2.0

This phase of the project is called Building Generator and will develop from the site analysis and the application of the index from the shirt manipulations. The drawings that you produced from the shirt documented the operations performed on that building. So what is your concept and how can you map the site as you mapped the operations performed on the shirt? You must get to know your concept like it is your new significant other. There are several steps to the analysis. The most important step is to trace the indexical condition of your idea through the site. You need to gather information from the site that is relevant to the ideas (index) in the shirt project.

We need to get to know the site. Map. Map. Map. The maps will follow the graphical expression found within your shirt diagrams.

Have each individual diagram printed on an 8.5x11 sheet of paper.

The photo set above illustrates how your graphical expression can carry through from one stage to another. Here this student first analyzed the movement of the buttons on the shirt in plan, then when we moved onto the Canyon Lakes System here in Lubbock this person was able to map and measure the varying water levels of the canyon lakes using the same kind of notation found in the shirt phase.

2.0

We will be meeting here tomorrow at 8h30. I will be sitting at the intersection of Main and K street.

Bring your cameras, notebooks, pencils, tape measures, ideas, concepts or anything you desire to have on a site visit. You can bring your sections if you want to study what you drew versus what exists, but you should not bring your computers or any other heavy machinery. We need to return to the architecture building at 10h30 for the last remaining three to be reviewed. The order will go as follows: Nathan, Jesus, and last but not least Marshall.

Yes your sections are still due tomorrow. Everything else that is missing from the previous phase like diagrams, photomontages, ect. should be printed and pinned up no later than Monday at the beginning of class. I had stated Friday, but lets get some good work out and talk about it on Monday. You should have your drawings for me to see tomorrow, I will check them upon returning from the site.

2.0

Site Visit ::

You all are to meet me on the corner of Main Street and K Street at 8h30 sharp on Friday. Tardiness will not be acceptable this day.

Your initial four explorative sections should be printed on 8.5x11 in landscape format for Friday as well. You can choose to take sections through the transverse, cross, or the plan. You can experiment with all but think about how you have used your operative system so far in the semester while drawing, and this will lead you through the dissection of the model and the notating of your sections.

See you at the Jim Kimmel Center on Friday morning...

2.0

Building Analysis:

“As both analogue and abstraction the surface of the map functions like an operating table, a staging ground or a theatre of operations upon which the mapper collects, combines, connects, marks, masks, relates, and generally explores. These surfaces are massive collections, sorting and transfer sites, great fields upon which real material conditions are isolated, indexed and placed within an assortment of relational structures.” James Corner

You are to map the surfaces of the building. There are physical attributes to this place, but there are also spatial characteristics that a flat 2-d surface or a map must convey as well. In this studio we will examine the site through your concept. Like I said on Monday, you are looking at the building through elements made up of your concept. Look for associations within the structure, surface, and ground. First you need to familiarize yourself with the site and its history, then after Friday we will move on to identifying those concepts and the ways they can be used to map the site.

ftp://maps2005.ci.lubbock.tx.us/
LBB 1954_04
LBB 1958_145
LBB 1970_107
LBB 1975_107
LBB 1986_107
LBB 1995_11

2.0

Readings in Site :

Your assignment for Wednesday is to read a part of James Corners' article The Agency of Mapping, begin with page 213 and end with page 228 (write a five sentence synopsis on your reading). James Corner is a principle in the firm Field Operations located in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. He is also the Dean of the University of Pennsylvania's Landscape Architecture Program (Penn Landscape).

Also continue to work on what was individually discussed on Monday. Work on diagrams and illustrator drawings on your photomontage, many of your need to clean your photomontage and most of you have neglected to put notation on the montage. Please do not wait for me to say exactly what you need to do, you need to perform independently. I believe that everyone took the weekend off and if you take these two days off just consider yourself behind. You should take what was said on Friday and Monday and implement it into your project.

We will have a presentation for the first part of class on Wednesday. After the presentation I need to talk to each one of you about what you need to finish right away.

