Week 9, material research

Concrete

What is the process of making material?
Composed primarily of cement, aggregate and water. The cement consists of a variety of fine ground powders which harden when mixed with water.

How long will the material last for?
Life span differs depending on the strength of concrete and the environmental condition but generally it has a very long or even permanent service life.

What makes the material corrode?
Concrete corrodes by dissolution and cracking or crumbling due to tensile or compressive stress or environmental factors such as temperature variation (e.g. freezing) or exposure to chemicals. Rusting also occurs to steel in reinforced concrete.

What are the pros and cons of the material?
Pros: Fire resistant, generally weatherproof, strong in compression.
Cons: Temperature variation can cause cracking, weak in tension

What is the material typically used for?
Concrete it widely used in building for bridges, roads, walls, footings, floors, columns and beams.

What are the environmental impacts of the material?
Cement is a major producer of carbon dioxide and the hard surface of concrete can contribute to surface run off which can cause soil erosion and water pollution.



Marble

What is the process of making material?
Marble is a metamorphic rock.

How long will the material last for?
Marble is considered a permanent material.

What makes the material corrode?
Environmental conditions, in particular high levels of acidic gases (such as sulphur dioxide) causes marble to corrode. Oxidation can also cause marble to stain.

What are the pros and cons of the material?
Pros: Strong in compression, fire and heat resistant, waterproof.
Cons: Weak in tension

What is the material typically used for?
Marble is mostly used in flooring or bench tops.

What are the environmental impacts of the material?
As marble is a natural material it is bio-degradable and eco friendly.



Steel

What is the process of making material?
Steel is iron that has had the majority of impurities removed. Various metals are alloyed with the iron to create various characteristics.

How long will the material last for?
Long life span.

What makes the material corrode?
Condensing water and air causes steel to rust.

What are the pros and cons of the material?
Pros: Strong in both compression and tension, ductile.
Cons: Loses strength in extremely high temperatures.

What is the material typically used for?
Steel is widely used in architecture, bridges, roads, railways, vehicles and appliances.

What are the environmental impacts of the material?
Recyclable and reusable. 

Week 9, textures

Concrete

Before

After

  

 Marble

Before

After

Steel
Before

After

Week 8, the houses

Barcelona Pavilion

Mies van der Rohe

This could decay by having the large glass windows shatter and the thin walls crack, warp and lean over or even crumble in places, causing the roof to tilt. The floor tiles would over time become damp and mouldy, covered in moss and beginning to crack. The pool could become almost swamp like and their could be vegetation and vines growing over the entire building. You could also flood the pool and have the entire floor of the building take on an overgrown swamp appearance and have moisture dripping from the ceiling.

House at Bordeaux

Rem Koolhaas

The large glass panes could become shattered or severely cracked. Vines and vegetation could creep up the walls and through the holes on the top story into the interior. The position of whole stories could shifted giving the building a slant. Inside, furniture could be collapsed with cracked floors and ceilings, although the lift could still function, moving up and down on its own, with chunks of the the floor surrounding it crumbed or missing, so it appears as if the lift has smashed through the building suddenly. The smooth finish of steel posts will be matte and scratched and the exterior walls covered in dirt and rust.

Rudin House

Herzog & de Meuron

The base of the building will crumble away into a pile of rubble and dust. The walls and roof will crack and become mouldy and covered in moss. The glass in the windows will be cracked or totally shattered.

Week 8, 3ds max to cryengine

Issues

• Linking objects to dummy didn't work, had to group the objects instead, which seemed to have the same effect as what linking would have done so this was fine.

Experiment 1, link to files

Level works best when opened from Bin 32 > Editor

http://www.4shared.com/zip/PFrfwxPB/ARCH1390_z3374550_Bethany_McMa.html?

Experiment 1, video

Experiment 1, screenshots

Finished Island

Drafts

Experiment 1, strategy statement

Island concept
My island is a tropical jungle island surrounded by dense cliffs and a field and fishing harbour on one side. A water body carves out delicate chanels from the rock, in other areas water forms ponds and rock pools.


Letter/Number Combination
My letter and number combination are "N" and "0".


Methods to reveal and conceal

• Island configuration
• On a macro scale the aerial view of the island shape will reveal the letter/number combination. A number of shape motifs for each of my characters will also appear scattered across the island. from a distance these will be revealed, although from ground level or when zoomed in they become less obvious or totally unseen. Examples of this are seen in the cliff formations and shape of the water volumes as well as the series of mini "0" shape islands positioned within the water with thin channels of water separating them.

• Terrain manipulation
• Raised sections of terrain under the waters surface spell my letter/number combination. A series of wharfs act as viewpoints allowing for different perspectives of the terrain. The wharfs cause the player to look towards the terrain which would otherwise be generally unnoticeable unless viewed from an aerial position.

• Particles and movement
• As the player moves through the field, at a set point an explosion of smoke and fire breaks out, the fire quickly grows, temporarily forming the shape of my letter/number combination from an aerial perspective, then as the fire grows further the shape is distorted, dynamically transitioning between a state of revealing and concealing. At ground level the shape isn't obvious, only for a small period of time from an aerial view can it be seen.

• Light and shadow
• Depending on the time of day the shadow cast by an opening at the top of a cave projects the letter "N" onto one of the cave walls. The visibility of the image changes and shifts position as the time of day shifts, becoming invisible at various points throughout the day.

• Entity positioning
• Vegetation entities, including lily pads and small trees were placed in configurations of "N0". Due to the size of the plants these are only able to be noticed from a micro scale.

Week 6, flowgraphs

Clean interface

Area triggered fire

Spawn point