UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI
Date:______
I, ______, hereby submit this work as part of the requirements for the degree of: in:
It is entitled:
This work and its defense approved by:
Chair: ______
Fixations in Sentiment: A Comparative Study of Techniques and Attitudes of Making in Apparel Construction and Architecture
A thesis sumittted to: The Division of Research and Advanced Studies of The University of Cincinnati
In partial fulfi llment of the degree requirements of: Master of Architecture
In: The School of Architecture and Interior Design
Of: The College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning
2006
By: Emily Wray B.S. Arch., University of Cincinnati, 2004
Committee Chairs: Aarati Kanekar Gordon Simmons Terry Boling Abstract
The comparison between architecture and textiles has been undertaken for centuries. In addition, architects have often i explored the metaphor of building as dressing and architecture as clothing. Clothing can be compared to building as an assemblage of materials with certain properties and inherent limitations that lend themselves to being constructed in a certain way -- it is an object of everyday use and wear that through dressing and undressing, one is aware of the function, methods, and workmanship of its construction. Apparel construction has a strong existing tectonic language/set of norms for the treatment of materials and an attitude about the making of a garment that become apparent in these details -- exploitative of workmanship, function, response to the body and memory of the body contained within. This thesis pro- poses that these techniques and attitudes can provide an approach to the treatment of materials and details of building construction. By cataloguing basic materials and methods of apparel construction and investigating how these techniques are used and exploited -- becoming important to the garment and the wearer -- this thesis will establish a background for an approach to the making of a building. ii Acknowledgements
Many thanks to my committee: Aarati Kanekar, Gordon Simmons and Terry Boling for their valuable time and much es- iii teemed criticism. Also, thanks to Doug Houser for his time and enthusiastic generosity. Much of my understanding of the existing building and site addressed herein would be lacking were it not for him sharing images and historical knowledge of the city of Maplewood. Finally, I would like to recognize my parents for their support and help with editing and idea clarifi cation, site measurements and building documentation. Table of Contents
List of Illustrations 2 Introduction 5 The Blue Jean and Corset 8 Introduction to Catalog 13 Catalog: The Making of a Garment, Garment Components 14 Catalog Index 14 Raw Material: Wovens, Knits 15 Fit: Pattern, Darts, and their Equivalents 22 Stitches, Seams and their Equivalents 28 Surface Manipulation 35 Finishing 41 Repair/Mending 43 Conclusion 47 Site and Building History 48 Existing Building Conditions 51 Program Description 53 Design Process Diagrams 57 Bibliography 60 List of Illustrations
Fig. 1-3 pg. 12 - Hart, Avril. Historical Fashion in Detail: The 17th and 18th Centuries. (London. V&A Publications, 1998.), 2 p. 33. Fig. 4 pg. 12 - Victoria’ Secret online catalog. November 5, 2005.
Western architecture historically has compared architecture to clothing. Since Vitruvius and possibly earlier, the metaphor 5 of architecture as clothing has been explored. Adolf Loos identifi ed architecture with clothing, describing dress as a basic shelter. He proposed that in the beginning was dressing and that the means and aesthetics of dwelling could be under-
stood through the textiles of dressing and then applied to architecture to “sustain these principles in built form.”1 Other scholars such as Semper have also written extensively on textiles and architecture. For example, Semper proposed that clothing extends itself across time into forms of large-scale enclosure (building) and that the origin of all built form was textile production, with the knot was the primordial joint. This became the basis by whixh he justifi ed ornamental terra-
cotta facing and brickwork as the “tectonic transpositions of woven fabric.”2 Frank Lloyd Wright also addressed this idea of textiles and used a “textile” concrete block system as an “all-enveloping woven membrane”3 for the exterior of some of his projects.
While modern architecture engaged in the discourse of clothing and dressing, it made a defi nite distinction between men’s and women’s clothing, and the discussion used the word “fashion” (which was given a derogatory connotation) in reference to clothing. Women’s fashion was considered to be excessive, frivolous, and fl eeting, and Le Corbusier, Hermann Muthesius and Peter Behrens likened building ornamentations to the “excess” of women’s fashions, calling for architecture that “could
be clothed in the spare functionality of menswear.”4 These architects believed that men’s “fashion” epitomized timeless- ness and function and was therefore a better model for modern architecture. Loos was preoccupied with male clothing as a model for modern architecture, and Otto Wagner was also in search of a modern that was “timeless” like men’s dress, ignoring women’s dress altogether in this search. In fact, he, like the other modern architects, used the word “fashion” to describe women’s dress as being cheap, false and expendable. In his opinion, that which was both “timely” and “timeless” was truly modern.5 6
Some architects were involved in women’s clothing design, but their intent was not to fi nd this “timely and timeless” quality of men’s fashion for women’s dress. Peter Behrens, Henry Van de Velde, Josef Hoffmann, Richard Riemerschmid, Paul Schul- tze-Naumberg and Frank Lloyd Wright all designed women’s clothes at some point, but their intent was to make “beautiful
clothes that allowed women to fi t into their designed architectural surroundings.”6 This could be also understood by what
Loos considered well-dressed to be: “[standing] out the least.”7
Semper’s approach to clothing and dress is perhaps more pertinent to this thesis, as it is not preoccupied with fashion and gender. In his seminal work, Style in the Technical and Tectonic Arts, he claims that, “architecture [is] not merely analogous to clothing but an art of clothing from its beginnings, or more precisely, the very origin of clothing itself.”8 He proposed that the beginning of building coincided with the beginning of textiles – that the fi rst means by which people enclosed and divided space were with interwoven sticks and branches, followed by woven plant fi bers, then woven threads. In distinguishing between spatial dividers and structure, he claimed that the two are not the same and essentially states that history of building in some ancient cultures shows structure not being a spatially defi ning element but simply how the spatial dividers (textiles) are supported.9
“Even where solid walls are necessary, they remain only the inner and unseen support for the true and legitimate represen-
tation of the spatial idea, which is the more or less artfully woven and knitted textile wall.”10 However, looking at clothing solely from a cladding-structure relationship standpoint is only part of how Semper addresses 7 clothing and building. He also looks at elements such as hem, seam, treatment of materials and dealing with ornament and function that may help to advise an approach to materials, fastenings, etc. based on technique. These ideas will be further addressed where pertaining to specifi c apparel techniques in the catalog sections of this document that follow.
