Public Spaces

Experiencing London

March 14 2020March 14, 2020

My Experiential Map!

By far my favorite sketch that we have done from this trip was the experiential map. I liked it because it helped me to reflect back on the day and remember exactly what we did. It also gave a new perspective to just how much are we covered, and helped me relate a map to the experience of walking through a space. I also enjoyed making quick little sketches of the places we visited, and accompanying them with longer descriptions of my experience in that space. I think this is the sketch I’m most proud of, and I am really happy I learned about this type of sketch in this class.

Discontinuity within Tate’s facade

March 13 2020

For my free days I decided to go to back to Tate Modern and see more of it and also the addition by Herzog & de Meuron. For me, I really enjoyed seeing more of the of the exhibits and interestingly one of the exhibits in Tate was also presented at the Werner center on campus. The exhibits was provocative words places on colored tiles repeated. The art piece was by Jenny Holzer. I thought it was cool to see both having the exhibits because I hold Tate to such a higher standard compared to the Wexner. Now I don’t know if this is controversial or not, but the addition done I think is almost a missed opportunity. In my opinion, I’m not a fan of additions that try to replicate the materiality of the original building. This is due to the fact that materials weather and when you try matching it with another material it never looks continuous. If I were to bring a person there who doesn’t know the history of the buildings I think they could clearly see that back part as an addition. The action creates a clear separation from the original and new. I wish that they just used a new material to pronounce it more instead. I guess one could argue that the tiling of the brick on the new addition is trying to present the contrast further. However, in my opinion it still is just unsettling seeing the the building as whole.

Stonehenge Shenanigans

March 11 2020March 11, 2020

Quick sketch of Stonehenge

Our visit to Stonehenge at the end of a long day was unfortunately pretty rainy and windy. I was able to get a rough outline while on the site, and then I was able to add details and color later on from a photo. My goal with this sketch was to capture the texture and shadows of the stones, which I think I accomplished pretty well. I do wish I had more time on site to complete the drawing instead of referencing a photo. I’m glad I chose to use color for this sketch, I think it adds some more description and depth.

Museums, Greenwich and Cathedrals, Oh my!

March 11 2020

On Saturday, the afternoon after we arrived in London, we went to St Paul’s cathedral. The inside was incredibly intricate and vast, the structure is monumental and absolutely gorgeous. We climbed up many compact, winding stairs (through the double dome structure) to get an amazing view of the city, which really helped me to orient myself, and gave a great preview to all the activities and places to look forward to in the coming days.

View out from top of St Pauls towards One New Change shopping mall.

Our second full day in London consisted of a 10 mile walking tour, starting with Monument, then heading down to Tower of London, across Tower Bridge to Tate Modern, a boat out to Greenwich, and finally ending at the Olympic Village. My favorite part of this whole day was visiting Greenwich, where we saw the Painted Hall, The Queens House, and the Prime Meridian. The whole complex was incredibly beautiful, I especially enjoyed the Thornhill paintings in the Painted Hall. We also hiked up the hill to the observatory, and got a great view out towards the Thames.

Ceiling by Thornhill in Greenwich Painted Hall

The next day, we visited the British Museum, where we drew the central plaza and reading room. This was a real challenge, because the ceiling is very complex. My favorite part of the museum was all the Greek statues.

View of Reading Room and ceiling at the British Museum

A Dreary (At Times!) and Colorful City

March 9 2020March 9, 2020

Dear London,

The sun can stay, but please keep away the rain.

The past two days have been jam packed with all kinds of sights and experiences. From Greenwich to Tower Bridge, St. Paul’s to Tate Modern, the London Eye to the Tube, an outdoor market to tea at the National Gallery, the past two days have been nothing short of incredible. Coming into the trip, there was anticipation of less desirable weather with colder temperatures and rain, but nothing could have truly prepared me for the downpour during the walking tour. Watching the sun disappear behind a wall of clouds was certainly a bummer. But, despite small spurts of inclement weather, it has been a joy to get out and explore the city. On Saturday, our group took the time to visit Barbican. I was deeply intrigued by Barbican as it was a planned development. Although I may not love the style of architecture, I can definitely appreciate the intent and desire behind its beginnings. It was the most confusing place though, so I do not understand what the intention may have been by making it so convoluted. Further, as it is a brutalist style of architecture, there is lots of concrete involved in its construction. The concrete gives it a strength and formidability, but, it also results in a bland and dull place. Fortunately, many green spaces and water features were planned into the space which I found to be refreshing. Along all the balconies were planters filled with flowers and other greens that really helped breathe life into the space and added color in a relatively colorless space. In warmer weather, I could definitely see how those spaces would also serve as places for residents to gather as a third place away from home and work. Color has played a very interesting role in the city as it draws people’s attention and highlights London landmarks. Although the sky may have been more dreary and dark during our time spent near Tower Bridge, the brilliant blue combined with its incredible detail, size, and location make it stand out nonetheless. Similarly, the Twizzler in Olympic Park is impossible to miss with its bright red structure that towers above the ground. Lastly, even the use stations contain all kinds of color. The Tottenham Court Road station has beautiful mosaics in the wall made of all shades of tile. The color brings a point of joy and expression to an otherwise darker feeling space so far underground. As the week progresses, I look forward to other sites where I may see brilliant colors such as Kew Gardens.