John Linn Post Card

I chose to write to John Linn for the post card assignment; his lecture was both memorable and beneficial. Apart from the concept of humans being a storm, the part in his lecture that stuck out most to me was the idea that we are not alone in the world; there is one world with many different angles to view it from. As designers, it is our goal to create structures that incorporate other life forms and their viewpoints, not just our own.  That way, the earth will obtain a harmonious balance. 

BUS:SHELTER:BUS

CLIENT PRESENTATION

IAR: Designing a Better Community

Assigned with the task of creating promotional strategies, our group would focus on our studio as the topic of community promotion. As we discussed each strategy, we also brainstormed a way to connect them all together. After much deliberation, we focused on two ideas: quotes and a common object. For each promotion, we would adopt a quote that would sum up our objective. Also, we thought it necessary to have a recurring theme, in this case a red square. Each promotion incorporates an alerting, red square into the design.  

Product
S.easterling

By means of flyer or verbal communication, students would announce a voluntary "Scrap Donation." Members of the community would drop off various materials deemed trash or scraps. Provided with this new supply, the second years would then use these resources to construct a product centered around the idea of a lucrative community. Shortly after completion, the donators would be invited back to the Studio Arts Building, where they would behold their, “trash turned treasure.”

HTT[P]

L.petriccione

Since blogger is a web community in itself, having a blog as a web source seemed only necessary. This particular branch of the Community [By] Design Blog would be informative of the society surrounding the studio. Here, students can follow, both events and updates in the second year studio, as well as the community of Greensboro. Various Links would allow viewers to further investigate the happenings of our program.

People
B.cerame
B.cerame
B.cerame

For the People proposal, our group wanted to incorporate a design that had ample amounts of interaction. A white “canvas” would be installed on campus grounds, in an area that is highly public. There, the installation would reside for a month. Since it is blank, with no restrictions, students would be allowed to leave their mark on it. Weather would also alter the material. At the end of the month, we would replace the installment with a plaque, announcing the promotion of the Second Year Studio, and the display of the communal piece.

Places
        E.zheng

People are intrigued by repetition, as a promotional strategy, we would use this to our advantage. Red squares would be place all over the city of Greensboro. Initially, the squares would be solid red with no text, as to fascinate the community. Text would be added progressively, and by the end, a full quote and our studio information would be included 

Print Material
E.zheng

Almost any person will accept a free item(within reason, that is!). The second year studio would disperse these IARC pens into the community. Simple in design and limited text would appeal to the community. Our group took inspiration from the website, where's george.com, where one can track the travel of their currency. Our goal us to disperse enough pens so that, years from now, the pens are still active in the community. 

Additional Proposal: Places

B.cerame

L.petriccione

S.easterling

For the additional promotion, we were keen on finding a way to literally bring members of the community together, by means of wayfinding. Multiple paths would begin within Greensboro. Simple, red squares with white arrows would point one to the next arrow, thus forming  a path. Minimal and without text, the square aims to intrigue the viewer in attempt to follow the path and understand the purpose. If followed, the paths would meet in the park across Spring Garden. A large, red square marks the destination, and a metal plaque, reading, 'One World. Many Angles,' would be installed. 

Group Members: Leah Petriccione, Brianna Cerame, Emme Zheng

Monumental Triple Overlay Lamp

The Monumental Triple Overlay Lamp was produced between 1965 and 1875, by the Boston and Sandwich Company, the primary, domestic glass manufacturers of the time. Highly rare in its existence, this piece is deemed by Dr. Sylvia Yount, as an “outstanding example,” of the accomplishment that is 19th century glass making. In the late 1850s, the company modified their lamps to accommodate kerosene. In doing so, they also redesigned aesthetically to instill more detail and beauty in their product. 
The lamp is made of blown glass, which has been wheel-cut and overlaid. A frosted glass shade with a glass chimney tops the piece, and each glass section is connected with brass and marble. After fusing and molding multiple pieces of colored glass together, workers would cut designs, through the opaque glass, and leave the clear transparent layer visible. Softening the light , the designs would add depth and warmth to the piece. Standing at 41 5/8 inches, the Overlay Lamp is both elegant and ornate.
This lamp, though not entirely similar, can be compared to Marian Mahler’s curtain, solely for visual purposes. Clearly evident is the mutual color scheme of the two pieces. Equally significant is the concept of repetition. The two pieces are designed with a red backdrop, made interesting by recurring patterns dispersed throughout. 
Other than the use of bright colors and the quality of illumination, the Overlay Lamp and the Lava Lamp have exceptionally few comparisons. Produced some tens of decades later, the Lava lamp is regarded as more of a novelty item than anything else. Where the Overlay Lamp uses opaque and transparent material to alter light quality, the lava lamp hardly functions as a light source. Also, the psychedelic nature of the lava lamp regally clashes with the sophisticated elegance of the Overlay lamp. 

