Client.... Hotel

Client project.... exterior

Ok so these are a couple of ideas for the layout of my hotel. The top one shows the full layout, although I wont be using it as it does not adhere to all the design criteria I set myself. The bottom one shows just the communal area of the suite, with its attached balcony. This model can easily be added to and might well become the centre of my final model, once the design has been refined that is. At the moment it sadly looks a bit like a house with a large garage attached but there we go. More to follow....

Artefact 1 (Review and findings)

I will start this post by saying that although I am not completely happy with this artefact, it did achieve what I wanted it to. However I will indeed be rethinking it and modelling a new one that achieves the same purpose but looks infinitely better.

Anyhow onto what I have found

These images were all formed from the same living room scene, just with different colour lighting added to them. I chose this as a starting point as the colour of the lighting is one of the main attributes that can affect a persons reaction to an environment and what emotions they link with that environment. I created a number of shots with 7 different colours that I felt would invoke different emotions. It is widely know that red is often associated with anger and heat or that blue is associated with calm and peace, but also with cold. I wanted to discover what peoples reactions were first hand, and see if they were any different to what one would expect.

 The first image was bathed in an aqua light. This colour is often associated with cold, but also perhaps with being around water. No surprises with the answers to this one, as most of the focus group wrote down cold as the atmosphere they were getting from this image. Other answers also included sterile and one answered lonely. Overall the answers reflected what I already suspected about this colour.

The second image was given a black light, accentuating the darkness within the scene. The colour of light does not really add much emotion to the scene as it creates the impression that the room is unoccupied. The reactions to this image however are quite varied. A few responses were along the lines of the room being empty and just having the lights turned off, whilst quite a few answered that they thought the scene portrayed a mixture of sadness and loneliness.

The third image was lit with a dark blue light. The responses to this colour were varied to say the least. A couple of people image gives off a cold look, whilst others stated it looks like television glare. I also got a couple of answers that said it looks like a "UV party/rave house", which are by far the oddest answers so far.

The forth image was given a green hue. The responses to this image were as varied as the responses to the third image. No two answers were the same. the answers included: Happy, not normal, like a club, eerie, futuristic, alien, reminiscent of nature, artificial and dirty. As you can see the green light produced a lot of differing responses, so its hard to nail down a common emotion for it.

The fifth image was given a red hue. The responses for this image were a bit more in line with what one would expect. They include: Warm, seedy, like a dark room, dangerous, alarmed, hot, fire, anger, scary, seductive. These responses fit in with what people often associate with red light.

The sixth image was lit with standard white light. It is by far the most natural looking scene. The responses for this one include: perfection, relaxed, blank, natural, sterile, clean and calm. Again these answers are very similar to what one would expect of people viewing a clean white room.

The last image was lit with a yellow hue. This seen is perhaps more reminiscent of the sun slanting through a window in the evening as it sets. Responses to this image include: sunny, artificial, cozy, toxic, warm, retro and artificially lit. The over riding response to this one was one of warmth and comfort.

Overall this artefact has been successful in helping me to identify people reactions to different colours of lighting. However the artefact itself is really rather basic. I have an idea of how I will adapt it to become more effective. This includes making a series of models and lighting it how people would expect it to be lit but then changing the colour of the lighting and seeing how that changes people reactions to it. 

As for the responses to the images above, a fair few were what you would expect given the colours shown. However there were a few wild cards, such as the green light, that seemed to get a varied response. By itself the colour of light can evoke different emotions, however it needs to be used in conjunction with other elements to truly be used effectively.

Client project.... Just a little something part 2 (now a night scene)

Not much to say about this one really.
Same scene as before but with a night time lighting style. The contrast between the dark room and the light in the hallway really helps to lend an atmosphere to this scene.

Client project.... Just a little something part 2

Seeing as how my client project revolves around creating an interior I decided to have a go myself. This is based off a tutorial I found which helped me understand the essentials and as a starting point I am pleased with it. I need to add a lot of little bits to make it look more "lived" in but that can wait for the moment. Hopefully I shall be both adding to this interior as well as creating others.
I will keep you posted....

Client project.... Just a little something

So I found this tutorial online, and after reading it decided to have a crack at making a very basic chair, seeing as I am soon going to have to fully furnish a virtual hotel room. Took about ten minutes, if that, but looks quite nice if I do say so myself. Whole thing is made out of different splines rather then solid objects, which was a new approach to modelling for me.
Anyhow here is a picture. Like I said it is basic but was quick and easy to make and looks quite stylish in my opinion.

Client project.... Colour ideas

One of the most important parts of this project is to get the colour scheme right. I want to keep the colours fairly neutral, but at the same time I want them to provide a sense of warmth and comfort. To this end I have chosen a cream colour for most of the walls, and then either a light brown or a "browny" red for certain feature walls.
I have found colours on the Dulux website that I like. The light brown is named "Soft truffle" and the red is named "Totally Cocoa". The cream colour is named "Barley White".

Client project.... Suite layouts

Right.... The brief for this competition states that the IHG hotel group would like entrants to create concepts for the hotel room of the future. The brief goes on to outline the fact that the room needs to cater for various different user groups, such as families or business groups. However after this it gets a little vague. So using this to my advantage I have decided to go for a hotel suite rather than just a single room, thus allowing greater creative potential as well as allowing me to provide a much more "meaty" final product. 

I am looking to keep the suite open plan, with as few doors as possible, thus in keeping with the idea of it being a singular room, albeit a very loose interpretation of a single room. It will contain at least two bedrooms, a communal area, all the normal amenities, such as shower, toilet etc, and a plethora of technology designed to make the stay more comfortable. 

With these ideas in mind I have started looking at different hotel suite layouts that already exist. The two pictures shown are two of my favourite I have found so far, though neither has all the elements I want in my final design. However as a starting point they are useful and easily adaptable to my own design ideas.

Client project....

Ok so I know once again it has been a long time since I have posted. However I now have plenty to show.

My client project has shifted from doing the virtual tour of my old school to creating a hotel suite of the future for a design competition. The main reason for this change, as far as I am concerned, is just how much I will get out of my project. By entering this competition I have the chance to get my name out there and also to receive feedback that could really help me. The virtual tour of my old school is still something I would like to do, possibly as a project to aid my portfolio, though at this juncture my uni work must take precedence.

What follows is the start of my journey to create my interpretation of the brief for this competition. I will show you ideas for the layout, colour schemes and fittings for the room, and hopefully you will be able to create an image of what I am hoping to achieve.