Industries Of The Blind

Cabinet of Curosity

GHM Exhibit Visit

{ 1 } "VOICES" Exhibit

{ 2 } PERIOD Rooms and POTTERY Display

The period rooms and the pottery display is located on the second level where the pottery room is in the center and the period rooms are in a circle surrounding them. The period rooms display Greensboro's founding families home. The Tate families early 1900's home is shown through the replicas that show the style of home furnishing at the time. This helps set the tone so you can imagine the time period in which the family lived. However the placement of the rooms around the pottery exhibit do not make sense because the two exhibits are two compleatly different things that have no relation to each other and it seams almost like a after thought to combine the two. In order to get to the period rooms you must walk compleatly around the pottery display cases which draw more of your attention so i would assume that the rooms get overlooked pretty easily and people just move on to the next exhibit. The units of pottery show how the original artist in Greensboro adapted styles of diffident cultures. The bright colored pottery pops against the white display stands and the lighting reflects from one piece to another making the eye move back and forth around the display case. In  my option the pottery exhibit is stronger than the period rooms since they are colorful and purposefully displayed where the rooms seem to be cluttered and poorly lit so you have it focus your attention on each room to understand exactly what is going on in each room.

{ 3 } The  "GATE CITY" Exhibit

When you walked into the gate city exhibit its like walking into the middle of a town in the 1900's. The exhibit was a combination of sound, texture, lighting. The first thing you notice when you walk in is the tree right in the middle of you line of sight then you notice all the buildings with different exteriors arranged in a circular fashion around the center point. This area has a nice flow to it because you can just follow the circle around till you reach where you began. This part of the museum was different from the rest because you could walk into each staged room and experiences each of them for yourself instead of being divided from them by a pain of glass. The narration throughout the space was helpful because it allowed you to learn more about the spaces rather than just things on the surface. The lighting made certain things in each space pop out and spotlighted the key aspects in each room.

{ 4 } The Traveling Exhibit "DOWN HOME"

The down home exhibit is split between two different spaces which splits the focus half is located on the left side of the lobby where the rest is on the third floor. The exhibit consist of a time line of the history of the Jewish peoples lives in North Carolina and Greensboro specifically. Also depicts customs of the Jewish people and how the celebrate different events in their lives.  In the first section there is a synagogue and different artifacts. This flows directly into a kitchen scene where you can interact with the objects and a auditory element is introduced into the exhibit. This helps connect the visual aspects with our normal culture and better realize the differences and similarities. The next area ties together the other parts of the exhibit wrapping up the overall concept of the display's.  The division of this exhibit helps direct one through the exhibit and the lighting and the audio elements further focus your attention to the main points the GHM is trying to convey. 

where i want to LEAP

When asked to make a choice of what location i would like to work on i first sat down and wrote out all the design issues i thought each space had. After doing this i realized that the issues of the Weatherspoon art museum and the Greensboro historic museum both had were ones dealing with leading people to destinations that informed the viewer and making things make more sense within the spaces. However, in the Industries of the blind the main issue of the space was making the space have a story of its own to tell rather than leading one to the story. The Industry of the Blind is a place where their story deserves to be told and the community needs to be made aware of the amazing things they are doing and their struggles and triumphs they experienced to get to that place.

I would love nothing more than to be able to say i was one of the students that made that dream a reality. To this project i would be personaly beneficial because i am someone who is good at communicating and drawing ideas  from what people are saying they want and expanding on them rather than just doing exactly what they request. With my time management skills i will make sure every step of the way that we are on task and heading as a group as a whole in the right design direction for the space. Normally on projects i end up leading the group simply because i am good at juggling many task at once and on this project that is important since there are several things we need to consider and focus on. While the project is going on i normally gather all the work and put together all the information from all the group members so if anyone in the group need access to it then it is all in one place and it makes the design process flow easier.  I think it is a very important task to help the IOB and i will make sure that everyone in my group is working as hard as possible in order to get the work completed high above what the IOB could ever imagine we could accomplish.

Industries Of The Blind Site Study

The industries of the blind was not what i was expecting. I was expecting it to be a normal factory where people worked mechanically all day and came back the next day to repeat the task. Instead the president of the corporation running it like a sweat shop he knew each employee and respected them and their work.