We will finish our review on Wednesday beginning at 10h30am with Jesus, Marshall, and Nathan.

1.7

Quote of the week ::

It is not about what a drawing or model looks like, but what it can do - how it operates in and on the world.

Design issues discussed on Friday ::

What are your concept models trying to tell you. Let your main concept model advise you. Study how your model operates. How is the model fabricated? Look at the tensions that exist within the model. Study the connections and joints in your model. Is the concept of boundary important in your model. Consider how surface relates to the structure in your model. Does the structure manipulate the surface or does the surface manipulate the structure. What is your investigatory method of surface? Look for the - not simply as representation.. What does it implicate. Look for the systems evident in your concept model, find the systems and notate them as discussed before.

Look beyond the formality of your concept model and dissect the details. You should still be working on your projects for Monday. For those of you who have not presented email me if you need some guidance. Look at the walls of the people we reviewed on Friday, some students' presentations went better than others, but the ideas are there, you just have to look intimately at process and find the dialog that has been guiding you.

Try to implement the above regulations into your project and strategize for your Monday presentation. We will have 8 people to review on Monday. We will start promptly at 8h45, this will give us 20 minutes per person. Remember to begin with your operative concept and quickly move on from there. I will be there at 8h15 to answer any question and concerns.

Remember ::
Models are tests.
Models are instructive.

See you on Monday.

1.7

Quote of the week

"The painter starts with the real world and works toward abstraction...But architecture takes two lines. The architect starts with the abstract world, and due to the nature of her work, works toward the real world. The significant architect is one who, when finished with a work, is as close to the original abstraction as she could possibly be...and that is also what distinguishes architects from builders." John Hejduk

Fridays presentation will begin at 9am. We will have Clifton Ellis and Brian Rex as our guests, so be on your best behavior. We will begin with Ricky and move around the room counter clockwise. I will be in studio at 8h15 to help prepare and organize if you are having a hard time with either of these tasks.

I talked to each one of you in detail this morning about what to have for Friday so there is no specific list of drawings to present, but rather what you will need to explain your concept. Many of you will include your original delineation of the shirt, some of you will not. Just remember what we talked about today.

Representing the operation of the model is essential. If the model moves you must represent the stages and the trace of movement using photomontage methods with analytical drawing techniques for the plan and or the section. You all should know what you need to do. If there are any questions please feel free to email me. I think most of you are where you need to be, but some are behind and need to do some catching up before Fridays review. Remember to focus on process, recognizing that the architectural process is more unique than the product, exploit craft (drawing, fabrication, connection, ect) as an investigatory method - not simply as representation.

When drawing your sections/plans and or composing your photomontage/drawing do not forget those notational techniques developed during the first quarter of the semester. Use what you have, use what you have learned and you will do wonderfully on Friday.

Things to have for your 9:00 Friday presentation (this is a short list, each one of you will be distinct in what you pinup)...

1. First things first. Your manipulated shirt should be pinned up already or you have the option to wear it.
2. Operational diagram(s) of the shirt. Sequential photos and or sequential diagrams of the shirt process. Pinup all things that were talked about on Wednesday. Some of you need to work on lineweights that were never fixed and print them as well. I spoke with each of you about what you need to have from this stage, but if you have any more questions either comment on this blog or email me. The drawings should dazzle your critic. This is where your concept started.
3. Concept models and process models will need to be working and presented with excellent craft. This stage is testing the material, representational, and performative qualities of your concept models. The question to ask yourselves is, "what material best represents my idea?" "What are the performative qualities of my concept?" If one of these new models is a work in process, bring it regardless.
4. Sequential photographs and or Photomontages and or Photomontage drawings.
5. Plan and or Section drawings.

I will be there at 8h15 to help set up. This means you must be on time.

