Inhabited Space and Materiality
 Project #2

Process Documentation of Pattern Making Project

Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens)

 

Animal Research:

 

• The shades of blue, turquoise, and green are slightly iridescent and can appear to change color with different lighting conditions or viewing angles
• consists of long hexagon scales and long flowy fins
• consists of multiple colors

 

Bristol Paper 2D templates:

 

Photos of 5 brainstorm designs:

 

Final Bristol iteration taped up worn on the body:

I decided to choose this vest-like structure because it had the most stable and comfortable fit to the curves of the body. It seemed most practical and functional. There are also a balance and diversity through the combination of different scales and types of the hexagon pyramids including both 2D and 3D.

 

Muslin experimental iteration:

Through the muslin model making, I decided to construct the final piece without the base which wasn’t my initial idea when making the Bristol paper models. I think leaving the base off gives the piece more flexibility, mimicking the flowy texture of the fins. I also attempted to put wires in the models to give more structure. However, I decided not to when I realized I wanted the piece to be more flexible.

 

Materials:

For the material, I decided to use two different colored denim to mimic the different tinted blues of the fish. The flowy fin texture was also interpreted through the thinness and flexibility of the denim. The material was also the most challenging part of the project because the denim was very stretchy and therefore hard to control. However, I am overall satisfied that I used what I already had to construct this piece.

 

Final: