Lines and Emotions

To me, lines show the structure of an object. Rigid, straight lines show order and a fixed form, while curvy or 'flowy' lines make an object seem smoother and more organic. They remind me of nature and the environment.

For my object, I chose a coaster from the kitchen table. It is made up of lines (in diamonds) and curves (connecting them). The design is pretty simple, but I really liked the way the dark and light wood gives it a striking pattern.

A coaster and my drawing of it

I thought my line drawings turned out pretty well. I wasn't really sure how to do the gesture one -- I didn't know how to use lines to show the movement. 

Self as Designer

In this class, I want to become better at drawing and sketching realistically. I want to learn to design and make objects that are useful, easy to use, and artful. I also hope to learn to use programs like Autodesk to design on the computer.

I drew my self-portrait based off a photo of me skiing.

Product Improvement: The WashDisher

My partner Alice and I thought of many different products to improve before we decided on the dish brush. We both (like most other people) hate doing dishes, and we wanted to make the process simpler and more fun. We brainstormed and considered many possible features, like a spinning top and a hose attachment to the faucet. After some early sketches, we decided to drop the hose feature completely -- it was too complicated and not very useful. We kept the spinning top, and added 5 interchangeable heads (bristles, sponge, scouring pad, soft mop, and steel wool). We wanted the product to be battery-powered, so we added a rechargeable battery base. At that point, we were pretty happy with the design, but we soon realized that it wouldn't be able to clean curved or narrow surfaces. So we went back to brainstorming, and we came up with a curved and rotating top piece. This way, the WashDisher could clean almost any dish.

Our original plans, including a flat head and a water dispenser

When we did this project, Alice and I wanted to keep the product simple while making it more useful and effective. Our concept was that the WashDisher can clean dishes completely and allow people to skip the regular dishwasher. We drew and wrote all our early ideas in our notebooks, and that helped us look back and see what needed to be changed. For the presentation, we worked together to explain our product and show everyone what it could do. We tried to keep it short and interesting, and I think we did pretty well.

Our final product, the WashDisher!

Brainstorming

Brainstorming helps everyone in the group share their ideas and bring their viewpoints about the project. At the beginning, we didn't know how to go about building the bridge, but by hearing different ideas we began to form a solid plan. After we had a concept in place, we used scratch paper to test out variations of the design. We tried out several ways of joining the paper before we decided to overlap the triangles. Testing allowed us to find problems in our early designs and improve them to create a better product. In fact, if we have more time, we can definitely do more testing and improve our bridge even more. The whole process was made possible with good teamwork. Everyone in our group respectfully listened to each others’ ideas, worked together cooperatively, and contributed equally to the product.

When we designed our bridge, we didn't know that we could split up the "base blocks," so we kept them in two large lumps and our structure sagged in the middle. If we worked on the project more, we definitely would use the blocks to make separate supports along the bridge. Also, with the added supports, we could extend the bridge (we had 1/2 a piece of paper left over, so we could add a segment). After looking at the other groups' designs, I think it would be a good idea to use slits or weaving to join the paper instead of just overlapping the segments. Other than that, I think our bridge was relatively strong.

Our group's "bridge"