DESIGNING AN NFT FOR REAL ESTATE SALES
NFT versus Real Estate
The intersection of the virtual world with the real world seems to be a popular topic in the coming years. NFT (non fungabile token), which has found its place in the Metaverse and has increasing interest to resolve, was used this time for a real estate sale. For the first time in the world, NFT was designed by artist Kii Arens for an ordinary real estate project in California, USA. The person who buys the NFT, which is offered for sale by auction, will also be the owner of this house.
Award-winning artist Kii Arens, one of Los Angeles' most trusted and influential figures, describes herself as a critical driver in the creation of modern pop culture. He is a contemporary American pop artist, graphic designer, photographer, director and musician. Kii, whose personal work has appeared in art galleries around the world, was never formally educated. He grew up with a fascination with album covers and vintage logos and has created over 500 works for artists like Dolly Parton, The Rolling Stones, Lady Gaga, Radiohead, Paul McCartney, Kacey Musgraves, Bernie. His recently directed music video for Elton John was featured prominently on the 2020 Oscar Awards.
We discussed with Kii Arens this project, and his design approach.
Selin Uysal
You are a very versatile person. An artist, graphic designer, director, musician, photographer. How everything started?
Kii Arens
I was born in 1967 and grew up watching the music and the bands acts, that’s why my obsession with music was became unrivaled. My brother has a group band name Flipp. I loved to take time with his group. One day, at end of their spontaneous jam, they decided to release an album. I made their album cover first.
Then I started to a random job as the hotel coordinator during the Woodstock '94 festival. They brought in the artwork as the merchandise, it was all this tie dye stuff. This generation would not be buying your tie-dye products. I raised my concerns with what I saw as an overly nostalgic festival look. They asked me alternative options. I didn't really have an idea, but right on the spot, I just said “I'll bring an option for you.” They gave me just one day to do that. And I decided to work with sunflowers. I put the sunflower in the scanner and showed up the next day with the artwork. Then they told me I shouldn't deal with the hotel management anymore, I should “just do the artwork”. Later, a newspaper from my hometown did a story on how that all happened. Thanks to news, I got approached by some other people who doing artwork, and I never looked back. They invited me attend meetings about the festival's design direction, then I became the designer for Woodstock 99.
Selin Uysal
You are an artist, but also a graphic designer, musician, director. If you would pick one of them, which one would be your favorite? Why?
Kii Arens
Of all the things that I do photography, directing, making art, and making music, singing… Art is my favorite. To conquer the idea, to create the idea, to execute, and then finally have it. When somebody wants to buy it from you and they're excited to have it on their wall, it's hard as an artist to take your best work and get rid of it and let somebody else have it, even if they're paying the right price for it. But as an artist, that's what you have to do. You have to let go of these things because that's.
NFT'S Colors are brighter than they are on canvas
Selin Uysal
Let's talk about your latest and famous NFT House in California. It is the first NFT artwork to sell that comes with a real house and I guess it is still up for auction and accepting bids. Would you tell me how the project came to you? What was your motivation when you created it?
Kii Arens
Well, when I heard that they were going to sell a house as an NFT, I was surprised! How would you do that? We wanted to take this very ordinary house and make it something beautiful. The challenge there was exciting. I saw the house. My first thought was "What will I do as a designer to create what I have to create; how do I make this thing the most beautiful that it can be?" So, I took a look at the surroundings, the cool kind of like low mountains off into the Valley on the other side the areas of Burbank and Van and took that image. There were always things flying around in the sky. So, I put a couple of things flying around in the sky and in the actual color palette itself. Now, what you are seeing is a combination of colors that, as electric as you can get. The fun thing with NFT, is when you're creating for the screen, your colors are brighter than they are on a canvas.
Selin Uysal
They didn't sell the house yet I guess?
Kii Arens
No, they haven't sold it yet. I think it's just because it's in Van is the location. They should have picked a better house for it. To me, that was the miss. If they had a better house and a better location, that people would be inclined to buy it.
Selin Uysal
Do you have any favorite NFT or NFT artist? Are you NFT collector?
