The Psychological and Physiological Effect of Lighting on Human - Initial brainstorm

-         - Introduction

-          -Introduction to history

-          -The starting point of lighting in the development of the universe

-          -The importance of lighting for the first signs of light in the initial stages of the earth

-          -Transforming light in to life regarding the initial life forms on earth

-          -The importance of light for the initial human species.

-          -The discovery of fire – considered as the first sign of artificial light

-          -The psychological effect of light from fire to the humans.

-          -The problem created by human regarding our wellbeing and mental health in our daily life ( -biological clock)

-         - Human life in its surroundings

-          -Our perception of space

-         - How lighting effects of perception of space.

-          -How lighting effect human behavior

-          -The psychological and physiological effect of the perception of space on humans

-          -How space is directly affected by lighting setup 

Task 3 part 2 - Oscar Niemeyer and wilkinson eyre

Over the year the profession of architecture has changed in every aspect. Different architects tried different solutions for their work and explored new roads which led to several successful cases. During the modern movement era, a design style emerged were simple geometrical shapes dominated he designs of building. The movement progressed and developed war made not just in the aesthetical design by even in the construction process and construction methods.

Work by Oscar Niemeyer

Over the time several designer tried to find a new path in the design industry and they tried to venture new style. After several attempts in design, De constructivists started to emerge on a period of time. Their idea was to completely find a new style which was opposite to movements such as modern movement.

One architect and designer which emerged in this new movement was Oscar Niemeyer. He started his design career in about mid-20^th century. His work was one of the most unique works during the time as it opposed to the majority of architecture design that was taking place during the time. During this period a very famous style which is still very popular today as it brought several changes to architecture was the international style.

Oscar Niemeyer

Designed by Oscar Niemeyer

Work by Le Corbusier

 When we compare the work of architects such as Oscar Niemeyer and work from International Style such as Le Corbusier, we can note several different characteristics from both designers work. The work of Le Corbusier is completely opposite as the majority of the characteristics in the design of Le Corbusier are built in a simple geometrical shapes with the mentality of less is more. On the other hand the work of Oscar Niemeyer design is more fluid. Characteristics that were developed in the international style by architects such as le Corbusier  that had some importance to the design of architects such as Oscar Niemeyer is the supporting structure of the buildings and materials used.

The used of steel structure which was developed further in the international style is vital for designs such as those of Oscar Niemeyer. The fluid shapes need several supports in its structure to withstand several structure pressures from the building.

An architect which followed Oscar Niemeyer in his design was Chris Eyre Wilkinson. His fluid design is another symbol of De constructivists. His work can be considered as a development on the work of brilliant architects like Oscar Niemeyer. In his work we can note some changes that can be noted as improvements in De constructivist architecture that were made available by developed technology. As Wilkinson is working in a new era, the technology which is rapidly evolving now a day is a factory and an aid to architect such as Wilkinson to continue develop their work and exploring the unknown in architecture.

Work By Chris Wilkinson

Chris Wilkinson

The development which is being made today is effecting even other designer and architects as we can note several improvements in both the design and construction as the development made from the International Style till now is significant. And By the introduction of computer technology, we can further develop and solve several problems on the computer and it is saving a considerable amount of time to the designer which are working and developing work in this contemporary industry.

Eero Saarinen is a Finnish designer born in 1910 who became a famed architect during his time. He moved to America in 1923 with his family to settle in Michigan. He had lifelong collaboration with Charles Eames after they met in Cranbrook.

In 1934 , Saarinen Graduated from the School of Architecture at Yale University. During his career Eero Saarinen insisted that he change his style change depends on the client’s needs. He was criticised for his decisions by other designers. But Eero Saarinen insisted on his idea as he saw the client as a “Co-Creator” of his design.

Personally I thing that Eero Saarinen was one of the first pioneers of DE constructivist movements as his design goes in a different way from the designs that was produced at the time. During his time the most common design in architecture was with the use of geometrical shapes. His designs went all the way to the opposite of the common geometrical shapes dominated design as some of his characteristics were that nothing was symmetrical unlike architecture from the Art Deco.

Art Deco architecture

His architectural designs consist of big concrete structure which was very unique in its shape as it created a soft liquid like flow which has several areas built from glass which enables to light huge buildings by natural light.

Other designer and architect that today Is still developing de constructivist ideas is Zaha Hadid. Eero Saarinen can be considered as one of the foundation of Zaha Hadid’s design.

Reference :

Eero Saarinen - Designer Bio - Furniture & Accessories - Design Within Reach . 2014. Eero Saarinen - Designer Bio - Furniture & Accessories - Design Within Reach . [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.dwr.com/category/designers/r-t/eero-saarinen.do. [Accessed 27 January 2014].

