A PORTFOLIO FOR THE APPLICATION TO ARCHITECTURE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER, SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

Why do I want to study at the Manchester School of Architecture?

After hearing about the university and its opportunities for architects during the ‘UCAS event,’ I was enticed to study here to experience the combined facilities provided by the 2 Universities which will allow for creativity to be shared along with many other students, being able to help each other and elevate ideas. I also hope to find and tackle more intriguing challenges in terms of the technology used in an Architectural context. After reading some of the alumni profiles and discovering how great their experience was, I was enthusiastic about coming to this University to have a similar experience. I believe that the University of Manchester will set me on the right path and provide me with the necessary skills and even more to help me achieve a future within this field.  

A review of a recent building I visited:

During the summer holiday, I visited the CN tower in Canada and it’s distinct and identifiable as a landmark. I was intrigued by the interior designs, particularly the use of the area provided. They keep everything sleek and provide multiple areas to relax while having a lot of open space for tourists to walk around and take photos. I personally like the design as well as the location, as it provides a view of both the city and the surrounding “Lake Ontario”.

My favourite architect and building:

Rafael Vinoly was an architect whom I discovered through curiosity about his creation of the “Walkie Talkie tower” (20 Fenchurch Street). I then found out that his designs are one of a kind. This is the case with Laguna Garzón Bridge as I had never seen someone design a circular bridge, which was created to force drivers to slow down and provide multiple areas for people to walk across. Additionally, the Samsung Jong-Ro Tower is another example of the rare designs and creativity he proves himself to be. He doesn’t seem to stick to a given design and breaks the mould which also inspires me to follow a similar path. 

A work of architecture that I would like to experience in person:

Although it has not yet been made, I am captivated by the plans shown by Japan for creating a wooden skyscraper. In 2018, the architecture group “Nikken Sekkei” announced these plans. This aimed to be an environmentally friendly building made of timber. The plans look eye-catching as it’s a unique idea that is not often explored. It indicates that architecture is continually developing and that creativity and innovation are core aspects in allowing advancements to be made.

Skull Studies

I was intrigued by these skulls and wanted to incorporate this into a piece, so I took some photos as a composition for a preliminary piece.

I then edited the photos to create a surreal piece and also make them vibrant.

I decided to do the piece in chalk as it provided both sharp and soft markings while also being very vibrant, achieving the surreal image I aimed for. 

Indoor Ruins

I wanted to experiment further with the animal skulls and decided to compose a scene where there seemed to be a ruin within an indoor environment.

I used a combination of watercolour and chalk as they both achieved different effects in terms of smooth tones and contrasting layers respectively. 

Comforting Home

I experimented with various lighting to produce a scene that represents the warmth and comfort of home. I did a sketch to practice the areas of shading necessary and did the final piece in acrylic on A2. 

Invasive Fears

I wanted this piece to contrast the previous one, where the fear of constantly being looked over is depicted through someone bigger intrusively looking into what you do. 

Land of Giants

I decided to continue with the idea of both giants and a dystopian setting by experimenting with destructive hands. This led me to compose an image where even the sky and planes aren't safe from giants. This piece was done in A2 in acrylic, with the smaller hand studies done in both pencil and watercolour.  

Break in Humanity

This piece focuses more on people and a dystopian human drama, involving fighting and killing. I also used graphite as I believed that it helped indicate the dystopian scene.

Fiery Sky

I wanted to recreate a view I noticed of the sky outside my garden as it was quite unique. I photoshopped it. so that the colours were more vibrant, and it made it seem the sky was catching on fire which caught my attention. 

Ruins

Ruins are an example of nature causing a dystopian setting, where they erode buildings and cause them to be inhabitable. This led me to recreate a building I came across in Sri Lanka by using clay, allowing for textures and depth to be indicated easily.

Dystopian City

This expands on the idea of creatures terrorising mankind but involves monsters that I was inspired by creatures others had created and wanted to incorporate it into a piece. I settled on using my street as a base and transform it into the dystopian setting. This A3 piece was done in chalk.

Rose Study

Plants are a beautiful aspect of nature and I wanted to capture the intricacy contained within a plant, more specifically its flower. I used this piece to better my understanding with shading and depth through the use of pencil.