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Evaluation

For this unit, I was able to consider issues more thoughtfully and deliberately. According to my assessment feedback for last unit，my ability of analyzing was very weak. So, I paid more attention on analyzing during the process of my project in unit 4. I tried to write down everything I thought and develop my ideas depended on them.

I found that different skills are improved by working in a group and individually , in unit 3&4. You can practice and learn how to collaborate with others by working in a group, and I think that ideas will come out faster when working as a group. Because people in the same group have different mentalities and opinions. When everyone speaks out their ideas and discusses it, the idea can be developed faster and further. But clear and precise division of the work is necessary for working in a group, or something unexpected might happened. Like in my group, one of the member repainted the object mistakenly and that made our process slow down. Discrepancy between working individually and in a group is that you yourself should judge every steps during the process of the project and you know clearly about what are you going to do next when working alone, but you have to coordinate other people when working in a group. I was more self disciplined in this unit. As I realized that if I fail to finish my work on time, I will drag the process of my group down, and other individual project of mine would not be able to finish by the deadline as well.

My research skill was improved by going through unit 3&4. Usually my primary research was just material testing, but I decided to do my primary research project by visiting exhibition and contacting retailers and manufacturers.

In these unit, I also paid more attention on material testing and model making. I realized that concentrate on one idea and develop it further is better than a lot of ideas. I went to every tutorial and get advices from my tutors no matter I have good idea or not. Through material testing and model making I will discover issues of producing my final outcome, and I can develop my idea by solving these problems. All these processes are valuable experience, they help me to build up my final out come and make my original idea even better.

I can feel that I made some processes, compare to the beginning of the course. But my skills of research and analyzing are still need to be improved. Because I think that my research and testing on material are still not enough and I sometimes found I have no idea about what kind of materials I should use in my project, and I should also use the library and go into English sections as much as possible.

A good beginning helps to make a good end. I will tried my best to avoid my weakness and make a good beginning.

going to coloured with PS~

material testings

research and material testing

Primary research

‘When research is conducted to unearth original data, it is called primary research. In order to do this, an original research plan must be devised which will encompass, data collection, data input and then the production and analysis of the subsequent results. Due to that sometimes lengthy duration of this research it can often be expensive to conduct. However, because the research is original, the results gathered will be more relevant to the needs of the client.’（DJS Research Ltd, N.D. )
‘Primary research is the research you generate by asking questions, conducting trials and collating results. This research can take the form of quantitative or qualitative research. Among the most commonly used forms of social research are surveys and questionnaires. This type of research collects primary data. Primary data includes any data collected from an original source. Secondary data is data that already exists, for example, from data bases, records, Australian Bureau of Statistics or other texts. ’ (NSW HSC online, N.D.)
For art and design projects, primary research can be material testing, contacting retailer and manufacturer or visiting exhibitions and galleries. The advantage to do material testing by yourself is that you can know the material better and may find out some new and original way to utilize it. But there are also benefits by communicating, interviewing and visiting. You can save some time and get to know the material you are investigating more easily, by contacting makers or manufacturer. Especially when it is the first time you ever get in contact with a material. I intend to investigate the marble furniture which may related to my future career. The best way I consider to do primary research on marble furniture is by contacting makers and manufacturers, and visiting exhibitions and galleries. Because the size and weight of marble are too huge and heavy. There is no way I can get professional machines and equipments to do the material testing by myself. Thus for my primary research, I will focus on the different types of marble, craft and technology of making marble furniture, what kind of material can combine with marble for furniture making and the connection between marble and other material, marble and marble itself. To begin my primary research on marble furniture, I will visit some exhibitions and furniture shops first, to find out the most frequently used material combined with marble and give myself some preliminary ideas about what I should investigate more deeply. Visiting shops and exhibitions will help me to develop my further researches as well. Before I contact with marble furniture maker and manufacturer, I will need to prepare some questions for them to answer. The form of the interview can be contacting manufacturer through internet, appointment booking for visiting workshop and studio or meet retailer directly in a furniture shop.
To initiate my primary research on marble furniture, I went to a furniture exhibition and several furniture shops first.

(picture 1,2&3, photo taken in exhibition)

This exhibition in design museum is to celebrate Sir Terence Conran’ s 80th birthday. Furniture design by him was shown in this exhibition, and from all the work display in the exhibition I found several tea tables and low tables of which the surface is made of marble. Looking at the materials, I found that he use metal such as iron to build the sustainment for the marble surface.

