AA Design Make Inhabitable Tetrahedron 2014

INHABITABLE TETRAHEDRON Zachary Mollica & Yung-Chen Yang AA Hooke Park – Core Studio Fall 2014

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Inhabitable Tetrahedron 2014 AA Hooke Park

Zachary Mollica Yung-Chen Yang

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AMPLIFIED LANDSCAPES The West Dorset landscape of Hooke Park and its surroundings is characterized by a complex topography of valleys (“combes�), ridges and discrete hills. At a macro scale, our engagement as inhabitants of this landscape is always compromised by an incomplete understanding of this topography - the hidden combes (eg Loscombe - the lost combe) and secret dells create blanks in the appreciation of our location and surroundings.

The brief for this project is to design and construct an inhabitable extension to an existing Hooke Park landform, to amplify the experience of the topography of that chosen site. Thus, our team is to create an architectural intervention within the Hooke Park estate that, at a micro-scale, enables the occupier an enriched appreciation of the topography of that site.

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Project Intent — Responding to the presence and history of a barrow in Hooke Park, to hang a curious and inhabitable object above it.

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The Hillock

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We started our journey to explore the Hooke Park landscape. In search of previous projects and a site we encountered a wide range of landforms within the forest.

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Deep within the woods the spatial qualities were very dynamic.

Struck by the relationship of natural environment and human intervention, we traced old footpaths.

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MAIN CAMPUS

THE HILLOCK

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Pushing through the dense cover of the Jubilee Trail, an opening appeared to our left. In the distance, an unnaturally shaped hill which we had been told of. Immediately drawn to its top, we were impressed by its view and presence within the wood.

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HILL VIEWED FROM THE NORTH WEST

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ROUND BARROW

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LONG BARROW

BARROWS Remnants of the Iron and Bronze Ages, barrows are a kind of burial mound. Hills were constructed over finished burials to close them in. The earliest were long barrows which contained a number of graves while later round barrows would usually contain just one.

A large number have been designated in the region surrounding Hooke Park - particularly towards Dorchester.

With the exception of a depression caused by a fallen tree, the hillock is a nearly symmetrical oval with two dominant axes. Though unrecognized, an archaeologist suggested, the Hillock’s orientation toward the winter solstice sunrise is a common sign of one.

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SURVEYING THE BARROW With the hillock as our focal point, a radial surveying method was devised which would ensure that the highest concentration of data was collected at the centre of the hillock.

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[1] 1 M GRID

[2] 5 M ELEVATION CHANGE

[3] TREE LOCATION/SPOT HEIGHTS

[1] 1 m radial grid set out from the approximate center of the hillock.

[2] Using a 5m measuring pole, spot heights taken along these lines.

[3] Height readings taken at the location of surrounding trees.

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[4] DATA SET MERGED

[5] TOPOGRAPHY CREATED

[6] TREE DIMENSIONS

[4] Tree and grid heights merged together to balance information.

[5] A surface is created of the topography from all of these points.

[6] Tree diameters and approximate heights modeled | 23

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Tetrahedron

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Canopy above the hillock

IN THE CANOPY

CUT

UNDER

ABOVE

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GEOMETRIC FORMS An elevated platform in the middle of a sparse patch of the woods, the Hillock dominates its surroundings. Responding to its curious and unnatural presence, a sharply geometric object is conceived to amplify the hillock. The object is imagined not only as an icon, but as an inhabitable space. Intended for two, will be a protected space offering refuge hanging above the Hillock.

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Triangle above the hill

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TETRAHEDRON

HEXAHEDRON

OCTAHEDRON

DODECAHEDRON

ISOCAHEDRON

Fire

Earth

Air

Ether

Water

PLATONIC SOLIDS Working from the symbolic associations of the hillock and a determination to construct a geometric form, researched the platonic solids – five polyhedron whose faces are each regular and equal polygons. The solids have geometric relationships to each other and from early times, these primary forms have been given many different meanings.

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POINT (0)

LINE (1)

SURFACE (3)

VOLUME (6)

TETRAHEDRON Three of the Platonic solids are dimensionally stable structures as a result of their triangulation: tetrahedron; octahedron; and isocahedron. With 6 edges and 4 points the tetrahedron is the first enclosed volume which is dimensionally stable.

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a

a h a

54.75º

60º

a

35.25º

109.5º

a a/2

a/2

2/3 L 1/3 L L

Tetrahedron geometry

a

a L

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60º

Methods of drawing a tetrahedron | 33

ORIENTING A TETRAHEDRON A tetrahedron has 3 regular orientations: on a face; on a point; or on an edge. In the first two, the tetrahedron projects 3 main axes.

