Our last day was filled with final blog posts (see interviews below), clearing out our studio (sad, sad), and a little happy hour celebration at SAM's TASTE complete with strawberry margaritas (virgin, of course) and oysters.
Big thanks to Julia Steinberger from Wordchanging for coming out to see our final presentation/reception last night and writing a cool article about Re+Vision in the Worldchanging Seattle online magazine!! Read the article here!
What can we say... it was a total celebration of our hard work over the past 6 weeks. We were joined by almost 100 friends and family including the Upward Bound crew. Our last week of presentation practice paid off. Everyone nailed it!
Lily Anderson interviewed by Billy Chandler
Billy Chandler interviewed by Lily Anderson
Chloe: "Whats was the best part of the program?"
Miyuki: "I liked Western Bridge, because of its contemporariness."
Miyuki: "Yes, I find myself looking up at the buildings a lot more than I did before."
Big thanks to Leonora Oppenheim of Treehugger for selecting our Re+Vision blog for "TH Blog Love: Our Favorite Greens of the Week"!! Treehugger is one of the worlds most visited eco culture blogs with over 2,200,000 visitors per month so we are really excited to have our blog featured.
Aaron Jamroski's thoughts on the program. (questions asked by Nate Anderson)What made you want to join the program?
My mom sent me an email of the flyer and it looked like a constructive way to spend six weeks of my summer, also it had to do with stuff I am interested in.
What did u expect it to be like when you first started the program?
I thought it was more our choice of how we were to a project or we were actually going to work with architects to design a space.
Was the program what you expected?
No, it was not because of the above reasons, although I did have fun stepping outside of my comfort zone, and designing something I wasn't used to designing.
What were some of your favorite parts of the program?
Getting to design the projects, and present my project to the public. Also meeting all the professional designers and architects.
Are there any places that we went to that you would like to go again?
The Library because it is an interactive piece of architecture, Western Bridge because they had a good show, and I want to see what they host in the future.
Would you say that you made friends with every1 there?
Yes, we all got to know each other. I wouldn't say we got close, but we all got to know and appreciate each other.
Do you think that is was a good learning experience for you?
Yes, I do. It has taught me patience to do a variety of things, and how to get along with people - its a work in progress).
Would you join the program again?
Yes I would and probably will, but I would hope whoever is in charge of the program curriculum would pick a new design topic. I'm now on the Teen Advisory Group at SAM because of being in re+vision
What did you learn about design?
I learned how to draw scale drawings, that is when you draw something in the dimensions (we used 1/4 of an inch) that they would be in if you built it.
Whats your design style?
I like to draw things out instead of using the computer for things like photoshop. So I guess it would be a little old fashioned because most designers our age don't draw things they use the computer for it.
What made you get the most fashionable navigator award ?
I don't know. I would assume because I always knew were we would be going and how to get their on the bus or how to walk there, and if course I did it with style.
Do you think that you will continue to be friends with everyone after the program ends?
Yes I do. I enjoy every ones company here so I hope to stay in contact with everyone.
How much money do you spend on coffee a year?
Alot. I dont count it, but alot. I enjoy coffee.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Moving away from Seattle, probably to New York. Making clothing, or whatever else I decide to do. Living on my own, being the It Boy for Men's Vogue (even though mens vogue isnt that interesting).
When do you plan on going to New York?
In two years if I have enough saved, but as soon as I save enough.
Who inspires you to be a designer?
The current designers pushing the limits such as Dolce and Gabbanna, Prada, and etc. They make me wanna push the boundaries of fashion even further. I believe I can do it. I've got ambition.
What do you think the public should know about you when your famous?
I'm not afraid to take risks to do what I need to so I can get the results I want. This is only the beginning for me.
Decisions... Decisions... Decisions... Check out our final presentation/reception this Thursday August 7th 6:00 - 8:00 pm at the Olympic Sculpture Park to see how we collaborated with SAM's Emily + Katherine to curate the display of our design concepts. Aaron's the managing DJ so brace yourselves!
Design Process III: Final Presentation Prep 
Directly following our Design Film-Fest, where we watched Powers of Ten by Charles and Ray Eames, Helvetica, and a History Channel film called Modern Marvels: St. Louis Arch
Design Process II: Define + Refine
Our friends in the Upward Bound program at the UW's College of Architecture and Urban Planning have received a brief for their final project!! They have been asked to imagine that all the red chairs from OSP are gone. Now they need to design new seating solutions for the park. Check out their progress in these snaps. We will see what they come up with at their final presentation at the UW next Wednesday...