The catalog will establish a background of materials and techniques of apparel construction to distill possible analogous connections for architectural application. It also suggests that aspects of these ideas are already present in architecture, and extracts further concepts that could be applied to building design. The sections explored include Raw Material, Fit, Stitches and Seams, Surface Manipulation, Finishing, and Repair. They investigate ideas about workmanship, function and ornament, memory of wear, structure and surface, and fi t in response to a body for which one designs. The result is a set of ideas that can be used to approach dealing with such issues in the building design that will be addressed. Before the catalog, however, an introduction follows to two well-known garments, the blue jean and corset. As functional garments with entirely different goals, both garments embody concepts that are explored in the catalog.
1 Quinn pg. 2 2 Frampton pg. 95 3 Ibid pg. 114 4 Quinn pg. 3 5 Ibid pg. 53 6 Ibid pg. 54 7 Ibid pg. 57 8 Wigley pg. 173 9 Semper pg. 247 10 Ibid pg. 248 The Blue Jean and Corset
Manifestation of some of the techniques documented in the catalog can be seen in two familiar pieces of clothing: the blue 8 jean and the corset. From the ubiquitous, casual everyday, comfortable jean to the more formal, fetishized corset, concepts of apparel construction are equally present. Both arose to suit utilitarian purposes but have developed into cultural icons suiting personal expression, and as such have exploited the details of their construction to respond to these cultural mean- ings.
Blue jeans, originally “denim waist overalls,” were fi rst sold to the miners in California as a cover for everyday work clothes. The material used to make them, denim, is strong cotton twill with blue warp threads and white weft threads. Its strong yet supple character gives it comfort and durability for needed for work clothing.
Double-stitched seams and reinforcing rivets, which are now commonly recognized components, were construction methods that arose as a means by which to ensure durability of seams within the garment. Seams were prone to ripping from plac- ing hands or other objects in pockets and the resulting strain on the seams. To ameliorate this, a rivet or eyelet was fastened into the seam at the edge of the pockets and fl y to bind the cloth that the seam binds together in order to prevent the strain from going to the thread with which the seam is sewn. Features such as this helped establish companies like Levi-Strauss as one that produces quality, durable garments.
“Jeans,” as they later beacme known, became so popular because of their comfort and durability that Levi Strauss had to come up with ways to distinguish itself from its competitors. Their label – a patch depicting two horses trying to pull a pair of jeans in half – was one way in which they advertised the garment’s strength, and another was the copper rivet. Other signatures in addition to the copper rivet with “L.S. & co.” punched into it, their standard double-arc pocket stitching and 9 red tab advertising, “Levi’s,” were details by which they separated themselves from other companies. They also did this by marking fasteners in the garment with their name. Another familiar Levis’ symbol, the double-arc stitching on the pockets, is the oldest continuously used clothing trademark in the United States (symbolism unknown), and before automated ma- chinery, each was stitched by hand.
After American western movies popularized jeans in the 1930’s, the pants turned from work wear into leisure wear as well.
Through the years they became an image of the “modern, convenient and comfortable,”1 the freedom of the American west, rebellion and sexuality, and they became a way for people to fi t in with culture as well as express their individual- ity.
The corset is another example of a piece of clothing loaded with cultural associations. Constructed of a framework en- closed in sturdy cloth and laces through metal eyelets, the corset was designed originally to serve the functional purpose of helping the body support the weight of multiple underclothes. Among the corset’s connotations, historically, were those of class hierarchy and identity, the innocence of chastity, and eroticism, but also the desire to mold one into the ideal fe- male fi gure; at the same time, corsets of the 19th century have been interpreted as misogynistic, serving as a way to limit the movement and power of the woman wearing it in attempt to keep her “in her place,” and as a way for a husband to exercise and symbolize his possession of her. Avril Hart in, Historical Fashion in Detail, describes the how the details of the corset evolve out of its construction… While [corsets] were a practical garment and not meant to be seen, their construction and fi nishing demonstrate fi ne crafts- 10 manship and an eye for decorative detail. The narrow rows of even hand stitching form the compartments into which the whalebone was inserted to give the stays their rigid shape. The stitching and whalebone follows the piercing and diagonal
shaping of the stays at the side – essential to form the curvilinear torso desirable.2
The visual and tactile appeal resulting from this stitching and lacing of the corsets was also a part of their “mystique.”3
The corset serves the purpose of constricting the torso and pushing the breasts upward and the rest downward, and the tight-lacing that used to be necessary to achieve this wasp-like shape of the abdomen required a maid or a husband to assist in putting it on. This act was thus in some cases a symbol of a man’s possession of his wife. But while possession was one symbol of the corset, it carries erotic symbolism as well.
The ritual of the corset, associated with the untying of the nuptial girdle has been around and culturally signifi cant for centuries. The idea that the “lacing, or the passing of a thread through holes, by a certain physical similarity replicates the
sexual act…”10 links the unlacing of the corset “with the act of making love.”11 This gives erotic signifi cance to the lacing and unlacing of this particular garment done by the lover/husband of the wearer.
Later on, when the invention of the easy-lacing corset which no longer required the aid of another to put it on and which may have watered down the erotic connotations with the piece, the potent sexual symbolism of the fastening and unfasten- ing was still such that it retained its erotic potency as a garment. Lingerie is culturally perceived as underclothing that alludes to the sexual act.4 While it is normally something concealed 11 from sight, the corset, like lingerie, also “implicitly alludes to the act of undressing as a prelude to sexual intimacy.”5 It plays the game of an “erotic attraction of concealment… [and] by delaying the sight of the naked body, [it] arouses sexual
curiosity, holding in promise the thrill of exposure.”6
In some respects, however, it is a chastity belt of sorts – a deterrent to sexual engagement. It is “sexual invitation and
sexual denial simultaneously, the ultimate in provocation.”7 A long-time feature of dresses and other feminine attire, the
corset, “connotes power, tension, release, control…it literally and fi guratively ties the knot of desire.”8 And its beauty arises not only from what is assumed to be underneath, but from the lacing and stitching inherent to its construction. The lacing that serves to cinch the garment around the fi gure is the way by which the piece is done or undone – how one puts it on or takes it off, and the experience of putting it on and taking it off requires consciousness of its construction, and is symbolically provocative. The corset itself thus takes on this erotic meaning. David Kunzle describes this, saying “The corset sexualizes the body in form and action; in doing so it becomes itself sexualized, in its material components and the
associations they arouse, and in the manner in which the garment as a whole is put on or off.”9 The materials and details
take on the symbolism of the undressing associated with the lacing/unlacing, threading/unthreading of the garment, and the experience of the interaction with the piece is donned with this erotic meaning.