Kii Arens
I have about three or four NFTs. I got to be honest. I'm not a collector. I have to create music, art, live a life, go see some comedy. I live in the art world, so my brain is always just all over the place. So, for me going in and seeking the excitement that way doesn't really get me going. No, I'm not a big NFT collector. Just trying to think of who some of my favorites are. I really couldn't tell my favorite NFT artist. I'm not a collector. I'm a maker.
Designing in an unconventional world
Selin Uysal
NFT offers opportunities for artists, and designers, as much as graphic designers. What is your opinion about NFT’s future?
Kii Arens
It's hard to predict. I think that an architect can restrict his designs by thinking about the limits of what he actually needs to physically work with. However, in a world where everything is so unconventional, designing can be more attractive. I don't know if you've ever jumped with Oculus glasses with there are no rules. I really can’t predict. Perhaps they want a little reality in a non-real world. Who knows? Our people are prepared still to hold all their art on their phones. A new generation wants it right here in their wallet. Or do they want it on their wall? Most people I think want it in their wallet. It's super undefined. It's a brand-new baby that can't even talk yet. Perhaps the boundaries of beautiful design will be better for a better person.
Selin Uysal
But you will be part of it in the future, right?
Kii Arens
Yeah. Definitely will. If it excites me, if I feel the urge to create something that falls once again into NFT, I'm sitting on a whole series of NFT pieces that I've created, but I watched the market just go.
Adding a 3rd Dimension To The Internet
Sir Joan Soane Museum
Space Popular is a multidisciplinary design and research studio founded in Bangkok in 2013 by Lara Lesmes and Fredrik Hellberg. Space Popular designs spaces, objects and events in both physical and virtual space, focusing on how the two spaces can come together. Working on virtual architecture for the internet as well as buildings, exhibitions, public art, furniture collections and interiors in Asia and Europe, Lara and Fredrik led the development of virtual architecture by designing the world's first virtual reality architecture conference. Space Popular is also one of the 15 studios that contributed to the 'Dezeen 15 Festival', which consists of 15 manifestos that present ideas that could change the world in the next 15 years.
Selin Uysal:
Even though graduated from AA in London, you founded Space Popular in Bangkok. How has Bangkok affected your career?
Fredrik Hellberg:
Bangkok has profoundly changed us. We founded Space Popular in 2013. We came to Bangkok in 2011. When we just graduated, we didn't have plans to set up a studio or even work together or start practicing, but over time we realized that we definitely needed to do this. The culture of Bangkok and Thailand has affected us in many different ways. In our opinion, Bangkok is a highly design-sensitive place in terms of space and objects. Thai architects and designers have inspired us as our friends over time. Also, in our opinion, Thailand is incredibly healthy; it has a very open spirit towards colors, foreign and strange things. It is possible to see this in any restaurant or street in daily life. We think we really feel and are influenced by this open and different spirit. During the years we were in Bangkok, we worked on interiors, furniture, projects, and competitions, and it is here that we started to speculate and think about the virtual world. We also teach here. Over the years we've focused entirely on Thailand and Bangkok as the place to see our work, meet people and space that influence us.
Selin Uysal:
What was your initial motivation for founding Space Popular? I mean were you thinking of some kind of architecture office or my design office? What was your first idea?
Lara Lesmes:
I can say that it started as an architectural office in the traditional sense. Before we even practically started, we were both thinking of a more unusual understanding of architecture, but when we started, we started by designing real buildings for competitions. A large part of our work consisted of architectural competitions. We've done this for a number of years when we were in Thailand, mixing interiors, center stage with festive architecture and etc... Eventually, we began to realize the possibility of an application operating in different realms or different forms of understanding, and so we started doing virtual projects. We started thinking and writing about virtual projects. As you probably noticed, we are also preparing a few exhibitions about it.
Selin Uysal:
By the way, it is a great chance that you discovered yourself and your understanding of design at the beginning. When I researched about you, I saw a lot of things. You work on a wide variety of projects, including exhibitions, installations, architecture, interior design and furniture design, you do a lot. I can also see that you have started doing virtual projects from the very beginning of your career. How did you discover virtual architecture and what was your first experience with virtual architectures?
Lara Lesmes:
Hmm, maybe we had a project very, very early on when we were thinking about virtual architecture—before anyone knew what it was.
