In order to define what shape will work for my Pop-Up, I experimented using paper to create different forms which would replicate a nesting organic shape. With the material removed, paper was a very malleable tool to capture the structure and shape without being too flimsy. I think paper is a great tool to explore different structures simply by scoring sections of the paper and folding it in different areas.
The next stage for future insight will be to capture the shape using more organic material which is sustainably sourced closer to the nesting and organic structure I am designing.
Moreover, to define and narrow my thinking, it would be useful to look at sources of existing shapes of nests or potentially seeds which are commonly eaten by birds to help define the structure I will choose for my final design outcome.
In order to define the shape for my pop-up, I wanted to experiment using different mediums to capture the ‘nest’ shape and structure.
Bamboo appears as an adaptable and renewable resource that may be used to create gorgeous organic shapes in the construction of a bird observatory in the interest of environmentally friendly and organic design. The inherent beauty and organic appeal of bamboo are ideal for producing distinctive and eye-catching forms in architectural design. I discovered that the observatory has personality thanks to its smooth surface, unique nodes, and minor colour variations, which blend well with the surrounding natural surroundings.
I attempted to use organic materials as well to capture the natural nesting concept through using Bamboo twigs. However, on reflection i found that the bamboo was not malleable enough to create the round structure and shape i desired for replicating a more spherical nest
My chosen site for my Pop-Up Model is located within Ferranti Park. As discussed within tutorials, my initial location was beside the creek side discovery centre. As my objective for my space is to be a place for observation of surrounding wildlife, we concluded that being close to the train line may deter birds and other wildlife from the area of observation.
My aim is to place my pop-up where the existing pavilion is to serve the purpose of being a refuge place for both people and wildlife to gather.
Another reason for selected Ferranti park is the connection to Sue Godfrey Nature park. Initially, the park was known as Bronze Street Nature Park. In honour of the enormous amount of work Sue Godfrey put into the park and the crucial role she played in life on the nearby Crossfield Estate, the park was renamed in her honour in 1994. Sue Godfrey was a local citizen and environmental activist who was died in a car accident. Because they need bare ground to bloom, many of the wild flowers in this area are weed species. Periodically, trees and shrubs are coppiced. This encourages lush regrowth that is perfect for bird nests and allows light to reach wild flowers.
Week 3 H&T Live-Work Studio Project 1 Design Statement
This project has been proposed to achieve the following objectives and design requirements:
Nothing should be fixed permanently to the fabric of the existing space
Keep attachments to the walls and ceiling to a minimum
Preserve the physical volume of the space
Allow for the option to move the proposed intervention(s) to a different site at a later date
Propose unique and custom-made furniture, objects, structures and constructions.
It must be: Multifunctional / Spacious / Essential / Minimal / Practical / Economic
Include detailed design of facility for: Living / Sleeping / Display & storage / Working / Meeting / Entertaining / Cooking
Include indicative design of facility for: Washing & WC
My client’s collection consists of moss, having grown up in Iceland where volcanic eruptions and lava have led to the destruction of moss. Partially inspired by the destruction which the lava had on the moss, my client is interested in regrowth and preserving the natural environment which exists opposing external factors, whether that be natural or man-made consequences. My design projects aims to preserve nature and draw aspects of the natural world into the interior space. Implimented in a busy city, the objective is to grasp a sense of the beauty of nature and incorporate the benefits associated with moss into the design. The moss is implemented into my client’s collections trhough collected material which is integrated into walls and room divisions. A shared area with a wall called ‘Work In Progress’, allows the community to add to the collection, creating a sense of responsibility and dual duty for looking after and appreciating the natural world. Extending beyond the idea of moss walls, my design serves for the function of creating installation moss panells across certain areas of the room dividing the positioning of the public and private areas.
The fundamental design decisions are driven by creating a flexible and multifunctional space where a driving factor is based on the concept of encouraging our appreciation of the natural world and the potential to integrate nature into our everyday life. My design encourages interaction between nature and the interior. Vertical pannels and walls create the possibility and capacity to maintain sense of nature and greenery within a room without compromising floor space. Areas will be divided to consider the benefits of the moss into different areas where aspects are prioritized. For instance, the moss will be heavily integrated into the work area as moss is proven to increase productivity and concentration.
