the ESSENCE of PRESERVING

PRESERVING ESSENCE mckee hall // knoxville college

arch 370_371 professor tricia stuth

allie ward

CONTENTS 01 FRAMING | BRIDGING THE DIVIDE 1.1 Dignity // Identity // Value 05 1.1 Architectural Negatives 06

Referencing-Precedents 08 1.2 Approaching Permanence 10

Referencing-Precedents 12 1.2 Constructing Citizenship 14

Referencing-Precedents 16 02 SUPPORTING | TOWN & GOWN RELATIONS 2.1 Archival Exchanges 18 2.1 Mechanicsville & Knoxville College 20 2.1 Historical Relationship 22 2.1 Interconnectedness of Institution & Community 24 2.2 Program Outline 27 03 LOCATING | PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS 3.1 Statement regarding site and context 28 3.2 Urban Renewal Demographics 30 3.3 Mechanicsville Features 31 3.4 Boundary Perspectives 36 05 FORMING | SPATIALIZING CONCEPTS 5.1 Spatializing Concepts 39 5.2 The Coherent Ascent 40 5.3 Dignifying Boundaries 42 5.4 Enduring Reduction 44 06 DESIGN | CONCEPTUALIZING SCHEME 6.1 Preliminary Analysis 47 6.2 Designing Landform 58 6.3 Understanding Interactions 62 APPENDIX C ARCHITECTURE 361_362 C.1 Location Analysis 80 C.2 Solar Analysis 82 C.3 Lighting Strategies 88 C.4 Schematic Framing 98 C.5 Schematic Egress 104 C.6 Vector-Active Systems 110 C.7 Foundation Planning 115 C.8 Syntheiszing Design 120

Full of Life Collage Created by Author // 2018

How does the built environment work to shape the dignity, identity, and value of architectural negatives through approaching permanence and constructing citizenship?

04

FRAMING | BRIDGING THE DIVIDE

There exists a strong correlation between the identity of built spaces and the perception of self, with economic and social complexes reflected in the value, maintenance, and relational qualities of architecture and its demographics. 1 DIGNITY Dignity is the composed manner or quality of an individual understanding one’s worthiness of honor and respect. 2 The built environment possesses an immense capacity to evoke such a perception of dignity, allowing beings to experience a sense of security in oneself, which then affects the pride in one’s communal value, thus evoking a civic pride.

IDENTITY Identity is a distinguishing character or personality of an individual or group of people or a psychological sameness amongst beings or spaces. 3 The way structures and built environments communicate portrays a specific identity of the surrounding people, environments or communities as a whole.

VALUE Value is the perceived or relative worth of a thing, person, or place. It exists as a means to evaluate something as useful, important, or worthy in general. 4 Architecture retains the ability to influence the way something or someone is valued through externally communicating value through the reflected state of maintenance and upkeep.

Dignity, identity, and value work in unison to portray and communicate the relationship between individuals and environment- a representation of the community. If the community is overcome with architectural negatives, or ruin, how does that communicate the perceived dignity of the neighborhood? If a strucutre is not approaching permanence through consistent maintenance and upkeep, how does this portray value within the community? If the built environment is not participating in constructing a citizenship of pride and honor, how does this speak to the identity of the community?

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President’s House // Knoxville College est. 1880s - photo: 2018 Children from Wesley House Community Center est. 1907 - photo 1970s

IF SPACE MAKING IS THE PRODUCT OF CONSTRUCTING ONESELF, WHAT IS THE INFLUENCE OF AN ABANDONED SPACE…AN ABANDONED SELF?

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McKee Hall // destroyed window facade - 2018

ARCHITECTURAL NEGATIVES Architectural negatives, the spaces that have been left to deteriorate, play a critical role in the perception of a community to both the “outsider” and the “insider.” In the context of the American urban environment, spaces that were once occupied by methods of industrial fabrication introduced factory workers and a sense of community, along with a sense of pride and identity to the community. As industrialization transformed, many of these factories and mills are left abandoned, and their surroundings today lack local jobs. This is just a single example of abandonment in the United States, representing a larger concept of the architectural negative- deteriorating places, rich in history and dignity, subject to the eventual effects of change.

The “outsider,” or person that is simply an onlooker, often aestheticizes the decline and abandonment of such urban spaces.

A recent movement of “ruin porn” captures urban decay and post-industrial zones of the world, creating a common art form. 5 Those seeking to capture such places, are criticized

for idealizing the abandonment, “capturing poverty without inquiring of its origins, dramatizing spaces but never seeking out the people that inhabit and transform them, and romanticizing isolated acts of resistance without acknowledging the massive political and social forces aligned against the real transformation of the city.” 6 This sparks conversation of the role of art in the realm of revitalization and restoration of such communities.

The “insider,” or person that inhabits the community and interacts with decline each day, is psychologically affected by abandonment, often impacting many aspects of community. 7 These deteriorating spaces prove to be symbolic of the community, serving as a representation of economic factors and social implications of the neighborhoods in which they exist. How one perceives their community is often the way one perceives individual value and dignity, displaying a direct correlation between the built environment and perception of self.

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SWIMMING CITIES

SWOONstudios-NYC, NY (2008) swoonstudio.org

“Swimming Cities,” created by SWOONstudio brought together a collection of artists, carpenters, musicians, and filmmakers for a floating trip down the Hudson River on a structure composed of trash. SWOON combined the romantic ideals of the water with the stigma of trash- hoping to evoke thought on such a juxtaposition. This “installation piece,” or “structure,” possesses the ability to bring dignity and identity to something often seen as ruin- trash.

The performance of floating down the river, stopping in different cities, and expressing joy through scrap objects, restores hope and dignity to structures of abandonment. A sense of self perception is presented to both the “outsider,” and “insider” of the peice. For the “outsider,” this project sheds light on the beauty of trash through restoring the ruin, offering a deeper understanding of what it looks like to utilize the ruin. For the “insider,” the structures offer ways to occupy the abandonment through transforming the existing into something suitable for contemporary needs. 8

08

NEWBERN LIBRARY Rural Studio-Newbern, AL (2013)

Auburn’s Rural Studio worked with dedicated community leaders to design and build a library in downtown Newbern, Alabama. The design utilizes the Old Bank Building, part of Newbern’s historic downtown, donated by a local family. Newbern Library transformed an abandoned historical space into a social center, providing resources such as after-school programming, computer access, and the first public internet within the community.

The Bank Building was renovated and expanded in order to accommodate its new function as a library. A small outdoor space offers a reading space for the public. The white brick exterior of the Bank Building remains in tact to preserve the memories of the historic building, while the interior provides opportunities to learn about the town’s history and heritage. The preservation of this structure seeks to provide resources to the “insider,” creating a gathering space and place of education for the community. Because this building has been restored with activity, it acts as a representation of communal values- providing growth and educational opportunities, ultimately correlating to the perception of self. 9

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sealed

collapsed

shattered

McKee Hall // Knoxville College est. 1876 - photos: 1880 & 2018 Knoxville News Sentinel

CAN MATERIALIZED SPACE PROMOTE PERMANENCE THROUGH EVOLVING IDENTITY & SENSE OF DIGNITY?

