Fountain of Youth, Wellness Project

Concept and Wellness Statements: Landor Office

Landor is a well-known graphic design group that is expanding their national offices. The new office in San Francisco will need innovative designs, by addressing the functional and aesthetic issues of the working environment.   By allowing ample natural light and views into the office, Landor employees will be inspirited and motivated by their environment. Integrating the natural elements into the design will concentrate on the multi-functional and flexible spaces, by allowing work areas for office team members to work together on projects in motivating the Landor employees.  Bring the Landor group together through the elements of design will create a movement of curved walls and open areas, by creating a fun and enjoyable work environment. The beauty of San Francisco is outside Landor’s windows, and as a designer these issues will be addressed, while creating a surrounding that is inspiring and motivating.          

             In creating the new office for Landor located in San Francisco, will concentrate on all multi-functional and aesthetic issues, to benefit the expansion of Landor. By incorporating organic wall designs into work environment it will visually help achieve the issues being met for the office ergonomics. For the wellness of all employees and community of San Francisco, there will be work stations to meet all individual needs to Landor employees. In solving any issues in the working situations the products being used will be, Herman Miller that focusing on the wellbeing of humans, in all working tasks. The visual effect of incorporating natural light and views, will keep the workers in contact with the environment. By these factors being met, the central concept for the Landor office is to be connected to the world and another.

Concept templets:

This is my first page for the the process of making the templet and bring it into Photoshop. I still in the process of making my perspective  from bring my CAD drawings into SketchUp.

This 2-point perspective of my juice bar for the Fountain of Youth wellness area. I am still working on this design and will be adding more detail and then print out and hand render then perspective once finished.

The materials templet is still a working process... These are the main materials though that I will be using for the yoga studio and stair rail of landor and the wellness area.

Landor Office Design Project: Process Work

Starting off with the Bubble Diagrams:

First Floor Concept

Second Floor Concept

Third Floor Concept

Moving into Block Diagrams....

First Floor

           Second Floor

Third Floor- Mezzanine

 

Concept Sketches

Reception Area

Wellness Center- Fountain of Youth

Mezzanine area

 

Australian Lifestyle!

Fact is Australians love Australia. They will clean up after themselves and take care of their surroundings. Not only because it is one of the most beautiful countries, but because Australians love everything about it. From being outside to going shopping on a rainy day, they could never be unsatisfied.  Australians are to be the friendliest and helpful people around, with a great sense of humor! But do not go against them in any sports or completions, since Australians are known for being very competitive! Whether is it a surfing contest or having a match in polo or field hockey, Australian will put up a fight!

Majority of Australians live in the coastal areas since the interior of the country is known for the “The Outback”, most of the area is unlivable.  The Outback can be very arid with many of the deserts out there and the lack of water, as well. Another reason why many Australian’s live in the coastal areas are because of their huge passion for fishing.  Fishing for many Australians is their favorite activity, with the wide variety of fish catch and plenty of water to sail along. Since Australia has such great climate and sunshine almost all year round, they are able to fish every season. But with Australia having the highest rate for skin cancer, it is highly advised to ALWAYS wear sunscreen and to not lie out in the sun for too long.

So when Australians are not fishing they are most likely shopping! They are actually in the biggest credit debt in the world! But that doesn’t stop them from enjoying their lives. Typically all Australian Shopping Centers have; a bakery, Pharmacy, Medical Center, small supermarket, dentist, Fish and Chips Shop, and Pizza Shop. It is quite funny how they have everything they need in their Shopping Centers, with an occasion of other stores.  But wherever you’ll go you’ll find great offers!

Australia is said to be just like: California, Rio De Janeiro, and the Mediterranean for their love of beaches! Australians even design their homes around the beaches, by using the beach complement the home.  They also incorporate their way of living by the need to extend the backyard enough to be able to play and entertain guests. Their way of design is an excellent alternative way to create a “Zen of relaxation” all year round. 

Australian lifestyle is the way to be. Even with fashion they are very laidback and have casual wear. When it comes to the professional wear, they don’t even wear ties but just a nice shirt and pants. The typical outfit in Australia is a bathing suit and flip-flops. Gee, to have their lifestyle!

In the end, the wellness of Australia is to live carefree, but still being competitive enough to reach your goals.   What a nice philosophy! 

