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Research:

For this assignment, I had to conduct research for the approximate dimensions of furniture and other household objects, according to industry standards or specific product dimensions. Below is a list of object dimensions that I found using similar products on the internet.

Object Dimensions:

• • Stairs:
    • 3 ft. wide, 9 inches deep, 3 inches tall
    • 12 Stairs for a 9 ft. incline
  • Leather Chairs:
    • 2.5 ft. wide, 2.5 ft. deep, 2.5 ft. tall
  • Couch:
    • 7.5 ft. wide, 2.5 ft. deep, 2.75 ft. tall
  • Window Pane:
    • 3 inches wide, 2 inches deep
  • Coffee Table:
    • 1.75 ft. wide, 2.5 ft. deep, 2 ft. tall
  • Desk:
    • L-Shaped Desk
      • 7 ft. wide, 6 ft. deep, 2.5 ft. tall
  • Doorway:
    • 3 ft. wide, 7 ft. tall
    • Arched doorway

Exercise 1: Line and Contour

For Exercise 1, I was instructed to create a drawing of an object, and then simplify that drawing to demonstrate the contour of the exterior lines.  I first drew a hot glue gun, cut it out, then repeatedly traced the stencil on drawing paper to create the image below.

Exercise 2: Triangulation Drawing

For Exercise 2, I was instructed to create a perspective drawing of one spot on campus.  I chose to draw the front of Hayes Hall.  The process that I used was as follows:

Exercise 3: Grid Space

For Exercise 3, I  created my grid space for my office space.  I made a two-story, 200 square foot room out of a 10 ft. by 14 ft. layout.  The upstairs room dimensions are 10 ft. by 6 ft. deep.

Iterations

In order to populate the room with office supplies and furniture, I work on tracing paper in different layers.  Below are the different layers I worked with to fill up the room.  Moving left to right, respectively, I layer out the furniture in the space from back to front, so as to not cut off any parts of the layers that should not be hidden.  The final picture, furthest to the right, is the tracing paper stacked on top of itself, demonstrating the filled office space.

Production

In order to make sure the objects and furniture are laid out correctly, I had to create a floor plan, mapping out all the space.  The original floor plan can be viewed below.  There were, however, changes made during the sketching process that I felt made the room look more complete and uniform.

For the production of this project, I started with the grid space setup fo the office space.  As stated earlier, I wanted a two story room to maximize the space within a smaller room.  I did this in order to make the furniture and architectural details as large and clear as possible. The grid space can be seen in Exercise 1.

Due to my lack of prior experience with micron pens, I wanted to create a rough draft of the room on Bristol paper.  I wanted to test my lines and make sure I could draw without smudging the pen ink.  This rough draft also allowed me to play with the line weight of the pens.

Link

Link to Perspective Project.

Research:

This assignment focuses heavily on the principles of design, so I outlined them here.

The Principles of Design are as follow:

• • Unity/Harmony
  • Balance
  • Rhythm/Movement
  • Scale/Proportion
  • Emphasis
  • Contrast
  • Pattern

Exercise 1: Making Shapes from Shapes

Iteration:

To begin the project, I had to create a template of 6 – 3 inch squares.  From there I was instructed to cut out circles, squares, and triangles; three of each shape, proportional to the following sizes: .5″, 1″, 1.5″, and 2″.  The initial shape iterations I created can be viewed in Shape Iterations – Point, Line, Plane.

Using the newly created overlay of shapes, I was able to sketch over different forms and find irregular shapes that seemed interesting.  Below is a picture of the shapes I created using this process.

From there, I chose 5 geometric shapes and 5 curvilinear shapes to use as possibilities and inspiration for the final two shapes.  The 10 shapes were as follows:

Once I had a list of possible shapes to use, I picked 2 – 1 geometric and 1 curvilinear- and started brainstorming ideas to make a dynamic and static representation of each shape.  The movement, or lack thereof, was done by manipulating a line and point.  An image with the different placements of the shape, line, and point are below.

Using these possibilities of dynamic and static shapes, I was able to come up with a final iteration for the exercise, which can be viewed in the Research section, under ‘Exercise 1: Making Shapes from Shapes’.  In class, we conducted an informal peer review of the exercise, in which I got feedback on which principles I most prominently demonstrated. These principles were: Movement and Unity.  At the same time, I was instructed to use a word that captivates the principle and demonstrates it well.  I chose to focus on ‘force’, as that is one of the first things I think about when I hear the word ‘movement’.

I brainstormed ideas and possibilities that I could explore in this project that centered around ‘force’ and ‘movement’, and the image below is the material that I came up with.

Production:

The initial image that I felt captivated the idea of ‘Force’ and ‘Movement’ looked like the image below.

The feedback I received was helpful, in that I learned that there was more I could do to demonstrate movement.  I was told to use more shapes as a whole, and not to blend them together into new shapes.  Similarly, I should stop using circles to ‘cut out’ holes from other shapes.  I came up with two alternatives to the initial idea, which are as follow:

Once again, I asked for feedback on my design.  Overall, the first iteration was more demonstrative of movement, so that was the design that I chose to use.  I adjusted one last part of the composition: the direction it pointed in.  I felt that this adjustment added a lot to the piece, in that it gave it more of a feeling of motion from corner to corner.  The final product that I made is below.

This particular assignment challenged me in many ways.  This was my first time working with Bristol and tracing paper, as well as my first time using a precision knife. In the future, I hope to get better at using these tools, especially the cutting knife, as the cuts on the final project and exercise could use improvement.  This project demonstrated how simple additions, such as a line and point, can go so far as to show movement.  This was something that I was skeptical about the first time we were looking at the project as a class, but I’m glad it’s something that I could see.

Link to Shape Grammar Project:

View the Shape Grammar Project at Shape Grammar.

Research:

Good design must be:

• • Useful and Purposeful
  • Simple and Understandable
  • Innovative and Original
  • Aesthetically pleasing
  • Tested and Reworked
  • Collaborative
  • Timeless
  • Durable

Good design must also:

• • Solve a problem
  • Instill emotions or feelings in the user
  • Be user oriented

Sources:

• • Designmuseum.org
  • DesignSingapore Council
  • Van Schneider

Exercise 1: Good/Bad Design

Iteration:

The initial iterations I tried for the page layout are as follows:

The final iteration I tried, which is the layout I chose to use, is as follows:

Production:

The first upload of the About Me page:

The final upload of the About Me page: