Luke Paquette

 The first stage of the design process is to empathize and so the goal of your Personal Project is to try and solve a problem that someone else is struggling with. With the information you acquired from your client and some research you will then define the problem. You will then ideate, which is to develop a range of possible solutions, from which you will select one design which you will refine and test.

 Drafting is fundamental to how traditionally we think about making and often understanding things. The outcome of this can be seen in the layouts of our cities and square buildings and the furniture and products that fit nicely in those recto linear dwellings. We shape our tools and our tools shape us. (Marshall McLuhan). Create an orthographic drawing, front, side and top view of a chair, including dimensions to scale. Remember that the object lines are to be the most bold and the dimension lines the least bold.

With your Paper Cube pattern as basis create a pattern for a Cardboard Cube. Experiment with cutting and scoring the cardboard both with and against the grain and determine what adjustments need to be made to the pattern. Cut, score, fold and glue the cardboard so as to achieve as square a cube as possible.

Organize six square pieces of paper so that they form a cube. This organization of the paper squares, when unwrapped is a pattern. Now reorganize them in as many ways as possible to achieve the same result.

(1) Document your process and make sure that the final photographs are commensurate in quality to all the other efforts you have put into the design and build of your cardboard chair.

(2) Start by testing the structural properties of the material that we are using, cardboard. Make note of the specifics of the directionality of its strength and also how you might be able to join the elements together while retaining its strength. With the knowledge gained during our material science experiments with cardboard, design and fabricate a functional cardboard chair. Functional means that it is able to support a person or two. Take stock of the cardboard that you have at hand and develop your design accordingly.

What forms do the material themselves suggests and naturally come. In this case we are using paper which has a tendency to roll and crease in a controlled or an uncontrolled fashion.