Journal

2 page of Journal 

Oklahoma State University

Department of Design, Housing & Merchandising

DHM 3233 Heritage of Interior Design I
Rubric for Assessment of Journal

Student name: 1 2 3 4 5 Comments:

Unacceptable Work Poor Work Competent Work Good Work Outstanding Work

Sketches possess
enough detail to
adequately express the
volumetric, light, and
textural qualities of the
subject

• The work has many
serious deficiencies

• The work lacks
depth of
understanding

• Appropriate skill
level is not
demonstrated

• Acceptable content
and presentation
technique

• The work exceeds all
stated requirements

• Good execution and
craftsmanship

• The work has been
explored and
executed with
outstanding
craftsmanship

•

Sketches have notes and
call outs with leader
lines and arrows noting
specific design elements
and attributes

• The work has many
serious deficiencies
• The work lacks
depth of
understanding
• Appropriate skill
level is not
demonstrated
• Acceptable content
and presentation
technique
• The work exceeds all
stated requirements
• Good execution and
craftsmanship
• The work has been
explored and
executed with
outstanding
craftsmanship
•

Written summary
follows guidelines per
assignment

• The work has many
serious deficiencies
• The work lacks
depth of
understanding
• Appropriate skill
level is not
demonstrated
• Acceptable content
and presentation
technique
• The work exceeds all
stated requirements
• Good execution and
craftsmanship
• The work has been
explored and
executed with
outstanding
craftsmanship
•

Written summary
provides a succinct
explanation of element
(ex: features are stated
and analyzed using
appropriate language)

• The work has many
serious deficiencies
• The work lacks
depth of
understanding
• Appropriate skill
level is not
demonstrated
• Acceptable content
and presentation
technique
• The work exceeds all
stated requirements
• Good execution and
craftsmanship
• The work has been
explored and
executed with
outstanding
craftsmanship
•

• Total points /20

Deadline: Any journal entry received past the deadline will receive an automatic 4-point deduction.
Journal grading: 10 journal entries @ 20 points per journal entry; 200 points total.

Journal

First page

About English Renaissance Tudor, Elizabethan, and Jacobean 1485-1660

Without drawing

15-6. Banqueting House and hall, Whitehall, 1619–1622

Second page

About Gothic 1150–1550 11-4. Cathedral of the Notre Dame; Dome detail, floor plan, side view, and

nave, 1163–1250; Paris, France. [Nave: Alinari/Art Resource, N.Y.]. building

Without drawing

APA style reference required

Oklahoma State University College of Human Sciences

Department of Design, Housing, and Merchandising

DHM 3233 Heritage of Interior Design I

Journal

10 journal entries @ 30 points per entry = 3 00 points total

Due date and unit criteria:

Each journal entry must correspond to the chapters from the following units. Note: Units with several

chapters receive two entries. Students must choose two different areas (architecture, interiors, or

furnishings & decorative arts) for analysis.

Journal Entry Number Corresponding Unit Corresponding Chapter(s) Due Date

1 A 1 August 28

2 B 2, 3 September 4

3 C 4, 5, 6 September 11

4 D 7, 8, 9 September 18

5 D 10, 11 October 2

6 E 12, 13, 14 October 9

7 E 15, 16 October 16

8 F 17, 18, 19 October 30

9 G 20, 21, 22 November 6

10 H 23, 24, 25 November 20

Materials:

 Sketching media (pencils, pens, paper)

 Word processing software

Objective:

Students will create renderings by hand and provide a one-page written analysis that refers to the architecture
elements, interiors, or furnishings and decorative arts of specific time periods and styles.

Project brief:

Develop 10 journal entries. Each journal entry will consist of:

 A hand-sketched rendering (fully developed) of an element from one of the three areas below

 A summary noting specific attributes that make it unique to the period; written summary must
follow formatting guidelines; please use the template provided.

1. Architecture

2. Interiors

3. Furnishings & decorative arts

 Public or private

 Typology

 Relationships

 Floor plan

 Materials

 Construction

 Color palette

 Facades

 Roofs

 Later interpretations

 Public or private
 Typology

 Lighting

 Floors

 Walls

 Windows

 Doors

 Ceilings

 Later interpretations

 Types

 Distinctive features

 Materials

 Seating

 Tables

 Storage

 Beds

 Textiles

 Pottery

 Later interpretations

Execution:

 Generate a rendering by hand (adding tonal values, hatching, and color, if applicable)
o Scan the rendering and place as a full-page image
o Overlay notes and call outs with leader lines and arrows noting the specific attributes

mentioned in the summary

 Compose a one-page written summary

Resources:

 Class textbook, OSU library, Internet

Deliverable(s):

 PDF version of work

 Cite references to all materials and resources used!

