Perspective drawing

 

As previously mentioned I have struggled with perspective drawings and as part of a design project, 12 sequential perspective drawings were required. In order to ensure my drawings would be proportional I created a model in SketchUp and drew over there with detail paper. 

I like the character of the drawing, nothing is drawn to perfection. 

Mutabilis-paysage

 I chose this design specifically because of the pods. Their form, material and overall presence feels fresh but also traditional.

In my view, they connotate pods from the tropical rainforest, coco pods or pods that the western world expect tribes to live in. Bringing this imagery into an urban realm is a beautiful way to pull people into the future by reminding them of the past. 

I think it ignites a sense of biophilia whereby the natural forms and textures is very tempting for someone to touch and be reminded of nature.

I especially adore this drawing from the colours and tones, specifically the use of monochrome colour for the pods which draws your attention to it as the focal piece for the drawing.

Gross Max

 

I chose this particular project, not because of the design but due to the rendering style. It showcases creativity and in my opinion, the creativity of the new era of landscape architecture. The discipline is slowly moving forward and rendering, despite how much I prefer hand drawn visualizations, the new way is through digital communication. The use of bright colours and images that contrast against the natural background do not represent the realism of the landscape. I believe that is often too very easy to communicate, instead these designs portray the mood and atmosphere of the landscape which is harder to do with drawings, it gives it a sense of 4D.

 

I believe this is one of the new ways forward as landscape architects, to work with the new styles and not against it.

Peter Walker

From all of the Landscape Architects and designers I have reviewed so far, Peter Walker is by far the most diverse and moving for me. As I looked through his work I found it impossible to choose just one piece. All of his designs, specifically where he works along side architecture, fascinates me. 

Below I have chosen a specific design which stands out to me the most, I view it as trust between site users and the designer. An unspoken message.

This particular piece I find to be very playful despite its formal geometric shapes, the inclusion of temporary chairs encourages this play of users dipping their feet into the water. It is known to be a calming technique- to connect with water- and I find it inspiring how he has included this in a subtle manner. It also shows a sense of trust between the designer and users, they are in place but with no sign telling users how to use the site, instead there’s an unspoken message from the designers intention to the users. 

Below are a few other pieces I quite liked.

The formations of the rock used as a beneficiary function for seating,

The rocks to represents 9/11 in an abstract and meaningful way, I think a lot of thought has gone into this piece.

Dan Pearson

 I chose this particular garden because I would never have guessed the physical context of it- Kent. This garden looks Mediterranean. as if belongs in a warm European country and not England. This may be because of the sandy coloured large rocks that makes the location seem dry. 

The use of light, fine pebbles resembles sand and the form of planting is low as if to suggest lower altitude that still show the subtle topographical changes. I especially find the colour palette fascinating, the textures of the plants are highlighted by contrasting against darker shades of the same colour. With a few orange-brown hues in the midst of it all. Overall it is extremely calming and just by looking at the photo I feel myself hearing soft bird tweets. I think this is an effective planting design for elderly homes.   

This truly reflects Pearson's interest in the study of wildflower communities in Spain and the Indian Himalayas. 

Layout of work

I have always struggled in page layout, my work has looked too cramped or messy which deters the quality of my work.

In the past month during the submissions of my 2nd year, semester 2 landscape architecture degree I have started to grow an awareness of my layout. I have become critical in the presentation of my work and discovered techniques such as columns of text, no more than 3 but with photos and other arrangements. 

I aim to keep the page layout as my first thought when looking at designing, next I will focus on envisioning and planning out the page before I approach the work load. 

Here I planned the layout before applying it, it has made my work look x10 more professional!

Additionally, after some feedback I have learned how to best annotate a drawing. I am still learning the technique so it is not to absolute perfection; see below. 

BEFORE

AFTER 

Overall, it looks slightly less convoluted. 

 

Drafting Sections

 A technique I have recently learned is how to draft out lines effectively.

I decided to draw all my cross sections in pen, initially I thought I could not make any mistakes in fear of not being able to correct them. (Later I realised I could edit these in Photoshop). Nonetheless, I discovered, especially with trees, continuously drafting out shapes and then just following them with ink was highly effective in ensuring I was drawing proportionate shapes so I could learn to see the section before it was actually drawn. 

 

SketchUp

For my Design Module I decided to make a SketchUp model to produce perspective drawings as I struggle to envision perspective view points. 

I was really pleased with the model, from the accuracy in dimensions of the buildings and how similar it looked to my general arrangement. 

 

Look up, look down, LOOK AT THE PAVIG

In my Design Module I had to have a hard think about paving, within my design is an 'urban plaza' area. I did not notice before the affects paving have on influencing pedestrian flow. For instance, busier paving would encourage people to be static whereas linear, formal paving suggests a slower walk. 

I did not appreciate pedestrian and vehicular shared walk ways, I quite like the one on the High Street in Cheltenham because of the smooth surfaces and mute colours, one would hardly notice it but still feel comfortable to cross onto the vehicular area. 

I went to visit Wildside Garden Centre, a private garden from an ex-professional garderner and quite liked his simple choice in round pebbles. 

I also followed this slot drain in the centre of the brewery quarter, I think it adds interest to the paving but looks odd being right down the centre. However I understand its positioning due to the above gaping hole in the roof to catch rainfall and to gather water from paving either side from an incline.

 

Boots Corner, Cheltenham

As a young designer I am on a journey to discovering my passion and interests within the broader discipline of Landscape Architecture. Subconsciously I find myself leaning towards speaking up for those who may not be seen or heard on a day to day basis. Such as people with additional needs or accessible needs. 

This tiny, cramped allocated 'space' for wheelchair users I think is ghastly. I was in contact with Cheltenham Council and a member who was overseeing this project, I suggested to her that the accessible parking should be integrated within the bench that is to go here and she did not give a full reply. 

I cannot understand why this is such a troublesome task, to add to this there is no ramped access to the lifted platform with the fountain. I find it appalling, Landscape Architecture is about empathy and moving forward, how can we do so with such a coned vision in how we look at our designs?

 

Techniques with Sketchup to Photoshop

 

This is a model I made in Sketchup, I then played around with the layers in Sketchup and took it into photoshop to add shadow. I think it is very effective and a prominent visual.