"Calming Downtown"
Medium: Wood and Cardboard
Size: 30.48 cm x 30.48cm
Date: April 2016
Inspired by Hugh Ferriss' the Metropolis of Tomorrow, the piece attempts to form a downtown scenario in a futuristic city, The intentions of the piece were to be able to model a downtown scene in which light is incorporated in a way to add aesthetic beauty to the piece and produce a calming environment. Cities are usually seen as crowded and this scene was meant to eliminate that idea even with towering skyscrapers.
Medium: Wood and Cardboard
Size: 30.48 cm x 30.48cm
Date: April 2016
Inspired by Hugh Ferriss' the Metropolis of Tomorrow, the piece attempts to form a downtown scenario in a futuristic city, The intentions of the piece were to be able to model a downtown scene in which light is incorporated in a way to add aesthetic beauty to the piece and produce a calming environment. Cities are usually seen as crowded and this scene was meant to eliminate that idea even with towering skyscrapers.
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Planning
My planning began by sketching out 15.24 cm by 15. 24 cm squares. These were proportional to the wooden base I would later utilize for my final piece. The rules for this piece were that the bases required 4 straight lines or cuts, two of which needed to be perpendicular and there needed to be at least one void through which light could shine through. Therefore I sketched out my bases using various angles and varying lone lengths to create three differing, possible base outlines. I made sure to always include at least one 90 degree angle and create at least one void. Once I had sketches for my base, I decided to sketch out possible layouts for the components that would lie on my piece. Once I had a good idea as what to do for my project, I chose one base outline and drew it onto my wooden base. Then utilizing a table saw, cut along the lines eventually leaving a void and lines through which light could shine through. Now that I had my base prepared, I began to look at artists and cities to influence how I would setup my piece and what I would incorporate into it. |
Artistic Inspiration
Hugh Ferriss was my artistic inspiration for this piece. He was an American architect and delineator who influenced fictional cities such as Gotham City from Batman. I was influenced by Hugh's sketches of The Metropolis of Tomorrow. Throughout his work Ferriss utilizes tall, towering skyscrapers in his urban settings and yet although skyscrapers are usually depicted as being intimidating due to their stature, his depictions of the urban landscape are usually calming and inviting. This was an aspect I wanted to incorporate into my model of my downtown setting. I wanted to utilize tall buildings yet somehow maintain a calming and inviting atmosphere.
Research and Picture Citation: http://thenonist.com/index.php/thenonist/permalink/hugh_ferriss_delineator_of_gotham
Hugh Ferriss was my artistic inspiration for this piece. He was an American architect and delineator who influenced fictional cities such as Gotham City from Batman. I was influenced by Hugh's sketches of The Metropolis of Tomorrow. Throughout his work Ferriss utilizes tall, towering skyscrapers in his urban settings and yet although skyscrapers are usually depicted as being intimidating due to their stature, his depictions of the urban landscape are usually calming and inviting. This was an aspect I wanted to incorporate into my model of my downtown setting. I wanted to utilize tall buildings yet somehow maintain a calming and inviting atmosphere.
Research and Picture Citation: http://thenonist.com/index.php/thenonist/permalink/hugh_ferriss_delineator_of_gotham
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Process
Once I had my base prepared, I could begin laying out my urban landscape. First I began by placing wooden blocks in accordance with my precut lines. I made blocks parallel to the lines in order to create a sense of purpose and belonging for each piece. Some pieces were too tall for my model and therefore I had to cut them down using a miter saw. While laying out my city, I constantly placed my base over a light box in order to see how the light would be incorporated into the piece and see how it would look. I mainly only used tall blocks at first. This allowed for me to see the space left below and how I could incorporate smaller objects into these gaps without overcrowding the piece. Overall I seemed to work from the center void of my base outwards towards the edges as the focal point was the area where the largest amount of light entered the piece. I liked how my piece was draped in light creating a calming tone and I wanted to leave some areas in the dark in order to offset the strength of the light. Once I had my taller buildings in place, I decided to begin to incorporate smaller pieces throughout the piece. The majority of these pieces remained in the dark however I placed a few on a cut thus allowing light to climb up them. One piece manipulated the light in a way that when it hit the block it created a spotlight-like silhouette as two different light sources intersected on the piece. I felt that the void was too big, so I decided to break it apart by having two long wooden piece rest on the building that was already there and then having the light underneath reflect off of them. This weakened the light thus preventing it from drawing all of the attention from the viewer to it. I did not want to stick to strictly box like shapes therefore I began to cut shapes at different angles. Then I found tubes of cardboard that could add a bit of a symmetry to my piece and balance out all the edges. Therefore I decided to cut down a tube and then cut it at an angle. I laid it out over a cut which allowed light to flow into it and immediately I enjoyed the feeling it gave to the piece. When I knew how I wanted to layout my piece, I began utilizing wood glue to keep pieces in place. A challenge however was the fact that at times I regretted where I had placed a piece and it was difficult to remove the piece and move it around to another location. |