Refined 1:3 Chair Prototype on Duality

I discovered that if I separated each segment 1" apart as opposed to 0.5" apart, that the overall model looked cleaner and still remained structurally sound. Since my chair requires a lot of material, I decided to continue the prototype using Bristol board so that I could get my measurements to scale. That way, all the segments will be easy to measure for my final model that will be 3x the size of my prototype.

My chair is kickball and boyfriend inspired. Most of my initial sketches and drawings incorporated a sphere into the design with the hope of having a design that encouraged a fun, playful way to interact with the chair, yet still be extremely supportive. With this design, the user is able to sit "within" the ball.

To get an idea of scale, the prototype's largest sphere is 12" in diameter, the smallest being 9". The sit-able portion of the chair is 6" long, 6" wide, and 4" tall at the center that rises to 4.5" to the end.

1:3 Refined Model

Side View

Front View

Back View

This model is one third the size of the final chair, meaning the largest sphere will be 3 feet in diameter, having a 18"x18"x12-13.5" sit-able portion.

Artist Reactions

Martin Puryear

The most common feeling that came from witnessing Puryear's work was one of almost familiarity. A lot of his designs seemed to resemble something familiar, yet it was different enough to appear strange. For instance, I recognize a wheel in his piece 'Ad Astra' and the connecting spherical shape makes it look like a wagon, but the structure isn't a wagon. The piece that would, in theory, connect to the horse reaches to the top of a tall ceiling "through hardships," appearing to continue forever.

Another piece, called 'Untitled', reminded me of a Brontosaurus holding a bolder on a rope. I'm not entirely sure what it is, since the title gives no indication on the theme, but it still sparked a sense of familiarity. I recognize that symbol, even if it looks a little off from what I remember.

The majority of his pieces feel organic, yet have a very strong structural feeling. A significant amount of the sculptures revealed the structure within, making it look very well thought out and sturdy, yet the overall shape have organic curves, lines, and asymmetry.

When we were shown Puryear's work, initially I wasn't sure how it pertained to this assignment. Very few of his structures were furniture and none of them used cardboard as a material. However, after I focused on the pieces that revealed the structuring within, I was able to start visualizing how a chair could be built.

Kendall Buster

There is something whimsical about all of Buster's installations. They are larger than life, yet delicate and fragile, appearing as though they could rip or break the moment you touch them. The pieces that allow for viewers to interact with the physical space in and around them intrigue me the most. I want to explore inside. I want to look up from below and see the end, if there is one. I wonder what it feels and looks like from within. Since most of her pieces are life size (if not larger), her work plays with our personal space. They are large enough to interact with, and most provide a space that is inviting, asking you to be curious.
The installations that are on the ceiling look so majestic and unreal. What do they look like from below?  Is there a way to see it from above? Probably not, but I want to! Her installations somehow make me want to see her work from every angle possible.
Buster's structures are strongly geometric, yet organic in its flow, asymmetry, and material. They look as though they could float away if they weren't tied down, yet finding out that they are made out of steel frames and cloth, you realize they are stronger than they look. The shapes of her structures are also organically familiar, reminding me of animals in the sea or organic chemistry molecular shapes, but their size make the pieces somewhat strange. Because of the curves and soft lines in the pieces, they appear to be more inviting and less hostile. I would imagine a rigid or spikey structure would look as though it were invading the installation space as opposed to belonging there.
I loved being able to see the structure of things through her work. In terms of understanding form, I found Buster's work to be really helpful in visualizing how something could structurally come together. Since my final chair idea is in the shape of a sphere, it was beneficial for me to be able to see the grid-like patterns that are commonly used in making a spherical structure.

"Welcome to Design School"

Well, I experienced my first, full-on break down 

when a huge piece of cardboard ripped off from too much tension

during my final steps of creating my "chair."

sigh

Reluctant Dumpster Diving

Turns out if you have a life outside of school, it's hard to track down cardboard.
Most of my designing is done in the evening due to the amount of time I spend at my two jobs. My hope was to work on my chair after Hallmark Symposium, but that idea was quickly squashed when I realized the Commons Shop closes at 5pm and I hadn't finished my shift until 5:30pm.

I freaked out for a good minute.

Then I called U-Haul.
I called Home Depot.
I tried Michaels and Walmart.
I called Ace Hardware.
I looked up Best Buy and gave them a call.
Lastly, I called Target.
Much to my dismay, no one had anything close to the size of a 4x4' box.

I freaked out for another good minute and had a beer.

My physical search for cardboard commenced. Turns out most businesses will dump their cardboard in the alleys at the end of the day. I found cardboard in the dumpsters behind the ReStore and Sunflower Outdoor and Bike Shop.
The largest, continuous piece I could find was 3x3'

I realized that the only aspect of this assignment I have control over is my design.
Perhaps it won't be to scale. Perhaps my cat will truly be the only living thing able to sit on my chair, but I'll show up with my design, my process, and an example of the way I've attempted to solve this problem.

Seating in Context

Using a 4x4' piece of cardboard, create a structurally sound chair that is capable of supporting one person. Making cuts, folds, and tabs are allowed, but no material may be removed. The final chair should be at least 6" off the ground and should be able to unfold into one continuous piece of cardboard.

These parameters seem impossible. Perhaps it's due to my zero experience with 3D design, but I'm predicting I'm going to be doing a lot of research.
I found the link posted on blackboard to be helpful when it came to understand the strength of different shapes. Knowing that the triangle is the strongest geometric shape to withhold a large amount of force gives me a good idea of how I would like to approach my design. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/index.html

However, after doing a small amount of prototyping, I think my chair design would be able to support my cat. Maybe.

