George Lauder Bursary - Week 8

Monday 20th July

• Today was the day before our mid review, so we had to have our prosthetic device and all of the related work ready for a pin-up and practice presentation.

  
  

• I went into Columbia early to get everything set up and make sure I was ready to present. I still had not managed to find a valve that worked properly for the hourglass device, so I ended up using pins as plugs to control the water instead.

  
  

• We then went through our presentations in the studio and got some feedback before the real critique the following day. Afterwards, I stayed for a while to make a few final changes before heading back.

Tuesday 21st July

• I went in early again to get everything ready for the mid review and critique.

  
  

• I presented my prosthetic device and the work showing how it had developed from the original backpack idea into the final hourglass version. The presentation went well, and I got some good feedback from the critics.

  
  

• We were also told that the next stage of the project was to start thinking about how our prosthetic measuring device could become a much bigger architectural intervention on the gatehouse site.

  
  

• As we did not have class the following day or any immediate deliverables, our studio group went to a Mexican food place afterwards and had some food and drinks to celebrate getting the mid review finished.

Wednesday 22nd July

• Our studio group met up at MoMA and spent some time looking around the museum.

  
  

• There were loads of interesting things to see. I had also read that there were pieces by Charles Rennie Mackintosh in the collection, so I was hoping to see some Scottish work while I was there. Unfortunately, the Mackintosh pieces were not on display.

  
  

• Afterwards, I got some food and headed back to the accommodation.

  I also started thinking more about the next stage of my Columbia project. We now had to take the ideas from our prosthetic devices and turn them into a much larger intervention involving a model of the gatehouse.

Thursday 23rd July

• I went into the studio early again on Thursday to start properly working on the next part of the project. We had one-to-one discussions with our professor, which helped me get a better understanding of what direction I could take my project in.

  
  

• I still was not completely sure what I wanted the final intervention to be, so I spent a lot of the day sketching different ideas and trying to work out how the deterioration theme from my prosthetic device could connect to the gatehouse.

Friday 24th July

• Today was a bit more relaxed, although I still spent some time thinking about the project and trying different ideas. I went for a long walk around Manhattan, which was a good break from sitting in the studio.

  
  

• I also decided to walk back over the Brooklyn Bridge. Even though I had been staying in Brooklyn for nearly two months, I had somehow still not properly walked across it. It was good to finally do it and get some different views over Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Saturday 25th July

• I headed back up to Columbia and spent most of the day working in the studio. I was still not fully decided on what I wanted to do for the larger intervention, so there was a lot of trial and error.

  
  

• I worked through different ideas and sketches and started thinking more about what could actually work with the existing gatehouse.

  
  

• I stayed for most of the day before getting some food and heading back home.

Sunday 26th July

• Sunday was another studio day. I went back into Columbia and continued working on the project, trying to develop the ideas from the previous few days.

  
  

• I still had a lot to figure out, but by the end of the weekend I was starting to narrow down the direction I wanted to take.

  
  

• After spending most of Saturday and Sunday working, I headed home and relaxed before starting another week.