As designers are increasingly beginning to deliberate the relationship between nature within interiors and aspects of the benefits associated such as improved air quality and various health benefits, interior green walls are becoming an increasingly popular and utilised more frequently as products within the home. For centuries, the Japanese have been a strong influence on how we can incorporate nature into our homes by incorporating natural fibres, materials and bridging the boundaries between indoors and out. Overall, my design concept is formed around elements and aspects we can acquire from the natural world without compromising space to benefit the overall interior.
The theme of my cube is ‘light’. With the dual meaning of light being weight and the brightness of a space, I attempted to incorporate both elements into my design. Despite using a darker surface covering one side of the cube, I used a mirror with a projecting circle shape to encapsulate the light within the space. I placed several thin pins into the black porous material to create a sense of distance through the reflection. The pins create a sense of height and depth whilst their linear structure contrasts to the circular shape of the mirrors. Different angles of light alters the focal point of the space. The delicate placement of the pins in contrast to the vast circular reflection creates a sense of abundance and light. The glistening material as well as protruding needles replicate elements of the stars of a midnight sky.
During this week’s History and Theory ‘Objects and Materials’ Lecture, we learnt that ‘material culture’ was fundamental to the processes of design history, theory and criticism. It was very interesting to learn about the different ways in which objects are able to influence cultural values and how they coexist. The ways in which objects are able serve more than functionality was fascinating. I was intrigued by the way that objects strongly hold the source of beliefs and values within society. We also acknowledged ways theory contrasts to material religion as well as culture and material culture. This led me to challenge the ways in which ordinary objects are seen as holding societal value, from something as simple as an office chair, and the way they can be symbolic of hierarchy within the managerial position. I think the notion of objects being symbols of underlying values and beliefs is a significant idea I would like to depict within my space through the materials, furniture, and structure of the room.
Moreover, we looked at examples of different work spaces of artists. We were assigned different artists and tasked to discuss what objects and factors of their work influenced their space. Our group was given Pablo Picasso in his Studio near Cannes in 1956. It was interesting to see different spaces and how their work clearly relates to the space of their work/live studio. It seems ironic the way Picasso’s work is very scattered without order within a delicate detailed French apartment building. In a way, this chaos of the placement of his work is reflected in the way he paints.
Following on from the lecture, we were tasked to find at least three precedent studies that could inform our project.
Olafur Eliasson ‘Moss Wall’, 1994
The way in which Olafur Eliasson incorporates the outdoors, indoors and transforms unreality into real life is fascinating. From a distance the wall appears a brown-yellow colour but as you move closer you can observe the multitude of colours of the moss including green, yellow, and brown. The wall is entirely covered in Icelandic moss. The room plays with different senses, particularly smell as the room is filled with an aroma of the far north. I am intrigued by the way in which Olafur Eliasson has depictured nature simultaneously as a raw material.
The aim of ‘Moss Your City’ is to present moss as an intricate and versatile material which can compliment internal environments and work in harmony with contemporary design. I am fascinated by the geometric shapes created from moss itself to create structural divisions between the room and different spaces. The way in which these structures may appear in a sense rigid and sharp can be seen to contrast the material of moss being soft and natural. By integrating moss into the design of the space, it presents the endless possibilities and potential for creating a space merely from organic natural material whilst remaining contemporary.
This project inspires me as it presents a more radical solution to combining organic matter through a structural, single-body geometric system. It serves as a way for people and plant life to interact with each other as a method to exchange the benefits of one another. I am fascinated by the potential to create interaction between structural rigid geometric shapes and human interaction as well as organic matter.
For my Wearable Task, I decided to choose the Eden Project. What struck me about the Eden Project is the ability to hold a variety of Biomes within a greenhouse essentially made from inflatable plastic cells which are supported by steel frames. The incredible structure is home to the world’s largest indoor rainforest as well. I am captivated by the potential to create man-made structures to work in harmony with the environment and create structures which support and encourage the growth of natural environments in order to preserve endangered species. The building was designed to serve the purpose of being future-proof, made with responsibly sourced materials, energy efficient, and constructed with minimal waste.