Fredrik Hellberg:
Yes, I mean, we both share the same interest in spatial experience and the psychological impact of space. Obviously, the place of experience doesn't have to be physical for you to have a good experience. That's why we started work very early on our first virtual product, a global mortality database project, in 2013. 'The Cloud of Resilience '.
I have been doing research as a student since 2006. It's about non-digital virtual spaces and dream spaces. About how we experience dreams. How do we experience space while dreaming? I think about this experience.
There are virtual spaces that have never been built architecturally. So I did a research project looking at the history of unbuilt projects in New York. Even if these buildings do not exist physically, they exist virtually and have an impact on us. I mean, if we still know a lot of these and still think about them, that means we somehow have some experience with them. Then I did research on avatars and how we came together in virtual spaces in 2009 and 2010. It's easy to forget that there were a lot of games where people got together back then. For example, Second Life, which still exists today. A second life where you have an avatar, your social life in a virtual office and you live on a social platform. We tend to think that what is happening now is something very new. But of course, the virtual world has been around for a very long time. So we were doing research on that too.
Adding 3rd Dimension To The Internet
Selin Uysal:
How do you see virtual architecture in the future? What can you say about Architecture and Metaverse?
Lara Lesmes:
Yes, I mean, frankly, the internet is already a big part of our lives. If you only go back 15 years, you can see that life was not so good without the internet. Now, I think we understand that there is a lot going on online. These are so intertwined with our daily lives. So lately we really try to avoid using the word Metaverse as it makes it seem like all this is new. Instead, we try to use the word immersive internet or immersive web. We think that's what's happening right now with what people call web 3.0, we're adding a third dimension. We now have the possibility to experience three-dimensional space through new forms of hardware. Today, we have new possibilities that allow us to work in three-dimensional space through digital tools. In fact, that's what happens to a lot of people. So this research and virtual reality itself has been around for decades, but it's now available to everyone. It's called the Metaverse as if it's something new, but we think it's just an evolution of the internet. In other words, we can access the internet in three dimensions.
Of course, the fact that the internet has gained a third dimension and that we can access the spatial side online means that this has become an architectural problem and that spatial problems must be solved with architecture. There are also some really incredible opportunities to explore the place, but there are also many problems with that. That's why we're both cautious and excited at the same time.
We think that the presence of architects in the design of these worlds will be very important to create good, comfortable, and quality spaces. I'm sure that as we get older, we will start to spend a lot of time in the sandbox. However, there is one aspect that we think is quite important. The design of the virtual space is similar to the design of a game or contains a lot of interaction and gameplay elements. So it's only natural for us to think of it as a game, as most people think on the first try, the first months, or the years.
Of course, we argue that just as buildings should be designed, it's important to start thinking about the design of spaces, which architecture becomes a crucial background element here. The virtual world exists to create a context for many different things to happen. It doesn't need to guide you the way a video game does. That's why we think that architectural thinking can be very important in the creation of these spaces.
Selin Uysal:
Actually, I was thinking of asking you such a question. I understand you don't like the word Metaverse.
Lara Lesmes:
We have to use it because there is no other way. Now people call it that. We just want to point out that in this way they make the virtual world look like a new product. Also, it's just something someone like the internet could use on their own but let's call it the Metaverse as if it's something new. This is what everyone is doing right now.
Architecture Should Create Context In The Virtual World
The Venn Room - Talinn Architecture Biennale
Selin Uysal:
You've been working on this for years, but maybe it wasn't named until Facebook changed its name to 'Meta', it wasn't that popular. This topic became so popular with Facebook that people started saying, "I discovered something in the Metaverse ." Today, we see that many expensive lands are sold on many different platforms. People buy those lands, but as far as I can see, architecture and design are not a priority on these lands.
At this point, who do you think should design these lands? How will architects or interior designers adapt to designing this virtual world? What do you think about who will be responsible for the design of this world?
Fredrik Hellberg:
Yeah. This is an interesting point in the history of the disciplines because historically, architects were involved with new technology and in some cases needed new technology. Until now, architects, designers, or interior designers have never been involved in the development of the virtual space. It was developed by other segments of society i.e. people in the gaming industry or the movie industry. They developed all the tools, the whole methodology, and the whole design intent. So in a way, we really hope that architects or designers have a role to play in this new field and have something to offer, but right now it's kind of weird. Because most architects or designers don't even know the Metaverse, what it is, or how to start an education. Obviously, there is a lot in common between the creation of spaces and architecture here, but there is also a lot of new in the virtual space. The possibility that virtual space will offer possibilities that a physical space cannot offer, right? That's why we think places like 'decentraland' are a good example. Because these are some of the worst virtual spaces and just because they are, they are driven by money. They exist to trade, not to be truly experienced.
