INDN 212: Ceiling Forms

So, the next major step in my design process is to design the ceiling part of my project, as this will serve as the base for all my electronics for this section. There are certain restrictions on this, as it has to house my Arduino, as well as all my relays and cabling. Figuring out the Arduino is going to be my next task.

Looking at a lot of the ceiling connection points for these lights, most of them seem to assume a very minimalist aesthetic, as usually this is the easiest and best way to go. Sometimes using a funky aesthetic that works with the space you're designing for  makes sense, but if in doubt, the go-to aesthetic is minimalism, which arguably is a lack of an aesthetic, but then again, that is an aesthetic in itself. Ah, semantics.

Image acquired from: http://www.etsy.com/

This lovely little light was designed by a group called studioPGRB and is really nice and simple, and leaves the focus of the design on the light fitting hanging below it. The top section however doesn't have to house any advanced electronics, so having a minimal form there makes a lot of sense.

Image acquired from: http://www.ahappyplacecalledhome.com/

This chandelier takes a larger approach, but in terms of what's hanging below the light, it makes a lot of sense. The scale and ratio of the sides of the rectangle on the roof is obviously closely connected to the ratio of the the sides of the rectangle that makes up the chandelier, so having a larger form makes sense. Having a round upper section here wouldn't have made sense, and having a long, thinner piece would make the chandelier look out of whack with the fixture.

So, after looking at a variety of different lights, the most successful fixtures emulated but didn't overpower the lights that they were supporting. So, given those elements, I thought about the idea of possibly having something that emulated the form of the shades while still maintaining a high degree of subtlety.

Now, I know these drawing aren't the best, but it's cold here and my joints feel a bit stiff. But you get the idea. The main thing that I was exploring here was how I could translate the angular forms inherent in my shades into something that was being designed to specifically be subtle. So, my initial thoughts were to make the ceiling fixture black, but then I decided against that as the black would have been far too overpowering and felt like it might even overshadow the lights.

So, after trying out different forms, I then decided on something that spoke of the simple forms I used in my shades, and the used something that would be simple, linear, and symmetrical.

After coming up with the design, I decided to then sketch out how I was going to pull off the form in the workshop, as I have discovered going into the workshop without a plan is temporal suicide, as you end up wasting so much time.

So, the form that I'm going to work with is going to be a simple rhombus based form, with flat edges as well as flat front and back. The motion sensors need to have two slots, one for each side, so I need to drill out those holes, as well as route out almost all of the inside of the whole section on the back. I then also need to drill out all the holes for the cabling (3 in total).

Time to get to the workshop again!