These two garments, the blue jeans and the corset were both originally functional garments, and still retain some if not all of their functionality, but through integration as cultural objects they have acquired certain meanings. These meanings are then preserved in the details of the garments’ constructions, and in turn exploited as such. 1 Downey pg. 7 12 2 Hart pg. 14 3 Steele pg. 457 4 Ibid pg. 250 5 Steele pg. 455 6 Ibid pg. 453 7 Ibid pg. 451 8 Ibid pg. 451 9 Kunzle pg. 18 10 Ibid pg. 250 11 Ibid pg. 22
Fig. 1 Corset lacing detail
Fig. 2 Corset stitching details Fig. 3 Husband untying nuptual Fig. 4 Watered-down corset lacing still corset carries erotic symbolism Introduction to Catalog
The catalog that follows documents basic techniques of apparel construction. The making of a garment is broken down 13 into six categories: raw material, fi t, stitches/seams, surface manipulation, fi nishing, and repair/mending. Each section provides background information from the apparel industry’s perspective followed by examples of architectural projects that exhibit similar concepts. These connections are made not with the aim of drawing literal transferrences of techniques (i.e. weaving yarns = weaving architectural materials), but for extracting concepts about the manipulation of materials in response to a body around and for which one must design. Catalog: The Making of a Garment, Garment Components
Raw Material: Wovens, Knits 14
Fit: Pattern, Darts, and their Equivalents
Stitches, Seams and their Equivalents
Surface Manipulation
Finishing
Repair/Mending Raw Material - Wovens/Knits
An introduction to the fundamentals of fabric construction is essential to understanding the characteristics that result from 15 how a material is constructed. These characteristics, after all, set certain sets of rules for how the fabrics can be treated and assembled into pieces of clothing or other apparel. The fi rst elements with which the construction of fabric starts are fi bers and fi laments. Natural fi bers (length determined by nature) and synthetic fi laments (continuous length) are blended with others or spun alone into yarn. These yarns are then woven, knit, or matted/entangled into fabrics. The structure of the yarns – how tight and in which direction they are spun – alters a fi ber’s character, but still does not conceal the nature of the fi ber. Twisting these fi bers into a yarn holds them together and increases their strength.1
The fi bers or fi laments chosen to comprise yarns are picked for their performative or other qualities that when made into a fabric have the potential to yield such characteristics as strength, absorbency, how easily it wrinkles, tendency to shrink, insulative qualities, luster, breathability, water resistance, etc. A characteristic called “hand” is also a result of the fi bers properties. This is the drape and feel of a fabric, and a fi ber’s shape on cross section is partly what affects this.
The structural pattern by which yarns are interlaced/looped also affects the appearance, strength, and use of a fabric. The four major categories of apparel raw materials which describe the type of operation used to construct the fabric are: strand structures (interlaced yarns such as wovens and knits), matted/entangled structures, continuous sheeting (fi lms), and cellular products (hides and foams). Woven fabrics are produced in several ways. When sets of yarns are interlaced at right angles to one another, one produces what is known as warp, weft, and bias within the structure of the fabric. These deal with the directional strength in a fabric and are a basis by which one deals with how fabrics can be put together and manipulated. Knotting of yarns and braiding are also operations by which to produce wovens. Different surface textures and surface characteristics are created by alternating the balance of threads – how many threads cross in each direction. 16
While the strongest structure is the same number of yarns in each direction, various textures such as satins and twills are the result of alternating how yarns are crossed in the weaving process.
Whereas weaving is crossing yarns at right angles, knit fabrics are formed by rows of loops, and the intertwining rela- tionship between yarns is curved instead of orthogonal. With knits, successive loops draw yarn from their adjacent loops when the fabric is stretched. This results in comfort and hand characteristics which are not apparent in wovens. While knits possess these attributes, there are some disadvantages to their construction, however. They are more easily distorted than wovens due to the elastic nature of their structure, and this also leads them to being less dimensionally stable and more likely to shrink than wovens. These distortive characteristics make them more problematic for apparel manufacturers, as they can stretch and bow in the process of machine sewing.
Matted and entangled fi bers are different from knits and wovens in that they are produced directly from fi bers, not using yarn as a mediator. Fibers are matted together in a sheet with heat, moisture and pressure, and this yields no warp or weft – elongation is alike in all directions of the fabric when stretch is induced.
As systems, weaving, knitting and entangling have structure that results from the operations used to create it, and tactile surface qualities are a result of the ways in which the fabric was constructed. These operations transform miniscule homo- geneous units into larger, stronger units that can then be manipulated to produce different tactile, visual, structural, and behavioral characteristics. The density of the textile’s construction, its surface texture, pattern and rhythm all play roles in the characteristics of a fabric. Similarly, these characteristics can be worked with and against to produce desired effects 17 in a fi nal garment, and the products can also be examined by how they respond to the forces that act upon them.
1 Hudson pg. 33
Fig. 5 Knit fabric Fig. 6 Woven fabric Fig. 7 Various weave patterns Fig. 8 Knitting Toledo Residence - Offi ce dA
This residence is a timber frame structure with masonry infi ll, using plywood as horizontal bands between the stone veneer. 18
Such principles of weaving as pattern and texture are apparent in the textile-like skin that envelopes the sapces inside and acts as a screen in some instances. This skin was devised of a “system of solid but plastic membranes that deform in plan and
section to create both structure and the spatial envelope.”1 The coursing of the masonry, plywood strips, and the supple appear- ance of the skin all give the walls a woven-like quality. Areas of more or less transparency are achieved through tightness of “weave,” screening or permitting views.