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McKee Hall // locked up front doors - 2018

APPROACHING PERMANENCE “If architecture is invested with life- a living, breathing sentient existence, with a spirit and a memory, a capacity to learn and even a rudimentary facility to think for itself- what is of its death?” 10 No building can exist as completely permanent. “Approaching permanence” speaks to this reality of the impermanence of structures- that durability is regularly shifted through valued maintenance. When a structure is valued and culturally relevant, maintenance and upkeep work to maintain an appearance of permanence.

Cultural principles frame architecture as something creative, useful, and valuable, with a flipside of deterioration, waste and destruction. If there is significant value placed in a structure, the architecture sustains itself within an aestheticized cultural sphere of

value, and an economic sphere of valueconsistently approaching a permanence through visual and financial value. As cultural principles deem a structure as rubbish, it is implied that the space might be in place, but out of time.

Spaces deemed to be “valueless,” or worthy only of demolition, undergo reevalution and rejuvination by those who see these spaces to possess potential value. Changing perceptions of space change the value of space, in turn, changing the permanence of the built environment.

Permanence can only be permitted if malleability, the ability to change and transform with culture, and relationality, in terms of relating to the surrounding culture are permitted.

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CONGO STREET INITIATIVE

buildingcommunityWORKSHOP- Dallas, TX (2008-2012)

Congo Street is in the Dallas neighborhood of Jubilee Park, a remnant of a socially and economically segregated time. Built around 1920, this small community of dwellings fell into disrepair with little attention from landlords, the surrounding neighborhood, or the city itself.

Current residents are the descendants of former renters and witness to multiple generations of its tight-knit community that continues to struggle with poverty, language barriers, low educational attainment, lack of job skills and opportunities, and other challenges of lowerincome communities.

The Congo Street Initiative took homes slated for redevelopment and preserved the permanence and dignity of the existing community. Because Congo Street was seen as ruin to “ousiders,” there was no second thought of displacement of those who have occupied the streets for generations, but because bcWORKSHOP saw value in stabilizing home-ownership, a sense of permanence was restored while maintaining generations of communal experiences and preserving the memories of place.

The Congo Street Initiative relies on the value of the “insider,” continuing to approach permanence through maintaining homes and restoring value in the perception of the street.

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UNIVERSITY OF TARTU- NARVA COLLEGE KavaKava Architectects-Narva, Estonia (2012)

The Narva College project reconstructs a historical volume as void through recognizing the importance of the old, while building the new. This new university is built into the city of Narva, on the border of Estonia and Russia. Destroyed after WWII, Narva left few ruins and a consistent visual reminder of the destruction. The University of Tartu seeks to honor the history of the site, while rejuvinating the energy of the ruins and furthering engagement with between academia and town residents through educational and public spaces. This structure restores the memory of the town hall, the heart of Narva, maintaining the previous stock exchange as a plaza- a place where the town can still come together, while memorializing the Old Town, before its modernist city replacement after WWII. A space once perceived to have no value due to its destruction, is restoring a sense of permanence through the preservation of the historical context of place. Because of this, the architecture is sustained through value and representation, seeking to preserve the dignity of the town of Narva. 12

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T WE MOR

OGETHER CAN DO E

Found Mirror & McKee Hall // Knoxville College est. 1876 - photos: 2018

HOW CAN THE CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIAL SPACES FOSTER DIGNIFYING INTERACTIONS- PROMOTING A PERCEPTION OF CITIZENSHIP THAT INCLUDES ALL?

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McKee Hall // bell tower - 2018

CONSTRUCTING CITIZENSHIP Citizenship is an ordinary space of activity that many people occupy without thinking much about it. We frequently define citizenship as rights, responsibilities, and attachments, without considering how these relationships are engulfed in the built environment, as architecture shapes the habits of perceiving and feeling citizenship. Citizenship is not independent from the built environment, which is how public identity can manifest into new forms of belonging. The understanding of self as “citizen” or as “stranger” is constructed through the built environment, producing visual structures of belonging.

When we turn our full attention to the structures that surround us, we find that memorialization- how we commemorate the past- can never be fully untangled from habits we form in the present. The architecture of a community begins to represent citizenship in the way a structure affects inclusiveness, control, security, sameness, and predictability, often in the realm of public space. It is crucial

to be mindful of who the “public” is for each structure as the public spaces begin to define how one might engage with communities.

The “public space” can be curated in such a way that significantly changes the meaning and experience of “being in public.” Structure and organization can shift from interacting with diverse strangers in a shared material world, to a bounded space that determines who and what to perceive. The organization of space can then play a major role in who and what we “happen” to see regularly, thus influencing what one perceives as citizen, and how one perceives one’s own citizenship.

Space and society are intentionally mutually essential. Space is not only a reflection of desired social relations, for space also produces and forms those relations.

Connecting people through daily experiences influences how one thinks politically and socially about their role as a citizen. 14 .

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INNER-CITY ARTS

Michael Maltzan Architecture-Los Angeles, CA (2008)

A community oasis in the Skid Row neighborhood of Los Angeles, Inner-City Arts provides an arts education for over 10,000 at-risk youth from LA public schools each year. At the street, white walls weave in and out to engage the city, while maintaining a separation from outside happenings of the neighborhood. Each of the program spaces is connected through a network of plazas and courtyards, blurring the lines between interior and exterior.

Such a design model facilitates an understanding of the dynamic relationship between the individuals and the broader social responsibility. The architecture creates free public spaces for kids to display their creations, while maintaining a sense of security from the outside world. The space of Inner-City Arts is a reflection of desired social spaces and how those can still be provided for children that do not normally have access to such freedom, shifting the perception of citizenship and empowerment that they can experience each day.

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GANDO PRIMARY SCHOOL Francis Kere Architecture- Gando, Burkina Faso (2001)

The experience of education in a space with poor lighting and ventilation encouraged Francis Kere to return to his hometown to provide quality learning spaces to a community that had none. Kere modernized the traditional clay-making process of the community to create a more structurally robust clay construction that was easy to produce while providing thermal protection. Using the corrugated tin roof found in many of the local houses, the Primary School uses the roof as a protection of major rains, and lifted to provide additional ventilation for the space.

The success of this project can be attributed to the close involement of the local villagers.

Maintaining this local practice of unity, Kere used sustainable techniques for everyone in Gando to participate in the process, as children gathered stones for the foundation, women carried water for brick manufacturing, and the men formed and laid the bricks.

