Prizes for Memory Theatre Competition

Although the average grade was down from last year (predominantly because of the AUTOCAD stuff), the very best work was phenomenal this year. The range of interpretations and the ingenuity of both design and presentation were, at times, breathtaking and made this the most enjoyable marking experiences I have had. There are no official prizes of course but the selection of the best work is shown, with the winners, below. The judging has been so tough this year that I have changed my mind 10 or 11 times since making the shortlist. In the end I have decided that the only fair thing I can do is to choose two winners and publish them both in different chapters of my book “The Architecture of Information” which will be published by Routledge in Spring 2011.

OVERALL WINNERS FOR BOOK ILLUSTRATION

Ruth Dickie

This was a really tough choice! There were at least 5 serious contenders but in the end I kept coming back to Ruth’s Photoshop images. They are deceptively simple – based on the known drawings of the theatre and constructed from simple geometry. However it’s the overall attention to detail which really clinches it. You can feel the weight of the columns because of the shadow who has been added in the detail image and the whole effect is understated. The wood texture is also really well though through and because of this the image works well in Greyscale as well. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to create an image of this quality myself with Photoshop and SketchUp alone. This is the definition of publishable work. Because of the accuracy of the depiction it will be used in Chapter 1 alongside the full analysis of the memory theatre and I’m hoping to persuade the publishers to give a full page for both the detail and overview images.

Neringa Stonyte

It would be heart breaking not to publish this image. This is one of the most impressive pieces of illustration I’ve seen in any student work. The building idea is highly sophisticated and very successful and the steam-punk theme resonates with me. The more you look at the image the more detail you see. My colleagues loved it and suggested that, if I couldn’t find a place for it in my book then I was writing the wrong book! This image works very well with the introductory text of my book and on this basis I have decided to make if figure 1 and place it as a plate on its own at the beginning of the Introduction with James winning work from last year.

PRIZE FOR INTERPRETATION AND RICHNESS OF IMAGE: Emma Chong

Emma’s Photoshop work was another contender and was one of the few graphics which tried to interpret the richness of the memory theatre by adding images and bold colours. The only thing that prevented this from being a winner is the use of found images- I concluded that it would be difficult to get permissions for all the graphics included.

PRIZE FOR CLEAN GRAPHICS AND COOL CONCEPT: Jonathan Jones

This was a really interesting idea. Using the basic CAD and Sketchup models and linking them together so that they read in conjunction with one another. There is an almost Escher like messing with perspectives here. The image as reproduced in the blog doesn’t really do the original justice. The only problem was that the level of detail was likely to be to high for the book illustration where the print size is closer to A5. But I really like this graphic and would even consider it for the cover.

PRIZE FOR MOST BROODING: Alicea Rose Berkin

While probably too dark convert into black and white for the book illustration this caught my attention as a really stand out piece of graphic design which would have gone well with last year’s winner. The SketchUp model is solid here and I really like the inclusion of the plan at the bottom. There are 6th years who can’t do this sort of graphic.

PRIZE FOR BEST OVEARALL PRESENTATION: Emma Kirk

Photographic images often look good on black backgrounds and Emma used this principle to very good effect in her presentation. The reproductions don’t really do it justice at this scale but I have also I have included a shot of her Sketchup model. Notice the use of a mist effect to give more depth to the image. This was a really sophisticated piece of work.

PRIZE FOR MOST ARCHITECTURAL: Jaewon Kang

Jaewon envisaged his memory theatre as a real building integrated into a park like environment buzzing with people. The real triumph of this work is that he has developed collage techniques of integrating people, activities and contexts into his images which will be highly applicable in future design work.

PRIZE FOR MOST DIGITAL: Richard Breen
OK – so I’m really stretching the prize categories now but I had to include some examples of Richards work. Richard has envisaged the Memory Theatre as a digital archive and the themes resonate with my book. Most of the images are subtly executed and there is a lot of experimentation evident in the Photoshop layers and he’s managed a painterly feel by subtle use of transparency and wire frames from the model.

PRIZE FOR STUDENT WHO HAS CLEARLY LOST HIS MIND BUT IS USING HIS PREDICAMENT TO GOOD CREATIVE EFFECT: Nick Barstow

What do I say about this work other than I’m sure there is method in the madness – although I can’t find it. This was an extraordinary piece of design and graphics. I don’t know where this building comes from but I was bowled over by an hugely original graphic style. There is a science fiction genera waiting to be invented just so this building can be used as an illustration.

PRIZE FOR STUDENT WHO HAS CLEARLY LOST HIS MIND AND FOR WHOME THERE MAY BE NO RETURN: Frederick Jackson

To be fair to Fredrick this was one image among many other more composed images of the memory theatre it stuck out to me. I think perhaps it sums up my feeling when the making was done…