Lara Lesmes:
We can call these channels an option as “betting opportunities”. Maybe even more interesting; I mean, you buy land, maybe the price goes up and you make money. It's basically like making money at a casino, but I don't think it promises much. Looks like they're just starting out with programming and something is going to start happening. They started programming virtual real estate as a form of artificial scarcity, but it's just a form of profit and business opportunity creation. However, there are more interesting examples. Maybe social VR platforms like VR Chat offer platforms designed for people with the necessary equipment to come together and experience the world together. That's the motivation, isn't it? That's when people can act with the motivation to create space together, and I think these are much more interesting examples. At this point, we can see many more interesting examples of architecture. Because the motivation is really to get there and be with other people. Trading or selling on social VR platforms was not originally in the plan. In fact, motivation is really all about creating a spatial context to get together with others. So if there is a place to look at architecture, architectural design, I think it will be social VR programs, not virtual real estate sites. I don't think there's anything very interesting going on around here right now, but maybe soon.
Selin Uysal:
So, who is making the designs on these architectural platforms right now?
Lara Lesmes:
Someone who can make a 3D model
Fredrik Hellberg:
In fact, the world is full of people capable of creating these kinds of things. Doing so requires skill and knowledge of certain programs. Most people don't know this or people who do it have a background in gaming or creating 3D designs. In fact, this is increasingly seen as some form of advertising or game experimentation. Obviously, someone is designing them, right? I think it's important for architects and designers to be open to a wider range of different expressions if they're going to have a role to play in this. And architects and designers can no longer claim to be the only ones who can create spaces or create objects. Many other spaces in a virtual world, as you might see in places like this, "maybe they don't look that good” but they are designed by others. If architects come and start telling everyone what is good and what is bad, then the designers in this world may not accept architects in their midst. In fact, they build the virtual world just like us. So maybe architects are not needed here at all, just as you don't really need an architect to build a building. The building would probably be better if you work with an architect, but you can't build with a builder. In virtual spaces, this has gone much further, architects have never been involved in the construction of platforms or architects don't yet know how they work. That's why as architects we need to be open and humble. Maybe we have a place and a role there, but let's face it, most architects are not open to this.
Lara Lesmes:
I also think that architects should respect what is done and learn from it. That's why I think it's so important to act respectfully, by observing and learning, rather than violating. You know, again in virtual spaces, designing a building is very different because there's really no need for that right now. That's why architects need to prove themselves that they have something to say and something to add to it.
Selin Uysal:
So in this case, I'm going to ask how the post-Metaverse architecture will change. Do you think it will have devastating effects on the architectural profession?
Fredrik Hellberg:
I think no, no, no, absolutely not. Because we're already seeing a lot of architects start to try it and start thinking about it. It's just a new way to diversify your thinking about the space. And of course, we, Space Popular, are an example. There are a lot of people designing sandboxes right now. So in the long run, of course, it can only have a positive effect. It is also important to see that architecture as a profession has never been stable. Architecture is constantly changing. Just 150 years ago, architecture as a profession did not exist in many parts of the world. The architecture was historically a relatively new profession, often there were architects or someone else who could design a building. You can see it at the top in the 50s, 60s and etc... When architects got really involved in building the modern world after the war, it may have been the pinnacle for the profession, but we're not at it anymore. The world is constantly changing. This is normal as things change as well. We can also say that as more and more people start to truly involve their lives in the virtual world of the Metaverse will inevitably begin to be regulated by governments. When you start to think this is going to be really important, maybe they turn to bigger companies. In decades, they might go to people who designed the space, like architects, rather than game companies. Maybe there will be a moment in the next 10 to 30 years or something like that when architects become very relevant to the Metaverse.
Meta Become A Furniture Company After 10 Years
Selin Uysal:
In this case, I think a new title of architecture will emerge, like 'Metaverse architects' or, I don't know, 'virtual designers'...