These techniques and the design allow for the enhanced collectivity in Gando, reminding the villagers of their valued contributions, along with providing a space for learning and empowerment. Becoming a landmark of communal pride, the primary school serves as a representation of the community- a place worthy of quality design, affecting the way citizens perceive themselves. 16

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FRAMING REFERENCES 1 BUILDINGS MUST DIE

Cairns, S., & Jacobs, Jane M. (2014). Buildings must die : A

perverse view of architecture.

2 DIGNITY

“dignity.” Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2018.

Web. 18 Sept. 2018.

3 IDENTITY

“identity.” Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2018.

Web. 18 Sept. 2018.

4 VALUE

“value.” Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2018.

Web. 18 Sept. 2018.

5/6 RUIN PORN

Lyons, Siobhan. “What ‘Ruin Porn’ Tells Us about Ruins -

and Porn.” CNN, The Conservation, 1 Nov. 2017.

7 PSYCHOLOGY OF ABANDONMENT

Greco, JoAnn. “The Psychology of Ruin Porn.” CityLab, The

Atlantic Monthly Group, 11 Jan. 2012.

8 SWOON- SWIMMING CITIES

Curry, Caledonia. “Swimming Cities – SWOON.” SWOON,

Cloud Shop Studios

9 RURAL STUDIO- NEWBERN LIBRARY

Acino, Morgan, et al. “Newbern Library.” 20K Home Product

Line, Rural Studio. 2013.

10 ARCHITECTURAL DEATH

Cairns, S., & Jacobs, Jane M. (2014). Buildings must die : A

18

perverse view of architecture.

11 bcWORKSHOP- CONGO STREET INITIATIVE

“Congo Street Initiative.” [Bc] , BcWORKSPACE 12 KAVAKAVA- NARVA COLLEGE

KavaKava. “University of Tartu Narva College.” Kavakava

Architects, Kavakava.

13 CITIZENSHIP

Atkinson, Niall, et al. “On Dimensions of Citizenship.”

Dimensions of Citizenship, Niall Atkinson, Ann Lui, and Mimi Zeiger, 8 Mar. 2018

14 STRUCTURE OF BELONGING

Atkinson, Niall, et al. “On Dimensions of Citizenship.”

Dimensions of Citizenship, Niall Atkinson, Ann Lui, and Mimi Zeiger, 8 Mar. 2018

15 MICHAEL MALTZAN- INNER-CITY ARTS

Maltzan, Michael. “Inner-City Arts.” Michael Maltzan

Architecture, Michael Maltzan Architecture

Maltzan, Michael. “Inner-City Arts.” Arcspace, ArcSpace 16 FRANCIS KERE- GANDO PRIMARY SCHOOL

“Primary School in Gando / Kéré Architecture” 22 Apr

2016. ArchDaily. Accessed 11 Oct 2018.

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New Haven Theater Riot Homan’s Atheneum Theater // 1854

With the cultural shift of the educational institution in relation to its surroundings, will the future require a distinct boundary between town and gown or allow a fluid passage between the two?

20

Allie Ward

SUPPORTING | TOWN & GOWN RELATIONS

ARCHIVAL EXCHANGES Relationships between town and gown have remained ambivalent over centuries.

At times, a university in crisis has been rescued by the urban surroundings, and other times where the urban surroundings threaten the stability of the institution. There have been occasions where the university provides a focus and unity for the cultural life of the city, and times where it has withdrawn itself from such culture. 1 Yale & New Haven- Post Medieval As a college newly located in the town of New Haven, Connecticut, conflict arose between the town and school as students attended church on campus and not in the community. This developed into a century of violent confrontations between students and residents of the town- one population valuing academia, and the other valuing a traditional town experience.

Since the post-medieval college experience of Yale in connection with New Haven, American colleges and universities developed connections and benefits to form positive relationships between the town and gown. Laws provided an incentive to co-operate, as schools require city servies and need

city approval for plans. The “engaged university” is a term that describes this relationship. 2 University of Georgia & Athens, GeorgiaContemporary Voted No. 1 College Music Town by The Rolling Stones Magazine, Georgia’s students participate in the local culture that is often created by non-students, in this case, through music. This common ground offers a space for the towns people to share passions and interactions with students, evoking coexistence and co-operation. 3 As geography becomes less of a factor with Higher Education, town and gown parameters seem to become increasingly more difficult to define.

Online degrees rely less on geographical presence, creating a demographic of non-traditional students. Many of these students live and work full-time in the surrounding community.

This questions the future of town and gown relationships. We have a the shift in riots to coexistance, and how institutions work to form similarities, as opposed to the harsh contrast between citizenship and academia.

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1875 PRIMARY BLACK COMMUNITY

KNOXVILLE COLLEGE

MOSES SCHOOL

Fig 1.1 1875 Primary Black Community

The Moses School, Clinton Chapel A.M.E. Zion Church, and Knoxville College served as budding centers for African American culture in Mechanicsville. earliest found map - 1935

CLINTON CHAPEL AME ZION CHURCH

5 6 7

8

4

9

3

2

1

Fig 1.2 A map of Knoxville factories in the 1890s

1 - Knoxville Iron Co. 2 - Knoxville Furniture Co. 3. Knoxville Foundry & Machine Shop 4 - Clark Foundry & Machine Shop 5. Brookside Cotton Mills 6 -Evans & Co. Marble Works 7 - Phoenix Marble Works 8 - Standard Handle Company 9 - Knoxville Woolen Mills

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the primary workplaces of Mechanicsville residents earliest found map - 1935

MECHANICSVILLE & KNOXVILLE COLLEGE

The evolving relationship of the educational campus and community identifies pivotal people and moments that work to form rapport between the two.

Knoxville’s Mechanicsville neighborhood earned its name from skilled laborers working in factories along Knoxville’s periphery (Fig 1.1). As the Knoxville Iron Company was established and Welsh families were brought in to work alongside the existing African American community, ideas of progression and provision for freed slaves arised. In 1863, Laura Scott Cansler advocated for education and opened the first school for freed slaves.

In 1874 Knoxville was chosen by the Freedmen’s Normal School Committee for the site of Knoxville College, furthering the ties of the black community (Fig 1.2). 4 Following graduation, many KC grads remained in Mechanicsville to pursue entrepreneurial endeavors within the community.

At the turn of the 20th century, Knoxville College expanded as a community center, hosting the local church, opening the KC Hospital as the only medical facility for blacks, teaching grade school, and through additional avenues. It is im-

possible to summarize the history of Mechanicsville without including the history of Knoxville College, implying that the institution and community worked to serve one another.

