Makeshift Shelter : Process

The first major project assigned in studio this semester was to built a makeshift shelter of found materials. This required us to go out and find materials, sketch and write about our ideas, and finally to put our materials and ideas together to create a shelter. Each group was given a individual activity that most of us do every day. The group I was assigned to was to build our shelter on the idea of snacking.

Upon receiving the assignment, we were excited and overwhelmed. Each of us had so many great ideas, and yet we had no idea where to start. The most logical place for me to start is sketching. Along with sketching, I write. The writing helps to clarify anything that may not be able to be conveyed in drawing. It is once I start writing about my ideas that I begin to realize what works and what does not- what is feasible and what is absurd. Writing helps me to think things out- it slows down my thoughts so that I am more methodical. When I reach something that I cannot find words for, I draw. Even small sketches and a few short words help to organize an idea greatly.

These sketches and words come together in my sketchbook along with inspiring images pulled from websites and magazines. Sometimes these images are an example of what I would like to happen in a space, and sometimes I just like the vibe of the image and so I include it. One of the inspiration images I used is of a wall made of water bottles. I had come up with the idea to use water bottles after having seen them somewhere else. Finding the image and putting it in my sketchbook helped convey the idea to the other members of my group. I felt that the contribution of this idea was important- as it was tightly linked to the idea of snacking.

I believe that within our group our roles were very much equal. Each of us worked on each aspect of the project. On the first evening, Carlos Smith and I went out to find materials, while Veronica Harvey and Haley Preston gathered water bottles. We collectively designed and built the structure as well as contributed drawings and images. While I usually find that within groups it is best to allocate different jobs to different individuals, this arrangement worked very well for this particular group on this particular project. I do not think it could have gone smoother any other way.

I was very pleased with the outcome of this project, both for my group’s shelter and those of other groups. I only wish that on our shelter the water bottles could have been used as we had intended, which would have involved having many more of them. We collectively made the decision after talking with Stephanie that it would be best if the plastic bottles could be recycled after use, especially since we got many of them from recycling. This meant that they could not be glued together. Cutting the bottles and sliding them together proved more difficult, time consuming, and unsteady than we had imagined, resulting in us deciding to use the water bottles in a different way than originally intended. I still believe that they had a very interesting impact on the shelter.

During this project I felt that I was very strong in seeing the potential in found objects. I used my strength and love of photography to document as much of the process as I could and these images can be found on my blog. I also was able to use my strength of figuring out the best way to assemble things, which helped in the building of the shelter.

I will remember this project as being very fun to do and also as a good design exercise. We so often forget to work with what is available to us and instead opt for new things. In trying to design a sustainable environment, however, the most “green” things are those that have been repurposed (instead of being disposed of- not something new). Also, repurposed materials add distinct, unique character. The limitations on the number of materials helped us all to realize that “less is more.” Before the limitation was given to us, our ideas and thoughts were scattered, but upon receiving the limitation, we found it much easier to organize our thoughts and know what to do. Therefore, the limitation was not a limitation at all, but rather an aid- which is perhaps the most important thing to learn and remember.