1 El-Khoury pg. 59
Fig. 9 Stone vault at main entry Fig. 10 Stone wall screening Fig. 11 Image of house dining room Casa La Roca - Offi ce dA
Similar effects are produced in this residence as in the Toledo Reisdence. Once again, pattern and texture, along with 19 varying degrees of opacity for screening purposes, emulate the tactile surface qualities of a woven textile. The three terra cotta surfaces -- front elevation, side elevation and roof -- consist of blocks spaced and incrementally rotated to “yield special views from any location.”1 But due to desire for privacy in some programmatic areas, the skin also screens views on the most public face. This seemingly movable curatin is expressed as such with folds in the brick creasing the public facade. The wall responds as fabric would to the functional needs behind it. Individual units compress to provide an opening for light and view, and the entire fabric stretches as masonry units rotate to screen and control view.
1 El-Khoury pg. 93 Fig. 12 Compressed masonry units at window opening
Fig. 13 enlarged view of masonry Fig. 14 Folding brick patio wall Fig. 15 East facade screen wall resembles a drawn curtain Little Hall Renovation at Princeton University - Kieran Timberlake
This application of brickwork was a patch for an existing archway structure. Pattern and texture due to brick coursing and 20 direction eminate results similar to those of warp and weft manipulation on woven fabrics. Just as the structure or weave of a fabric yields certain different structural limitations or possibilities, the structural characteristics resulting from the dif- ferent coursings of the brick will produce different structural capacities.
Fig. 16 Patched archway Fig. 17 Patched archway Actionable Concepts
- A structure or system resulting from operations used to create it 21 - Distribution of forces from one unit through multiple units - Structure and surface one and the same, a performative material with properties such as insulation, privacy, ventilation
Fig. 18 Fig. 19 Fit: The Pattern, Darts and Their Equivalents
The fi t of a garment to the body is essential to its performance and appearance. Clothing is a way by which one can cre- 22 ate illusions about body shape, emphasizing or camoufl aging certain aspects of the fi gure, and fi t is the way this is accom- plished. Whether a garment is to be loose-fi tting or close-fi tting, body measurements are necessary to determine the size of components and the overall garment. These measurements are used in the creation of what is called a block – a pattern created based on body measurements to provide a basis for pattern design – and this block can then be used to generate patterns for drafting a garment to fi t the body. This section will discuss the pattern and darts as components of fi t.
A pattern is a starting point for fi tting a body with a garment. It is drafted pieces traced onto a fabric, cut out, and then sewn together to produce a garment. All bodies are different, but for the most part anatomically similar enough that a universal assumption about body proportion and size can generate a template for pattern components that will fi t most bodies fairly well. Basic geometric consistencies among human bodies – concavity or convexity or certain areas – dictate where a garment can be fuller or narrower. These basic assumptions allow a pattern to be designed around standard/ average body measurements and proportions, and these measurements – taken at certain standard points along the body – are a means by which to customize the generic fi t. Patterns are made based on a fi gure types (i.e. men, women, children, etc.) classifi ed by the average size and proportion for a certain group of bodies, and certain imaginary or ideal proper- ties such as perfect posture, symmetrical features, and unvarying proportions and contours are assumed, although these properties are rarely the case.
Patterns may be created two-dimensionally or three-dimensionally. Two-dimensional pattern drafting yields a fl at tem- plate that when transferred to a material and cut and sewn together produces a three-dimensional second-skin, as it were, for the body. Three dimensional pattern-making, or draping, involves pinning fabric to a dress from – a mannequin 23 of sorts that mimicas the intended wearer’s size and proportions – and folds, ripples, or other special draping effects are pinned and marked on the fabric so that when they are fl attened back out, the designer has a two-dimensional pattern for recreating what was designed on the dress form.
Patterns could be seen as a sort of jig containing all body measurement information necessary for the production or single or multiple garments. What is known as a “block” or “sloper” is an important component to the creation of a pattern. As previously mentioned, it is what one generates using body measurements such as bust, waist, hips, inseam, neck, etc. with those certain proportion assumptions of areas on the body for a given garment type (i.e. pants, skirt, shirt). For instance, a sloper for a pair of women’s pants would contain measurements such as waist, hips, inseam, etc., and would assume that the waist is more narrow than the hips, and that the back of the fi gure where the hip measurement is taken would be more full than the front to accommodate body movements such as walking or sitting. As a result, some extra room is accounted for – which is known as ease – to allow for such body movements. A basic block/sloper with good fi t for a certain person or fi gure type reduces the number of times a sample mst be made for various styles of garments. It eliminates the necessity for starting with new measurements every tijme a new pattern is created, and it provides a basis for generating variations on a basic style such as slacks, trousers or jeans for the “pants” category, providing consistent fi t in each pattern style.
As already mentioned, patterns are two-dimensional templates that when joined along seams yields a third dimension. Darts are a primary means by which the third-dimension and fi t is achieved. They accommodate bulges in the body by taking up fabric along an edge in a triangle-like shape directed toward the bulge, concealing this unwanted excess fabric inside the garment or along a seam. Darts are generally located in the areas of the shoulders, bust/chest, abdomen, hips, 24 waist, and buttocks, as these are the areas of most or least fullness on the fi gure. Starting on the pattern, darts consist of two lines that converge at a point which is in the direction of the area of fullness. This triangular shape is folded and sometimes cut along its center line and sewn so that the stitching lines match and take out the fabric in the area of the triangle.
Some forms of darts take the place of two or more along one contour or along an entire seam. Princess seams and some sleeves are an example of this. Separate panels of a pattern are curved in relationship to each other so that when joined they produce fullness in response to the respective contours of the body.
Fig. 20 Standard measurements Fig. 21 Darts take in excess fabric Fig. 22 Figure measurements and assume general consistencies in the above bulges their location on a pattern human fi gure Immaterial/Ultramaterial Installation - Nader Tehrani et. al.
The architects in this project used techniques of patternmaking, pleating, darting, tabbing, etc. for structure and three-di- 25 mensionality to reconsider bending plywood outside the traditional wood bending methods which include the construction of jigs/molds, laminating and use of high heat and pressure to make the wood maintian its shape. Their approach in this installation was to dry bend the plywood and fasten it based on the pattern created for it and joined in the tab/slot system they interpolated from apparel techniques. They constructed a framework to which the panels were attached that, when applied, mimicked a tailor fi tting the human body.
