We all retain memories of places. They help to identify who we are as individuals. At the same time; they tie us to networks of people; culture; and society. Even through time they reach into the past to people whose lives and experiences were as real as ours and into the future to those whose lives we can only imagine.As a designer; Frances Downing has searched for ways to express or explain why images of place were meaningful to her design life. The reasons are interwoven and complex. Transcending personal experiences by using them to imagine other people and places; to discover something new and surprising; and to deepen thought is something designers often do subconsciously. Here; she suggests a method to regularize the memory of personal experience and translate the memories of places to the design of new places.Through her investigation of the act of remembering Downing has discovered three different acts of “expressionrdquo;: naming remembered places; contemplation of their meaning; and the reasoning of meaningful categories for them. Through a combination of emotional response to a place and the reasoning that categorization requires; designers can work to understand the significance of a particular place—both its objective characteristics and its emotionally charged constructs; which are the most difficult to clarify and express.meaning of memory of place to all of us; but especially to designers. She introduces the game of “Spatial Solitaire;rdquo; by which a person can use a memorable image of past place in a limited design situation; and she includes as examples a number of the completed drawings and descriptions that resulted from designersrsquo; games.Downing also discusses the significant forms of experiences and how they relate to architectural practice; the content of the metaphors of experience; the intentional frameworks for the transfer of meaning; and case studies and theories of imagination and innovation.Remembrance and the Design of Place provides designers a greater understanding of their own meaningful acts of design; allowing the passage between past places and future places to be mapped carefully and debated openly.
#3728853 in eBooks 2013-05-21 2013-05-21File Name: B00CXADWUK
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Not A Step By Step GuideBy StacyThe book is beautiful and the content is great. However if youre looking for a step by step tutorial this isnt the book for you. It will introduce you to many well known artists and give you a history on them; and then tell you to paint like them. What the heck? Many of these techniques are highly complex. This book does very little to break them down. I think someone would have to have more than just a basic understanding of painting to really succeed at all the projects. I can realistically see myself doing 1/2 of them. I purchased it used for $8; so I dont mind the disappointment.31 of 33 people found the following review helpful. An Art Book for Kids; Adults; and Anybody who Wants to Try Something NewBy NatalieThe paint lab is well-written; fun; bright; vivid; and joyful. Its a pleasure to read and browse through. Owning it is like finally enrolling in the college art class that I always wanted to take: educational AND enjoyable. In fact; I tried an art project with my seven year old daughter; and we had a fabulous time and felt like real artists on what otherwise would have been a dreary rainy Saturday afternoon. With very few materials; and as complete novices; we each made a beautiful abstract painting. I cannot wait to do another project now. The paint lab is like my favorite Italian cookbook: tempting; easy to follow; and perfect to peruse and re-use (and luckily; its far healthier than making (and eating) Tiramisu). This is an amazing book for any family to inspire modern; colorful; and imaginative times!7 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Labs seem incomplete for truly experimenting these genreBy kandiamo[Jan 2015] Help is in the eye of the beholder so I hesitate to write negative reviews; but this book - in my experience - was really disappointing. REALLY disappointing. Its a very brief overview ( pages) and the printed pictures for each art style were few; lackluster and uninspiring.selections due to paper quality. I didnt find there was enough instructional information to experiment adequately in any genre; and most examples were abstraction art. I sort of expected this focus; but examples and labs lacked depth and complexity of even that genre.I purchased this book to inspire students to expand their repertoire of skill; but there wasnt much for them to see; let alone pique interest. Unlike other instructionals; it was flipped thru it disinterestedly and never picked up again.