David Versluis’s new work: “a little bit of cathedral in it”

David Versluis and Nelson Wynia
“a little bit of cathedral in it”
2015
15'H x 10'W x 1'D
Welded aluminum, powder coated chrome
Aluminum skeletons from Kooima Laser Cutting

Dordt College Commission and Permanent Collection—Science Building Addition. Photographs by Carl Fictorie ©2015

The design and title of this piece is inspired and responds to this quote by engineer and writer Samuel Florman:

“Not only cathedrals, but every great engineering work is an expression of motivation and of purpose which cannot be divorced from religious implications. This truth provides the engineer with what many would assert to be the ultimate existential pleasure.

I do not want to get carried away with this point. The age of cathedral building is long past. And, as I have already said, less than one quarter of today’s engineers are engaged in construction activities of any sort. But every man-made structure, no matter how mundane has a little bit of cathedral in it, since man [humankind] cannot help but transcend himself as soon as he begins to design and construct.”(1)

1. Florman, Samuel C. The Existential Pleasures of Engineering. 2nd ed. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 1996. 125. Print.

L: David Versluis (designer) and Nelson Wynia (welder) installing hanging brackets and five foot x ten foot aluminum panels.

Read More......

“Architectural Record” cover design from September 1965: a modern combination of symmetry and asymmetry

Read More......

David Versluis’s new work: Tectonic Tower Maquette

David M. Versluis ©2015
Tectonic Tower Maquette
Welded aluminum, powder coated chrome
2015
14.5"H x 9"W x 5"D
Photography by Doug Burg

This piece is a response to the transitional tectonics and nature of the cultural landscape. Contour lines angle and change directions to form an architecture of triangular shapes or plates. These plates stack, layer, and off-set to suggest a balanced or unbalanced structure depending on your perspective—the whole piece becomes richer than the sum of individual parts. The imperfection of the welds and reflective surface help viewers to focus on their experience.

This piece is to some extent inspired by Herbert Bayer’s Leaning Spiral Tower. However, ironically, this piece seems to suggests a kind of:

“transautomatism”, which was a term used by artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser Regentag (1928–2000)(1).

1. Calvin Seerveld, Setting Things Right, CIVA Seen, 2013. 5.

Read More......

“I AM American” art exhibit on display in the Dordt College

The Dordt College Campus Center Art Gallery will feature an exhibition titled “I AMerican,” curated by artist Sergio Gomez, whose work was recently featured at Dordt. The show, which explores the meaning of being an American, will run from November 12 to January 3, with a reception scheduled for November 16, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. The Gallery Talk at 6:45 p.m. will feature Rikki Heldt, Instructor of Language Studies and Abby Foreman, Associate Professor of Social Work.

Gomez says that “‘I AM American’ tells the story of many of us. As a Mexican immigrant, now naturalized American, my story is part of the collective story of this great nation.”  “I AM American” is not an exhibition about immigrants only, however. Some of the artists in the show have been born in the United States and some can even trace their history back to the American Indians.

“‘I AM American’ aims to engage the viewer in a conversation about the complexities of the American experience,” says Gomez. Participating artists use a variety of styles, visual forms, symbols, and metaphors to provide a window into the multi-cultural experience and suggest an answer to the question: Who is an American? Some works directly approach the theme of identity while others delve into the American experience.

Participating artists include Joanne Aono, Cesar Conde, Agustina Diez Sierra, Paulina Gal, Mario Gonzalez Jr., Salvador Jimenez-flores, Michael Klaus Schmidt, Chandrika Marla, Janice Meister, Joe Milosevich, InJung Oh, Joyce Owens, Steve Prince, Sally Ko, Marcos Ray, and Eden Ünlüata-Foley.

Read More......

A Dordt College Graphic Design III studio project

© Emily Visser. Poster Design
2015 
11 x 17 inches.
A Dordt College Graphic Design 3 studio project.
Background is a soft ground intaglio print produced by the designer.

Emily Visser is a Dordt College junior student.

“If you haven't found it yet, keep looking.”
—Quote by Steve Jobs

Read More......

“Accentuating Architecture: A Dordt College Architectural Alumni Exhibition”

Photograph by versluis ©2015

Dordt College is hosting its first design show in the Campus Center Art Gallery. The exhibit, titled “Accentuating Architecture: A Dordt College Architectural Alumni Exhibition”, will be displayed October 9 – November 9. Exhibit curator John Den Boer will deliver a gallery talk at 4:00 during the show’s reception from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. on October 24.

