recreating the lectern

Lectern: From Latin "Lectus"..."to Read". 1.) A reading desk with slanted top, usually placed on a stand or fixed to another type of structure. (information from wikipedia)
Traditionally a lectern is a place to set notes, books/binders, and Bibles so the user could read them while standing in front of an audience while reading, teaching, and lecturing. Then came technology...Microphones, built in computers and monitors, projectors and overheads, and many more elements brought new meaning to the lecterns and the form followed those functions. The shape of the existing teaching station in room 204 is uninspiring to say the least. It has cords running everywhere and is a big mess.
Components needing to be incorporated:
storage, technology ( overhead projector, monitor, computer, microphone, telephone?), lockable, ADA, multi functionality, user friendly.

My Idea of a successful learning station should include the following elements:

*Appropriate Cables + Converters and a place to discretely tuck them away when its all said and done. It should also be able to be locked.

*Aesthetics should work with the functionality of the piece. [The piece that is located there now is too much of an eyesore]. This piece should look like it belongs in a design school. This piece is many times a "TRANSLATOR TOOL" in helping the speaker communicate his/her ideas to the audience. However it is very important that the piece does not compete or distract with the information being communicated.

*Mobility seems like it could be very beneficial in the case that the user would be presenting on the other side of the room using the tack able surface instead of the projector. This way the user can be closer to the information they are trying to talk about. However with the advantage of mobility comes the disadvantage of becoming easier to steal so there will have to be a way to keep it locked in the room.

*Lastly I think that this station should be more responsive to the user. Maybe it is more modular or mobile. This way it is more ADA accessible. The current piece is almost a hiding place from the audience. It is also a disconnect and a division between the presenter and the audience.


These are some of my initial sketches for the recreation of the lectern in room 204.






This is a simple sketch model I made which helped me to start to realize how this piece will be made and the strengths and weaknesses of the design.

The final layer + installation

These are some images of the final installation with all three layers [the foundation: The School of Athens, the present: Conceptual Section of Gatewood, the text: written word +memorableexperiences]




This is my card I designedfor the installation. I felt since we already developed an 11x17 Reflection as a class that I couldtake a more personaland looser take onthis part of the assignment. I decided that nothingcould eplain my memories of the time I have spent in this space better than the photographic documentation I have collected over the years. Most of these images[ not surprisingly] came from my second semester in second year! The best..and hardest...semester ever!

the next layer

This is a sketch I did on vellum of the newest layer [section of Gatewood] layed over the original sketch of the foundation layer of The School of Athens.

We were hoping that this layer would have benn able to be more translucetn. We had a few different ideas [one of our first ideas consisted of having this layer be digital and projected on the wall over the first layer] but because of technical difficulites we decided a physical representation would be best for this exercise. We cut out sections of the mylar to show color and texture as well as to let the first layer show through.

installing

These are some sketches I drew on Monday 1.26.09 while the installation design process took place. We were installing the second layer which embodied a gestural section of the Gatewood Studio Arts Building on Mylar. I feel like this concept relates to many concepts we have learned throughout our Design Education which is the idea that looking through the present back to the past to see the foundation that is inspring the future. Patrick encouraged us to "think bigger" because sometimes this frees you up from getting lost in the details. He also shared a story about an old saying:"who sees spots on a galloping horse?". This goes to show that once you design anything and step away, the viewer may read something defferent than you had deliberated but that doesnt make it right or wrong. Its open to interpretation.

the pieces put together

This is a sketch of all the pieces we drew, painted, and created indiviually and brought them back together as a cohesive whole. There were many varieties of media and materials as well as the techniques we displayed.

alpha

For our first project of the year we each pulled out a piece of a painting ["The School of Athens" by Raphael] that we were to
evaluate and reinterpret using a mixture of medias and techniques. Once we completed our individual reinterpretations of our segmentation of "The School of Athens" we assembled them in the Lobby of Gatewood. This is the first phase out of three.