Coming Soon!

Coming Soon! A new Science Museum.Col­lab­o­rat­ing with the Modesto Art Museum, //Bii: Coming Soon! is cre­ating a visual exploration of some of the rea­sons for Modesto’s low rank­ing and is re-imagining ways for the city to become a more liv­able place, or even a Utopian soci­ety. Our goal is to con­front the area’s poverty of imag­i­na­tion by using art — images, animations, and videos — to inspire cre­ativ­ity to help solve the area’s many urban problems.

 

Visions of what could be coming soon to our city, created by JGomula:

Coming Soon! A new Science Museum.Coming Soon! A new Science Museum.
McHenry and Pelendale

 

 

Coming Soon! A new home for the Modesto Art Museum.Coming Soon! A new home for the Modesto Art Museum.
10th and I Street.

 

 

Coming Soon! A new Car Museum.Coming Soon! A new Car Museum celebrating American Graffiti.
McHenry and Granger.

 

 

Coming Soon! A new Poet's Corner and Black Box Theatre.Coming Soon! A new Poet’s Corner and Black Box Theatre.
10th and I Street.

 

Show us your own visions!

16 Replies to “Coming Soon!”

  1. For my photo collages the first, and most important, thing was for me to go out and get the actual photographs. This was a bit difficult though as it was raining almost every day, and when it was not raining, I was working. It was frustrating getting the images. I had to drive out to Modesto 3 times during my spring break, but I finally ended up with all 3 photo collages. The next step was playing around with the photographs and making something incredible out of them. The way I was going to achieve this was by going for different themes for each one of them.

    For the first collage that I was working with I wanted to get an open landscape view of nothing, so I can work with empty space. I found this spot on Paradise Road in Modesto, and it fitted perfectly with what I had in mind. The thing I had in mind was to take a landscape and make a better landscape out of it. A strange idea, but I loved it! I loved the idea of taking a boring landscape and making an interesting landscape out of it.
    I used mountains in the front and in the back to show distance and the water leads the viewer from the front to the back. I used grass to show the viewer that the landscape is coming to life, but also kept the dirt to give that feeling that it was once nothing. The elephants are shown because the landscape is becoming a home again to life overall.

    For the second collage I wanted to find an abandoned building. It had to be a building that was in the middle of nowhere though, so it would be easier to work with. If it were a building in the middle of the city where it is busy then I would have problems with removing people and removing other buildings. Stuff like that would have been such a hassle, but I did end up finding this building on Hatch road. I wanted to bring the building back to life in a special kind of way, so I decided to bring some entertainment to it.
    At first I was working with roller coasters and trying to get an amusement park kind of thing going, but it was not working out. So I went with a bike show. My main goal was to bring entertainment like I said before, and a bike show with just bikers was not all that entertaining to me. I decided to throw some fire in there and I also wanted to give the collage some fans in the front of the image. It almost looks like the fans are in a theater being entertained by what they are viewing on the big screen. In the panorama the viewer can see that the fans shown in the image are having fun at place where, in reality, there is nothing right now. I can definitely see this spot becoming a place for entertainment, especially because there is more empty space around it. All that empty space can be used up to bring out entertainment!

    For my last collage I wanted to have some kind of transportation involved, so I could play around with things moving. It turned out harder than it was, but then I found a immovable train and that’s when I got the idea of everything stopping, or everything coming to an end. I took the panorama and decided to go with a world coming to an end type of theme. I wanted to get the attention of things such as gas prices going up and how the recession is beginning to get worse. I also wanted to take recent tragic events that have taken place over the last year, so I began to look for images on how I could achieve this.
    I added water and made it seem like the train is about to go down to remind the viewers of the recent tragic events that took place in Japan, the birds are to remind the viewers of the birds that fell from the sky, the moon and the sun are to represent another day of disaster may be near, and the NASA planes represent a way to escape from all these horrible things.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Parmveer Masuta Collages.pdf[/file]

  2. Title:Tropical Paradise
    Location: B St/ S. Morton Blvd, Modesto, Ca
    I was really turned off that there just a bunch of sand and gravel behind this building. So the first thing that came to my mind was somewhere where the people of Modesto could escape to, thus the idea of a beach. I figured that by adding a beach front behind this building, it would increase the number of people that came to Modesto. I also think that it would make for a very hot spot for the teenagers. I also wanted to add objects to the beach that would give it a very exotic atmosphere but at the same time, very relaxing because I understand that too many of us work way too much.

