Unit IV Summary: Reflections

The reflections unit was really about analyzing how far we've come in the design world. From our "foundations"set in prehistoric sights around the world where  it is evident that circles stacks and groves were the ways in which our ancestors were expressing their ideas, to the more sophisticated clean geometric forms in our modernized environments. Though we have come a long way, we still look to our past to regain a better understanding of where we need to head. Reflecting on important issues in design directs our culture to where that road is going.

The world's fairs were our first exposure to other culture by way of design and lifestyle. Countries all over the world were outlining their national identity and at the same time, experiencing other perspectives. It was the world's fair of 1964 in particular that set the trajectory of globalization and innovation. With the advancement of technology came  easier access to the ways in which designers and innovators were making leeway for simplistic living. Mass production made these newfound lifestyles readily available and big corporations were making footprints around the world.

Post-modernism then makes a stand against the vastly manipulated culture and designers began to think eclectically in terms of shaping the environment. Being unconventional in a time when everything seemed to be so linear was an appropriate response in order to sustain creativity and nourish our desire for variety, where all around you're faced with the many types of branding by large companies. Post-modernism was breaking out of normal comfort zones and creating an identity much different from what globalization was doing and what traditional mainframes had done.

With the identity crisis of post-modernism, we see new cultural values being depicted on our living units such as the snout house. The snout house with a prominently featured garage taking up much of the facade, tell the onlooker that our valuables are set at a high standard, this is a societal standard that alludes to the bulk middle class. Post-modernism was only a subsidiary movement from the mass consumerism mentality post industrial revolution. Though we may not be consuming as much as we once were, we still hold our valuables at high stake, and obviously wish to take great care of them which would make a garage necessary.

Innovation is the direct product of evaluating and addressing issues that are thought of a necessary to be solved, and then finding ways to fix them. It is this act of reflecting on societal values and other such paradigms that lead us into the future. Designers help to shape the always changing culture around us. Designers look at the current state of matters that directly affect society and culture and find ways to accommodate or alleviate if necessary, the many burdens that could make life a little more stressful. Sometimes this calls for looking to the past and studying how similar issues were resolved or attempted to be resolved, and finding what worked and what didn't. Reflections is all about finding what works  to progress into the future.

Funkhouser

The Funkhouser building on UK's campus houses not only the college of interiors but also the various administrative offices essential for freshman or those new to the campus. The pattern along the facade is typical Palladian style, and has an exaggerated pathway leading up to the doors that seems to demand its significance. Symmetry is prominent leading up to the building and throughout the details along the front, alluding to the order and status that signify higher education. The materials used to express the features of the building relate to other buildings on and around campus, creating a sense of community on small and large scales.

The building having a classical air to it sets the foundation for the campus as a whole. It represents tradition and solidity, so making it a centralized building in turn creates that kind of identity for UK. Although modernized buildings continue to populate the campus, Funkhouser holds ground, and retains some consistency with the sense of place of Lexington.

I think the open arrangement of the seating in the lobby that has splitting traffic creates a nice atmosphere. It's simple, not too intimidating, and yet sophisticated. The Barcelona chairs give off a sense of maturity and refinement. The chairs themselves give a modern feel contrasting the exterior of the building, illustrating the projection of education and maturation. It tells a story of the average college student's journey into adulthood in these small details, and is appropriate for this type of building.

Funkhouser is where I retreat when it is cold outside and I have time to kill. I go to the lobby and lounge on the easy-back Barcelona chairs, or go to the basement where there are side benches that allow for privacy and space in and away from the elements. The coming and going of students in the lobby area creates human interaction in small doses, while the basement is more secluded. The contrasting experiences within one building cater to the different moods I may be in. I am not too familiar with all of the student areas on campus but from what I've experienced thus far, Funkhouser is most comfortable in my opinion.

Design Autobiography Inspirations

space:atrium from ancient Rome
sustainability 

material: bamboo
eco-friendly

Building: Casa Batilo
nature inspired

Place: Japan
creating natural spaces with things already found in nature and making it surreal 

Object: solar panel
sustainability and eco friendly

                 

Snout House Reflections

The snout house can be connected to other designed structures throughout history in the sense that it creates a facade that is directed toward the point of entry, in other words the driveway. It should be noted that the garage doors are a prominent feature and deviate from the traditional form of actual entrance into the house via doorway. The garage doors act as an intermediate function exclusively for the members of the house, and visitors are more directed towards the front door. I think it gives a more secure and personalized air about it.