Herman Miller

Last Wednesday during our Interior systems, materials and codes class, we had a representative from Herman Miller to teach us more about their company.  Everything the rep had told us was very informational by providing us with facts about how they approached to be more sustainable.  I was very interested in the designs they had for each office space from a 4’6’’ -6’4’’ space and still accommodating the client’s needs. The process Herman Miller went through to create a setting where the human experience is not only a working area but also a learning environment.

Herman Miller moved into the “cradle to cradle” method by creating their furniture to be more sustainable. The one chair that I was most interested in was the Embody chair that helps restore the balance of human/ computer relationship. In other words it helps out people that spend most of their day at the computer. The pixilated support automatically conforms to every movement and distributes ones weight evenly. The Embody chair is even one size fits all! (Pretty cool!)

Even with the issue of ergonomics Herman Miller was able to adapt to the size, shape, posture, and spinal curves of different people.The Embody chair does not only help improve posture and mind flow, but is also LEED silver certificate with 95% of it recyclable! The Embody chair is the future and would be a great add-in for all cooperate offices.

After the representative talked the Herman Miller chairs, she began to talk about the “Resolve system”. This system was mainly focused on the “.com” organizations, that was created in 2000.  The system is a human centered base on a 120-degree system that it open and welcoming to all the employees. “And Resolve creates friendly work spaces; its shapes and openness encourage people to connect, interact, and collaborate” (HermanMiller.com). The benefit of having the Resolve system over another is that the work spaces are not confined; workers can work freely and enjoy their working environment.                                                           

For my designing of the Landor office, I would love to incorporate the Resolve system into my planning. By this I will be able to have open areas for the designers to consult and interact with one another. 

North Sydney, Australia

Site/ Place Analysis

“Australia ranks highly in many international comparisons of national performance such as human development, quality of life, health care, life expectancy, public education, economic freedom and the protection of civil liberties and political rights (WorldAudit).” One of Australia’s “life expectancy” is from Landor’s international graphic design group sited in North Sydney, Australia. Landor is located in one of the most beautiful parts of Australia. The office is a short distance from the capital of Australia, Sydney. Landor’s group in North Sydney has been partner with some of the country’s greatest brands, including Nestle, Procter and Gamble, Foster’s Group, News Limited, Westfield, Telstra, The Smith’s Snackfood Company, General Mills, George Weston Foods, Dairy Farmers and Heart Foundation (which help create the life expectancy of Australia.)

            The area around Landor is most known for its modern urban skyline of skyscrapers. Although North Sydney does not have any of Sydney’s major shopping centers, North Sydney is known for specialty stores and cafes. North Sydney is right next to the Sydney Central Business District (CBD) by road and rail across the Sydney Harbor Bridge, which is perfect for the Landor group to easily commute to work. North Sydney railway station is apart of the North Shore Line and the Northern Line of the City Rail network and the Sydney Ferries network.  With these transportations available to the community and businesses around North Sydney it will help reduce the amount of cars on the road, making it more sustainable.  

            The environment and lifestyle of Australia is very cheerful and very laid back and tend to look on the bright side of life.  Australia is very proud of the country and enjoys showing loyalty to it, especially for international sporting events.  Everyone is accepted in Australia, making it a very enjoyable atmosphere for tourists and the communities to come together and to appreciate the beauty of Australia.  The site of Landor’s office is in the most inspiring city in Australia, and will ignite the creativity flow for the employees. 

sources: 

"Australia: World Audit Democracy Profile". WorldAudit.org. Retrieved 5

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Sydney,_New_South_Wales

Art Analysis

Design Analysis

Regatta At Argenteuil (48 x 75 cm) 1872

Medium: oil on canvas

Style: impressionism

Claude Monte 1840-1926

Born in Paris, 1840 Claude Monet was the creator of impressionism movement and had become a well-known artist throughout the world with his consistent pieces of artwork. Monet’s enjoyed experimenting with his paintings and would paint at different times of the day and would have more than just one painting of a scenery. One of Monet’s famous paintings, Regatta at Argenteuil (1872) had been created on a 48x 75cm canvas. The choice of oil mediums gave Monet the ability to blend the colors into one and created the impression of the reality in painting. Monet’s element of design through horizontal lines, gave the reality of the movement of the water, sky, and trees.  The vibrant color scheme being presented, with the selection of warm colors (orange, blue, and green) created the canvas to pop out from any other. The range of light to dark values of colors created the illusion for the objects to have depth and shadows. In addition, Monet had used the hues very well in creating the sky’s sunlight and reflection on the water.

