Baltimore Oriole

Below is my birdhouse created for the Baltimore Oriole. This birdhouse addresses 50% of the consumers wants/needs and 50% of the birds wants/needs. 

This project was started on February 9th and Finished on March 11th

Project Statement:

“Known for its beautiful song and feathers, the Baltimore oriole is a favorite among bird watchers who strive to get a better look at this vivid bird. The Ascent birdhouse creates a feeder on top to attract these feathered friends while the substructure creates the skeleton of a nest to encourage self-sufficiency. Representing an American folk tale where a mighty hornet is turned into a lovely Oriole, Ascent incorporates the symbolism of transformation and harmony.  Fabricating a symbiotic relationship, Ascent addresses a solution that benefits both bird and humans.”

-Mikaela Stanley

Process: 

Progress from 3/4-3/11/15

The gallery below depicts my final design, final pictures and in context pictures. This shows the 14 gauge copper wire used to support of the wood pieces and also help the consumer follow the movement of the fan part of this bird house. The 18 gauge copper wire underneath the bird feeder is used in a looped way that gets longer to allow the bird to construct a natural nest.  This birdhouse/feeder is named Ascent to emphasize the rise and transformation in the folk tale but also to show the activity of an Oriole from sunrise to sunset. Ascent is hung in a way to make it seem as if it is just floating in nature and is easy for people to hang anywhere.  The final presentation on March 11, 2015 showed this process in the link provided. (202_birdhouse_StanleyMikaela_06)

The initial bird house was made of 18 gauge copper wire, a metal rod, dowels and red oak, meant to have the same collapsible properties of the Fan Chair by Bliss, however, the dowels underneath of it were to be removable to collapse the bird house flat, however this design was not clean or aesthetically pleasing. So I decided to get rid of the collapsibility aspect and go with a more secure and clean-looking design. I removed the metal rod that connected all of the wood pieces and replaced it with an oak dowel. The wire however was much more challenging. I tried 4 different sizes of copper wire, 18, 8, and 14. I ended up using 14 which was strong and durable yet was flexible enough to follow the holes around the bird house.  I did multiple test runs on the easiest ways to get the wire to go through the holes without too much bending of the wire, I came up with organizing the wood pieces in order of how they would lie on the dowel, seen in the first picture. I then began to string them in a way onto the wire. I finally finished the feeder part of the bird house, I then went on to hang it by adding four pieces of fishing wire from the fan section and onto a ring above it and adding a chain that for the most part would not be seen and allows for the consumer to come up with their own way of hanging it. Next I experimented with the nest. I came up with a simplified form which is shown in my final model.  The last picture in the gallery shows the initial idea for the nest to be strung off of rings, but I eventually disregarded that idea.

Progress from 2/27/15 – 3/4/15

I decided to look closer at my form research and became inspired by Robert Bliss’ Fan chair (pictured on the far right). An easily collapsible chair that resembles something of a fan. Falling back to my idea of transformation, I used this as an inspiration for my project.  As seen from my research, there is an American Folk tale that discusses the transformation of a hornet into an Oriole. There is another part of American Folk culture that I used in selecting my materials. I used Red Oak as my wood in this project as Oak in American Folk Mythology is directly associated with the Oriole and both are associated with the color gold, hence the copper wire. Below are the images of my initial bird house.  And an image of an exercise to help my statement paragraph about this project.

My progress for the week of 2/23/-2/27/15

This prototype was a total failure. Which was perfect as I was able to recreate what I wanted my actual concept to be. This was glued and meant to just sit on a surface which was not at all what I wanted.

These are research on the form of my concept. I took this from my feathered prototype and combined this with the idea of the American Folktale of the Oriole where once a hornet saved a kingdom from invaders and was transformed into an Orioles. This movement and sense of transformation sparked the idea of a Phoenix bird and the form of a fan. I will take this fan idea and combine it with a hornet nest idea to create a bird house that is collapsible with the start of a Baltimore Oriole Nest.  2/23/2015

These sketches are a continuation of the form. To induce the movement and feeling of transformation like the folktale of the hornet to the Baltimore Oriole.

These were the prototypes made for Wednesday February 18th, 2015.  These prototypes allowed for more research and continuation of my concept.

This is a concept for the birdhouse that hangs, it has the nest underneath that an Oriole does.

This prototype would be standalone that could be put on a deck or patio somewhere on a ledge, where fruit can be surrounded to attract the Oriole to the bird house. The bag would be the nest and the protruding limbs would be like perches for the bird.

This protype is more resembling a cross than my sketch looked like. The inside would be hollow for the bird to nest but be protective. This is also a standalone bird house that would be put on a patio or deck.

This prototype was designed to symbolize good luck like the birds which they are also symbolized for.

This is a prototype that was chosen for continuation. A feathered like design that allows for more symbolism and expanding the meaning.

Initial Sketches and Research 2/9-2/16/15

Below are the links to my research on the Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore Orioles in the life Human Factors

Human Factors