Final Analysis

This design has been inspired by architectural monuments all over the world while in keeping with the painting and the story behind it. Of importance to the design is creating a cave like space which is separate and private, hidden from the rest of the world as the character within the picture is a hermit like person. The character within the painting is inspired by his work as a map drawer and he is fascinated with the lands topography and beauty. Therefore the design had to incorporate a contrasting structure from the organic cave that would help inspire his map drawings. Through careful consideration a cube like viewing port was chosen as the perfect structure as it would allow for the character to look across a beautiful and interesting landscape. The amazing city of Rio de Janeiro was the final choice.

The reason why Rio de Janeiro was chosen was because during the time of this painting the Dutch were exploring the world and therefore I thought it would be appropriate for this map drawer to be positioned in a new world city. Furthermore the topography and landscape of Rio is amazingly beautiful and unique which would inspire the map drawer. I felt as if it was a very appropriate site especially as the design could be positioned high up in the mountains with the viewing port extended out overlooking the magical scenery below.

The design incorporates a large cube like room which is made primarily of glass to focus purely on the amazing view below. The cube is huge with high ceiling to merge with the scenery around but also to allow for an abundance of light to seep through into the cave. Then one must pass through a cramped tunnel similar to mining shafts to enter the eerie cave. The tunnel has wooden trusses that act as obstacles which make it difficult to pass back and forth between the viewing port and cave, symbolic of the hermit like character which would prefer to stay in his cave. The trusses also allow for staggered light to seep through into the cave which I thought was an important aspect to incorporate into the model as it is a fundamental artistic technique in the painting. The tunnel then leads into a large cave which is the main room where the map drawer can escape from the world below him. The cave also has large irregular trusses that separate a room within the cave which also reinforce the beautiful staggered shadow look which is apparent in the painting. The cave has tunnels that connect to the outside world above which allow for filtered light to creep into the cave making it more homely relating the model back to the painting. Even though the cave and viewing port contrast each other to create a feeling of continuity and harmony within the model the cave seems to be engulfing part of the cube like structure which helps to create a wholeness to the design.