UNIT SUMMARY #3

 

I would have to say that this last unit has been my favorite because it is all very interesting material. We covered world fairs and we covered the arts and crafts movement. We looked at how all these different aspects inspire design. 

One thing that we covered was the world’s fairs. They were a way for everyone to show off their creativity, their craftsmanship, and their talent in design. Fairs showcased the next big thing. Everything seemed to be bigger, better, brighter, and more bold than previous objects and creations. World fairs were not only very productive with its commercial aspects, aka: bringing in revenue, they were also opportunities for creative minds from all around the world to showcase their talent and their ideas and works. Although fairs seem pretty seamless and very well put together, it is not easy doing so. We fail to recognize that fairs are immense and full of awe and wonder, not to mention full of people. These fairs’ capacities for people are pretty impressive. Fairs were very impressive because they introduced well known designs such as the Ferris wheel and the Eiffel tower. These events were definitely affairs to remember. 

greatestgenerationmusic.com

 

promo-wholesale.com

modernism.com

1933.posterous.com

 

 

Another thing that we discussed was the Arts and Crafts movement.  It focused on using simplistic design, hand-crafted objects, and using local and natural materials.  A controversy during this movement was whether hand-crafted or machine-made is better in terms of design and quality. Frank Lloyd Wright was one designer that was very well known for handcrafted design.  The holistic design approach was what defined Wright and defined him as a designer for the Arts and Crafts movement. 

kidsart.com

 

Continuing on throughout design history, art nouveau is next.  This period was characterized by graceful, flowing outlines and stylized natural forms found in our everyday average backyard such as flowers or trees. Curvature of lines and fluidity and movement are signature features of the Art Nouveau period.  Salvador Dali said this, “The terrifying and edible beauty of Art Nouveau architecture.”  Antonio Gaudi was one of the many designers that drew his inspiration from things such as stems.  

essential-architecture.com

Interior of a dome in the Grand Palais

 

 

Finally, the interior decorating industry came about when women started decorating their homes. Along with interior decorating came the rise of the mega firm.  The new trend is instead of going out, go up.  One design detail that became popular was instead of putting things inside the walls put them on the outside. Pompidou center for art which is located in Paris is a prime example of this. He put the water and heating ducts on the outside and used bold and bright colors to not only make it more aesthetically pleasing but to in a way “color-code” the ducts.  This is the new design wave. So many doors to design are opening at this point. The design world is searching for something. It is always searching for the next best thing, for something that is bigger and better, for something modern. Just like the definition of modern is different for everyone and is always changing, so will design. Design stands in the eye of the beholder and will always be evolving into something newer. We are the designers and the world is our canvas, all we have to do is paint what we envision and imagine.

BLOG POST #14

EXTRA CREDIT: TWO VIEWS OF DESIGN

Reading Response #12

BLOG POST #13

Scandinavian Modern  Design 

"As with most of Europe, modernity in Scandinavian design represented a radical shift from provincial isolation to self-assertiveness in an international design setting. A century of intense design activity had commenced about 1880 throughout Europe and no less in the vast and diverse geographic region encompassing Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Iceland. From Scandinavia's variegated matrix of politics, cultures, languages and traditions, there emerged a multifaceted design philosophy that became a major international influence."

~http://www.artsmia.org/modernism/e_SM.html 

 The Superstructure chair by Bjorn Dahlstrom is a perfect example of modern Scandinavian design.

http://www.cribcandy.com/

"Each country within Scandinavia played a significant role in the formation of a modern tradition, and each responded to the challenges of the modern world in a distinctive manner. All the countries recognized social equality, industrialization and urbanization as major factors of modern life. Yet, these factors and their impact on the arts and crafts were encountered differently in each country, giving a special identity to the design traditions of each. By the mid-century, however, these designs became known as a style and the history of modern Scandinavian design suggests there are unifying features – humanism, tradition, moderation, hand-crafted perfectionism, modesty, quietude and purposefulness – within the traditions of each country that encourage such a generalization. This exhibition of decorative arts and design attempts to address both these unifying qualities and the distinct differences."

~http://www.artsmia.org/modernism/e_SM.html

Scandinavian countries have many objects that date back as far as the Ice Age. Scandinavian modern art is complex and deals with nature and is very sophisticated. It consists of very organic shapes and styles.  It is very important to design because it is based off of what is naturally around us. Many architecture and objects are based off the same ideals and design just like this chair. 

BLOG POST #12

This Little Light of Mine, I'm Gonna Let It Shine...

Lamps are a good design for all and have been around for ages.

"The first lamp was invented around 70,000 BC. A hollow rock, shell or other natural found object was filled with moss or a similar material that was soaked with animal fat and ignited. Wicks were later added to control the rate of burning. Around the 7th century BC, the Greeks began making terra cotta lamps to replace handheld torches. The word lamp is derived from the Greek word lampas, meaning torch." http://inventors.about.com/od/lstartinventions/a/lighting.htm

Lamps have been around for a very long time. They can be very inexpensive and are very common in today's design. One good and very versatile quality of lamps is the fact that they come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, patterns, textures, and brightness. They are used to light up a room that has little or no natural  light and they are used to light up a room when it is night time and there is not any natural sunlight. Lamps can be found in many and most rooms of a house or building. They have kept the same purpose but they have changed how they look on the outside.

