http://www.indystar.com/articles/7/138621-7667-062.html
Timothy Gray challenged his architecture students to turn his barn into an art installation. The result is "RedBARN," which is open to the public on Saturday. -- John Severson / The Star
RedBARN: An Installation
. Where: 5155 E. 131st St.
. When: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday.
. Info: (415) 377-7636 or send e-mail
How it works
. The installation consists of a series of open-sided metal boxes suspended from a metal track attached to overhead beams.
. Inside the boxes hang blown-glass containers that resemble milk bottles. The track extends outside the loft's rear door, ending with what appears to be an oversized wooden wind chime.
. On the other end of the loft, rising from the lower level floor of the barn, is what Gray calls a "larva," a large wire coil covered in a skin of latex and containing a fan that causes it to move rhythmically, like a heart beating or lungs breathing. The larva is lit from within.
. The entire installation is fitted with lights controlled by a central board, allowing them to be sequentially turned on and off.
. Hanging from the loft overhead are a pair of glass "bottles." By grasping the bottles and tugging on them to simulate milking a cow, visitors can set the metal boxes in motion, which in turn makes the glass pieces inside the boxes swing, too.
By S.L. Berry
s.l.berry@xxxxxxxxxxxx
April 18, 2004
Barns are as much a part of the natural landscape as trees and fields for residents of Indiana. They represent the state's farming heritage, as well as defining, in part, its aesthetics.
As the owner of a piece of Carmel property that has a large barn, Timothy Gray knows that firsthand. And as an architect, Gray is intrigued by the impact of the barn on people: emotionally, spiritually and creatively.
That's why he challenged the students in the architectural design studio class he teaches at Ball State University to create an installation piece in the loft of his barn. The results of their efforts are on view in "RedBARN: An Installation," which Gray is opening for one night only Saturday.
Gray acknowledges that he's not sure what to expect in terms of attendance, but he decided to open his barn as a way of encouraging public involvement with architecture.
Why should Hoosiers care?
"I want to challenge people to really see what's here," said Gray. "I hope they'll be inspired to really think about what they're looking at and talk about it."
The installation, done in collaboration with students in a similar class taught by his friend Michael Williams at Ohio State University, isn't representational as much as it is responsive to the space that surrounds it.
The entire installation pays homage to the barn's history and Indiana's heritage, says Gray, with metal boxes echoing the shape of the loft doors and glass bottles referring to its past as a dairy barn.
What Gray calls the "larva" section of the installation hints at a cornucopia, which in turn represents the bounty of a good harvest. It also suggests coiled wire fencing and the spiral shapes of corn shocks.
The project began by asking students from both universities to visit the barn and write about their emotional response to the place. Gray says he asked them to look for the beauty in the familiar, to see a barn with fresh eyes, to analyze the place intuitively.
At the same time, he told them that such conventional architectural concerns as square-footage requirements and building codes were immaterial in this case. He wanted them to design without restraints.
"I believe intuitive analysis is the driving force behind truly exceptional works of architecture," says Gray, who's on the staff of local firm Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf.
He wasn't after architecture with this project as much as he wanted to encourage the students to respond intuitively, then design an installation based on their intuition.
"None of us knew much about what we were going to be doing," says Erin McCloskey, who was one of six Ball State architectural students to work on the project. "But we don't get to do a lot of design-build projects, so this was a great opportunity to do something different."
McCloskey says she brought something to the design process that other students didn't -- she grew up on a farm. "I know about the sweat and grunt work that goes into farming. I know what a barn is for."
Because the installation involved building something tangible, the students had to be practical in terms of what they produced. That was the second half of the process -- analytical thinking and logistical problem-solving.
In other words, they had to think about what kinds of materials to use, how to engineer the installation so it was safe, and how to get all of the components for the installation fabricated. The Ohio State students were particularly helpful with the fabrication process, Gray says.
The process was a valuable lesson in teamwork for Andrew Tarcin, another Ball State student. It was also a lesson in what to expect when turning an idea into a reality.
"When you're doing a project like this," says Tarcin, "inevitably things change. Changes happen all the time in construction projects, so you have to be able to respond to that."
McCloskey and Tarcin say Gray has brought energy to the university's architecture program. "Tim's coming to Ball State has really opened a lot of students' eyes to the possibilities of designing and building your own projects," said McCloskey.
From Gray's perspective, the installation project offers an insight into the nature of architecture itself. "This project is about more than just the physical characteristics of a building," he says. "It's also about the effects of a space on the human spirit."
--
The Design-L list for art and architecture, since 1992...