As racial tensions increased and segregation persisted amongst blacks and whites throughout the early 20th century, Mechanicsville housed business opportunities for African Americans that were unable to be supported in predominately white neighborhoods. 5 Often stemming from the skills taught at Knoxville College these opportunities existed in dentistry, grocery, masonry, education, radio entertainment, and newspaper printing for blacks. 6 Throughout urban renewal in the 1950s60s, black owned businesses were forcibly relocated, to areas with little support and away from their primary customer base. This led to decreasing income levels, deteriorating housing, and lack of locally produced goods for the neighborhood. The city sought to return a sense of dignity through the development of historical districts, furthering the deterioration of Knoxville College and displacement within Mechanicsville. 7 23

14th Amendment “equal protection of all citizens”

American Civil War (1861-1865)

Reconstruction Period (1863-1877)

Transcontinental Railroad Complete

104 Welsh immigrant families brought to work in a rolling mill.

Battle of Fort Sanders

1867

Freedmen’s Normal School Committee chose Knoxville for cheap living and lack of colored schools

1875

Laura Scott Cansler opens school for freed slaves in Knoxville

1868 Civil War general Hiram S. Chamberlain and the Richards brothers established the Knoxville Iron Company

control labor of former slaves

Emanicpation Proclamation (slaves freed)

Clinton Chapel A.M.E. Zion Church, Fairview School (1875) then Moses School, Knoxville College created Mechanicsville Knoxville’s primary black community

1880

1902 1883

1907

Mechanicsville is annexed into the city of Knoxville

First Newspa published fro Mechanicsv native

Wesley House munity Cente ters race relati Mechanicsv

Plessy vs.

Ferguson

Black Codes

24

Mechanicsville was surrounded by large factories and mills, and contained most of Knoxville’s railroad maintenance shops.

1874

1863

Knoxville College Hospital opens -only medical facility where black physicians and nurses could practice -offered full service to patients from college and community -population of black doctos increased from 7 to 20 from 1907-1926

15th Amendment cannot deny the right to vote

Fig 1.3 Comparison of Time

The history of Mechanicsville in relation to key historical moments of the nation

MLK Jr. Assasinated

Prohibition & U.S. Enters WWI

Racial Riot

Segregation Ends in Public Schools

Great Depression Begins

y Mrs. America P. Cloud is Principal of Field School -related to pioneer famers -graduate of Knoxville College -brothers own local grocery schools

es

o e

k m7 6

Beardsey Junior High and Cansler Elementary open on Knoxville College farmland

1921

Urban Renewal forces closure of local black owned businesses and relocation

Thriving African American businesses and entertainment

1935-40

1910-1917 1907

1916

First Newspaper published from Mechanicsville native

Black recreation park opens Leslie Street Park

1998-2006

1960s

1935 Slum Renewal Project produces College Homes

Hope VI Project replaces college homes

1950s College Homes is prefabricated and becomes Lincoln Heights

1980s several homes added to Mechanicsville Historic District

Knoxville College Cemetary is erected to protect the well known bodies of Mechanicsville from grave robbers.

Wesley House Community Center fosters race relations in Mechanicsville

19th Amendment women gain the right to vote

U.S. Enters WWII

Segregation Abolished

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1882

ELIZA B. WALLACE HOSPITAL

1919

RIOT OF 1919 college students rioted and defended Knoxville’s black community

1884

WILLIAM FRANCES YARDLEY

1875

1883

mechanicsville attorney advocating for black education and against segregation

WILLIAM JACKSON CANSLER graduates from KC in ‘83, principal of Fairview, practiced law for justice in Knoxville

1875

FAIRVIEW SCHOOL elementary school for blacks in mechanicsville. founded & run by KC grads.

1876

KC AS HIGH SCHOOL only high school for blacks in knoxville

WEBSTER L. PORTER founder and editor of east tennessee news, graduated from KC ABRAHAM MURPHY KC grad, married KC grad, opened dry goods store for mechanicsville, donated land for public library

Fig 1.4 Historical Interconnectedness of Knoxville College and Mechanicsville

04 | AUTHOR’S LAST NAME | PROPOSAL TITLE (SHORTENED IF NECESSARY/DESIRED) 26

JANE P. HENRY graduated from KC normal school, deeded land to KC for timber

1902

KC CEMETARY provides protection of graves for mechanicsville

1883

COMMUNAL CHAPEL KC opens chapel for communal use.

1935

MECHANICSVILLE JUNIOR HIGH ON KC FARM LAND

1921

LESLIE STREET PARK only park opened stricktly for the black community in Knoxville

CHARLES WARNER CANSLER principal of austin high school, raised funds to build library for blacks, entertained famous people in home, advocated for new colored school

CANSLER ELEMENTARY BEARDSLEY JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

1921

1925

1970

1957

KC CLASS BOYCOTT students boycott classes for a month- causing uproar in the community

LUNCH SIT INS KC students sit in at lunch counters to protest segregation- initiating change in the city

1950s

1962

WHITE STUDENTS AT KC

OLD SHIP OF ZION radio show produced by KC grad, hosted sock hops and communal events

1950

1940

“SLUM RENEWAL” produced government housing of college homes

“SLUM RENEWAL” produced government housing of lincoln heights

FINANCIAL DECLINE KC begins to lose money and experience financial and enrollment decline

2018

1990s

KC EXTREME DECLINE KC’s enrollment declines, buildings are abandoned, degree programs discontinued

2006

KC AGGRESSIVE FUNDRAISING

1997

KC LOSES ACCREDIDATION

2014

EMERGENCY CHEMICAL CLEAN-UP

KC CURRENT STATE the college sits abandoned and in disrepair, offices on campus and classes offered online

2016

KC BUILDINGS CONDEMNED

2015

KC SUSPENDS CLASSES enrollment drops to 11 students and college is in $4.5 million debt

1958

URBAN RENEWAL I-40 produced- “relocating” many locally owned businesses by KC grads and local black community

1997

HOPE VI GRANT intentions to revitalize the deteriorating mechanicsville neighborhood- specifically government

Fig 1.5 Current Interconnectedness of Knoxville College and Mechanicsville

27

In Fig 1.4, the interconnectedness of Knoxville College and the citizens of Mechanicsville is evident. Critical times of racial segregation influenced KC graduates to remain in the neighborhood and start opportunities for the black community. Donating land for educational resources, advocating for equality in the legal system, using physical structures to teach skills, and working as a unified force contributed to the thriving community that Mechanicsville quickly became through the late eighties to mid nineties.

The built environment of town and gown communities played a crucial role in the unification process. The educated community of Knoxville College and the working community of Mechanicsville combined resources and shared spaces, creating a place of empowerment and pride amongst both bodies of people.

Church buildings were shared, bricks were produced by alumni, timber was donated by alumni, and the students worked to continue building structures. 8 In Fig. 1.5, we begin to see a separation of the once unified town and gown relationship. The students of Knoxville College begin to protest racism in the city, and Knoxville begins to radically change the structural systems within the neighborhood of Mechanicsville.

