In Transit
Landscapes of movement
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Executive Summary
Question How can my understanding of perspective drawing, particularly techniques of anamorphosis, be applied to the design of landscapes to be experienced through motion? Abstract The act of moving through the landscape is a constant process of being and becoming, arriving and departing. High speed travel modes heighten this experience distorting the visual field and decontextualising the traveller. Paul Virilio (cited in Ingold, 2010) states “The speed overburdens humans, especially in regard to their visual space perception ability. Even though a car ride is mainly a one-dimensional event, humans can no longer cope with the flood of visual impressions at increased speed. Only distinctive features will still be perceived by them.” ‘In Transit’ seeks to reconnect the traveller to the experience of landscape within an urban field by creating a structure that is legible at speed. The research explores geometries of perspective, the historic roots of Landscape Architecture, as fundamental to the way we experience the world both in designing and experiencing the landscape. Anamorphosis is a particular application of perspective theory for producing distorted images to be viewed from a particular viewpoint or through a particular lens. Can this process be used to restore order to the distortion of the landscape produced by high-speed travel and recontextualise the traveller? Through the framework of the Montreal design competition YUL-MTL Moving Landscapes, I am exploring these ideas to produce a unique experience of Montreal for the traveller. By designing the landscape through a series of key viewpoints along the transport corridor between the Montreal airport and Montreal CBD I aim to produce a distinctive structure that will be more easily comprehended at speed.
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Contents
section 1 introduction summmary of project A section 2 perspective theory anamorphosis section 3 historical design precedents precedents in art practice contemporary design precedents section 4 testings section 5 YUL-MTL section 6 summary conclusions
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Introduction
Images 1-6
Introduction Following on from my work in Project A on design for the moving subject I have distilled the focus to an understanding of perspective and how to design through this. The elements I had been working with, which I was thinking of in terms of Landscape Picturesque tools of patterning, texturing, layering, parallax, and view lines, I am now viewing as elements of perspective.
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Project A
Images 7-11
Project A My design work in project A included several pieces focusing the viewer on specific view lines. Parametrically rotate panels aligned with or obscured view lines or objects from the motorists gaze allowing the experience along a motorway to be affected. On the bottom design the horizon lines affects the sound wall and a parametric attraction line closing or opening views to the context beyond.
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Project A
Images 12-15
The final designs explored moire patterns as a tool for designing for the moving subject. Moire patterns had several effects that related to my toolbox of techniques. The designs contained patterns that animated through movement and played with the context through parallax and interference. They could be designed to obscure or reveal particular viewpoints or horizon lines. The visual permeability allowed for the relationship to context that I was one of my main objectives of my design brief.
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Perspective
Diagrams 1
Diagrams 2
Graphical perspective Graphical perspective is the interpretation of a three-dimensional image, as seen by the eye, to a two-dimensional picture plane. In perspective drawing, parallel lines converge to a vanishing point along an axis. There are three common types of perspective representation (diagram 1). One-point perspective occurs when the image contains lines converging to a vanishing point on the horizon directly ahead of the viewer. Two-point occurs when lines converge to two different vanishing points on the horizon either side of the centre of view. Three-point perspective
Diagrams 3
Diagrams 1-4
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Perspective
Images 18-20
Graphical perspective Where the sides of the highway are built up and the road is straight, perspectives are mainly one-point, disappearing to a vanishing point directly ahead. Where the views open up and a linnear structure still exists then two-point perspectives occur. On fly overs, the structures may create perspective with three vanishing points or more.
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Cover of ‘Anamorphosis in Early Modern Literature: Mediation and Affect’, Jen E. Boyle
http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2008/09/03/anamorphosis-by-felice-varini/
Anamorphosis
Images 21
Images 22
http://www.generativeart.com/salgado/anamorphic.htm
Anamorphic projection Anamorphosis applies the theory of perspective drawing to create the reverse effect wherein a two-dimensional image is projected onto another plane. The effect creating a distorted geometry.
