Birdhouse
The final project to year 1 ends with an extensive birdhouse project. The students combined all their skills to excel on the last project of the year. This birdhouse has consisted of many different aspects and objectives in order to complete it 100%. Before the project was started, I was reintroduced to AutoCAD again to learn some more things. First I was taught the Alphabet of Lines to get an understanding of using the program for architecture. From there I created plans for a model building. Then I started the project, but not before a five page biography of an architect that you selected was submitted. I chose to study Toyo Ito; a Japanese architect famous for having his own museum he designed himself. After the research I made a study model from one of his works. Using foam core, I recreated his museum and a section from “Mikimoto”, one of his more famous designs.
After the model building I went through a lot of different drawings to finally find one that suits me, abusing the design process efficiently. I took the drawing to SketchUp and made my idea 3D. From SketchUp I printed out multiple pictures from different perspectives to make a study model from chipboard. Once that model was finished I lost interest on my design and went back to the sketch book to come up with another one. After repeating the same process again I really found my final design to progress with. From there I proceeded to make an axonometric of my birdhouse using the drafting boards. Here I utilized line weight in order to properly organize and draw my design. However, the size of my birdhouse would not fit on that piece of paper to I needed to use the architectural scale and draw it in half size. The next step was to begin the construction process. First I needed to make construction documents by drawing the board and draw the cuts I would be making on the board. After printing it out, I made all the cuts and began assembling all the pieces. I painted it and nailed it all together then I was finally finished. 2 months of hard work just to make a small 6”x6” box.
After the model building I went through a lot of different drawings to finally find one that suits me, abusing the design process efficiently. I took the drawing to SketchUp and made my idea 3D. From SketchUp I printed out multiple pictures from different perspectives to make a study model from chipboard. Once that model was finished I lost interest on my design and went back to the sketch book to come up with another one. After repeating the same process again I really found my final design to progress with. From there I proceeded to make an axonometric of my birdhouse using the drafting boards. Here I utilized line weight in order to properly organize and draw my design. However, the size of my birdhouse would not fit on that piece of paper to I needed to use the architectural scale and draw it in half size. The next step was to begin the construction process. First I needed to make construction documents by drawing the board and draw the cuts I would be making on the board. After printing it out, I made all the cuts and began assembling all the pieces. I painted it and nailed it all together then I was finally finished. 2 months of hard work just to make a small 6”x6” box.
cHIPBOARD mODELS
SUBTRACTIVE cUBE
The Subtractive Cube project has been one of the easier and more relaxing projects for me. The main idea was to use a small 2”x2” Styrofoam cube and “subtract” material in order to get a certain idea. The students could design anything they wanted under a few restrictions: you could not take away material past the first layer (1/4th inch); you can only take material away in ¼”x ¼” small cubes. The first thing that I did was generate some ideas. I was required to come up with a minimum of 32 sketches first, which I went to 38. The next step was something new to the class; we were asked to go around the room and select a favorite cube for each other student. This process made it easier to determine what elements peopled liked from certain sketches so I could incorporate it all together into 1 idea. After more sketching, I needed to make a model using Google Sketchup. I was using this program for a day or two creating some of my ideas that I had previously drawn on paper. After that it was time to make the cube using a small Styrofoam cube and a sharp edge. To finish up the project, I drafted the cube and practiced making an axonometric drawing which I thought was pretty interesting. Overall, the project had a nice pace and it was relatively easy to complete with not a whole lot of things to work on at one time. I also really liked that we were able to focus on it the entire class period every day.
dESK oRGANIZER
The project we had to complete was building a functional desk organizer. I worked with a partner and started out by making a poster of a design of architecture of our choice, which was prairie style. The option to choose the style of architecture made the project more enjoyable. To make the poster my partner and I need to complete some research on styles we liked and styles that were available to pick, since no two groups could have the same style. My partner and I then started to draw our idea of the desk organizer and built it on Sketch-Up. This was essential to our design; it got our idea and put it into perspective, instead of just drawing on paper. It also allowed us to put exact measurements which would ultimately make the drafting easier. After that was the drafting which was challenging whit little prior experience or practice. Then the actual building of the desk organizer which I enjoyed the most
One of our requirements was to complete the project in the given time. Personally, I did not have too many problems with time management until the very end of the project; I took too much time cutting and putting together certain parts and rushed on the last day to complete it. I think the hardest part of the project was the drafting. I have not been very good at it and it seemed more challenging than any other aspect of the organizer. It was also the most important part of the project. If the drafting was measured incorrectly then the pieces of cardstock could be off and the entire desk organizer would be completely wrong. Overall, the project was very fun to do. As a first project where we actually used legitimate architecture skills, I really, really enjoyed it, I learned how much hard work goes into making models, drafting and various other stuff and what I need to expect if I wish to continue architecture and possibly find a career. This project was also a great way to lead into more complex projects. It was not too hard and from here I know it will only get harder but more exciting at the same time. The only dislike was the length of the project and pauses in between days of work. I would much rather work on it each day and power through until the end instead of focusing attention on different things every day. This lead to putting more time on things that I did not need and less time working on the stuff I needed too. Also, not everyone was equally skilled in each portion of the project, some finished the drafting quickly and others did not. All in all, the project was mostly successful, I learned what and what not to do for the next one, I built this pretty cool model, and I learned some more things about my classmates. I hope we have more things like this in the future.
One of our requirements was to complete the project in the given time. Personally, I did not have too many problems with time management until the very end of the project; I took too much time cutting and putting together certain parts and rushed on the last day to complete it. I think the hardest part of the project was the drafting. I have not been very good at it and it seemed more challenging than any other aspect of the organizer. It was also the most important part of the project. If the drafting was measured incorrectly then the pieces of cardstock could be off and the entire desk organizer would be completely wrong. Overall, the project was very fun to do. As a first project where we actually used legitimate architecture skills, I really, really enjoyed it, I learned how much hard work goes into making models, drafting and various other stuff and what I need to expect if I wish to continue architecture and possibly find a career. This project was also a great way to lead into more complex projects. It was not too hard and from here I know it will only get harder but more exciting at the same time. The only dislike was the length of the project and pauses in between days of work. I would much rather work on it each day and power through until the end instead of focusing attention on different things every day. This lead to putting more time on things that I did not need and less time working on the stuff I needed too. Also, not everyone was equally skilled in each portion of the project, some finished the drafting quickly and others did not. All in all, the project was mostly successful, I learned what and what not to do for the next one, I built this pretty cool model, and I learned some more things about my classmates. I hope we have more things like this in the future.