Frank Lloyd Wright

Born just two years after the American civil war, Frank Lloyd Wright is labelled one of the greatest Architects of all time who took all the opportunities he had. At the age of 19, Wright left school after just two terms and headed for a new venture in Chicago to look for a new work in the architecture industry.

Just after a few months and several brief employments in different offices, Frank Lloyd Wright was hired by the prestigious firm of Adler and Sullivan. He kept this employment for 6 years, but in 1893 he started a new personal venture by opining his own architecture office.

As from his first work, Wright’s early houses showed some unique characteristics and highlighted the capabilities of the architect from the early start. Houses that featured horizontal lines with rooflines which deeply overhang.  Buildings that had uninterrupted walls of windows which invited the nature inside. His buildings were built with natural materials and never painted.

One of his most famous works is Falling water. It was designed in 1935 by Frank Lloyd wright himself. It is very unique houses even by the location where it is built. The way that Wright designed the house makes it bond with the surrounding nature. It overhangs on a stream of fresh water it makes it looks like that it is a part of nature.

When I look at the work of Frank Lloyd Wright I compare his work to sever architects which were working in other movements. One of the main features of Wrights buildings is the horizontal structures that dominate the design of Frank Lloyd Wright. It can be compared the horizontal structures which emerged in architecture from Bauhaus and International style. It is a future which is related to the form follows function rule by the Bauhaus institute but Frank Lloyd Wright had the idea that form and function are one. The choice of materials was an issue for the different designers from different movements as they all tried to make specific choices on the materials especially to choose appropriate materials. As the design from the international style was built with reinforced concrete, the choice of Frank Lloyd Wright was very different as his main focus was to build houses which are bound with nature. His choice of materials was made by using natural materials.

By the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, more awareness was introduced in construction industry. Hi main focuses was one of the start of more self-sufficient designs which in his time was very important and in need as not a lot of designer had the knowledge of materials from nature as during the time many of them did not think about the impact on nature that they are making by designing things which were made from nature damaging materials.

Reference :

SAVE WRIGHT: FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. 2014. SAVE WRIGHT: FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.savewright.org/index.php?page=3. [Accessed 27 January 2014].

Frank Lloyd Wright; biography. 2014. Frank Lloyd Wright; biography. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.cmgww.com/historic/flw/bio.html. [Accessed 27 January 2014].

The Arts and Crafts Movement

The art and crafts movement was a movement which was introduced at around mid-19th century. It emerged late after the Victorian period which was going on in Britain. The arts and crafts movement is considered as a movement which rebelled to the idea of mass produced goods from the industrial revolution which was going on at that time.

The mind behind the Arts and Crafts movement was William Morris. William Morris believed that a product has to be manufacture with passion rather that in mass production by machines. He believed that a product has to be manufactured by small groups and craftsman. The idea of Morris had limited the amount of products manufactured as it was all hand made with no machinery used.

William Morris

During the industrial revolution the products that were being manufacture had no aesthetical value as they were made and produced in mass production and during the time any importance were being given from manufacturers. Personally I think that William Morris had some valid points in his arguments but he always failed to combine both mass production and the aesthetics together.
William Morris argued that the machines of the mass production factories were taking “man” away from manufacturing and was producing products which look rather bad. He strongly wanted to put man back into the design and manufacturing process.

The Bauhaus which was started in 1919 had the vision to combine the mass production that started in the industrial revolution with the idea of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. The idea of Bauhaus was to use cheap materials but manufacture the products that were designed with aesthetical value and attention to design and the user in a mass production manner. Their idea was that it was important that the majority of the population had the opportunity to buy products which were beautiful in design but cheap to buy. This was something that William Morris failed to achieve in his time as he didn’t was to combine the two of them.

Products from Bauhaus

Reference : 

THE ART AND CRAFTS MOVEMENT 1880 to 1910. 2014. THE ART AND CRAFTS MOVEMENT 1880 to 1910. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.technologystudent.com/prddes1/artscrafts1.html. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

BBC - Homes - Design - Arts and crafts period style. 2014. BBC - Homes - Design - Arts and crafts period style. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/design/period_artscrafts.shtml. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

Eco Design - Sustainable Design

Today one of the most important things is to try to evaluate our actions so we can make less impact on the planet that we live in. During the years, some developments made a negative impact on this planet that make a direct negative impact on our lives. As designers especially during the recent years, several designers are trying to take a different approach to design to improve the way we think and develop new ideas which can make less impact on the environment.

