Colour Fun?

Look! Colourful Display Cases!

All of the display cases you can see with coloured bases are actual display cases we have. They're labeled, but the labels are only properly visible from some angles. I did what I could. The ATS-6 model is fairly obvious. The yellow frame isn't precisely accurate, but it's good enough to get the point across and look mildly interesting.

I'm now trying to model something more like what I was envisioning for the timeline displays. I have the model...but what about the colour scheme? 

Temporary scheme to show detail

I'm not crazy about this set of colours, in particular. It's meant to look a bit retro, taking inspiration from Atomic Era radios and a picture--presumably from the 1960s--showing the "office of the future." Where everything was vaguely coral coloured with organic white plastic edges I don't think I can even model, let alone build....The grid thing is a speaker, the black a small computer screen, so it can show videos or whatever. Heck, you could stick an android tablet in there and make it a touch screen interactive, so long as you fit it in there in such a way as to conceal the charging cable and all the buttons. I'm envisioning this made out of some sort of particle board or similar.

I'll probably slap 'em like that in there and let Steve figure out colours. Because I doubt he cares, since he was willing to go along with my randomly chosen pastels. I know the scale works, since I did the whole thing on a base approximately the size of display case E (the smallest one) and next to a 2D scale person, I like the aesthetic, I *think* I'm out of things to model.

Which is good. Yes. Very, very good. 

(Did you notice how many rounded edges there are in that thing? I have conquered you, rounded edge tool. I won, though you put up a valiant fight.)

In Situ

So the Space Shuttle cases are coded blue and gold, the satellite case a teal and gold, the antennae dark and light blue, and the timeline are this brown and red, like in the consoles. 

I also updated the map to reflect this a little better, as well as look good with the color scheme I grabbed for my final storyboard:

Colours from an early 1970s Punch Card Advert

My colors for this are stolen quite shamelessly from this advertisement: 

Originally found here.

My reasoning being that they look tolerably close to the colours in the actual gallery model--I'll be suggesting this scheme, no mistake--distinctly "vintage" when you slap them all together, and they don't look wretched with the PARI logo, which I kind of have to include. Win-win. Also, it's easier to take a colour scheme from a photo than a 5-colour colour palette; it's not practical to have a whole room with only 5 colours. Or a powerpoint. Or a floor plan. Or...you get the idea. I've also generated a few test schemes from various photos of midcentury modern living rooms. 

I'm also working on individual design briefs for each exhibit, which is an exercise in tedium. Also in minor self disgust, since my natural inclination is definitely not to use all active verbs, pompous tone, and to sound like some kind of end-all authority on anything. However, I feel like I have to if I want anyone to actually take action and implement some of my (I feel quite reasonable) ideas. I'm only asking them to fabricate, like, two things: A display for the LEM and the timeline consoles. I can redesign the former if I really want a retro look, but as it stands, I have two functioning CAD models for each. One is even labelled, because I want people to take it seriously too.

You can still change the colours, but I'm satisfied with this.

So I'm writing stuff like:

Satellite Exhibit Design Brief

Introduction

It is essential to contextualise the ATS-6 satellite. The satellite is large and will, with proper treatment, serve as a centrepiece or focal point of the room. Guests will appreciate the hulking piece of equipment as part of PARI’s story. They will be provided with the resources to understand Rosman’s role in its development, the importance of the satellite to the history of space communications, and how it served as a precursor for modern communications satellites. 

The exhibit will be dominated by the ATS-6 but will also include the small models of the other three satellites, graphics showing satellite orbits, and possibly a video clip showing the history of the ATS-6. 

AKA: This is a display case, a satellite, and some nice signage. It'll use the TV screen that is already inexplicably on the wall in that spot and it'll show a video that is actually relevant to the site for a change. That you already have on your internal network somewhere. You don't even have to take a clip if you really want, although I'd suggest it, since it's a bit rich to ask anyone to stand around for 30 minutes.

It's also worth noting that I'm probably starting to approach the limits of my computer to render this model--it probably wants more RAM. I think I'll see about upgrading it before school starts, because I wouldn't be surprised if my experience with SketchUp results in my having to use this program again. It isn't such a bad thing, but my computer really is getting a little annoyed with me.

I did have a meeting today and Steve finally said what he wants me to design for that third room--which is currently empty except for a 100cm by 75cm sandbox. I shall continue my private grumblings about "it's not really that easy"... C'est la vie. He wants to expand our mini-interactive for APDA into a full scale exhibit about the plate repository, preferably involving our own citizen science project wherein we crowdsource stellar spectral classifications. (I think I actually suggested that in an email...whatever. Means I've already had it in the back of my mind.) He also liked my suggestions regarding colour scheme and so on. He wanted me to show Ben the Intern Coordinator (not Ben the Intern--it's confusing) what I've been up to and was complementary enough that I can't get too annoyed.

Which was probably the point. Ah well. I have gotten a ton faster with SketchUp, and it doesn't take prohibitively long to model things anymore. Also video games have given me some lovely shortcuts for making things look like better models than they actually are. Case in point: The ATS-6. It's a box with photos slapped on the appropriate sides and some minor detailing so it doesn't look totally flat.

Looks impressive. Is box with feet.

The angled yellow bits were surprisingly difficult/annoying, but since those are the only details in the whole freaking model, it's not that huge of a time sink. It's not like I'm modelling every detail of Mir or something.

PLEASE NOBODY TELL STEVE I SAID THAT HE'LL GET IDEAS!!