Developing ideas (the object lesson)

 

I was trying to find and develop ideas using one object which I got on the lesson. It is a chalk.  First I started to consider about his shape, texture, colour, which associations it causes and how it can be connected to my subject area. How I can interpret it in architecture. The chalk has a white and beige colour. The mould is asymmetrical, organic. It looks like it was created by nature with the help of wind or water. The porous texture is clearly visible here, there are holes inside the object in different places that look quite even in diameter. They look like they were created by animals or insects. I associate colour, shape and texture with sea stone. I took several photos of these two stones under different lighting and with different composition and made sketches trying to interpret the image of the chalk in architecture. I drew sketches in Procreate on top of the photo to safe the texture and lighting in my sketches.

Since the chalk has an organic shape and texture, the first thing I imagined was a landscape with cliffs by the sea and a building that is integrated into these cliffs. I put the light behind the stones so that the holes were illuminated and reminds a building in the evening with windows. The building has a parametric shape and large windows of different sizes at different levels, therefore it could be imagined that this is a cultural or public building. I also added people to show the approximate scale.

I also thought that holes in the chalk can be used in architecture not only as windows but also as tunnels through which people can walk. I showed this building smaller in scale than the previous one so that the walkways would not look too big and long. I thought it was possible to make these walkways metallic because metal and stone look aesthetically together. I also realised that it was necessary to add additional columns that would support the walkways.

Also, these holes in the chalk can be used as light tunnels or atriums. Therefore, for the next sketch, I used a photo where I put the stone on top of each other so that the holes coincided in their location with each other and it looked similar to an atrium. I think that since the diameter is large compared to the building, it looks more similar to an atrium, not a light tunnel. This sketch is a top view. The hole that is on the stone reminded me a pool on the roof.

For the last sketch, I used a photo where I placed the first stone horizontally and the second vertically on top of it. This composition reminded me of a building that has two functions. Public at the bottom (lower stone) and residential or office at the top (upper stone). I also decided to add a frame that could make the building more stable, although it looks more decorative on my sketch. 

This exercise trains the imagination and helps to see something definite in almost any object. 

In my project, I would like to use a similar texture as a material to convey the feeling of nature. And I would also like to make holes in the building and use it as atriums for the penetration of natural light.