Portfolio: Round 3

I have made further adjustments to my portfolio from last week. I simplified it by making taking out the dots at the bottom of each page and making the fonts smaller for the supporting text and within several diagrams' legends. Futhermore, the size of the portfolio pages are now 8.5 in x 5.5 in. The pages posted below will appear as 8.5 in x 11 in because of how I printed them. Each page is cut by half horizontally. This new layout allows images to become bigger, with several of the small pages being filled with only one image. It is much cleaner and the images are easier to read this way. Take a look:

Portfolio Update

I have updated my portfolio and am showing the spreads for my comprehensive project. I have taken out the purple and turquoise bars that were on the sides of the pages. Furthermore, I have included more white space by creating a new grid with larger spaces in between the squares. I also have left some of the squares white throughout the pages. I moved the title to the bottom of the pages. I think it looks much more clean and organized now. 

Here it is:

 

General Updates

This past week I have been working on final drawings for my comprehensive project presentation that is taking place this Wednesday. I completed two new photomontages to help illustrate my proposed design for the village of Clarksburg, Ohio.

Here are the existing photographs and the proposed photomontages:

 Existing conditions. The alley is narrow, and in poor condition. It is not vital for vehicular access.

 Proposed design. While the design idea is simple, it has a large impact on such a rural, small community. The alley becomes a pedestrian and bike corridor with a new pavement pattern. In addition I added "traditional" street furniture to increase the comfort for the community residents.

 There is a vacant, muddy lot behind the bank. It currently is lacking a sense of place and community.

 

I am proposing the vacant lot to be filled with a youth-oriented play space. This image illustrates the youth-sized basketball court, a median, and a small piece of the permeable paving parking lot. Additionally, I added street trees, lighting, and benches. I experimented with a fall scene for the first time. It was a bit challenging, because the photograph was taken in the winter and I had to hide bits of snow here and there. 

Plan Enlargement and Section Graphics

This past week I focused on the graphics for my plan enlargement as well as a section. It was only my second attempt for using computer graphics for a plan, and my first attempt for the section.

Take a look:

The gray parts of the enlargement plan are those that are existing. The proposed design is in color. The linework was completed in AutoCAD and then brought into Photoshop. I used various images for textures and plants. I also used a variety of filters to create further textures. The text was inserted in Illustrator.
 

 

I created the section in similar ways as the enlargement plan. The linework was created in AutoCAD and brought into Photoshop. I used entourage images for plants, cars and people. I played around with the opacity of objects. Lastly, I inserted the drawing in Illustrator for labeling.

Master Plan Computer Improvements

This past week Miran showed me some great computer techniques for improving my master plan. Even though I used hand graphics to generate my master plan, these techniques retain, yet enhance the hand graphics appearance. Overall, I brightened up my plan and made the trees look greener. I did this with using a new layer with the "multiply" tool with the brush. I also have been drawing an enlargement plan and section with AutoCAD for this week. Take a look at the before and after of my master plan:

Before

After

Portfolio Spreads

I chose three spreads from my portfolio to display. The layout was inspired by books I have reviewed from Peter Walker as well as Sasaki. I have divided the page into an irregular grid for each page. Furthermore, I wanted my text to fit into the grid, and to be shown through blocks. Here's a look:

Unit 3.2 Final Update

I have finished all three views of my diorama. I added a backdrop on the side, showing what the greenway would like on the sides. Then for my third view, I showed what the greenway would look like going the opposite direction, about to underpass a bridge. I mentioned the theory behind my diorama in the earlier posts. Take a look at the final product:

View showing the sign.

View towards the bridge.

The original view, which already has acted as a final image.

Unit 4.2 Final Update

Here is the final update image for my Spatial Diagram, which represents the potential greenway connections for Clarksburg, Ohio within its surrounding region of Ross County. After searching and searching for GIS data, I found all of the available/free layers, which were very few, and were the same ones I found last time when I was working on this diagram. Luckily, it is sufficient for the greenway analysis. Here is my final diagram:

 

Unit 3.1 Final Update

I have final images for my three photomontages. Primarily, I added final details, fixed the perspective lines and the scale of objects and entourage, and added shade. Take a look:

I added a path and buffered the house in the middle ground in the outdoor mound movie area image. Furthermore, I allowed some of the objects and entourage to escape the boudaries of the image to make it more interesting.

