chapter nine Three-Dimensional Design Elements Dr Richard Hun Sst mas (igure 5) represents a mythic thee-neadd se ‘serpent whose glance can transform an adversary int ston. "From its of garden tits heated lors, The Greenhouse Chicago (ce page 176 vies us to physically explore a wide ange of ditncive workspaces A ‘courtyard inthe center connect the three-story architectural tract tothe shel tering sk. ‘Xu Bings A Book frm he Sky (8.1 sore conceptually challenging. It on sls of printed volumes and scrolls containing thousands of fle” Chinese char ‘sce tat Bing invented ad then painstakingly cut by hand ato wooden printing blocks. Those who ae not fuent i Chinese may admire he graceful characters and wonder at their meaning, Those win do know Chines fnd tht thei filiae altura erences hive turned into concep cha, neach ofthese thee examples, we are engaged physically, mentally, and ‘motionaly While painting ar vido can pll us nt an imagined world, cup tural object ofersa tangible presence that i powerful ints Tn the hands of & skilful ans or designer ti ra power translates nt Insight and energy, Point, in, plane, volume, mas, spac, texture, Hight, color. and me are the ‘se building blocks of thre dimensional design In this chapter, we consider the unique characterises of each.‘of stunt plane ight Kinetl forms actully move, Theo Jansen’ Sboet series (9.3) In Chapter Seven, we defined for Includes enormous wind-propele strctaes that manifestation of an idea. Content refers tothe dea wiggle, wall, or lither down the beach. They seam itself including the subject matter pusitsemotional, ty have been bom of marrage between tn Erector intellectual spss and symbolic implications. 1m Sand unas Park three-imensional desig, form ‘an refer lo to three dimen: sionally isl For example, a ‘lea square, and x angie tre two-dimensional shapes, nd a sphere, eube, and pyramid tue thre-dimensional forms + We generally define an empty three-mensionl form 38 volume, while we generally tkefine wold formas mass, + Ameffctve hee ‘imensional composition balances positive forms (areas of substance) with negative space areas tht sxe ope). + Organic forms (orms ‘hat vnually suggest nature very difeentetect fiom geometric forms based on cubes spheres, an other simple volumes. “Mechanical forms, sich a= bos and gars, can sugest anindoatea souree + The degree of acto ipl movement inform «an expand our vocabulary fren frther State forms sppetr stable and unmoving Designed ols forever, the Great Pyrumis at Giea ‘exemplify stabil and repose, Dynamie forms imply movement. Suspended fom the cling, Richart Wilsons Slipstream (8.2) pres the twisting actionForm and Function A sculptor explore an idea, chooses mates, and develops composition sed on hisor he aesthetic intention. Public a projects, sche Eero Sarinen's efron National Expansion Memorial (98), and situa objets, such asthe Sis! mask, commemorate historia event or express soca values. ‘A designer uses the sme maser of concep, composition, and materia to ereate an objost hat it functional swell as beau. Before crsting new lie of aquatic ger designer Bob Evans carefully snalyacs the neds of diferent types of swan. The asic Fores Fin (2.5) proves the required maneuver ability for snorkeling. He designed the Mal Force Fn (9.58) asa stength-taining device. The Exceleaing Fore Fin(93C) provides the extended power that seuba divers need, Por designers such a Evans the form must full specifi fumetion, or purpose Visualizing Form eight, with and epth are the thre dimensions in thre dimensional design Tn computeraide design, weeefne these thre dimensions sing thea ‘ans fom geomety (84) Using the cube a. basi building block, we ean create many vations on these basi dimensions. In igure 9.78, the ube fs mod fed through removal and displacement Th igure 9.78 and C adltonal panes and unexpeted intenestons Increase compen. There are many methods of depicting three > key questions + beperiment with organi, omer, and ‘mechani frms, Which best uted o ‘he dea that you wish o express? + What mix of static and dynamic forms beat + Wil the adon of lsat component 4a tothe overal ete? \When ys are creating frestanding ‘much cnt do yu require on ech sie? + What des the vewer gin by walking sound the artwork? A point isa basi mark such brushtroke. ust asthe appearance of ingle sto ‘onan empty sage can electrify an audience, s the simplest pint immediately creates dilg ith the sorrounding spice. For example, in figure 15, Andy Goldsworthy tansformed a pile o stones by siply ‘avering one of them with bright ed leaves "When mulspied, points produce an array of visual information that an artist en use to eee Fic extures or build entire images. Gorman design finn Arg+Com created Kine Ran 216) rm hn drs of metal raindrops controled by tay motors Continuously siting, these points eeatea wide range of sculptural varitons ota pedble, or 2 > key questions PONT + When a sing polnt mos effective and when isan ary needed? + Sto your pints be evenly tuted in sce or unevenly dsbuted? +A focal point deve tention oa specie fre or apt in composition, How might syourcompoiton heme frm the useOrientationine width can rete a mor pee sense of die Memorial (ee igure 9), the mas ‘om drive downoad int the earth, wi arch tthe top ifs or eves sya Continuity CContinsty,o lines low, can increase movement snd accentuate frm. In Chis Burdens Medusa Head (0.23) a mad tangle of toy tain tracks flows around tn throag the mas of sone, plywood, and cement Representing the snakes that rowed the head ofa mythical monster these writhing ines spherical mass and gv ancient Gresk myth Actual Lines "Through her physical presence, a connect, define or dvi design the Greeks offer lrge, hollow wooden hors othe Trojans, Laoen wat against a0 ‘ai In support ofthe Greeks, the goddess Athena then fends two serpents to atack and kil he sees, ‘hereby