A movement which started to take this new approach was the organic design. A movement which started to take into consideration the environment during the design process. One sector which is important to take into consideration and develop sustainable design is architecture. This sector makes a considerable amount of impact on the environment. Some characteristics of sustainable design in architecture are –

“Ventilation systems designed for efficient heating and cooling

Energy-efficient lighting and appliances

Water-saving plumbing fixtures

Landscapes planned to maximize passive solar energy

Minimal harm to the natural habitat

Alternate power sources such as solar power or wind power

Non-synthetic, non-toxic materials

Locally-obtained woods and stone

Responsibly-harvested woods

Adaptive reuse of older buildings

Use of recycled architectural salvage

Efficient use of space”

A key element of sustainable architecture is to be self-sufficient. Residential homes alone consume the majority of energy which is produced. By using renewable energy for our homes, we are creating less impact on energy consumption which is produced by fossil fuels.

In architecture, a characteristic which was introduce in movements such as the international style and Bauhaus was the introduction of large windows. By installing large windows, natural light will pass to the inside of the buildings lighting the interior space. By this characteristic natural light can be used instead of artificial lighting. One important element is that the glass has some type of double glazing so heating and cooling can be controlled inside the building.

Another feature in the design process which can be considered to be more green is the decision of materials. Some materials are too toxic to manufacture and build with so other alternatives has to be used instead. The introduction of new materials is now common in construction especially that which is made from recycled material. Recycled material is now being more developed to be used in construction. One example which is very common is the use of old recycled newspaper as insulating material. The old newspaper is treated before used as insulation. It is treated to become fire retardant to minimize the fire hazard even in emergency situations.

Now a day it is very important that designer think greener in their designs as the approach that they take in the design today may heavily impact our living place tomorrow.

Reference : 

Why Architects Must Lead on Sustainable Design | ArchDaily. 2014. Why Architects Must Lead on Sustainable Design | ArchDaily. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.archdaily.com/351167/why-architects-must-lead-on-sustainable-design/. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

What is "Sustainable Architecture"?. 2014. What is "Sustainable Architecture"?. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/arch/ARCH371-F99/groups/k/susarch.html. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

sustainable.to | Architecture + Building. 2014. sustainable.to | Architecture + Building. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.sustainable.to/. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

Health and Safety In Design

In every aspect of design on of the most important thing is the safety of the product or object which is in the design process. When the product is in its early design process it is very important for the designer to take into consideration the safety of the product especially when the particular product is going to be reached from children.

There are different types of consideration that every designer has to take during design process to evaluate the risk of the product or object that is being design. In Product design one of the most important considerations that the designer has to take is about the user. When a designer is commissioned the work to design a product for infants and children, more considerations has to be taken in different aspects of the design from forms to the materials used.

One of the key elements when toys for children are designed it the shape and materials used. When it comes to the shape, one of the most important things in the design is that all the areas of the toy are smooth with no pointed edges. But an important factor which in my opinion has advanced a lot during the years it the material used. It is very important that the designer takes into consideration that the material that is proposed for the product is non-toxic.  As the product has a chance to make contact to the mouth of children, it is very important that the materials used are ideal. During the time the materials used for toys has changed a lot. In the primary years of toys wood was used as the main material. After the introduction of plastic in the industry of manufacturing, designers started to experiment with the material in several ways. But surely we cannot compare the first type of plastic that was developed as it was highly toxic.

An industry which safety is the top priority is the automotive industry. The automotive industry consists from an intensive and vast design process which combines aesthetics with its function. One of the most importing parts of the design process is the design of safety components of the car itself. The awareness of more safety in the automotive industry started from the beginning but in the 60’s the safety of cars improved with new technologies and more awareness around the world.

The first safety device which was introduced in the automotive industry was the introduction of a hydraulic brake system. This kind of brake system was introduced to cards in 1922. It certainly improved the performance of breaks during the usage of automotive. We can now clearly appreciate the work done by engineers and designer which worked to develop new technologies in the braking system of the cars to improve safety standards and protects more our lives. When we compare the technology of the first breaking system and today’s technology we can note a huge leap forward as todays breaking system is more sophistically designed with cutting edge technology. 

To avoid certain crashes the new technology controls the breaking via  computer and enables the car to control better in several aspects. Some other safety equipment which was designed for automotive industry are seatbelts, crimple zoned around the automobile structure, airbags which are installed in different vital areas of the car and other safety equipment.

Reference :

 Designing for Safety - Health and Safety Authority . 2014. Designing for Safety - Health and Safety Authority . [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.hsa.ie/eng/Your_Industry/Construction/Designing_for_Safety/. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

History of Car Safety - Crash Test. 2014. History of Car Safety - Crash Test. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.crashtest.org/history-car-safety. [Accessed 26 January 2014].

Prevention through Design - Links. 2014. Prevention through Design - Links. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.designforconstructionsafety.org/links.shtml. [Accessed 26 January 2014].