Portfolio

Morris Street Publication

*Top: Front Cover Bottom: Back Cover, 5.5 x 8.5” Saddle-Stitched Booklet*

This publication serves as documentation of my discovery of the historic buildings around the intersection of North Morris Street, Floyd Avenue, and North Brunswick Street, previously known as Short Street. In short, the area is now home to many Virginia Commonwealth University owned buildings and residential apartments that used to be filled with Catholic School buildings from the 1930’s.

By word of mouth, I was told that my apartment building located at 107 North Morris Street Richmond, Virginia was previously a nunnery. I was curious about the three story red brick building and the validity of this information so naturally I went to Google and began my search. Through talking with historically and architecturally literate people I began to find more information about the buildings surrounding my apartment. I soon found out more about the rich history surrounding me than my specific building. Ironically, this is such a metaphor for history in general. To isolate the information on my apartment building by itself, would be to ignore the history that surrounds it. I was eventually pointed to a place where I found that my building was indeed previously a convent– just a part of the vast history of the surrounding buildings. At the conclusion of producing this publication, I can say I live my life more aware and knowledgeable of my surroundings.

“When I Was a Child” Publication

This publication features excerpts from an essay written by Italian architect Ettore Sottsass in the book Man transforms : an international exhibition on aspects of design for the opening of the Smithsonian Institution's, National Museum of Design, Cooper-Hewitt Museum, (1979). The essay is inspiring and encouraging, but it’s current form does not reach a wide audience. My purpose in taking this essay and revitalizing it into an illustrated book was to emphasize the playful creativeness the essay encourages and make the piece more distributable. While written in 1979, the words are still relevant and needed for today.

TRANSLATION MACHINE

This project explores the connection between binary code and patterns. During a conversation with a friend the topic of binary code came up. At this point, I was quite unaware of how 0’s and 1’s related to code. In my research, I came to understand the basis of binary code and the system of assigning 8 digits of 0’s and 1’s to a letter or form in the alphabet. These 8 digit combinations formed the basis of a pattern that I wanted to expand on.

Growing up my family and I would go to the beach every summer and seashell collecting was one of our favorite hobbies. Recently, at a used-book sale I came to own a book called Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. This book is a memoir of her time by the ocean and how it related to her life. This “data” became the input I wanted to use in my binary code pattern translations. Drawing and inserting seashells into the 0’s & 1’s of the book title and chapter titles became the basis of a pattern swatch. This process explores the translation of digital processes of code to analog inputs of drawings and data and then back to technology in order to produce tiled patterns. It also explores the amount of control one can and can’t have in designing patterns. While the input drawings of shells was a choice, the rhythm of the pattern was not. The final outcome of the project is printed on fabric. It is an ode to Joseph Jacquard’s loom machine and its influence on the creation of binary code and technology.

“GOING” PUBLICATION & ANIMATION

Animation of a speculative society based on the word "going". In childhood, it is common to be encouraged to dream about “where you are going in life” or “who you want to be”. This society embodies the continued child-like adventurous spirit.

This animation led to a 500 page publication artifact of the society.

“Going” is a 500 page publication acting as an artifact from a speculative society. This society is created to encapsulate the idea of going and adventure. In childhood, it is common to be encouraged to dream about “where you are going in life” or “who you want to be”. This society embodies the continued child-like adventurous spirit.