guning ene into Toy forthe solders ding nthe hore. The writhing serpent com positional connect the teed men while ting emotional intensity to this depiction of Athena's wrath, Implied Lines ‘Implied lines are crested through mental rather than physical connections. The Rape af the Sabine Woman, by Giovanni da Boingns (9.25) relies ona series of mpi ines forts impact. Staring tthe bottom and exploding upward the repeated dlagonal inthe scupeure create visual vortex as powerful as tornado, AX the botom ithe husband of the captured ‘woman, Inthe cee, standing Roman sl Alri intent on stealing a wie for himsele Theagitated movement culminates athe top with the ‘inated woman's extended arm, ‘Aslght line activates Nancy Holts Sun Tunnels (0:26) Attest lance, the four 220m cnerete tunnels seem tate. Upon entering each tunnel the viewer ‘Alscoversasries of oles that pica the tack sie ‘nd postion in four major constellations. The light pouring in through these holes shifts asthe sun ses nd tavels ares the ky. During the winter and sum mer solstices he sculpture further transforms as ‘irelar tunnels alignment frames light rom the xs Sng and sting sun. Like a telescope, the massive cyl {ndes are more important forthe visions hey create ‘than as objets in themseves, Linear Networks Both tists and desgnors se linear networks in many ferent ways. n figure 9.27, interlocking metal ines form the woven mesh on fence's mask esse of itstinearconstraction, i ight in weight and pro tects the athlete's face without blocking vison Janet, chlman's Tuna 126 (igure 9.28) was created sing thousands of polyester ber threads Sospended above a busy city ste, this artwork contnsously ‘ifs shape like an undulating elish, Single ines ‘an bring simple eloquence toa design, while mul tiple ins canbe use to crate tong, complet, and serail formsee > key questions + Veta horton, dlagonal, and curving neal have nique eng: What can cach be eoninibte to you design + What an ln continuity icontinty + What happens when you dramatically Increase decrease the umber of ines? + Can mersecting nes strengthen sour design oth stucteraly ue PLANE A planeisa three dimensional form hat hs length un width ba minimal tienes. Dependngon the material wed planes ca be transparent or opaque ld or Nouba ato nelosures using folded o bent panes, When sloted sd We can construct, planes can crete vary of sry forms {As Maya Lin's Blue Lake Pas (930) demon ily, planes cn create forms that ae ae descriptive as a mountain ci Planar constriction can be atively gh in weight a wel as ysl strong 8 when Richard ‘Wison designed Sptrean for Terminal 2 at London's Heathrow Airport (se figure 92) Inspired by the movements of fying plane, he needed to cape inga wooden interior struture with thin shows linn, he was able to suggest mation 230ootlong sculpture > key questions PLANE + Conde the imitations of te materia you ae wing Cin you et sore, ad foto crete curing planet? onal advantages of carved or wisted Planes versa planes? + What happens to sour desien when ofthe panes VOLUME In genera terms, volume isthe amount of space an ‘objet occupies. n thre- dimensional design, volume Cubes. xl the most common volumes that we in in both nature of three dimensional space cones, and spheres ae amongscetningly weights organic volumes ‘comprise Xiao Mia's Sere Room (332) alas cyhedral carton protects hall‘The specific amount af enclosed space expe cially important when we createany kindof eotsinet, from arhitectre to glassware. The Ginura Carafe by tore Sous (935), easily olds iter of wine. The elegant eylinder equi Iitie tbl space, and an extra disk of glass athe base inceass its weight and sabi ly. Anadtiona las disk the topensutes tha the wil retin firmly in place, Linear networks folding, nd slong area few of ‘hesteateie artists and designers use to create vol ‘ume. Defining an enclose space while miintaiaing structural integrity is essential. 1 the stoctre ail, ‘he volume wil collapse andthe space will be lot, crushing the eg nd piling the wine! ‘As thofancer’ mush in figute 927 demonstrates, ‘woven structaescan be elegant, ighweight, and remarkablysiong. Onthe othe and, package design cexsgenealy create olume trough folding Study rst paper can be preted while a, then score, ct, an flded And suprisingly strong volumes can be routed using sloted planes Sted strvctures can be seo procet and soporte ape contents (Such as ‘wine tes) and old tem in speci postion, MASS ‘Armas is soli three- dimensional frm, A massive objet eam be as dense and heay asa bar of god or as light and porous sa sponge ‘Massive sculptures are ten carved fom aslld block of paste. clay or stone, or eatin bronze las, ‘orother material Solid na imposng thy tendo dominate che envizonment in which they ar placed (Chris Burdens Medusa’ Head (ee igure 923) ‘ins power through a combination of mass and visual ‘ovement. Sixteen fet al the suspended mass of ‘cement, stone, and wood ie bot Imposing and visually animated. The plyul train tacks tavesing is ur face vite us o walk around the arbor, exploring it from ever side ‘Massive forms tnd o suggest stably power, and permanence. The ancient Olmec heads frm Mexico combine the abstract power a phere with the emo tional power of human head (936). Ledelle Moe's large-scale sculptures are equally powerful (9.37) ‘Consructed from 200 ox more puzl places, when insalled thes elining heads sem o dream tragle dreams. Even though they are hollow the sculptures appear slid and imposing, Tom Friedman produced a ‘sey irene of mass in figure 9.38, He eat hun Ares of pencils 2 various angles, then Joined them to eaten energetic maze > key questions VOLUME ANO Mass + How can you use planar source materials such as Bristol paper and ‘cardboard to create sturdy volumes? + What are the advantages of transparent versus opaque volumes? + When isa mass more expressive ‘than a volume?