Diagram 5-6 showing the process of anamorphic projection of a cube
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Anamorphosis
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Image 24 Le Notre’s plan for the Grand Canal at Sceaux
Image 25 Vaux Le Vicomte
http://www.newyorksocialdiary.com/node/3110/print
Image 23 Niceron’s diagram of anamorphosis 1638
http://www.lenotre.culture.gouv.fr/en/de/st/stop03.htm
Le Notre
Andre Le Notre Andre Le Notre used these techniques in his french formalist gardens; Le Nôtre employed an optical illusion called anamorphosis abscondita (which might be roughly translated as ‘hidden distortion’) in his garden design in order to establish decelerated perspective. The most apparent change in this manner is of the reflecting pools. They are narrower at the closest point to the viewer (standing at the rear of the château) than at their farthest point; this makes them appear closer to the viewer. From a certain designed viewing point, the distortion designed into the landscape elements produces a particular forced perspective and the eye perceives the elements to be closer than they actually are. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaux-le-Vicomte In Versaille and Vaux le Vicomte, the reverse was used in order to make the properties appear endless. The curve of the land and plays with scale of architectural objects made the garden seem to continue to the horizon (image 25). His intricate use of geometry was centred around the kings position in the castle, placing him at the centre of the universe.
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Razzle Dazzle
Images 26-28
Razzle Dazzle Razzle Dazzle was the name of a technique of camouflage used in WW1. The intention was to confuse rangefinders in naval fleets. The technique applied principles of anamorphosis to create false geometries applied to the hulls of ships. The effect was not to hide them but to confuse attempts to determine speed and direction at a distance. One modern application of this technique is to disguise highway speed-traps.
all images this page - http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2007/11/modernist-art-in-camouflage.html
Images 29-30
Image 31
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http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue15/kentridge.htm http://www.channels.com/episodes/show/12885461/ William-Kentridge-The-Nose-Opera-Curtain?page=3
http://www.artthrob.co.za/09feb/images/kentridge08a.jpg
Cover of ‘Da Capo’, William Ketnridge
Precedents
Images 32-35
William Kentridge William Kentridge creates sculptural works and animations that are design to be seen in motion. The 3-dimensional composition forms a 2D image at one vantage point. He describes them as disolving into chaos but conversely they can be seen as creating order from disorder or as having a hidden order that we are enticed to discover.
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Anish Kapoor Anish Kapoor’s work creates ambiguities of depth, perspective and space. His mediums are reflective surfaces or highly light absorbing materials that engage our visual faculties and challenge the perception we take for granted. Although this is not directly related to my exploration of anamorphosis, the distortion of space that he explores works well in relation to it. It also relates to a field of anamorphosis called catoptric which uses mirrors to realign a distorted image.
http://www.jonwiltshire.com/television.html
Image 36
http://www.areasucia.com/2011/07/18/istvan-orosz-2/istvan-orosz-03-2/
Precedents
Image 38
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TWUP_Jerusalem_190810_1.JPG
http://samizdatblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/democratic-consumption-servile.html
Image 37
Image 39
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Images this page: http://nadav.harel.org.il/Bridget_Riley/
Precedents
Images 40-43
Bridget Riley Bridget Riley is one of the most famous and prolific exponents of opart, visual art created from optical illusions. “Optical art is a method of painting concerning the interaction between illusion and picture plane, between understanding and seeing.� Her work explores the creation of three-dimensional effects with twodimensional patterns.
Images 44
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Precedents
http://www.virtualmagie.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ topics/258030/Spectacle_Le_Cube_de_Francois_
Francois Abelanet Abelanet uses anamorphosis to create urban landscape installations. The illusions work on 3D geometric forms that appeared when viewed from one perspective angle. The designs work best for photographic images but he manages to create interesting landscape forms in the process. They interest me mainly as an application of landscape materials to anamorphosis.
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/24260627
Images 45
Images 47
http://izismile.com/tags/Paris/
Images 46
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Images 48-51
Tim Noble Tim Noble’s works are similar to those of Abelanet, however in this instance the light point take the place of the viewpoint. The focus of the light projects the illusion on to a viewing surface. This allows it to be viewed from more than one angle. The effect is enhanced by framing the sculpture as the initial view then revealing the image. The contrast between the waste used as a medium and the beauty of the image adds to the spectacle.
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http://ps1.org/exhibitions/view/60
http://irenajurek.blogspot.com/2011/08/tim-noble-suewebster.html
http://cubeme.com/blog/2010/08/19/shadow-art-by-timnoble-and-sue-webster/
http://art-documents.tumblr.com/post/309773999/timnoble-sue-webster
Precedents
Images this page: http://projectsreview2010.aaschool.ac.uk/html/ units.php?unit=99&name=603
Precedents
The work by Jin Uk-Lee in a 2010 AA School of Architecture Studio explored the creation of architecture from the anamorphic. She states “The project seeks to merge with the street view using anamorphic effects, momentarily dissolving the fabric of the building.� Her process of creation was interesting but the results were based on a single point perspective. The exhibition for this studio was in many ways more relevant to my work. The design of the exhibition space was a ble to be appreciated from multiple angle and many effects of distorted depth were created. The wall patterns dissovled the linnearity of the walls. The lines were then extruded out into the three-dimensional plinths that related to the two-dimensional and created further distortion of space.
