the weatherspoon "wrap"

yesterday i presented edgar and gwen's project for review. they are working on a design/build thesis for the new weatherspoon art museum store, located right next to the gatewood building in greensboro, nc. they have done an excellent job of defining their concept and developing their materials and production techniques to suit the existing space.

their concept is wrapping, and many of their drawings include a linear element like the one below:


they plan to use this element to provide shelving, storage, and display areas. the edges are rounded so as to create a smooth transition around corners and further suggest the continuity of this ribbon-like plane. although they have already done made excellent progress toward manifesting their project, there were a few thoughts i had that i thought might help them move further:

- as designers, take notice of the beginning/ending of this element. are there points of stop and go? is there a starting point? a given direction?

- do not limit the wrapping element to the inside of this space. explore options such as wrapping it around the perimeter wall, or using it outside to pull interest towards this concealed corner. take advantage of the wayfinding opportunities it offers.

- allow the element to enter a human scale. note places where it can come away from the wall. allow human interaction with/on/in the wrapping.