Through the use of architectural details a visual language is formed expressing the values and aesthetic aspirations of the time. What is denoted by the details of the interior often reflect the visual language of the exterior. A juxtaposition of the material is observed with one exuding a sense of heaviness against the reflective and airiness of the other. The line of vision is continuous, which allows one to see the form of the handle reflected on other side of the glass. A gallery such as the UMMA is a place for viewing works of art. The assemblage of this joint allows for there to be a visually fluid transition. Barriers do not enclose visitors, but beckon them to enter to adjacent spaces. The transparency of the glass, as well as the selection of the steel handle, create continuity between spaces and reflect the material quality of the exterior. The position of the handles conceals the linkage between the handle and the glass for the intention of only exposing the clean lines. Specification of hardware such as the steel handles and black adhesive material are joined with the glass. Together this creates a sense of mass from the handle that appears to be supported by the weightlessness of the glass. Generating this perception with sleek forms, which appear to be floating, is a contemporary technique for engaging the visitor. What is visible is the small grommet on the side of the handle. The usage of glass paired with steel is what differentiates the new addition from the old structure. It is possible that the exposure of hardware such as the grommet reveal significance behind the connotations that material joints reveal today. There exists a desire for designers to show the hardware of a building. This is for the intention of displaying the raw essentials of a structure. Simplicity in this honest form is what is admired. When the mechanics of a building are exposed an understanding of the construction creates an awareness of aesthetic intensions. Although steel and glass are materials repeatedly specified in both the exterior and interior, it is their position and the interaction between them, which generates interest. “The joint is the beginning of ornament and that must be distinguished from decoration which is simply applied. Ornament is the adoration of the joint” (Frascari 51).
UMMA’s newly renovated wing helps join both the old and the new as well as provide more space for galleries, classrooms and auditoriums. This new wing conveys the modern and contemporary aspects of architecture while giving the museum a fresh new look. The outside of the wing has vertical steel beams present, which make the building seem unstable. These vertical lines are then translated into the interior, which leads to the joint that we decided to choose. The position of the handle conceals the connection between the glass and the steel handle with the intentions only to show clean lines. The black putty, steel and a small rivet are the only pieces of hardware that hold the glass to this steel handle. The handle conveys a very heavy mass but when partnered with the glass it allows the handle to feel massless. This floating perception is not only conveyed in the interior but the exterior, which shows the continuity in the building and the attention to detail. The door allows the visitors of the museum to look into the next gallery space without entering the area. This allows a very loose but defined barrier between each gallery. This transition lets the eye travel into the next space without an unpleasant wall to abruptly stop the eye. This also lets the visitor to ponder about entering the next space by allowing the eye to travel through the pane of glass. By displaying the structural aspects of the building, this gives the building an aesthetic feel as well as a way to inform the visitor or user of what the building it made out of but in a discrete fashion. “Too much attention can not be given to produce a distinct character in every building, not only in great features, but in minor detail.” (Frascari, 502) The joint that we picked expressed this because the architect could have picked a handle that is present in the old part of UMMA but by paying attention to the overall building and the details in the new wing, he was able to create a more concise building.
Through the use of architectural details a visual language is formed expressing the values and aesthetic aspirations of the time. What is denoted by the details of the interior often reflect the visual language of the exterior. A juxtaposition of the material is observed with one exuding a sense of heaviness against the reflective and airiness of the other. The line of vision is continuous, which allows one to see the form of the handle reflected on other side of the glass. A gallery such as the UMMA is a place for viewing works of art. The assemblage of this joint allows for there to be a visually fluid transition. Barriers do not enclose visitors, but beckon them to enter to adjacent spaces. The transparency of the glass, as well as the selection of the steel handle, create continuity between spaces and reflect the material quality of the exterior.
ReplyDeleteThe position of the handles conceals the linkage between the handle and the glass for the intention of only exposing the clean lines. Specification of hardware such as the steel handles and black adhesive material are joined with the glass. Together this creates a sense of mass from the handle that appears to be supported by the weightlessness of the glass. Generating this perception with sleek forms, which appear to be floating, is a contemporary technique for engaging the visitor. What is visible is the small grommet on the side of the handle. The usage of glass paired with steel is what differentiates the new addition from the old structure. It is possible that the exposure of hardware such as the grommet reveal significance behind the connotations that material joints reveal today. There exists a desire for designers to show the hardware of a building. This is for the intention of displaying the raw essentials of a structure. Simplicity in this honest form is what is admired. When the mechanics of a building are exposed an understanding of the construction creates an awareness of aesthetic intensions. Although steel and glass are materials repeatedly specified in both the exterior and interior, it is their position and the interaction between them, which generates interest. “The joint is the beginning of ornament and that must be distinguished from decoration which is simply applied. Ornament is the adoration of the joint” (Frascari 51).
UMMA’s newly renovated wing helps join both the old and the new as well as provide more space for galleries, classrooms and auditoriums. This new wing conveys the modern and contemporary aspects of architecture while giving the museum a fresh new look. The outside of the wing has vertical steel beams present, which make the building seem unstable. These vertical lines are then translated into the interior, which leads to the joint that we decided to choose. The position of the handle conceals the connection between the glass and the steel handle with the intentions only to show clean lines. The black putty, steel and a small rivet are the only pieces of hardware that hold the glass to this steel handle. The handle conveys a very heavy mass but when partnered with the glass it allows the handle to feel massless. This floating perception is not only conveyed in the interior but the exterior, which shows the continuity in the building and the attention to detail.
ReplyDeleteThe door allows the visitors of the museum to look into the next gallery space without entering the area. This allows a very loose but defined barrier between each gallery. This transition lets the eye travel into the next space without an unpleasant wall to abruptly stop the eye. This also lets the visitor to ponder about entering the next space by allowing the eye to travel through the pane of glass.
By displaying the structural aspects of the building, this gives the building an aesthetic feel as well as a way to inform the visitor or user of what the building it made out of but in a discrete fashion. “Too much attention can not be given to produce a distinct character in every building, not only in great features, but in minor detail.” (Frascari, 502) The joint that we picked expressed this because the architect could have picked a handle that is present in the old part of UMMA but by paying attention to the overall building and the details in the new wing, he was able to create a more concise building.