Their story, in their words…
For my Mark Evison award project, I designed and built Bloom, an architectural model of a multi-purpose community and learning space. I began by creating my own floor plans before developing them into a physical 3D model using foam board, acetate, paint, polyfilla, and other materials. The finished building includes a reception, central atrium, library and advertising space, classrooms, exhibition areas, music and drama spaces, and a sports and dance studio. I also designed the interiors, Choosing different flooring, colours,furniture, plants and decorative features for each space.
As the project developed, I quickly realised that it would be much more challenging and time-consuming that I had initially expected. One of my first challenges came when I drew the building to scale and I realised it was far too large to be practical. I therefore reduced the scale and redesigned parts of the building before beginning the main construction. This taught me early on that I needed to be willing to adapt my ideas rather than simply follow my original plans.
The project became even more challenging during the summer where I had several guests staying, which reduced the amount of time I could dedicate to it. The model was also accidentally damaged while I had children visiting, meaning I had to restart a significant part of the construction. This was particularly frustrating after already having spent so much time on it, but I decided to rebuild rather than give up. Through the the construction process, I also had to solve problem with measurements, cutting, alignment and materials, often changing elements once I could see how they look in 3D. As the deadline approached, I spent several nights working on the model to bring everything together.
Most importantly, the project taught me the imperfections of resilience, patience and adaptability. I learned that large projects rarely go exactly to plan and that setbacks do not have to prevent you from achieving your goal. Having to restart the model and continue working towards my original idea taught me to persevere and make the most of the time and materials available to me.
The finished model is not perfect, and it is a bit different from what I originally imagined, but that is something I’ve come to appreciate. It is mine, and it reflects the setbacks, the challenges, time and effort that went into creating it. Bloom pushed me outside of my comfort zone becuase I had never attempted something like this before, and completing it has given me a real sense of achievement. I am proud not only of the final model, but of the journey behind it and how much I have learned along the way.
