Day 5 - Cardboard Lane

Cardboard Lane

Today involved much teamwork and quick thinking. Our first task was to create bridge designs made from paper. I found this task quite challenging because it was hard to try not to focus on the details of the bridge, for example, cut-out designs, what materials that will be used and how the user would experience the environment.

Today involved much teamwork and quick thinking. Our first task was to create bridge designs made from paper. I found this task quite challenging because it was hard to try not to focus on the details of the bridge, for example, cut-out designs, and what materials that will be used. These designs were then used to help the main bridge that we were building in our groups. 

Our group’s main design was a take on a drawbridge, however our bridge did not ascend nor descend, it stayed mobile and had a jump in the middle, which was quite a risk for the car in the final test. 

Our structure began from a prism shaped piece of cardboard that extended to 2.3m and was placed from either side of the table. This base, which was formed of many prisms was held together with bamboo sticks at every point where the cardboard overlapped. At this point we faced an issue because the prisms were not held very tightly together, we overcame this problem by using tape to act as a plug to prevent the bamboo sticks moving in the pierced holes. Unfortunately, this only worked for a short amount of time, yet again we faced the problem and used doubled up rubber bands to act as a stronger plug so the bamboo sticks did not move out of place.

 A further problem that arose was the shape of the 'semi-tunnel', the prism shape did not accommodate for the width of the car, therefore we had to loosen the prism shape and made the semi-tunnel into sort of an open extended box.

We were now getting ahead with the base of the bridge, now we started to assemble the bamboo sticks that held the bridge upright at two points in the ‘river’, at this point we were running out of time, so we joined the bamboo sticks in an upside down tee pee tent form and taped this to the carpet. It just about was stable.

At the final test, the car made it over the bridge with a few mishaps, but it did not collapse. Success!

Today's activities were very enjoyable because I was able to share my ideas and listen and observe other people's ideas as well. However, I would have preferred to spend more time on planning with paper bridges, so I could have consolidated my ideas better. Although, this also means I do need to manage my time better with the activities.

                                                            

 
                                                   

Day 4

The day began with being given briefs and turning our responses into an outcome such as shoes, shopping centre plan, bus shelter plan, items of support and stability and rabbit hutches. I found this to be an intriguing exercise because it allowed me to see how quickly I was able to create a whole plan for a 2 bedroom bungalow or a 'jacket' lamp. I gradually felt more challenged towards the end because I had to increasingly think of moving away from the idea of a typical 'shopping centre'.

Our next task comprised of two small projects: creating a structure made from one sheet of paper that elevated a full water bottle 200mm off the ground; and producing another structure made from cardboard, which elevated ourselves 40cm above the ground. 

My initial plan was to make a few conveyer belt type covers and fill them with scrunched up paper. These structures would sit upon each other forming a tower. However, it didn't elevate my bottle high enough, which resulted in having to turn the conveyer belt base vertically and filling it with the scrunched up paper I had, which was a success up until the structure was tested with a full water bottle. 

Mid-Fall

The main structure I had envisioned formed of 6 'legs' with 3 smaller 'legs' encircling one of the main 6 'legs' giving extra support. On top of this base I was supposed to create a hexagon shaped seat cover, but as I had ran out of time I taped all 'legs' together to form a seat. It was able to support me and I could just about lift my feet off the ground! I felt that I could improve by speeding up how I worked and focusing more on smaller details such as patterns I could've created to make my product/structure more recognisable. Overall I felt the tasks today had taught me to push myself and make the product immediately and make adjustments rather than spending a long time on an idea and then completely changing it at the last minute to something quite simple and uninteresting. 

Day 3

Today the day began with learning about what other techniques people had used to collect observations and data throughout the week. This ranged from surface rubbings to counting bus stops. I felt this activity helped me understand how other creative minds think in terms of how they approach their work.

We ‘officially’ enrolled at Ravensbourne with our ‘Passports’ as well. We created our passports by using the material we collected from the V&A, Serpentine pavilion, research from the study zone and our journeys. I found filling the ‘passport’ quite challenging because I needed to have more substance in the images I made. 

 

                                                                                  

 

Day 2

Disobedient objects. This exhibition was unlike any other exhibition I had been to before. The objects that were on display were symbols of more than art, with each object taking you back to the present moment of the specific powerful event. 

Throughout the exhibition the feeling of helplessness hung over me, which took me quite aback. This was due to knowing that in the moment I could only sympathise for the protesters and do nothing more.

The most powerful object to me was the face cast of John Joe 'Ash' Amador on the 'Tiki Love Truck', (Fig. 1 and 2) because it was very uncomfortable to look at yet I couldn't look away from it. It acted as a symbol reminding the authorities that the effects of the death penalty were still present in this form. I really admired the aspect of the every inch of the truck being covered in strong symbols because this would have raised much more awareness and responses from the public.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

After this chilling exhibition, I discovered the 'Constable: The Making of a Master' exhibition alongside the paintings room at the Victoria and Albert museum. I thought this was a great contrast to the architectural models I had viewed because it gave me a better sense of experiencing the different environments that were projected from different collections.

Fig. 3 

At the Serpentine Pavilion, a giant cream shell, egg, or donut like structure floats upon great angular boulders, which leaves one quite perplexed as to what could be inside. A cafe is situated inside the shell, I thought this was a pleasant addition to the installation because it welcomed more interaction between the public and the structure. This shell is a temporary piece of architecture created by Smijan Radić, a Chilean architect.

I wasn't entirely ecstatic at the exterior's texture because it reminded me of raw paper mache. Although, I admired the colours of burnt reds, yellow ochre, and browns in the interior, which shone through the resin and fibreglass base. (Fig. 4 & 6)

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Fig. 8

Day 1

Choosing ten items of ephemera was harder than I had anticipated. (Fig. 1)

The items we brought were used to create uncomfortable abstract drawings and sketches. It felt very strange to not aim to create an almost photographic copy of the objects. Instead we looked into the deeper meaning of our objects and used different media and words to represent out objects. The series of drawings led us to the task of writing about ourselves...! (Fig. 2) These tasks felt very alien to me because I had never produced work that solely focused on yourself. I eventually appreciated being out of my comfort zone because the activities had forced me to not keep starting again and speed up in my drawings.
Lastly, we had to produce portraits of members of the class, whilst having a conversation with them. This was probably my weakest task as the outcomes were extremely disproportionate. Afterwards we would then receive feedback from our partners... Shockingly the people I had paired with had appreciated the way I drew their eyebrows, which was one of the positives of my day. 

Fig.1

Fig. 2