Positioned on its edge, the tetrahedron projects 2 primary axes.

Referencing the two axes of the oval shaped Hillock, these axes also align appropriately to trees on site for hanging.

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AXO

LONG SECTION

CROSS SECTION

1. FACE

2. POINT

3. EDGE

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INHABITING

4m

3m

3m

4m 36 |

SCALE An adjustable mock up constructed of wood and rope to examine the relationship of the body to the tetrahedron at various sizes. At 4m the space was too large, losing spatial quality. After a number of test including adding approximate cladding, 3m beams met our intention of a compact dwellable frame with a dynamic interior

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300 cm

250

50

120 180 75

225

300 cm

Projections of the tetrahedron nand volume within 38 |

Prefabrication

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In order to create a precise and pure object decision made to prefabricate in the Hooke Park workshop before transporting to site. Working back and forth between sketches and small scale models creating a precise tetrahedron required resolving all details and various connections including eventually to the trees before being able to fully begin construction.

Rather than working on site, our design and mock up were mainly generated by drawing sketches to picture the scenario of interior and exterior. In order to hang the tetrahedron between trees above the hillock, using a light structure then. In order to achieve this, a wide range of structural, cladding, entry and hanging options were explored before developing the final iteration.

These considerations were balanced against our intentions to create a geometric yet cozy, inhabitable space for two people to amplify the draw of the Hillock. In the end, a frame of 6 manufactured timber beams with four membrane panels became the optimal solution to achieve these aims.

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Cladding 42 |

LIFTING PULLEY

LOADS DISTRIBUTION

ZIPPER

HANGING SYSTEM

CORNER JUNCTION

Details | 43

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ENTRY Explorations of size, shape and position of entry opening.

Considerations included maintaining pure appearance, convenient direction of entry, keeping tetrahedron as weatherproof as possible and ensuring surface tension was maintained so that occupants are able to lean on the tarpolin panel which includes entry cut. | 45

STRUCTURE AND OPENINGS A wide range of approaches were proposed for structural systems and types of openings before – a number of which were tested in various scale models.

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30°

45°

35.26°

45°

1

2

JUNCTION CUT A method devised for making corner cuts using a compound miter saw set to ­45º/45º (1), two cuts are required for each end. As models scaled up, this cut required too much blade - dangerous and imprecise. By rotating member 90º able to make cuts using a circular saw set up at 30º/35.26º (2).

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Tarpaulin Panel - Lashing 48 |

6 cm

1. Hemp rope, rubber glue and 1cm eyelets

The structure of the material in tension is strong, however it can easily be damaged by sharp objects.

6 cm

2. Steel cable and heating

The tarpaulin in a multi-filament grid sandwiched between two hard-wearing polyethylene sheets has high strength and durability. Its translucent feature allows light to pass through it. The result of heating was not ideal and the material was distorted and damaged badly. The steel cable was used to rigidify the edge.

8 cm

3. Steel cable, rubber glue, 2cm eyelets

The rubber glue cannot be applied well and its yellow color is noticeable which make the surface of the panel imperfect.

Also, because the eyelets still cannot be fastened close to the cable, the loads cannot be distributed to the cable.

4 cm

4. Double-sided tape, thread, 8mm threaded rod

The combination of the double-sided tape and stitched behaved well. The orientation of grid was intentionally placed cross the rod. The holes for lashing were drilled by puncher in order to let rope lie on rod directly.

Tarpaulin Panel - Material tolerance and Joint | 49

PREFABRICATION WORKFLOW – SIX BOX BEAMS AND FOUR PANELS

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S n TS ge i a r o St p ber ksho Tim Wor e h in t ing Saw

il

m n fro auli p r a T

ta a re

ular

ng Tria ut a o g tin Cutt

t

shee

g ewin

S

4 DEC.

the

es Edg

in e Ma o th t g in Lash

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es

Fram

ng

Glui

ping

Clam

le Ang

ing Saw

e n th bly i m e Ass

8 DEC.

Big

Shed

.

10 DEC

EC. 12 D ite On s ation ll a Inst

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FRAME ASSEMBLY One after another, the 6 members were assembled using an epoxy based glue – this would ensure a tight fit in each of the corners. With no orthogonal angles, the tetrahedron’s own tensioning system is used as well as 6 ratchet straps in place of clamps.

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c

a

b

PANEL LASHING In order to make one panel in tension evenly and tightly, we started to go through the rope from the mid of each beam once one panel was put in place initially. After the first loose lash for three sides, we tied one end and pull the three separate strings as tight as possible.