IAR 211-02 Week 3

Dining Table: Pen

Honestly, I do not really like this drawing, but in keeping with "post everything," I have it up anyways. I have never really felt comfortable with pen shading and I was not comfortable doing this. I guess there is only one thing for me to do now, and that is to keep practicing!

Studio Shading Exercise

After taking a picture inside of the Studio, we were told to blow up said picture via graphite shading. Days later and countless paper towels to wipe off the pencil smudges on my arms, I finally had the result. I think the piece turned out well, mainly due to the fact that I was relaxed doing it. I worked on adding contrast, day by day and section by section, so that it would not be a stressful process. Jake mentioned drawing as a great stress reliever, and I could not agree more! 

CODES: and all they entail

Symbol group 6's experience with the various requirements to support human activities and needs at first was confusion and frustration because of misunderstanding the intentions of the exercise at first. Even after clarification, there was still a level of frustration because of the limits which caused several aspects of our designs to change. We also found that making a diagram was no longer quite as simple as it used to be. Suddenly we had to look up dimensions and numbers to apply to our diagram. We would recommend to other designers that they attempt to consider the needs of their clients and coding early on in the design process so that later on the changes won't be so drastic when they try and accommodate their design to fit the standards. This will save them a lot of problems later on. Codes help design by creating generalization and making people familiar with the objects the codes are applied to even if they haven’t seen these objects in that particular context before. The client will recognize a door frame for example because that is the size of a door frame in every other building they have entered. We anticipate that codes will change our work by making the design process more structured. This will both add to the ease and difficulty. With codes in place, suddenly we know the dimensions for our design, but it also limits to some extent what we can do. Keeping actual standards in mind means that we can no longer pick arbitrary numbers for a hallway.

Group Members: Megan Shwarz, Chelsea Jackson, and Alexandra Camacho

Shelter Bus Charette

CounselingBus

A Hurricane, depending on the size, can cause the most devastating damage to the areas it passes through. Towns are physically left in shambles, as are the victims who survive the disaster. Symbol  group 6 decided it would be imperative to provide a counseling bus. This particular bus would offer support and aid for victims. One on one time with a counselor in a private space would allow the victims to cope with the tragedy around them. 

GroupSketches

BubbleDiagram

SketchModel

The space would essentially be grouped into spaces. There would be three counseling rooms where victims could be counseled in private. A waiting room with a small kitchenette would provide victims and counsilers an area to congregate in if there is a wait for the private rooms. In the back of the bus, a bathroom and extra storage space would be placed. 

The model is designed as a section view(hence the grey trimmed edges). 

Container # 2:Disaster Relief Truck

We decided that, instead of having two buses that dealt with the aftermath of a Hurricane, we would have one that aided in the prevention of certain destruction prior to a hurricane. The disaster relief container would have materials and supplies to protect from extreme damage to buildings, as well as provide ways of living through a hurricane. 

GroupSketches

Essentially, the truck would be a transporter from manufacturer to the victims in need. Stores such as Lowe's, Home Depot, and various Grocery Stores would supply the truck with the materials and supplies, and we would distribute it where needed. 

BubbleDiagram

SketchModel

Individual compartments would allow organization and productive distribution of supplies. We also decided that the truck would have windows or large doors, so that workers could go to the various compartments, and directly hand out the supplies to the victims in need. 

Group6Members: Chelsea Jackson, Megan Schwarz, and Alexandra Camacho

IAR 211-02: Week 1 and 2

Week 2 

Chaise Lounge- Watercolor

Week 1

Chair- Pencil

Bus Interviews

Other Group Members:

Megan Schwarz, Chelsea Jackson, and Alexandra Camacho

Tornadoes

Symbol group 6 decided that our natural disaster would be a Tornado. Our victim was a family, who survived a Tornado tearing their house apart. Both of the parents were thrown from the house itself, and they found their baby buried under feet of debris, kept safe because a mattress landed on his crib. Fortunately the whole family lived, but some people are not so lucky.

As we began to research structures suitable to withstand a tornado, we came to the conclusion that our mode l needed to be , either dome shaped, or underground. Our final design incorporated both .
The shelter would sit underground, and would only be sized to accommodate a family. Idealy, it would be placed in a backyard. Since Tornadoes don't last too long, the space is very simple; there is enough space to sit and wait out the weather.
Made of reinforced concrete, the structure would be built partially into the ground, as to prevent movement.


The top of the structure would be covered in landscape. If a tornado comes through, the landscape around the structure might be compromised, but the structure itself would not.

