IAR 221 Final Blog Post: Where Are We Now?

OBJECT:  HILL HOUSE CHAIR     I first came across Charles Mackintosh's Hill House chair while doing the chair cards for this class, and immediately became a fan.  Out of all the chairs we studied during the semester, this chair remains my absolute favorite; I even drew this chair as part of my application to the Interior Architecture department at UNCG.  I like this chair because of how its beauty and elegance stems solely from its simple design.  Other chairs, like Michael Thonet's Rocker No. 1, rely on complicated patterns of swooping, swerving lines for their beauty.  But this chair is comprised of nothing but straight lines.  There are a lot of them, yes, but there isn't a single curve to be found anywhere.  The back of the chair is a series of horizontal lines, but because there are so many of them they emphasize the chair's height.  The top of the back throws several short vertical lines into the mix, creating a 5x5 grid that serves as the chair's "crown."  The overall effect of this use of lines makes the chair appear much taller than it is, creating a sense of majesty and awe.  The other beautiful aspect of this chair's design is its use of a single material; in this case, a dark wood.  This creates a sense of unity and harmony about the chair.  There is no clashing of colors, nothing garish or gaudy.  There is simply this one material, which is both attention-grabbing and easy to look at.  I am a big fan of the idea of beauty by simplicity, so this chair instantly became my favorite. 

SPACE:  FALLINGWATER
    While I have never personally been to Fallingwater, it is--and has been--on my list of "Places To See Before I Die."  From everything I have seen and heard about it, it is a gorgeous home and a brilliant design.  Fallingwater is a fantastic example of Frank Lloyd Wright's "Prairie House" movement, with its emphasis on the horizontal, cooperation with the environment around it, and its open floorplan.  The open floorplan is my favorite aspect of these types of homes.  With rooms defined not by walls but by the arrangement of furniture, Fallingwater (and houses like it) gain a versatility not seen in other, traditional houses.  In homes where each room is defined by walls within the house, changing the function of each room (e.g., turning a bedroom into a family room) is a difficult process.  In a house like Fallingwater, however, this process is a simple matter of moving furniture.  The open floorplan is also more intimate, a perfect environment for a family.  In short, Fallingwater as a space is a near-perfect blend of intimacy and comfort.  Its lack of walls and a traditional floorplan, in favor of an open and more innovative one, create a space that is both personal and comforting.

BUILDING:  THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING
     The Empire State Building was not the first skyscraper in the world, but it is easily one of the most recognizable.   Part of, perhaps even most of, the building's identity lies in its Art Deco style, my favorite of the "Art" styles.  Art Deco emphasizes (among other things) the use of metal, the use of lighting, and the vertical, all of which are present in the Empire State Building.  Its height is made possible by a steel frame, which allows for curtain rather than load-bearing walls.  The Empire State Building also makes good use of light:  after the sun sets, floodlights light up the top of the building.  This, combined with the sheer number of offices in use during the evening, turn the building into a pillar of light.  Finally, and perhaps most obviously, is the clear emphasis on the vertical.  The Empire State Building itself was constructed as part of an unofficial competition for title of "world's tallest building," beating 40 Wall Street and the Chrysler Building for the title.  In addition, the long vertical lines on the building's exterior draw the eyes upwards, where the "stacked" top rises into an antennae, which itself reaches incredibly high.  The Empire State Building, which has always been a gorgeous building to me, has only become more elegant after I learned more about its history and the style in which it was built.

PLACE:  THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO
     I remember walking down College Avenue for the very first time, looking around at UNCG's campus, and being in awe of how official everything looked. It sounds stupid now, but I had never really seen a college campus before (not even UNCG...the first time I saw campus was on move-in day).  I never really stopped and put much thought into why everything looked like it did.  I never thought about why the Jackson Library looked like a huge prison, or why there were circles everywhere, or why there were two Walker Avenues on either side of campus.  I didn't think of these things because, at the time, they weren't of any importance to me--I knew where each building was, and how to get there from my dorm.  That was it.  But now I find myself walking around campus and thinking "Those are ionic columns."  Or "Why isn't this connector on a straight axis?"  As I've learned more about the principles of design and how they apply to the real world, I've started seeing those things around me in everyday life.  It has made for much more interesting walks to and from class, that's for sure. 

FINAL THOUGHTS...
--Simple design, simple color scheme, simple style...I am a big fan of the simple.  I believe that the greatest beauty often comes from creative use of simple ideas and techniques.
--I also think it is in our best interests, both as designers and as human beings, to find a way to create environment-friendly designs.  I think we're starting for the first time to really care about "going green," but there is still much more to be done.
--While every design has its merits, Art Deco is arguably the most pleasing and awe-inspiring.  It was started as a purely decorative style, whereas other styles had "messages" associated with them, so it would make perfect sense that Art Deco would be the most eye-pleasing.
--It is impossible to escape the design influences that have come before us.  As much as we might try to fight it, we are all operating in the wake of Palladio, Wright, van der Rohe, Mackintosh, and countless others.  If we can take the best of each design style, and find an innovative way to incorporate them on the landscape, we will truly be successful designers.

Image Sources
--http://www.hiphop-eshop.de/gx/product_info.php?language=en&info=p31_400--designer-stuhl-hill-house--von-charles-rennie-mackintosh.html&
--http://homesinteriordesign.info/fallingwater-interior-design.html
--http://www.poctos.com/live/empire-state-building
--http://www.psncabarrus.org/index.php?page=research