{narrative}

I had never actually noticed the IOB building before but when i was walking toward it i realized why. The street side of the building is plain white and looks like all the other building on lee street which are fairly boring and lifeless. The actual entrance to the building is placed on the side to view from the parking lot. The entrance side was brick and had plants and a flag pole which are pretty normal for an exterior of a building. When i learned what the IOB was i began to wonder why i had never heard of it or the amazing things they do there. To enter the building you have to walk around the plants to a ramp that leads you into the lobby space. The plain white walls of the reception area and the standard reception desk makes the entrance boring and contradicting with what the IOB is all about. As you walked toward the steps there is a small meditation area with a fountain that shows the factory is not like all the others. When you walk upstairs you approach the office area where there is a conference room and the managements personal offices where there is a open door policy that shows because of all the chatter and conversations going on in the office. Past the offices are the factory spaces that are specialized to make the work process easier for the seeing impaired workers.  Overall the entrance spaces are closed off and uninviting and the IOB deserves a space that tells their story and spreads the wood to the community of the great things they are accomplishing.

{thumbnails}

{diagramming process}

{refined diagram}

Right now the IOB is a locked book  and their story need to be told

{factors that impact use + perception}
occasions-factory, meetings, casual conversations
players- employees, visitors, clients
resources-offices, presentation/conference area, gift shop, meditation area
surroundings- staircase, offices, conference room, bathrooms, reception area, windows, light artificial and natural, shadows, sounds

Starting Drawings For The GHM Building

By:Hailey Tailor

This is our starting point for the 2nd level lobby space elevations for the Greensboro Historic Museum  building.

Diagraming From The World Around Us

Diagram Attempt One

Diagram Attempt Two

In class we have been learning about diagrams and how you can use them to better explain a space or a building rather than using technical drawings.  After trying diagramming on our own we were ask to find examples of things in our everyday life's that are diagrams and bring one to class with us to discuss. In class we talked about how diagrams could be successful ones and based on the discussion i came to the conclusion that ones with color and simplicity work the best because they are easy to understand and read from most distances. After class was over we were ask if we thought we could find a better diagram than the one we had to do so.

Greensboro Historic Museum Site Study

When walking through the Greensboro Historic Museum I considered important points in the experience, those being the approach, the arrival, the waiting process, destinations, side trips, secondary activities, and departing.  However this museum is not logically planed out or designed it is just a mod podge of different ideas that did not flow together and gave off mixed design messages.

{narrative}

Upon arriving at the Museum parking lot you have to walk up the long pathway along the side of the building to the courtyard where you are drawn to the grand arched entry way. After passing through the doors you become so distracted by all the things going on that you don't know where to focus your attention. The mix matched furniture and the randomized display cases distract from the focus of the museum. There is a display over on the left hand side of the museum where it funnels back towards the auditorium space. The high ceilings add to the distraction because they allow you to view all 3 levels of the museum. However there is  somewhat of a focal point  of the lobby there is a spiral staircase that leads to the museum exhibit upstairs. The museum is not organized very well however you are eventually lead to the upstairs exhibits.

{thumbnails}

{diagramming process}

{refined diagram}

{factors that impact use + perception}
occasions-exhibits, presentation, shows in auditorium
players-viewers, workers,security guards
resources-exhibits, shows, gift shop
surroundings-light both artificial and natural, wall treatments, sound, banners, staircase, reception desk

Weatherspoon Art Museum Site Study

When walking through the Weatherspoon Museum I considered important points in the experience, those being the approach, the arrival, the waiting process, destinations, side trips, secondary activities, and departing. The play of shadows and natural light draw you to special places in the museum acting as a navigation system.

{narrative}

Approaching the Weatherspoon Art Museum you first see the steps that lead to the vestibule, however the entrance is blocked off by the bright light shining off the glass room and three large columns . Since the entry way is slightly blocked it creates a feeling of privacy to the Museum and importance to the artwork housed there. Once you pass through the vestibule you enter the lobby where you are directly in front of another large column. After you get past the column the next thing that draws you in is the low ceiling height of the reception area and the hallway that leads to the galleries and other activity rooms since the hallway has a window at the end it gives off the effect of light at the end of a tunnel. The main lobby space ceiling is drastically higher and has sky lights that give a circle of light off on the floor of the lobby which makes that space a special area defined by the light and shadow. The light and shadow in the space leads you through the museum and makes you notice little details that you normal would not have.

 


{thumbnails}

{diagramming process}

{refined diagrams}

This diagram is showing how the light and shadows of the space draw to to certain points in the space.

{final diagram}

The final diagram is inverted because it better shows the light and shadows since shadow is the absence of light it just makes sense to have the image dark instead of light. 

{factors that impact use + perception}

occasions- classes, art galleries and exhibits, public events

players- visitors, directors, curators, artist, security guards, students, teachers

resources- art, classes, areas for parties, gift shop

surroundings- light both natural and artificial, shadow, sound echo, floor reflection, columns, reception desk