    Title: The Jungle
    Location: B St/ S. Morton Blvd, Modesto, Ca
    This area was just a bunch of empty land and looked very boring. With this montage, I wanted to create something that everyone could enjoy, so I figured that I would turn it into a wild safari where people could come on weekends and bring their kids along on safari escapades. I wanted it to be vast area with wild animals roaming around in their habitats. I also added in the back at the horizon the monolithic structure of Angkor Wat to give it more a jungle feeling. I also added a river to help the greens continue to be greener.

    Title: Pirate Island
    Location: B St/ Beard St., Modesto, Ca
    The train tracks just looked very empty so I wanted to change this area of Modesto into a pirate zone, where pirate adventures and the imagination could roam freely together. I especially like the pirate ship on the left. I think that it certainly gives pulls the whole theme together. I also added a shark and an octopus, as these things and pirates go together hand-in-hand. I added an island in the background where a building use to be as well.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/modestoimagineer.pdf[/file]

  3. The Gallo Center, in my opinion, is the most prominent building in Modesto. It has a huge impact on the entertainment industry in Modesto as well. It is not a negative thing at all, which is why I chose this location. I decided to add a theme park right behind the Gallo Center to say that Modesto has good entertainment options, but there could be so much more. A literal theme park would be nice, but Modesto just needs more entertainment options in general.

    The original picture is a great example of our economic state recently. The surrounding is just so empty and lacks color. My changes were included clowns, circus material, and neon lights. These things added should not be taken literally but are more symbolic. The circus is always full of color and I believe this is was this part of modesto. These buildings are very close the the Brenden Theatres and it is such a drastic change.

    The Brended Theatres is another positive in Modesto’s entertainment community. The bright colors of the building really help brighten the environment it surrounds. I chose this picture for those reasons and I wanted to highlight those features. I enhanced the colors to exaggerate the picture and then added a spaceship and put a neon nebula in the sky. This was to give a futuristic look. In the end the exaggerated additions were to highlight the theater because there is really nothing I wanted to “change” about it. It’s more to show what other buildings should strive to work towards which would in turn make Modesto have a more modern feel.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/A Better Modesto.pdf[/file]

  4. 1. Cirque du Coldwell (Coldwell Overpass and Highway 99, Modesto): I transformed this terribly unsightly overpass into a wild circus scene. When thinking about this transformation, I thought about what would put a smile on a person’s face as he or she drove down Highway 99. I figured a giant elephant, acrobats, monkeys, and clowns would be sure to make people laugh on their way to work. I believe this circus scene transforms the mood of Modesto into one that is whimsical, humorous, and crazy. Before, this freeway was a depressing scene. The change brings some humor into the busy daily life of the Modesto freeway.

    2. Rubbish (9th Street, Modesto): The 9th Street Recycling Company had a lot of potential for something extraordinary to take place. I have placed a giant robot among the rubble of the junkyard, keeping watch over his kingdom. I believe Modesto is transformed for the better with this addition. I wanted to create something to live in the junkyard that looked like it could have been created from its contents. Now, Modesto has its own robot protecting its recyclables and saving the world.

    3. Oasis (Standiford Ave, Modesto): I have transformed the mundane street of Standiford Ave in Modesto into a desert night scene. Modesto can get very hot in the summer, so I decided the city could use some desert animals to brighten up the scenery. The animals are out of proportion for a bizarre, whimsical effect. The giraffe is living in the apartment complex in the background. I changed the scene to a night scene to further transform the mood of the image. Since it gets as hot as a desert in Modesto during the summer, it might as well look like one!
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Collages.pdf[/file]

  5. The first thing I did was travel to modesto and take photos of landscapes that seemed a little bland. After I took the photos I uploaded them to photoshop and began blending them together to create a three different panoramas. Then I began looking for pictures from the web and added some to create three themes, a desert, a boat, and a water park theme.

