Page 1
Photo 1
After "How long did it take to build this?", the question I'm most often asked about this piece is "How did you come up with the design?" In this case, I started with three constraints:
1) I wanted to build some kind of space craft,
2) the piece was going to be used as an armoire for a specific collection of jewelry, so there had to be enough storage for all of it, and
3) the end result had to be relatively easy to transport, so the piece had to be built in sections that can be assembled and disassembled.
These requirements drove every aspect of the design. This sketch is "version G", and was the basis for the "Colony Ship".
Photo 2
While I may start with a sketch, inevitably I build models so I can get a sense of the space a piece occupies, what the light and shadows will look like, how the species of wood I want to use will look together, etc. Sometimes something that looks great on paper doesn't look so great in space, and vice versa, and a model will show that pretty quickly. These models usually are not to scale or even terribly detailed, they're meant to be dimensional sketches, and they're built out of whatever I have lying around the workshop. I refer to this process as "playing with blocks".
When I like the look of a model, I photograph it from several angles so I have a record of it because it's probably not going to be the only model I build. I keep a small digital camera in my workshop at all times for this purpose. Keeping a camera in the shop also allows me to record the various intermediate construction stages in creating a piece. These pictures are invaluable for future reference for both the designs and the techniques I use to implement them. I've also used the camera to record short videos in the shop, but that requires more preparation than simple pictures and interrupts my workflow so I don't it very often.
Photo 3
Another reason to take photographs of the models is that they may become the basis for another piece. "Prototype for 'The Colony Ship Oengus Oc '" (2003) is based on one of the models I made.
People have asked me why I don't use computer aided design (CAD) software to work out my designs, particularly given my engineering background. Certainly CAD has some advantages, including accurate scale drawings and measurements to work from, and many people use CAD successfully in their work. But I find myself making my designs conform to the CAD package instead of making the CAD package execute my designs. I think, underneath it all, I just like playing with blocks.
As always, your mileage may vary.
Page last updated 17 August 2008