Extension - Primary Research - 14/10/2019
Extension - 14/10/2019
Donald Judd
I did research on Donald Judd. The style of my illuminate project model is similar to his style. His artworks are simple but attractive. He uses basic geometric shapes and adds material, colour and space to them. I like how he combines solid and light materials and turns them into negative and positive space visually.
In this artwork, the translucency of the Plexiglas allows the inner structure to be seen. The blue Plexiglas also softens the shiny bass, creating another texture. The layers of materials encourage visitors to see what is inside the box and to walk around it. This is what I lack in my design. It only has a mono wood colour. I need to add variety in it, both on the colour and the material.
https://www.guggenheim.org/artwork/1752
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/judd-untitled-t04936
https://thedesignedit.com/exhibitions/donald-judd/
The two designs below are inspired by the same natural phenomena - Moiré effect.
Moiré jewellery, David Derksen, 2014
"I usually start my design process from a principle like gravity, or in this case the Moiré effect, and research it, and only afterwards do I think about how to apply it."
It uses the movement of two perforated surfaces to create changing patterns. The simplicity of playing it (only need to cross the two layers) and the complexity of the patterns formed allow uses to play and get involved in it voluntarily. This is what I have to learn - to make the process of playing simple while the outcome (changing shadow) attractive.
https://www.dezeen.com/2014/04/11/david-derksen-first-jewellery-range-ventura-lambrate-milan-2014/
Moiré lights, David Derksen, 2016
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/01/16/moire-lights-david-derksen-lighting-rotate-to-create-patterns/
Terraforming, 2015
This design uses sound to create movement. The pattern changes as the frequency of sound changes. It applies an indirect way - sound, to move the white crystals, not by hand or any direct force. This reminds me of Takis's artworks from the Tate Modern. He used natural element - magnetic fields to create sculptures and music. I have an idea of using magnets to create an invisible force.
https://www.studioswine.com/work/terraforming/
Moon Rock, Bethan Laura Wood, 2011
I like the playfulness of the table. The pattern on the table surface can interact with the tableware. Users can layout the tableware using the inspiration from the pattern.
http://www.bethanlaurawood.com/work/moon-rock-low-tables/
Patterned garments, Anouk van de Sande, 2015
The pattern on the clothes changes as wearer walks. It makes walking and moving more interesting.
Structure & Surface - Primary Research - 28/9/2019
Structure & Surface - Primary Research - 28/9/2019
I am particularly interested in modular, structured, entangled, porous, looped and stretched.
Modular:
The tangerine below is composed of 8 segments. The segments are closely fit with one another. Part of them is connected by the fibre on the outer surface.
Several plastic fibres are put together to form a bigger toilet brush.
Structured:
Layers of mushrooms. I found the structure is beautiful and functional.
Illuminate - Primary Research - 14/9/2019
Illuminate - Primary Research - 14/9/2019
The photo shows the light on different materials - wood and printed paper board. The light and shadow intervene, which creates emphasis on the texts. The uneven surface of the piece of wood and the paper board forms shadow, adding layers to the image.
This lamp turns the direction of the bulb. The bulb faces inside, towards a semi-circular cover. The design dulcifies the direct radiation of the light, which is harmful to the eyes, and applies reflected light using a metal surface. This makes the light more gentle in an interior space.
This design uses a similar idea to the one above - let the light reflect. I like the shape of the lamp. The light underneath diffuses in a circular shape, while the cover is a rectangle.
Light passes through the glass and the red transparent plastic board forming different emanations. The part where the glass is bend creates a blank area. The red on the plastic board is also shown on the shadow.
This table is displayed near a window. The sunlight shines on the window and reflects on the glass, then forms a series of rainbow colours on the table. It was really delighting when I saw this, which gives me some inspirations. I could use natural light and a piece of glass to create a rainbow producing machine. Rainbow is beautiful for its temporality, so the machine could only produce rainbow occasionally.
The light from the filament emanates on the wall, creating blurred straight yellow lines.
I noticed this when I was brushing my teeth. As I pour the water, the glass cup changes the direction and the water inside is also becoming less which bends light in various ways forming changing textures inside the water channel.
