Two-Fold Entry: Chair Progress and Turning 21

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It has been about a week since I got home from the study tour. Immediately I started pouring my time into the studio. On average I spent about 9 hours there every day since July 21st.
During the first weekend I was trying to refine my 'X' concept and make it more sturdy and 'possible' to fabricate since that was the issue when I first presented it. The X frame under the seat became 3 or 4 legs (I went back and forth through many different configurations) and the seat became more of a chevron shape. Feedback from Monday resulted in technical alterations. Tuesdays critique resulted in proportional adjustments. Wednesday I was feeling my chair was pretty refined and ready to be drawn in 1:1 scale. (1:1 scale working drawings were due yesterday, July 30th.) Thursday I had drawn my chair as clearly as possible in 1:4 scale so that drawing 1:1 would be easier since I've never done that with such a large object before. Around 5 pm Bjørli and his 2 cabinet-maker consultants came around to check up on me and they cut up my model and reglued parts of it and tried to make it more pleasing to them by rearranging things. It reminded me of the scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey where the monkey is bashing the pile of bones with one big bone. One of the cabinet-makers, Gudmunder, asked "What was your initial concept? Where did this last design first come from?" I showed him my drawing for the X chair and together the guys were like "Wooow, why haven't you done that?" Inside, my jaw dropped. That evening I was back at the drawing board, literally. All day Friday the 3 guys would come up to my table, look at my progress and tell me the most confusing things. Them not being able to agree with each other was a big part of the confusion. Bjørli was coercing me to make a stool and I flat out told him I had no desire to make a stool. I didn't even want to do the X chair anymore. I had fallen out of love with the X and onward with the V. Friday evening, they were gone and I still had no design and 1:1 working drawings due Monday. Saturday morning I decided to find a medium between my favorite chair and the stool they wanted me to make. Saturday was designing and figuring out dimensions and all day Sunday I was working on my 1:1 and also writing a paper I had neglected.
I'm going to cut to the chase and let you know that I have my design and it is drawn 1:1 and today, Tuesday I am going to measure everything out of my plank of wood, which is literally a plank with the bark still on the edges, and CUT! YES! I am really excited. It was a frustrating week and I had put a lot of time into figuring out my chair thinking I could be ahead or at least around where everyone else is but I am one day behind.

Besides wrestling with a chair all last week, I also turned 21! It was on Tuesday and I had no real expectations for the day so all the emails, cards, and packages were GREATLY appreciated. It really made my day. Also it was amazing how many people in studio knew it was my birthday. That night, after 4 days of chair cramming and 21 years of living on planet earth, we decided to go to the Moose near the center of Copenhagen. My friend Ryan from Pratt came out with some of the Architecture kids. People kept buying me drinks throughout the night. I would have a couple sips and give them away to other friends, haha! I had fun hanging out and seeing people that I haven't seen in a while (not in the furniture program). It happened to be my friend David's birthday the next day so we all stayed there as the evening segued into his big day. On Wednesday, David and I decided an American style dinner, with all our friends would be a nice break from the constant shawarma and hot dog intake. Everyone looked like they had delicious burgers. I ordered a tough New York Style steak, oh well. Afterwards we all kinda just roamed down Nyhavn, got some ice cream and that was pretty much it. Wee! I feel the same!

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Photos

Trying to be cool riding the birthday bus
Actually, it's just the 6A, the bus that takes us dowtown. Here we are (that's Mike from RIT) on our way to the Moose.

Sketchbook Progress on the X Stool
More stool iterations.

Trying to be cool riding the birthday bus
Actually, it's just the 6A, the bus that takes us dowtown. Here we are on our way to the Moose.

The prettiest rainbow I've ever seen.
July 29th, Sunday