Art Professor David Versluis, advisor for the pre-architecture program and art gallery coordinator, will be arranging the gallery installation. The exhibit will feature the architectural designs of:

• John Den Boer (’00), Tower Pinkster AE, Grand Rapids, Michigan
• Jon Dykstra (’06), Alliiance, Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Kevin Zandberg (’92), MJSA Architects, Salt Lake City, Utah

Versluis says that the role of architects in the design of buildings is mainly “to study, research, imagine, solve problems, and give instructions.” This exhibition focuses on the finished work and shows the final built form with renderings, photographs, and floor plans. Included with each project are didactics describing the project program and design strategy.

The exhibition, celebrating 60 years of Dordt alumni during Dordt’s 60th anniversary year, also aims to help viewers consider why buildings are the way they are. The projects displayed in the exhibition demonstrate architectural design on various levels. Versluis and Den Boer hope the show fosters a deeper appreciation for the built environment and gives viewers a better idea of the role of the architect.

“Architecture means many things to many people,” says Den Boer. “Many see it as the intersection of art and science. It is a profession that concerns itself with community and inspiring people to be the best versions of themselves while simultaneously focusing on getting the smallest of details right. Architects have a duty to design functional, practical, but also beautiful buildings. Likewise, Christian architects have a duty to serve others and glorify God.”

Information taken from the Dordt College News Release.

Read More......

“Notable Quotable” — A Student Typography Poster Competition

© Jordan Harmelink. “Than the Trees.” 2015 Notable Quotable
11 x 17 inches.
A Dordt College Graphic Design 3 studio project.

Quote by Henry David Thoreau

Jordan Harmelink, a Dordt College junior student recently had a poster design selected for the Notable Quotable juried competition, organized by the AIGA Student Group at Southeast Missouri State University and the River Campus Art Gallery. Awards will be announced at a reception on November 6.

The criteria for design included a notable quote, which was expressed with innovative typography. Each designer had to be a student at a university in the state of Missouri or in any state that borders it.

Read More......

“Notable Quotable” — A Student Typography Poster Competition

© Vanessa Blankespoor. “Elegance” 2015 Notable Quotable
11 x 17 inches.
A Dordt College Graphic Design 3 studio project.

Elegance, is not the abundance of simplicity. It is the absence of complexity. — Alex White
 
Vanessa Blankespoor, a Dordt College junior recently had a poster design selected for the Notable Quotable juried competition, organized by the AIGA Student Group at Southeast Missouri State University and the River Campus Art Gallery. Awards will be announced at a reception on November 6.

The criteria for design included a notable quote, which was expressed with innovative typography. Each designer had to be a student at a university in the state of Missouri or in any state that borders it.

Read More......

“Notable Quotable” — A Student Typography Poster Competition

© Lance Wunderink. “Every film is a puzzle” 2015 Notable Quotable
Received an Honorable Mention
11 x 17 inches.
A Dordt College Graphic Design 3 studio project.

Every film is a puzzle really, from an editorial point of view — Walter Murch.

Lance Wunderink, a Dordt College senior recently had a poster design selected for the Notable Quotable juried competition, organized by the AIGA Student Group at Southeast Missouri State University and the River Campus Art Gallery. Awards will be announced at a reception on November 6.

The criteria for design included a notable quote, which was expressed with innovative typography. Each designer had to be a student at a university in the state of Missouri or in any state that borders it.

Read More......

“Notable Quotable” — A Student Typography Poster Competition

© Jordyn Visscher. “Work for a Cause.” 2015 Notable Quotable
Received an Honorable Mention  
11 x 17 inches.
Hand-printed wood type; cut, assembled, and printed digitally.
A Dordt College Graphic Design 3 studio project.

Work for a cause not for applause
Live life to express not to impress —author unknown

Jordyn Visscher, a Dordt College junior student recently had a poster design selected for the Notable Quotable juried competition, organized by the AIGA Student Group at Southeast Missouri State University and the River Campus Art Gallery. Awards will be announced at a reception on November 6.

The criteria for design included a notable quote, which was expressed with innovative typography. Each designer had to be a student at a university in the state of Missouri or in any state that borders it.

Read More......

Calvin College presents 50/50 — 50 Alumni in 50 Years

From September 8 through October 10, the Center Art Gallery (Gallery 1) at Calvin College presented 50/50 – 50 Alumni in 50 Years. The invitational show was curated by Director of Exhibitions, Joel Zwart and hosted in conjunction with the 50th Anniversary of the Department of Art and Art History at Calvin College. The photograph above is from the reception recently held on Saturday, October 3. Photographs by versluis ©2015.


