Shade Plants and Phytoremediation Monday, Apr 14 2008

Baton Rouge is located in Zone 8 for plants as i found out.  I found several links for shade plants that I think will help everyone.

 

This first link is actually from one of our rival’s Mississippi State,

http://msucares.com/lawn/landscape/types/shadelist.html

 

These next links aren’t as organized as the MSU link but do provide more options,

http://www.backyardgardener.com/shade/zone8.html

http://www.naturehills.com/catalog/Perennials/Full_Shade_Perennials.aspx?page=0

 

This last link has plants that are suitable for Deep Shade,

http://www.backyardgardener.com/shade/index2.html

 

I know some people were interested in plants for Phytoremediation.  Phytoremediation is the use of certain plants to clean up soil, sediment, and water contaminated with metals and/or organic contaminants.  This first link that I found gives a good overview about the subject and has charts that can be useful in understanding how Phytoremdiation is used and its advantages/disadvantages, 

http://www.envirotools.org/factsheets/phytoremediation.shtml

This link gives plant types, what types of contaminants it cleans up, what phytoremediation process it uses, and comments from this websites study, http://www.superorg.net/archive/proposal/plant%20species%20phyto.pdf

to be continued…

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Mid Review Monday, Apr 14 2008

At the mid review we presented our storyboards, revised videos and finished models.  My final storyboard mapped out the change in volume and angle of sunlight over time.  Although Google Sketch Up is not my favorite program that we have learned this semester it did help me learn how the sunlight moves through the thresholds that I was studying.  I also created two models that measured the volume and angle of the sunlight over time.  I felt that these models were fun and interactive while also illustrating the ideas of my temporal phenomena.

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And the sun will set for you… Monday, Apr 14 2008

Most of the class got a good laugh at the soundtrack that I used for my “thresholds of light” concept.  The song is called “Shadow of the day” by Linkin Park.

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Perkins Underpass Monday, Apr 14 2008

Our second project will be located in good ‘ol Baton Rouge.  Good thing because I wasn’t a big fan of having to drive all the way 80+ miles to visit the site.  When I arrived at the site the first thing that interested me was the way the sun reached spaces underneath the highway.  I began to photograph moments and spaces that interested me while I was at the site.  Later I looked through my pictures and decided on the “thresholds of light” as my temporal phenomena.

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Final Review Tuesday, Mar 25 2008

Our Final Review is the culmination of my work for Donnelly Park and the residents of Gentilly in New Orleans.  The requirements for the review were a challenge to complete and I am pleased with the work I have accomplished.  A 1:20 scale plan, 1:10 scale model, three 1:10 scale section elevations, three perspectives, diagrams and study models were used for my presentation. donnelly_park_final_plan-base2.jpg img_3547.jpg section1_base-3.jpg  section2-base.jpg  section3.jpg    perspective2.jpg  perspective3.jpgdonnellyperspective.jpg  circulation.jpg  programs.jpg  img_3461.jpg  img_3479.jpg 

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Installations Tuesday, Mar 25 2008

Our last trip to Donnelley Park was to install and document an important piece of our design.  This exercise was to help us see if what we were designing would work in reality.  I decided to install one of the landforms i designed because they would be the main feature of my park.  After using stakes, nails and some string build my landform I edited the pictures in photoshop to get a better understanding of how they would look.  After seeing it in person and rendered on the computer I felt that I had designed exactly what I was going for.  img_3375-1.jpgimg_3375-2.jpgimg_3384-1.jpgimg_3384-3.jpg

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The Next Step Monday, Mar 24 2008

Finally my design is coming together for the mid-review.  I have used my original inspirations of “centerpiece” and “cracking” and took the ideas to new levels.   I decided to create landforms that move or “crack” into the hardscape areas.  This movement of landforms towards a memorial or “centerpiece,” represents the increasing growth and resurgence of the community. Our design involved producing a drafted plan, section, perspective and 1:30 scale model of our park for the mid-review. img_3452.jpg img_3458.jpg img_3459.jpg img_3457.jpg  At this stage in my process I created several circulation diagrams to better understand visually how the site would be used by visitors.  These diagrams inspired me to create landforms, plantings and path systems based on programs and heavily trafficked areas.       I also used a couple study models to translate my thoughts about the landforms and planting schemes from ideas to physical 3D models. 

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Breaks Tuesday, Mar 4 2008

Taking breaks and enjoying a game of ping pong  or juggling the soccer ball in the parking lot every once and a while has helped me with my design process.  It gives me a chance to step away from what I am working on, clear my mind, get focused again and get down to business.  Believe it or not it has worked(for me).

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Process of design Sunday, Mar 2 2008

Our next step in creating a design for Donnelly Park was to fold, bend and score card stock paper into variations of our concept.  I tried to explore the concepts of “centerpiece” and “cracking” in this stage of the design process.  To better understand the topography and surface of these concept models we created section and clay models.   After creating the first 3 types of models we made 3 more.  This time we studied plantings and structures, canopy, and voids.  Although I felt like I failed to create solid plantings and structures at this stage, these study models helped me move forward in my design process. Our first “stab” at redesigning Donnelly Park was done at a 1″=10′ scale.  My first attempt started to bring to life my two concepts.  I created four dominant areas, two being hardscape and two being green space.  To incorporate my concept of “centerpiece” I used a planting design that connected program areas with each other.  These plantings also supported my concept by having the green spaces “cracking” into the hardscape.

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Precedents Monday, Feb 25 2008

Our goal was to research two existing parks and document their relationship and significance to Donnelly Park.  These precedents will be used to help us conceive a new design for the park as we move forward.  The two parks I researched were Paul Revere Park in Boston, MA and Prospect Park in Brooklyn, NY. 

 

paul-revere-precedent.png prospect-park-precedent.jpg

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