Government funded housing projects were constructed under the title of “Slum Renewal” beginning with College Homes in 1940. 9 This caused separation of communities and relocating families, ultimately distributing the unfied 28

neighborhood. What is crucially noted here, is the city of Knoxville used funding to “revitalize” the housing, based on their isolated perceptions of the neighborhood and opinions of fair housing. 10 After Slum Renewal construction, the Urban Renewal construction of I-40 and I-275, and “relocation” of locally owned businesses in the 70s, Knoxville College began experiencing a tremendous financial decline. By the 1990s, KC enrollment dropped tremendously and buildings were left abandoned, leading to the loss of accredidation in 1997. 11 During this year, Hope VI proposed a reconstruction of the “slums” that were recently errected in Mechanicsville.

From the opening of Knoxville College in 1875, to the condemning of buildings in 2016, one can note the interdependent economic conditions. The communities transitioned from collaborating in times of conflict, to becoming separate communities, tangibly seen within the context of the built environment. Much of Mechanicsville housing is dependent on outside financial upkeep, while the college consistently seeks funding to maintain the spirit of the once bilateral community.

In the current state of Mechanicsville’s decline and Knoxville College’s abandonment and substantial debtthe town and gown exist completely independent of one another, forming what happens to be a harsh communal divide.

3,500 sqft a space for technological advancement

MECHANIZATION LAB

5,000 sqft for communal engagement and down time

ENTICING PASSAGE

RECLINING SECTOR

INFINITE sqft the approach- the ultimate welcome and engaging outdoor piece

DISCOVERY CAVE

3,500 sqft a making & creating space for the arts and local artisans

14,000 sqft (exterior) an outdoor space to gather, to adapt, to host, to celebrate, to relax, etc.

RUSTIC REGALEMENT

CULTURE SPACE

FLOCKING EXPANSE

3,500 sqft a place of learning & understanding- to teach, adapt, and inform

7,500 sqft an indoor space to gather, to adapt, to host, to celebrate etc.

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SUPPORTING REFERENCES 1 HISTORICAL TOWN & GOWN

Mayfield, Loomis. “Town and Gown Relationships:

The Extension of the University Into the Community.”

Town and Gown: Higher Education and Society, 2001, doi:10.3726/978-1-4539-1640-7/18.

2 YALE & NEW HAVEN

“Highs and Lows of Town and Gown.” Yale Alumni

Magazine, Mar. 2001.

3 UGA & ATHENS

Adams, Olivia. “Athens, UGA Representatives Discuss

Relationship between University and Community.” The

Red and Black, BLOX Content Management System,

19 Nov. 2017.

4 MECHANICSVILLE COMMUNITY

“MECHANICSVILLE: Where the Old Is New Again - The

Knoxville Focus.” The Knoxville Focus, The Knoxville

Focus, 11 May 2014.

5 ENTREPRENEURIAL

Booker, Robert J. “The Story of Mechanicsville -

Knoxville’s Community.” 27 Mar. 2015.

6 SKILLED ENDEAVORS

Booker, Robert J. “The Story of Mechanicsville 30

Knoxville’s Community.” 27 Mar. 2015.

7 “RENEWAL”

Taylor, Comer L., “A Case Study of the Consequences

of Displacement Caused by Urban Renewal and

Highway Construction on Minority Businesses in the

City of Knoxville, Tennessee. “ Master’s Thesis,

University of Tennessee, 1974.

8 BRICKS & TIMBER

Booker, Robert J. “White Students Attended Knoxville

College in the Early Days.” Knox News, 27 Dec. 2016.

9 COLLEGE HOMES

Booker, Robert J. “The Story of Mechanicsville Knoxville’s Community.” 27 Mar. 2015.

10 FUNDED HOUSING

Wade, Becky. “Housing Programs.” City of Knoxville Madeline Rogero, Mayor, City of Knoxville, 11 ENROLLMENT DROP

Yoon, Christina Jin. “Knoxville College 1875-.” The

Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed, BlackPast, 31

College Avenue // 2016 artery interlacing Mechanicsville and Western Heights

How does the physical manifestation of a structure or space possess the ability to influence the relationship between the local community and educational institutions?

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LOCATING | PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS

In understanding the relationship of town and gown in the context of Knoxville College and Mechanicsville, one must begin to comprehend the social implications of the community in order to recognize the ways in which the landscape affect relationships.

RENEWAL Part of understanding the spatial manifestations within Mechanicsville is understanding the interstate systemspecifically where 1-40 and 1-275 intersect.

This intersection creates a boundary around Mechanicsville, severing it from the remainder of Knoxville. The racial dot maps portrays ways in which this severing and placement of the interstate strongly correlate with the separation of African Americans on one side of the interstate, while the majority of whites on the other.

HILLTOP Within Mechanicsville exists Knoxville

College, acting as the hilltop educational institution over looking the neighborhood.

This positioning of the college allows for it to overlook and view the entirety of Mechanicsville and Western Heights, along with the opposite- the community to “look up� to its physical structures. This manifests in the way the community views the institution and the institution views the community, both literally and psychologically.

BARRIERS In understanding the perception of Knoxville College, one must recognize the physical and implied barriers that act as a separation from the community. Across some of the boundaries exists metal fencing, others are overgrown, some possess signage, and others exist on steep hills. These factors along with others, begin to act as symbolism, possessing the ability to unify or separate the institution from the community.

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I-275

I-69

OLD NORTH KNOXVILLE

I-40

I-55 FOURTH AND GILL

I-40

LONSDALE

I-240

PARKRIDGE

WESTERN HEIGHTS

MECHANICSVILLE

OLD CITY DOWNTOWN

I-69

I-40

FORT SANDERS

NASHVILLE KNOXVILLE

I-240

SOUTH KNOXVILLE

MEMPHIS I-65 I-24

I-40 I-24

I-440 80%+ black

I-65

80%+ white

Post Urban Renewal Demographics in Tennessee (Weldon Cooper Center, Racial Dot Map, U.S. Census 2010)

Led by the complete control of the state and federal governments in the 1950s, the FederalAid Highway Act developed new highways across the United States. This program sought to bring traffic in and out of the central cores of cities in an expedited manner, resulting in isolated or destroying many vibrant urban neighborhoods. Existing commercial districts were simply bypassed by commuters each day, homes and businnesses were demolished, and existing neighborhoods were disconnected from the remainder of the city, all to make way for new roads and heightened sprawl.

Segregation increased as communities were 34 displaced and many African American and

Latino families were forced into public housing while whites moved to the suburbs. This time of Urban Renewal led to the degradation of African American entrepreneurial communities and further segregated races in cities.