 Submit to the appropriate folder on Canvas by 5:00 pm on due date; Note: E-mail
submissions will not be accepted

Grading criteria:

 See grade rubric on Canvas

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Journal Entry #1

JAPAN

Architecture: Timber Construction

Corner detail, Izumo Shrine, Shimane Prefecture, Japan 717 AD

The Izumo Shrine in Japan is a Shinto shrine. Shinto is one of the indigenous religions and is the second

major religion next to Buddhism. While Shinto is polytheistic, this shrine is dedicated to the god En-

musubi, or match-making. He is the creator and arranger of relationships, even those of friends, business

partners and all other things. This dedication to relationships pairs well with this detail of corner joinery.

Japanese joinery articulates the individuality of members meeting at the corner.

Japanese carpentry distinguishes itself with advanced joinery and delicate planes. The many pieces

come together and from a relationship in the form of a well-crafted corner. The corner itself does not

seem solid, it seems as though it has be slid all together and supported by its weight because of the

absence of nails and bolts. Just as the exteriors are defined by modules within the structure, dark frames

are followed by light colored center spaces. The solids juxtapose the voids, large rectangles follow small

ones creating stillness and harmonious rhythm.

There are many forests in Japan, making timber the natural choice as a building material. The Japanese

pioneered modular architecture from their spacial floor plan layouts to their exterior facades down to the

finest corner construction details. Common types of wood are cedar, pine, fir and cypress. Each species

offer different characteristics that vary in color, luster, texture, density and fragrance. The use of wood

celebrates the relationship between the nature and the built environment, and this tribute to wood is

found in almost all non-load bearing moments within Japanese architecture.

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Journal Entry #2

GREECE

Architecture: Spatial Relationships

Monastery of St. Meletios, Mt. Kithairon, Greece, 9
th
century

The Monastery of St. Meletios forms a symbolic relationship of masses and space. The perimeter

masses surround the temple in the center of the courtyard completely. This arrangement both protects

and frames the temple. There are only two entrances to the complex, and the secondary functions of the

monastery open up and face the temple, further emphasizing the temple as the focus. This is a very early

form of spaces being arranged around a courtyard with meaningful functions in the center.

The perimeter is an introverted scheme while the centralized temple features many entrances.

The permeability of the temple is what makes this monastery so prevalent today. Also the balance of

scale between the surrounding spaces and the temple is pleasing. The buildings define the space within.

The climate in Greece lends itself outdoor gathering spaces and the orientation of entrances encourage

just that.

This spatial arrangement should be examined for more than the buildings, but for the impact on

the spaces around it. Today, this approach of how buildings encompass and create between spaces is

used in urban planning and development. Not only does this courtyard precedence depict how early

Greece uses space and form to unity opposites, its shows us how the interior space can merger with the

exterior. The blending of interior spaces with exterior experiences is often a goal of designers today.

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Journal Entry #3

ROME

Architecture: Facades and Floor Plan

Maison Carrée, Nîmes, France, c. 1-10 C.E.

Maison Carrée is one of the best surviving works of architecture found on Roman Empire

territory. The temple was dedicated to the two sons of MarcusVipsanius Agrippa, Gaius and Lucius

who were adopted heirs of Augustus. One of the most prominent elements of the temple is the 2.85 m

high Etruscan podium. The temple sits in a rectangle that is almost twice as long as it is wide, 26.42 m

by 13.54 m. The Corinthian portico, Italian word for porch, occupies almost a third of the building’s

length.

The front façade embodies a hexastyle building, or six columned front facades, with a pediment

on both the front and back ends. This symmetry allows for a centered entrance and formal progression of

spaces from the pronaos to the naos in the interior. The cella, or the inner chamber of the temple, is

surrounded by twenty engaged columns, six on each side and four along the back side. There is only one

entrance, which faces out toward the Roman Forum.

Although there is techniqually only one room in the Maison Carrée, there are three main

transitions between its spaces. The first being the elevation change during the approach. One must climb

up quite a few stairs before reaching the pronaos. From the pronaos, one then enters through the

threshold to the only and main space. This room is tall and dark, still and sacred. The journey back to the

ground is also full of transitions. The light from the street, the sounds of people and finally the rejoining

back to civilian life.

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Journal Entry #4

BYZANTINE

Architecture: Roofs and Facades

Basilica of San Vitale, Ravennna, Italy, 526-547 C.E.

The Basilica of San Vitale is a beautiful example of early Christian Byzantine architecture. The

church uses a centralized, concentric octagonal floor plan to reflect the octagonal dome above the nave.