The garage doors taking up most of the houses front exterior looks as though they double as a sort of privacy barrier. Though they are without a doubt within the interior of the house, most of the activity would happen behind the walls of the garage interior. Aside from perhaps ventilation, the miniature windows that sit atop the garage doors seem as though they would be difficult to peer out of or into, defeating the actual purpose of windows.

Throughout history, dwellings have seemed to put an emphasis on the entrance to symbolize prosperity or power, with the snout house, the same attention to this detail is paid in response to the societal rank of the middle class. Wealth is still pronounced, but the middle class is more weighted majority wise, and this is reflective in the snout house.

Design Pattern Experience

My experience was that acknowledging the evolution of important players in the design world brought to my perspective a more intimate relationship with categorizing these aspects of the design world in a more organized way. I don't think it really shifted my design perspective because we only ordered them based on time-frames, but it was nice to see the influence that older societal influences had on later ones.

Worlds Fairs and Design

The 1964 world's fair was one in which internationalism was embraced. Technological advancement from different countries beamed the futuristic and innovative thinking occurring around the world. The fair marked the age of mass production and mass consumerism, which meant the prominent presence of big corporations.

Politically, the fair represented the competitive marketing edges of these corporations, for purposes of power and recognition. It also encouraged the idea of global expansion for US companies. This meant influencing other cultures with ideas of western values and traditions.

Showcasing a new ideal for home-life in the modern era now made easy via buy new toys and trinkets, meant the sociological change of rethinking gender roles in society. This may've not been so obvious at first, but implying that  homemaking can be an act of little to no effort, would mean that women would be freeing up a lot of their time.

Culturally, being exposed to other societies from around the world provided a new understanding and rethinking of our own, as well as also influencing others. The worlds fair gave to iconic cultural artifacts that are still recognizable and used in our everyday lives.

Explorations Unit Review

With explorations, the idea of borrowing from the past and looking to the future come together and work in unison to express a rapidly changing society post and pre war. Several factors aid this idea such as technological advances, changes in sociological perspectives, as well as political views, and being exposed more prominently to other countries' ways in which they think of design.

The world's fairs bring about more sophisticated ways in which we communicate our design ideas across the world. It's purpose generated a likeness in innovation across countries and ways in which we reinterpret them in our own ideas. Technology becomes more sophisticated and introduces a more diverse range of materials in which we "explore" to create forms that have never before been thought of. Forms that integrate the human form and reflect an aesthetic that correlates the shift in design to modernism.

Modernism deals with lack of ornamentation and expressing the idea concepts in the most crisp clean ways while keeping in mind complete utilization. This shift was the result of technological advancement as well as urbanization. Urbanization caused designers to rethink ways in which they interpreted building design because the observant architect would notice that people in rapidly growing cities would oftentimes be in such a hurry that they wouldn't stop to notice any small ornate details.

Design is still looking to the past whether to be inspired or the desire to build up to never leave our intents, with the advent of steel. This allows more freedom to build up and build up we do to never before thought of heights. Geometric lines and forms in our buildings reflect modernism and houses began to take on different forms as well.

Subsequently,  bungalows were also thought of in terms of thinking about how people leaving behind a more rural lifestyle might look to a more simple and temporary dwelling. These dwelling borrowed on ideas of the past that give the impression of order.

The bungalow also reflected the sociological shift of urbanization, which directly related to production on a massive scale due to technological advances. A growing economy led to jobs in the city, and people wanting a piece of capitalist cake. This meant smaller spaces due to less family time, and more neat design choices due to a diminishing house servant staff. This also meant consumerism on a larger scale. Woman were for the most part integrated into the role of house wife which gave them the freedom of most design choices, and encouraged corporations to appeal to this group.

International design finally is where we left off. It is the business of countries borrowing form each other and reiterating it into their own cultures. This coincides with more broader ways of communication and advertisement. Growing economies look to other countries as potential clientele and we see a blending of ideas. Exploring other countries that learn from their own past experiences is how we are able to find a commonality with each other.