Lara Lesmes:
I mean, I don't think there's any point in making the distinction. To be honest, I don't see much difference other than what I'd usually call landscape and non-landscape, because I really think it takes a lot of special qualities for landscaping. Even here, understanding the context and who has what skill set will make a difference. As for the Metaverse, I'm not sure how useful tags would be. Because you will need different types of architects for different reasons. Of course, this seems like a new form of specialization right now, and there are already people who call themselves 'Metaverse architects'...
Fredrik Hellberg:
People will do this by naming themselves based on what was popular at the time, such as in a particular place. If you say you're a beach house architect, you can probably expect to get beach house projects. Likewise, obviously, now that this has been very popular lately, as we've seen in many applications, some architects specifically rename themselves Metaverse Architects because they are trying to be tempted to take on this type of project. Probably naturally there will be some people who just work in a virtual environment and some people who do both. Of course, we hope as many people as possible will do both because any virtual experience will always exist in both physical reality and virtual reality because your body will always be in the physical world, even if you're wearing a headset. So ideally we have a design consideration of where you are both visually and where your body is at the same time. Of course, we now see that the design of all hardware is designed by tech companies, not gamers, designers or architects. Right now it usually doesn't matter. They pack the product in a box and ship it to your home, that's it! Then you wear it and experience the entire virtual world with that device. It doesn't matter if your house is suitable for it or not. We're seeing companies like Meta and many others, the people who are part of this project, really starting to think about whether users' homes fit into this experience. So I wouldn't be surprised if Meta becomes a furniture company after 10 years.
Selin Uysal:
Another issue is the moral side of the business. You have published eight proposals for civilian portals in the infrastructure of the virtual environment. I must say that each one is very important, but if I were to ask you to choose three of them, which would you choose and why?
Fredrik Hellberg:
I think I would choose the "urban, inclusive and cheap" trio.
Fredrik Hellberg:
I choose to be inclusive first because we think it is more important that all people, or as many people as possible, have access to it. How awesome the virtual world looks and how incredible it feels to experience are less important than people's access to it. Just think about the early days of the internet. In order to use the internet, we had to have a computer first, but computers were very expensive. Then the government (at least where I grew up) put computers in libraries. People first experienced the internet here. At first, they brought a library desk and three cheap computers. The aim was to provide access to the internet. So it was an inclusive way for as many people as possible to reach it, but that's not the case in the virtual world. We don't see governments buying VR headsets and shipping them to us. Maybe they should, but it's certainly not high on the list right now.
Secondly, the city needs to have some kind of urban infrastructure . Of course, this is not something that is a problem in different parts of the world. Maybe you don't want the government to control the Metaverse, but we need to start seeing examples of governments’ regulating and thinking. The Metaverse is a completely free world where everything is controlled by the companies that own all the money here.
Third, cheapness, which is also a proposition that encompasses inclusivity and reliability. Creating virtual worlds that look incredible and very similar to our exhibits is easy here. It is enough to have a very high-quality VR headset and a powerful computer, but we think these will consume a lot of energy in the future. That's why they have to be cheap. In other words, they should be accessible from places where the internet connection is not very strong, and they should be purchased cheaply. What we mean is that there shouldn't be polygons that hold the competitive edge.
Selin Uysal:
I get it, it's all connected. Lara, do you agree with Fredrik?
Lara Lesmes:
We can talk more, but I agree.
ARCHITECTURE IN METAVERSE
Metaverse offers opportunities for architects and urban planners
The concept of “metaverse” has become popular with everyone since Mark Zuckerberg announced his vision for Facebook. The metaverse, which marks a new era in virtual reality, was described as a fictional world in Neal Stephenson's science fiction novel Snow Crash in the early 1990s. Facebook, which has the data of billions of people since the beginning, promises to establish a virtual public space with the metaverse. It allows users to perform their daily routines in front of the screen such as shopping, going to the movies, concerts, spending time with a friend in a cafe, without physical effort, which they experience in all areas of life with virtual reality devices.
Place of Architecture in the Metaverse
The complexity of the projects carried out in recent years reinforces the role of architects as project managers. For the architect to realize his/her dream project, s/he has to manage a group including the employer, the parties consisting of engineers, consultants, subcontractors, and government authorities. For architects who are tired of working as a project manager, the metaverse is a space filled with opportunities for them to realize their dream project without this complexity. Public spaces are needed to be established in the virtual world such as theatres, cinemas, concert venues, amusement parks, streets, and cities. All of these together getting the brand-new world “without real-world barriers” are waiting to be designed.
