Love the concept and the music sounds something similar to the Ryan Gosling Film ‘Drive’.  Uber style!

Fast forward to 05.50 for the interview.  Visit Ian’s site here!

Reblogged from Inspiring Artists !:

Ray was born in Tokyo in 1948. After his studies he began his career as an abstract painter.  Now days he is well known for his illustrations, in which we can still find elements of his earlier practice. Landscapes are the main subjects for Ray’s latest works, which are made with different techniques involving engraved wood panels.

Great posts from a fantastic art blog.

Jarvis x ;o)

Jarvis have mercy on my soul ;o)

I chose the green area as this is where the notorious Hulme Cresents were, many of my favourite bands either lived or part of the Factory Records music scene in this area so I instantly had an interest in it.  The area is now an amazing precedent for Urban Regeneration and one of the master minds behind it is Landscape Architect – Neil Swanson, highly commended by the Design Council  for designing out crime.

Reflection: Current Group Work Project – My Approach

As a group with a tight deadline we organised sections of our area from a huge AutoCAD map, although I’m getting a little more familiar with the programme I still like to start my analysis in a more traditional/digital way, but as im still learning my bread and butter skills I have to make use of what I know.  I used my iPad to zone the areas, there are five team members, so we had an area each, me being zone 2.

Then I printed an AutoCAD Map off just for the team on A4 paper and collaged them together with tape, drawing a red pencil boundary around our area and emailed it to the team via a digital scan.

Sections

As a team we organised amongst ourselves what sections we would do for everyone to take away with them and work on them over the weekend.  Using my iPad I roughly plotted in some sections.

After deciding my sections I took a second site visit to check out the streetscapes and took photos that I collaged together on adobe indesign.  Here is an example of a Section D, the arrows on the line represent the view Im taking which is Dearden Road, Stretford Rd, Hulme Park and  The Sanctuary.  This gave me a visual tool to work to draw a section.

Reflecting on the photo collage I made a couple of quick sketchy doodles, thinking about how I would like to express my sections and what scale I would use.  Although we have not been asked to use a particular scale as long as they are relativly in proportion I wanted to practice this so my finished sections would look more true to life.  I decided that 1:200 would be an appropriate scale to use as they would fit nicely onto an A1 sheet and would convert more detail into a digital presentation.

Then I thought about other elements that I wanted to add to my section and doodled these down on trace making a decision to add cars and people to communicate the landscape in relation to human scale.

I then roughly started to compose a section using a black pilot fineliner on trace.

Using my photo collage, doodles, maps and sketchpad notes and film footage of the area I had taken during my analysis I drew a 1:200 section on sketchup with an attempt to encompass a mood and a feeling of when day turns to night on a winters day.

Inspired by the sections expressed in Virginia McLouds’ Detail in Contemporary Landscape Architecture; I drafted the above section adding my impression; a semi abstract collage style of the two blocks of apartments either side of Hulme Park.  It is always important to me to capture some of my emotion and feelings from the site visit attempt to infuse it into my work.  Reflecting on Kevin Lynch ‘Image of the City’  (chapter 1) he talks about the stationary and moving objects as a composition of the city. Man being part of that city where our perception is forever changing and unsustained, there is no final result but a succession of phases.  So I guess every student landscape architect studying the same subject would express a section differently as a collective of the real and the imagined.

Using The Manual for Streets, Department of Transport p.80, (2007) as precedent teamed with Google Earth satellite imagery and measuring tools I plotted in key measurements into my section and added a little drama using Photoshop and Adobe Sketchbook.

Fun to do, but not quite right.  Think ill stick to the grey version and add just a little sky detail!  ill also make my measurements a little bigger!  Good experience though having a play about using a combination of analogue and digital techniques.

I need to learn these moves ready for my next night out…

I was born with dyspraxia which means related difficulties with motor coördination skills, planning and organising thoughts and conveying these verbally and in writing, reading comprehension tasks, and processing verbal information.

With time and technology I’ve ironed a lot of these issues out, but through not having a diagnosis from a young age I missed a lot of my education, so had to catch up as an adult with the right self-help support. My theory is, if you understand how your brain works you can help yourself! Plus there is support out there if you need to tap into it. I was diagnosed in my early twenties as I had slipt through the special educational needs net. I just hope this is no longer happening in the education system and that’s why I’ve become so passionate about the subject.

Speaking to other students I’ve found that many of them have issues with reading. They can read but tend to lose where they are up to on a page, the words may blur or look inconsistent or their concentration wavers.

I was always envious of friends who could read thru stacks of books I really wanted to be part of that world. I’ve read books in my life but very slowly and tried all sorts of techniques but the best I’ve found is with a kindle app.

Last year I bought an I pad 2 and its become almost like a second limb! It’s helped me so much with my education as a landscape architect student, it’s very visual, almost designed for the visual mind.

