Space

Activity 1
Activity 2
Activity 3
Activity 4
Activity 5
Activity 6
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“We turn clay to make a vessel, but it is on the space where there is nothing that the utility of the vessel depends. Therefore, just as we take advantage of what is, we should recognize the utility of what is not”. Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching, 6th Century B.C.

Space is finite, and it is infinite; it is internal and external, in, on, above the earth, and in outer space. Space is formless and formed, visible and invisible, implied, and hidden. Yet, it is physically and perceptually perceived. People move, see, hear, feel, smell, touch, and experience space with degrees of openness or closure. Physical space defines the ground, surround, and overhead surfaces. Perceptual space expands the interior with views to the outside, thoughts of other things connecting the tangible with the intangible, the visible with the understandable. Geometric space is the interval between points or objects having one, two, or three dimensions. Areas are visible, with or without reference to the existence of objects. Gottfried Leibniz, a mathematician and natural philosopher, believed space made sense of the location of bodies and things and that time made sense of their relative movements within boundaries. We think of spatial interaction as a subjective phenomenon based on our experience with objects, systems, and others. Visually we connect edges and comprehend shapes, geometries, scales, colors, sounds, and light quality. These are all architectural tools used to create space. Humans and matter and systems take up space and interact within spatial constructs. Explore definitions of space through form, place, geography, and time in this journey.

Activity 1 – Space and Form

The relationship of space with form involves visual interaction and perception. Architect and educator Francis D.K.Ching states that space is an understanding of open voids and solid masses, figure and ground, or positive and negative. Spatial Understanding draws from the early twentieth century Gestalt psychology of visual perception, where the human mind creates visuals from disparate data to create a unified whole. Photograph a scene and visually analyze what you see first, second, and then third. Label the steps you take to define the setting. Cut or draw by hand or digitally and make an animated GIF (or frame by frame storyboard) of each portion you see separately. Grasp how portions closer in the field of view are sometimes positive shapes, and those farther away are sometimes negative voids, also referred to as left-over shapes. The layering of ##foreground, midground, and background## is a spatial tool for navigating physical space, as much as it a tool for setting the stage set in a theater to create a perception of space.

Activity 2 – Space and Place

‘Everywhere is Somewhere’## John Lennon

Space as a place ranges across scales from an object, an activity space, a room, a private, semi-private, semi-public, or public urban setting. The organization of attractions, built masses, volumes, and voids, some open and some semi-open, offer various spatial relationships at different scales. In other words, the acts of movement, occupation, and interaction transform spaces with the senses of touch, smell, hearing, perception (visual), and experience to create a sense of place. Spaces singularly incite activities, emotional moods, and degrees of physical containment. Public plazas and interiors with multiple destinations gather and move groups of people. Examine the relationships that contribute to an activity’s unique setting, an experience, or a discovery. Take an aerial shot (image) of the place where you live in Google maps. For reference, tilt the top view with the 3d-buildings tab 'on’ in the left-hand-side panel to see the 3-dimensional view. Based on the previous activity, identify the mass (positive) and voids (negative) and poché (crosshatch) them with black. Discover and distinguish the following prompts with colors or hatch and make four separate drawings:
Public and private spaces
Transition (threshold) spaces
Landscaped (green) spaces
Dense spaces and loose area of spaces

Activity 3 – Solid and Void/Public and Private Space

Perceive spatial voids and solid masses within your immediate environment or by again choosing a photograph like the one illustrated. Notice how the masses (positive as figure) and the voids (negative as ground) share the same contour lines and define each other’s boundaries. Each two-dimensional shape is inseparable from the other, interlocking and giving meaning to a united whole. Another example is a house with windows. The walls are opaque and the windows are openings letting light in and out. Look at NEXT.cc’s Figure Ground Journey and make a map of your block using Google Earth. Color the houses and buildings black, the ground in between grey, and the sidewalks and roads white. The blackened areas are private dwellings spaces, the grey outdoor spaces, and the white public circulation.

Activity 4 – Emotive Space

Space can evoke emotions in its users and visitors. Its scale can be small or large, intimate or monumental, orthogonal or fractured, simple or complex, additive or subtractive, linear or radial, random or organized! Randomly make a word map of as many adjectives of space you can imagine in one minute; select three of them to build. The challenge is to construct three scaled volumes individually and then to coordinate them into a unified whole.

Activity 5 – Interactive Space

‘Everywhere is Somewhere’ John Lennon

Space as a place ranges across scales from an object, an activity space, a room, a private, semi-private, semi-public, or public urban setting. The organization of attractions, built masses, volumes, and voids, some open and some semi-open, offer various spatial relationships at different scales. In other words, the acts of movement, occupation, and interaction transform spaces with the senses of touch, smell, hearing, perception (visual), and experience to create a sense of place. Spaces singularly incite activities, emotional moods, and degrees of physical containment. Public plazas and interiors with multiple destinations gather and move groups of people. Pick one space that you can study in your home. Document space in drawings of photos at four different times of day- early morning noon, dinnertime, evening. Examine the relationships and experiences that contribute to an activity’s unique setting.

Activity 6 – Space and Time

Winter spring, summer, fall! What we see at a particular location may or may not be there the very next moment, or in a day, a month, a year, or a few years! Each day we experience the inevitable relationship between time and space as we see and move through spaces from dawn to dusk, from infancy to adolescence and old age, from hot to cold weather, and so on. History and evolution share this relationship where the sun - the ultimate source of light and energy plays an instrumental role in making the change. For this activity, document the sun’s movement three times during a day drawing from the shadow studies of an entire month. Choose any interior or exterior space of your home where sunlight casts strong shadows. Through photographs or drawing small black/white doodles as illustrated, record the position of the sun/ time/ date/ month and year for each day, i.e., early morning/ noon/ evening, to make 90 observations or 30sets of diagrams. Download a desktop trial-version of the ‘SketchUp’ application. Simultaneously download SketchUp files from 'CAD MAPPER.’ Document the passage of time over time.