Duke Energy Internship

I have been blessed with the opportunity to intern with the Convenience Services department at Duke Energy.  The team I've been working with since May is more than amazing and they have given me more responsibility than I expected, being an intern at a big corporation and all.  The image below is the product of one of my projects.  I was given the task of re-creating the surveys for one of the products they sell.  I built it in Illustrator, discussed printing options with our vendor, and was on charge of all the design decisions that this entailed.  Overall, I'm extremely happy with the outcome and very thankful that I was given the opportunity to take part.

Reflection + Connection

These are all reflections on how each topic refers to our current studio project.

TEDx Internship

Carlos Smith, a fourth year in IARc, made this video for us to show the stage design build process, enjoy!

Studio Revamp - Engage.

Julie, Natalie, and I are working to redesign the space that we currently occupy.  We're focusing on our studio space specifically with the ideas of unity, versatility, community, and connectivity in mind.  So far, we've come up with a basic floor plan and some spacial ideas that we would like to implement in our space.  For now, here's our logo :).

Critique Analysis

This past Friday, we had a presentation on each group’s research, including student surveys, precedent studies, or research on the social and behavioral aspects of Gatewood Studio Arts Building.  It was interesting to see the results of the student surveys.   For instance, the IARc library was very underused.  After a class discussion on this, it seemed to be a common thought that when you walk into the library, you feel somewhat intimidated, or like it is somewhere that you should not be.  Most people, if they used the library at all, used it for studying or sleeping or drawing instead of what it is supposed to be used for.  Another underutilized space was the student lounge on the second floor.  Last year, this space was redesigned thanks to a collaboration of Interior Architecture and Art majors.  It is interesting that even after it was completely revamped to make more interesting and appealing, still no one uses the space.  On the other hand, it was clear to see that there is an obvious shift in the first half and the second half of the program.  The survey showed that the majority of first and second years use their studio spaces most and that the third and fourth years use the computer lab more often.  I believe this is a direct correlation to the shift in our projects [using more computer software and having one or two projects a semester instead of one every 2 weeks] and the amount of commuter students there are from second year to third year.   When you live off campus, you can keep most of your stuff at home because you have more room than in a dormitory.

            Other than research, there were a lot of precedent images of spaces, furniture, electrical delivery, walls, etc.  It was very cool to see what everyone enjoyed and wanted in our studio space, and even what the studio space could transform into.  Across the board, there were a lot of solutions for our very obvious acoustics problem such as acoustic wall panels in different shapes, sizes, colors, and textures to stimulate creativity while muffling the outside and unnecessary sounds.  Also, there were many interesting uses of lighting to replace our boring and inconsistent lighting that we have now.  The lighting images used diffusers and a variety of shapes to cast good, bright light to the surrounding space.

            Overall, I think this exercise was a real positive thing.  I learned a lot about the different solutions out there that we could use to enhance our studio space and make it more usable and inspiring to the students here at UNCG.  It was also inspiring to me to see what the other students think about what works and what does not work in Gatewood and that for the most part, our class agrees on what needs fixing in our space.  Hopefully, we as a third year class, can turn the studio into something that constantly inspires and rejuvenates the design coming out of the Interior Architecture department.

A Learning Place

For this half of the semester, we're focusing on reconfiguring our studio space.  To do this, we're studying the list of four core values of IARc [authenticity, innovation, stewardship, and community].  This Wednesday, we had a huge pile of images that we could choose from to represent each of the values.  Here's what I found...

Authenticity.  This image represents 'real-life lenses'.  When kayaking, the audience sees exactly what you're putting into it, there's no faking.  Authenticity to me represents no masks, no coverups, and seeing exactly who or what something is - seeing what is really there.

Innovation.  This image, to me, represents the beginning stages of innovation.  Innovation is all about the discovery, seeing something that can bring a difference.  To be innovative, you have to overcome fear of failure and getting your hands dirty.  You have to cradle your ideas so that they may grow into something truly innovative.

Stewardship.  Overcoming adversity and being driven enough to do so is the basis of stewardship.  In order to fulfill duties - to yourself, to others, to your country, whatever - you must take that initial leap  and go past any obstacles or hesitations and I believe this image captures that idea.

Community.  Community is about unity, being intertwined, and in most cases, being a synchronized group.  This image represents that in the fact that the man in the image is leading a community to be synchronized, in step with one another, and to go towards the same direction or goal.  When you're in a community, you lean on others to guide you, to help you, to get you where you need to be.  You may not always agree, but you're always connected.

Branding!

Our current project in Professional Practice is to create a 'brand' for ourselves.  After doing that, we were to design our resumes, cover letters, leave behinds, business cards, and portfolios.  This has been such a great learning experience.  I've never realized how far a simple gesture can go.  So here's me, my brand.