Fig. 23 Several joined plywood units Fig. 24 Detail of fastened tabs Fig. 25 Complete system wrapping an existing column Space-Enfolding-Breath - Monica Wyatt at Cranbrook Academy
This project is a thesis explored at Cranbrook Academy in which the student, Monica Wyatt attempted to defi ne a wall 26 and what it both encloses between itself and other and includes within itself. She explored notions of fl atness and volume by dematerializing volumes into fl at surfaces and also creating volumes from fl at surfaces. Using folding operations, she manipulated 2-d materials into the 3rd dimension to accomodate a body within, questioning space/surface (material) re- lationships; and in fl attening a 3-d volume expressed the space.
Fig. 26 Flat wallpaper apron Fig. 27 “Fitted” apron fl attened out Fig. 28 Brick wrapped in metal, then showing areas where excess mate- removed, and metal fl attened and rial would occur its relief pressed into paper Actionable Concepts
- Creation of space through manipulation of fl at surfaces onto themselves rather than joining of several separate surfaces 27 to create space. - Ease as a notion of designed-for fl exibility of enclosure and tolerance to movement/change of posture/position within a constructed shell may provide insight to the enclosures of spaces accounting for minor changes in programmatic use, be they static conditions of a designed space or existing building, or dynamic, use-related conditions. - Patterns as a sort of template designed using universals or average measurements specifi c to a certain model or fi gure type – or as a jig with all information about the body it is designed for accounted for within it – used for designing a ground for compromise between minor inconsistencies or deviations from norms in existing conditions.
Fig. 29 Fig. 30 Stitches, Seams and Their Equivalents
A basic element of apparel construction, the stitch is the most fundamental to any garment. It is a structure of inter-looped 28 threads that when executed in a series to hold two or more plies of fabric together becomes a seam, and this seam is the basic structural component within a garment. The stitch joins materials, secures them to one another, but can serve decora- tive purposes as well.
A source largely accepted as the standard stitch-and-seam reference book, the Reader’s Digest New Complete Guide to Sewing describes stitches, stitching and seams from both functional and ornamental perspectives. And according to Jacob
Solinger, every sewing operation must satisfy the consumer to some degree in both of these aspects.1 Style (emotional appeal), utility (function), and durability (life of style and utility aspects) are all ways in which stitches and seams are evaluated.
Seams are the structural connection that holds individual pieces of a garment together into a whole. Their rigidity is ac- complished through the folding of fabric inherent of the seams’ construction. While seams are categorized by both eye appeal and tactile appeal, these “style” values are subjective. Durability and utility, however, are objective characteristics essential to the success of seams.2
While a “stitch” is a single loop structure of threads, “stitching” is a series of stitches that may serve function or act as or- nament. It can join fabrics as a seam, or just encompass an edge of fabric as trim or to prevent fraying. It can also form a construction tack – a pattern of stitching used to join plies of fabric together without a seam or at points of strain for reinforcement. An example of this is what is known as a bar tack, stitching used in apparel such as blue jeans to secure belt loops to the waist band and to reinforce high stress points in the fl y of the jeans, among others. Top stitching is another 29 form of stitching that has both functional and ornamental characteristics. It can be used to emphasize construction details, as is seen in some double seams on blue jeans; it can serve to hold seams fl at – securing them in place so they don’t roll
– or can serve simply as decoration to add interest to plain fabric.3
An extension of the concept of the stitch is the rivet. It was brought onto the clothing scene by Levi Strauss in his denim blue jeans as reinforcement in areas of strain. It is a protrusion through multiple layers of fabric that comes in two parts – the post that pierces fabric and the receiving portion on the opposite side of all of the layers. Although it is not constructed of loops of thread, it fastens multiple layers of fabric together through the fabric for a permanent connection, and as will be described in a following chapter on blue jeans, takes on similar ornamental characteristics as stitches.
Stitches, the essential unit in seams and how garments are assembled, are not always permanent fi xtures of the garment, however. Basting stitches, for instance, are long, further spaced stitches that hold pieces of fabric together temporarily dur- ing fi tting and construction. They are easily removed due to their size and spacing, and are a better solution than pins in some instances for preventing fabric from bunching while machine sewing, or slipping out of place while it is being sewn.
The stitch might be seen as a “tell-the-tale” detail – where the detail “speaks eloquently of the method of construction.”4
Stitching and seams are the way in which a garment is prepared for construction, how that garment is ultimately assembled, and how this assembly can be exploited and emphasized. It joins previously disparate pieces of fabric into a unifi ed whole, and becomes an opportunity for expression of this union. 1 Solinger pg. 33 30 2 Ibid pg. 33 3 New Complete Guide to Sewing pg. 33 4 El-Khoury pg. 14
Fig. 31 Bar tacks reinforcing Fig. 32 Extra row of stitching is mak- Fig. 33 Bar tack attaching belt loop pocket and belt loop ing statement of durability to rest of garment
Fig. 34 Opened fl at-felled seam Fig. 35 Finished fl at-felled seam Fig. 36 Finished and reverse side of stitched belt loop 31
Fig. 37 Rivet with imprinted name Fig. 38 Reverse side of rivet Fig. 39 Pocket reinforcement
Fig. 40 bar tacks reinforcing fl y Fig. 41 Pocket corner reinforcement Fig. 42 Triple-stitched seam
Fig. 43 Pocket corner reinforcement Fig. 44 Variation on reinforcement Fig. 45 Basic bar tack as pocket corner reinforcement Offi ce dA - “Fabricating Coincidences” at MoMA, New York
This installation was exhibitied at the New York Museum of Modern Art in a series of works dealing with fabrication. Steel 32 plates were folded and creased to generate the surface. This surface attributes some of its rigidity to the folds in the steel plates, however, there are steel structural elements concealed within the folds that provide additional stiffness to the structure. The folds achieved in these seams were accomplished in a process that scored the steel in an offset pattern (as opposed to welding or bending the plates) to allow a seamless, crisp bend which was termed “stitching” due to its resem- blance to a stitch between two pieces of fabric.