I am unlimited: Picture Perfect

I know that our photography project was completed and turned in today, but I felt like this commercial from Sprint was made for our photo assignment and I wanted to share it.

"A billion roaming photojournalists uploading the human experience."

Final Collage

To finish the overall photomontage, I decided to fill in the majority of the negative space with the black background of other photos. This decision, although minor, I think added to the layered effect that you would experience with a collage that filled every space with a photograph. 

Photo Collage Development

Final Collage Location: Teller's Restaurant in Downtown Lawrence, Kansas

Watch it grow.

Preliminary Collage

Secondary Collage

Final Collage in Process

Final Collage in Process

Camera Lucida by Roland Barthes

This has nothing to do with the article itself, but I couldn't stand how it was written. It contained excessive and unnecessary punctuation and every sentence seemed to contain (in some way or another), a parenthetical thought. All of these side points (stopping and starting) seemed to mess up the rhythm of the article, somewhat taking away from its content. If you want an example of how not to write, this would be a good one.

Now that my critique of the writing style is done, I can move on to its purpose.

"The Photograph does not necessarily say what is no longer, but only and for certain what has been."

This idea intrigued me. What is the untold story in these photographs? The photo only captures a moment, but what if that moment happened a long time ago? Age changes the meaning of a photograph to the point of creating a feeling of nostalgia or even of disconnect. What if the world looked different in the past? Could you recognize it? In pictures and paintings, the subject is depicted in their present time. These photos that I've been capturing for this collage could any minute become a moment of our past, but who's to know how soon? They say a photograph is immortal, but the subject and its surroundings are not. Going back to a place that a photo was taken will never be the same as being there the moment it was captured. "Is it possible that Earnest is still alive today: but where? how? What a novel!"

My final collage is of the restaurant, Tellers and this article really made me think about how important it is to create a documentation of our world. I just discovered that they will be remodeling the inside of the Tellers, which makes me excited that I will be able to create something I know will soon be "from the past." This is how Tellers used to look. This is how I saw Tellers.

The story of a photographer handing a photo he had taken of Roland Barthes to Roland Barthes, who could not recall the photograph ever being taken, is a circumstance not uncommon to our generation. "When did you take this photo?" you ask a friend after they tagged you on Facebook. As time passes and that experience fades in our memories, photos have an amazing ability to help us remember. At times, a photograph can even tell a story you didn't know you were a part of. A photograph can bring people together to reminisce "the good old days" or an exciting, fantastic event. These photos connect us to the present, but also solidify our spot in the past.

We will be remembered.

Location Scouting/Sketches

I have a million ideas running through my head, but I'm having difficulty figuring out how I want to go about this project. Since I've lived in Lawrence for 7 years, I was able to draw some sketches from memory to start my location "scouting". Most of the locations I sketched and chose to photograph ended up being places I spend the majority of my time: home, work (two jobs), and school.

HOME
The idea behind this location was inspired by my cat, Hank. In terms of my apartment itself, it's really nothing special. My greatest hope with this idea was that I could create something interesting out of a place so ordinary. Whether that could be achieved through the movement of my cat through my windows and front door or through the manipulation of photos with zoom, angle, color, etc., I wasn't entirely sure. But I was curious enough with this idea that it became one of the locations that I photographed.

Preliminary Sketch

Preliminary Photo Collage: 5-7 photos

SUNFLOWER OUTDOOR AND BIKE SHOP
I've worked at Sunflower for over three and a half years. While there, I would come and go from that familiar building from nearly every direction, almost every day. I'd go north, south, east, and west for my lunch break, errands to the bank, last minute Christmas shopping, you name it, till I had seen the building from every angle possible. My idea set out to show a different perspective on the building by photographing in a semi-circle around the store front, almost with an "in passing" feel to the collage.

Initial Sketches and Photo Collage: 5-7 photos

Preliminary Collage: 5-7 photos

My approach to the photography didn't come together as it had in my head, so I decided that I would leave this idea at the preliminary stage.

TELLERS
This is the second place that I work in downtown Lawrence. I'm a new employee, but I'm not new to the understanding of the vastness and beauty that is inside this bank turned restaurant. It's huge. The high ceilings draw you to look up and when you do, all you see are lights. Lights of different size, shape, height, and brightness that all bring a very intimidate ambiance to the room, making it an ideal place for a special occasions...or for photographing.
My plan was to capture the building from the floor up to the ceiling, where I would slowly work my way up the wall until it looked as though you were standing on the floor looking up at the glowing circles. My sketch showed the lights on the floor, and to be honest, I'm not sure why I organized the collage idea in that manner. After shooting a few shots with my camera, I quickly realized that time of day and the angle I hold my camera would be very important with all these photos. Photographing lights ended up being a lot trickier than I originally thought.

Preliminary Sketch

Initial Sketch with Collage: 5-7 photos

CAMPANILE
I've passed this tower more times than I can recall. I've walked under it for the first time as a graduate of KU and now I stand before it again as a new student in a new program. I love this tower. The limestone holds so much possibility for color and you can see it transform depending on the time of day. In the morning it's a stark, pale grey and turns to a clean, white in the afternoon, then becomes a soft golden orange at sunset and ends glowing gold once the sun hides behind the horizon. This building held so much potential to depict the changing of time in a large, open space.  I started with a sketch and then snapped a few photos. It was somewhat obvious that I needed to decide what aspect of the overall image I wanted to focus on.

Preliminary Sketch and Collage: 5-7 photos

Preliminary Sketch