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100 CM

MATERIALS LIST 01.

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Tarpolin panels (x4) 9.8 cm x 8 cm x 2.2 cm cedar (x20) 14.2 cm x 2.2 cm x 3 m cedar (x18) 20 mm x 3 mm x 3 m plywood (x12) 8 mm x 250 cm threaded rod (x18) M8 turnbuckle (x 6) M12 d-bolt (x 4) M8 d-bolt (x 12)

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4 mm wire clamp (x 24) 8 mm wire clamp (x 8) M10 threaded eye (x 8) Wood biscuits (x 16) 8 mm wire thimble (x 4) 4 mm wire thimble (x 12) M10 threaded nut (x4) 10 mm x 14 cm threaded rod (x4)

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8 mm x 12 cm threaded rod (x96) 4 mm steel wire rope (20 m) 3 mm white nylon rope (80 m) 8 mm steel wire rope (16 m) 3/4� wood screws (x 120) Cedar wooden plugs (x 120) 10 cm x 10cm steel plate (x 12)

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10 CM

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Tarpolin panels (x4) 9.8 cm x 8 cm x 2.2 cm cedar (x20) 14.2 cm x 2.2 cm x 3 m cedar (x18) 20 mm x 3 mm x 3 m plywood (x12) 8 mm x 250 cm threaded rod (x18) M8 turnbuckle (x 6) M12 d-bolt (x 4) M8 d-bolt (x 12)

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4 mm wire clamp (x 24) 8 mm wire clamp (x 8) M10 threaded eye (x 8) Wood biscuits (x 16) 8 mm wire thimble (x 4) 4 mm wire thimble (x 12) M10 threaded nut (x4) 10 mm x 14 cm threaded rod (x4)

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8 mm x 12 cm threaded rod (x96) 4 mm steel wire rope (20 m) 3 mm white nylon rope (80 m) 8 mm steel wire rope (16 m) 3/4� wood screws (x 120) Cedar wooden plugs (x 120) 10 cm x 10cm steel plate (x 12)

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CABLING SYSTEM

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TARPOLIN PANELS

LASHINGS

WOODEN BEAMS

SCREWS, PLUGS, BISCUITS

COMPLETE TETRAHEDRON

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On Site

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MAIN ENTRANCE

CAMPUS

THE HILLOCK

FROM BIG SHED TO SITE With the tetrahedron completed, it was balanced carefully on the telehandler, and transported to site. Width of clearance checked carefully along entire route. In preparation for the lift, 4 slings were fixed high in the trees with the assistance of forester Jack Hawker. 2 remain permanently holding the tetrahedron.

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Hanging above the Hillock Lifting by pulley

Transporting by hand Transporting from Big Shed by a telehandler Closest parking space

Delivered to the road near the site, the tetrahedron was carried to the base of the hillock. From here, it was lifted into place using pulleys previously hung and guides ropes. Pulled slowly into its final position, the Tetrahedron was secured in place. | 69

Final fastening

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A new layer is left to rest above the hillock.

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Finding the Tetrahedron

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AROUND THE TETRAHEDRON Glimpses appear through the trees. Reflecting the presence of the Hillock in its surroundings, the tetrahedron changes shape from different orientations. From a few precise positions it projects perfect polygons. Hanging far above eye level and between the trees, most of these views are denied without climbing trees.

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It is not only a object.

Although the form of tetrahedron was conceived abstractly, the dynamic relationship the object would create between the exterior and the interior and in relation to the Hillock is beyond what we imagined. Initially ‘cozy and inhabitable’ was presumed to be enclosed by solid walls or accommodate stable movement.

However, pushed by weight and time considerations, the final form achieves these qualities with a very thin skin. What you see from outside is not exactly what it is, and vice versa.

Curiosity is what we found and hope to leave for others.

Balancing conflicting intentions - unstable tetrahedron space and cozy interior, solid beam appearance and hollow internal structure, and inaccessible volume and inhabitable space the rigid tetrahedron creates a surprisingly playful space. The varying transparency means you can enjoy being alone inside the tetrahedron while focused on the internal surfaces of the beams and the panels, or embrace the surrounding forest looking through and beyond the boundaries of the object.

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THANK YOU & CREDITS

Martin Self Toby Burgess Charlie Corry Wright Charley Brentnall Jack Hawker Merry Hinsley

Jez Ralph Valerie Bennett Christopher Sadd Sahil Shah Swetha Vegesana Mohaimeen Islam

Images credits Valerie Bennett. Pages: 5, 70 76, 78

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