We met with Mimi Gates, the head of all three SAM sites, and we each told her our "elevator speech" about our concept.
"I would like to create a mall because a lot of the teens I interviewed said they would make a mall. This mall will be an outlet for expressions of art, culture, music, and celebrate ideas that bring positive environmental change. The building has solar power, air/hydraulic power, and will be built from recycled materials whenever possible. The building is located in 
"The basics of my idea start with a stage set up in a public park in between the boundaries of the SAM sites. According to peer interviews, most teens suggested modern and "relaxed" structures. The stage will be fairly small- not too small. The stage has three levels that will showcase the 'art' shown at each site. Artists from all around can show their work there. The stage will hold performances ranging from music to plays to lectures. Any person can experience this structure. Also, the stage will be completely environmentally friendly. In my opinion, the design shows a very modern take on the idea. Rules will not be very enforced, however, very important will definitely be pushed. Children and adults alike can interact with this drawing."
"My concept strives to bring teens together to express themselves in an urbanized, yet ecological surrounding. Teens (and public) will enter for free and suddenly be engulfed in a tree-like structure, completed by plants and sounds from the outdoors. As they travel up the trunk of the tree, their backgrounds and urbanized personalities will collide with the gentle, nature-filled environment created by sounds and lights. At the peak, there will be various events and locations where teens and the public can relax. learn about the art museums that inspired the structure, create their own graffiti art, and experience a greenhouse effect, suspended in the air."
"I chose to have a mobile design to connect all three SAM sites. The design will be somewhat like the monorail experience, only vaster in the feelings of the wall, the colors setting a mood, light changes and sensations from the actual view of historic Seattle buildings. As the transportation moves through the city there will be light changing and sounds depending on where you are and some facts about the area. The future will benefit from the design because believe many people will use the transportation for years to come."
"The link that I envision between the Seattle Art Museum downtown, the Olympic Sculpture Park on the waterfront, and the Seattle Asian Art Museum in Capitol Hill is both an actual means of transportation throughout the three sites and symbolic of the museum's mission. What better way to connect art to life than to transform the task of getting to your destination into a journey through the city on a bicycle that is it's own piece of art. I see people picking up the museum bikes- recycled, and redesigned by local artists- at one of the three sites and spending anywhere from a few hours to an entire day touring not only the museum's galleries, but the street art and the city architecture along the way."
"My concept on connecting the three SAM sites was to build a ski lift that connects them. The lifts would be colorful on the outside and see-through on the inside. Inside, there would be these awesome spinning chairs according to the site. OSP would have red chairs, SAM would have blue, and SAAM would have green. The awesome spinning chairs would have wheels on them so you can move around in the ball. That goes for the color of the lifts outside too. The shape of the lift would be round like a ball that would spin on the outside, but not on the inside. Hopefully, people would enjoy being in a ski lift downtown and also get to see Seattle from a higher point that just walking through it."
"The purpose of my concept is to create an atmosphere where teens and their families can come to express themselves whether it be through music, design, performance, of fine arts. When the teens enter my building they will be inspired to be artistic. My idea for the main entrance is to have both walls covered with graffiti art. I think that by doing that it can get the teens creative juices flowing. They will have many options for what they can do while at the performance center. For example, teens could put on their own production, in one of the three theatres, or they could design their own products. I placed this structure near OSP because it is a very teen and family friendly place and that’s the kind of vibe that I want people to get from the performance center."
"For my concept I decided to design a link to all three SAM sites with a venue/fountain/park in the middle. There are three tunnels from each site. Each tunnel is easily located and you walk into them. You walk through them until you reach the park (the tunnels only go to the park). Once you step into the park you see a fountain in the middle of it. Only once you get closer do your realize there is a bigger fountain that is built into the ground. In the middle of the fountain is a stage that can be used for music, theater, dance, runway, or any other type of performance."
Design Process I: Concept To Ideation
Huge thanks to SuttonBeresCuller to for inviting Re+Vision and the Upward Bound crew out to Georgetown to learn about their newest public sculpture, Mini-Mart City Park. It is a total work in progress as they just got the site. Their plan is to return this "blighted piece of ubiquitous architecture to nature and the public sphere". It is a perfect example for us - artists acting as change makers in their urban landscape. The visit and following discussion left quite an impression as we begin thinking about our own design proposals. Billy said it was "probably his favorite field trip so far" which is a lot to say after all the adventures we have been over the last three weeks!!
