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Vastenavond

Group Project:

Joeseph Braverman

Cameron Carty

Jennifer Hegelein

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A mechanical interpretation of
Judith Leyster's painting, The Last Drop

Project Brief:

Create a mechanical interpretation of an assigned painting

Part 1: Painting Research & Interpretation

  • Research history, message & artist's attitude

  • Analyze geometry, hierarchy & formal attributes

  • Adherence to the 7 DaVincian Principals:

Curiosita: curious approach to life & learning

Dimostrazione: learning through mistakes

Sensazione: refinement of senses

Sfumato: embracing ambiguity

Arte/Scienza: balance of logic and imagination

Corporalita: grace, fitness & poise

Connessione: appreciation of interconnectedness

Part 2: Represent with a DaVincian Machine

  • Be fabricated from “hard” materials – no Bristol, modeling clay, foamcore, tape etc

  • Be fabricated from materials used in the 1500's (wood, twine, leather, no plastics)

  • Incorporate motion, driven by gravity and/or drive mechanism

  • Controlled motion, so it is slow enough to be viewable, telling story of the painting

  • Allow the viewer to activate the motion in a transparent and understandable way

  • Be robust, repeatable and reliable

  • Be three-dimensional: Max size is “golden” rectangle w/24” short side (approx.1:1.618 per Luca Pacioli in 1509)

Selected Painting:

"The Last Drop"

by Judith Leyster,
Dutch, 1692

Celebration of Vastenavond,
the night before the beginning of Lent

  • ​Emotional highs & lows

  • Excitement then numbing of senses

  • Dressing up then getting messy

Duality & Opposites Represented In:​
 

  • Life & death

  • Celebration & sickness

  • Binging & fasting

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DaVincian Principals

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CORPORALITA:

Opposite of Corporalita is represented:

  • Alcohol unbalances & poisons the body

  • Drinking destructively right out of the bottle rather than paced gracefully

  • Disorienting swirling & circular motions

  • Climax of the night- his will giving in & falling into the comfort of intoxication

  • Intoxication often leads to physical illness & vomiting

SENSAZIONE:

Same activity - dichotomy in the stage of their senses

  • Intoxication heightens then depresses the senses

  • Blue character is at the stage of heavy drinking that dulls and numbs senses

  • Red character is at the stage of merry, loud, obnoxious drunkenness

  • Disorienting dizziness of sight and balance

  • Loud crash for the chaos ending the night

  • Show the passage of time audibly as well as visually

Concept Sketching & Mock-ups

"Lights Out"

"Back to the Mud"

"Time Keeps Turning"

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"The Great Leveler"

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Selected Design Direction

Next Model Iterations

Design Challenges:

  • Balancing the counterweight of the jaw

  • Creating a successful wire spiral

  • Designing a continuous flow of marbles

  • Implementing aesthetics from the painting

  • Remaking the skull

Fabrication Details

The Vastenavond

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