Analyzing the Racial Dot Map, produced by the information in the Federal Census of 2010, one begins to notice the obvious correlation of distinct segregation in races, specifically the white and black populations. The role interstates played in further segregating the white and black communities, not just in a single instance, but in most American cities is evident in the way Tennessee cities are represented in these diagrams. From Memphis,

to Nashville, and Knoxville, one observes harsh lines drawn between the communities that are more than 80% white, and those that are more than 80% black, indicating the location of federal interstates. In Knoxville specifically, we can observe the harsh segregation of communities existing within the boudaries of I-40 and I-275, specifically in the way that East Knoxville is separated from North Knoxville and Downtown. This is further emphasized in the way minority neighborhoods Mechanicsville, Lonsdale, and Western Heights are isolated from the surrounding white neighborhoods.

BEAUMONT MAGNET ACADEMY

HISTORIC FIRE STATION KNOXVILLE COLLEGE BEARDSLY FARM MALCOLM MARTIN PARK WESLEY HOUSE MAYNARD ELEMENTARY DANNY MAYFIELD PARK

POINTS OF INTEREST RELIGIOUS SPACES HISTORIC DISTRICT

Map of Mechanicsville (google maps image, aerial context 2018)

diagramming points of interest, religious spaces, and the historic district of the Mechanicsville community- all within the boundaries of I-40 and I-275

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OVERGROWTH AS DIVIDE

(google maps image, street view context 2018)

The overgrowth along the edges of Knoxville College forms an informal boundary between the neighborhood homes of Mechanicsville and the institutional structures of the higher education campus. The greenery represents a larger problem- a visible representation of the lack of maintenance and value of the campus. Along with portraying neglect, the excessive amounts of kudzu vines form a linear boundary along the sidewalk that does not allow easy access onto the campus. If the overgrowth continues, the campus continues to appear neglected, affecting the psychology of place, and continues to cause separation between town and gown. If the overgrowth is removed, the community will sense a more inviting appeal into the campus, tangibly portraying an intensified connection of the institution and surrounding community.

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RIGID FENCE AS DIVIDE

(google maps image, street view context 2018)

The wire fence along the edge of College Avenue forms a physical, linear separation between the homes of Mechanicsville and the institutional structures of Knoxville College.

This fence sense an experiential message to those who encounter the space- that there is not crossing permitted. This message furthers the preexisting divide between the town and gown within Mechanicsville. These fences are topped with barbed wire, further communicating that entering the campus is not permitted. This artery connects the communities of Mechanicsville and Western Heights, with the potential to integrate the community of Knoxville College. With the removal of the fence, the artery of College Avenue would then draw the communities of Western Heights, Mechanicsville, and Knoxville College.

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1935 // Knoxville College Dining Hall community members dining at Knoxville College

What does it look like for the community to restore the unity of town & gown, providing spaces of empowerment, entrepreneurship, & identity for the community as a mutually dependent entity?

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FORMING | SPATIALIZING CONCEPTS

Understanding the psychological affects of experiencing the community and institution is crucial in terms of forming spatial consequences. Understanding what provides dignity, identity and value to a community, along with the consequences of abandoned buildings and influential landscapes, will further inform the ways in which one might consider the formal results.

Each of the following physical consequences stems from a deeper questioning of the relationship between Knoxville College and Mechanicsville.

Understanding the “insider” and “outsider” of the institution as well as the community further informs how a space can respond and accomodate each group of people.

The following proposals seek to mediate such a relationship between public and private, educated and non-educated, historical and contemporary, seeking out physical manifestations that begin to answer questions of belonging.

An additional consideration is how the student of an HBCU maintains a sense of unity with the institution, while accomodating the community, and how the community might interact with the unified body of an HBCU. Is the “familyness” of the HBCU lost as the community is encouraged to interact with the campus? Is the unity of town and gown lost if Knoxville College does not welcome members of Mechanicsville into the campus? These are questions being formed after the production of the following architectural consequences.

One must consider the zones of transition between community and institution, not seeking rigid boundaries that keep people in or out, creating a buffer zone between the two bodies, while also considering the inherent identity of each body of people. These complex questions require more design, more proposal, and additional thought, asking additional questions of the immediate interactions between Knoxville College and Mechanicsville.

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MCCULLOUGH HALL INCREASED GREENERY HUSHED LOUNGING

COHERENT ASCENT

KNOXVILLE COLLEGE SECTION

GREEN ASCENT BETWEEN HILLTOPS

T

through between corridor campus e line of onnects McKee corridor another valued. tionship mmunity, identity n allows nity, and engage restores onmentng them ractions entices campus, cultural

KNOXVILLE PLAN “WALK” SECTION LINE

RULE HIGH SCHOOL

MCKEE HALL

MCKEE HALL

AYRES HALL

Green Ascent (left) Knoxville Plan // “THE WALK” Extended (right) (google maps image, aerial context 2018)

the COHERENT ASCENT an enticing artery “THE WALK” once existed as a memorable transistion through the campus of Knoxville College, creating an artery between McKee Hall and the Campus Center. This cultural corridor became a place of gathering, a representation of campus organizations, and a “hub” for varying events. As the line of “THE WALK” is extended throughout Knoxville, it connects with the hilltop abandoned Rule High School and McKee Hall along with the valued, hilltop Ayres Hall. This corridor relates two abandoned hilltop institutions with another hilltop institution that has been maintained and valued. The COHERENT ASCENT seeks to analyze the relationship between the abandoned hilltop and surrounding community, questioning the

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effect such an institution has on the identity and dignity of the surrounding public. This connection allows for freespace, a place to connect with the community, and a maintained space that invites those passing by to engage with Knoxville College. The COHERENT ASCENT restores a sense of dignity to the hilltop condition of abandonment- restoring the traditions of “THE WALK” and extending them into the surrounding community, welcoming new interactions with valued engagement. The act of creating an artery entices the community to engage in Knoxville College’s campus, allowing value, dignity, and identity to be restored to a cultural centerpiece of Mechanicsville’s identity.

RULE HIGH SCHOOL

WESTERN HEIGHTS

MECHANICSVILLE

MCKEE HALL

FORT SANDERS

AYRES HALL

KNOXVILLE SECTION

RULE HIGH SCHOOL

MCKEE HALL

PARTIAL SECTION

MCKEE HALL

MCCULLOUGH HALL INCREASED GREENERY HUSHED LOUNGING

COHERENT ASCENT

KNOXVILLE COLLEGE SECTION

THE SCALE OF SECTION McKee Hall, McCullough Hall // Knoville College Abandoned Rule High School // Western Heights Ayres Hall // University of Tennessee

GREEN ASCENT BETWEEN HILLTOPS

the COHERENT ASCENT

KNOXVILLE PLAN “WALK” SECTION LINE

an enticing artery “THE WALK” once existed as a memorable transistion through the campus of Knoxville College, creating an artery between McKee Hall and the Campus Center. This cultural corridor became a place of gathering, a representation of campus organizations, and a “hub” for varying events. As the line of “THE WALK” is extended throughout Knoxville, it connects with the hilltop abandoned Rule High School and McKee Hall along with the valued, hilltop Ayres Hall. This corridor relates two abandoned hilltop institutions with another hilltop institution that has been maintained and valued.

