The space we chose was A13 group study room in the basement. We were drawn to the curving ceiling panels, the quiet nature of the room, and the window where one can see into the room.

Ideation board: (link to full board here)

Initial Idea:

This room has no window, it has no place to look out while one studies. We want to create a view. This view will be an ambient moving textile that calls/ references nature. It will be a place to look up and reflect while studying. It will also invite people to use this room who are walking by. We want the form of the materials to call to mathematical forms found in nature– many of our initial ideas reference either hyperbolic forms (such as coral, modeled in crochet) or fractals.

We were also drawn back to the parasite idea of the first project, and what it might mean for this form to have grown over on these panels. Thinking of vines creeping up buildings, or plants suffocating trees to get to sunlight.

Pseudosphere crochet sample – non-Euclidean geometry

Ambient movement would be powered through servo or stepper motors. We’re interested in undulating motion, such as long grass in wind, seaweed in a current, or streams cutting through rocks.

User interaction is also an end goal, and we’re interested in how we can couple motion between the automated and the human-enacted. There could be handles hanging down at approximate eye level to someone sitting at the main table

Schedule:

Tue Mar 21 Project proposal due

Thu Mar 23 Bill of materials and timeline with SMART objectives

Tue Mar 28 Technical proof-of-concept demonstration:

Two experiments in crocheted and woven fragments and two experiments in movement two servo rig and a pully. From this we will choose a direction to move forward with

Tue Apr 3 Working towards a larger version of the experiment

Tue Apr 11 Prototype demo and critique

Fri Apr 21 Friday evening opening show

Thu Apr 26 Final in-class critique

Materials:

Cotton yarn & crochet hook

Servo motors and microcontroller (& wire)

Dowels (for handles)

String

Cotton fabric 

Dye (possibly natural-based dye? Or synthetic dye in natural colors such as browns, greens, blues)