The principles and elements of design found in my picture above are abundant and vary to make the room have an interesting feel and look to it. Elements and principles of design help keep an area appealing to the public. Most of the items, colors, and textures in an area are usually chosen on purpose in order to create a certain feel to it. Designers usually go into a space with a plan and their choices of materials and furniture help play a huge role in the mood in the space.

     In my picture, the designer did a great job using colors in a cohesive scheme. Almost every piece of furniture, art, light fixture, or flooring has something in common with the other. This causes an overall similar feeling and mood throughout the space.

     The emphasis in this space is the bar. The light fixtures above draw the eye towards it and then the lights light up the bar. By placing darker chairs with the lightwood used as the tabletop as well as the bright lights shining down on the bar, draw attention to that area. The pattern on the ceiling adds a sense of dimension and a different texture to the space even though it probably is flat and smooth like most of the surfaces. The placement of the chairs, bar, ceiling beams, and booths make a focal point at the back of the room because they all follow a line in the same direction towards the back wall. Most of the textures in this area are most likely smooth and flat, but the brown sticks on the right hand side of the picture add a new and different texture to the area. Not only does the wooden structure add texture, it also doesn’t follow the straight line toward the back; it adds a sense of curvy lines.

     Every part of a design usually has a purpose in order to achieve a certain goal. In order to achieve those goals, the elements and principles of design help with the feeling the designer is aiming for. By adding multiple elements and principles together adds dimension, interest, a story, and emphasis on certain parts of the space. 

         For my unusual material, I found a building that was made out of newspapers in order to get a cities attention on the amount of waste they have on daily basis. The architect or man behind the creation goes by Sumer Erek. He wanted to make a point and stand out to make something not only appealing to his viewers, but send an important message out to everyone around him,

           

            The House from Newspaper was built in 2008 by Sumer Erek. It was located in the heart of the Gillett Square, London, which is a common place for people to go. The location for his house was very important in order to get the entire message he wanted to out to the public. Sumer Erek went from house to house on a daily basis and collected the thrown away newspapers. He also asked people to donate their newspapers instead of trashing them, like most people did. He collected over 85,000 newspapers in order to build his house at the beginning and it keeps growing is about to 100,000. In order for the house to stay standing, Sumer Erek had to use a structure made from wood, metal, and plastic in order to safely building the house and it actually lasting long enough for the public. He tightly wrapped each newspaper, like how it usually shows up on your front lawn. After stacking a good many newspapers tightly on top of each other, he wrapped them in a bundle with a plastic zip-tie.

            After a long process, Sumer Erek opened the house to the public and allowed them to visit his creation. Since he built it outside and it being built from newspapers, weather was always an issue to Ereck. He soon became protective of his house and allowed it to sit at a museum and travel to many different exhibitions around the world. It has made over five appearances in Liverpool and keeps on traveling to spread its message to people all over.

            Because of Sumer Ereks innovative and creative construction, he has become famous all over the world. This House of Newspapers has allowed Sumer Erek to be invited to participate in many late night shows and get interviewed about his project. This House of Newspapers is one of Sumer Ereks prize possessions, not only because it was a new idea the public hadn’t seen before, but it was sending a good and healthy message out to the world. Sometimes people don’t really understand what is really going on with the world, recycling and many other issues, but when someone puts it in perspective just like Sumer Erek did, it brings the problem alive. Sumer Erek claimed that his project actually did change the way people view their trash, newspapers, and community. There were a lot less newspapers being wasted and thrown away, when someone would actually appreciate the chance to read a newspaper every morning. 

         

     My class and I went to the Texas Tech University Design Expo to visit the individual stations and see what is new to their company. Each station at the expo is completely different and comes up with something new for the design field. From chairs to wall coverings to flooring, each company provides the audience with something interesting, innovative and up-to-date for this years designs.

                  The first station that really caught my eye was the MDC wallcoverings by Candice Olson Contract. The designs and use of materials for these wallcoverings can make a room have a completely different look. Usually the textures and patterns are found on the furniture, but MDC brings texture, depth, and illusions to the wall. Many of her wallcoverings have certain designs and textures to add a certain appeal and feeling to the room. The MDC has a collection of textiles, certain types of paints, digital printing wallcoverings, natural and organic wallcoverings, and the normal paint and wall finishes. I thought this one of the most creative and appealing stations because of the original and modern ideas Candice Olson brought to the table. MDC takes a very classical design and turned it into an update and modern design that would most likely be used today.

                  Another station that caught my eye was Cape Contract Furniture. They allowed us to sit in some of their new products in order to actually experience what they do. They had a black plastic chair on display that did not actually look like it felt. They take the normal, traditional types of furniture and turn it into something that is more interesting for people to look at as well as experience. One thing that stood out to me was the use of materials they used. The normal everyday material was updated with something more fun and creative for the population. From Cape Contract Furniture, I took away that furniture is not only used to sit on, it also can make the look and feel of a room. The materials, colors, and style of a chair can completely make a room something different than the normal boring office or space.

         I always look forward to visiting the Sherwin-Williams table. A lot of people just think it is wall color, but I think the coolest part about Sherwin-Williams is that they give you the color wheel for the year. I love how they pick out the “hot” colors for that year that are in style. It is always interesting to see if you are using the colors for that year or if they have even changed from the last years color wheel. Paint does not seem like that big of a deal as the other stations at the expo, but it actually plays a huge role in the look and feel of a room or space.

         Overall, the design expo has opened my eyes to many new ways to do things. The designs, materials, and ideas the companies provide to us is only helping us understand we can do so much more with the unexpected. A lot of companies are taking the unusual and using it for a different job than it was primarily made for. By doing the unexpected, rooms are converted to a more interesting space and are not just a room, it is made into an art piece. 

Fabric Applications

     Fabric application is very important to a specific area. The type of fabric that is applied to a piece of furniture does many things to the space. It sets the mood, expresses what kind of space it is, as well as allowing different functions for the room to take place. Fabric application can be found from seat to windows to art and even more. Choosing a fabric for your design and space you are working with is a huge factor in how successful you made the space off of the goal.

     As seen in the pictures above, it is easier to understand why designers pick certain fabrics for certain places. The fabric picked for the stool as well as the booth both support the functions of the rooms. The fabric allows for a lot of people sitting on them as well as food and drinks being near. In case of a spill, the fabric texture is very easy to clean because the type of fabric it is. Because of the amount of people that use the stools and booths a day, the fabric is strong enough to change many people rubbing against the seat of the stool and booth on a daily basis.

     Fabric application is taken under serious consideration when designing a space. How the fabric is made, how much it is, and how long it lasts are all major factors when choosing a specific fabric for a certain piece. Around our college campus, most materials used on seating are made to be used a lot on a day-to-day basis. Having college kids walking in and out of a specific space multiple times a day, the designer had to pick a strong, durable, and easy to clean material. On our campus, you will find good fabric applications as well as fabric applications that have fallen apart. In the pictures above, the designer did a very good job in picking a strong and durable fabric for a college kids daily life. The fabric seems as if it will last long to a lot of abrasion as well as clean off very easily if something were to happen. Other seats around campus are already torn and starting to lose their color due to too much wear and tear.

     From exploring our campus, it has come apparent that picking the type of fabric for a certain area is very crucial to make sure the goal and function of the room is met, the correct mood is set, and it will last the time period it needs to.