Kat Riley
In the article “The Inka Married the Earth” the Inkas craft with stone and the earths elements were discussed. I really like all the work with the stone and the joints that they some how created seamless joints. I am also really surprised and amazed how long the buildings have survived and are still amazing as they are with all the technology that is out in the world today. The peaceful location of the inkas city is something to admire, the over view of Machu Picchu is makes the viewer breathless. When looking at the blocks that make up the buildings the stones almost look like they were made that way. The inkas were in touch with nature and almost seem to be able to create it. Even the caring of the rocks is extremely detailed and intricate.
This article has inspired me form my next project to create a system in the back of an elongated head. The head will have a hotel like structure in the back and a full face on front. I also want to have nature elements around the base of the head. Or I want to create a weird DNA system that life and multiple parts that repeat that normally wouldn’t.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
For the Love of Land! and neurons....
Catherine Hendrickson
Inca Article- The article made me appreciate how the Inca's saw the land they lived on and made me wish we had that same kind of respect for land. The article spoke about the high quality of stonework which enhanced and reflects the value of their land. I thought it was interesting also how in a part of the article, it was said that the Spaniards didnt show much interest in the masonry techniques of the Incas because it was far too hard and complex to replicate. That's a very interesting reason to hate something. They should have embraced the work, not shunned it! Another thing in the article that caught my attention was the fact that the Inca's were around AFTER the Pikillacta, and of course BEFORE us. The funny thing is, unlike much of today's society and the Pikillacta who chose a grid style on which to construct dwellings, the Inca chose their own distinctive style of architecture in which no land was compromised and no grids were laid out to disrupt nature.
My idea for the 2nd project stems from my love of the field of psychology. I thought about many types of systems that interested me (music systems such as speakers, social systems, systems dealing wth physics such as pulleys, etc, etc and after much thought and several sketches, I finally decided on the nervous system of the human body. I want to incorporate my interest in psychology in with my work and thought this would be perfect. In terms of architecture and how things make use of space, I thought maybe the way in which I connect the neurons will have portray an interesting form of architecture that can be interpreted differently to many people. We'll see how it goes, I seem to make adjustments as the projects unfold.
Inca Article- The article made me appreciate how the Inca's saw the land they lived on and made me wish we had that same kind of respect for land. The article spoke about the high quality of stonework which enhanced and reflects the value of their land. I thought it was interesting also how in a part of the article, it was said that the Spaniards didnt show much interest in the masonry techniques of the Incas because it was far too hard and complex to replicate. That's a very interesting reason to hate something. They should have embraced the work, not shunned it! Another thing in the article that caught my attention was the fact that the Inca's were around AFTER the Pikillacta, and of course BEFORE us. The funny thing is, unlike much of today's society and the Pikillacta who chose a grid style on which to construct dwellings, the Inca chose their own distinctive style of architecture in which no land was compromised and no grids were laid out to disrupt nature.
My idea for the 2nd project stems from my love of the field of psychology. I thought about many types of systems that interested me (music systems such as speakers, social systems, systems dealing wth physics such as pulleys, etc, etc and after much thought and several sketches, I finally decided on the nervous system of the human body. I want to incorporate my interest in psychology in with my work and thought this would be perfect. In terms of architecture and how things make use of space, I thought maybe the way in which I connect the neurons will have portray an interesting form of architecture that can be interpreted differently to many people. We'll see how it goes, I seem to make adjustments as the projects unfold.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Inca Article Response--Rebecca
The Inca article, although long, gave me new perspectives on how people relate and work with their surroundings. The Inca civilization was very advanced for its time, and easily could have built large monuments or dwellings, however they chose to work with nature instead of against it. When they needed to build something, the Inca, went with the flow of the land--if there was a cliff, or even a large rock in the way, they tended to either move around it or just end what they were doing in order not to disturb nature. They were built from the outcrop, which was a bond between mother earth, and the culture living there. They used organic materials (ex rocks) to construct their buildings in an effort to blend in with nature rather than stand out from it. Most likely because of the Incas carefully constructed dwellings, they are now protected and revered world wide. The best example of the Incas buildings flowing with nature is Machu Picchu. It is way up in the Andes (as were the other Inca dwellings), and when you look down on the site, you can still see the sloping hills and protruding rocks, and the buildings built into the cliffs. Their devotion to nature while constructing places was also a work of art. Their dwellings are a model of what we should be doing today--in our effort to go green. How they lived and worked is truely inspirational.