The red sculpture is a piece entitled:
Boundless Spirit: A Steady Flame by David Versluis
Powder coated, welded steel, and aluminum base
62"H x 32"W x 23"D
2014

Read More......

David Versluis | Roy R. Behrens: a collaborative series of Iowa Insect Montages

The Iowa Insect Digital Montage Series preface by Roy R. Behrens:

David Versluis and I decided to try something. He has a collection of Iowa bugs (dead ones) of which he made exquisite scans at high resolution. He began to send me the scan files, one at a time by e-mail, with the challenge that I should respond to them by beginning to build a digital montage, using Adobe Photoshop. I could do whatever I liked. Then I would pass that back to him, in response to which he’d make a move—and pass it back to me again (as if we were playing chess). And so on, usually with five or six back-and-forth turns, until we mutually came to suspect that the work was finished. So that’s how we proceeded.

Beetle I Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Beetle II Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Cicada Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Yellow Jacket Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Dragonflies with Cicada Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Scarab Beetles Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Hoverflies Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches


Leaf Beetle Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Ladybird Beetle Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 


Cicada Husk Digital Montage (2012) © David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens
40 x 60 inches 

Read More......

typographer and architect juxtaposed: a version of ‘typotekt’

Antonius Kurvers (Dutch, 1889-1940)
Poster
Tentoonstelling van Nederlandsche
Gemeentewerken (Exhibition of Dutch Municipal Works [Utrecht]), 1926
Color lithograph; Van Leer, Printer

Gerrit Rietveld (Dutch, 1888-1964)
Sideboard, 1959 (designed 1919)
Beechwood, pigment
Gerard A. van de Groenekan, Maker (Dutch, 1904-1994)
 
From the Modernism Collection, Minneapolis Institute of Art

‘Typotekt’ is a shortening of the words typographer and architect and was a name used by Piet Zwart to describe himself as a graphic designer. 

Read More......

Henry Moore: bones that are still alive

Henry Moore (British, 1898–1986)
Working Model for Divided Oval: Butterfly
Bronze, 1967; cast 1982
Collection of the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
photography by versluis ©2015

The model for Divided Oval feels like it’s from a sculptor who was also a bone and joint specialist. Dr. Calvin Seerveld has mentioned that, “You sense that Moore means to pare things down to the essential bone, but the bones are still sinewy and alive, not skeletal!”(1)

The following text is from Henry Moore Works in Public:

Moore’s own words, although not specifically relating to the Butterfly, reflect upon the alliance between tension and enigma…

My sculpture has a force, is a strength, is a life, a vitality from inside it, so that you have a sense that the form is pressing from inside trying to burst or trying to give off the strength from inside itself, rather than having something which is just shaped from outside and stopped. It’s as though you have something trying to make itself come to a shape from inside itself…

I think it should not be obvious exactly what a work of art is on the very first view. If it is obvious then, one tends to look at something, recognize it and then turn away, knowing what it is.’

1. Seerveld, Calvin G. Rainbows for the Fallen World. Toronto: Toronto Tuppence Press, 2005. 231. Print.

Read More......

Iterations (a design process): John Ronan’s the Poetry Foundation

Poetry Foundation Building, Chicago, Illinois. 2011
Photograph courtesy of the Poetry Foundation.
John Ronan Architects (American, founded 1997); John Ronan (born 1963)
The building comprises:
• a public garden
• a 30,000-volume library
• an exhibition gallery
• the Poetry Foundation’s programming offices


Presentation Model, 2008. The semi-transparent screen in front is featured.
Basswood, cardboard, and Plexiglas
Photographs taken from the exhibition Iterations: John Ronan’s Poetry Foundation.
December 14, 2013–May 4, 2014 at the Art Institute of Chicago, Gallery 24.
Architecture & Design Society, 2012
Photographs by versluis @ 2015 unless otherwise indicated.



