Why are some people afraid of the number 13 and what does it really represent?  This episode is a quick look at superstitions, traditions and various interpretations of this prime + fibonacci number. 

It's supposed to be unlucky but is also baked into the graphics for the United States government?  It also corresponds to the moon and the octave in music, Death in the tarot.

Let's explore - next week we go back to basic design school :) 

Here are a bunch of links about the Fibonacci Series - the amount of information online is close to endless. Some of these are quite basic and some are more advanced.  

Enjoy!

What are Fibonacci Numbers?

https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/fibonacci-sequence.html

How to Visualize This

https://math.temple.edu/~reich/Fib/fibo.html

How the Phi Ratio works in Nature

https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/nature-golden-ratio-fibonacci.html

Golden Ratio in Architecture

https://westburyjoinery.com/blog/golden-ratio-architecture/

https://illustrarch.com/articles/13472-golden-ratio-in-architecture.html

AMAZING INFO ON THE FIBONACCI SERIES

https://r-knott.surrey.ac.uk/Fibonacci/fibmaths.html

Mathematical Proof - Drawing a Pentagon using the Golden Rectangle

https://www.anirdesh.com/math/geometry/pentagon-construction.php

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL9VN8ELH1M

WE HARDLY KNOW ANYTHING - References

The entire rainbow of radiation observable to the human eye only makes up a tiny portion of the electromagnetic spectrum – about 0.0035 percent. This range of wavelengths is known as visible light.

https://www.energy.gov/nnsa/articles/visible-light-eye-opening-research-nnsa

And we are 99.99% empty space - basically swirling energy balls that stick together.

https://www.sciencealert.com/99-9999999-of-your-body-is-empty-space

And 95% of the matter in the universe is currently unobservable.

https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/big-questions/what-universe-made

What is a style?  How are they made and how do they evolve?

We'll take a look at the concept of style through the lens of architecture, food and fashion, and end with a discussion of sustainability and whether architectural style should be International at all.

Links:

https://www.archdaily.com/906063/modernism-the-international-style-that-wasnt

https://www.design59furniture.com/blogs/interiordesigntrends/mid-century-modern-design-101-everything-you-need-to-know

List of architectural styles - there are a lot!  Every regional flavor etc..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_architectural_styles

A couple of styles commonly seen

https://www.thespruce.com/top-architectural-styles-4802083

Architecture and Music - two of the most powerful art forms on the planet (and my two favorite!) are linked through their use of elemental proportion systems.   According to Goethe, “Music is liquid architecture and Architecture is frozen music."  We'll explore how both art forms are constructed and touch on the theory and scientific discoveries behind this relationship.

The incredible Brains behind these Theories:

Pythagoras

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythagoras

Leon Battista Alberti

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Battista_Alberti

Goethe

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Wolfgang_von_Goethe

Palladio's proportions for rooms:

https://www.aboutscotland.com/harmony/prop3.html

Simple article about the relationship between Math and Music:

https://www.unyp.cz/news/music-and-mathematics-pythagorean-perspective/#:~:text=Pythagoras%20observed%20several%20ratios%20of,fifth%2C%20seven%20semitones%20apart).

Proportions in Architecture:

https://www.house-design-coffee.com/proportions.html

https://ftanda.co.uk/thoughts/proportions-in-architecture-and-music/

Design as a Manifestation Tool

This episode was inspired by the hundreds of people who have said to me that one day they will build their dream home.  One day?  Why not start now with even a tiny little piece of it? 

If we can start with creating even one wall of that home now, we can accelerate our journey by embodying that future in our physical environment - which will greatly change how we feel and act.  Design literally IS a physical manifestation of an idea.  Why not use a physical manifestation of our beliefs to move us closer towards our future self?

I encourage people to start their design journey as early as possible, because when they are finally ready to build their dream home, the process won't be new - they will already be experts in design.  

Design is a wildly powerful tool that is used ON us every day.  What if we use design FOR ourselves?

5 TIPS FOR STARTING YOUR DESIGN JOURNEY:

1. Start Very Small - the tinest of projects are the perfect place to start.
2. Make it Personal - office, bedroom, the most personal space you have - NOT THE LIVING ROOM!  
3. Borrow and Steal!  Pablo Picasso is widely quoted as having said that “good artists borrow, great artists steal.”  
4. Expect the design to change over time - this will be a process and allow it to flow as you gain confidence in your aesthetic!  Move things, change the color, embrace the process - PERFECTION IS NOT A THING.
5. When you want to test this on a public-facing design, create your Zoom background.  Log on to a session, tape out the frame that is caused and create a background design only in this area.  What do you want to embody?  Beauty, traditional decor, strength, spirituality?  Search for this decor and borrow it.  You can play with the scale on your computer, tape the correct size on the wall, then make sure the items you are ordering are the correct scale.

Want to send in questions?  DM me at @four_d_design on IG or email [email protected]

Did you know that your physical environment actually affects your genes and genetic response?  We have scientific proof that it does, and this has huge implications for the role of design in your home and work environments.  Architecture and Design can and should be seen as healing modalities - a potentially powerful tool in your arsenal.

We start with a short story about Charles Darwin (who had no idea what he was discovering / also he was 22 y.o.!) But the information he collected has unlocked more than a century of discovery regarding the environment and how it has the power to physically change us.

Let's take this knowledge and put it to work for us.  Following episodes will explain how to create aligned design at your home and work using color, light, geometry and 3 dimensional form.

Links:

Darwin's Finches:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin%27s_finches

Encyclopedia of the Environment / Scientific Studies:  https://www.encyclopedie-environnement.org/en/health/epigenetics-how-the-environment-influences-our-genes/

Epigenetics Definition / Explanation from CDC:  https://www.cdc.gov/genomics/disease/epigenetics.htm

Effect of External Factors on the Genome / NIH: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4887632/

Dr. Bruce Lipton:  https://www.brucelipton.com/