I have put in a lot of thought and research into project 2, and have narrowed down my options. Originally I was thinking of very basic, obvious things (ex an unusual tea set, stained glass window plaque, or 3D puzzle). The more I thought about it though, I knew I could come up with something not only more complex, but more interesting and unusual. I have done ceramics for years, and all of my first ideas were similar to things I did in high school. While not bad ideas, I wanted to do something more advanced, where I might/should push myself past my normal boundaries. One of the options I have is a large vase with holes through out the entire thing. It would work with the idea of a system, because the holes work together throughout the whole thing, and these holes cause negative space therefore the architecture. My other option, which I am leaning a little more towards, is based on a picture I saw on the cover of The Penland Book of Ceramics: Masterclasses in Ceramic Techniques (check out pic at: http://www.amazon.com/Penland-Book-Ceramics-Masterclasses-Techniques/dp/157990338X). That cover had interlocking shapes (that looked a lot like bananas) form yet another shape. I would like to do something like that, but with a more organic shape that overall forms the shape of a wave, or some other cool, yet definable shape. This is both system--because the shapes interlock and have to work together, and architecture because it creates something else, which alters space.
I have put in a lot of thought and research into project 2, and have narrowed down my options. Originally I was thinking of very basic, obvious things (ex an unusual tea set, stained glass window plaque, or 3D puzzle). The more I thought about it though, I knew I could come up with something not only more complex, but more interesting and unusual. I have done ceramics for years, and all of my first ideas were similar to things I did in high school. While not bad ideas, I wanted to do something more advanced, where I might/should push myself past my normal boundaries. One of the options I have is a large vase with holes through out the entire thing. It would work with the idea of a system, because the holes work together throughout the whole thing, and these holes cause negative space therefore the architecture. My other option, which I am leaning a little more towards, is based on a picture I saw on the cover of The Penland Book of Ceramics: Masterclasses in Ceramic Techniques (check out pic at: http://www.amazon.com/Penland-Book-Ceramics-Masterclasses-Techniques/dp/157990338X). That cover had interlocking shapes (that looked a lot like bananas) form yet another shape. I would like to do something like that, but with a more organic shape that overall forms the shape of a wave, or some other cool, yet definable shape. This is both system--because the shapes interlock and have to work together, and architecture because it creates something else, which alters space.
The Inka Married the Earth
I felt that this reading was very interesting and refreshing. Looking into a culture that conforms to nature instead of destroying it is somewhat of a foreign idea, yet makes perfect sense. The Inka practice of grafting structures formed to the land allowed them to "become one" with their natural surroundings. Keeping in mind the Inka beliefs, it is quite easy to see and understand why this type of building system was important to the people. The ending results were not stagnant perfectly dimensioned buildings, but instead organic structurs that seemed to flow with the surrounding land.
The Inka architecture is very inspiring and has given me a ground to base my project upon. What is the purpose of architecture? Business? Shelter? Asthetics? This is a question I plan to investigate while planning my piece as I hope to create something that is both purposeful and intertwined with its surroundings, much like the Inka people.
The Inka architecture is very inspiring and has given me a ground to base my project upon. What is the purpose of architecture? Business? Shelter? Asthetics? This is a question I plan to investigate while planning my piece as I hope to create something that is both purposeful and intertwined with its surroundings, much like the Inka people.
Student name: Ashley Hamilton
The Inka article was very interesting in my opinion. I really enjoyed reading about the ways in which the Inca people took such care to preserve the natural “feeling” of the earth. They completed this task by building structures from natural elements (rock) found occurring naturally near the site. The structures, while far from perfect, had well-made, sturdy walls while still blending quite well with the surrounding environment. Of more importance, the Inka people put a huge amount of thought into “integrating” their architecture into the landscape. This was accomplished by making an area of rock that was textured like the ground but elevated against the side of the building. A quote which explains it well, on page 503 of the article, states, “The integrated rock outcrop occupies the boundary, the threshold, between what the Inka perceived as ordered and unordered spaces, a fact that has heretofore remained unexplored in the scholarship on Inka visual culture.” This quote says that the Inka people divided their surroundings into “ordered” and “unordered” areas. Obviously, the ordered area would be the architecture, the part that needed human assistance in order to be formed into the order in which it stands. On the other hand, unordered things would be those that occur naturally and have not had human intervention in their location or placement. I really like the idea of this combination which the Inka have established. I would like to integrate the idea of “a natural system” into my next project… so we’ll see how that turns out!