    Modesto Boat World
    For my Modesto Boat World I took a dry lake and added water and some cities in the background. I then used the clone stamp tool and cloned a field of water. Then I decided to place many different kind of boats on the water. I then edited out some bushes and trees and added some hotel pictures in the background. Finally I cropped the picture down to size.

    Modesto Desert World
    For my Modesto Desert World I took a panorama picture of a empty lot in modesto. Then I Decided to transform the empty lot into a desert. I frist added the sand and the mountains. After that I decided to add some catuses and rocks. I then placed an oasis in the center with camels of to the right side. Lastly I decided to add some buildings and statues next to the mountain.

    Modesto Water World
    For my Modesto Water World I decided to add a water park I Started by miorring the images back to back and then lineing them up and blending them together. I then decided to crop my image down because some of the landscape did not blend well together. Lastly I decided to add two big building in the backgroung but retained the tops of the original background.

    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Zachary Williams Panorama World.pdf[/file]

  6. Panorama 1 – Merced, Highway 140: For this panoram modification I tried to convey the idea of progressiveness. I started out with an open field and I added in a cityscape to show how technology and moving forward can change such landscape so permanently. However there’s a cost to that, and that is why I have the junk cars to represent the mess that we make and often times don’t care about because we’re set on moving foward. I added the moon in to give it a fantasy feeling to it and the colors used are for the same reason.

    Panorama 2 – Merced, Yosemite Ave: For this panorama I also had an open field however I transformed it into an attraction, a zoo. Recreation brings in a lot of revenue and by having such places like this we can help expand the quality of the city as well as jobs. I added in various people on their day out and various animals to give it a feeling of recreation and fun.

    Panorama 3 – Merced, Downtown Merced, 403 West Main Street: I had a lot of fun with this one. I used various filters to make the downtown area look like a sketch and then added another orange layer on top. I then sketch in various buildings to expand the city and make it look more attractive. I guess in this piece I wanted to expand the city visually and conceptually as a whole as well as with aesthetics. The cinema plays a theme as well for it being in the middle I also wanted to romanticize the whole piece as we often do with films.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/xiayang_panorama.pdf[/file]

  7. 600 Yosemite Ave, Modesto CA

    “Zoo”
    I chose to create a zoo for Modesto because zoos are great community attractions. I think a zoo in Modesto could boost the economic slump that Modesto is facing. I also think an attraction like a zoo would help beautify Modesto, a town with very few exciting tourist attractions. I inserted wildlife such as a giraffe, a crocodile, peacocks, and an elephant. Having creatures such as this in Modesto could be a great educational tool for young children in the Central Valley who wouldn’t otherwise have access to such a place.

    “Fairies”
    My fantasy scene includes fairies, mushrooms, and sparkles. I wanted to move away from the realistic perspective in this scene. It was fun to use my imagination when searching for images to collage into the scene. What I had in mind when creating this collage was something one might imagine while reading a book. When I think of a “fairy land” I envision shiny things, mushrooms, toads and lilypads.

    “Bike Paths”
    The bike path collage shows what a bike-only place in Modesto might look like. I added several different paths (paved and unpaved), bridges over the pond, traffic signs, and cyclists. I wanted to create a place where bikers of all types could go and enjoy themselves without the worry of auto traffic or pedestrians. I included a dirt trail for mountain biking and a paved one for road cyclists. I think this would be a hot spot for people who want to have a leisurely bike ride and enjoy nature without the inconvenience of leaving Modesto.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Weddle.pdf[/file]

  8. Panorama 1: For this panorama, I wanted to change the grocery store, which looked boring into something more fun and interesting. I decided to change this area to look as though it was a scene from a comic book. I added different comic book heroes to the image. I also changed the colors and added different filters to make the whole image look more similar.