I noticed people on the train with their amazon kindles, reading with various font sizes, and a none reflective background. Intrigued I downloaded the amazon kindle app and was amazed that I could tailor a book to my needs within seconds and fly through it without any re-reading or ever losing my place on the page! Since then I’ve downloaded all my assignments and pdf’s to my iPad its such a great educational tool.

Here are some screen shots of a kindle book I read recently and how I customised it.

The screen shot above is a page from the kindle book, it has a grey background here that appears white on the kindle that dyslexic students may find hard to process especially at length.

Here I changed the background to sepia with one click, it becomes more comfortable to read as it softens the contrast between black and white.  Already this made a difference to my reading/processing

Turning the page into landscape makes it easier to stay track of where you are on the page.

As shown above here it is easy to make the font big or small so you can break the book into small managable chunks.  This can speed your reading and understanding up.  I started on a very large font and have progressed to a mid font.

All you have to do is click your finger in the left hand corner of the page on the ipad app and the options come up as shown to change the page layout.  This only has to be done once so its no hassle.  I do love books and have a very good collection on landscape architecture as they are very visual with a nice balance of text and illustration automatically breaking text up making it managable.  However the classics can be very wordy and huge books so the kindle route is the way to go for me.  I pads aren’t cheap mine cost me £400 but for me I saved for it and it’s been worth every penny.  Amazon kindles last time I looked were £89 but are limited to reading only whereas an Ipad you can do a lot more.  I guess it just depends on your needs.

I think technology is changing everything and I embrace it to the full.  I’m seeing so many changes to how people can participate in learning and not be excluded.  I truly believe there will be a new wave of empowered learners who can make a decent contribution.  I feel I am living in very exciting digital times indeed.

These will be divided into three categories and colour coded on maps as such:

A) Ownership – Private, semi private and public

B)  Function – Parking, Playground, disused, derelict, etc

C) Accessibility – (fully accessible, partially accessible, controlled access only…

I will upload these maps as I draw them on this post over the next few days ;o)

Reflecting on prior experiences I explored ways in which I could make a contribution for better team dynamics. To achieve this I asked the group if we could write some ground rules. As a group we wrote this up on Microsoft Word, we also exchanged email addresses to keep in contact. Following on from this we re wrote the brief and clarified each others understanding and uploaded this onto our group word document.

To improve communications I set up a dropbox file. This is a way of storing group information on line so we can all upload and work on documents together in real time. We all agreed to check this on a day to day basis. I also made some maps of our area and sent them via email to each team member so we have some good resources before starting our site analysis.

In summary my contribution to group work part 1 is:

Using Dropbox technology for online storage and file sharing to improve communications.
Having an icebreaker. Meeting with ground rules and setting expectations.
Map making for team resources.
Setting up an email online communications network.

After a harsh winter it was a promising sight to see crocus bursting thru the park boundaries opposite our home in Blackpool. I just can’t wait to get back out there enjoying the City gardens, strolls on the coastline and enjoying the bees and butterflies having fun, you know what I mean!
At last the seemingly never ending month of January is over and Springtime is on the horizon.

Landscape Architect Gay Crowther Old Town Alexandria Virginia

French International School in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Lumiere

Mews dimensions. Sketch

I find Courtyards fascinating, they have existed as long as architecture has having a unique microclimate that can cool housing, some of the earliest Courtyard housing is as early as 2000 BC. They can make unique sub communities in themselves for semi private and public spaces. In high density cities Courtyard Housing can provide privacy from the chaos of the urban environment, a sense of privacy and retreat without comprimising the vibrancy of city life. Courtyards are a great way of creating and protecting space.

On the train home today I decoded a very wordy brief into snappy pieces of information as part of my planning and understanding process so there are no wordy distractions next time I need to refer back to the brief!

Related articles

• Try Popplet! (brightfutures4me.wordpress.com)
• Popplet: Getting Your Ideas Organized Easily in iPad (maketecheasier.com)
• Adding mind maps (1000heretics.com)

Seeing I have just about recovered sleep deprivation from the last portfolio hand in, I’ve decided to clear my Macbook out, to make space for new work. Having done all sorts of conceptual drawings it was time for an early spring clean!

The conceptual illustration below is hardscape influenced by a solar eclipse, It was more of an individual exercise I completed for learning ‘Sketchup’ so I thought It would be nice to share it!

This year I’m concentrating my self-directed learning into AutoCAD study – its a bit more tricky than Sketchup but beautifully precise and much better for scale drawing. I’ll take my time learning it step by step with the official Autodesk training programme and if all else fails I’ll be using my trusty scale ruler and mechanical pencils as a back up!