The way Monet painted is very poignant and inspirational. The shooting of emotions that comes through the viewers’ perception of the painting are indescribable.  It is not just any ordinary painting, it tells a story and each observer can have different meanings of what he or she sees in the painting. Furthermore, the composition is remarkable with the paintings repetition of rhythm from the boats in sync with the house on the land. Monet properly used the elements and principles of design from the variety of light and space to have the viewers look to the middle of the painting and work his and her way throughout the painting. 

The painting, Regatta at Argenteuil is essentially motivating towards the interior design field. The painting has a variety of vibrant colors that could inspire designers by turning a dull space into relaxing getaway, which would be prefect for summer vacation homes or houses along the shore. "Monet offers one of the most extraordinary transformations known in the lifework of an artist (Schapiro).”


source: http://www.artchive.com/artchive/M/monet.html

Schematic Designs

Overlays of elements and principles of the drawing....

 plane

scale

line

unity - variety

Concept Models

model 1

model 2 side views

model 3

While working on my concept models I kept on looking back and forth between my diagrams of the principles and elements that appealed to me most and created overlays. I really enjoyed the work process. I was able to get a better appreciation of the art work than just analyzing the piece and my emotions off from it. Being able to take out the different elements and create an abstract project then turn it into 3D models is pretty cool! From my emotions of the painting and the elements that popped out to me most, made me really think of a wave affect (from the sails and sky). I figured by using cardboard it would be a perfect element to show the relation of the “waves”. Then when I started to look more into the color theory, with the hues of oranges and blues I wanted to incorporate that into my models as well.  

With my overall result of my concept models and overlays, it really made me excited to pursue the rest of the project. I have high expectations for myself of recreating this space and showing my true talent in design.


                                        
Olioboard -  My design theory of Monet's, Regatta At Argenteuil

Kroon Hall

“Yale’s most sustainable building to date reflects the School’s mission and the intellectual passion of its faculty and students, “said Yale President Richard C. Levin. “It is an extraordinary design and we hope its energy saving concepts will be emulated widely and inspire others to advance green building even further.”

So... I have been researching the newest building in Yale University called Kroon Hall. It's this sustainable building that recycled all waste and materials used, used nontoxic materials, solar panels, natural lighting and heating, solar heating and the list goes on! "Designed by Hopkins Architects of Great Britain in partnership with Connecticut-based Centerbrook Architects and Planners, the new $33.5 million home for F&ES is expected to achieve a platinum rating in the green-building certification program, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design(LEED)" (Coppock). This building is truly inspiring! Everything about it is sustainable and is perfect for the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. 

One of the fascinating parts of Kroon Hall is that they created this water system for a pond in front of the building. What it does is collect the runoff from the building's roof that is then held in a settling tank that allows majority of the sediment to settle out. From that it is moved in a storage tanks and excess water that all turns into a pond. You know what else they can do with the pond besides from just enjoying the beauty of it? Once after the water is filtered and disinfected, it can be used for toilet flushing for the Kroon Hall building! How cool is that?! This building is one of a kind and should inspire other Universities and pretty much everyone to create sustainable building to help out the environment!

The building’s east-west orientation maximizes solar heat gain during the winter. A 100-kilowattrooftop array of photo voltaic panels provides 25 percent of the building’s electricity. 

                                                           

 The exposed concrete walls and ceilings provide thermal stability. It retains heat in winter and cooling in summer. 50% percent of the concrete mix is blast slag, which is a postindustrial recycled material. So in other words, instead of air being forced through overhead ducts, the energy-saving displacement ventilation system will move the warm and cool air through the air plenum and multiple diffusers to elevated floors. They also provided low-velocity fans in the basement for keeping the air circulating all throughout the building!

This building is very fascinating and I truly hope I get to visit it very soon. Since it is just around the corner! :)

Sites I visited:

http://environment.yale.edu/kroon/

http://opa.yale.edu/news/article.aspx?id=6571

www.yale.edu/environment/publications

I'm so pumped about my blog! Hope you all enjoy :)

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