Animated Subway Maps Transforms into Actual Geography Reveal Astonishing Gaps – Check the GIFs

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Animated Subway Maps Transforms into Actual Geography Reveal Astonishing Gaps – Check the GIFs

Transit maps are schematic diagrams which illustrate the routes and stations covered by a public transport system using simplified colored lines and symbols. Subway users are definitely familiar with such maps with a different color per each line and dots for stations. The network of intersected lines may be good for indicative purposes but they are not actually quite similar to the actual geography they represent, which is way more complicated. To get the idea, you might need to take a look at the animated subway maps created by members of the “DataIsBeautiful” community on Reddit.

The “DataIsBeautiful” is an open discussion thread on Reddit which is dedicated for “visualizations that effectively convey information”. Some members of this community decided to make GIFs which compare the subway maps of world cities to the actual geography, and the results were quite interesting. The idea was triggered by one member who utilized data from Google Maps, Wikipedia, and the official Subway Map from Berlin, to create an animation of Berlin Subway map converting into the city’s actual geographical map using Adobe After Effects. Then other members followed with similar animated maps of Paris, London, New York, and Tokyo, among other cities. Here, check them for yourself.

Berlin

Created by vinnivinnivinni

Paris

Created by hlake

London

Created by Pham_Trinli

Tokyo

Created by –Ninja-

Shanghai

Created by KailoB6

Montreal

Created by weilian82

Oslo

Created by iamthedestroyer

Singapore

Created by wrcyn

 

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25 Perfectly Detailed Floor Plans of Homes from Popular TV Shows

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Arch2O.com - Architecture & Design Magazine

When watching your favorite TV series, sometimes you wish you could see these houses or apartments you enjoyed watching so much to be brought to life. Four years ago Spanish interior designer Iñaki Aliste Lizarralde created a floor plan for one of his favorite TV shows, Frasier. Later on, upon the request of his friends, he started making floorplans for other shows. Requests increased to involve many other series like Friends and extended to movies like “Up”.

Iñaki used pencil colors, cardboard, ink, and markers, instead of interior design software programs, to make these plans less technical. He simplified the floorplans so that ordinary people can understand them. That is why he made some modifications like adding furniture and color to give life to the drawings.

Other designers followed suit with colorful, almost alive plan drawings for apartments and houses from other popular TV series. The poster-ready set by Homes.com includes some of the latest hits like Sherlock, Mr. Robot, and Stranger Things.

By: Mandy ElSheikh

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The Meticulous Beauty of Islamic Patterns and How to Create Them – Check the Tutorials

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The Meticulous Beauty of Islamic Patterns and How to Create Them – Check the Tutorials

Islamic architecture has its own unique charm, and if you dig deep down to the base of this charm, you will find it has a lot to do with geometric patterns. While precedent architecture styles freely used figurative image, motifs, and sculptures of humans and animal to add aesthetic value to their buildings, Islamic architecture couldn’t follow the same path. Figurative images of the kind were avoided, so as not to become an object of worship. That left Muslim craftsmen and artists with three options: calligraphy, floral or Arabesque patterns, and geometric patterns.

Image via patterninislamicart.com

Islamic craftsmen created tremendous patterns with exquisite details using rulers and compasses. They were influenced by the ancient Greek rules of Mathematics which they have artistically taken to a whole new level. However complicated the pattern may seem, it is always based on a grid and a series of iterated lines and shapes. These patterns have evolved with time and changed with different regions. They were used to decorate pottery, tiles, rugs, wooden partitions, screens, and of course walls and ceilings.

Islamic patterns are still being adopted up to this day in many forms. They are used in furniture, rugs, screens, prints and other decorative elements to give a middle-eastern touch to different spaces. They are also, sometimes featured in the façades of buildings like mosques, and some civil buildings and cultural institutes.

If the geometry of these meticulous patterns fascinates you, then why not learn how to create them. Many artists who specialize in patterns in general and Islamic patterns, in particular, are sharing their knowledge online for free, to those who would like to learn. Here, we have gathered a list of tutorials and video which you can check and apply. You shall find it quite amazing how a composition transforms from the initial simple lines and curves to the marvelous complicated geometries we see.

First, these are open tutorials on Envato Tuts+ by Lebanese calligraphy artist Joumana Medlej.

Geometric Design: Two Variations on an Islamic Tiling Pattern

Courtesy of Joumana Medlej

Geometric Design: Create a Pattern from the Cordoba Synagogue

Courtesy of Joumana Medlej

Geometric Design: Create a Pattern from the Cordoba Synagogue

Courtesy of Joumana Medlej

Geometric Design: Tenfold Star in a Rectangle

Courtesy of Joumana Medlej

These are simple tutorials posted and shared by various Instagram and Pinterest users

Also, here are some Video Tutorials on Youtube which can be helpful for those who would rather see the process in motion.

This video by TED-ED is presented by Eric Bourg, a Dutch educator and artist who is interested in Islamic geometrical design, works on it and wrote books about it. It simply explains the logic behind these patterns.

The complex geometry of Islamic design – Eric Broug

Now, here are some tutorial videos and playlists by various artists.

