Invisible

Nader Tehrani

Led by Heather Woofter and Sung Ho Kim, Axi:Ome is characterized by a number of salient features laid out lovingly in this book. With a concurrent commitment to the academy and professional practice, the couple disentangles the traditional oppositions they have inherited from generations past. Having tinkered with core pedagogies from the bottom-up for over two decades, more recently starting with Woofter’s leadership at Washington University in St. Louis, the pair has turned their attention to building a school of thought that attends to the broader top-down issues that characterize current thinking—among them the climate crisis, social equity, and the decolonization of the curriculum. To say that these two individuals have created a culture within St. Louis and WashU would be an understatement. It is important to underscore the idea that they did not merely go through the motions of academic procedures; they served as catalysts, advocates, and partners to colleagues, students, and faculty alike. Having known both for some time, I come to this introduction with ample bias. Sung Ho Kim was, in effect, my first student ever, and Heather Woofter a trusted advisor at MIT, where we undertook a serious revision of our core pedagogies in the undergraduate program in 2010. For these reasons, I cannot hide the personal or disciplinary affinities that I share with them.

First, theirs is a commitment to an architectural process that is inexhaustible. The sheer volume of work Axi:Ome has produced since its early years, most of which cannot be included in this publication, is a testament to Woofter and Kim’s infinite thirst for speculation, exploration, and experimentation. If we are taught, conventionally, to give primacy to quality over quantity, they demonstrate that the quantity required by iteration is possibly the only guarantor of critical inquiry. Volume serves not as an end but as a means to research, test, and probe with the kind of curiosity we wish unto our students. In their work, this sensibility has persisted as an ethic now for decades. The combination of competitions, commissions, and self-propelled research has created an archive,

PROJECT INDEX

Cat cages plan and elevations

Red Queen’s throne plan and elevations

Longitudinal perspectival section

Transverse perspectival section

ALBANY HOUSING I FLOATING POOL

The Floating Pool Condominium at Albany Resort transforms a Bahamas site into a community for residents with active lifestyles. The atmosphere in Albany is sophisticated, friendly, and in constant dialogue with the outside environment. As recreation and outdoor living are paramount to the experience of the resort, our design prioritizes views of the marina, ocean, and golf course, access to air and light, and the creation of a community platform “beach,” which is raised from the ground to meet easement requirements while also accentuating views of the marina.

The Floating Pool Condominium is inspired by the natural ecology of the Bahamas. Albany Resort’s built landscape modifies the natural environment by layering onto native ecological systems of landscapes and waterways. One of the hidden resources of the area is the coral reef, a living organism with its own ecology that acts as a light catcher deep in the sea.

Bioluminescent organisms in the ocean inspire a design that includes façades clad with thin white layers of stone that are opaque and reflective during the day but become translucent at night thanks to color-changing LEDs. Here the building becomes not just an object but a beacon that marks the boundary between water and land. At the same time, in marking a geometric turn on the site, the building signals the place as an event and a juncture, one where friends and family can gather together.