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project precedents
This work for an early RMIT design studio dealt with a section of train line in the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. The corridor narrowed before a tunnel leading up to Holmeglen station. Adjacent to the station is the largest technical college in Australia. The design was a three-phase installation dealing with different speeds and condition in the train corridor. One design involved a farily lowtech grid of LED lights between the two train lines that could be programmed as a three-dimensional digital animation by the TAFE students. The second was a simple light-box stop-motion animation device along the tunnel wall.
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images this page http://www.tzg.com.au/projects/craigieburn-bypass
project precedents
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project precedents
images this page http://www.woodmarsh.com.au/projects/detail/e/
Eastlink - Woods Marsh architects
Melbourne’s Eastlink bypass by architects Wood Marsh is a recent example of a large scale highway design. It’s distinctive sculptural gestures locate the project through a kid of branding. The use of simple, bold colours create forms easily recognisable at speed and distance. Woven through these bold objects are a palette of materials, colours and patterns that tie the project to the vernacular. It builds in obvious ways on the Craigieburn Bypass project but achieves a more unified aesthetic. In part this is due to the existing conditions (Craigieburn lies in open plains, damaged by farming and development, Eastlink sits in hilly terrain with remnant bushland) More transparent materials are used, allowing the spaces to relate to each other and the tracking of motion of other vehicles and solar patterns. The inclusion of more abstract art also opens up the reading of the space in comparison to the slightly contrived louvres of Craigieburn.
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project precedents
images this page http://www.woodmarsh.com.au/projects/detail/e/
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project precedents
images this page http://www.woodmarsh.com.au/projects/detail/e/
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Testing
Urban Realities My entry for the Urban Realities 72hr Challenge in Melbourne Docklands offered a chance to reflect on some of the explorations from Project A. The competition was part of the State of Design Festival which this year had the theme ‘Design That Moves’. The use of water a construction material allowed for a responsiveness to the site conditions and a permeability that encouraged engagement with the design. Early tests revealed how the water in bags To allow the temporary structure resilience against the strong prevailing winds meant that the form also needed a degree of permeability, resulting in a structure that was very much part of the urban fabric. The materials, especially the zip-lock bags, related nicely to the surrounding highrise when viewed from within, taking on a similar language and scale. The intervention then was an object in itself but also sat in relation to its surroundings, playing and engaging with them and inviting the public to do likewise.
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Testing
Anamorphic projection of a square
Front and side view off the image
Anamorphic projection This testing of the anamorphosis technique in my hallway allowed me to understand the process of making. From the front door (left image) a flat square appears to be on the wall.Viewed from the side (right images) the square appears as an elongated rhomboid.
ojected image Projected
I used a laser pointer projected through a cardboard template to locate the points. The porcess also enabled me to understand more clearly the separation between perspective amd the anamorphic. The square is a two-dimensional image in anamorphic projection ie. projected onto a three-dimensional surface. Diagram # explains the process more clearly.
Picture Pic plane
View Point Plan view
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Testing
Anamorphic geometry This testing of projected geometry is based on the AA Exhibition Camouflage: A Catalogue of Effects. A patterning of projected geometries is us ed to disguise the actual geometry of a room, affecting the way we read the space.
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YUL-MTL
Light These collages explore my initial instincts for the Montreal competition which were to use the existing language of light to highlight site area. In this way the site could be read through the planimetric upon approach. Its starts to give locality to the experience of the design on the ground plane and contrast to its plays of depth and perspective. It brings to mind the exclamation of Le Corbusier after his first air flight “L’avion accuse...!”
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Testing
These testings explore the possibility of transposing the previous patterns in a purely planimetric way. It produces a sense of scale and starts to inform what it might be to create this effect across a large landscape. What are the stripes composed of? Are they literal or suggestive? What might inform the construction of the geometries?
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Testing
Anamorphic architecture In this model I’m exploring the work of William Kentridge in architectural form. The viewer is presented with a basic geometric form that stands out in the disordered landscape. On approach the building volume breaks apart revealing a new geometry and framing views of the landscape beyond. The model is a rudimentary exploration of process of designing with and for motion. The model was created in Rhino with a camera track and viewpoint set up. I discovered that I was unable to project to a surface in perspective as I had hoped to do and I was forced to construct the model through viewpoints and lines that defined my volumes. Within these volumes there are a multitude of possibilities. The effect would be enhanced by the projection of an image or texture to the building cladding.
