Seashell, Mouse, and Hybrid
3/19/2020–3/23/2020
Assignment Goals:
- use drawings to analyze the seashell
- complete first iterations of seashell models using two different materials
My seashell: Tibia curta
Clay Shell Process
When I started with clay, I tried using two methods. First, I segmented the cone shape of the shell into a couple of circular disks. I then made a stem and a flat oval pancake to attach to the top half of the shell.
To figure out how the pancake folds to form the volume of the shell, I wrapped the pancake around the shell first before attaching it to the rest of the clay iteration.
Attaching this large piece represents my overall struggle with this type of clay: it was hard smoothing the cracks and bumps. For this initial iteration, I was using a different kind of oil-based clay that was not very malleable. For my second round of seashell clay models, I used the “marshmallow-smelling” clay that the professors gave us during class, and the marshmallow clay was A LOT softer and easier to smooth out.
Separating the seashell into different segments was an experiment worth trying, but it was difficult to attach the separate pieces together due to the hardness of the clay. Scoring the surfaces of the pieces didn’t help.
I made another iteration where I created the seashell with no seams. I don’t have process photos for this second method because the process was pretty self-explanatory: I just kept added pieces of clay and smoothing the surface to make one continuous piece. I simplified the spiral of the seashell to just a smooth cone.
Round 1 Clay Shells
segmented vs. one piece
Foam Shell Process
Being the first time working with foam, I took a lot of pointers from Laura’s video tutorial. (Thank you for your helpful video!)
I don’t have many process photos for this foam iteration because once I got started, I was pretty immerse and just kept chipping away at my foam block.
I did start by drawing an outline of my seashell to get the initial proportions right. I then carved out the outline and constantly looked at the model from the top view to make sure I wasn’t cutting too much and flattening the volume of the seashell.
My foam model looks similar to my one-piece clay model in that I smoothed over the segments. I didn’t care about the consistency of my cuts and simply focused on the smooth surfaces that make up the shell.
Round 1 Foam Shells
All Three:
Reflection
- I was surprised that I liked cutting with foam, especially during the final stages where I think between shaving the final pieces
- the cuts on my foam seem a bit random, so I want to try to cut more methodically (Q said we had the freedom to make the shell as abstract/realistic as we wanted during crit)
- I am still trying to figure out the volume of the bottom half of my shell. My foam model ended up too skinny while my clay model was a bit too wide.
- Robert suggested that I add the continuous spiral to my models because it is a simple enough pattern to incorporate.
__________
3/25/2020
Assignment Goal:
- make more iterations of the clay and foam seashells
- make more high fidelity models that have cleaner surfaces and cuts
Foam Shell Process
Because I found it difficult to concentrate on all aspects of the seashell at once when carving, I decided to make a prototype where I cut the top half and bottom half separately. I also tried making as few cuts as possible so I can achieve a more faceted effect.
For my top half, I immediately saw that this newer version feels more dimensional. By examining the shell’s form closely, I could reconstruct the curves of the shell from a build up of flat planes. This method of making as minimal number of cuts as possible really increased my understanding of the seashell. If I cut too many faces, the flat planes start to round out and become inconsistent again.
Although the bottom half prototype ended up having poor craftsmanship, I was able to figure out the general method I was going to use to create the spiraled cone.
A drawing I made that broke down what I liked and didn’t like about this round of prototyping:
When I started making my actual foam iterations, I had to start over twice because 1) I made a messy cut in the initial stages that went too deep into the foam block and 2) I wanted the stem to transition more naturally into the rest of the shell.
Round 2 Foam Shell
Although the bottom half of the model is still a little too fat compared to the original seashell, I was satisfied with the cut facets and how the spiral wraps around the model. To refine this iteration, I want the spiral to look more consistent on all sides and make the bottom half skinnier.
Clay Shell Process
I start with the one-piece method, where I made a completely smoothed out version of the shell by combining a stem shape, a sphere, and a tall cone.
I then added more details to the top half by adding on a curved plane (similar to the pancake method I used before) and also indents to indicate the start of a spiral pattern.
The following photos show how I started to make my segmented spiral:
Round 2 Clay Shell (Unfinished)
Although I didn’t finish the spiral due to my need of getting sleep (the foam iteration took a lot longer than I had planned), I think my clay model has a decent start. I definitely need a better way to smooth out the clay though.