The COHERENT ASCENT seeks to analyze the relationship between the abandoned hilltop and surrounding community, questioning the effect such an institution has on the identity and dignity of the surrounding public. This connection allows for freespace, a place to connect with the community, and a maintained space that invites those passing by to engage with Knoxville College. The COHERENT ASCENT restores a sense of dignity to the hilltop condition of abandonmentrestoring the traditions of “THE WALK” and extending them into the surrounding community, welcoming new interactions with valued engagement. The act of creating an artery entices the community to engage in Knoxville College’s campus,

RULE HIGH SCHOOL

MCKEE HALL

MCKEE HALL

41 AYRES HALL

Place of Rigid Boundary (left) Boundary Section through Knoxville College (right) (google maps image, street view context 2018)

1.00” = 250.00’

DIGNIFYING BOUNDARIES shattering confinement DIGNIFYING BOUNDARIES seeks to restore dignity to the harsh lines that divide the community of Mechanicsville with the institution of Knoxville College. Architectural consequences form blurred spaces that explore the potential of transition spaces between school and community. The landform boundary of Knoxville College resting on a hill above the Mechanicsville community creates a physical separation between town and gown. At many points, this harsh boundary is lines with metal fences and overgrown spaces that act as a means to keep people away. What if people were invited into the campus? What if we created spaces that engaged with such boundaries, forming a comfortable transition space for

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the institution and community to be unified?

DIGNIFYING BOUNDARIES proposed a form of gathering space- an amphitheater of sorts- that acts as a way to transition from busy street, to welcoming institution. This space becomes a place of performance, birthday parties, community events, educational opportunities, and whatever else it holds the potential to become. Engaging with the existing landscape, this designed spaces begins to welcome both the “insider” and the “outsider” to approach the hill- offering a place to linger at the bottom, and providing a means to transition upwards.

This breaks the confines of what is “town” and what is “gown” and encourages collaboration between the two bodies of people.

MCKEE HALL

ELNATHAN MLK TOWERS

BROAD CAMPUS SECTION

MLK TOWERS

ELNATHAN

CLOSER CAMPUS SECTION

ELNATHAN

MLK TOWERS

DISTANT ELNATHAN

PLAYFUL ENCLOSURE ADAPTIVE GRADATION

LIBERATING WANDER

DIGNIFIED BOUNDARY

BOUNDARY SECTION

THE SCALE OF SECTION McKee Hall // Knoville College Elnathan // Knoxville College MLK Towers // Knoxville College

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Key Plan & Green Space(left) McKee Hall // Knoxville College

MCKEE KEY MAP

ENDURING REDUCTION subtractions for inclusion ENDURING REDUCTION permits a “passing through” of preexisting structures along “THE WALK.” As a partial extension to the COHERENT ASCENT, these architectural consequences create engaging and accessible spaces for anyone who might interact with Knoxville College. This addresses the question of preservation- honoring what has existed, is existing, and a prediction of what is to exist. The act of subtracting a component of the structure provides additional emphasis on the exterior interactions of spaces, while inviting people to participate in the interior conversations. This less-intimidating approach allows for the institution to become more interactive with the community of Mechanicsville. Addressing the historical

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context of an entrepreneurial community, this space can perform as a “marketplace,” a “making” space, or simply become a space to pass through. The subtraction begins to inform inclusion, promoting a continued passage along “THE WALK,” and encouraging occupants to continue the exploration of campus. The lines between what is “exterior” and what is “interior” begin to correlate with who is “insider” and who is “outsider,” promoting a language of involvement. A sense of comfort is evoked as one does not have to fully immerse themselves in the intensity of institution, also accomodating a space that allows all to belong to the institution to whatever extent is preferred.

REMNANTS OF PAST

ENGAGING AMBIENCE

GENTLE PASSAGE

INCREASED GREENERY

INFILTRATING RUIN

EXTENDED ASCENT

THE SCALE OF SECTION McKee Hall, McCullough Hall // Knoville College Abandoned Rule High SchoolSECTION // Western Heights BOUNDARY Ayres Hall // University of Tennessee

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McKee Hall // 2018 the arch marking the primary entry into McKee Hall

What potential does design begin to hold in shaping the relational qualities of Mechanicsville and Knoxville Collegebridging understanding within the existing assumed and misunderstood opposition ?

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DESIGN | CONCEPTUALIZING SCHEME

In understanding the relationship of town and gown in the context of Knoxville College and Mechanicsville, and designing spaces that bridge the interactions of divided spaces, one must understanding circualtion and bringing people to a designated space.

BOUNDARIES In understanding McKee Hall, Knoxville College, and Mechanicsville, it is important to brgin comprehending the implied and physical boundaries that persist between the communitites. Such boundaries can be broken and manipulated in order to encourage a new form of interaction- one that bridges a divide.

SPEEDS The means in which one travels and experiences a space, informs the speeds in which the interact with other beings and physical spaces. From the lounging picnics on the lawn, to the hill climbing pedestrians, to the bus dropping students off, each of these speeds informs ways in which people interact

and understand the moments within McKee Hall, its manifestation of the Branch Library, and the spaces designated for the Higher Ed institution.

LANDFORMS Manipulating the landscape and forming landforms that increase circulation and interaction begins to shape the experiences and interactions of the beings of Mechanicsville and those of Knoxville College.

Designing the hilltop to be less intimidating allows for enhanced experiences and shared narratives.

CONTEXT It is crucial to understand and incorporate the historical narratives, local contexts and education of those within the community. This draws people in, allows for understanding and forms a historical and physical preservation of what Knoxville College has meant to the community of Knoxville

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1.00� = 250.00’

COMPREHENDING BOUNDARIES layering intangible inclusion The proposed diagram of the persisting boundaries of Knoxville College and its interactions with Mechanicsville begins to understand ways in which occupants are comfortable interacting with the communal and institutional spaces.

The lightest spaces being those of more communal intentions, moving into the darker spaces that enhance a more communal and private space that belongs to those of Knoxville College. This diagram informs transition, seeking to 48

DIGNIFYING BOUNDARIES

break down these boundaries and invite those Choosing to preserve over building new is a vote to revitalize that which of the community further thecultural insitutitionhas a into name, significance and supporting community as opposed al spaces, and those toofstriving the institution further to construct a new name and sense of importance. Preservation into the communal spaces. exists Understanding as a responseperto maintain the physical while experimental ceived boundaries is preservation crucial in understanding acts as an agent to shift culture- challenging the tangible perceived mindsets amongst of peoqualities aofvariety space and providing answers to the questions of ephemeral ple that will interact with McKee Hall. reality. A tangible authenticity is evoked through the heightened study of the ephemeral qualities, associating with elements of the preexisting built environment.