Fig. 46
Fig. 47 Fig. 48 Fig. 49 Other Architectural examples
The following examples have been chosen to illustrate the idea of the stitch because they demonstrate various approaches 33 to joinery, the bridging of materials, exploitation of workmanship/craftsmanship, fasteners and other “stitches” possessing qualities on top of their function as a joint.
Fig. 50
Fig. 51 Fig. 52 Fig. 53 Actionable Concepts
34
Fig. 54 Fig. 55 Surface Manipulation
This section addresses techniques for manipulating fl at, supple fabrics into surfaces with texture, body, support and fullness 35 through the operations of hand- or machine-stitching. These methods are used not just for surface texture but to accomodate bulges in the fi gure or create illusions of fullness within a garment. Operations that will be discussed include: gathering, shirring, ruffl es, fl ounces, godets, pleating, smocking, tucking, and quilting/stuffi ng/cording.
Gathering turns fl at fabric into a bunched edge of mini-folds, producing fullness. It is achieved by stitching in rows near the edge that is to be gathered, and pulling the fabric along the length of the threads, evenly pushing together and distributing the fabric in the process.
Shirring is essentially a network of gathers that creates areas of puckers or ripples between two or more rows or lines of gathering. It shrinks the original fabric but adds texture and depth to the surface. Like gathering, it also creates areas of fullness. Almost accordion-like in effect, the areas of folds between rows of stitching accommodate expansion where stitched edges don’t.
Yet another means of altering fullness is through ruffl es. Once again gathered along an edge, its fullness is not contained between rows of gathers but is in the release at the edge opposite the gathers. The folds created in the gathered edge are released in the fl oating edge and this difference in concentration of fabric creates the ruffl e. The amount of body in a ruffl e is determined by the stiffness of the fabric itself or the stiffness of the fl oating edge. A stiffer fl oating edge can be achieved in a less stiff fabric by creating bulk within the hemmed edge. This can be achieved through the use of various applications of stitching, by folding the edge, or by burying a stiffener inside the folded edge. Also, because of the warp/weft/bias pliability characteristics of the weave of fabric, ruffl es can be gathered much more tightly – producing 36 more body – if operated along the bias.
Similar in appearance to a ruffl e, but attained without gathering an edge, a fl ounce is another means of achieving fullness in a garment. A curvilinear piece of fabric is straightened and stitched to another piece of fl atter fabric, and the free, longer edge falls as waves and full folds. The radius of the curve the fl ounce is cut from determines its fullness – a tighter radius yields more body, whereas a wider radius produces more subtle results. Another result of the fullness of the fl ounce not being generated by a gathered edge is that three is less bulk at the seam than would occur in a ruffl e.
Godets are similar to fl ounces but could be considered as fullness inserted within a fabric’s surface as opposed to along an edge. A triangular insert into fl at fabric, a godet starts at the narrow edge and fl ares towards the bottom, expanding the free edge of the fabric. As it generates waves of folds depending on the acuteness of the inserted piece, a godet is yet another means of achieving fullness within a garment.
Pleats, unlike gathers, are a more systematic and calculated folding operation which is often made crisper due to creased folds. When creased, the folds lay sharply, and when un-creased, softer rolls are the result. Pleats still essentially follow the pattern of the rest of these fullness operations in that they consist of a constricted edge along which fabric starts out as or becomes shorter than the free-fl owing edge, and this free-fl owing edge ultimately possesses the greatest fullness, allowing the body the most freedom for movement. Smocking, a pleat in essence, stitches the fi ne regimented folds of fabric to achieve texture, thickness in fabric, and an 37 opportunity for decorative stitching to secure the folds together. However, smocking does not solely exist as folds but may be comprised of patterns of stitching that produce puckers in a fabric, achieving similar gathered, full areas outside stitched points of constraint.
Tucks are yet another folding operation, but probably the most controlled of the surface manipulation operations. The folds are sewn from end to end and are either pressed into low-relief or left to project into higher relief. Very similar to smocking or pleating in some respects, it differs from the two in that the folds are sewn along the length of the fold to hold its form in contrast to being sewn along the fabric edge.
Finally, cording, quilting and stuffi ng are another way of introducing surface relief. However, the depth and texture comes not from solely the fabric itself manipulated by a stitching operation, but from a foreign material introduced into fabric or between fabric layers and secured by stitching. Cording introduces cords between rows of stitches in fabric and emphasizes these rows by producing relief within the surface. Quilting, a more functional application of stitching, is performed to fasten a top layer of fabric, batting (padding/insulation) and a lining together into a textile. It is a functional use of the stitch which is made ornamental by the design of the stitched lines of thread. Finally, stuffi ng, like cording, is produced by the introduction of a padding substance amid boundaries created by lines of stitching. It is inserted between two layers of fabric and produces areas of relief within it.
These operations have all dealt with producing fullness from fl atness or introducing relief into fl atness. While surface manipulation is generally more aesthetic in nature, it does relate to fi t of the body by introducing ways of deviating from 38 the strictly tailored fi gure and creating fullness in a garment.
Fig. 56 Counstruction of a fl ounce Fig. 57 Gathering
Fig. 58 Ruffl e construction Fig. 59 Shirring 39
Fig. 60 Pleating Fig. 61 Tucking
Fig. 62 Quilting Fig. 63 Folds of fabric stitched together by smocking
Fig. 64 Insertion of a godet Actionable Concepts
- Attaining fullness for space, depth, or texture through the folding crushing, or embellishing of a material 40 - Constriction of a material along one edge producing fullness in the opposite edge
Fig. 65 Elasticity generated through folds Finishing
While some aspects of apparel construction are exposed and exploited, the measure of a garment’s quality is in 41 some cases determined by its fi nishing and how much the inside is as well fi nished as the outside. Pressing, topstitching, hemming and some types of seams are among fi nishing techniques. While comparisons in architecture would be very broad and are therefor not addressed, the following operations are notable as they express a distinct attitude about the importance of craft.
Pressing (Ironing) is an important step throughout the entire garment-making process. The process of applying heat and pressure and sometimes steam to a fabric sharpens edges along seams, folds, darts, etc., encourages fabric to lay fl at along seams, and helps a garment to hold its shape. It is not only a fi nishing step for a whole garment but a component- by-component means of assuring quality and appeal.