Purchasing the land in the virtual world
Of course, technology partners will have a great share as well as creative parties for the spaces to be created in the virtual world. For this, virtual lands in the metaverse have already started to be sold at high prices. You can build whatever you want on the land you buy from metaverse platforms with a limited area or use it as an advertising space.
Sandbox and Decentraland are hugely popular platforms for digital land and real estate sales. While the parcel prices of the virtual lands on the 3D Virtual reality platform Decentraland, consisting of 90600 parcels of land, the parcel prices of virtual lands on Decentraland, a 3D Virtual reality platform, were sold at $20 when they first appeared on the market, while the prices of digital land plots today have reached amounts of more than $ 100,000. Snoopverse, created by Snoop Dogg on the land he bought from Sandbox, was designed as a concert venue and similar to the singer's real-life California home. After the famous rapper bought this area, 65% of Sandbox's virtual land has been sold those including who want to be his neighbor.
Seoul is the first city to enter the metaverse, which is seen as the future of the Internet. In Turkey, which is quickly adapting to technology and loves construction, it is a matter of wonder what kind of real estate projects will be realized on which virtual lands in the future…
References
https://fortune.com/2021/12/09/snoop-dogg-rapper-metaverse-snoopverse/
https://metropolismag.com/projects/architecture-virtual-environments/
DESIGN AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Milan Design Week 2019 once again hosted design lovers from all over the world with exhibitions and events spread throughout the city, as well as the international furniture exhibition. The products which guide our lives from complex, artificial intelligence-containing designs to products that helped us grow greens in our kitchen, were manifesting where the design and technology will meet in the future.
Organizer of the Week, Fuorisalone adopted the motto of Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer as "life is more important than architecture" as a theme this year and emphasized that the vital needs of human beings should be focused on design.
This year, we have seen the reflections of “being people-oriented” vision on the new object and process designs at different levels. Milan Design Week, promised hope with the works of new designers touching people, besides the large impressive installations. Undoubtedly, artificial intelligence and robots, which will affect our life styles in the future, will also have an impact on the design processes. It was possible to observe these effects in FuoriSalone exhibition.
Humanscale, putting ergonomics to the essence of production and design processes, demonstrates human movement by visualizing it with artificial intelligence on the points that constitute ergonomics with the installation named Bodies in Motion, designed by Todd Bracher & Studio The GreenEy.
STANDING SIDE BY SIDE WITH TURGUT UYAR'S POEMS
Nevzat Sayın's new book "thoughts, works" was published by Yapı Kredi Publications. At the launch of the book, they talked to Nevzat Sayın, Tansel Korkmaz and İhsan Bilgin about “architectural publication”. It is obvious that the number of architectural publications in Turkey are much limited. The Architectural books published by architect offices generally describe the works of that firm in a certain period. Nevzat Sayın's book, Thoughts, Works, edited by Tansel Korkmaz, reveals not only the architectural products of the architect but also his fictional works and way of thinking. In the words of İhsan Bilgin, the sketches in the book and the scribbles that have not come to light, create a stream of consciousness. More importantly, it presents Turgut Uyar's poems and an architecture book side by side, due to the publishing house it was published in. Poems and buildings… Even though they seem far from each other, who knows, maybe a relationship can be established through this work.
CREATING THE AMBIANCE OF A TV SERIES – CHERNOBYL
Chernobyl, one of the most popular TV series of recent times, is the story of the nuclear disaster that took place in Ukraine in 1986. One of the greatest disasters in human history occurred during an experiment at the Vladimir I Lenin Nuclear Power Plant, known as the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The drama reminded how close we are to a nuclear disaster and caused many people to re-investigate the issue.
The TV series became a masterpiece with the ambiance it set up. The production designer of the series, Luke Hull, researched the documentaries, videos and photographs of the period to create the appropriate ambiance. Let's take a closer look at what he did to create the immersive atmosphere;
Impressions created with contrast materials: An ugly, yet visually impressive atmosphere was created by the clash of intense patterns, textured glasses, and the use of cheap materials.