Post Card 2

Dear Ms. Paige,

First off, let me say that the steps taken by the university, for a more sustainable environment, are great. I’m sure tray less dining and portion control certainly aids in waste management, however I believe more can be done to progress this issue. I ate at the Caf all last year, and I must say that quantity really trumps quality. Students are given too much selection, and it seems that, subsequently, the food lacks in both nutrition and appeal. I feel that we could manage the waste by providing students with less variety, but higher quality food to choose from. Possibly there could be a poll regarding the least and most popular selections. The assortment of food could be extensively cut, and that would allow for higher quality and less waste. Not only would money be saved, but the Caf may just gain a better reputation!

Thank you,

Sara Easterling

IARC 2^nd Year

Public Transit: What an Experience

The Bus Lady had no intention of waiting for us




Nobody looked at the people next to them, instead they busied themselves in their electronics.

The Bus Station After the Ride
The City Bus; a popular means of transportation for all walks of life, including the observing students of the Iarc second years. With two weeks of schooling thus far, we were assigned the task of studying and documenting the bus environment, as well as the resulting emotions provoked. Additionally, we had to read the text, Civilities and Civil Rights; reading it before or after the bus ride was up to us. I opted for reading beforehand, to get it out of the way, and I am glad that I chose this order.
Sure I remember reading about desegregation, sit ins, and various other acts that pertained to the civil rights movements. What I didn’t recall was that such a large phenomenon hit so close to home, with the early Greensboro sit ins. By reading this first, I knew that my view and interpretations of the bus ride would be completely different than if I had read later.
As recommended, I went with a group of people, as to compare experiences and opinions. As the bus approached the stop, Ben turned towards us and explained how we should give the allusion of veteran bus riders. Now, I have been on public transportation before, but when the doors swung open, there might as well have been a large, neon sign that flashed, “inexperienced riders,” above our heads. Immediately, the bus driver barked at us to get on the bus, because she apparently had no time to actually stop. She then proceeded to mumble about our incompetence when it came to swiping our first cards. As we sat down, Heather, Ben, Leah, Anna, and myself included, I started observing the bus atmosphere fully.
Busses are never overly friendly environments, in my opinion. People keep to themselves or the others whom they know. Eye contact is scarce and conversation is hushed, so the stranger across the aisle can’t eavesdrop. People resort to looking in the window to scope out the refection of the individual sitting across from them. I found myself looking only at the people that I knew. Also, the strangers around me made sure not to look at any of us; it was exceedingly uncomfortable. When I did scan the bus in observation, I noticed that, in keeping with the secluded theme, each person sitting alone was tuned in to his or her own electronic world. A woman fumbled with her ipod as the man next to her texted on his cell phone. They had something to do to feel more relaxed about sitting next to a stranger. Since I wanted to avoid looking directly at people, I opted for looking at the bus itself.
Up at the front of the bus was a small plaque that said, “Rosa Parks, In Honor of Her Sitting.” Out of the group I was in, I was the only person who read before hand, and I was the only one to notice the tribute. Small enough to go unnoticed, the plaque instantly made me reflect on the reading, once I glanced over to it.
As we neared the station, the occupants started to stand and cluster close to the door, clearly aggravated that the bus ran behind schedule. When the bus stopped, our group started to make our way towards the exits, only to be lambasted by the bus driver to, “Exit In The Back!” I found myself thinking about a flow chart and way finding; perhaps there could have been more distinction of where one gets on and off the bus, something besides the scolding of a frustrated bus driver. Then again, it might be common knowledge, and we are too inexperienced in city transportation to understand.

Another Year: Week One

For me, the last days of summer fly by in a matter of seconds. I have never looked forward to the first day of school; it means that, once again, you must apply yourself, work hard, and do something other than sleep all day. So, it was strange when I found myself wanting school to start. Last year was amazing; it was unlike any other year of school, and I loved it.

    It seems that the first week back is always the most difficult. Getting acclimated to school again can be so demanding. Over the summer, I imagined that the first week would be over the top with the quantity of work given. In reality, it wasn’t that bad. Sure we got a good deal of work, but it was all controllable. Last year’s time management prepared us well for this year.

   The biggest thing I noticed about this past week was the concept of group work.  This year, working together will be so predominant in our studio. I think the card idea to determine our seating arrangement was a great one. The groups that we were assigned are so diverse in knowledge and skills. Though it proved to be a challenge to work with 15 people, we all came up with remarkable ideas; there was a good deal of effort.

  Towards the end of the week, we combined all of the suits to make a 60 person deck. Communication was difficult and tension was high, but we all managed to create a fluid idea. I’d say it was a good way to break through the ice of a new year and we are all excited to see where it takes us.