Bending Light

Design Studio 411: Rich Normality
Kirsten van Aalst, Professor

AUTONOMY AND COMPETENCY: This studio is concerned with early education spaces for young children. Thankfully, the knee-jerk reaction of a bland space brightened by primary colors is slowly being replaced by spaces which contribute to children's intellectual and emotional well-being.

Click to enlarge. For more images, see SLIDESHOWS

During the semester, we work with various centers in Vermont, participating in charrettes for their spaces and other small scale, actual client-involved moments. Alongside, there is a semester-long project to develop an early education facility here in the state.

For the opening exercises of the studio, students are asked to investigate the following architectural components, recognizing that sometimes it is difficult to look deeply into all aspects of a building once the design has begun. In this studio we investigated particular elements which have an impact on competent space for children.

This first assignment asks for an investigation of relational forms / light / color / materials.

In response, Sam Rank has natural sunlight pass over paint and form to create a play of color and light on surrounding walls.