Saturday 22 June 2013

1 X FULLY DEVELOPED CRYENGINE3 ENVIRONMENT

Link to Dropbox containing CryEngine Environment. Relevant files are in 'EXP3_v2':

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ea9hbzy0eeprtuy/9YHsti1Wdw

5 REAL TIME IMAGE CAPTURES OF THE DEVELOPED CRYENGINE3 ENVIRONMENT


















The bridge itself primarily consists of two large pillars that house the school of Architecture. One pillar is designated for staff related spaces while the other is designated for student related spaces. The form of these pillars is key in their expression of the articulated theory. Their verticality serves to mirror the vertical natural forms surrounding them. The large curved column is a dramatic statement that reflects the structural elements of the bridge; this is furthered by the glazing on either side of the occupied spaces which literally and figuratively reveal the structural and spatial makeup. Separating student spaces from staff spaces emphasises the union of the two served by the outreaching arms of each pillar's sky deck forming a large circuit like circulation between the two.













These images serve to highlight the height and verticality of the pillars and the relationship between the two. They face each other and reach out to one another in a figurative expression of the student/teacher relationship.














These images serve to highlight the form and function of both the architectural folly/meeting place and the two elevators. The architectural folly/meeting place stands as an informal destination, not adhering to conventional understandings of a place where one would meet to have lunch. With a curtain of vertical columns and elongated cut-outs, the folly serves to exist symbiotically with the natural landscape, providing students and staff with an opportunity to view their surroundings from different perspectives and in different lights. The two C-shaped elevators are shown here to extend horizontally from each pillar where they meet, joined by a central disk, and descend to the valley floor in the center of the architectural folly/meeting place together. This is a further expression of the symbiotic relationship between architecture and landscape and student and teacher.





4 REAL TIME IMAGE CAPTURES SHOWING 2 DRAFT CRYENGINE3 ENVIRONMENTS









The landscape I have based my virtualised valley on are the natural sandstone rock pillars in Central Greece (at the northwestern edge of the Plain of Thessaly near the Pineios river and Pindus Mountains) known as The Metéora.







1 X SKETCHUP MODEL THAT INCLUDES THE TWO ELEVATORS AND AN ARCHITECTURAL FOLLY


Link to Sketchup model including the two elevators and an architectural folly:

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=b157336d8424ccde656a165d957a70da

36 CUSTOM TEXTURES


18 SKETCH PERSPECTIVES

9 One-Point Perspective Drawings





















9 Two-Point Perspective Drawings




Monday 27 May 2013

MASHUP OF 3 NEWS ARTICLES

An underlying effort at achieving the new, original, and visionary.The main content is that the technological kind of construction, mostly with steel and glass, is expressed in a formal independent way to gain own aesthetic qualities out of it. Organic architecture is a philosophy of architecture which promotes harmony between human habitation and the natural world through design approaches so sympathetic and well integrated with its site, that buildings, furnishings, and surroundings become part of a unified, interrelated composition. Distortion of form for an emotional effect. They included the prominent display of the building's technical and functional components, and an orderly arrangement and use of pre-fabricated elements. The style was characterised by an early-modernist adoption of novel materials, formal innovation, and very unusual massing, sometimes inspired by natural biomorphic forms. The idea of organic architecture refers not only to the buildings' literal relationship to the natural surroundings, but how the buildings' design is carefully thought about as if it were a unified organism. Subordination of realism to symbolic or stylistic expression of inner experience. Everything relates to one another, reflecting the symbiotic ordering systems of nature. High-tech architecture was, in some ways, a response to growing disillusionment with modern architecture. Utilises creative potential of artisan craftsmanshipTendency more towards the gothic than the classical. High-tech architecture created a new aesthetic in contrast with standard modern architecture. Conception of architecture as a work of art. This highlights one of the aims of high-tech architecture, to show the technical elements of the building by externalizing them."Using Nature as our basis for design, a building or design must grow, as Nature grows, from the inside out. Often hybrid solutions, irreducible to a single concept. Nature grows from the idea of a seed and reaches out to its surroundings. A building thus, is akin to an organism and mirrors the beauty and complexity of Nature." Themes of natural romantic phenomena, such as caves, mountains, lightning, crystal and rock formations. Thus, the technical aspects create the building's aesthetic. 


Blue: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-tech_architecture
Red: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_architecture
Green: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expressionist_architecture

Combined theory summary: Expressive and imaginative architecture that emphasises structural and material elements while remaining sympathetic and well integrated within its environment and cohesive in itself.

Sunday 5 May 2013

SHORT CLIPS OF MONUMENTS

Here are a series of short clips exploring the two monuments. Although these are not required by the marking criteria I thought they would assist in visualising the space and putting the images in context. I apologise for how many there are, the software only allowed short clips.