Although I love my course it can get very stressful as there are quite harsh time restrictions to produce a vast amount of work with a DIY approach.  (Think this is how a design course works though….) It is sometimes difficult fitting those self-teach sessions in between preparing assignments yet the skills are vital in getting the work to an above average level of competency in the current climate. Nonetheless times are changing and my school is slowly introducing the odd computer aided design technology workshop into the course based on student and industry need and demand.  (There is only so much teach yourself manuals a man can take! ;o) )

I believe peer education if facilitated well could really benefit the student learning process, but perhaps sharing skills in a student cooperative environment is an ideology. As it stands at least in my experience the reality is that the studio dynamics are quite cold, mundane and competitive but the study of landscape architecture is anything but.

I don’t think there is anything wrong with a bit of healthy competition but I think it would be a much nicer working environment for all if peer educative workshops were facilitated within the school in line with the new digital culture.

http://vimeo.com/17036058

Short Film – Steve Mardy

Hydrangea petiolaris – Climbing Hydrangea

Semi Abstract Digital Sketch

Hydrangea petiolaris

Hydrangea petiolaris

Common Name: Climbing hydrangea
Genus: Hydrangea
Species: anomala
Cultivar: subsp. petiolaris
Skill Level: Experienced
Exposure: Full sun, Partial shade
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Acidic,Chalky/alkaline
Height: 1500cm
Spread: 500cm
Time to take cuttings: May to August 
Flowering period: May to July

Function

Great architectural plant to climb walls –  a great design statement.   It’s great for a shady or north wall but does well also in sunnier sites and in most soil types.  The flowers do last long though in the shade.  It takes a few years for the plant to get established with minimal growth so this plant is better for a mid-term vision.  You will get huge white lace capped flowers in mid summer that almost cover the stem.  I really love this plant its very attractive and there is something for me that is very homely about it.

Personality

Striking and stimulating, inviting, comforting.

Plant Design Association

Great for walls as the craggy adventitious stems will cling to the wall.  This plant could be a centre piece for a garden and a colour theme could revolve around it.  It looks particularly good with Topiary.

Magnolia x soulangeana

Common Name: Magnolia
Genus: Magnolia
Species: x soulangeana
Cultivar: ‘Lennei’
Skill Level: Experienced
Exposure: Full sun, Partial shade
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Clay/heavy, Moist
Height: 600cm
Spread: 600cm

Function

Remains a shapely shrub for many years, and even in maturity becomes a manageable small tree.  It is  fast growing and free-flowering where flowers appear  in late spring with repeat flowering in autumn. Do not like alkaline chalky soils but good in most soil types.

Personality

Pretty Cinderella like trees that are attention seekers.  A happy and inviting shrub adding an extra dynamic to autumn colour.

Plant Design Association

Great for an entrance statement or contemplative land mark.  With them being small and manageable I have noticed they have become very popular in rural front gardens of Bilsborrow, Lancashire .

Acer palmatum “ Atropurpureum”

Common Name: Japanese maple
Genus: Acer
Species: palmatum
Cultivar: ‘Atropurpureum’
Skill Level: Experienced
Exposure: Partial shade
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Clay/heavy,Acidic, Chalky/alkaline
Height: 800cm
Spread: 1000cm
Flowering period: April to May

Function

A popular tree with deeply lobed, red-purple leaves that turn a brilliant red in autumn.  Adds colour to a garden.

Personality

Soft, meditative, contemplative, relaxing.

Plant Design Association
Great tree to add colour to a garden needs to be well watered in part shade or full sun.  Excellent for zen gardens.

Osmanthus heterophyllus

Common Name: Fragrant olive

Genus: Osmanthus

Species: fragrans

Skill Level: Experienced
Exposure: Full sun, Partial shade
Hardiness: Half Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Chalky/alkaline
Height: 600cm
Spread: 600cm

Function

This shrub grows upright and eventually into a small tree with dark green, oblong leaves with pointed tips.  The white flowers are extreamly fragrant, appearing in autumn and sometimes again in spring and summer.

Personality

Great for a med looking garden a relaxing plant for private spaces.

Plant Design Association

Not cold or wind tolerant so its recommended to plant trees around this to protect it from the cold.

Film Philip Hartigan (2010)

My favourite Sunday morning tune.  Roll on beautiful Sunday.  Love and Rest….

Thomas Mawson’s plan for Rivington Bungalow Site 1909 (Chorley Council 2011)  

Thomas Mawson has become such an inspiration to me, pretty much all of the traditional Landscape Architecture around me was designed by him and I have enjoyed his realised landscapes from a young age.  Much personal respect to Thomas Mawson and Sons!

Exploring existing levels using colour…

Landscapes Past: Exploring Thomas Mawson’s work in sketch format and block colour on A3 Trace…

Landscapes Present: Thomas Mawson Site Ruins Trace Analysis 2011 

Layering different fabrics in a web composed with past, present and future. During this drawing I thought of Thomas Mawson, Micheal Van Gessel and Allain Provost’s work.  

Influenced by the beautiful and breath-taking work of Allain Provost – his respect for the Past and his vision for the Present and Future encapsulated in the earth – I’m completely inspired and feel connected to his work and this for me is where traditional and modern elements fuse in harmony.