Sketch 14

This week I decided to play with perspective.

Entry 14

As the semester comes to a close, I am reflecting on all of the lessons I have learned. One of them being that I need to purchase a backup hard drive because I have too many large Revit files on my computer. There were a variety of things that this semester has taught me. I learned about the construction process from Professor Michael O'brien in The Making of Architecture, in studio during lectures, and while making the construction model. I learned how to use computer programs from designing things in Revit, cutting from AutoCAD, and then presenting a poster in Revit. I used the wood shop more than any previous semester when making the rolling walls and construction models, and the table saw still freaks me out. This semester has also taught me that time management is crucial. We had so much to do in very little time, and in the end I am proud of my work. All in all, this semester has taught me many skills that I will carry on with me throughout the years. 

Entry 13

This week I learned more about Revit than I ever thought was possible. Designing the townhouses and villas was both challenging and helpful because of the new software. It is amazing to look at the posters from preliminary reviews and then look at the posters from final review. I improved quite a lot from the conceptual mass project. I now feel confident in Revit. Obviously I'm no professional, but it is nice knowing that I have the knowledge and skills to design a building in Revit and present it formally with renderings and drawings. 

Presentations went well, and our firm is quite pleased with how our final townhouses and villas came out. We thought that the design was cohesive, while also still showing our personal flair. 

Sketch 13

Exploration of Hatching

Entry 12

I work for the ticket office at Kyle field, so on Saturday I sat at a ticket window all day staring at the Memorial Student Center. I decided that instead of just staring out a window, I would draw what I was looking at. My shift was over during the first quarter of the football game, and when I went up to my seat, I really looked at Kyle field and how massive it is. My seat was on the very top row of second deck, and my friends and I leaned over the ledge looking at the structure holding up our seats. It is unreal that 3 months ago I would have looked at a bunch of concrete and thought about how boring it is. Now I look at concrete and I think, "Is it precast or sitecast? Is that a type one or two connection? Is that rebar sticking out through the top? Look at that bearing pad that the beam is resting on." My friends and I literally had our backs to the football game and were looking at concrete instead. When we turned around, we decided to leave because the game was boring. I never thought the day would come where I was more interested in concrete than in football. 

Entry 11

My professor in The Making Of Architecture has us drawing every single class. This week we would walk in, spend 30 minutes drawing connections, and then lecture. The whole process is really teaching me a lot about the construction field. He will ask a question, and the entire class just looks at him because the answer seems too easy to be correct. In construction, it seems that the logical explanation is correct. This mentality is so different from all of the other architecture classes that I have taken because normally we are taught to think beyond the ordinary and usual. Sometimes he asks for suggestions on what to draw, he will draw it, and then tell us that he has never drawn that connection before. This class has taught me that if you know the process, then you can reason out the connections even if you have never drawn them previously.

Entry 10

The Texas Society of Architects convention in Dallas, Texas was this week. My friends from studio and I took a road trip to my house in Canton, Texas for the weekend. The convention was on Thursday, and it was so interesting. We listened to a few lectures, some being: architects designing homes for themselves, artists and architects working together, and transportation in cities. After the convention, we went to explore Dallas and Fort Worth. The Perot Museum designed by Thom Mayne from Morphosis is incredible. We were there just standing outside the building taking pictures for an hour. When we finally left, we went to the Fort Worth Water Gardens designed by Philip Johnson. It was, by far, the most exciting architecture that I have experienced in my 19 years. The crazy part is that the whole place is made of stone, and simply uses water to create the experience. That is definitely something to take note of: sometimes simplicity in design and materials is powerful.

Sketch 12

Perot Museum in Dallas, Texas

Sketch 11

Precast concrete T beam connecting to Double tees on each side

Sketch 10

Memorial Student Center Leadership Portal

Entry 9

We have been working in Revit this week learning how to model a home. It is so much easier to understand the commands when creating a residential project opposed to a conceptual mass. We received our projects for the rest of the semester, and I am looking forward to creating a firm and presenting what we have learned this semester.

Also, we had Professor Abbot speak to us about our study away semester, and ever since then I have been dreaming about Italy. I cannot wait to experience places that I have only studied and never seen up close. 

Entry 8

This week I think I almost died. I had two exams, two projects, a job to attend, and so much stress. However, I survived and all is well. I have learned that it is possible to run on little sleep, and you can accomplish a lot more than seems possible. I am trying to not be so hard on myself, but it is so difficult knowing that I didn't finish the wall project on time. I am incredibly frustrated with myself, but I have realized that it is okay to not finish, and it is much better to not rush and come out with a better end result as opposed to finishing and doing a horrible job.  