3/30/2019 Update:
I finished the spiral and tried my best in smoothing out the bumps in the clay. To create clean segments I ran an X-acto blade along the spiral.
Round 2 Clay Shell (Finished)
Process Video
__________
3/27/2020–3/30/2020
Assignment Goals:
- make a clay mouse and a paper mouse
Clay Mouse Process
To understand the form of the mouse, I started with clay. I realized that the clay I had left was not enough to recreate the plastic mouse to a 1:1 scale, so I made the clay mouse a little smaller.
To start, I drew out the orthographic views of the mouse out of habit.
However, I discovered that I immediately abandoned these drawings and instead opted to hold the object in my hand when I was molding with clay.
Although drawings may help with certain mediums (I definitely had to draw to plan out my paper mouse), there may be other methods to observe which are more helpful to me.
My clay molding process was quite simple: I carved out a general shape, added clay to make the form rounder, smoothed out the bumps, and used an X-acto knife to carve out details in the mouse.
My mouse before and after carving in the details:
Round 1 Clay Mouse
Paper Mouse Process
I first prepped my paper material, which was basically deconstructing a cereal box I had around the house. Even though paper is one of the harder mediums to work with, I am relieved that I have an “endless” supply of it (compared to my dwindling foam block and my completely depleted clay).
At this point, I finally started to use the orthographic view drawings I drew before. For example, I used it to find the subtle tapering and curves in the mouse form. The bottom half of the mouse tapers inward and the front half of the mouse has indents where the fingers are supposed to be placed.
To brainstorm how I can divide my mouse into layers/flat planes, I pulled out a pamphlet I kept from my trip to Japan.
There are some similarities between the animal models. Two main pieces of information I got from this was:
- the models mainly used a square grid to turn simple shapes such as spheres and cylinders into parallel planes.
- There is usually only 1–2 planes that curve (such as the horizontal plane of the panda’s arm) to give the form a more natural look. I imagine that I can use this method to portray the roundedness of the mouse.
Drawings I did when trying to grid my mouse on a x, y, and z axis:
I really had no experience in making paper models, so I just started by transferring the drawings of the different layers onto the brown Bristol.
I had forgotten to transfer and cut out the z-axis planes, so I did those too afterwards.
In terms of assembling the model, I sort of winged it. I obviously tried following the grid pattern as closely as possible, but I wasn’t sure how to cut the grooves to fit the pieces together.
I learned that instead of assembling all the vertical planes onto one horizontal plane and then adding on all the horizontal planes afterwards, I should alternate: first assemble the largest horizontal plane and vertical plane, then horizontal, then vertical, then horizontal again etc. etc.
As I kept assembling the mouse, the more groves I added to BOTH the vertical and horizontal planes.
This is because the connections between different planes are stronger when both planes have grooves.
Drawing below demonstrates the “multiple groove” strategy:
Because my grooves haven’t been tested before, sometimes they become an interference. For example, I had a vertical groove at the very end of my mouse, but later on I realized that a horizontal groove actually made more sense. Therefore, a corner of my mouse was cut off because the old groove and the new groove intersected.
When I finished the grid, I found that I had lost a lot of my mouse’s form. When looking at the mouse from the top or the bottom, the model looks more like a rectangular waffle than something someone would hold in their hands.
Because I was focused on the intersection between the horizontal and vertical planes, I had completely left out the oval planes I had cut out before.
This made me remember the arm of the panda model, where it was grid-like and curved at the same time. Therefore, I cut apart the oval that represented the overall shape of the mouse from the top view and added a curved perimeter around my mouse grid.
This addition made a HUGE difference, and I may add more perimeter layers to emphasize the changing curves of the mouse.
Round 1 Paper Mouse
Paper Model Concern
Although one side of my paper model is a matte brown, the other side has a lot of text and bright colors. I will ask the professors on how I can mitigate this contrast.
Moving Forward
- My foam seashell still needs a little shaving to do. I tried making the cone skinnier today, but it just feels a tad bit thicker than the original.
- I want to tweak some of the planes of my paper mouse as well as add more planes. I saw sophomore Emily Spooner’s paper starfish, and it looked like it had around 10–15 horizontal cross sections! I want to see how far I can take the quantity because my model feels sparse right now.
__________
4/1/2020
Assignment Goals:
- improve and refine previous mouse models
Clay Mouse Process
During crit with Q, he mentioned that the front and the back of the clay mouse needs to be wider.
