For this project, we were instructed to explored the relationship between 2D shapes and 3D forms. Throughout this project, we made a variety of 3D forms and learned how to construct forms using Bristol paper, tacky glue, a precision knife, and a template(s) found on the internet. A goal I had for myself for this project was to improve my crafting skills from assignment two because I struggled with cutting straight lines and keeping my composition clean. Originally, I chose a snub cuboctahedron as my form which consists of 38 shapes (6 squares and 32 equilateral triangles). Unfortunately, with the time constraint of this project, I was unable to construct my best work making a 38 sided form so I changed my form to an octahedron (an eight sided form made up of eight equilateral triangles). For this project I chose to prioritize the design principle, contrast while making a surface illusion on my form.
Ideation
For exercise 1a, we were instructed to building a perfect 3″ cube made out of Bristol paper. Making a ‘perfect’ cube obviously isn’t easy due to human error, so we had to make the best cube possible. I did have a few crafting issues (corners lining up and line marks/smudges), but overall, I know I made the best cube I possibly could.For exercise 1b, we were instructed to make a 3D prism with only the 2D template provided (on a grid so we were able to see the measurements). I did a fairly well job with the construction process (still had loose corners and smudging), but overall, not a bad prism with little information given.For exercise 2, we were instructed to build a 2D template of any polyhedron we wanted (between 6 and 12 sides) using Adobe Illustrator. This process was very tedious and time consuming. The solid lines are the cut lines while the dashed lines are the score lines. In addition, we had to include tabs in our template to make sure we would cut and score the correct places. Original template found on “File:Geometric Net of an Hexagonal Pyramid.svg.” Wikimedia Commons, 25 October 2013, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geometric_Net_of_an_Hexagonal_Pyramid.svg. Accessed 31 October 2022.In these three photos, I have my constructed 3D prism that I originally made as a template using Adobe Illustrator. I did a much better job constructing my form with good craftsmanship. The only main issue I had was 4 out of the 6 sides on the hexagon were the same length, while the other two were slightly larger. I caught this while I was drawing my template on paper, so I was able to adapt to my issue, fix it, and improve on it.For my brainstorming, I thought of three ways I could show illusion on my final form. The first image are my three ideas and the second image is the illusion inspiration I chose to pursue.
Iteration and Production
Originally, I chose my form to be a 38 sided polyhedron, but due to the time constraint, I wouldn’t have had enough time to complete this form to the best of my abilities. I had to make the template the first time to figure out where the tabs needed to go, and a second time to fully construct a first draft of my form. The second time, it took me six hours to make the template, cut and score which was way more time I expected to take on just a draft. But, this process taught me that sometimes complexity isn’t what is necessary.To start the construction my final composition, I had to choose a new polyhedron that I could construct at the best of my abilities. I found my original template at “File:Foldable octahedron (blank).jpg.” Wikimedia Commons, 28 January 2014, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Foldable_octahedron_(blank).jpg. Accessed 31 October 2022. But, pictured is my template I constructed using Adobe Illustrator.In the images above, I created an equalateral triangle on tracing paper, drew a circle in the middle, made a horizontal line every 1/4″, and filled in every other space. I originally did this on tracing paper because I wanted to see how the illusion would look on my polyhedron before committing to that one design.Pictured above is the second part of the project’s template that has been cut, scored, and penciled in illusion drawing. What I struggled with the most in this process was making sure the circle drawn was at centered as possible.Final draft: part one of the assignment
Description: I chose to build a octahedron polyhedron for my final project due to both the simplicity and complexity of the form. The hardest thing with this form was to make sure every side matched up perfectly with little to no smudges.
Final draft: part two of the assignment
Description: I chose option #2 which was using surface illusion to create an illusion of 3D surfaces using shapes, lines, shading, and mark making. The way I did this was by originally creating a circle in the middle of four of the eight triangles on the form. From there, I drew ¼ inch lines horizontally on the surface and colored in every other space. But, once it came to drawing in the circle, I had to then color in every space that did not line up with the triangles’ lines that I started with. The alternation of colored lines helped enhance the look that the circle is either popping out or into the 3D form itself.
Reflection
This assignment was by far my most difficult project. I spent countless hours working through the construction of multiple shapes, having to change my form halfway through the assignment, and struggling to keep my composition neat. But, I also thrived in multiple areas throughout this project, including drawing the template (on both paper and online) and scoring my templates. For my original form, I did struggle on making the template on paper due to how many shapes I had to make and making sure the template would fit properly on the paper. But, with my final form, I did a great job making the template using my compass to make equilateral triangles. In addition, originally I struggled with scoring my templates because I would either push down too hard or too soft, but after a few tries, I knew the correct pressure I needed to put on my knife. My biggest struggles with this assignment was gluing, keeping my work clean, and picking a form and sticking with it. Gluing my form was difficult for me because glue gets messy very quickly and easily, which also caused more smudges/marks on my forms. I made sure to keep my work as clean as possible though. From this assignment, I’ve learned how complexity isn’t the solution to get a good grade. Getting a good grade is making improvements, participating, asking questions, and trying your best. In my future projects, I hope I can continue to improve on my craftsmanship.
