8/30/2009

Workshop 1: Material Modeling Studio 4

Theme: Freedom - Experience of workshop 1.

Material: Balsa


During four weeks we did drawing, writing and model making, learning how to communicate our mind to others. It is a fun process involving lots of thinking and experiments. We can do anything we like as there is no right or wrong. Free mind leads imagination and creativity.

The way of think is similar to brainstorming, which is a technique to generate lots of ideas on the specific topic and then determine the best solution. When we write down starting point, we don’t know which the exact way to go is and where we will end up to. We just simply let our thoughts flow as they will, record whatever comes into our mind and no matter how daft, how impossible or how silly an idea is. Freeing up our internal critic allows ourselves to express things we might not write down if we were being too self-conscious. I believe this is truly freedom.

It’s like a growth of a tree. Branch comes out from the trunk, and there are always smaller branches on each branch. The tree grows freely and you never know what it would be like and what the end is.

I really want to interpret this idea on my model. In a space at a staring point, my mind flows freely to any directions. Each way is independent with different texture but they also have some internal relationships. All these elements come together haphazardly, building up the whole structure. There are no any rules or regulations of the structure and space. It is not the end and can be continues.

If you go back to look at my previous works, it seems they also shows some kinds of freedom. For the drawing of dream, it is very similar to idea of free I explained above.

There are lots of branches coming out from the point when you fell into sleep. That weave model seems to be very organic but it also shows the continuity without limitation. The urban model also shows how the mono rail breaks the rules and interprets freedom. Balsa is used in this model. It is very light, soft and easy to work with. A sharp knife is enough and cutting follow the grain is very easy. Balsa is very brittle and hard to deform elastically, only the very thin scrips can be bent. Glue gun is very useful to join the parts.





Collage

Workshop 1: Material Modeling Studio 3

Theme: Experience in space and time of urban area.

Material: Homemade playdough, Mountboard.


The urban area is defined as a high density of population and human-created structures, as well as the communications between people and building environment.

In the urban area, the strongest feeling is constrictions from crowds and traffic flow, especially from all the tall buildings surrounding you, which are often compacted tightly. The limitation of space and the fast tempo of life bring in a high tension. The urban area also has a high density of restrictions and rules, such as the traffic lights stop your step and the visual field is interrupted by the buildings. People cautiously cross through all the narrow passages and thin rifts between structures. Even though the usage of space is maximised reasonably in the urban area, the people still feel cramped.

At the meantime, monorail becomes a specially sign of the city. It is not only a smart way showing space-efficient, but also brings the vitality to the city. The monorail breaks the rules, does not restricted by the traffic, and flies out from the gaps between buildings at a high speed. The lightness of the monorail and the heavily constriction of the building blocks become a strong visual comparisons. When you looked up the monorail above your head, you may feel it’s like a way to the vast firmament.

It not only extends the space visually, but also extends the time as it is so easy to remind you about the future world, as shown in the science fiction film, all the transportations suspend in the air.






Collage

Workshop1: Material Modeling Studio 2

Inspiration:

1.Gilles DELEUZE, ‘The Fold: – Leibniz and the baroque’, Minneapolis: University of Minnessota Press, 1993.

2. Shigeru BAN, ‘Japan Pavilion’, EXPO 2000, Hannover, Germany.


Material: Mountboard









Workshop 1: Material Modeling Studio 1

In class drawing



memory




anxiety





dream





desire




terror



confinement