Case study

In IARc 211 we did the case study #9 on the Entenza House located in Pacific Palisades, CA. This case study house was designed by Architects Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen in 1945. We studied this house in more detail and generated a final perspective.

SYTYCD 10

For the assigment 10 of " So you think you can ('t) draw?" we had to create a detail of something that is in our current studio project that is furniture, fixture or electrical element and i chose a cabinet (the one with the textured glass on the north wall) . The page format was 12" x 12". The content of our item had to interact with the background.

Logo

In the IARc 211 class we had an assingment to do a logo for the residential kitchen that we designed for the famous celebrity. This was part of the "So you think you can('t) draw" and we had to do it on a 4"x 4" piece of paper. My concept was leaf and circulation, texture, proportion , line were part of the concept.

Residential Kitchen Project

Residential kitchen project in the studio class was due Nov 24 and we had to have the program, specs,perspectives,case study, elevations, sketch book, materials board , and this is the composition board I put together with the perspectives.  Leaf was the concept that it fit my client because she was gentle and her design work portrays elegance. Circulation of the parts in the leaf is important and is portrayed throughout my design. The colors of the leaves change from the different seasons and the way that the leaf falls from the tree to the ground is in a curvy way. Asymmetry is considered in this project and some elements of the design are color (leaves change color in different season), shape (different trees, different leaves),  and texture while principles such as balance and proportion/scale are an important step to recognizing the full potential of the space.  

IARc 222-Navigation of space

In the history of interior architecture class we had to discuss two structures and how navigation of space works in the interior. Check out the photo for the spaces that I had to compare and contrast.There is many ways of how a designer sees navigation of space. One would reveal the architect's adherence to the open-plan ideal. There could be a functional simplicity, free plans where one could see that these (plans) are unrestricted by the need of supporting walls. In some spaces you could see an industrial expression while on other spaces elegant lines of contemporary cars to demonstrate that the same aesthetic was in operation. there is a navigation through space where one can transit between floors using spiral staircases or ramps. The interiors were unadorned but functional and these were steps to Modernism.  

Residental Kitchen:Update

In the studio class we had to design a kitchen for a famous Client (Eva Zeisel is my client) and these are the updated perspectives for the kitchen.I worked closely and the renderings were changed and progressed as I was closing down on a single concept. Narrowing down your ideas is easier when you put everything on paper. Try exercises (like put your pen on paper and don't take your hand off, just draw and continue like that for five minutes or so. You will notice a difference on how you approach your sketches and you will not stop till you see different possibilities of how a (design) layout works.)

IARc 211: Concept Composition

We created a concept composite for the kitchen we are designing for the celebrity in studio ( mine was Eva Zeisel: Industrial Designer). We had to include two precedent images, two large hand sketches and four words that sum-up the concept for the design of the kitchen. I did this composite in Photoshop and it was to turn in on a 11"x17".

IARc Studio 201: Residential Kitchen

In the studio IARc 201 (school related project) class we had to design a kitchen for a celebrity client. Eva Zeisel is an industrial designer and she is my client. I started by getting some information and researched and analyzed what was important and seeing what some ideas could work. I look at inspirations. We had to develop a program based on my client's needs and we sketched perspective views for the proposed design. There are more perspectives to come.

Comparing Domes

In IARc 222 class we had to do another comparison and I chose domes in two different period of times. I chose Lincoln's Inn Fields ( 1812, Regency England) and Villa Rotanda( 1557, Vicenza, Italy-Ancient Rome-). We have to explain the cultural context, design influences, and how the inside space is articulated. These domes both harmonize in interior and exterior. they create source of light and ventilation. Domes in Villa Rotanda were only for relaxing and entertaining where the dome of Lincoln's Inn Fields was used primarily as ornament were light enters through the clear story windows and lantern lights which gives the illusion of an oculus without  having an opening in the center of the dome. There is a lot of mirrors and both these domes create shape and distortion of space.

Conclusion
There is a spacial mystery in these domes and they intricate planes. Both domes manipulate light and they have played an important role in design throughout history.

Commercial Kitchen

In the studio class we had to design a food's lab for the nutrition students at UNCG. The space had to be "green" and part of that process I chose sustainable materials such as linoleum,marmoleum flooring, energy star rated fixtures and appliances, counter tops, bamboo cabinets. I used to SketchUp to do the model. This was one of the project where there was a real client and many users of the space (students,teachers). We had many meeting where we did measurements of the space, spoke with the client and trying to figure out the needs that they had. I proposed this solution of how to utilize the space. The layout was simple, however, making use of every corner of the space was not easy. After presenting my schematic design, we did another meeting where we developed the idea a little more. Let me know if you any questions! I will gladly help and walk you through any steps where you might have problem with your kitchen design project ( or any project). We keep learning everyday and it is a process that does not stop.