Blake #1 by Chloe.
Blake #2 by Chloe.
Miyuki's first elevation to scale. A big hit at Mithun!
Tape measure by Lily.
Lily takes on Aaron. Glasses and all.
Billy and Lily were our navigators for our trip to Cascade Park trying to make sure that we don't get lost.
Chloe says hi to the camera while we're walking around the city heading to OSP.
Nate is keeping it real like always with his awesome tongue. ROCK ON!!!
We finally made it to Cascade Park!! Hurrayyyy!!!
The beautiful, wonderful, glorious , amazing, outstanding, unbelievable , beautiful, and amazing Cascade Park.
We all are trying in the nice, not so fun, OK in a way panel discussion the artist are discussing. 
Again Nate's keeping it real and trying so hard to stay awake while Blake text messaging and has no problem staying awake.
Mimi talks introduces Michael Kinsley(moderator) and thanks Jackie White and all the SAM Staff. It was so totally awesome to meet her before the discussion started.
As we walk back from OSP Miyuki gets scared because Nate and Billy talk about amimal cruelty.
We all pose for the camera as re vision kids..... junior mafia gang.
Nate's just chillin as he listens to Abby. (Leader of Upper Bound)
The outside of the construction site we entered, cooooool.
This is a very tall building that we saw i the middle of the UW.
This is called keeping it real. The Re Vision kids put on their hard hats and get ready to head to the construction site.
Starting tomorrow, with four weeks left in the program, we begin working on our final design project called Creative Commons. Here is the official project brief:
Final Presentation/Reception:
Did you know that if everyone on the planet had average American lifestyles of consumption we would need about 5-6 earths to sustain ourselves? 
That's us in the reflection above...
We were on the lookout for innovative uses of color and materials at the Seattle Central Library designed by Rem Koolhaas and LMN Architects. Our arhcitectural tour guide, Jeff, informed us that it actually has silver US Green Building Council LEED rating. Aaron was a fan of the book spiral (think parking garage). As always, Nate was into the comfortable seating. Chelsea was all over the way-finding systems - especially the chartreuse escalators. Four years after opening, this library is as provocative as ever. We are lucky to have it here in the Emerald City!
There are actually a lot of similarities between SAM's Olympic Sculpture Park and the 19 acre Gasworks Park designed by Richard Haag that opened to the public in 1975. Most notably, they were both industrial sites that were considered environmentally hazardous before being transformed into public parks. We wonder if Weiss/Manfredi thought about Gaswork's when they were designing OSP?
Orientation: Ourselves. Our Work. Our City.
Designers Jessica Sato and James Minola joined the Re+Vision crew on their trek through Islandwood. Above are some of Jessica's snaps. From top to bottom, we have the site model, wheel chair accessible tree house, Re+Vision teens behaving themselves in one of the classrooms, bird blind, second tree house, suspension bridge, and living machine. Thanks Jessica!!
Jackie White, SAM's Environmental Steward, came to studio today to teach us how to calculate our ecological footprints. You can use this cool online program to calculate your own here!
Terrified, we crossed the Suspension Bridge. It was really really high up. Lots of trees and a long way down if you fell. I, Miyuki, was such a GOOD friend and taped my GOOD friend Hanh while she crossed this 19234890237650346897 feet high bridge. =]
-postedddd-da by HanH.! && MiyukI.!! "XD"
We left Seattle for Bainbridge Island near 9:30 am on Monday. The boat ride was reaallllly windy. :O
SAM's Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Marisa Sanchez, joined us for an animated walk through the Olympic Sculpture Park. We got familiar with the artworks as we learned how this nine-acre industrial site was totally transformed through design by Weiss/Manfredi. Joining us were 20 local teens from the University of Washington College of Architecture and Urban Planning's Upward Bound program who we will continue hook up with throughout the next five weeks.
Chloe celebrates the flowers that fill her 'hood by creating an interactive sculpture for neighborhood kids to crawl in and out of. We love how cool shadows form with the changing light.
Roxy Paine's Split at the Olympic Sculpture Park inspired Aaron to imagine a 15' tall tree sculpture complete with metal leaves that sway in the wind.
Still under construction... With more time, Nate plans to create another lake with super kid friendly activities for his already lake happy neighborhood.