The dome is 17 m wide and the height is 30 m to the top of the dome. The building is constructed out of

bearing masonry and domed roof tiles. The organization of the building is very precise. Byzantine

architects were usually scientists or mathematicians, and trained in architectural theory, as well as

practical matters, like construction methods.

“Though the harmony of its measurements it is distinguished by indescribable beauty.”

Procopious, a Greek historian.

The façade features byzantine round arched windows and a push-and-pull exterior. The projected

entry space can reorient the principle axis of a building organization to that of the exterior space it

fronts. The smooth façade is very plain in comparison to the bright and glorious mosaics found within.

The exterior walls are unadorned and unassuming of the colors that will clad the interior walls.

The roof is tiled unlike the roofs found in the Roman empire. This is a characteristic that has

carried on through the Eastern Orthodox church. This is what has set the Easter Orthodox church from

the Western Roman Catholic church styles of today.

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Journal Entry #5

ISLAMIC

Interiors: Thresholds

Iwan or Reception Hall, Alcazar, Seville Spain, 1364 C.E.

Here in the Reception Hall, or Iwan, is found the most elaborately decorated room in the palace.

This room features the finest of materials to showcase wealth, taste and status. Within this space were

once divans, ottomans, hexagonal tables and Persian and Turkish rugs with rich color. Even though

much of that furniture has been removed, the bold beauty of the Islamic style lives on in the walls,

thresholds, and ceilings. The decorations that adorn the inside face of the horseshoe shaped openings are

called yeseria.

The horseshoe shaped arches reflect the onion domes found on the exterior. They open up to this

flexible space that may have served as a dining hall, entertainment multipurpose space or even for

sleeping, if required. The building itself is a palace consisting of many patios and halls, all featuring

different architectural styles. The site was once home to the Almohades, a Moorish dynasty, and after

the palace changed hands, a construction frenzy added many baths and towers.

Islamic interiors use colors from decorative tiles, stucco, painting, and rugs. Typical colors found

are rich tines of red, blue, green, gold, black and cream. The walls are often cladded with marble stone,

tiles, stuccowork, wood paintings and calligraphy. The decoration can be applied in bands or panels. The

tile dados shown here are usually four feet tall. This paneling system is found in later interpretation in

the form of wainscoting in today’s interiors.

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Journal Entry #6

GOTHIC

Decorative Arts: Gargoyles

Gargoyle of the Shambles, Butchers of York, c. 1400 C.E.

Guarding the top of the York Minster in York, New Yorkshire, England hang a few gargoyles to

connect the present day with the distant Gothic past. The word gargoyle comes from the French word

gargouille, which in English most closely means ‘throat’ or ‘swallow’. The sound of the word is

supposed to represent the sound one’s throat makes while gurgling water. Therefore architecturally,

gargoyles are used as a spout to convey water from the roof, out and away from the façade of the

building. Gargoyles are situated to protrude out so the water from the roof will not drip down the side of

the building, causing the exterior stone to discolor from the minerals found in the water. Architects used

multiple gargoyles so as to diverge the amount of water collected on the roof out towards many outputs.

There is an element of whimsy and legend associated with gargoyle. The Catholic church liked

to think of gargoyles in two ways. Firstly, the gargoyles were said to convey the concept of evil through

the form of a grotesque. This was a great way to send a message to the illiterate or common people.

Secondly, Gargoyles are said to scare away evil spirits from the church. This legend helped to promote

the church as a safe haven from evil.

Gargoyles were first found in the form of animals in ancient Egypt, Greek and Etruscan

civilizations. Although there is much symbolism in the Gothic period, we should not try to read too

much into the meaning of the gargoyles beyond their function and legend,

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Journal Entry #7

SPANISH RENAISSANCE

Furniture: Later Interpretation

Custom Spanish Revival Sofa, 20
th
Century

This custom Spanish Revival Sofa is 96 inches long in a dark walnut finish with a carved twisted

rope carving and hand carved leather panels. This later interpretation embodies many of the distinctive

elements found in original Spanish Renaissance furnishings. Typically chairs and other seat ing would

feature a high back with ball or lead finials and spiral, baluster turned or quadrilateral legs with runners.

Unlike the other cultural Renaissances, the Spanish often use the spiral runners, like here in the diagram.

This may be because of the Islamic and Moorish influences also found in the architecture and interiors.