Extension - 16/10/2019
Extension - 16/10/2019
Growlight, Hallgeir Homstvedt, 2015
The light can be moved up and down. Space below and above the light is telling the user to move it. Blocks stick too close together In my initial model, which hindered the tendency of moving.
http://www.hallgeirhomstvedt.com/#/growlight/
Collapse Lamp, Hayo Gebauer, 2012
I like the playfulness of the lamp. The light is turned on when it is upright and turned off when it falls over. It makes the process of turning on and off a lamp more dramatic.
https://www.dezeen.com/2012/07/11/collapse-lamp-by-hayo-gebauer/
Takis
He used magnetism to create sculpture. I like the tension between the geometric solids. It inspired me to use magnets to connect my blocks.
Photo taken by me at Tate Modern
Structure & Surface - Research - 30/9/2019
Structure & Surface - Research - 30/9/2019
Shock Proof, Frank Tjepkema and Janneke Hooymans, 2006
The vase applies the Do Break principle. The interior is made of polyurethane rubber and the material outside is ceramics. These two layers of materials prevent the vase from falling apart and remain watertight when dropping on the floor. The cracks of ceramics are also decorative. I like the combination of fragile and strong materials. Their properties are revealed and complemented in this design. The weakness of ceramics is turned into an aesthetic element. I might try combining materials with different properties in my work.
Rasta Stool, Rasdu Comsa, 2006
The design uses hyperbolic planes which can wrap items like magazines and cups. It is achieved by using the rubber cord. The structure and material create a seat that can store things. I could explore various geometries and their properties.
Mycelium + Timber, Sebastian Cox and Ninela Ivanova, 2017
I like the texture of the design. It remains the sense of nature of mushroom. Another material used is goat willow. The two materials achieve harmony and peace when putting together. Just as Ivanova said, "These two materials have a natural relationship in the woodland." Goat willow and mushroom are grown beside each other in nature. What I was aiming at is the opposite. I wanted to create a contrast between the two materials, so I chose plastic.
Recent research found out that fungi can break down plastic and create sustainable material. Maybe I can design a bin that uses mushrooms to decompose waste.
Mushroom Foam
Mushroom is already used to replace plastic, because of its soft quality. Like the mushroom foam below.
https://ecovativedesign.com/packaging
Leaves, Shaina Garfield, 2019
It is a coffin that uses fungus to biodegrade the body. The fungus allows the body to decompose quickly and fertilise the soil around. The design emphasizes the idea that human belongs to nature. Our bodies should decay just like all other species. The design also reminds me of how we are disconnected from nature. We are surrounded by so many useless artificial products. I think designers should make people's life simpler.
https://www.dezeen.com/2019/03/18/shaina-garfield-leaves-sustainable-coffin/
Aniela Hoitink, 2016
It is a dress created using disc-shaped mushroom mycelium. I am particularly interested in how the pieces are connected. Hoitink moulded the circular pieces around a body form to make the dress. My mushroom material is also in a circular shape. I could also wrap my pieces around a form to give them a 3-D shape.
Benjamin Hubert, 2015
This is a modular screen system. It is composed of a plastic hexagonal skeleton and pressed hemp. I like the flexibility of the design, where the screen can shrink and extend according to users' need. This could be another way of connecting my mushroom pieces.
Illuminate - Research - 15/9/2019
Illuminate - Research - 15/9/2019
Olafur Eliasson is a Danish-Icelandic artist who has been working a lot with light. The following are artworks that I saw in his recent exhibition in Tate Modern.
This is a photo that I took inside Din blinde passager (Your blind passenger), which is a work created by Eliasson in 2010. The space is filled with fog and orange lights are used to colour the fog. After I walked through the channel, I saw everything in a bluish colour. Later I discovered on Tate's official Instagram that this is because of the afterimage on eyes. Visitors have been seeing orange the whole time as they walk through the channel. When they leave that orange environment, they see surroundings without orange, which results in seeing everything in orange's complementary colour - blue. I found it interesting how the colour of light in the environment can alter the way we see things. I could research more on the effect of afterimage.
Regenfenster (Rain window) 1999. Eliasson is working with light and water in this piece of artwork. Water is flowing down the window. As the sunshine passing through the window, a light area is formed on the floor. What is intriguing is that the area is not stationary. Its border flows and moves along the water.
The artwork below is In real life, which is created in 2019. It uses the same effect that I noticed in primary research. Lights pass through colour-effect filter glass and form colour blocks on the wall. I like how Eliasson combines dark shaded area with colours in this work. The use of triangles creates harmony within the variety of colours.
In Eine Beschreibung einer Reflexion (A description of a reflection) 1995, Eliasson uses two mirrors to reflect lights twice. The second mirror behind the round screen rotates as it reflects, forming an irregular splotch of light om the screen.
