Material Documentation - Sanya Thakrar FST 102

Material Documentation

-      Sanya Thakrar (FST 102)

Through this course we got plenty of information about materials.

Joineries are the points at which two different materials come in contact for example the joint between the stem and a branch. We had to find Joineries in Nature and a few man-made ones as well, measure the length and the different angles and study those joineries. There are only 39 joineries in Nature.

 

Different objects are used with different materials to attach them together like nails, screws, Fevicol adhesives etc. Sometimes adhesives are not required. One could use the weaving method or fix pieces together with particular cutouts that fix into each other.

We used straw and made a bridge that could hold the weight of more than 5 kgs.  Discussion and research made us realize that just holding straws together in a bunch is not the only way and not the strongest way to make a strong bridge. Making particular joineries in different angles increases the strength of the overall material to accomplish its objective. Making different angled joineries balances and distributes the weight of the object placed and thus the material becomes stronger.

 

We not only learnt how to make sculptures out of clay but also understood what needs to be done with the clay to make a good structure.  Throwing the clay repeatedly removes the gas in the clay and makes it better to use. Molding becomes easier and the structure stays strong.

We learnt the procedure for making molds. We used Plaster of Paris and heated wax to make the molds. We learnt the interesting procedures of making exact halves of the object, the channels to be made for the flow of metal, how the space is filled up and dried to make the final metal object.

 

 

 

We were taught about the different materials. We discussed about Wood, the different kinds of wood, where it is used, how to recognize different kinds of wood, compared the qualities of the different kinds; Metal and alloys, and its properties and uses; and also Glass and its uses.

As wood was available, we used that to make joineries in them without using adhesives. Different cut outs that fit into each other act as a good method for joining materials together. We learnt that even this method is difficult to perform because if even a single mistake is made in the measurement, the joint will not be formed.

 

This course gave us plenty of basic information required to know about the different materials used around the world.  Knowing the properties and the methods of using every material is helpful to make not only products but also pieces of art.  Even though we expected a lot of hands on work, we realized that the discussions were equally important as that general knowledge is required before we used the materials. We understood that knowing more about the material acts as an advantage and helps us make better products, which are also stronger and efficient. Learning the properties helps to decide logically and intelligently which material should be used, when one is making a product.