To subscribe, send mailto:design-l-subscribe-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To signoff, send mailto:design-l-unsubscribe-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Visit archives: http://lists.psu.edu/archives/design-l.html
Timothy Gray challenged his architecture students to turn his barn into an art installation. The result is "RedBARN," which is open to the public on Saturday. -- John Severson / The Star
RedBARN: An Installation
. Where: 5155 E. 131st St.
. When: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday.
. Info: (415) 377-7636 or send e-mail
How it works
. The installation consists of a series of open-sided metal boxes suspended from a metal track attached to overhead beams.
. Inside the boxes hang blown-glass containers that resemble milk bottles. The track extends outside the loft's rear door, ending with what appears to be an oversized wooden wind chime.
. On the other end of the loft, rising from the lower level floor of the barn, is what Gray calls a "larva," a large wire coil covered in a skin of latex and containing a fan that causes it to move rhythmically, like a heart beating or lungs breathing. The larva is lit from within.
. The entire installation is fitted with lights controlled by a central board, allowing them to be sequentially turned on and off.
. Hanging from the loft overhead are a pair of glass "bottles." By grasping the bottles and tugging on them to simulate milking a cow, visitors can set the metal boxes in motion, which in turn makes the glass pieces inside the boxes swing, too.
By S.L. Berry
s.l.berry@xxxxxxxxxxxx
April 18, 2004
Barns are as much a part of the natural landscape as trees and fields for residents of Indiana. They represent the state's farming heritage, as well as defining, in part, its aesthetics.
As the owner of a piece of Carmel property that has a large barn, Timothy Gray knows that firsthand. And as an architect, Gray is intrigued by the impact of the barn on people: emotionally, spiritually and creatively.
That's why he challenged the students in the architectural design studio class he teaches at Ball State University to create an installation piece in the loft of his barn. The results of their efforts are on view in "RedBARN: An Installation," which Gray is opening for one night only Saturday.
Gray acknowledges that he's not sure what to expect in terms of attendance, but he decided to open his barn as a way of encouraging public involvement with architecture.
Why should Hoosiers care?
"I want to challenge people to really see what's here," said Gray. "I hope they'll be inspired to really think about what they're looking at and talk about it."
The installation, done in collaboration with students in a similar class taught by his friend Michael Williams at Ohio State University, isn't representational as much as it is responsive to the space that surrounds it.
The entire installation pays homage to the barn's history and Indiana's heritage, says Gray, with metal boxes echoing the shape of the loft doors and glass bottles referring to its past as a dairy barn.
What Gray calls the "larva" section of the installation hints at a cornucopia, which in turn represents the bounty of a good harvest. It also suggests coiled wire fencing and the spiral shapes of corn shocks.
The project began by asking students from both universities to visit the barn and write about their emotional response to the place. Gray says he asked them to look for the beauty in the familiar, to see a barn with fresh eyes, to analyze the place intuitively.
At the same time, he told them that such conventional architectural concerns as square-footage requirements and building codes were immaterial in this case. He wanted them to design without restraints.
"I believe intuitive analysis is the driving force behind truly exceptional works of architecture," says Gray, who's on the staff of local firm Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf.
He wasn't after architecture with this project as much as he wanted to encourage the students to respond intuitively, then design an installation based on their intuition.
"None of us knew much about what we were going to be doing," says Erin McCloskey, who was one of six Ball State architectural students to work on the project. "But we don't get to do a lot of design-build projects, so this was a great opportunity to do something different."
McCloskey says she brought something to the design process that other students didn't -- she grew up on a farm. "I know about the sweat and grunt work that goes into farming. I know what a barn is for."
Because the installation involved building something tangible, the students had to be practical in terms of what they produced. That was the second half of the process -- analytical thinking and logistical problem-solving.
In other words, they had to think about what kinds of materials to use, how to engineer the installation so it was safe, and how to get all of the components for the installation fabricated. The Ohio State students were particularly helpful with the fabrication process, Gray says.
The process was a valuable lesson in teamwork for Andrew Tarcin, another Ball State student. It was also a lesson in what to expect when turning an idea into a reality.
"When you're doing a project like this," says Tarcin, "inevitably things change. Changes happen all the time in construction projects, so you have to be able to respond to that."
McCloskey and Tarcin say Gray has brought energy to the university's architecture program. "Tim's coming to Ball State has really opened a lot of students' eyes to the possibilities of designing and building your own projects," said McCloskey.
From Gray's perspective, the installation project offers an insight into the nature of architecture itself. "This project is about more than just the physical characteristics of a building," he says. "It's also about the effects of a space on the human spirit."
--
The Design-L list for art and architecture, since 1992...
To subscribe, send mailto:design-l-subscribe-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To signoff, send mailto:design-l-unsubscribe-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Visit archives: http://lists.psu.edu/archives/design-l.html