In Your uncertain shadow (colour) 2010, Eliasson puts five lights with different colours behind visitors. When visitors stand in front of the lights, they can see their quintuple shadow, each with different colours, corresponding to the colour of lights behind them.
Extension - 20/10/2019
Extension - 20/10/2019
Memphis
This series of designs use vivid colours and geometric shapes. The bright and attractive colours stir up users emotion. The geometric shapes give users an impression of toy bricks. As if the parts can be disassembled.
Super Lamp, Martine Bedin, 1981
https://www.dezeen.com/2015/08/24/postmodern-design-super-lamp-martine-bedin-memphis/
Bel Air armchair, Peter Shire, 1982
Michael Graves, 1981
Structure & Surface - Research - 2/10/2019
Structure & Surface - Research - 2/10/2019
My tutor told me I should make my model into something else other than a bin. I did more research for inspiration.
Nourish, Will Fazackerley, 2018
It is a vessel made for slurping soup. I like how the design changes users' way of eating by redesigning the shape of the tableware. The best approach to taste the soup with this vessel is through slurping. The design gives users a reason to abandon spoon and eating in an unconventional way.
https://www.dezeen.com/2018/06/29/will-fazackerley-royal-college-of-art-design/
Metallic Geology, 2014
I like the contrast between the rough rock surface and the smooth metallic surface. It is very similar to my idea of combining natural and artificial objects. The design brings the element of the landscape into domestic, which "draws striking contrasts between the power of nature and the still sanctuary". The upper part of the design is not actually rock. It is foamed aluminium, which makes it much lighter so that the coniform underneath can support it. Its appearance is created by injecting gas when molten. I could learn from how the designer uses an alternative approach to make the whole structure achievable and still communicating the same idea.
https://www.studioswine.com/work/metallic-geology/
Autarchy, Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin, 2010
I like the way the tableware and food are displayed. The brownish colour and the rugged texture of the installation create harmony.
https://www.formafantasma.com/filter/home/autarchy
https://www.dezeen.com/2012/11/02/dewar-glassware-lamps-vasesby-david-derksen/
Illuminate - Research - 16/9/2019
Illuminate - Secondary Research - 16/9/2019
Filamento light, Mayice Studio, 2018
This design explores how light passes through concave-convex structures. The glass is shaped in undulating forms. When light travels through the glass, it produces various light rays. In my primary research, I noticed how concave-convex surfaces can create dark and light areas. What I focused on was how light produces blank and shades areas through light-tight forms like stairs. This design gives me another path of experimenting with concave and convex forms. The shape of the glass also reminds me of water. I discovered that when light travels through flowing water, the light area formed also moves along with water. I think the design mimics the states where a filament is surrounded by water. Furthermore, I was interested in its ability to attach to one another. it creates a modular system. I want to explore more with the way they are connected and apply it in my own practice because I think this property makes the design more flexible and playful.
Pixel, Hiroto Yoshizoe, 2017
The basic idea behind Pixel is simply reflections. Light is reflected four times in the v-shaped structure, and it turns light into many layers. Hiroto Yoshizoe uses the whitest paper he can find so that more light can be reflected. I like how the structure uses an analogue mechanism to blur images. I am not sure if this can help with privacy, because the movement of the shadow is still quite obvious. I also tried to mimic the reflection through the paper. However, the paper I use leaks light, and the angle of the v should be very accurate. I did not develop this idea further. Nevertheless, I noticed the design is composed of small units which can be assembled into a wall. I wanted to apply the idea of using small pieces to make up a bigger structure in my design.
https://www.hirotoyoshizoe.com/pixel
A piece of forest, Modern Times, 2011
I like the various ways the lamp can be displayed. When it is mounted on the wall, the upper part of each shell is placed inside the bottom of the one above. When the lamp is floating or suspended, the shells are stuck in to the side of others.
Lux: Lamps & Lights, Pg 312
https://www.dailytonic.com/milan-2011-a-piece-of-forest-by-modern-times-se-at-salone-del-mobile/
Silhouettes, Matt Delegate, 2019
This is a design that I saw in designjunction, part of re-assemble. It uses building blocks to create geometric shapes, which can be used as hooks and shelves. I like the wood surface. The wood gives users feelings of peace and safe, while artificial colours add vitality to the design. The way of connection between pieces is simple and easy to operate. There is a groove on one side, and a metal stick on the other side. The simplicity adds to its playful nature, which also enhances users' personal touch to the design. Users can shape the structure whatever they want. This is one of the aspects that I am working on.
source: the leaflet of the exhibition re-assemble