I added shade and shadows to the mounds, and replaced the scale figure on the left. Now there is a path with a person walking on it. Furthermore, I fixed the scale of the snowy trees in the foreground and middle ground.

Once again, this image had the most work done to it. I extended the entire image outward left and right, which included extending the bike outward, and adding more trees and shrubs in the greenway trailhead entrance. I also fixed the scale of the lights and shadows based on the perspective lines.

Updates on Units 3.1, 3.2, and 4.2

UPDATES:

Unit 3.1: 
I believe my photomontages were already at 75% last week, therefore, I will continue to work on them this week to complete them at 100% for next Monday. You can refer to last Monday's post to review them at their 75% completion.

Unit 3.2:
My diorama is coming along nicely. This week I focused on creating a new view and the lighting/coloring of the photos to represent the weather and sunlight. I think last week's photos showed them at nearly 75% already. I am looking forward to adding finishing touches for next week's final diorama photo shoot. Here are some new photos:

The top image represents a dreary day vs the sunny day at the bottom.
 
Unit 4.2:
I have come across a few problems with this unit due to the location of my site. After browsing the internet and visiting the library's map and GIS room three times in Bracken, the layers shown in my spatial diagram are the only layers available. Apparently Ohio likes to be difficult when it comes to providing GIS layers, especially in rural Ohio. With the available layers, I decided to create a spatial map showing various components relating to my greenway system regionally. I highlighted my site with a pink ellipse. Here's a look at my diagram so far:

    

The Start of GIS

Here is the first step of GIS work of my site using a DEM, hillshade and contours. It has been over a year since I have used GIS, so it was a bit challenging, but the information is gradually coming back to me. 

 

Enhanced Diorama

I have worked on improving my diorama. The main goal was to incorporate images from my greenway photomontage to create views on a more human scale. However, I still kept the regional scale of the greenway as the ground plane. Even though it is at a regional scale, it is an abstraction of all of the different places the greenway and trails will go across. I wanted there to be a strong contrast between reality and abstraction displayed with my diorama. To me, this represents the art in landscapes that can create a contrast to reality in our outdoor environments. Furthermore, I pulled out the greenway trail from the background image with ribbon, and placed the various photomontage pieces in different places where I felt fit nicely.

 The above two images are process photos. Here you can see where the ribbon begins to create the greenway path.
 

The above images show the overall diorama through a perspective is represented at a more human scale.   

"We all know that art is not the truth, art is a lie that makes us realize the truth." -Pablo Picasso

Photomontage Round II

This week I worked on improvements on my photomontages. My main focus was creating a distinct foreground, middle ground, and background. I also reviewed my entourage, and made changes or added more where necessary.

For this image I moved around the entourage, and added the couple sitting in the foreground. I also spruced up the background by adding some more trees.

 I added more trees to the background in this image, and made them more opaque in order to show they are more distant than the trees in the middle ground and foreground. I also added a snowman for more character. I did a few other small changes with the scale of the entourage, and smoothed out the mounds.

 Last time, this image was the least developed, and it has received the most changes since then. I wanted to create a greater sense of enclosure with the trees, and I also created a foreground with the view from a biker with her dog in the basket. I think this really added more character to this image!

Diorama Draft

I wanted to experiment with the regional scale for the greenway portion of my comprehensive project. This diorama draft is an abstraction of the existing context surrounding my site (the village of Clarksburg, Ohio). I used colorful potpourri to create a strong visual 3-D effect. The smell reminds me of the country home stores, found in rural towns. 

The maroon pieces = the communities and towns near to Clarksburg.The size of the piece reflects the population size of the town. 
The blue swirly pieces = rivers
The green pieces = parks or preserved areas
The brown pieces = farmland

The diorama allows me to play with ribbon to see very visual ways to discover where the best greenway connections are possible and should occur. 

Furthermore, I like to take an artful approach to landscape architecture, believing design and art should be cohesive. That is also how I approached this diorama, wanting it to look like a piece of art, as well as an important tool of my design process.  

 

For my final version of my diorama, I would like to incorporate my greenway photomontage. Perhaps I will use this as the ground plane, and play around with the foreground, middle ground and background of my photomontage. I also might raise the ribbon so it above the pieces, rather than sitting over them.