Foundations of Design : Representation, Sem 1, 2017 PORTFOLIO James Cowie
910210 Studio 13 - Brooke Elizabeth Gibson
The process involved the photographing and scanning of the croissant, before it was traced and cross-hatching applied. This ensured that both the axonometric and section drawings were accurate and to scale. From this task I fruthered my skills in technical drawing; learning how to draw a basic axonometric projection and label plan and section drawings correctly. Cross-hatching was a skill that I had already learnt, however from Module 1 I refined my technique and learnt of the importance of tonal contrast to create a successful drawing. Whilst my line-work was intrecate and interesting, it was too heavy. Subsequently, this rendered the croissant too dark and hard to define.
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SETUP Basic setup, of which I used a mounting board along with a set square and T-square. Was at times frustrating as the set square would snare on tape, providing inaccurate lines.
PROGRESS SHOT Progress shot of illustrator drawing, depicitng the terrain. I began tracing up the terrain first because it was the base, but also because the positioning of various elements would be made easier with the terrain acting as a guide.
AXONOMETRIC PROJECTION OF MARIO WORLD
CHARACTERS
While this was my final hand axonometric drawing, it doesn’t resemble my final Mario World, as I wanted to create a more detailed and comprehensive final.
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The Mario World I created was largely an extention of its original 2 dimensional images; maintaining the same colour palette and imagery seen. Nonetheless, the world explores hidden space, of which isn’t traceable through the two dimensional images; creating a more dynamic and interesting composition. My main point of concern was ensuring that the drawing met to isometric conventions and was as accurate as possible. I was also aware of making sure that various elements of the design didn’t overlap and therefore cause disruptions within the composition. Furthermore, the task in its entirety was trying to focus one’s attention to combining accuracy with creativity to create a comprehensive final product. The means I went about exploring hidden space was through creating topography is the world, but also through extended the world downwards, creating space that was unknown in accordance to the original Mario World images. There was more freedom for creativity in drawing the imagery under the main section of world, as it is ambiguous to what resides under the surface of a Mario World. When creating the terrain the main dividing point has between the two original images, and then dig or raise various sections within those halves.
MARIO WORLD #1
MARIO WORLD #2
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STAR MODEL
COMPOSITE MODEL
SECTION MODEL
COMPOUND CURVE MODEL
TRIANGULAR MODEL
CIRCULAR PATTERN
STAR PATTERN
TRIANGULAR SURFACE
DIAMOND SURFACE
PLAIN SURFACE AND OFF-SET POINTS
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The model is a combination of simultaneously compound curve and triangular forms; with the triagnular based forms being underneath the surface to create the effect of a rolling landscape. These forms vary in height to recreate the area of Tasmania which the surface is based off. There is also a rotation in the compound curve forms so that they appear twisted. These forms are contrasted against diamond and star patterns, which are cut on two dimensional squares joined in sections. The main concern of my design was to challenge typical linear faceting when creating a panelled surface, and rather engage in the exploration of compound curves. While visually interesting, the lack of craftsmanship and contrast with the random pattern undermines the form created. The paper was placed under considerable tension when bent in such a way, therefore some joins aren’t clean, and in other areas the paper began to tear due to its low tolerance. The diamond and star patterns only add confusion to the landscape, as they have no relation to the compound curves, nor any real signifcance other than attempting to add an element of diversity to the design.
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Pyrrha Marco Polo ultimately told of two cities, one a dream and one reality, in his description of the city Pyrrha. I interpreted this as the contrast of an idealised place with harsh or unexpected reality; finding the city to have symbolic and emotional signifance, rather than just material elements. My city therefore finds an illuminated and gentile scene juxtaosed with a melancholic composition to describe this sudden shift in perspective. My prject largely focuses on endowing symbolic traits in the various elements that make up each scene, rather than solely compose imagery for aesthetic purposes. The symbols utilised in the isometric drawing detail two competing scenes, one of which is Marco Polo’s utopian prospect, while the other represents his nostalgia for his dream and him encountering a seemingly confronting place.
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ISOMETRIC DRAWING
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The essence of this scene was to interpret Marco Polo’s envisionment of the city he described as ‘Pyrrha’ in his dreams. Although largely abstracted, the core ideas expressed in the story are nonetheless apparent. The city is seen as the towers in crystal ball suspended by a hand emerging from a goblet; as Pyrrha is believed to be high towers enclosed like a goblet. In the distance there can be seen a bay, indicative of Pyrrha’s percieved geographical orientation. To further highlight the granduer notions of the idealised city, materials such as marble and venetian tiling, as well as detailing on the column bases, has been employed. The doves, a reference to the doves of Piazzo St Marco in Venice, and the women, dressed in finer outerwear of the 14th and 18th centuries, are primarily used to enliven the composition. Furthermore, the composition of lighting and imagery combined creates a gentle scene of an idealised city, perhaps only visited through dream..
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In contrast, the second perspective is representative of the unexpected reality that Marco Polo encounters on his arrival to Pyrrha. It is confronting to the extent that it represents the antithesis of the city Polo had seen in his dreams. Once more, the scene is largely abstracted to amplify such. This is seen through replacing the clumped buildings with Henry Moore’s sculptural sketches, being enlarged humanoids, as these add more tension and have the effect of overwhelming the figure of Marco Polo. A jester is seen laughing at Polo, representing the embarrassment that Polo potentially felt on discovering Pyrrha to be not what he thought. Furthermore, a desert backdrop, along with a dust mask, has been employed as means of showing simultaneously the dust, but also rolling coast. When looked at through the arches, the desert is ambiguous in form to a large extent, and can therefore be interpreted as such a landscape.
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The four Modules explored throughout the course of the semester in Foundations of Design: Representation revolved around introducing and bettering students technical and orgainisational skills, while simultaneously evoking thier creative flare. Through having to doctor images for presentation or create axonometric drawings, I refined my skills simultaneously on Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Moreover, although having experience in SolidWorks, the introduction of Rhino in Modules 3 and 4 was exciting and rewarding. As my major is in Architectural Design, the use of Rhino was of particular relevance to my academic endeavours. In combination with lectures, the modules presented a new perspective on how work can be represented and how ideas can be expressed. I was enlightened to a large extent in relation to orthogonal drawing methods, such as axonometric projections, being the more sophisticated means of representation in comparison to perspective drawing. Looking over my work after assessment, it was clear that there were several areas in each of the modules which needed re-working. My Mario World for instance didn’t utilise all of the space it had access to, therefore I extended the scene downwards to create a more interesting drawing. I also revisited my Isometric drawing from Module 4, where I finessed the drawing so that the symbols didn’t seem randomly placed and created hierarchy amongst lines throughaltering varying line weights and block colours. Such imperfections came down to poor time management rather than lack of technical ability, as I limited what could be achieved in terms of detail and quality by leaving little time.
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