FMP - Review

REVIEW OF FINAL MAJOR PROJECT (FMP)

Student Name: Gar-yuan Li                                                 Pathway: 3D Design

Final Major Project Title: Pod House

For the final major project, I have created a pod house that would be attached to existing buildings. The concept is to create more living space, without taking up the space in the urban landscape. Instead, finding spare spaces in the urban landscapes to attach the pod houses. The design for the pod is inspired from Japanese origami.  

I first started this project doing research into pod houses and different functional pods. I wanted my pod house to have a structural form inspired by origami, so I began making them. My pod house is inspired from the origami Kusudama Chrysanthemum Flower. I developed a simplistic design of the chosen origami. I used the laser cutter and Zun machine to cut out the design and assemble the pieces together. I decided the location to be the Peabody Court flat where I live, since I am familiar with the place and have access to it. There is an empty wall on one side of the building, and on the other side of the wall is the staircase. This made me think it is the ideal place to attach my pod house. At the end I made two models. The first is my pod house with a interior, and the other is a model of my flat with my model attached to it. 

I have received advice throughout the project from one to one tutorials and group discussions that happens very frequently. I was given advice such as try experimenting with other materials other than paper to create the origami pieces. From this advice I moved on from paper origami to experimenting the different materials and methods to recreate those shapes and forms. I have used the Zun machine to score a sheet of polypropylene, which will make it easier for me to fold. I also tried using the laser cutter to do dashes on cardboard, so it will take less effort to fold for those harder materials.

I need to improve on my time management skills. This was something I lacked during this project. This is something I will keep in mind for the next work or project. The skills I have developed through this project include independent skills. I learn to manage a project by myself and able to use the skills I have learnt and applied it for this project. The technical skills such as using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop and the laser cutter that I have learnt during the beginning of the course, I have use those skills to create my final model.  I also learnt new skills such as using the Zun machine.

I thought for my project, I should have conduct interviews and surveys, to know what other people’s opinion might be regarding my project. How would their opinion differ from my peers and tutors? Moreover, I should of interview the people who live in my chosen site, how they would feel about having a house attached to where you live.

I would like to continue to explore origami in future projects. Through this project I have found out about the different types of origami such as origami tessellation and 3D origami. Those origami are very different to the origami that I know before the start of the project. In particular I would like to explore further the origami tessellations, which I have been very fascinated about. I started exploring one tessellation piece during this project but was not able to continue due to the lack of time. I am keen to explore origami tessellations into interiors and architecture, and finding solutions to how I can develop a tessellation piece into a functional space or exterior of something. This is something I hope to do during the course Interior Architecture at Nottingham Trent University, which is where I will be attending from this September.