Working with the textures of animal skin has actually given me a lot of new thoughts about systems for the next project. I would like to create a piece that alters space alone (once installed) without needing any extra supporting objects (such as pedestals or shelves). I have been trying to work on a smaller scale simply because of the medium, but I think an installation piece would be a great option for this project since it would in essence BE architecture. I haven’t exactly decided on anything yet, but I have been considering the idea of enlarging animal print so that it would take up a 4’ by 4’ area of space (approximately?) in the crit space… probably in a corner. I think I would have the print thin around the edges to look like it is growing out of the floor, possibly even moving up onto the walls. I’m not sure how I’d go about keeping the pieces flat during firing because of warping and shrinkage, but overall this is my idea so far! Let me know what you think!!
The Inka article was very interesting in my opinion. I really enjoyed reading about the ways in which the Inca people took such care to preserve the natural “feeling” of the earth. They completed this task by building structures from natural elements (rock) found occurring naturally near the site. The structures, while far from perfect, had well-made, sturdy walls while still blending quite well with the surrounding environment. Of more importance, the Inka people put a huge amount of thought into “integrating” their architecture into the landscape. This was accomplished by making an area of rock that was textured like the ground but elevated against the side of the building. A quote which explains it well, on page 503 of the article, states, “The integrated rock outcrop occupies the boundary, the threshold, between what the Inka perceived as ordered and unordered spaces, a fact that has heretofore remained unexplored in the scholarship on Inka visual culture.” This quote says that the Inka people divided their surroundings into “ordered” and “unordered” areas. Obviously, the ordered area would be the architecture, the part that needed human assistance in order to be formed into the order in which it stands. On the other hand, unordered things would be those that occur naturally and have not had human intervention in their location or placement. I really like the idea of this combination which the Inka have established. I would like to integrate the idea of “a natural system” into my next project… so we’ll see how that turns out!
Working with the textures of animal skin has actually given me a lot of new thoughts about systems for the next project. I would like to create a piece that alters space alone (once installed) without needing any extra supporting objects (such as pedestals or shelves). I have been trying to work on a smaller scale simply because of the medium, but I think an installation piece would be a great option for this project since it would in essence BE architecture. I haven’t exactly decided on anything yet, but I have been considering the idea of enlarging animal print so that it would take up a 4’ by 4’ area of space (approximately?) in the crit space… probably in a corner. I think I would have the print thin around the edges to look like it is growing out of the floor, possibly even moving up onto the walls. I’m not sure how I’d go about keeping the pieces flat during firing because of warping and shrinkage, but overall this is my idea so far! Let me know what you think!!
In response to the article about the Incas. I find it not surprising that they would think about architecture and the earth in the way that they did. However to the extent that they did is quite fascinating. It stated that they described people who were married to be orderly and singles were wild. This is an example to the thought process that went on when they were creating their architecture. For this they would use the "marriage" of the natural rock forms and the man made rock forms for their structures. In this they were showing that you could live among nature without changing it, they used the land rather than alter it. They would also compliment nature by using the architecture, for example they would frame a mountain scene with the doorway or the window. Here again complimenting nature rather then block it out. I have yet to think about what my project will become exactly but this article has given me some insight on what it will become. To accompany nature into architecture is what their goal was. It seems that in today we have neglected this so much that our structures block out all of nature and move what was left of nature out of the way for our man made creations.
The fact that Inka architecture wasn’t afraid to intertwine itself with its natural environment makes a bold statement about their culture. The connection between man and environment was an integral part of Inka beliefs. Compared to our culture, the connection between the Inka and the earth focused on the Inka peacefully coexisting in their environment. To me, this means that they changed their environment to suit their culture without needing to cause destruction to the land. The fact that they incorporated large boulders, and rocky outcrops into their building designs, shows not only a dependence on the earth, but a respect for it by catering their building designs to the landscape, and not vice versa. When considering the ways in which we treat the environment to erect buildings, it is quite a different than the approach the Inka’s used. We seem to feel that it is more important to try and control the environment, by changing it to fit the designs of our buildings and structures. This reflects the fact that we as a people seem far less concerned with the connection between us and the earth, because we feel as if we are entitled to change our environment to cater to our needs and desires.
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