18 SKETCH AXONOMETRICS

Individual axonometrics with corresponding parallel projections





















Grid-like forms






















Pure geometric shapes






















Function over form - taking into account usage of space rather than aesthetic appeal






















Designs embedded within surrounding physical and cultural landscapes and public spaces 






















Continuous building mass






















Design as a growing organism that spreads through successive branches which form the structure “like fruits on the vine”



Connected axonometrics with corresponding parallel projections



















Grid-like forms + Continuous building mass
























Function over form - taking into account usage of space rather than aesthetic appeal + Designs embedded within surrounding physical and cultural landscapes and public spaces 






















Design as a growing organism that spreads through successive branches which form the structure “like fruits on the vine” + Pure geometric shapes

CRYENGINE3 AND SKETCHUP FILES

Link to final monuments in 3D Warehouse: http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=634171057247f30c656a165d957a70da

Link to Cryengine3 Levels folder using Dropbox: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/d94moht7x9ufnjd/Xcqnc8_Htc?v=0mwns

Friday 3 May 2013

2 SHORT TEXTS DESCRIBING THE ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPTS

Design as a growing organism that spreads through successive branches which form the structure “like fruits on the vine”

This 'concept' focuses primarily on the organic aesthetic and design intention of arguably all Zaha Hadid's work. Relating architectural forms to a 'growing organism' encapsulates the dynamic, free-flowing forms that she is widely recognised for. It also, however, inadvertently comments on Hadid's ability to create architecture that is deeply rooted in its physical and cultural landscape. With my design of a monument, I attempted to harness these two ideas by having the structure latch onto the side of a cliff-face in an almost parasitic way. The structure is lively and dynamic in form and deeply rooted (physically) into the natural landscape.

Pure geometrical shapes

Although this 'concept' seems ambiguous at first glance, it provides great insight into the work of the late Norma Merrick Sklarek. Sklarek's work manifests a return to humble and fundamental architecture in stark contrast to the complex, aesthetic-oriented architecture on which modern society places much emphasis. This fundamentalist approach is achieved through the use of deceptively simple geometrical shapes i.e. a conglomeration of regular prisms. With my design of a monument, I attempted to encapsulate this idea by beginning with a simple rectangular prism and subtracting four additional prisms. The monument stands as a testament to Sklarek's preference for simplicity in design and emphasis on function.

The way these two pieces of architecture have been expressed in terms of their surrounding landscape was based on a combination of each architect's design preference and their contribution to the world of architecture. Sklarek as a humble, function-oriented architect sits lower on the cliff. Her contribution to the presence of women in the architectural profession was somewhat foundational and hence she provides a base for Hadid's monument. Hadid's monument is dramatically poised on the top and edge of the cliff to both express her dramatic architectural design preference as well as her triumph as an extremely successful and popularised woman in the architectural profession, being the first female Pritzker Prize winner.. The landscape essentially reflects the changing role of women in the industry.



Electroliquid Aggregation of the two above concepts:
'Organic forms achieved through a succession of pure geometrical shapes.'

36 CUSTOM TEXTURES




























3 textures used in architecture

















A conscious decision was made to use overlapping and swirly textures for Zadid's monument to reflect the organic nature of her design work. Contrastingly, a grid-like texture was used for Sklarek's monument to highlight her implementation of simple geometry.

Thumbnails of textures within architecture







Monday 22 April 2013

5 REAL TIME IMAGE CAPTURES SHOWING A CRYENGINE3 ENVIRONMENT

5 real time images












Entryway to Sklarek monument; this image relates to the Electroliquid Aggregation in that the use of pure geometrical shapes is continued throughout the scheme including staircases and glazing



Open deck of Hadid monument; this image relates to the Electroliquid Aggregation in that the utilisation of pure geometrical shapes is shown to be quite dramatic when done so effectively


Meeting space for students; note the amphitheatre with lectern in background and meeting tables and chairs in foreground; this image relates to the Electroliquid Aggregation in that the natural land form to the right of the image is shown bare and raw, relating to the idea that the structure is a 'living organism' that has developed from the landscape



Roof of Sklarek monument in foreground and student meeting space to the right













Open deck of Hadid monument artificially lit by night




Additional non-real time images (to show natural landscape)




Friday 12 April 2013

3 ANIMATIONS FROM SKETCHUP

Note: Each animation's duration is indicated by Youtube to be 16 s prior to playing the video. This, however, changes back to its correct value of 15 s once the video has commenced. I do not know why Youtube is doing this but please do not misconstrue this as my animations going beyond the 15 s time limit.



Animation #1 - Fly around of above ground studio space for Jiro Ono



Animation #2 - Fly around of common showroom and below ground studio space for Antonio Stradivari

















Animation #3 - Pan and section of below ground studio space for Antonio Stradivari/common showroom and aboce ground studio space for Jiro Ono

Monday 11 March 2013

7 IMAGES SHOWING 2 DRAFT SKETCHUP MODELS AND 1 DEVELOPED SKETCHUP MODEL

Draft Sketchup Model #1


Above ground model shown in isolation; inspired by the adjective elegant assigned to Antonio Stradivari's work.

Below ground model shown in isolation; inspired by the verb devour assigned to Jiro Ono's work.



















Original sketch on which Draft Sketchup Model #1 was based.





Draft Sketchup Model #2


Above ground model shown in isolation; inspired by the noun tradition assigned to Jiro Ono's work.

Below ground model shown in isolation; inspired by the adjective elegant assigned to Antonio Stradivari's work.

Original sketch on which Draft Sketchup Model #2 was based.



Experimentation with textures within developed model






Modelled crafts within developed model






























The stairs

Stair design linking Jiro Ono's above ground studio space to the ground level showroom.

Original design sketches on which the final Jiro Ono stair design was based.


Stair design linking Antonio Stradivari's below ground studio space to the ground level showroom.

Original design sketches on which the final Antonio Stradivari stair design was based.




General screenshots of developed model




























Main facade of above ground multi-level studio space (Jiro Ono's studio space)

















Back facade of above ground multi-level studio space (Jiro Ono's studio space)
















Ground level showroom (sushi train/acoustic venue)
















Curved descent from showroom into below ground studio space (Antonio Stradivari's studio space); curved, solid surfaces exaggerate the reverberation and volume emanating from Stradivari's string instruments.




Interior of Antonio Stradivari's below ground studio space