Before I update my progress on this project, I want to give a brief summary of what my project actually is. I will be making a topographic sculpture out of cardboard or scrap wood with an additional sub-aesthetic as well. The scultpure will be of the words “Koho” and the purpose of it will be as an art advertisement display. The intention will be to make it a visually appealing sculpture that can be used in a variety of settings: a home, a venue to display as an advertisement, or an office or workspace. In terms of progress, my project has been progressing slightly slower than I had hoped for. I have decided on my final sub aesthetic for my project and am content with it. I took into account suggestions made in the comment section on my previous upcycle post and am siding with an organic aesthetic. The main reasoning behind the commenters preference which I also agree with is that this aesthetic promotes the ability to convey the topography of the sculpture; a concern that arose from the minimalistic aesthetic not being able to do so as well. With this decision made, I have a few ideas to integrate into my sculpture to add to this aesthetic. I will be adding raw pieces of nature, some possibilities I have for this are tree bark, moss or bamboo. I think all three of these will benefit this aesthetic while also providing additional colors and textures to add some interest to the sculpture. Each of the possibilities I listed previously, in my opinion, not only maintain a natural feel for the sculpture but can also be configured to be neat and not thrown on just to add some dirt and earth looks. For example in figure [1] below on the left, although there is an organic feeling to it, it also has structure and order which is what I intend my sculpture to display too. If I were to incorporate bamboo into my topographic sculpture, a thought came to mind to make it the frame of the sculpture. Depending on what I can find as the “canvas” or the display that the topographic sculpture will grow out of, I may want to cover up the sides of it with bamboo to make it easier on the eyes. The picture displayed below and on the right is my idea of how to use bamboo as a frame almost for the canvas to add to the aesthetic and improve its visual appeal.
The other area of progress that I have made so far for this project is to create the topographic sculpture with a laser cutter and no 3D-printing. With this, I still have the final decision to choose between either cardboard or scrap wood and I will decide this with a quick visit to the ITLL and checking their supply on scrap wood to determine if there is enough. If not I will take a quick trip to Costco for some groceries and and use the cardboard boxes they provide as a good starting supply for my project.
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I love this idea and I’ve seen a huge example of one of these at the Atlas Building here on campus! Your use of organic materials all the way from the bamboo to the grass is a perfect example of an upcycle. How are you going to manage to keep the grass/moss alive? If you are spraying it with/pouring water on it will your materials be able to sustain its structural integrity with the interference of water?
Hi Maddox, your project is interesting! I love the Idea of using 2 dimensional materials to create 3D form. you have a create opportunity to add in a lot of detail from using other materials, do you have a particular landscape in the real world in mind you will be modeling? or will it me something entirely new?
Hi Maddox! I think your project sounds amazing and I look forward to watching it progress! I really like the sub-aesthetic that you have chosen to integrate. That, mixed with the topographic overall aesthetic, will blend very well! I have a couple of questions about your project. First of all, what is the scale of this design? Also, if you decide to use cardboard as your upcycled material, will you be taking any measures to strengthen it? Do you plan on coloring the wood/cardboard at all, or does the aesthetic prefer the natural tones? Enjoy creating!