    Panorama 2: I found an open field, and wanted to make this image more fun. I decided to make it look as though a fair had been set up. I added images of different rides and attractions that are found at most fairs. I added more color to these rides in order to make it look like more fun. The original image didn’t have much going on, so I wanted to add alot of interesting images, and add more color.

    Panorama 3: For this panorama, I decided to change the image of a hospital and large parking lot. The image looked dull and sad, so I wanted to make my new image more positive. I choose to make it look as though there was a castle there. I added the castle building, as well as trees, flowers, grass, water, and animals. I wanted to make the image look like a fairy-tale or dream, and wanted to add alot of color. As the original image looked more negative, I wanted my second image to look more positive, and like a happier place to be.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Knox Panoramas 3.pdf[/file]

  9. New Travels:
    For this set I wanted to add a futuristic element to the city of Modesto. The transportation in Modesto is based on buses, but with the added train/subway I feel this can help the community and city transportation problem. Pollution will decrease and people would more likely travel outside of Modesto without the cost of gas today. My approach was matte painting due to small changes, but it was seen more as a data-ist image.

    Patterson Lake:
    For this plain location I wanted to add something fun to this town. It is a small town and a town lake will bring an old town charm. This is a data-ist approach, with visible lines and color differences. There is a large lake and settle greenery surrounding the area.

    Patterson Zoo
    This site is not in use and I though a zoo would be fun for the town. This town lacks fun and activities for families. Bringing in a zoo will not only bring fun and entertainment but revenue for the town of Patterson. I wanted to emphasize on the animals by making them black and white. I continue to work with a data-ist approach since the content of the image are visibly different.

    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Jessica.pdf[/file]

  10. This is a panorama and collage depicting an empty field on the corner of Coffee and Montana in Modesto. I never like seeing unused empty fields in cities, as it just seems like space going to waste. Naturally, the best way to make use of said space is to turn it into a zen garden. I’m grateful that Modesto has parks, but I feel it needs something more. Something besides the standard grass lawn and jungle gym. A garden like this could be a place for people to come and relax, collect their thoughts.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are username: Wonderlane, Alejandro Forero Cuervo, username: Tony the Misfit, and Satoshi Miura. Additional photos provided by myself.

    This is a panorama and collage depicting Standiford Park in Modesto. My family has been coming to this park for many years, and every year I find myself wish the park had more water features. There’s something calming about a placid lake, natural or man-made, that I feel the park could benefit from. By throwing in a few water features I hopes to give the park a more aquatic feel, while still leaving space for play. I didn’t want to be too intrusive, seeing as how the park is already decent.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are Agustin Rafael Reys, Larry Wentzel, and Elliot Brown

    This is a panorama and collage depicting a small set of buildings and shops on the corner of Sylvan and Claus in Modesto. Upon seeing this place, I’m sorry to say, I didn’t see much hope for it. It was right next to the train tracks, the soil was flooded, and the buildings were utterly depressing. However, I felt that the dulled and drab atmosphere could make it a delightful place for a military skirmish, should war ever reach the backwoods of Modesto. If I couldn’t bring this location back from the brink of despondency, I may as well drive the point home.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are West McGowan, username: Gruenemann, Jon Rawlinson, D. Miller, username: Colorgrinder, and username: DVIDSHUB. Altered sky done by myself in Photoshop CS4.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Transformations around Modesto.pdf[/file]

  11. 9th St. waterfall:
    This montage transforms 9th St. in Modesto quite a bit. I added a huge waterfall, a river going down 9th St., and a nice man giving a family a ride in a gondola. I was inspired to put this waterfall and river in the middle of Modesto partly because of the word ‘water’ on the Modesto arch, but mostly because I just think it’d be cool if Modesto had a waterfall. Also it would be super cool someone gave gondola rides…

    Parking Lot:
    In this montage, I added trees, grass, blue sky with clouds, and also a lot of color and art. I think it brings a lot of life to a city or town when there’s a lot of color and art. This part of Modesto has a couple wall murals, but I think if there were more colorful murals, it would make Modesto happier. Also grass, trees, and cloud give it more of a nice, natural, happy feel.

