Research
“Perfect” Cube
We started off the project by doing an exercise where we make a 3 inch cube out of Bristol board that is “perfect.” This was a good exercise to introduce us to making templates/nets and emphasizing the importance of precision.
Trapezoid
Next, we made a 3-D trapezoid. In this exercise, we explored slightly more complex forms and learned more about how the angles in the forms affect the tabs and other parts of the form.
Top, Bottom, Plan
This exercise helped me with understanding how our perspectives of a piece can alter how it looks to us. I got a little tripped up when making the top plan and left/right elevation. I kept mistaking the face of the side for the plan/elevation of it. After really focusing on the actual view of it, I was able to correctly draw it.
Orthographic, Isometric/Axonometric Drawing
Iterations
Revisiting A2 shapes
After going through my shapes that I made from Assignment 2, I chose these three shapes to focus on. Though the shapes are quite simple, I wanted to experiment more with concave elements in a form. Each of these shapes have some concave elements to them, so that is why I decided to use these shapes.
Extruded Shapes, Net/Templates
Once I chose my shapes to use for this exercise, I began making templates for each of them. I started off by mirroring my shape and including a panel in between them so there was a face that would eventually become the extruded part. For the rest of the faces, I just tried to picture in my head what would need a side and a tab. The tabs ended up being the most difficult for me, because I was struggling with where and where not to put them. However, I was able to nail the measurements of the templates and they all folded up into a completed form.
This was the first form I completed and I came across some issues as I began gluing it together. I realized that I didn’t have enough tabs, so I had to use tape. Also, even though the measurements all lined up and were correct, I made the template a little small and had some difficulty when trying to reach those small places to glue down.
For my next two forms, I used my previous mistakes to improve these. I added the correct amount of tabs with these by really visualizing what connected with what, which is something that I struggled with the first time. Also, I scaled up my template so the construction would be easier and not as troublesome.
These are my three final forms for this exercise. I was quite pleased with how they turned out and how clean they looked. Making these three forms taught me a lot about template-making, which definitely helped me in the long run for my final product.
Changing Angles, Shapes, Elevations
The pictures here show how I achieved changing the angles and elevations of one of my extruded forms. One the left, you can see the many scraps as the result of my experimenting. I started by creating a smaller face that was half of the original shape. From then on, I was completely just experimenting with the paper. I cut and taped, then cut and taped again. It was a long process, but I was happy once I was able to figure out a template that fit together.
Experimenting with More Complexity
Even though I had already changed my extruded form to a form using more angles, I wasn’t satisfied. It quite bluntly just looked boring to me. It wasn’t very dynamic or interesting to me, so I cut out a section from the side of my form. It was an abrupt decision and quite difficult to really achieve, but I was much more satisfied with the form. I ultimately decided that I was going to use this form as my final form once I realized how much I liked the form’s shape and how interesting it was. The picture to the far left reveals the markings on the form that show where I was considering cutting out a section. The other photos show the constructed form out of drawing paper with the measurements on them.
Production
Making the template
Using the template that I made from drawing paper, I switched over to the Bristol board so I could see how it would be constructed in the material once I made the template. I also began making my template digitally, because I knew I wanted my final sculpture to focus on modularity. Making my template digitally significantly helped with consistency and uniformity later on when I made my sculpture since I was able to print out multiple templates on card stock.
Finding and Fixing Mistakes
After making my temple in Bristol board, I decided to glue it together and found out that there were some issues in my measurements. As you can see in the first two photos, the sides were not lining up perfectly and was causing a slight bend in the material. I tried finding for the origin of this issue and realized that my measurements were off by 1/16 of an inch on my drawing paper template. The picture on the far right shows this. This small mistake started warping the entire piece, so I went back to all of my templates to fix this issue. This mistake was very eye-opening to the intense level of precision that we need to complete our forms and how the smallest things can make the biggest difference.
I then switched to digital template to make quicker iterations and fixes. Since I was completing this part at home, I had to deconstruct shape a little since I only had 8×12 printer paper at home and needed to print out the template to see if my alterations were working. After fixing my previous mistake, I ended up making problems at different parts of the shape. I had to make multiple trips to the printer that night.
After many trials and tribulations, I was able to construct a template with the exact measurements that I needed. I originally created the template with completely solid lines so my form wouldn’t have very obvious dotted lines when I created it. Also, I made the lines grey instead of black to further lessen it’s visibility after it’s construction.
Finalizing Template and Making Instructions
Template
I previously had my temple blank and just solid lines, mostly because editing it that way was easier and that template was just for my individual use. When finalizing my template, I turned the fold lines into dotted lines and also had to use color to differentiate where to score the line. Some of my tabs had to be scored from the back since they need to folded inward because of the concave sections on my form. I also added letters throughout the template to help whoever is making them connect the correct tab to the correct side in a specific order. I found the easiest way to glue the form together and needed some type of markers on the template to help guide the person making it, so I chose letters.
Instructions
- Use a ruler to cut along all of the solid grey lines around the border of the template. You can cut away all of the access paper beforehand to make it easier if you would like.
- Score the Bristol board along the grey dotted lines. Be sure not to use too much pressure and use a ruler for precision.
- The black dotted lines will be scored from the back since they need to be folded outward. You can either go to the light table to mark where those lines are on the back and score them, or fold in the surrounding grey dotted lines to pinpoint where the ends of the black dotted tabs are and score them that way.
- Now that all dotted lines have been scored, fold along the lines. Be careful not to rip through the scoring. Pay attention to the corners as they will not line up with everything if it is not completely folded. The black dotted lines will fold the opposite way of the gray dotted lines.
- The final step is to glue the form together using the tabs. There are letters all along the shape to help you with this step. The uppercase letters are on the sides and the lowercase letters are the tabs that with be glued to the corresponding sides from the inside. For example, side “A” will be glued to tab “a”.
- Start by gluing letter “A” together and then continue gluing the tabs to the sides alphabetically. Be sure to go “A” to “K” as it is the easiest way to glue everything together. To apply pressure in the narrow sections as they are gluing, I’d suggest using a small ruler or pencil to hold the tab down as it dries. Your last tab to glue will be the letter “K.” After that, you have completed the form.
Testing Different Construction Methods
I knew that I wanted to stack my form, but I needed to find a way that would hold the forms together securely and wouldn’t tip my sculpture over when I put all of the forms together. My form extends back and upwards, so balance was a big concern. I experimented with tape, dowels, and fishing line, but quickly found out that glue was my best option. I was able to test the complete final form using glue, as showed on the right, and it successfully did not tip over.
Final Product
Original Form
Sculpture
Comparison
My original form depended a lot on angles, which in turn made the shape more dynamic. Also, the section that is taken in makes a unique shape and is an eye-catching part. The top view especially highlights all of the angles and how the concave section adds to the form’s dimension. The final sculpture really takes the original form to the next level. The stacked forms going up create a sense of movement towards the sky. I really like how the sculpture almost looks like it is defying gravity when you view it from the side. The sculpture goes quite far back and still doesn’t tip over, which overall looks very cool and impressive. The sculpture makes the form look like it is being extended or pulled up. Both the form and sculpture are dynamic in their own ways, which helped the overall image of them in the end.
Link to Portfolio Piece: 2D to 3D Translation