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a holistic perspective
"Before embarking on the development of an idea, it is always important to understand the things that have cone before. Starting from Studio Gamma, the idea of the precedent and contextual knowledge became more prevalent in the design process. Architecture does not exist in a vacuum, and so an Intimate exploration into aspects such as neighbouring sites, historical significance, and social importance play a vital role in the formulation of the architectonics of a project. For many subjects such as Construction Design or Studio Delta, my peers and I are given the same site to work with. As a result, many of the first assignments were site analyses into environmental factors such as sunlight and wind access, as well as more intangible elements such as understanding Enterprise Park's significance in Australia's colonial history for Studio Delta. Without these pieces of information, a design response will end up being un-specific and therefore bear less meaning in response to where it is situated. Over the years, it has becone increasingly apparent to me that design is an intertwined process that has no real beginning or end. I have been taking this awareness of a vastness in perspective further into my work, especially now in Studio Epsilon, where there is a strong emphasis on the clients we are designing for."
formulating original ideas
"While a study of the past and existing is crucial, an emphasis on original creativity cannot be neglected in the process. My personal definition of originality has evolved over the years as an architectural student. In the beginning, I believed that originality was dead because of the imense quantity of work that the collective human race has produced. Over time however, I have come to realise that while an idea cannot spawn from nothing, it can be unfurled into a new context, into a new way of expression together with idosyncrasies of an artist or designer. This is originality. As designers, I believe we have an obligation to improve and deliver new projects with greater finesse than before. A preservation of tried and true design is necessary, but should not come in the form of complete re-production. In some subjects such as Studio Detta or FoDR, we were encouraged to be more daring in our imagination and push the abstraction and creativity of our ideas further. Meanwhile, in theory-based subjects such as MOMO to POMO or Formative Ideas, we were invited to read architectural literature and provide meaningful new perspectives or investigations. More often than not, the projects we end up producing consist of many ideas of our predecessors, yet I still see the value in them being wholly new works under different lenses. To me, each individual will be able to inject their own flavour into their design if given the opportunity, but at the same tine, they cannot abuse this freedom and not anchor their works with any basis in the existing understanding of the design world. This delicate balance has been practiced over the past four years, and is culminating in Studio Epsilon. At this time in writing, I am still figuring out what my response is going to be for the final project."
presenting a narrative
"The communication of an idea is perhaps one thing that I find my peers and I to struggle the most on. While many of my peers have great ideas, I feel like they are not given justice in their presentations. From the very first subject (FoDR), multiple methods of representation have been explored and tested to different degrees. When I revisited Design Processes & Techniques in my fourth year I was able to pay closer attention to where different mediums succeeded or fell short. For instance, I found that using a wireframe axonometric to be more useful in conveying my given structure's internal shapes whilst others chose to use a section. This was because my assigned house was a complex 3D form that was not easily comprehended in a 2D format. Time and time again, I find the final layout of a presentation to be one of the most challenging aspects of a project. In Studio Delta, I completely rehauled my first assignment and was able to deliver a much more successful representation of abstract ideas by simply realising that the previous methods I chose were not suited for the kind of information I meant to convey. Throughout most of the Studios, my tutors have constantly reiterated the importance of a central narrative for every project, something that the audience will remember concisely when you pitch it. I have found that trusting the process and designing with a loose overarching themes to begin with often leads to a coherant narrative surfacing on its own."
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