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Testing
Urban structure through viewlines This is a tesing of the Montreal competition site. Having extruded buildings along a section of the freeway, a one kilometre camera track was set with animation reording at 900 frames. This allowed the creation of animations in Final Cut Pro at 15 and 25 frames per second that reproduced speeds of 60 and 100 kph respectively. (see appendix) Three different structure were explored: a regular geometry at 90 degrees to the highway in alternating 10m bands of black and white (image #) a regular geometry at 45 degrees to the highway a fan formation of alternating bands of black and white at 2 degree intervals
90 degree bands
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Testing
45 degree bands
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Testing
The fan formation is derived from the sight lines of the automobile passenger. In making sense of the landscape a single point is focussed upon over a span relative to the distance of the object from the viewer. When that object has lost it’s interest or moves out of the scope of view, the gaze leaps to the next distant point. The landscape between viewer and object sits in relation to these site lines. Each of these images is taken from the same view point. It is apparent that the sense of depth is effected by the different patternings.
Fan formation
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Site mapping
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The construction of the space then is based on the relation between the road and landmarks across the site. The space between is constructed in relation to the landmark point in terms of middle and foreground in parallax. I am working on identifying view lines and landmark points to construct these triangulations. Landmarks are proposed where there are none.
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Speed
The effect of speed is to distort close objects and affect our ability to distinguish objects or patterns. Patterns must be large and simple to be read from the highway. Objects need to sit at a far enough distance or an oblique angle from the road to be understood. Distant objects hold the gaze, the middle ground is viewed in relation to this view line and the foreground is generally blurred or viewed as a mass.
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conclusions
Why design for movement? Movement is large part of the life of metropolitan dwellers. There is a democracy in movement that allows us to reconfigure our city in interesting and creative ways. We weave the narratives of our lives through these pathways. By designing for highways I am exploring some of the extremes of movement in the city; high speed movement, neglected and disconnected spaces, large amounts of people across broad demographics. The roots of landscape architecture contain clues but do not expressly deal with these modern conditions. The physical conditions of scale and speed are quite different to the early conditions of the city as are the social conditions of mass transit and the desire for customisation and personalisation of the city. Through these approaches stemming from the traditions of landscape architecture, I have aimed to approach designing for movement in a new way that will give me an understanding of design for a variety of public spaces. As a student with limited time and resources it is easy to fall into a mode of designing through plan using google earth and available CAD material. The brief to recontextualise the subject has challenged me to think intensively about the experience of the space I am designing for in a multidimensional way incorporating space and time.
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Bibliography
Ingold, L 2010, ‘Spatial Perception in Infrastructural Context’, in HighwayING, Springer-Verlag,Vienna, p. 8 Boyle, J ‘Anamorphosis in Early Modern Literature: Mediation and Affect’, burnsdavid.com http://www.generativeart.com/salgado/anamorphic.htm http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2008/09/03/anamorphosis-by-felice-varini/ http://www.newyorksocialdiary.com/node/3110/print http://www.newyorksocialdiary.com/node/3110/print http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2007/11/modernist-art-in-camouflage.html http://nadav.harel.org.il/Bridget_Riley/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TWUP_Jerusalem_190810_1.JPG http://www.channels.com/episodes/show/12885461/William-Kentridge-The-Nose-Opera-Curtain?page=3 http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue15/kentridge.htm http://www.areasucia.com/2011/07/18/istvan-orosz-2/istvan-orosz-03-2/ http://www.jonwiltshire.com/television.html http://samizdatblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/democratic-consumption-servile.html http://projectsreview2010.aaschool.ac.uk/html/units.php?unit=99&name=603 http://www.tzg.com.au/projects/craigieburn-bypass http://izismile.com/tags/Paris/ http://www.panoramio.com/photo/24260627 http://www.virtualmagie.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/258030/Spectacle_Le_Cube_de_Francois_ http://art-documents.tumblr.com/post/309773999/tim-noble-sue-webster http://cubeme.com/blog/2010/08/19/shadow-art-by-tim-noble-and-sue-webster/ http://irenajurek.blogspot.com/2011/08/tim-noble-sue-webster.html http://ps1.org/exhibitions/view/60
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