How to draw – geometry – basic construction of an extended 12-fold rosette

Check the rest of Lex Wilson’s tutorials on his playlist: Geometry tutorials.

How to draw an Islamic Geometric Pattern

Check the rest of Nora Youssef’s tutorials on Youtube.

How to Draw Islamic Geometry

Check the rest of Samira Mian’s tutorials on her playlist: Islamic Geometry – How to draw Islamic Geometric Patterns.

If the art of Islamic patterns has really captured your interest. Then, you may find this resource quite handy

Pattern in Islamic Art

The website offers an archive of more than 4000 images of Islamic patterns and other design features from the Islamic culture, known as the WADE archive. It includes drawings, diagrams, scans, and selected photographs.

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Go Solar! Beautiful And Practical All At Once

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Arch2O.com - Architecture & Design Magazine

Not only is the energy from the sun endless, it is also clean with no greenhouse gas emissions. Using solar energy is a very green and rewarding experience that architects nowadays are designing and implementing solar power systems to skyscrapers, major companies, schools, and even nurseries. These net-zero energy systems can be eye-catching as well as beneficial. Eventually, who said solar power systems have to be ugly?!

Here are some of the best-looking buildings to implement the use of solar energy:

1) David & Lucile Packard Foundation Headquarters – California, USA

Courtesy of AIA – Photography: Jeremy Bittermann

At the south of San Francisco Bay, stands one of the most prominent grantmaking foundations in the US which aims at the welfare of children and their science empowerment in addition to protecting and restoring Earth’s natural systems. This net-zero HQ uses 915 rooftop photovoltaic panels to generate power to be 100% energy-self-sufficient. It was awarded as the top 10 green building in 2014.

2) Powerhouse Kjørbo – Oslo, Norway

Courtesy of Snøhetta

The previously existing office building was renovated by Snøhetta Architects in a way to transform it into an environmentally friendly one. The solar panels built on the roof produce twice the amount of energy it needs, offering the possibility of providing the excess power to other buildings in the area.

3) International Renewable Energy Agency Headquarters – Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Courtesy of Bagot Woods

This beauty was added to the rapidly evolving Abu Dhabi skyline in 2015. It is the first building in Abu Dhabi to be awarded the Pearl Estidama Construction rating certificate by the Abu Dhabi Planning Council, which aims to promote the development of sustainable buildings. The building which has a 1000m2 photovoltaic system installed on the rooftop was designed by Architect and Lead Consultant Woods Bagot.

4) Apple Park in Cupertino – California, USA

Courtesy of Foster + Partners

Designed by the British firm Foster + Partners, this masterpiece of a building with its flying-saucer-like design is expected to open by the end of 2017. It has the largest solar arrays for a corporate building in the world. The $5 billion-worth HQ has a vast rooftop surface area which is used to install thousands of solar panels with an estimated output of 16 megawatts of power.

5) Moray Street Residential Tower – Melbourne, Australia

Courtesy of Peddle Thorp Architects

This 60-story apartment building, designed by the architecture firm Peddle Thorp, is where you see technology and architecture hand in hand. In addition to the roof, the façade is cladded with solar panels, allowing the expansion of the surface area available for renewable power from 4,305 square feet to 37,673 square feet.

6) General Electric HQ Building – Boston, USA

Courtesy of Gensler

These new sustainable headquarters of GE, designed by Gensler architectural firm, is expected to open in 2018. The 12-story glass building is designed in the form of a huge solar sail ”veil”. The solar slats of the “veil” allow the passage of light before it is reflected by their photovoltaic surfaces.

7) Tesla Gigafactory – Nevada, USA

Tesla’s Gigafactory – Courtesy of Tesla

The current plan for this factory, that will open in 2020, is to cover the whole roof with solar panels, and that’s not all. Tesla rooted for the idea of installing arrays on the nearby hillsides to maximize energy production. That came after Tesla decided not to build a natural gas pipeline to force the implementation of a sustainable architectural system.

8) Copenhagen International School – Copenhagen, Denmark

Courtesy of C.F. Møller

In a green spin on how form follows function, C.F. Møller Architects designed the school to feature the world’s largest solar façade. The building has more than 12,000 colored solar panels that are integrated into the building’s structure. This will produce half the energy needs of the school (around 300-megawatt hours per year). The clean energy approach which the school is pursuing was the reason behind integrating Solar Studies in the curriculum.

9) Further Education Centre at Mont-Cenis – Herne, Germany

Courtesy of HHS Architekten

The greenhouse-like building envelops a total area of 12,000 square meters in glass, creating natural micro-climate inside. The roof canopy serves a dual purpose. It is made up of solar panels, so it generates power as well as shades the inside of the center. The center was designed by the firm HHS planner + Architekten.

10) NEW-Blauhaus – Mönchengladbach, Germany

Courtesy of Kadawittfeld Architecture – Photography: Andreas Horsky

Designed by Kadawittfeldarchitektur, the shiny, sleek, blue façade of the university is not merely glass, but rather, a tessellation of solar panels and windows. The row of panels across the exterior can rotate following the sun for maximum energy production.

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