Component 1 – Product Design (Incomplete) Maia Casiraghi
What I am aiming for this project is to create a piece of furniture with a similar function to a work desk for artists with a storage space for supplies; with my clientele being obviously based around artists who need a space to work, this product would be intended to be used in an studio of any kind, an office or merely the customer’s room, so it is in the direction of a more domestic environment. Performance wise, the product will be used mainly for art related work, I want create it so that the desk is modulate, being able to adjust the desktop in favour of the artist, as a raised board would be easier to work with and would reduce strain on the client’s wrist. I also want to have a storage place for the art supplies (that being pens, pencils, etc.) so either I want to incorporate a set of drawers or a set of shelves, maybe both. I’m expecting the size of the product to be moderate, similar to a normal desk size with storage, however, adding shelves will therefore increase the height and depending on the amount of shelves, it could become a tall product but no overly so, still able to fit into a decent sized room. Older clients are more likely to use the product, people who have been working in a creative environment for a long while or who work in designing, whether that be for product design, architecture, fashion, etc.
Brief and specification
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I will be making this product for artistic clientele
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It will be used in a domestic environment
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It is a piece of furniture
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My budget for this project is at least £100
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The desk should have space for the client’s legs, they should be able to stretch them out, maybe rest their feet. The size also matters, too high or too low means it can affect one’s posture and cause aches. For the storage, I will deep a depth for the drawers so that items would be able to fit in and the drawers will need to be able to slide in and out.
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Well, safety measures for a desk would have to do with the height, seeing as if it is too tall or too short it can cause pain for the clientele from their posture. For the drawers I will have to implement a handle or something similar to deter fingers getting caught and squashed.
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As the desktop will be adjustable, I will most likely be needing hinges to pull the desk up and down, I will also need mechanism to keep the desk standing. If I also install drawers into the desk, I will need slide tracks to pull out the drawers and push them back in.
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For the desk, the drawers and the shelves I will be using plywood and I would like to use joints for the desk legs; however, I will also need to use screws and other mechanism. For example, hinges for the movement of the desk, slide tracks for the drawers, etc.
Weilder work bench (LxWxH) 201x902x84 cm
Black work bench (LxWxH) 120x120x82 cm
Primary research To start off I decided to measure and draw out the designs of the furniture that I was going to create as research for my project, so that I could determine the size, potential designs and the practicality of the workbench so that I had a solid idea what I was going for, for my final idea
Copmuter desk (LXWXH) 160 L x 80 w x 73 h I also decided to draw out a computer desk for my research as I wanted to expand on my project, allowing the piece of furniture to be a comfortable workspace for my cilent and knowing that workbenches don't really supply a lot of comfort, as they are more useful in the practicality department, I looked into computer desk designs for more info. Compared to the workbench, the computer desk allows room for leg space and also contains a little hole for any digital appliances that need to be plugged in, however, it doesn't really have any storage space which helps me form ideas for what I could do for a first draft
Once again, I looked at another form of desk, this time a drafting bench as I want a space for an artist, and having an elevated tabletop allows for the artist to tilt the drawing, sketch, painting, etc, so that they can better match the angle in which they are working. So, I thought it would be a good idea to incorperate this into my design. Although, if I am working with a drafting table, I need a way to angle the object so I need to work with hinges, so, I decided to experiment with different hinge types to find what I found more compelling to use.
Finally, I decided to look into different desk structures so that I could decide on the look of the table I am working on. This table here did look appealing to be, as it had storage space like the workbench and leg space like the computer desk, however, the desktop is a tight fit which wouldn't work well with the drafting table and it's too bulky and tall.
Constantin Brâncuşi I decided to look into an Artist artist so that I could explore potential design research ideas for my table, choosing Constatin because of his elaborate work with nature-based sculptures, mainly owls, crafting simple yet interesting sculptures while still containly likeness to his inpsiration.
I decided to try out using Constatin's technique for finding art forms through owls, however, I would translate them into table designs to further enhance my research for my projects. I started out drawing simple sketches of the creatures before pulling out their body shapes from these sketches and creating tables
The first designs doesn't really work out in conclusion to me, it seemed too small and simple for my tastes, matching that on a coffee table for the living room instead of that of a artist's workbench and I decided to scrap it for a potential table idea. The second design held more promise but in the end I didn't like it either, while it did allow space for leg room the same problem I encountered with the first one popped up the me where it seemed to small to be a workbench but instead worked as a coffee table
And lastly the final one once again didn't give me the idea of a workbench table, but instead, maybe potential shelving ideas
Primary research For primary research I decided to look at leaves for th theme of my table, looking at the variety of designs that leaves give that would add interest to my project, as I cannot solely think of the functionality of my project as it would only make it boring.
Experimenting Once again, I know that only thinking of the practicality of my table would take away from the whole of the furniture, so, I decided to experiment with some table top ideas before I started looking at different stuctures for my table. In the end, I really enjoyed the look with the four leaves that corved into a corner (biggest one here) because I think it stands out to the viewered compared to the others but also the corner allows it to be pushed into a corner for more space in the artist's room.
I also really enjoyed the look of these three table tops, The first had the idea of wood with a resin middle filled with different leaves and natural objects, the second was levaes in the wind and the third was an assortment of leaves. I decided tol create little table ideas for these tops but in the end scrapped them because I was once again met with the problem of them looking more like coffee tables than work benches or desks, also it left out the drafting table again.
Initial ideas
This table had too much going on for me to keep track of. I had first started this drawing wanting to max out the design and the practicality however I realised how bulky it had become soon after I was finished.
Initial idea I was looking at design and functionality, yes, looking at different storage designs, such as drawers, cupboards, etc. And that was the pont, I was looking at too much, I was thinking too much so in the end I decided to scrap this design too.
Initial idea I enjoyed the look at this idea at first, not too much was put into it, it had storage, legspace, but once again failed at the drafting table however it still liked it noentheless. However, the more I looked the more I realised how it seemed similar to the table that I had drawn for experimentation and I grew to dislike it in the end
Initial ideas
Henry Moore Most artists and designers extract inspiration from outside sources, nature, people and even from other people's own art/designs Same could be said for Moore, who focused most of his artwork and sculptures focused on abstractions of human figure, typically depicting mother-and-child or reclining figure,
Artist research
Second idea
Second idea
Final design After experimenting with Moore I decided to expand my research added more into the mix, decideding to use the intricate design of branches to experiment with different ideas that I could use for my final design.
I once again visited this tabletop design because I had liked it so much the first table, but, seeing as it still looked too much like a coffee table, I threw away the circular design and replaced it with a rectangular shape, using the simplified shapes of branches acting as the walls to the table which I really liked the design of. In the end didn't really help though, as the table still gave me the vibe of a coffee table.
In the end, I didn't end up using this design as the storage space was very large with minimalised the leg space.
This design was definitely one step closer to finding out my final design for this project. I really enjoyed the idea for the tabletop as it had derived from a leaf design from earlier, similar to the shape of a heart which I thought had been quite nice. I also decided to use my design from my other table, using simplified branch designs as table sides to hold up the tabletop.
In the end this become my final design for my project, which I was able to incorperate all of which I had wanted in the first place for my table, a drafting tabletop, storage space like with the workbench, legspace similar to the computer desk, the branch table sides that I really enjoyed and I was even able to add the wire hole for potential electronic devices