So you think you can('t) draw? hand/digital drawing

We created a black line drawing of a camera, showing a sense of scale and after we had to work our rendering magic in Photoshop. The final was to be printed on 8" x 8" paper. I decided to draw a camera and a deck of cards. This was a great example and practice for me to sharpen up on my hand drawing skills and digital at the same time. There were different textures that were applied and one can see depth every time they add new stuff to the drawings. Fist, I added the base colors ( brown on the camera and gray-blue at the deck of cards). Second, I added the details such as the flash on the camera and lines on the cards. It was an experience and I have learned that good things take time. What are some line drawings that you done?

Experimenting with Composition

On an 18" x 24" template we created a composition on Photoshop using the drafted floor plan from project 3, the black-lined perceptive from project 4, and one of the computer enhanced perspectives from project 8. Composing these drawings was not an easy task. I had many drawings and could not decide what to choose for the composite at the moment. I tried different ways and came up with the drawing above. What do you use to create similar compositions?

Experimenting in Photoshop

After scanning our perspective drawing, we created three images using a variety of tools on Photoshop and thought about lighting, color, contrast to enhance the perspective. Canvas size is 8.5" x 11". The tools I used on the first drawing are the image adjustments. There I worked with levels, color balance, hue/saturation and texture. Photoshop is a adobe software that it is great in editing ( whether it is photos or creating something completely new). The image adjustment tool is to help the photo (in my rendering) create the right lighting for the atmosphere you want to set on your room ( I worked on the living room drawing). Also, it opens up the colors (cool or warm) and helps portray the shadows a little bit more (I used the color balance tool for this). texture make the photo create a little depth so the photo does not look plain but actual more three dimensional and the materials more accurate.  I worked with texture for the ceiling, filters such as noise for the carpet, clone stamp tool, burn tool and dodge tool for the shadows. Polygonal lasso tool was used to select different parts of the perspective.

Do you work with Photoshop? What are some of the tools that you use?

Color Study

Color Study 1 based on the colors used in Maud Gatewood's painting: “the girl with the red shirt skating on the sidewalk”. Below you will see some iteration that I did inspired by that painting. (If you put the painting description that I wrote above, you will be able to look it up online and see the original painting)

First, one needs the materials in order to complete this exercise.  I used some difference choices of Micron pens and different pencils. Also, do not forget the markers. Personally, I use Chartpak’s. I have been using these materials for a while. As I mentioned on my previous post, I always keep my sketchbook with me and in addition I keep pens and markers with me because you will never know when you might want to practice. Maybe you are in front of a beautiful view and to capture the moment on paper. Maybe you are in a café and want to capture and draw the scene of the people and the background. Whatever the case might be, it is a great idea to keep a sketchbook or some papers for you to draw when you are in nature. It is always a good thing to go out and see the outside and go ahead to capture it.

In Project VII we created four perspectives of the space 14' x 24' in SketchUp and selected the one we like best. We first started with SketchUp as a design tool because at the time (and now) and it is a good tool about getting your schematic design on the computer fast (once you draw some preliminary ideas on paper). Also, the renderings do not come out bad using podium, however, they do come out more realistic if you get the VRAY plug-in. The settings are not that hard to figure out but you need to try different things and see what works best for you. For the purpose of this exercise that I had to do at this class, I did more than four perspectives so I could have more choices and also practice more. It was more for the practice part because I was just starting out doing more hand rendering so I wanted to get more experience. 

There is a lot things to consider when you hand render such as lighting, materials, different line weights when you deliver the drawings. The presentation is as much important as what you have put on the paper. We transferred the SketchUp perspective by hand onto three sheets of 18" x 12" paper paying close attention to line quality and choice of materials. We chose a set of four colors based on any one of Maud Gatewood's paintings and rendered the perspectives. You have to portray the materials as best as you can so when(if) a customer asks " What materials would you suggest to use in the space?", you would visually show it with your drawings without actually describing anything. You would let the drawings do the talking

 

Perspective drawings : A Second View

This was the follow up blog of the “Visual design drawings and construction" post. You should check the visual design series if you have not read them on my blog yet. One would say these drawings are very simple and not much stuff in them.  Someone else would say ‘the simple it is, the more one can see’. So what holds true about those two sentences in this situation. First, you definitely want to show as much possible in the design. One has to show that details matter. It is the small details that make the most impact in an architecture design project.   Why are we doing this? One reason of doing designs, whether architectural design or graphic design (anything in the design field) is about personal achievement or tomorrow, next week, next month or next year you might want to build your own custom house. 

Visualize design drawings and construction documents

Visual Communication is important. One would ask “Well, Why is this so important?” It is all about how you portray your ideas on paper. Visualization is the image that one creates and describes. One has to find their own design style. Architecture design has many styles that one figures out when they are practicing. You should have design goals to achieve the style you like. That would short term goals and long term goal. Short term goals would be drawing something every day, or at least a drawing/sketch every two days. I would recommend taking your sketchbook wherever you go. Napkin sketches is a great example. If you are at a restaurant and waiting, you should do a design on a napkin. There has also been many napkin competitions that you should check out if interested.


The point of taking the sketchbook everywhere you go is that so you get used to drawing/sketching and achieve your short term design goals that you set.