Interior & Environmental Design
CATHERINE
BELLAMY
This line drawing (to the right) is the final design that I ended up making.
Below I will explain and visually show how I created the model.
I am particularly passionate about model-making and always have been. When I was younger I used to make doll-houses out of old cat-food boxes for my other toys to 'live' and be stored in.
It has definitely been a life-long interest that I often do in my spare time to continue developing my skills and knowledge of model-making and materials.
MAKING THE TREEHOUSE
This project was a self-motivated one that I ended up using for my University portfolio applications.
I watch many shows that are about bespoke tree-house builders and it has always fascinated me that large, liveable spaces can be built amongst the tree-tops.
This first set of images and illustrations show the start of the process I took when making this tree-house model.
To make the mock land-contours I used thin foam board that was covered in paper on each side. I did a few sketches before deciding on this look, I then drew the designs out onto the boards, cut them out and sand them down for a smoother finish.
For the fake 'trees' I used a fine metal mesh sheet and wrapped them into tubes. I wanted a model that focused on the building so I made these other elements more representative; as well as different and interesting to look at on their own still.
The trickiest part was making sure all the contour levels had the holes for the trees in the right place so that it would all be aligned when finished for the model.
I decided to use three trees as support for the model as this allowed for a wider shaped base to be made, and offered more structural integrity than one or two.
Again I had to make sure it all aligned when put in place, and luckily it all did!
After that, I decided to make a mock deck using dyed coffee sticks (using coffee), so the colour would differ from the model itself.
Next I had to build up the walls for the roof(s), wanting to stick to a more angular design that I initially desired.
I made fake cladding for the walls and roofs, attempting to make them align to the best of my ability, as the materials were small and often would splinter. Meaning the cladding of the model took a lot of time.
Painting the interior floors black created a really nice contrast to not only the light wood cladding, but to the wire trees as well.
Allowing each element to stand out, but still compliment each other.
After finishing the two buildings and adding a few minor decorational details such as small 'FIMO' plant-pots, my model was finished!
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Summer Project