Place

http://www.photography-plus.com/images/Chicago1/Chicago082905_89.jpg

Chicago, Illinois is a city with special character in terms of design. It has a rich city feel to it because of all the high skyscrapers and other tall buildings. Chicago is home to many businesses in banking, retail stores, and hotels. All of these buildings have similar structures. They are all very tall and can accommodate a lot of people. However, Chicago also has large areas of natural space. Pictured above is Grant Park and it is home to many different things each year. One of the world's biggest music festivals, Lollapalooza, is held here every summer. These large areas of nature help break away from the chaotic scene of the city. This is also home to two of the most common attractions in the city, Buckingham Fountain and Cloudgate which is more commonly referred to as "the bean." These two attractions are flooded with tourists each year. Even though Chicago is known for all of its tall skyscrapers such as the Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower, and the John Hancock building, its rich natural areas are also iconic to the identity of the city.

Postcard Process

The process of the postcard was pretty simple, but it did have its challenges along the way. The first thing I did was search for a quote from one of the readings. The one I chose to use was a quote from Lawson that someone had shared in class. Once I found my quote, I started to brainstorm of pictures that would go well with the quote. The first thing that popped in my mind was a blueprint.

I chose the blueprint because the quote talked about mechanical calculation, so I thought it was the perfect picture for the postcard. Once I found my quote and photo, I just had to assemble it. I used microsoft word to create my postcard. The most difficult thing was to get the image to be the right size for the postcard. I went to the media hub in the Library and they were able to help me format my postcard. The people in the media depot were great in helping me format my postcard and getting it all printed out. I learned that it is always a good idea to get help, instead of struggling on your own. I have never been the one to ask for help, but I am glad I did.

Building

The building scale has three main buildings, the skyscraper, the airport and the home. All of these building styles tell us something about America as a country. The skyscraper was built to discuss the efficiency of Americas. The skyscraper holds several businesses all in one place. These businesses also attract the idea of socializing throughout the building. The skyscraper is also a relatively modern design. Theses buildings are very recognizable such as the Willis Tower (Sears Tower) in Chicago, Illinois. This is the most iconic building in the city and one of the most iconic buildings in the United States.

The airport is also a very modern design in America. The airport describes how America likes to keep up with the newest trends. Most airports have multiple restaurants to provide for the demand of food while people wait for their flights. All of these restaurants are popular food chains. This is because America has products that they trust and that they market these companies. Americans are more likely to go to a well-known place that they trust, instead of trying something new.

The final building design is the home. The homes nowadays are typically multiple floors that both convey socialization due to an open concept, but also privacy with multiple bedrooms. The amount of bedrooms and bathrooms in houses nowadays shows how Americans like to socialize. By having more rooms, these families are able to houseguests. These homes are also based in neighborhoods. They are typically close together, so there is plenty of socialization throughout the community.

Below is an image of another building of the twentieth century, the stadium. The stadium shows how the world is building multi-functional venues. Stadiums are typically known for sporting events, but they also have concerts, rallies, and other community events. This large space is very accommodating to tens of thousands of people. Stadiums bring people together with common interests, whether it is at specific team, specific musician, or a specific event.

http://prosportsexperience.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Football-Stadium.jpg

Postcard Final

Blueprint Postcard, The Lex Apartments. Personal photograph by author. 2016.

Form my postcard I chose the quote from the Lawson reading that said, “Many forms of design, deal with both precise and vague ideas, call for systematic and chaotic thinking, need both imaginative thought and mechanical calculation. The picture that I thought described this quote well was a blueprint. I chose a blueprint because a blueprint is a drawing of an idea before it is actually made. There are also a lot of mechanical calculations in a blueprint, because every measurement has to be precise in order to have a working final product. The photo is a blueprint of an Iphone. The Iphone is an iconic design in the world today and it looks so simple, but most people fail to realize all of the calculation and design that takes place in creating the Iphone. Most people just see the Iphone for what it is, a phone, but in reality it is much more and there is much more work done in designing and creating the finished product.

House

Before listening to lecture and reading the articles by Clark, I thought a house was just a place where people live. After reading and listening to lecture, I now know that there is so much more behind a house. A house can tell you a lot about a person or family. I now know what my house says about me.

My house was built in 1998 in a small town in northern Illinois. It was built in a newer neighborhood with several neighbors. The idea of living in a place that is close to many other homes means that my family liked the idea of being social and meeting new people. By living here, we have made lifelong friends with most of our neighbors. My house is a 3-story house with a basement, main floor, and an upper floor. The three floors each serve a different purpose. The basement is a place of storage and protection. We keep all of our things that we do not use often in the basement. We also use this area for protection. In Illinois we have several tornados, so when the tornado siren goes off we run to the basement and sit down there in the safety of the concrete walls.

 The second floor of my house is for everyday socializing. We have an open concept floor plan between the living room and kitchen. This is very helpful for socializing and entertaining. It is a way for our family to interact with one another and with company while doing tasks such as cooking and preparing other food. The main floor also connects to our garage that can hold two cars. This relates to our idea that transportation is close to us and our cars are a part of us, so we want them to be safe just like ourselves.

The third floor of my house has more of the privacy feeling. The third floor contains four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Each of these rooms has a door and lock so each member of my family can have privacy. This privacy shows how in society today people need their own individual space.

Postcard 1

In the book, How Designers Think: The Design Process Demystified, author, Bryan Lawson, said, "Many forms of design deal with both precise and vague ideas need both imaginative thought and mechanical calculation."

http://cdn01.wallconvert.com/_media/wp_400x250/1/2/19446.png

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgJQNI9y1G7C8FB9VqtbK2zYuZdkM6bZhjyuWNGKpxGXIoYWwMgIvde1OnLDst8x1lJum1DKSDxOa0U8w6J9pPS7RAlfQ6SzHoEMXk2dC-EhZNuLUtdYnuL8nzEDAQ4mrW99EihHIUaM/s640/KY-Nailing-Machine.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Innards_of_an_AI-139a_mechanical_watch.jpg/727px-Innards_of_an_AI-139a_mechanical_watch.jpg

http://i.huffpost.com/gen/2289122/images/n-JOBS-WANTED-AS-KIDS-628x314.jpg

http://www.aboutpossibilities.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/OldPhone_NewPhone.jpg

Media Depot

On Monday I visited the media depot with a quarter of my class. This was my third time receiving the tour of the media depot, but even after the third time I still learned something new.  In the media depot you can use a viewing room where you can record yourself talking. You can also use a sound booth, which will help you do a voice over for a film or other recording. The equipment helps drown out all of the outside noise from your recording. The final room you can reserve is the green room. Here you can project any image on the green screen. You can record yourself in any setting without actually having to go to that specific setting.

The one new thing I learned during this visit is that you can checkout a hard drive for a week for free as long as you have your student ID. This hard drive can be used to hold a lot of storage specifically video clips. The media depot also has many people that will help you with any of your projects. These people are considered experts with all of the technology needed for any class assignment for school such as a movie, sound clip, etc. As long as you bring them the information and your work, they will help you put it together so it will look professional.