2010 finished...

Here are my final boards from the culinary school project which also means an end to the semester.....

We are now getting to the end of our project and figuring out the final details of everything we have been working on. So far my project has been full of ups and downs as I try to use revit for the first time on my own.

My project began with inspiration from the way a chef knife cuts into a vegetables, fruit, etc. As I began to move forward in the design I connected this concept with a concept of letting light be the defining factor between spaces. The stairwells through my building transformed into light wells that would reflect light entering at the roof level into the rest of my building producing a soft glow.

Final boards...

Our project is finally complete after battling a few computers to get renderings accomplished and I think things turned out quite well...

Materials...

Seann and I have been progressing steadily as we make final decisions on form, floor plans, circulation corridors and towers etc. On Friday we were working on elevation studies and working on making material choices. To decide what materials to choose we began to look a case studies that dealt with materials we were thinking about... We mainly worked with the south side Friday as it was the main entrance facade and a good source for natural lighting. Since our site is in Goodland, KS we know that it is going to be very important for us to shade any openings. We worked with wooden louvers on the outside of the building and wooden panels that would slide on tracks on the inside of the building. Since our building shows a lot of emphasis on cantilevers and a separation between floors we were concerned about making the front facade all one material or showing it as one material. The elevations that we came up with are combinations of the different ideas that came about.

Making progress...

Alright... so I think Seann and I have finally settled on a set of floor plans for our Ag Research Facility in Goodland, KS. We have started to put into Revit and are looking at the 3D model to search for the best structural pattern. It's been a busy week, so we are just hoping to keep making progress... since the deadline is near. Pictures are to come...

Form found... structure built...

Having a good start on our Agriculture Research Facility, Seann and I have finally settled on a form after much debating on site layout and access. The form that we decided on comes from the notion of the grid pattern of seeds within the center of a sunflower. We next looked at our design from a structural point of view

and built a model to allow ourselves to fully understand our

design and fix flaws that came about. Our next move is to fully

define and put into scale the spaces within our building.

History of the Red River Valley... architectural expression

Diving into the new project, designing an Agriculture Research Center, inspiration must be gathered from somewhere. As Steve Martens might put it, you need to "stock your bank" with all the information possible so that you can move forward on to the next step of the process.

It is necessary to look at the agricultural systems, work ethic, and materials of the past for inspiration. The way things were done in the past in the Red River Valley made it what it is today. With westward expansion of the railroad and the opportunity for land grants, people kept moving west. Small plots of land were used for growing, and with success, more land was planted.

Present agricultural equipment and materials must also be taken into consideration. It is our current work ethic that brings about the metaphor of the "machine in the garden." Mechanical equipment, has taken over the horse and human hands.

These together can bring upon new possibilities...

ice house complete...

Never having gone ice fishing before, this is my solution to creating an easily assembled, easily transported and simple ice fishing house. Starting out as a sled, the ice house could be pulled straight out of the pick-up bed onto the ice. It then could be loaded with all the supplies and hauled out onto the ice.

Set up is also very simple, as the sled is tilted onto its backside and the walls unfold from within itself. A canvas top is Velcroed to the top... LET THE FISHING BEGIN!

Ice shelter...

First excercise... to design a useable ice shelter during the ice fishing season.

But questions arise:

1. How does one make it easily assembled?
2. How much does one need to know about ice fishing to complete the task?
3. How does one move it from point A to point B?
4. Can only one person put it together, or must there be two?
5. Does it have to be a fully enclosed structure in the end to serve its purpose?

It's possible that these questions may be left unanswered, the fact of asking them may be good enough. It is about fully thinking them through that will help design arise.

Starting out a bit icy...

Here's my first blog ever, lets see how this goes.

In the end, I hope to have acquired a new response to the design process. A new way of seeing what is around me, gathered together with a collection of my thoughts and the comments of others.