(picture 4&5 , photos taken at furniture stores)
A few days after I went to the exhibition in design museum, I continued my research by visiting retailers and furniture stores. I gathered more information about what kind of materials usually combine with marble to make furniture and more knowledge of the characteristic of marble, by communicated with retailers. According to the description of retailers and assistants in the furniture stores, I found out that wood and metal are the most frequently used materials for making sustain of marble surface furniture. Because these two kinds of materials are strong enough to support the heavy marble surface. There is not much marble furniture on the market in UK as in Middle East countries. Due to the weather in UK, which is sometimes bitterly cold even in summer and marble is a kind of cool rock, it becomes cold very quick. So, unlike in Middle East or other countries where the weather is hot, the market of marble furniture in UK is not board. (Appendix)

(picture 6&7, photo taken in furniture stores)
In order to protect the marble, there is always a layer of protective paint in above the marble. Picture 6&7 shows a sort of common protection layer, this kind of protection layer makes the marble looking smoother and shiner. Depends on the design, the protection layer can have various effects. (Appendix) In picture 8&9 shows a type of protection layer which makes the marble surface looked not as smooth like the previous in picture 6&7, and more like its original texture.

(picture 8&9, photo taken in furniture stores)
I have more understanding about marble furniture and am prepared to ask manufacturer and maker more essential questions, after communicating with retailers.
Most of the marbles used in furniture making are sedimentary rocks, they absorb liquid, so they need a protection layer otherwise, they will be dyed by pigmented liquid, such as coffee or tea. (Appendix) Among many kinds of marbles, some of them are rich in calcium carbonate and these kind of marbles are known as onyx. Onyx is more transparent and valuable than other marbles. Several kinds of onyxes such as white onyx of China and white marble of Guangxi are very popular in the market.(Appendix) Although, onyx has subtle difference from marble, is usually considered as marble furniture by customers, as well.
Marble is colorful natural material and easy to shape. To produce a piece of marble furniture from the original block of marble, it will need to go through several processes. Marbles will arrive at the factory in a block, then workers will cut it into pieces using specialized machine. Marbles which are cut into pieces will then be shaped and polished and made into finished product. Marble has been using as decoration and in furniture making for several thousand years already. Both the retailers and manufacturer said that it has been use in Italy even in Roman times. (Appendix)
‘The present invention relates to the field of enhancing the beauty of furniture items through decorative back lighting. In particular, marble is a beautiful stone and is frequently used in furniture items such as the top of a counter or table. The field of the present invention concerns enhancing the beauty of marble furniture through back lighting to bring forth the beauty of the veins of the marble.’(Joseph,1988) Through my primary researches, I found that onyx which is a kind of stone more transparent than marbles, but both of them have the characteristic of transparent. One of the beauty of marble is its veins. Because is a kind of natural material, the veins appear on every pieces of marble are different.
‘Stone, and oftentimes marble, is used as a furniture surface. where marble is used purely as a surfacing material, it has heretofore normally been used in large slabs. These slabs may be on the order of an inch or more in thickness and have considerable weight.’( Grafton,1973) So material or wood are used to make the base of furniture with marble surface frequently.
All in all, my primary research on marble furniture went through smoothly. Most of the information from contacting, interviewing and visiting retailers are comparison of surface but more related to market trends and customer needs and it helps to develop further researches. Manufacturers and makers will know more about the characteristic of the material and the process of producing. Through primary research, you can understand your secondary research more easily and thoroughly. Some datum from primary research can support and explain information in secondary research. In this time of primary research of marble furniture, the original data I got is still not deep enough as I expect. Retailers are a group of people I can get in touch most easily, but generally, they can only tell basic information and data. Manufacturers will give more professional information, but they won’t tell some of their technique.
Sometimes you won’t be able to think of in-depth questions, by just contacting, interviewing and visiting. As marble furniture may related to my future career, I will need to try to get internship opportunities in furniture factories or maker studios. Some datum ，questions and knowledge you can only notice and get to know by going through the process of testing, making and manufacturing.

Bibliography：
Berry, R. (2004) The research project how to write it . New York: Pergamon Press
Blaxter, L., Hughes, C. and Tight, M. (2006) How to research. England: Open University Press
Grafton H. Cook (1973) Marble laminate structure[PDF]
Joseph S. Marton (1988) Apparatus for back lighting marble for decorative furniture items[PDF]

Links：
DJS Research Ltd, What is primary research [Internet] Available from [accessed on 03-04-12]
NSW HSC online, Design and technology[Internet] Available from
[accessed 03-04-12]

Inside Vienna Karlsplatz station.

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