Diagrammatic Sketches, 2008
Computer print on paper exhibition copy
Architecture & Design Society, 2012


Iterative Models, 2008
Cardboard, paper, Plexiglas, and other materials
Collage and assemblage site-plans and floor-plans (projecting-up the plan views).
Architecture & Design Society, 2012


Precision drawing.
Architecture & Design Society, 2012

AIC exhibition didactics state:

For Ronan, the gestation of a design begins with analog processes. After a period of thinking the ideas are quickly sketched hand, or down-loaded, in a spontaneous and intuitive manner. This set of hand-drawn diagrams reflects Ronan’s initial thoughts about how best to integrate a garden—a requisite of the project—with the space’s other key elements: a public reading room and library a performance space, a gallery, and an office. Here Ronan explored different relationships—such as interlocking or overlapping—between the building and the garden, which he then translated onto the site plan. …

Founded in 1997 by John Ronan, the Chicago-based architecture firm John Ronan Architects has made its mark with a range of critically acclaimed buildings and a thoughtful approach to spatial relationships and materials. The firm uses a distinct, iterative methodology in order to explore a wide range of options at the outset of a project. While many architects have adopted a completely digital process, Ronan sees advantages in both handmade and digital design methods; the handmade process, seen here, allows for a more intuitive and less calculated approach that is valuable in the beginning stages, while digital tools allow for the precision necessary to finalize a design.

Operating on a shoestring budget since its 1912 founding by Harriet Monroe, Chicago-based Poetry magazine experienced a surprising windfall in 2003 with the bequest of approximately $200 million from the pharmaceutical heiress Ruth Lilly. The magazine reorganized as the Poetry Foundation and decided to build a permanent home to advance its mission of raising the public profile of poetry. After a thorough selection process, the organization selected John Ronan Architects to design the building.

For the Poetry Foundation, Ronan’s design process entailed thoughtful considerations about how to integrate the required elements of the building. As seen here, the iterative approach was used throughout the design’s development-from the initial diagrams and a set of site-specific models to the presentation model-with the goal of creating a compelling spatial narrative. Completed in 2011, the building was recognized with a national design award from the American Institute of Architects. 

This exhibition has been mode possible with support from the Architecture & Design Society. 

Read More......

Erich Mendelsohn: ascending the steps of Mount Zion—by design

Erich Mendelsohn, architect, (1887–1953)
Mount Zion Temple, Saint Paul, Minnesota, (1950–1954)
View from the northeast on Summit Avenue 
Photography by versluis ©2015

Erich Mendelsohn was one of the great twentieth century architects. His buildings are characterized by sensitivity to the site and very expressive of the buildings purpose. Renovational updates of various areas of the building were completed in 2001 by the architectural firm of Bentz, Thompson and Reitow of Minneapolis.


View from the courtyard with Sanctuary in the background


Sanctuary


Hans D. Rawinsky’s The Burning Bush (Holy Presence), 1960

Read More......

Erich Mendelsohn: synagogue architecture — an expression of purpose

Erich Mendelsohn, architect, (1887–1953).
Temple Emanuel, Grand Rapids, Michigan, (1948–1952).
View from the southeast. The automobile canopy was added sometime later. Photography by versluis unless otherwise indicated, ©2015.

Temple Emanuel in Grand Rapids, Michigan was one of the last buildings designed by one of the great twentieth century architects, Erich Mendelsohn. A distinguishing feature is how the architect situated the building to take advantage of a southern exposure so that generous light fills the interior space. Inundating the sanctuary with light becomes a celebration of life. As stated in Temple Emanuel’s website: “He [Mendelsohn] visualized a different approach when designing our synagogue. The tall clerestory windows high in the sanctuary allow natural light to flow in, and the movable walls permit us to divide the space as needed.”

The site rests on a gentle rise, which is elevated from the street level. The rhythms and proportions of architectural forms result in a building that harmonizes beautifully with the relative horizontal flatness of the site and verticality and energy of the trees.

Writer Arnold Whittick, in his piece about Mendelsohn for the Encyclopedia of Modern Architecture states that: “Mendelsohn’s work was characterized by a sympathetic and original use of materials, steel, concrete and glass, and by an expression of purpose through the forms of his building, .... His designs were always actuated by the principles of organic unity, so that each part by its character denotes it relation to the whole, and each building is closely wedded to its site.” (1)

1. Whittick, Arnold. “Mendelsohn.” Encyclopedia of Modern Architecture. Ed. Gerd Hatje. 1964. 183-86. Print.

The 1000 sq. ft. sanctuary wall mural that celebrates Light of Creation (recently restored) is the work of Lucienne Bloch Dimitroff (1909–1999), 1953. Casein paint on plywood panels. The mural creates a wonderful golden glow in both daylight and with artificial lighting. Photograph courtesy of The Conservation Center, Chicago. 


View from the southeast and taken through the garden courtyard.