Drawings and Sketches inspired by the ‘Eden Project’.
I attempted to capture the details of the textures and shapes of the plastic inflated capsules seen in the ‘Eden Project’. I played with transparency to reflect the nature of the plastic and depicting the way light creates different shapes and textures onto the material. I experimented using different shapes from circles to hexagons to truly reflect the structure of the building itself. In order to translate this into material, as a wearable object, I found that using bubble wrap will not only allow for the same texture and transparency of the ‘Eden Project’, but also enable me flexibility to create the dome-shaped effect and alter the shape to the desired outcome.
Making Process
Deciding on material came quickly to me as the structure and material of the ‘Eden Project’ vividly resembles that of bubble wrap. I sourced recycled bubble wrap from packaging and found one with larger sphere capsules which I felt effectively replicated the large dome-shaped bubbles. I started by cutting up the bubble wrap into segments carefully cutting around each bubble ensuring not to cut too close to the edge as this would make the entire column flatten out. Once I had a sufficient amount to cover the shape of my head, the challenge I faced was holding the sphere structure of the bubble wrap. I overcame this by spacing out the rows evenly and sellotaping the edges to the previous row. I found that bubble wrap was very flexible and at times I struggled with this as it did not hold the structure of the dome as well as I would have hoped. For future reference, I would try to use stronger materials on the interior such as balsa-wood or steel rods similar to those used in the original design of the ‘Eden Project’.
Final Outcome ‘Wearable Object’
Overall, I am very pleased with the way my wearable object turned out. I think the structure of the bubble wrap was effective in encapsulating the sphere structure of the item. I also think it demonstrates life vs man-made structures substantially as my body represents the living object almost engulfed by a plastic man-made object with an opening at the front which enables me to breathe. In a way, this reinforces the idea that although the object is made from plastic, it is still able to support living organisms through recycling and re-purposing different materials. This idea can be seen similar to the ‘Eden Project’ as it is evident that the man-made plastic structures are home to endless eco-systems in sustaining the quality and quantity of them.
Parker’s work transforms the original forms of objects and materials using extreme force by crushing and exploding several different objects to create an altered, abstract object deterring it from its original shape. The way the original item is evolved in but still contains its original matter seems to me a reminder of the processes and the way societal beliefs and values over time have evolved and influenced our attitudes towards certain materials and objects. I feel that the way Cornelia Parker presented the beauty in destruction is very well portrayed. Throughout each piece, I think she captured the significance of political elements very well balanced in harmony with her pieces.
One piece that particularly struck my attention was an exploded garden shed blown to smithereens by the British army, which was called ‘An Exploded View’. Already in the name, this suggests something destructive yet beautiful. The way in which our view is distorted into pieces from the shattered pieces to create an intricate piece is intriguing. Moreover, the explosion appears never-ending as the shadows of the shattered pieces on the contrasted white wall amplify the level of destruction. The way in which Parker plays with the light in the centre to emphasise the level of destruction exemplifies the scale of the piece and in a way shows the aftermath of the destruction, potentially seen as the consequence of our actions.
‘An Exploded View’, by Cornelia Parker ‘An Exploded View’, by Cornelia Parker
Another example of questioning everyday objects struck me by the work titled ‘Thirty Pieces of Silver’ which comprises of over a thousand flattened silver objects. It was evident that Parker’s intention was to transform the existing meaning and their visibility. The way in which the existing silver objects were transformed all to the same dimension symoolizes the significance of the objects to the similar extremities. In a way, this removes the importance of the object itself but signifies the materiality of the silver instead. The hanging flattened objects levitating just above the floor vividly reflect their surroundings through the shiny material. It appears the mirroring effect from the silvers around depict their interdependence and the correlation between the object itself and their value and worth.
‘Thirty Pieces of Silver’ by Cornelia Parker
Each of Cornelia Parker’s work challenge different ideas and beliefs throughout different periods. For example, the hand-stitched backs of old button cards demonstrate the labour of women which result in intricate and delicate drawings. However, these are only the photographs which could be seen to suggest that elements of the human touch have been erased over time. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Cornelia Parker’s exhibition and it led me to question several different ideas regarding society, beliefs and values over different periods and the way in which our thinking had evolved.