Annoying lighting: Fluorescent lighting is used wherever harsh, disturbing lights and green shadows are needed. Soft lighting and shadows such as light bulbs and lampshades are avoided.
Uncanny corridors of the power plant: The labyrinth-like stairs and endless corridors in the power plant are the architectural elements that made them feel trapped after the explosion.
The colours, items used, wallpapers, objects ... Even though the audience feels the 1980’s Soviet surroundings, much more was needed to create the striking atmosphere of the series.
Source: space
CRAFTSMEN FRIENDLY DESIGNS | BALAT FURNITURES
One of the most cited problems in the education given at the Faculty of Architecture and Interior Architecture is the adaptation problems experienced by graduating students when they encounter a customer in real life. Graduates who are still in the beginning of their careers and who are confident of their designs are disappointed by the objections and unexpected requests from customers.
Dilara Patlar – C Stool – Evin Bakery Products
"Balat Furnitures - Outdoor Furnitures for Craftsmen of Balat" project carried out by 23 students from the departments of architecture, interior architecture and industrial design from Kadir Has University, Faculty of Art and Design, under the leadership of project coordinators Başak Bakkaloğlu and Cemal Çobanoğlu provided students with the opportunity to experience the encounter with the customer. Throughout the project, the students discussed with the selected craftsmen to find out their needs. Then, the students worked on the designs and the production and delivered the final products to the customers. The fact that the subject of design was outdoor furniture, enabled the examination of the shop front culture that has existed since the Ottoman Empire and the production of products for the needs of the craftsmen, who were a part of the neighborhood life, by asking the right questions. The most difficult part of the project was to convince the customers to accept the designs. Eventually, the students were successful, and their designs are adopted by the tradesmen and are still in use. Having designed products that are comfortable to use and compatible with the street flow, students have shown how design can touch the lives of all types of people with creative solutions.
Balat Furnitures has facilitated the life of craftsmen with analytical, practical and even fun designs. Hoping to see more such projects, congratulations to the Project Coordinators Başak Koyuncu and Cemal Çobanoğlu and the students. Click on the link for the names of the students.
Meslina Uygur - Chain Hoops (Yunus Tuba Food)
ARCHITECTURAL MODELLING IN TURKEY
Modeling is an indispensable part of architectural production. For centuries, architectural models have been produced for different purposes. We know that models were used instead of architectural projects as a guide to construction in the past. Sometimes models were produced as votives. Sometimes they are produced for competition projects and experimentation; sometimes, they are used in museums and exhibition halls as a cultural communication tool or as part of education in schools or in showrooms for sales. Sometimes, an architectural model is prepared to test an idea; other times to present or represent it. Well, who produces these models which are a part of architectural production and under what conditions, with which materials and techniques?
Architectural Models in Turkey as a tool for thinking and visualization | The book titled “A Cross-Section of the 20th Century” is the product of a research trying to understand the status of modelling in Turkey. In addition to the texts describing the modelling’s place in architectural practice-education-history and its archives, the book focuses on the biographies of eight famous Turkish model makers — Sami Pazarbaşı, Sidel Pazarbaşı, Yusuf Z. Ergüleç, Selahattin Yazıcı, Mehmet Şener, Varjan Yurtgülü, İhsan Kostak and Murat Küçük. It includes a selection of their professional work and productions. The book, which is a first of its kind, also includes the specific studies of the institutions collaborated in the research processes and discussions in this context.
The subtitle of the book points to the 20th century. However, it must be admitted that the weight of the second half of the 20th century is more pronounced in the book than the first half. It is not due to the detection of a weight in the second half or to such an interpretation; but it would be correct to define the reason as the rush to record the resources of this period while they are still available. Because, the resources that we can talk about and access the documents may suddenly become inaccessible. It is necessary to take these resources seriously, bearing in mind that they may not always be there. The "Pelin Derviş Publication Project", which was created to serve this purpose, was written to record and share Pelin Derviş's research on city, architecture and design with the reader. Architectural Models in Turkey | A Section from the 20th Century is presented to the fanciers as a thinking and visualization tool. The book can be ordered from https://pelindervis.com/tr/publications/maket.
Architectural Models in Turkey | A Section from the 20th Century as a thinking and visualization tool