    Theater:
    I don’t really think this part of Modesto is that bad, so I didn’t change much. But I added some trees that had leaves, and I also added a few flowers. The biggest thing I did to this photo was put the Beatles in! The lines on the road reminded me a lot of their Abbey Road album. Personally, I think the Beatles would improve any location exponentially.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/panoramas_mfandl.pdf[/file]

  12. This is a panorama and collage depicting an empty field on the corner of Coffee and Montana in Modesto. I never like seeing unused empty fields in cities, as it just seems like space going to waste. Naturally, the best way to make use of said space is to turn it into a zen garden. I’m grateful that Modesto has parks, but I feel it needs something more. Something besides the standard grass lawn and jungle gym. A garden like this could be a place for people to come and relax, collect their thoughts.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are username: Wonderlane, Alejandro Forero Cuervo, username: Tony the Misfit, and Satoshi Miura. Additional photos provided by myself.

    This is a panorama and collage depicting Standiford Park in Modesto. My family has been coming to this park for many years, and every year I find myself wish the park had more water features. There’s something calming about a placid lake, natural or man-made, that I feel the park could benefit from. By throwing in a few water features I hopes to give the park a more aquatic feel, while still leaving space for play. I didn’t want to be too intrusive, seeing as how the park is already decent.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are Agustin Rafael Reys, Larry Wentzel, and Elliot Brown

    This is a panorama and collage depicting a small set of buildings and shops on the corner of Sylvan and Claus in Modesto. It should be noted that this collage was more of a creative exercise, not something that I actually wish to happen. That being said, upon seeing this place, I’m sorry to say, I didn’t see much hope for it. It was right next to the train tracks, the soil was flooded, and the buildings were utterly depressing. However, I felt that the dulled and drab atmnosphere could make it a delightful place for a military skirmish, should war ever reach the backwoods of Modesto. If I couldn’t bring this location back from the brink of despondency, I may as well drive the point home.

    Photos from Flickr. Photographers are West McGowan, username: Gruenemann, Jon Rawlinson, D. Miller, username: Colorgrinder, and username: DVIDSHUB. Altered sky done by myself in Photoshop CS4.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Transformations around Modesto (150 ppi).pdf[/file]

  13. This is a panorama and collage of a very empty ugly railroad and old street on 8th street in Modesto. i decided to turn that one are into a safari, New York, and Las Vegas life style.

    The reason why i decide to transform this part of Modesto into more of a Vegas feeling is because of the big and high reputation that vegas has. we dont really hear anything great or big from modesto. everywhere you go everyone knows where vegas is , but not modesto. how great would it be if modesto had the same or better reputation than Vegas it will always be in the movies, people would love to go and live there. we may not have the desert or the lights, but the heart of life. how could would it be to go into your town and just relax and not have to worry about it being all ugly.

    in this second image,Modesto turns into more of a new york life because of its big and high reputation that new york has. we dont really hear anything great or big from modesto. everywhere you go everyone knows where new york , but not modesto. how great would it be if modesto had the same or better reputation than New York. it will always be in the movies, people would love to go and live there. we may not have the snow or the ocean, but imagine being art of the film industry just like NY always is. from books, to movies, to tv shows, and even politics. its a magnet of life and attraction to everyone! now this would be awesome if modesto would be the number one choice for movies and even tv shows. now being part of the movie Monsters vs Aliens is only one hit where modesto is part of a movie, no one really knows where that is or even remembers it. now if it was always used in other media, than it would have a better reputation.

    the reason why i decide to transform this part of modest into a safari was because i think that one of the many great parts of a good and remembered city is a zoo or some park like that. so whats better than a zoo and a park….a safari!!! how cool would that be. Modesto would benefit from that so much more. with income $$$ from visitors and it would be more known throughout California and the west of the US. may not be as huge or attractive like las vegas or new york, but it sure would be unique. the only city to have a safari, wow its almost like when Jurassic park was introduced and opened to the public. so many would come and so many would spread the word. now there is no need to fly and spend hundreds to Africa when its here on our one beautiful California.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Modetso’s Dreams.pdf[/file]

