WORKSHOP/SEMINAR
PARAMETRIC RAPID PROTOTYPING

Serlio's Construction of an Oculus

The assignment is developed in two parts.

Part 1: Preliminary Analysis

Review  the geometrical pattern below taken  from  the first Book on Geometry in Serlio's Book of Architecture and follow his instructions for how it is reproduced. Note in particular  the construction of the oculus as described on plate 22v. The occulus is constructed in steps below according to Serio's words.

"Very often the architect has to build an oculus on a temple -- whether big or small -- and perhaps he will not be able to tell how large it should be but will make is according to his own judgment and according to how it pleases his eye. If, however, he wishes to make it according to geometric theory, he would never be criticized by anyone who understood such things."

"Therefore the architect should measure the width of the space where he is going to make the oculus, and encompassing that width he should draw a semi-circle.
Then, having enclosed this with straight lines,
he should draw two diagonal lines
and then two other lines from the bottom corners to the top of the semicircle.
The places where the two upper diagonal lines intersect those which go to the top is where to make the points for dropping two plumb lines.
These will give the width of the oculus, as is shown in the figure opposite.
As for its ornamentation, this should be a sixth part of the diameter of the oculus."

Part 2: Computer Representation of The Oculus

In this part of the exercise, you will explore GC according to your analysis of Part 1. With the aid of GC's graphic primitives, you are to redevelop the oculus or your own alternative geometry from (e.g. lines, circles, arcs, etc.) as an ordered sequence of freatures according to the methods we have review in the workshoph. You are to "construct" the geometry as per the intersection points and methods suggested by Serlio or according to your own step-by-step process.

What you need hand in:

1. Save your file into your "submit" sub-directory in the classes arch548 folder through the GC save feature file procedure that we will cover in class.

2. Send email to Earl Mark ejmark@Virginia.edu and to both David Malda dcm9b@virginia.edu and Micheal Plehn mep4d@virginia.edu that describes the work you have done. Submit a few paragraphs documenting your research and any observations you may have made.

Feel free to visit or to send email should you be in need of assistance.

What is to come:

In the coming weeks we shall consider how the geometry of your plans may be encoded using the GC scripting language. Exercise 3 shall have you write a procedure which parametrically controls the creation of geometry.