ARC1016 Architectural Representation Newcastle University SAPL - 2015/2016 Student Number: 150366542
Tasks Booklet BA Architecture
Architectural Representation
Table of Contents
5
13
17
19
Sketching Architecture City drawing Introduction to architectural representation
Hollow Object Analysis and representation of an object
Room Observation Analysis and representation of personal bedroom
Spatial Representation Civic Centre - Photographs showing spatial qualities
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31
35
Spatial Representation Civic Centre -Observational drawings showing spacial qualities
Spatial Representation Civic Centre - Measured technical drawing of a plan, two sections and two details
Life Drawing Charcoal large-scale nude drawings of a model
IN DEX 5
6
Sketching Architecture City Drawing Exercise
City Drawing Exercise 7
Once upon Tyne “Elegant is not a word many people associate with Newcastle. Urban? Yes. Dynamic? Possibly. But elegant? Hmm. Yet this word keeps springing to mind as I walk from the quayside into the central district of Grainger Town.� Barrell, S. (2012). Newcastle: Out on the toon | National Geographic Traveller (UK)
8 Sketching Architecture
City Drawing Exercise 9
Light/Shadow dichotomy
10 Sketching Architecture
For our first task, we were invited to visit, accompanied by tutors, several areas of Newcastle, as a way of kickstarting the school year. I was quite interested in the opposing light and dark spaces in the Side, particularly under the bridges and viaducts that cross this tightly knitted urban fabric. These created intriguing opportunities to explore the bridges metal structures and stone arches, and the way they sit with- and sometimes literally on - the historic buildings. On the other hand, this dichotomy (light and darkness) was also present closer to the river on the Quayside, as the darkened reflections of the buildings and shrubbery on the south bank, as well as the bridges that cross the Tyne, mix in the river with the rays of direct, or redirected from the Sage, sunshine.
The area has a quite metropolitan feel to it, due to this mix of rail infrastructure with elegant buildings, with the added dramatism of the sheer drops and vaulting arches and passages, reminiscent the daunting urban landscapes in cinema, particularly coming to mind João Botelho’s “Disquiet”, in which the director represents Fernando Pessoa’s Lisbon as a superposition of plans and buildings at different scales, in a sense representing visually the mental “Disquiet” we all possess.
City Drawing Exercise 11
Urban Nooks and Crannies Full of little details, alcoves, entrances and window sills, the Quayside has an extremely distinctive feel. Full of little architectural peculiar quirks and details, it sparks our imagination, making it seem that in those few city blocks an incredible number of stories and lives might be happening that we’ll never see or know about.
12 Sketching Architecture
City Drawing Exercise 13
14 Hollow Object
Hollow Object Analysis and representation of an object
Card Holder (Thick) by Muji Aluminium w9.4 x d6 x h0.8cm
Analysis and representation of an object 15
16 Hollow Object
This aluminium card holder, by the Japanese “no-brand” Muji, was my chosen object due to its elegance and simplicity. It’s a great piece of design, very lightweight, holding 6-8 cards in its folded aluminium structure. This structure, composed of two different laser cut and folded sheets of aluminium, is connected by a hinge, which I considered very important (the reason why I cut through the object that way was to be able to show it).
Section
Analysis and representation of an object 17
18 Room Observation
Room Observation Analysis and representation of bedroom
Analysis and representation of bedroom 19
20
Spatial Representation - Civic Centre Photographs showing spatial qualities
21
With long exposure photography, I tried to experiment with image ratios that would give the photograph an almost pictorial appearance. The arch above, framing the outside with the off camera columns, seems to redirect our view both outside, with the direction of the bricks, and to the columns.
f/29; 1/4sec; ISO 220; 50mm
22 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
f/22; 1/5sec; ISO 1699; 18mm
In this one, I tried to denote the succession of “naves�, and the way the columns support a visually heavy volume with an impressive grace and elegance. Moreover, in the background, the interaction of the lines of the railing and windows is quite interesting (previously, a photograph displayed even better this visual interaction), as are the reflections of the columns, especially the one nearer the bicycle.
Photographs showing spatial qualities 23
My final chosen photograph depicts the outdoor plaza of the civic centre. As a space, the interior plaza (“the arches”), the rotunda and this exterior plaza, as well as the interior garden and fountains, work as a single public space. This photograph shows it perfectly, with the building almost “levitating” in order to keep the notion of a single “Civic plaza”.
24 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
f/9; 1/320sec; ISO 200; 18mm
Photographs showing spatial qualities 25
26 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
Spatial Representation - Civic Centre Observational drawings showing spatial qualities
In the same vein as the Photography task before, the goal of this task was to, through drawing/sketching in situ, to show spatial qualities of the Civic Centre. Although I was at first very inclined towards an analytical, detail based drawing, I found that more environment-based drawings complemented effectively the earlier ones, showing cohesively how the area of the Civic Centre that we were to be focused on looked and felt like.
Observational drawings showing spatial qualities 27
From these sketches, a journey through that space can be discerned. The “Longshots�, showing a general view of the space, redirect to close-ups of details that help build the image of the building though that journey.
28 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
The media chosen, very fine Pilot G-Tec-C4’s, is quite appropriate for this kind of quick, line-based drawing. With the watercolour, I was able to dramatically and quickly represent the ambience of the space.
Observational drawings showing spatial qualities 29
30 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
Observational drawings showing spatial qualities 31
32 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
Spatial Representation - Civic Centre Measured technical drawings
The measured technical drawing of our group’s area of the Civic Centre consists on the space between the ramps close to the ballroom entrance, and said entrance. In order to begin the drawings, the group proceeded to measure all the elements on site (revisiting the building later to confirm doubts or get new measurements), saving them on their sketchbook, in a mix of plans, sections and perspective drawings. These field notes helped us move to the next stage, in which we progressively improved our sections and plans, until coming to the point of simply arranging their layout.
Measured technical drawings 33
34 Spatial Representation - Civic Centre
Measured technical drawings 35
36 Life Drawing
Life Drawing Charcoal nude drawings of a model
Charcoal nude drawings of a model 37
The nude has been, in western art, a great source of inspiration since prehistoric times. Studying the human body, analysing and representing it is extremely beneficial and important for an architect, a designer, an artist. Complicated tables and measurements aren’t enough when it comes to this study. To understand anthropometry and ergonomy, the representation of the human body provides an easier way of learning how to design intuitively for humans.
60 seconds x 4 sketches 60 seconds blind drawing
38 Life Drawing
For this exercise, a male model posed for a group of around 10 people. Starting with simple one minute sketches, the poses lasted longer and longer, the idea being to increasingly take in visual information, analysing his body, where were the joints, how did it all interact together and with the environment, one of those a blind sketch, and 3 consequential in order to capture movement. Later, the analysis was focused in the form, the depth of the muscles and fat, how the light illuminated and shadowed the skin, purely with the use of mass drawing.
30 seconds x 3 consecutive sketches 2 minutes articulated sketch
2 minutes mass drawing sketches
The human body is the best work of art. Jess C. Scott
Charcoal nude drawings of a model 39
0h 30m
40 Life Drawing
In the second part of the session, the model’s poses took far longer than initially (30m and 1h30m respectively) in order for us to continue the session’s trajectory of increasingly complex analysis. In the first drawing, I tried to represent with lines the massing and three dimensionality of the model’s body. The lower back zone and the way his arm rests on his leg interested me particularly. In the second drawing, the way he was lying made it seem as if he was being pulled down, sinking into the sofa and the fabric.
1h 30m
Charcoal nude drawings of a model 41