1.7

Operative Collage :: Photomontage

Your main task this weekend is to compose a photomontage. Photomontage is the process (and result) of making a composite photograph by cutting and joining a number of other photographs. The composite picture is photographed so that the final image is converted back into a seamless photographic print. Hannh Höch and Raoul Haussman are two German Dadaists that pioneered this operative process during the Weimar Republic.

You will not physically cut, instead you will be photoshoping the composite image. You will need to photograph your model in plan and or in elevation during its operative process. So in other words photograph your model during its transformative stages. When taking your photos please use a clean black or white background, and one strong single light (good lighting), this will make it easier for you to cut out your models from each image. You will then take these process photographs and manipulate them in photoshop. Bump up the brightness and the contrast of each photo before using the polygonal lasso tool to erase the background. REMEMBER TO DOUBLE CLICK ON THE LAYER THAT SAYS BACKGROUND IN THE RIGHT COLUMN OF PHOTOSHOP, IF YOU AVOID THIS STEP YOU WILL NOT EFFICIENTLY ERASE EVERYTHING BUT YOUR MODEL. ESSENTIALLY YOUR BACKGROUND BECOMES LAYER 0. WHEN YOU ARE DONE MANIPULATING YOU SHOULD HAVE SEVERAL IMAGES OF FLOATING MODELS. THE ONLY THING LEFT IN EACH IMAGE SHOULD BE THE MODEL ITSELF. Here is where you are to play with the transparency of each image. Please reference to first two images of this post. So you begin with the first process stage of your model and work towards the final stage of your model, dragging each layer onto the final image. So say your model has five transformative steps, steps one though five. Step one would be the most transparent, then the second would be a little less transparent, the third less transparent than the second, ect, ect, until you finally arrive at the last step, #5 in this case, and you would overlay steps one through four onto the fifth and final image. Here you would have one single image that documents the operative steps of your concept model.

Some of you I talked to yesterday will not use this overlay technique because your models may have too many varying parts and you should aim for composing individual evolving steps on a linear sheet of paper like the third image in this post. Yours I will make reference to as a set of sequential photographs that represent the trace movements of your concept model. You should still use many of the techniques listed in the paragraph above, like bumping up the brightness and contrast, using a plain white or black background, and cutting out the actual model from the background in photoshop. You can also play around with the Inverse tool in photoshop. If you take your white model and photograph it on a black background, bump up the contrast, and then move into photoshop and press "control I" for Inverse. Then you will have a black model on a white background.

Play and Move with this assignment guys and gals!

These operational collages are superficial or surface translations that relate to the manipulations of the shirt. At this stage we are still developing rules and forms for your concepts.

Then after you complete the photomontage, take the composite image into Illustrator and start drawing the notation you have been using through these steps especially if you are having trouble representing your model through CAD drawings. Please reference the third image in the post. This image uses the photomontage technique as well as Illustrator to further notate the operations of the model. So yes draw on top of the composite photograph. Use the notational techniques familiar to you and your shirt diagrams. Draw, draw, draw.

Due on Monday ::
Photomontage or Sequential Photographs with high resolution on an 11x17 (some of you are doing more than one montage, so each should be printed out on an individual 11x17 sheet). If you are doing the sequential photographs as discussed before you may need a print out that is longer than 17 inches. It may be more like 11x24.
Photomontage with Drawing (plans and or elevations, depending on what we discussed in class on Friday) on an 11x17
If you are still working on your CAD Elevations and or Plans please also print these out on 11x17's. For those having trouble representing your concept models through CAD drawings, the photomontage with drawing can sub for this step.
Everything should be printed by 8h30 at the latest!

Have fun. Email me if you have any questions.

1.6

Task One ::
Continue to work on your Concept model. While working on the model look at the operative model presentation on the blog. It is under the link caption on the left side of the page. Think about the operative function of the model. What is operative function of your idea? Continue to develop your concept as discussed in class. This model will be completed with excellent craft by Wednesday.

