How to represent "sacred"

Last week, I brought some small paper models to my uni and I talked with my tutor. Last time, he suggested me I should see works of Carl Andre. I felt his works are very simple, they have a strong gesture. He uses tiles and woods for his work, and I thought sphere has some impressions of sacred, so I used it in my models. In addition sky is very important factor for me to feel sacred emotion, so I also made some models that have elements of sky.

Many tutors don’t prefer my sphere models, but he said he liked it, but it was not clear that it was his honest opinion. He gave me two advices. One is to “borrow” some spaces to make sacred spaces, because I always tried to make up them by myself, but he showed me that there were many beautiful places in our college. The other is to think well of how to represent “sacred”. There are many methods for that, such as drawing, computer, and pictures. They are good suggestions and I got motivation, but actually I’m not sure what is the best way to show my concept clearly, so I’ve got to do some trials.

Thursday tutorial

On last Monday, since my tutor suggested me that I should research how to sit and human body, I researched them. I gathered some images about relaxation and meditation, including ergonomics chairs, airplane chairs and so on. In addition, I also gathered some art works of lighting, such as James Turrell, Larry Bell and Olafur Eliasson.
I prepared these stuffs, but in this tutorial, which another tutor hosted, he wanted to see not research but materials, so I just showed my models and told him my intention that I thought I was about to make a small relaxation space, following another tutor’s advice, but my presentation just ended up showing the fact that my process was very slow, and my tutor advised me to make twelve sacred spaces for our college. Each space has intended members in the space, from one to twelve.
I guessed his intention of this advice was to make me speed up with giving clear directions. I went back to my start point again, but my direction became clearer, so All I have to do is just try to do it.

Relaxation booth

I had a tutorial yesterday. As always, I brought some models. Usually I don’t draw images about my project, but this time I did it in order to make my idea clearer, so I brought them as well.
I like my sketch images, but my tutor was not so interested in it but models. My idea is to make a small café like Japanese tea rooms, but she suggested me café should be already popular, so I should focus on how to sit in the space. Meditation space for relaxation is very interesting, and it might be like phone booth. I like this idea, and my tutor also advised me to research human body for making relaxation space.

In last project, I learnt the fact that if you have a strong opinion and concept, you lose your way easily, but I am caught by the same trap. Is it based on my personal character? I am not sure. Anyway, I felt my project gradually became more embodied.

I went back to the beginning

I made a model and brought it to my tutorial.
While I made it, I was afraid that the model was too simple, because the model just represented a simple hemisphere, but I like the shape of frame.

My tutor told me that I had gone back to very basic stage. It was just structure. Actually I was not interested in the structure itself but the lighting effect. I should have prepared better. My tutor also suggested me the stage, which was struggling with structures because many people can do sophisticatedly, should be quite difficult.

He also advised me to try to make a smaller space like a bedroom and I should find some ideas from the model.
Maybe my interest is to Architecture, but I should focus on interior now.
I thought curved shapes are very impressive for me as a “sacred” expression, but it’s a matter of exterior. When it comes to interior, I feel lighting effects are very important for expression of “sacred”, so now I think of exploring lighting effects.

tutorial 20080218

I had a tutorial today.
I edited some images as my inspiration and brought it and some models to the class.
My tutor appreciated my models, and suggested me to think what scale I want to make my project in and think of it clearly. She also encouraged me to keep making sketch models.

I didn’t expect that I could get a good reaction, so little bit surprised, and I felt I should have clearer images of my project.

Next Step: to keep making models

lost my way

This week, I made models with shapes of honeycombs, but after I talked with my tutor, I changed my idea and I thought I would make models of curved shapes.
It was good that my direction became clear, but there are many curved shapes in the world, so It is difficult to find which shapes I am interested in.

Following my tutor’s advice, I collected some images related with my project. I was interested in modern churches, I selected Ronchamp chapel designed by Le Corbusier, Jubilee Church by Richard Meier.
Then I read “Architecture Now! 3” in the library in my university, and I was really inspired by the works of Calatrava. Curved shapes in his works are quite beautiful and from them I can feel something “sacred”.
My image of a health center of my project is a compounded facility with a spa and a café, and looks like a room of a spaceship in “2001: A Space Odyssey, so I chose some images from the film.

I researched like that, but I have not got some inspiration yet… In my last project, I could get some idea about rhythmic shape, but in this project, it is more difficult. I have no choice but making something, but I feel I might lose my way now.

How to develop my idea

I lost the way to develop my idea, and I talked with my tutor about my project.
He advised me to always ask myself about my project. The main questions he gave me are the following:

1. Existing Architecture – what gives you pleasure
2. Who do you want to design for
3. What for you is sacred

This method is very useful for making my idea and my problem clearer. He and I repeated this process a few times, and I reached a conclusion that my project should be a health center for a busy city. Next step is going to be researching about health center.