Rain Project Sketch

Design For the Floating Wetland Rain Project

When I was thinking about a sketch for this project, I thought about using the mascot (Patriot) or the star but as I thought more about the project and my own idea. Ultimately, it led me to create an entirely different style for the floating wetland. Initially, I envisioned the flower for the design and then it evolved into a baroque style flower. I've always been fond of European styles and geometric shapes so I wanted to incorporate those elements into my own design.The flowers, swirls, and geometric shapes all came from designs I came across online, in books, and in magazines.

Floral Ornament in Baroque Style

(http://comps.canstockphoto.com/can-stock-photo_csp14281705.jpg)  

In France, the garden located behind the Palace of Versailles is known for covering nearly 1,976 acres of land. The use of geometric shapes, irregular swirl patterns, and curved lines all played a role in the final sketch of the floating wetland.

                                  Picture of the gardens at the Palace of Versailles


The pictures below show the failed attempts and the progress of how I came to the final design of the floating wetland.

Materials To Construct the Floating Wetland

The materials for the sketch of the structure will be constructed with PVC pipes, a waterproof cable, hooks, and a couple of cinder blocks. The PVC pipes will be lined near the edges of the structure underneath the floating wetland. The pipes will make put together by not only the straight and curved PVC pipes but also ones that can allow the straight/curved pipes to turn in different directions. This will allow the PVC pipes to be able to connect in the end to make the structure that you can see in the image above. Originally, I thought about lining water bottles to make the inner square of the structure but I figured that the water bottles would cause an imbalance in weight distribution. Furthermore, I reasoned that since the floating wetland is planned to be in the Mason pond for about two years. The use of water bottles in the structure would not last in different kinds of weather and the amount of time the floating wetland would be in place. The waterproof cables will be used over rope or other kinds of material due to the durability and longevity of the material. The waterproof cables will be tied to the corners of the wetland where a hook will be mounted onto the corners to ensure that the waterproof cable will stay in the place. To keep the floating wetland in place, the structure will be anchored by four cinder blocks placed at the bottom of the pond that will be tied to the structure with waterproof cables. 

Project Summary

All in all, the potential design for the floating wetland will be used to clean up the Mason pond and also serve to be aesthetically pleasing to everyone who walks by the pond. The floating pond will be placed in the pond for about two years. If I had more time to spend on the design and construction of the floating wetland project, I would probably work on the design a little more and think about how it relates to George Mason University. Besides the colors of GMU, I believe it would be hard for students and other people to see how my design symbolizes the university. The idea of my design came largely from European and Baroque art styles that I've always liked. However, I believe my simple design or some of the elements of my design idea can be used if chosen as the final floating wetland design.