While topstitching, as mentioned in the stitches and seams section, is often used to emphasize a construction detail, it is also effective as a functional type of stitching. It can assist in making folds or creases within a garment permanent, whereas pressing is essentially just temporary. Often present in blue jeans along pocket edges or hems, it serves the purpose of securing folds.
Hems enclose raw edges and prevent fray. It is often the last step in the sewing of a garment and involves either folding the material back onto itself or sewing another material to the edge to fold back and then stitch to the outside fabric. Stitching is either revealed or concealed based on the type and style of garment, and different techniques are used based on the type of hem. The depth and type of hem is determined by the amount of fl are, type of fabric, style of garment, location of the hem within the garment. 42
Some seams are designed with fi nish in mind such as French seams and fl at-felled seams. They are self-enclosed seams, meaning that all excess fabric allowed for the construction of the seam is contained within the fi nished seam itself. This eliminates the need for a separate seam fi nish operation, as no unfi nished fabric is left exposed.
Fig. 66 Hem Fig. 67 Topstitching holds tight crease Fig. 68 Topstitching along pocket edge in place on pocket edge holds inside poclet fabric in place Repair/Mending
When a garment is unable to withstand wear or when it has been worn beyond its capacity, it can be repaired to attempt 43 to restore it to its original function. Patching and darning are operations with this end. Darning is the strengthening or replacing of worn or broken threads of fabric by weaving or stitching in new threads. Patching, on the other hand, involves fi tting in a new piece of material to take the place of that which was either worn or torn away.
If the surrounding material of a fabric is in good condition, darning can be done to repair the garment. Following the weave of the fabric and starting in the warp direction, stitches are made in parallel winding rows, starting and stopping well before and after the damaged area. Foreign thread can be used, but one can also use threads taken from an incon- spicuous area on the garment and used so that the darn will match.
Patches, in contrast to darning, are used when a portion of a garment is too worn to be darned. A patch is either applied to cover a hole or put behind the hole to be exposed through the hole, and this fabric is then sewn or otherwise attached to the garment.
These patches and repairs are attempts to preserve the existence of a garment. They record certain memories of wear and habits of the wearer, receiving the shape of the wearer’s body, evidence of their actions over time. Friction against bulging areas such as knees or from items kept in pockets wears fi bers and color within fi bers away, showing wear. Stains, tears, holes, frays, and wrinkles are all memories that clothes hold, and these memories become important to the wearer.
Wear has thus become a novelty in clothes, jeans in particular. Whether the wearer artifi cially shreds portions where wear would normally occur, or whether these effects were simulated by the manufacturer before the owner’s possession, the il- 44 lusion that a garment has a visible history is appealing. This love or fetishization of wear and tear is evident in clothing. Where the stitch was suggested as a memory of the time investment of the seamstress, just as a gift bears memory of the maker’s time spent making it, the perceived value of time invested in the making or wearing of something (even if not hu- man time) is evident.
Fig. 69 Patch fi lling artifi cial tear in Fig. 70 Darning fabric Architectural examples
These buildings in San Gimignano, Italy illustrate patching to accomodate programmatic changes over time and episodic 45 repair. These patches hold “memories” of what the building was over various periods in history, and in some repects can be compared to a body’s imprint on a garment over time.
Fig. 71 Various patches over time Actionable Concepts
- Repairs respectful of the history evident in its decay 46 - New modifi cations/repairs distindguished as such
Fig. 72 Conclusion
This investigation has produced valuable comparisons between the making of a garment and possibilities for exploring 47 them through the making of a building. Issues of function and ornament, structure and surface, workmanship, memory of wear, and fi t, among others were addressed, suggesting that architecture’s historical interest in apparel is a valid curiousity. More importantly, the making of a garment and the making of a building are supported as sharing attitudes about craft and response to a body or space underneath or around which one designs.
The blue jeans and corset chapter introduced these ideas, using two quite different garments to illustrate how functional details of construction become loaded with culturally associated meanings which are then exploited within the garment.
Within the catalog, the garment components that were discussed included raw material, fi t, stitches and seams, surface manipulation, fi nishing, and repair. Raw Material addressed the structural and surface properties that result from the op- erations used to create materials. Fit discussed the pattern as a template containing information about the body for which it is designed, but also explored the creation of space through manipulation of fl at surfaces. Stitches and seams looked at function and ornament in methods of joining materials, suggesting that often the two co-exist. Surface Manipulation ex- plained the methods used to achieve fullness that can be used to contribute to fi t and textural appeal. Finishing portrayed an attitude about craft and an awareness in making that is applicable to both architecture and apparel. And fi nally, re- pair investigated the inclination towards preserving or artifi cially simluating the memory of a body within a garment, and suggested sentiment for history and desire for exploitation of it. This catalog of construction methods and attitudes will provide an important background for strategy in the design of the components and systems and treatment of materials and existing conditions in the building undertaken in this thesis. Site and Building History
The building this project addresses is situated along Manchester Blvd in Maplewood, MO, along the historic downtown strip. 48
Initially a subdivision of a farm settled by James C. Sutton, a St. Louis iron monger, blacksmith, and hardware salesman, and handed down to his daughter, Mary C. Marshall, Maplewood was the fi rst municipality in St. Louis County. Before the streetcar arrived through Maplewood in 1896, the subdivision was connected to St. Louis City only by the Missouri Pacifi c Railroad; but the introduction of the streetcar attracted many upper-middle class and professional families to the area. In 1908, Maplewood was incorporated as a city, and by 1928 was home to 250 retail stores, serving a population of only 17,000, and was one of the most desired suburbs in St. Louis County. Commercial activity was strong through the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. A large portion of the area retailers sold women’s apparel, hats, shoes, and jewelry, but realtors, doctors, lawyers, hardware stores, dry goods, and a few theaters and bowling alleys also populated Maplewood consistently, and some do to this day. In the late 1960’s a fi re destroyed Golde’s department store, a prime retailer in Maplewood’s downtown for years, and this, with the advent of the shopping mall and the fl ight of much of the population to newer suburbs further west in St. Louis County is believed to have contributed to the neighborhood’s decline through the 60’s and 70’s. A redevelopments corporation in the late 70’s and early 80’s wiped out much of the north side of Manchester Blvd, and erected a Kmart with accompanying parking lot on the 7300 block, which has recently been replaced by a Shop n Save. Maplewood was home to other department stores such as Woolworths and J.J. Newberry, the latter or which is the building this thesis will address.
