A task given out after the mid-semester crit was to create an image of a moment within our design which captures the atmosphere of the space.
After presenting our drawings during the mid semester crit many great ideas were thrown out by the critics. One of which was to lessen the level of porosity in the space by refining and making it more subtle. By lessening the level of porosity the act of watching becomes less evident and surprisingly the effect of anxiousness increases as you never know when people are watching you as opposed to being watched all the time.
There were different ways to lessen the porosity through creating gaps between the floor and walls, allowing for only the feet of the performers to be seen. I found this level of exposure really interesting and decided to go along this path.
The cake shop by John Pawson has a similar level of exposure where only one cake is put on display among a misty background. This gives the viewer the entire picture of the cake shop while leaving it slightly ambiguous.
One 'moment' I was particularly interested in was the corridor space with the translucent ceiling. Since our brief deals with the harnessing anxiety through surveillance, this was one method of integrating feelings of anxiousness in the space.
The corridor being a space where people are constantly moving, allows for more experimentation. Nothing seems to be constant in these spaces. The sight and sound of footsteps as you exit the surrounding rooms would create that feeling of anxiousness as you become more aware of the surrounding people despite not being able to see them directly.
On all sides of this space the act of watching is evident. The black reflective floor beneath gives an indication of being watched by yourself, contrasting the ceiling where you are watching the ones walking above you. Then to the sides the semi transparent walls create diffused light, eliminating shadows which signify the presence of someone.
From watching yourself to watching others above you, this corridor creates a hyper awareness of the surroundings leading to uneasy feelings.
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