Task Two ::
Draw the model in plan and or section using AutoCAD, FormZ, and Illustrator to finish. I am letting you choose which one you want to draw for Wednesday. Is the model better represented in plan or in section? Decide and draw it. If the model moves you must represent the stages and the trace of movement using process notational methods with analytical drawing techniques for the plan and or the section. This drawing is due on either an 11x17 sheet or 8.5x11 at 8h15 on Wednesday.

Task Three ::
Take sequential photographs of the model and its operation. You may choose to do a photomontage or a set of sequential photographs. This task would be performed using the transparency tool in Photoshop to represent the trace movement of your model. This needs to be printed at a high resolution and is due on Monday.

1.5

Updated Materials List ::

yellow trace
white trace
paper
one ply museum board
two ply museum board
natural cotton muslin
cotton
needle/thread (white thread or red thread)
elastic thread
book binders thread
dressmakers pins
piano wire
cardboard
argue for others as we progress

At least one concept model is due with great craft on Wednesday, some of you may choose to do as many as three. Translate your ideas into a 3d construct (concept model). You need to extract rules of operation from the existing system of your shirt manipulation. Your concept, which was developed during the first exercise, should be further explored within this concept model. This exercise will demonstrate how your idea operates and it will not be a representation of how it looks. Continue to develop your concept as discussed today in class. If you did not talk to me, you need to contact me as soon as possible (Junior, David, and Catherine).

I will be grading on Friday, so you will not have your quarter semester grades until Monday. This gives you until Friday to work out the kinks in your drawings. You will also need to bring your shirt either Wednesday or Friday, but it needs to be pinned up on your wall on Friday. We will organize then.

1.5

To the right you will find the presentation I will give on Monday. It is about the concept of folding in architecture. Folding is an idea and is more of a form generator than form actualized. You can download it to prepare for a giant leap on Monday. We will be moving away from the shirt as a surface. I have guided some of you into the next phase of this project. This step completely divorces you from the shirt surface and moves you to another disparate surface. Experimenting with different surfaces/materials will help to further your conceptual theme. These models use folding as a structural concept, but some of you may not use the “fold” literally. Folding models are concept models that start with a foldable surface, but it may be cut and manipulated to fit your specific idea. This will be due on Wednesday.

Procedure: Take your systemic drawing and retranslate these ideas away from the shirt and towards a new surface. You will be analyzing the notation in your diagrams and translating these ideas into a material exploration.
materials include:
yellow trace
paper
one ply museum board
natural cotton muslin
needle/thread
elastic thread
dressmakers pins
argue for others as we progress

Your systemic diagrams contain instructions for the operations/manipulations of your shirt and can be used as physical evidence to support your concept. Use your operation list... cut/fold/crease/rotate/score/ect... to begin. Think about the order of your shirt operations/manipulations. Think about your concept and how it works formally and functionally. Print your systemic drawing and sketch three initial ideas for Monday. For those of you who I told to try it, continue to do so. The last six slides of the posted presentation illustrate this new assignment perfectly. Only ideas are due on Monday, so be ready. Your fixed drawings are still due and should be printed and posted by 8h30 on Monday.

Questions: What can you reveal about your concept through a manipulation of different materials and techniques? How can material representation work with your conceptual theme.

After Monday we will no longer consume class with questions about your operative shirt diagrams. You should have three types of drawings. The process drawing, the composite drawing, and your systemic drawing. By now you should know Illustrator very well, have good control of your lineweights, have a great language of notation in your drawings, and have a a developed conceptual theme for working with surface. If you do not, then you are not doing well in the class. You need to look around you and see what others are doing if you are having a difficulties with this assignment. It is a dangerous thing for you as a collective to not complete work in studio. Most of your technical questions you ask in class could be answered by your classmates. In this setting you learn from your colleagues and will continue to learn from them until you work in an architectural office.

I will be giving shirt exercise grades on Friday, so if you are behind this is your time to play some catch up. You must remember this is a design studio and your ability to be curious and creative is important. To bring something new to the table is a necessity in this profession. You will not “just do what you are told to do”, this is not designing.