After changing the width, I also worked on the details of the model. Previously, I used an X-acto knife to carve curving lines.
However, I wanted the details to serve more purpose. Instead of adding them on as 2D lines to the surface of the model, I molded the clay so that the ring around the mouse had more dimension.
Round 2 Clay Mouse
Paper Mouse Process
I first changed the paper material I was working with. When I used the cereal box, one side of the box had a lot of bright colors and text. Therefore, I switched to a white Bristol board that my high school art teacher used to use to frame artwork.
I then spent a good chunk of time refining the curves and diagonals of my previous cut pieces. I changed the shape of each piece slightly so that they 1) represented the form of the mouse and 2) aligned with each other when assembled.
Each color represents a different modification:
When I finally settled down with the shapes, I transferred them to the Bristol board and cut out the appropriate grooves.
I also added the horizontal pieces on all four sides.
Round 2 Paper Mouse
__________
4/6/2020
Assignment Goals:
- pick words that are unique to the shell or mouse, as well as words that represent shared characteristics of the two forms
- make drawings and models to start brainstorming hybrid ideas
Picking Words
This was the list I started with:
Shell — spiral, cone, “the flap”, inside, segmented
Mouse — single curve, symmetry, round, finger presence
Hybrid — inside, “the flap”, single curve, seamless, round
Even though I was feeling unsure with my word choices, I started ideating through drawings. I started with basic geometric prisms and then incorporated traits such as spiral or round.
To be honest, when I was doing these drawings, I had no idea what I was trying to achieve. Sure, the drawing may include features of the shell or mouse, but what sort of orientation or combination of the features actually work together?
I was also confused on what creating a hybrid meant. Dina mentioned repeatedly that it’s not a baby or a middle ground between a mouse and seashell. Other than this hint, I was very stuck and idea-less.
Round 1 Hybrid Model
Mine and Professor’s critique towards this first iteration:
- the shape feels constricted and small compared to the forms that I was inspired by
- there is no focus to the form — there isn’t a lot of purpose as to why the form is shaped a certain way
- instead of using the word “single curve”, think “directional”
Professor’s critique towards other people’s iteration:
- don’t include characteristics that aren’t relevant/create confusion
- group similar words together to 1) clear out verbal clutter and 2) make the final words more poignant + straightforward
- when curving or bending parts of the hybrid, think of it as molding volume or mass
__________
4/7/2020–4/8/2020
Assignment Goals:
- make the final iteration of the hybrid
Repicking Words
When I was picking words to describe my forms, I looked at my shell and my mouse as a whole. Because the forms have so many features within them, it is very hard to find words that describe the forms holistically. Therefore, I decided to focus on only the top half of the shell and the details on the mouse.
I then narrowed down my hybrid words to four words and attached photos explaining why I picked these words:
1. shell — inside
2. mouse — edges
3. shared — directional
4. shared — transitioning
Hybrid Making Process
I first warmed-up by making some quick clay models that had more organic contours. I realized I was overworking my previous iteration, which made it seem artificial and rigid.
I then made the final form of my hybrid at a small scale, because I wanted to translate what I was molding with clay into a foam model.
Small prototype vs. the size of the final hybrid:
For the creation of this final form, I didn’t have step-by-step process photos, because its construction process was very intuitive. However, when I was making the model, I was still constantly relating features of my hybrid to the four words:
inside — I have my hybrid folding in half to separate the exposed surfaces of the hybrid from the more concealed surfaces.
edges — Due to the lack of straight edges on my shell, I wanted to incorporate the edges of my mouse to the hybrid to add more curved edges and dimension.
directional — Because I associated “single curve” with “directional, I tried keeping my hybrid seamless and continuous. The curves of the hybrid also help enhance the feeling of directional movement.
transitioning — Every time I turn my shell to look at it from another angle, the form of the shell changes. For the mouse, its form changes height as my eyes move from the front to its back. Therefore, my interpretation of “transitioning” is making a form that changes shape when looking at it from different points of view.
Foam Detour
After settling down on the shape of my hybrid, I tried making the same shape out of foam. However, due to the subtle curves and the need to cut a deep divet into the foam, I decided to switch back to clay and just make the same shape but on a bigger scale.
Round 2 Hybrid Model
Final Photos for Mouse and Shell Models
