For the first half of our time in Finland, we spent weeks in Kiljava and Tammisaari to work on accurate measuring tactics. We took on the multiangular Villa Skeppet, designed by Alvar Aalto for Goran Schildt. Cold, windy days and limited time inside this house meant our team of 16 sped through, measuring every angle, elevation, length, width, and height of this building.
After a digital model and lots of shared drawings, our group of 5 set off to create a 1:20 scale section cut model of the most angular part of the building.
This project was a way for me to start to de-construct the design processes of architects, as well as learn how to work well with my hands, with a group under pressure and late at night, and develop a deep appreciation for Finnish architecture and the mind of Alvar Aalto.
The work shown (as well as the site model) was completed by Lily Paul, Lauren Goodwin, Lauren Hall, and Omari McLean. The Site model, which is also shown, was developed by Hannah Bowman, Jakob Mikres, Abby Eckl, Mary Margaret Guzik, and Grahm Mapes.
During our time in Finland and at Aalto University, we developed a love and appreciation for the biophilic design conditions. Our assignment was to take a natural texture, event, or artifact and turn it into a "Culture House," situated on the southern shore of Suomenlinna, an 18th-century fortress that is now a UNESCO world heritage site.
I developed a love for the idea of white noise, its impact on how we perceive space, and how it might induce a user to feel more embodied and present.
Thesis: Through the experience of the deep-sea plunge sequence’s loss of color, the user may become more immersed, fully embodied for the sacred tradition met at the end of the sensory journey. The architecture these images explore relates to the obsession of white noise - the trance that the feelings of saturation or de-saturation entices, and how it may create an architecture relating water, color, light, sound, and experiential space.
My time in Finland is one I am extremely thankful for. This opportunity changed not only how I experience design, but also how I work, how I interact with others, and how my artistic conscience perceives design.
This group of students and teachers made this trip what it was. I will forever be grateful for this summer.
