for an interior. I have taken a lot of pleasure in
discovering Frank Lloyd Wright’s sketches, many of which are themselves works
of art, with their delicate colours interpreting a real beauty in the architecture
and its surroundings, often depicting the atmosphere created by cascading
water. I found that Frank Lloyd Wright’s work reminds me of the art work of
Charles Rennie Mackintosh an artist and designer I have admired since I was
young.
When
looking at the works of interior designers I noted that designers Harding and
Read have no high-tech computer aided designs on their website only images of
their interiors along with pretty watercolours interpreting their designs.
These watercolours are simple but affective, these along with the sketches of
the other designers I looked into convinced me that sketching and rendering by
hand is an invaluable and hugely satisfying skill to have.
Aerial view of crop marks indicating the outline of 2 Roman forts
Map of Old Ox Camp, Iron Age Site
Map of Oxton
Site of recreation ground including village hall and car park
Sketch of site with possible location of Pavilion
The site I have chosen for the Pavilion is in my own village Oxton, specifically the site of the village recreation ground. I have chosen this site due to it’s popularity with those who live in the village and visitors who come from surrounding areas. This is due to the open grass area which allows children to play and adults to play cricket. There is also a children’s play area and picnic benches. This site also brings people to it to enjoy the village fete and the yearly bonfire and fireworks show, which brings hundreds of people to the village. The car park of the village hall, which is located adjacent to the recreation ground, is often a meeting point for walkers, cyclists and conservation groups. The village hall itself holds numerous events from WI meetings to weddings to toy train enthusiasts conventions.
Nottshistory.org.uk. (2007). Nottinghamshire history > Articles > Articles from the Transactions of the Thoroton Society > The Summer Excursion, 1908: Oldox or Hodox camp, Oxton. [online] Available at: http://www.nottshistory.org.uk/articles/tts/tts1908/summer/oldox.htm (Accessed on 2nd July 2019)
But, at the same time, human being is also attracted by a sense of mystery and complexity, that arises from the discovery of a new and unknown environment, being inclined to prefer “unconventional” solutions, in which light, with its many shades and gradations, leads the individual through the process of exploration towards the unknown: paradoxically, light seems to hide, rather than reveal the mystery, but just for this it attracts, involves, stimulates and fascinates us so much. (Tomassoni, Galetta, Treglia, 2012)
James Turrell
I
believe that Turrell’s work permits individuals to perceive and create their
own distinct experiences.
Both light and colour stimulate our emotions, as does the intensity of light exposure – which Turrell uses a wide range of – both natural and artificial, which affect our senses and emotions in a number of ways.
Each of us will experience light and colour differently for both physiological and psychological reasons, thus each of us will perceive Turrells work in a different way and this is what I believe he means when he states “you are looking at you”. The viewer is experiencing what they are for their own personal reasons.
Turrell’s work can also play with our sense of balance and harmony. His use of light and shape I feel portrays what some of us have come to imagine of alien craft and entrances into other worlds. These perceptions however may be cultural so from one person to the next; will look, see and feel Turrells work in their own unique way.
Image 1 – Twilight Epiphany Skyspace
Image 2 – Tycho White
Turrell engages his viewers with intriguing images where viewers see what is personal to them with images which are captivating, enticing us to walk through or around and to discover.
Image 3 – The substance of light
Image 4 – The substance of light
An interior image which I have chosen to compare to Turrell’s work is that of the ‘Reflection Room’ by designer Flynn Talbot, which he created for people to explore, be lit by and reflected in their own individual way. I however feel reflection in Talbots work is both reflection in the sense of a mirrored image as well as the space and experience giving individuals the chance to consider their experience.
James Turrell. (2019). Home. [online] Available at: http://jamesturrell.com/ (Accessed on 11th June 2019)
Tomassoni, R., Galetta, G., & Treglia, E. (2015). Psychology of Light: How Light Influences the Health and Psyche. Psychology, 6, 1216-1222. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/psych.2015.610119 (Accessed on 11th June 2019)
Undertaking the drawing and collage exercises with different media I found enjoyable and really interesting. It was useful to experiment with a variety of different mediums on one still life. I chose not to change my still life objects, although I did have to move them around from time to time, from outdoors to in and to different parts of the house, so this provided a different light. My decision to keep the same items was to concentrate on the media I was using and not have to focus too much on drawing a new object each time. I also wanted to see if I improved, hoping to get better at sketching the forms and capturing the lines and curves by examining and drawing the same objects.
The initial exercise, drawing the objects with a continuous line etc was fascinating, to undertake exercises which feel so unnatural but which produce interesting results. I was amazed at how difficult I found it to commence the drawing from memory sketch and strangely how nervous it made me feel? Once all of the drawings were completed however, I was pleased with the fact they all bore some resemblance to the actual objects.
It was interesting to produce the same still life with the variety of methods, I expected to enjoy using watercolours the most but actually found this one of the most difficult to achieve the desired effect, as I found achieving sharp lines a little tricky and it was easy for the colours to get a little muddy if not careful. Conversely, I did not expect to accomplish much with the coloured pencils but I liked the outcome of this sketch, I enjoyed the textural feel I was able to produce.
I chose to use fabric and thread as the main mediums for the mixed media collage as I like the texture fabrics provide, particularly heavy upholstery fabrics. I aimed to hatch with thread in a way that would normally be done using pen or pencil. It was quite tricky to work with the fabric at times, particularly over thin areas of fabric such as the handle of the jug, meaning the final piece is perhaps a lot more rough and ragged than I initially intended but I quite enjoy this rough and textured look. If I was to undertake this again I would perhaps contrast the fabric and thread with something more refined and shiny, perhaps using metallic paper or coloured acetate and pen rather than chalk and pen.
Refection on sketching and surveying physical space and using Vectorworks.
I found sketching and surveying the physical space a really helpful experience. It made me think about the space in much more detail and realise how complex spaces are with their many parts, fixtures and fittings which provide many protrusions, angles, curves and dimensions which ordinarily are never thought about.I believe it was not necessary for this exercise to include them in my survey but I came to appreciate how complex it can become when all of these elements have to be considered such as the depth of the skirting’s, radiators, cornicing’s, plug points etc etc.
When taking dimensions I felt I was doing a thorough job but when it came to drawing the furniture to scale I had to go back several times to take measurements which I had missed. I realise now how essential it is to get every dimension, particularly when it might not be possible or appear professional to have to go back to retrieve detail missed on an initial survey.
Once I had all the dimensions required and got to undertaking the scale drawings I felt quiet in my element. Although at times it could be frustrating ensuring the dimensions and detail were correct I got a lot of satisfaction completing the technical drawings – and from the beauty of the technical drawings themselves!
Completing drawings using Vectorworks was another challenge altogether. I am not new to computers but I am new to design packages. I downloaded Vectorworks a few weeks ago and began working my way through the training videos but when it came to attempting the drawing above I was completely flummoxed. It took some messing about and going back and forth to the training videos to eventually complete the drawing – when I did I was extremely chuffed!
To continue my development in Vectorworks I have booked myself on a Vectorworks fundamentals course, which coincidentally is happening next week. I was tempted to leave this exercise until after the training but decided to persevere and give it ago.
Understanding and becoming adept at Vectorworks I find hugely daunting as it appears so complex and intricate and I’m aware I’ve barely scratched the surface so far. It is however something I’m determined to achieve as I believe it will have a big impact on my future employment opportunities in Interior Design.
Lee's study journey 