Entry 7

This week we have been working on our wall, and oh my goodness there are so many steps to this. We spent so many hours on the computer trying to figure out our Revit and AutoCad files. At Home Depot I think we purchased the store's entire plexi-glass supply. We cut our plexi-glass, and assembled the structure. 

The skin process started with accumulating plastic water bottles, and then getting people to drink the water. Once we had empty bottles, we cut each of them into 6 pieces. We then took the pieces and spray painted them with tinted spray paint. From there, we took fishing line and a sewing needle, and sewed each piece to each other. Then we took the columns of water bottle pieces and sewed them to the plexi-glass panels.

Entry 6

In my Modern Architecture History class, we have been discussing "the greats". Mies van der Rohe, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Le Corbusier are obviously architecture superstars, but I don't particularly love their work. Despite how I feel about the overall appearance of the houses, I have realized that each of them have very important concepts that are significant to my education. Le Corbusier's five points, Frank Lloyd Wright's horizontal planes and center fireplace, and Mies with his "less is more" motto are things that can be applied to my projects in the future. This week has taught me that something can be learned from every project from every architect, even if you aren't fond of it.

Sketch 9

Villa Savoye

Sketch 8

Elam House: Frank Lloyd Wright

Sketch 7

Guggenheim Museum

Sketch 6

Farnsworth House

Sketch 5

Ribbed vault ceiling

Entry 5

This week in The Making of Architecture, our professor discussed Frank Gehry's Experience Music Project. We saw an interior image of metal shingles that were different colors. They were made by dipping the tiles in a chemical solution that caused a chemical reaction. The longer that the tiles sit in the solution, the more drastic the color change. This is what inspired my partner and I for the wall sculpture. Our study model was due this Friday, and we decided to use plexiglass and water bottles to create a "floating sculpture". We also decided to tint the water bottles so that they are colored, but not opaque. The colors are going to reflect the temperatures, so as the temperature gets warmer, the color will be tinted red and as the temperature gets colder, the color will be tinted blue. 

Sketch 4

Entry 4

Our class was in the wood shop this week, and I realized the harsh truth that every step needs to be done precisely. We were about to assemble the doors to the bases and the holes did not match up. This could have been from many different errors. If the template used to drill the holes was not precise, then the plywood bases are all wrong. If all of the door inserts are different, then all of the bases will be different. If the trim is not exact, then the corners will not match up. All in all, this week in the wood shop has been a learning experience. Even though the holes do not line up, it can still be fixed. We are going to enlarge the holes on the bases, so the doors will go in. This week has taught me that every step is important, no matter how small the piece. 

Sketch 3

This week we discussed doodling, so this is a page of hatching in different directions. 

Sketch 2

Sketch 1

Entry 3

This week I learned that drawing, both on the computer and on paper, requires discipline and patience. While attempting Revit tutorials, my partner and I realized that teaching yourself new commands is incredibly difficult. We would reach a certain step, get completely lost, press undo until we cleared the problem, and forget how to do something we did previously. Also, while watching Professor Lu draw, I noticed that sketching is a process. While creativity should not be lost, steps can be followed to produce a beautiful drawing. Unfortunately, drawing is not my specialty, but I attempted some of the instructions he gave. All in all, with repetition and practice both of these skills are possible.

Entry 2:

This week in The Making of Architecture class, our professor lectured about concrete.The two major varieties include site cast and precast concrete. Since learning about these two distinctions, my friends and I have been discussing various buildings that have concrete and their properties. We argue about which kind of concrete it is and why we chose our answer. Also, we discuss the kind of framing system used in the buildings and why that specific system was used. It gives me a new outlook on concrete buildings, such as how the shape affects the type of concrete and framing system the construction team will use.

Entry 1:

The first week of school we discussed beauty, and while hearing everyone in class say what they found beautiful, I noticed that beauty comes in many forms. Everyone had a different take on what is beautiful. Some were tangible things, others were sights in nature, and some were even qualities in people. What I find beautiful is culture, and how the area of the world people are from can shape their entire life. Culture affects the type of structures in an area, the language spoken, the type of clothes worn, and even the religious beliefs of people. Culture defines an era, such as Ancient Greece and Rome, Ancient Egypt, the Gothic period, and even Modern architecture. Without even thinking about it, we associate a time period to a type of people. I find it beautiful how people change over time, and how the change of culture affects the world.