Done!

For better or worse, we're calling the pre-semester project "done."

In addition to providing a model and the base, we were also required to build our own 3' tall model stands. So today I took a break from studio and drove down to Home Depot. I picked up a sheet of 3/4" plywood and had them rip it into two 3' boards which I threw into the Prius and headed back to studio. One of the 4'x3' sheets went to Saori's group. It's a pretty good deal- it breaks down to about $5 a person.

Back at school, me and my partner on this project, Nan, took our sheet of plywood down to the workshop and student monitors helped us chop the board up into the constituent parts for our model stand. Our studio teacher gave us plans for the standard platform, and thankfully they were about as minimal and uncomplicated as you can get for a plaform- essentially the two boards interlock to form a rigid X on top of which you secure the table top. I aped another group's design of using wooden dowels to attach the top so that when we're done, we can break the platform down easily for storage and transportation. It did take some extra effort and I didn't do a really clean job (its hard, drilling a 5/8" hole into the edge of a 3/4" plywood board!) but it worked and its effective. Nan sanded down the sides and the top so we have a slightly more finished look than rough ply.

We decided to go the easy and cheap route with our model base. Originally, our studio teacher said he wanted us to use basswood for the base, but that is just not happening for us. Neither Nan nor I wanted to shell out the dough, and secondly, while it would be good to use the laser cutter, its an additional pain in the ass to make the damn thing. So we opted to stretch raw canvas over cardboard topographical sections, and used small brads to secure it in place. The overall effect is like a dune or a sandy hill.

I am willing to be that our instructor, Sung Ho, is not going to like it. We actually hid the material during the desk crit time. In fact, I would predict that he will tell us that it sucks, that it looks cheap, and that it detracts from the model. He'd be right about a lot of that- however, I'd like to have at least one last day of freedom before the semester starts, and Nan is excited for seeing the St.Louis arch, who, despite having lived in St.Louis for over a month now, has never left the 2 mile radius around the school due to the studio.

On a lighter note, the architecture grad student assoc. put on another happy hour yesterday. At 5:30 we all came downstairs from the studios to munch on the Pappy's BBQ chicken and pork and to buy $1 Schlafly beers. We drank, we ate, we mingled, we enjoyed the late afternoon sun, all in all the best cost to happiness ratio I've found in St.Louis. The best part is: its a weekly event.