  14. NASA Space Center
    Location: 424 S. Tegner Rd
    Turlock and the Central Valley in general have vast amounts of land that we can use to bring in businesses and investors to boost our economy. By now we have learned how to build in a way where we will not impact the local habitat and at the same time enhance our landscape. Why not invite NASA to develop a center to promote scientific advancement in space and technology. I show cased this by using the Matte approach in trying to blend the NASA center into the Dairy making look like it really does belong there.

    McDonald’s Turnpike
    1291 West Glenwood Avenue, Turlock CA
    I took the Dada approach for this street, by putting in one of my favorite fast food restaurants and giving it, it’s own world where nothing but McDonald’s exists. As much as we all love fast food, there are limits and we should try to consume moderately. I used a humorous approach with the Dada technique, in conveying this message of moderation. We can apply this wise but simple idea for just about everything we do in our lives.

    Turlock Skyline
    Location: 600 W. Linwood Ave, Turlock CA
    With the amount of agriculture we have, Turlock can be the financial agricultural center for all of the Central and Northern CA by building centers like the WTC in New York. This will give businesses a home to grow worldwide and at the same time pick up the local economy and liven up our almost non-existent central valley skyline. I used a moderate Dada approach and even leaning towards a Matte approach in portraying how beautiful and full of energy it can be if we invested in this kind of a project. That is of course if we were not in a great depression financially.
    [file]http://buildingimagination.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/So_Many_Possibilities_PDF.pdf[/file]

  15. Title: Fish Land
    Location: Oakdale Ave. and Mannor Oak
    Description: I came across this parking lot that was mostly empty with the businesses shut down and thought that it would be a great place to add something exciting. I wanted to add something creative and came up with an idea for a business. So I added in a fishing pond and changed the restaurant to “Fish Land.” The idea was to create a place that people could go fish and the restaurant could then prepare the fish that are caught. Because this is a fresh idea, it would most likely be good for the economy in Modesto by bringing in people form other towns and it would offer a great activity for all ages.

    Title: Kelly’s Gym
    Location: Beyer Park on Sylvan
    Description: Beyer High is the high school I attended for all four years of my high school education. I have always liked the looks of the park but would like more in it so it’s beauty can be enjoyed by more people. In this piece, I added a free public gym. This would be a great incentive to get more people out to the park and give them a chance to work out (this being a top priority since Modesto is frequently ranked most out-of-shape/unhealthy in the nation). I’m not sure if a free gym would ever work out in real life, but it’s pretty cool in theory.

    Title: Water Park
    Location: Oakdale Ave. and Floyd
    Description: Water Park for Modesto is influenced by the closed water park that used to be in Manteca. I remember going there all growing up until it closed and everyone I know, including myself, were extremely disappointed. In this water park I wanted to have plenty of different slides, for people visiting, to choose from. Summers in the valley are hot and this water park seems like a great way to have friend and family fun. Also, Modesto would benefit from the park by opening up a good amount of job opportunities for the community.

  16. Ellie Cruz
    15900 Grand Ave Back To The Oldies Gas Station
    When working with this picture I wanted an oldies theme. I wanted to bring some color but not too much so it stil gave the oldies feeling. I added cars and signs to transform an old ware house into gas station. I decided to make it into a gas station because this street was pretty lonely and it needed something that would bring people around.
    32930 Mission Trail Haunted Mansion
    When i first saw this house/mansion all i could think of was halloween. This house was so beautiful even broken down but it looked like it could be transformed into something obscure. I added ghost and thunder to add to the theme. I also tilted the house to make it look like it was falling into the darkness.
    32390 Riverside Picnic
    This was a flat piece of grassy land with a beautiful background. I loved that you could see the mountains but it was empty in the middle so i thought it would make a great picnic area. I added people and a place for kids to play. I added kites as well and a couple of tables to project my vision.

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