So our group decided to meet again on Wednesday. Immediately upon showing up, we took our old model and tossed it to the side. "Begin from scratch!!!" we joyous declared. In retrospect, we could have, and should have, NOT done that. Like I said before, I think we had stuff to work out, but we didn't need to completely do a 180 and stroll backwards. Nevertheless, we did, and at the time it seemed like a good idea. And realistically it worked out ok.
Other than the fact that our group has a project that is almost identical to someone elses.
Yes. I said the slightly depressing thought. Ours looks very much like another's group. The crazy thing is, both groups came to the same idea separately. Our group didn't get where their group was going during the 5 minute in class presentation, and I think we accidentally wound up on a similar track. Does that mean that its just an awesome idea? That would be comforting to think. And honestly, I think its cool that two groups found two ways to solve the same problem using a similar form but different functions. I just feel....so uncreative. Worst of all, I know that after today, we are going to switch to another group and another project...and I might end up with a project just like the one I already worked on. I was looking forward to a big difference to allow me to jump into a realm of different possibilities. Maybe I'll get it, maybe I won't.
Anyways, back to the Wednesday meeting. It went on for three hours, and after three hours we had managed to fill three or more whiteboards with text and pictures. We defined our three words as well as surface, made a few decisions about where we wanted our project placed (context) within the house, and decided upon a problem to solve (concept). Form was missing. But then Ted drew an idea on the board, and we all excited decided to run with it. Except we were all visually different things, and we knew it. So we called it a night (we needed to), and each person was to make a model of what the HECK we thought Ted had drawn, and then meet again Sunday for a 10 hour mission to create.
All in all, we had no arguments or mishaps. Disagreements? Yeah a few times. Sometimes I worried about us ever making decisions, and one time I was snappy to Gloria which I ended up feeling awful about (I apologized and from appearances she doesn't begrudge me). But we were mostly calm, just meandering our way to a solution about how to create good ventilation and good air quality within a Detroit home.
Thing that amused me? I was the one pushing for decisions to be made. I even quoted Jan Hendrick-Andersen on the subject. "We can always go backward after making a decision, but we can't move forward until we make some!" In some ways, that felt so hypocritical to say. Who am I to say we should make decisions? Usually I struggle with that! Yet this course, and working with other disciplines is already challenging me to be what I never was before. Never before was I ok with trying ideas and tossing them and trying others. Usually I just set my goal unrealistically high and set off for the moon without making prototypes. Now........a new wind is a blowing.
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