A building seems to have preceded it, possibly built around the turn of the century, as the address was occupied in 1912, but a large portion of the building as it stands now was built in 1925 (possibly earlier). While the original tenant and use is unknown, the earliest tenants found were a restaurant, candy kitchen and shoe repair store. In the late 1920’s a furniture company moved in to the two-story portion, and although tenants’ names changed frequently until around 1943 49 it was continuously used as a furniture store. The portion of the building most likely built in 1925 was occupied by a J.J. Newberry fi ve-and-dime store. Around 1943, the store appears to have expanded to take over the furniture stores space, combining the two previously disparate facades to share a single storefront. After a fi re in Newberry’s in the early-to-mid 1900’s the tenant appears to have left and no occupants are listed until recently. The most recent tenant was a lawyer’s offi ce until around 2005. Until about that time, a large parapet covering the yellow brick art deco façade was in place disguising the original construction.
The building is located on the south side of the 300 block of Manchester Blvd, between Sutton and Marshall, on the central business strip of Maplewood. Manchester (State Route 100) is a main thoroughfare stretching from midtown St. Louis all the way to Kansas City, MO, which it has been since Maplewood was settled. Closest to Interstate 44, Maplewood is also linked to Interstate 64 by two main roads, Hanley Rd and Big Bend Blvd, making it very accessible to downtown St. Louis and elsewhere within the city.
In 2000, the population of the city of Maplewood was 9,228, with an average family size of 293, average age of 33.8, and median household income of $44178, but it is growing, attracting young professionals and their families with its central location and housing values.1 Good home buys and low retail rental rates and property values are attracting much of this new population.
Current businesses along the 7300 trip of Manchester include an interior designer, lighting store, rent-a-center, graphics imaging services, hardware store, café, offi ce supply store, hobby train shop, café/bar, specialty spice shop, optometrist, 50 café/restaurant, realtor, jeweler, church offi ces, café, ethnic grocer, sound product store, guitar shop, pawn shop, bank, and shop-n-save. With the exception of the rent-a-center, shop-n-save, and Penzeys’ spices, all are local merchants, and the area seems rich with local heritage. In fact, the hardware store has been family owned since around 1910, before which it was a theater. The strip is also home to a bowling alley around the corner that has been there since about 1920 or before. Also home to other bowling alleys and theaters throughout the years, the area has a history of not only retail and women’s apparel, but entertainment as well.
1 www.cityofmaplewood.com
Fig. 73 Existing building and its neighboring buildings
Fig. 74 Image of part of building taken in the early-to-mid 1900’s before damaged parapet Fig. 75 Large parapet masking original underneath Existing Building Conditions
51
Fig. 76 Existing building - north facade Fig. 77 Damaged parapet from roof
Fig. 78 Existing seam between two Fig. 79 Seam between front Fig. 80 Undamaged portion of parapet facades of the existing building and side brick walls from roof above Maplewood cafe 52
Fig. 81 Maplewood cafe next door uses ornamental limestone piece as graphic for cafe sign Fig. 82 Green glazed brick orna- Fig. 83 Limestone in parapet of ment on existing building existing facade
Fig. 85 Green glazed brick or- nament on neighboring facade
Fig. 84 Limestone water table and ornamental Fig. 86 Glazed ornamental Fig. 87 Brick ornament in neighbor- eave brackets on neighboring building piece on neighboring facade ing facade Program Description
The program for this building is a locally owned and run St. Louis pride t-shirt company and accompanying music lounge. 53
The store will have three separate programmatic zones -- the t-shirt store, music lounge/gallery space and back of house/ production and storage for the t-shirt company. The company makes heat-transfer t-shirts that will be sold in the store, made-to-order for the customer, but it will also manage larger orders through the back, doing both screen printing and heat transfers. The total area available in the existing building will be allocated to spaces for display, sale, and printing of t-shirts, offi ces for the owners/managers, restrooms, local artist display space, bar area and seating, and performance space, with production/storage space. Unallocated space in the basement will be left to accomodate future expansion.
Fig. 88 Fig. 89
Fig. 90Fig. 91 Fig. 92 Retail 54 Entrance 15 sf Check-out counter 40 sf Small-scale production 20 sf Display 2,800 sf Immediate Storage 120 sf Fitting Rooms 90 sf Employee Restrooms 160 sf Art Room 120 sf General Manager’s Offi ce 120 sf Accounting 120 sf High-end Consultation 120 sf Catalog/Conference Room 100 sf Mechanical Room 100 sf Total 3,925 sf
Lounge 55 Entrance 15 sf Bar 90 sf Seating 360 sf Stage 140 sf Restrooms 100 sf Mechanical Room 100 sf Custodial 20 sf Immediate Storage 80 sf Dry Storage 150 sf Total 1,055 sf
Production Equipment 900 sf Shipping/Receiving 100 sf Mechanical Room 200 sf Loading Dock w/ Conveyor Belt 60 sf Break Room 80 sf Total 1,340 sf
Storage 56 Production Supply 3,240 sf Immediate Storage for Large Orders 1,000 sf Retail Back Stock 2,240 sf Total 6,480 sf
Combined Square Footage 12,800 sf 15% Grossing Increment 1,920 sf Gross Square Footage 14,720 sf Design Process Diagrams
57
Fig. 93 Perspective highlighting areas along seam wall to address
Fig. 94 Schematic plan diagram Fig. 95 System engaging seam wall and fl oor, celing 58
Fig. 96 Material mock-up Fig. 97 Material mock-up
Fig. 98 Fig. 99 Materila mock-up
Fig. 100 Material mock-up Fig. 101 Fig. 102 Material mock-up 59
Fig. 104 Section/Elevation
Fig. 103 Section diagram of ribbon system engaging seam wall
Fig. 105 Initial ribbon concept Fig. 106 Detail sketch Fig. 107 Perspective sketch Bibliography
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