Nature vs. Machine

Where does society begin and nature end? In our world, especially today, there is a very thin line which (may) separate(s) the two. Linda Nash, author of "The Agency of Nature or the Nature of Agency?" brings up this very point, in this age of factory farms and genetic engineering, how might we consider the ways all of those themes come together in cultural understandings of nature? We are nature, nature is us, though we have evolved to use alternative means by which we increase productivity and (improve) quality of life, we do nonetheless depend in one way or another on the earth. In this way it is difficult to define boundaries and separate 'us' from 'them' (nature), as we require nature in our incorporation of 'man-made' machines in the greater context.

- Jassa

Sustainable Furniture

Our EQ3 trip inspired me to look more into furniture and think about whether or not there were furniture companies out there who were concerned with sustainability. In my search I came across "BlueGreen & Co.", an organization which took pride in producing good looking, sustainable, modern furniture. Based in Fife, Scotland, they create their goods from waste materials in the form of unwanted furniture, which would otherwise be destined for landfills. This "Vagabond" dresser (image on right) for instance won an award at a design festival. Each drawer is hand-crafted from different reclaimed woods, including brown oak, sycamore, walnut, birch plywood, chipboard, and pine. The drawer knobs are all found objects as well. [visit bluegreenandco.com for more info]

- Jassa

BOTTLED WATER BATTLE - Free Press

London Ontario and Waterloo all share a ban on plastic bottled water and hopefully soon Toronto, Vancouver, Hamilton and Winnipeg will be joining them. The deal is bottled water is not sold where fresh tap water is readily available. Tap water being completely fine and regulated by water treatment plant, 1/3 of Canadians use their main source of water from plastic bottled water. Even in our own campus, at the SOMA cafe and the Manitoba Students union, are starting a trend that will follow mainstream success in all of Winnipeg. The mayor is on board across the city in arenas, cafeterias and vending machines. 1/4 of all the bottled water sold in Canada is recycled tap water which is not as fresh as treated water and soon a 300 million dollar upgrade on the system regulating our water. Across America the same movement is happening major cities like San Francisco and Seattle. The city will vote and slowly they will be a change in the production and distribution of bottled water.
Unfortunately the vote on the ban at city hall this past Friday was rejected.
CHRIS C.

TOUR OF EQ3

As a group we toured EQ3 this Thursday. The presentation was very informative about what the production team at EQ3 goes through in order to see a design go into production. As for the tour of the facilities of mostly storage and workspace, the design studio itself was a cool workspace. The interior of low cut shaped walls to thick glass rooms and beaded doors made it seem like a creative space to be creative in.
The actual process of making your design seems straight forward similar to our process in within our studio. The initial sketch periods are instrumental to the entire process to put an idea down and work it out. Changes are made in each step and as I've found being in studio most things need changing as you go along, trial and error.
It was also interesting hearing about the jobs that are out there. I already get a better view of a designer and their passion to make things.

CHRIS C.

Colours around the World

When Vaike Ruus was giving the lecture on the meaning of colours I was reminded of the way in which colours play a significant role in cultures and religions around the world. 'White' for instance is representative of the principles of purity, this view is shared with the majority of the world. In Buddhism, and consequently in predominantly Buddhist countries, the "pure light" is that which represents Nirvana, the highest achievement, which on the spectrum (white) contains All colours. In much of the Western world and also in Christianity, white is used to represent purity and righteousness, aspects which relate closely to the perceptions of Buddhists as well. The way these colours are seen by adherents of different faiths are influenced by the cultures in which they are born into and thus it becomes clear that there are indeed similarities in the way the world (of colour) is seen or perceived.

- Jassa

Reflection on September 25th 2008: Jellyfish

When the thought of a “Jellyfish” house was mentioned I was very confused and I wasn’t sure if I heard right. When I became aware that I had heard right I became very intrigued, skeptical yet intrigued. After I had viewed a picture of the actual prototype design I decided that I had to look into the design more and see exactly what the building was all about.
I came across the ARCHITECTURAL RECORD website which had an article which was speaking about the concept. I found out that the envelope of the Jellyfish House was designed by a San Francisco based architecture firm called IwamotoScott Architecture. This envelope of a building is not just a enclosure but an “active, smart technology engaged in the remediation “ of the surrounding environment. This structures technology is embedded within creating a piece of architecture which is simultaneously structural and ambient.
This prototype is an amazing concept however the technology does not exist as of yet. According to “OPEN HOUSE” we will be capable of such technologies within the next 50 years.
The proposed site for this amazing house is on Treasure Island which an artificial landmass within the San Francisco Bay. As of right now the site is home to a decommissioned military base. The architects are trying to find a way where they can keep the entire island intact and trying to disturb the absolute minimum natural resources as possible.
This house is composed of everything which surrounds it including water. In this sense there truly is no void space surrounding the building as the environment around it is actually incorporated within. One example of the home incorporating the environment is the outer skin. This skin is created using a parametric mesh. This mesh will be able to capture, filter and store rain water for use within the home. While the house is filtering the water it will glow changing shades of blue.
I hope that we figure out the technology in less time than 50 years because I would like to see the construction as well as the sustainability of the home. If it takes 50 years to figure out the technology I wont be around to see if the home is able to sustain even 20 years on the earth with the changing environmental conditions.
http://archrecord.construction.com/residential/unbuilt/archives/2007/07_jellyfishhouse/default.asp

~Trevor

Reflection on September 25th 2008: Colouring the Cultural Buildiings

When I heard that different cultures paint their buildings with different types of colours I thought about and agreed that this would seem pretty obvious because all types of cultures have different ideas of aesthetics. I did not expect the extremity of the difference among the colours. The majority of Nordic architecture is coloured in pale colours while the majority of Mexican architecture is coloured in vibrant and very vivid pronounced colours. In the Mexican architecture, a lot of primary colours are also used. After I thought about this for a while I was wondering what the theme colour for Winnipeg would be. I’m pretty sure there is none or if there is it would be as bland as it gets. A lot of Winnipeg’s architecture has become very boring. The architecture here was once very ornate and interesting as it was the “Chicago of the North” but since that time the majority of our architectural colours have declined in interest. I’m not saying that all of our architecture is painted with boring colours, but a majority of it is. No one building really stands out by itself anymore. This is especially the case with the housing projects as most of the houses are created in the same style as well as colours these days.

~Trevor