 Lamp 1800's

 Lamp Early 1900's

 Lamp Mid-Late 1900's

 Lamp 2011

 Lamp 2011

Reading Response 12

UNIT SUMMARY #2

This unit was entitled reverberation and there are many different definitions of reverberation. In one context it means the echoes in a room that one hears following the original sound. In a sense that is how architecture is. New design is constantly echoing the designs that have come before it.  Each time a design is being thought of, the designer is searching for something. They are searching for the best, the newest, and the most visually enticing design.  Rules were made throughout design history and then design needed something different; something that wasn’t so ‘cookie-cutter; something that didn’t follow the rules. As it is said about many things, rules are meant to be broken, and this applies to design. After breaking the rules of design we started to return back to the rules that we decided to stray from.

Romanesque Cathedral

http://montyandcalvi.blogspot.com/2007/11/descrive-visit-to-place-santiago-de.html

One of the main things that were discussed throughout this unit was cathedrals.  Cathedrals draw in the eyes of people because of how strong and tall they stand. There are different styles of churches that we looked at such as the gothic church. We related architecture and design to music. As Friedrich Von Schelling said, “Architecture is music in space, as it were a frozen music.” Each style of architecture and each type of building has its own ‘theme songs’. For example in a church you may have organs or lighter instruments playing music that will carry through the high ceilings and across the rows of seats. In a temple in India the music may consist of instruments such as the Tabla or the Sitar. Architecture is frozen music and with each different piece of architecture there is different music.

Gothic Cathedral

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jayzine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/8.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.jayzine.com/10-largest-cathedrals-in-the-world

As I said earlier, we design a set of rules and then break them. Now design is searching for something new so it starts breaking all the rules that have been set. We stand as a player in the scene in the Baroque period and then we break away even more and morph into the Rococo style where everything is over the top, decorated, and embellished. The design world has acquired the ‘ins and outs of design’ by not only following the rules but breaking them as well. At this point we know more about design than we ever have before and it is thanks to us being curious and not sticking to just one aspect of design. Just as people travel, so does architecture and design. We jump into Colonial expansion where we transmit our design knowledge and ideas to any and everywhere that we can get them. Design, as it once was, becomes simple once again. 

 French Rococo style Chairs

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/35384/French-Rococo-chairs-by-Louis-Delanois-in-the-Bibliotheque-de

Design is like a child; it can never sit still and always wants what it can’t have; it opens doors that weren’t supposed to be opened; design is growing and ever changing. Architecture will always be searching for the next best thing and discovering new modernistic designs.

BLOG POST #11

FIRES BURN FOR DIFFERENT REASONS

(The Modernization of Fireplaces)

fireplaces of the 1800's 

gascoals.net

allenbutlerhistory.com

grillingcompanion.com

Fireplaces began to become more popular during the Victorian era. Fireplaces were used for many things, heat being the main purpose. Other uses of a fireplace were cooking and they were used as a light source at night. During this era people began to utilize fireplaces for many productive things, as mentioned previously, but they also viewed fireplaces as a way to show a touch of class. Through the years housing designs changed little by little and so did the designs of fireplaces. The purpose of a fireplace still remained the same. They were used mainly for cooking, light, and heat.

"Fireplaces were the main source of heat for homes in  the 18th century. Most fireplaces of the day were very inefficient. They produced a lot of smoke and most of the heat that was generated went right out the chimney. Sparks in the home were of great concern because they could cause a fire that would quickly destroy the homes, which were constructed mainly with wood.Benjamin Franklin developed a new style of stove with a hood-like enclosure in the front and an airbox in the rear. The new stove and reconfiguration of the flues allowed for a more efficient fire, one that used one quarter as much wood and generated twice as much heat." 

(http://inventors.about.com/od/fstartinventors/ss/Franklin_invent_2.htm)

fireplaces of the 2000's 

http://www.modernhomez.net/2011/02/modular-fireplace-style-ecosmart-burner-one/

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://homedecorhousedesign.com

http://viewhometrends.com/modern-stylish-fireplaces-for-small-living-room/modern-stylish-fireplace-for-small-living-room2/

http://www.discountfireplaceonline.com/fireplaces/fire-magic-monarch/zen-electric-fireplace.html

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.toxel.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/fireplaces7.jpg

"Renaissance

Fireplaces is the world's first line of certified clean-burning, open fireplaces.  We have created a breakthrough in the fireplace industry by producing decorative wood-burning fireplaces that not only burn beautifully, but cleanly as well.  The emissions from our Renaissance Rumford are low enough to meet the most stringent emission level promoted by the EPA in the Voluntary Wood Burning Fireplaces Program for air quality and we have the awards to prove it. It's time that we brought open fireplaces into the 21st century, where open fires can provide ambiance and heat , all while burning so cleanly that there are almost no visible emissions."

(http://www.renaissancefireplaces.com/en/renaissance-fireplaces)

Fireplaces are now designed around whether they are aesthetically pleasing. They continually reach beyond our current design boundaries which continually makes fireplaces become more interesting and pleasing to the eye. The metamorphosis of fireplace from household objects into works of art and staple pieces of design has been a great success. Fireplaces are just one example of how throughout the years the design world grows and evolves. Design is always changing which means we will never get bored looking at yesterdays designs but we will be forever fascinated by tomorrow's design creations.

READING RESPONSE 11