4/28 & 4/30 Week 14 Final Project: Octavia

      For our final Arch 199 project, we designed the city of Octavia, a fictional place imagined by Italo Calvino in his text Invisible Cities. This city is described as “the spider-web city” and is held up solely by ropes and chains between two mountains. All buildings hang below the support system. Those who live in Octavia cannot be certain of their fate from day to day because, as Calvino points out, “they know the net will only last so long” (Calvino, 75). We took these ideas and transformed the fictional place into a real structure with a twist: the whole thing was made out of candy.

      Using Lifesavers, Twizzlers, Fruit Roll-Ups, Starburst, Gummy Bears, dental floss, Hershey’s Kisses, and some rope, we created Octavia on a scale that spanned the size of a room. Below our city, marshmallow clouds rested upon a bedsheet that represented the void into which the city would inevitably fall. There were three main support ropes, with floss, Twizzlers, and Fruit Roll-Ups creating the rest of the spider web. Everything else hung from these supports, with nothing rising up.

      Our construction of our masterpiece was most definitely on the fly, but it turned out much better than we initially thought. Our original idea was to have a dozen or so skewers with a pineapple on each side with some fruit on the skewers and some rock candy hanging as well; we were quickly told that this was too small scale and we had to shoot for the stars! When we finally secured our exhibition locale, the famous “Eagle’s Nest” room in Temple Hoyne Buell Hall, we really took a big step forward. We constructed the city in phases and different waves of volunteers. The structure went up Sunday, the houses and city elements early Monday, the clouds below on Monday night, and the great finishing touches before the unveiling on Tuesday.

4/23/15 Week 13 Day 2

For our final trip, we visited the small town of Philo just outside of Urbana-Champaign. It rests on the intersection of a highway and a railroad so that it can transport its goods. It is home to a water tower proudly referred to as "The Center of the Universe."

The Center of the Universe

I grew up in a small town very much like Philo, except it is a mining town. To live in such a town feels like you are an island of civilization in a sea of fields. The nearest large stores can be fifteen minutes away. This why in small towns such as these, a Casey's General Store and gas station is very common.

 

The post office in Philo, unlike those in some larger cities, does not give off the same "strong, sturdy" feeling that government buildings often do. It serves its purpose and no more.

Schools in small towns can become centers for socialization, not only for the children but for the parents. In such tight-knit communities, the mothers and fathers if children in the same grade can become close and often help each other to look after the kids when needed. You know what they say: "it takes a village."

The churches of a small town are another gathering place for the community, occasionally hosting large dinners (called "Harvest Feasts" in my town.)
I personally have never been to a church, but even I felt their presence in the community and saw the effect it had.

Out on the edge of Philo is small division of much larger houses.

The cemetery of a small town can reveal a lot about its history and the families that lived and still live within it.

Philo's business street, which houses the Philo Tavern, ends abruptly and looks out onto open fields. Growing up in Gillespie, I used to think that the surrounding fields were boring and even ugly. I have learned a new appreciation for the atmosphere of a small town and its surroundings.

4/21/15 Week 13 Day 1

Today my group presented our much larger scale idea for our hanging edible city, Octavia.

4/16/15 Week 12 Day 2

Today my group presented a sketched plan for our edible city, Octavia.

4/14/15 Week 12 Day 1

Today we visited the Education Building.

 Its design is based on symmetry.

Two walkways lead up to either side of the front to two entrances.

The center of the building's front is a pane of glass looking in on an area with tables and chairs, forcing people to enter through one of the doors to either side.

The floor directly in front of the entry is made of sturdier material than the surrounding floor due to higher foot traffic.

The building has hallways running down either side, one which actually exists and one which is implied.

This type of material allows the wall to hide things such as vents and even doors from easy viewing.

The landscaping at the back of the building coexists with it and creates a space for students to relax or for outdoor class to be held.

After the Education Building, we visited the Krannert Art Museum at the request of the class.

The railings inside the museum are designed to look like the building facing itself.

We entered through a a door that allowed us to store our backpacks while observing the art.

The museum connects to the Art and Design Building.