Materials include a lot of carved and stained wood, most often walnut followed by oak, pine and

chestnut. Decorative elements include inlays, carvings, gliding and even paintings. The inlay of ivory

incorporating stylized floral and geometric patterns reference Moorish influences. Unique to this

Renaissance is the wide use of leather and iron bracing elements. Panels of stretched and stained leather

adorn the interior and exterior sections of the sofa. The decorative tacks that hold the panel allow for

even more craftsmanship along side the elaborate carvings.

Cushions were also fashioned to fit the furniture. Today there are not may chairs from the period,

but this style is highly copied. It can be mistaken for being Mediterranean in styles because of the its

dark and heavy presence, but the ironwork and leather panels set it apart.

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Journal Entry #8

ENGLISH RENAISSANCE

Interiors; Plastered Ceilings

University of Oxford, Bodleian Library, Oxford, England, 1602

In one of the oldest functioning libraries in England is one of lasting highlights of the English

Renaissance, the elaborate plaster ceiling. This room was originally the library for the School of

Divinity. Records state that is took a team of stone masons 80 years of continuous crafting to complete

this beautiful structure. Another fun fact: this room was used as the infirmary during the filming of

Harry Potter. This style ceiling came from the Elizabethan period, which uses pargework. Pargework is

the plastering in of patterns over wooden beams.

Early Elizabethan ceilings incorporated small and simple patterns, but as shown here, they

become much more elaborate as techniques develop.The hanging pendants found here are reminiscent of

gothic rib vaulting. During the following architectural styles, the patterns become even more elaborate

using many interlacing carvings or geometric carvings of stylized roses, cartouches, strap-work, and

scrolls.

Many of the motifs found on the furniture and built-ins include heraldic symbols and strap-work

to show honor and respect for the family housed within. It was important for the English Renaissance

man to display his heritage in the carvings of his home or in the buildings he commissioned. Today,

ceilings in American are much simpler, only using decorative crown molding around the perimeter of

the ceiling. The fact that this interior style is used only during this period of time makes this much more

special than if we continued to copy it today.

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Journal Entry #9

AMERICAN COLONIAL: FRANCE

Architecture: Floor Plan/Lifestyle

Cahokia Courthouse, Cahokia, Illinois, 1737

This was one of the earliest surviving buildings in Illinois, and had it not been for its interesting

history, it would have been. During its original hay-day the buildings served, at different times as a

house and then a courthouse. Then in 1904, promoters for the St. Louis Worlds Fair decided to

disassemble the buildings and transport it over the Mississippi River to be a fair attraction. This caught

the attention of locals to lobby to repurchase the building and rebuild it for a third time in its original

site. Unfortunately, in all of the travelling, little of the real 1740 building existed, so during its final

reconstruction new timbers were used to replace the old wood.

So what about this little building resonated with American? It may have been the piece-sur-piece

log construction, which replaced half timbering construction during the last half of the 17
th

century. But

I think it has to be the wrap around porch and the lifestyle associated with it. The porch becomes an

extension of the living room found indoors. It is the perfect place to sit in your rocking chair and survey

your piece of land. This wrap around porch connects rooms from the exterior.

The porch is covered by a eave stretching from the roof itself, unifying the porch to the spaces

within the building. Practically it offers shade and protection from the elements. The American porch as

we know it today came from the colonial French settlers. It is not just the structure of a porch covering

the perimeter of the house, it is the lifestyles that it encourages. It encourages people to go outside and

wave at neighbors and to open the French doors us for natural ventilation.

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Journal Entry #10

AMERICAN COLONIAL: HOLLAND

Architecture: Later Interpretations

Suburbia, Anywhere North, USA, 1950s

Unlike other colonists settling in America who reinterpreted their homeland’s styles and adapted

the architecture to fit the materials on hand, the Dutch did not have to do much, if any reinterpretations

of their mother architecture. The new arrivals of Dutch to New Amsterdam and the Hudson River

brought with one-room cottages with stone walls and steep roofs that would allow a second story loft.

By the mid 17
th

century, the New England area was covered with gable-roofed houses. In urban settings,

the Dutch would build row houses, just like the ones they left behind in Amsterdam. Outside of the city,

the Dutch would build large farmhouses with straight edged gables on the ends or parapet walls.

Many of the houses built today use many of the same elements used by the Dutch colonists.

Centrally located chimneys, for instants are very popular and allow for the fireplace to be the central

hearth of the home. This concept is typical to our great American architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. Also

flared roof eaves that stretch out to cover the porch are often used today.

One of the more interesting features of this architectural style is its ability to lend itself to add-

ons. The Dutch colonial farmhouses are constructed in a way to allow for the additions of spaces in the

attic with pop-top windows to allow light in to the loft areas. Also the straight-walled parapets that act as

book ends for the building can easily host a new garage or an entire wing for the house.