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TECHNICAL DRAWINGS 2

How the Sonication pod works?

TECHNICAL DRAWINGS 1

How the interactive touch table works in the incubator pod-

The construction of all interactive tables were realised and influenced by the Impuls Bauhaus project by Jens Weber and Andreas Wolter. As shown in the technical drawing, the interactive table is comprised of two components – a beamer (A) with a projection screen (B), used for displaying the bacterial culture as it grow; and the interactive table itself.

Since I have been thinking about my career plans I am sure that I want to get some work experience (paid or unpaid) before applying for a masters course in interior architecture or exhibition design. Therefore I have sent a series of job applications as a junior designer on websites such as Reed, Adzuma, Total jobs etc... I also ensured that my linkedin account was updated. 

Updating my linkedIn was useful for me to not only ensure viewers saw the latest ventures I have been involved in but also allowed me to review how far along I have come since first year. Through linkedIn I made sure recruiters are aware that I am seeking ‘opportunities in experiential design: retail, hospitality, museum and exhibition design’.

The networking site is usually free but also includes the option of premium membership which is free for a month. The membership has a series of perks such as your profile being moved to the top of hiring managers list, discover who is interested in your profile, directly reaching out to hiring managers, etc... Therefore last month I applied to a series of ‘junior interior designer’ positions and directly contacted the recruiters where required on linkedin. 

Since updating my linkedin profile I have already had two recruiting companies directly getting in contact with me with regards to roles available that would suit my skills, knowledge and experience. Both of the roles are different yet allow similar experiences. Both of the recruiters asked for my portfolio. Whilst I had my website to showcase my wide variety I believe it was essential for me to create portfolio that directly catered to the different role and organisations. 

One of the organisations is a high street retail store specialising in optical and hearing centres and are growing their in house interior designers. The role is for a retail store design assistant. Due to my lack of experience in that sector I had to ensure that through my portfolio and cover letter I showcased that my skills and work experiences are still relevant. My CV, portfolio and cover letter as submitted according to their job description is available here

The second was for a architects practice in Eastleigh who specialise in residential, retail, leisure and educational institutions. My interests in the public sector of the industry meant I was immediately attracted to the role. However I had to ensure that my portfolio should showcase that I can work with projects that cater to the general public as well as buildings with multiple floors. Since I lacked work experience in this field I avoided to include those projects. However the recruiting firm advised me to send a separate work experience portfolio in case they find any more job opening relevant to my experiences and skills on the job. Therefore I sent them two portfolios which are available here

The above collage represents projects where styrofoam has been used to create sculptures. As mentioned in my previous blogs I was inspired by a pop up retail shop for Richard Chai; an American fashion designer. The space is constructed out of wire cute 'white foam that transforms the temporary space into an urban glacial cavern'. This influenced polystyrene to be my choice of material for the globular structures of cancer stem cells that was conceptualised to envelope the building. 

Whilst researching other ways the material has been previously used I stumbled upon the Water Tree project by Lawrence Argent. What I liked the most about this project is the soft globular form. Tara Donovan's ceiling sculpture inspired me to consider Polystyrene cups as a method to create a mesmerising space with a form I am trying to achieve to represent cancer stem cells. These projects have made me realise that I don’t need to consider materials to create a curved wall as the globular structures can form as a partition for the different spaces. I researched Eva Hesse’s Untitled 1970's project which uses knotted ropes dipped in liquid latex. I like how the organic form as well as irregular web like structure provides a feeling of uneasiness. This aspect inspired me to consider latex ropes to be covered and entangled within the globular installation.

Having brought my ideas together I wanted to produce rendering that was professional, realistic and presentable. Therefore, I have been working on 3dsmax to create forms that represent my idea. I have found it relatively easy to get back to it. I had to remind myself some of the features and commands in order to produce it but YouTube tutorials have been useful. Using 3DS Max allowed me to imagine the entire volume of the space and how the globular installations will work within the space.  I have yet to work with materials and lighting which I hope to work on this week in order to be realised for the following week when I have to present.

Link to more shots are available here>> https://trishitaghoshiad.tumblr.com/post/159683540935/3ds-max

Enveloping the Spatial volume with cancer stem cells

Initially as showcased in my presentation the cancer cell structure taking over the walls of the exhibition was tightly focused just towards the walls. Therefore, this week I took on board my tutorial feedback as given by Russell before Easter holidays to consider the entire volume of the space. Therefore, I created visuals on surface pro to bring my thoughts and ideas into experiments that helped me realise my idea. It was nice to try something different as I have been prone to creating photoshop collages to initialise my concepts. I believe this really helped me to develop my ideas of globular structures further as well as see how it would work within the volume of the space. 

As part of the Insight Exhibition I developed the sonication exhibition which is part of the sonication zone of the save the patient exhibition. The space allows visitors to experiment with how high frequency sound is used to break bacterial cell membrane. As a fun interactive game the zone allows teenagers to engage with the science in an informal setting. Research shows and on minds on learning as incorporated in the zone enhances scientific enquiry.

It was interesting to see people interact with the exhibit as they took the time to get close to the microphone and shout at the microphone to trigger the animation. Initially there were some technical problems which I had to fix as the microphone as set up by the production team did not insure the sensitivity. Which meant it was harder to trigger the animation. It worked better afterwards.