Calvin Albert (1918–2007), “The Burning Bush,” Bronze, 1973.
The sculpture is located between the front entry doors.

Read More......

“Streamline Moderne” — Kem Weber’s style

Kem (Karl Emmanuel Martin) Weber American (born Germany), 1889–1963
“Skyscraper” night table, 1928–1929
Mirror, burl walnut, glass, painted and silvered wood, chrome-plated metal, cedar
The Modernism Collection, Minneapolis Institute of Art
photograph by ©versluis 2015
Modes and Manners

Read More......

Carl Milles: “The Vision of Peace” at the Saint Paul City Hall – Ramsey County Courthouse

The Vision of Peace (God of Peace)
Memorial Hall, Saint Paul City Hall / Ramsey County Courthouse
View from the third floor. All photographs ©versluis 2015

Sculptor: Carl Milles
Material: Mexican Onyx
Height: 36 feet, Weight: 60 tons

For Native Americans the ascending smoke from a ceremonial fire or the peace pipe signify prayers being lifted up. The following is from the label/didactics that identifies the monument:

This statue depicts five Native Americans [at the base] in a spiritual ceremony with their sacred pipes. From the smoke arises a Vision of Peace. One hand of the statue holds the sacred pipe, the other extends in a gesture of friendship—symbolic of the idea that with meeting and understanding comes the hope for world peace.

The figure [unnoticeably] rotates 132 degrees on its base (66 degrees in each direction).

Building dedicated in 1932
Building Architects: Holabird and Root
Construction: Ellerbe & Company

The left-handed God of Peace (right-handed in final version)
Plaster maquette made to scale by Carl Milles, 1930
The first three designs were not accepted. The image above is the fourth maquette submitted, which was finally approved by the commission.
From the collection of the Minnesota Museum of Art

Read More......

Henry Dreyfuss: design based on human factors

Design by Henry Dreyfuss (American, 1904–1972)
Drawing by Alvin R. Tilley (American, 1914–1993)

Designer Henry Dreyfuss’s suggestions for functional industrial design were based on human factors and ergonomics. As the graphic above indicates Dreyfuss carefully studied the proportions found in the human body when correlating product design and the user experience. The image above is taken from the exhibition Revealing the Body: The Art of Anatomy currently at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

The label for this piece states:

Three Basic Human Body Types—Profile, 1966
Black marker over graphite on gray linen

Anthropometry: in Greek, the word means the measure of man, but not only—it is the foundation of an entire philosophy that connects the human body, its proportions and movements, with the social and natural environment, and ultimately with the Universe. Henry Dreyfuss, the prominent American industrial designer, used the proportions of the body as a point off departure for his creations—for instance, he created the “Princess” telephone to fit the hands of teenage girls. His principles are deeply rooted in the core of 15th-century Renaissance thought—man is the measure of all things. 

Read More......

Dürer’s systems

Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471–1528)

Dürer’s suggestions for classical proportions in visual design were based on the ratios he found in the human body. The image above is taken from the exhibition Revealing the Body: The Art of Anatomy currently at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The label for this piece states:

Hjerin sind begriffen vier Bücher von menschlichen Proportion 
(Four books on human proportion)
Nürenberg: Hieronymus Formschneyder, 1528

Dürer’s systems were mathematical: Single parts of the body were measured and a ratio obtained, relating each of them to the total height. Another method was to divide the figure’s height into six parts, which could be used as modules for the construction of the whole being. Dürer’s manuscripts, published only after his death, set a trend and were imitated throughout the 16th century.

Read More......

Speed and motion: a Piet Zwart photograph

Piet (Pieter) Zwart (Dutch, 1885-1977)
Locomotie, 1928
Gelatin silver print

This is just one of the wonderful photographic prints in the 100+ photography exhibition at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The show is one of the events which commemorates the 100th anniversary of the MIA this year.

Read More......

Alvar Aalto’s “Paimio” chair: a chair with just the essential parts

Alvar Aalto (Finnish, 1898-1976)
“Paimio” chair, c. 1932
Laminated birch, bent plywood
Collection of the Minneapolis Art Institute

The following information is taken from the MIA exhibition label:

“A Finnish architect and designer, Alvar Aalto is best known today for his furniture design. This chair, one of his earliest designs, was made for the Paimio Tuberculosis Sanatorium in southwest Finland, constructed between 1929 and 1937. Using laminated birch, a material previously used only in the construction of skis, Aalto produced a chair that was extremely strong, comfortable and attractive, and could be cheaply and easily manufactured.”

Read More......