01

02

01

02

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SPEED 03: automobile 01] MLKTowers 02] KCCemetary 03] AlumniLibrary 04] President’sHouse

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04 03 05

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02 01

SPEED 02: KAT bus system

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01] UnivColl 02] CollUniv 03] CollMose 04] KCEntr1 05] KCEntr2 06] KCReyno

001

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03 07 02 06

SPEED 01: pedestrian

01] Cemetary 02] KATBusStop 03] ParkingLot 04] TouristCenter 05] Community 06] DannyMayfieldPark 07] MaynardElementary

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EXPLORING MOVEMENT- these diagrams seek to explore ways in which the community will be invited into the hill of Knoxville College. The paths indicate natural flows of movement that tend to encourage and invite as opposed to discourage and block out. The circulation up the hill then mimics the circulation inside of McKee, thus encouraging a continual movement up into the top of McKee- ultimately leading to a visual connection from the Bell Tower into the rest of the city of Knoxville.

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EXPERIENTIAL SPACES seeks to understand McKee Hall in section- understanding circulation, interlevel connectedness and visual connection with the exterior. Such spaces allow for visitors & students to physically and visual engage with the history of McKee Hall, Knoxville College and Mechanicsville. Allowing each floor to interact with the others allows for a connectedness and “buzz� throughout the space, creating additional interaction and overlap within such a communal space.

VisualConnection

MaintainingBoundary

Circulation

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Bell Experience

PlatformViews

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McKee Hall // Knoville College Hand Drawn Circulation from landscape

INTERACTIVE CURRENT visualizing inclusive circulation These drawings explore the circulation of the interior spaces of McKee Hall and how they begin to interact with the landscape, connecting landform to interior spaces. Understanding how those of Mechanicsville, Maynard Elementary, and Knoxville College will begin to transition and move throughout the building and landscape, allows for an understanding of how the design will incorporate each of these speeds and types of interactions. Visualizing the ways 56

in which people might transition and approach the space, allows for the design to understand visual, spacial and conceptual connections between a variety of spaces, intentions, events and beings. This informs the entire design proposal, considering such patterns of movement and the prominence of fluidity throughout the neighborhood of Mechanicsville and institutional spaces of Knoxville College.

Charcoal Interpretation Understanding circulation from landscape, into three dimensional space, through branch library and into Knoxville College spaces

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McKee Hall Lawn // Knoville College Landscape Contours

MOLDABLE LANDFORMS designing malleable borders Through the forming of mound like landscape forms throughout the lawn of McKee Hall, spaces are created for multiple levels, speeds and types of interactions. This varied landscape accomodates those seeking to move slowly and observe surroundings, and those seeking to simply breeze by the landscape. This approach allows for freedom of choice- choosing paths that allow one the pass by, move through the landscape, or transition into the spaces of McK58

ee Hall. The importance of this persists in allowing an inviting space for visitors to determine their desired level of interaction with the insitution and branch library, understanding that they are welcome to participate, and choosing to stay back if so desired.

McKee Hall Lawn // Knoxville College depicting landscape form and intention through narrative.

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McKee Hall // Knoville College Model of fluid landscape forms

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McKee Hall // Knoville College Model of fluid landscape forms

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001_arch entrance

002_transitional path

003_McKee lawn interactions

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Arch Entry Space this perspective allows for the understanding of perspective upon the entering of McKee Halldepicting the visual interactions between people and spaces.

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SPEED 01 speed 01 accomodates the speed of lying still, allowing spaces to rest, lounge, and picnic amongst the lawn of Knoxville College. this stillness invites anyone and everyone to experience the lawn and create memories of being.

SPEED 03 speed 03 accomodates the speed of a slow walk, allowing spaces for learning, exploration, and aguidance amongst the lawn of Knoxville College. this slow pace invites anyone and everyone to experience the lawn, learning and experiencing its significance.

SPEED 04 speed 04 accomodates the speed of walking from place to place, allowing neighbors to walk from home to home and visitors to transverse the pathways amongst the lawn of Knoxville College. this stillness invites anyone and everyone to experience the lawn and create memories of being.

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SPEED 05 speed 05 accomodates the quick pace of the local school children, and those determined to move from place to place amongst the lawn of Knoxville College. this quick walking pace allows for people to move to a desired and predetermined location, such as the elementary students running to the library after school.

SPEED 08 speed 08 accomodates the speed of the cyclist and runner, those passing through the lawn of Knoxville College. this quick pace is allowed through paths that simply pass through, allowing a brief experience of invitation.

SPEED 10 speed 10 accomodates the speed of the public bus or local car, allowing spaces to transition from a fast moving vehicle to interact with the lawn of Knoxville College. this brief interaction allows for a visual experiencing, inviting people to return at slower times.

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Section Perspective This drawing allows for the understanding of circulation and narratives that exist between landscape and interior spaces- depicting the multiple levels of the interaction of neighborhood and institution.

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APPROACHING LANDSCAPE a landscape shaped, enabling passers by, school kids, community members and college students to approach the institution of Knoxville College and its Branch Library in a way that is less intimidating. This allows for additional interactions between those existing in different communities such as the neighborhood of mechanicsville and the higher ed realm of KC.

MALLEABLE BOUNDARY the wall within the landscape guides and encourages movement up the

landscape, from the neighborhood and into the institution and public library, it guides movement, but allows for choice and malleability.

NOTABLE ANTIQUITY

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persisting within the realm of the HBCU, and specifically Knoxville College lies its historical routes- those participating in the civil war, civil rights movement, and shaping expectations of higher ed institutions. these spaces accomodate those from the “outside� to experience such a narrative, understanding their role of acknowledging and learning about past occurances taking place on such a site.

BELL TOWER EXPERIENCE within the narrative of the bell tower lies the visual and tangible conjunction of town and gown. allowing visitors to exist within the realm of knoxville college, participate in ceremonial bell ringing, overlook the community of mechanicsville, and survey the city of knoxville- copious layers of interrelation are formed.

INTERACTING PERSPECTIVES A place where community can come together, transition up to the higest points of McKee Hall and its Branch Library aspects, allowing a visual connection between interior and exterior, neighborhood and insititution.

DISTANCE OUTPOST within a space that accomodates many aspects of community and higher ed institution lies a territory exclusively available to the distance learning population of knoxville college. such a portion accomodates spaces for gathering, access to institutional resources, and a place of refuge and retreat for those participating in the academic realm of McKee Hall.

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001: EXISTING CONDITIONS

002: EARLY TRANSFORMATION

college st., fencing methods, and green overgrowth act as harsh divide between the dwellings of mechanicsville and the institution of knoxville college.

college st. as a buffer zone as opposed to a boundary. additional sidewalks, greenery, and a pedestrian friendly artery between western heights and mechanicsville

understanding the visual transition of the persisting physical boundary

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003: EXTINGUISHING BOUNDARY

004: INCORPORATED LANDSCAPE

removing fencing and clearing overgrowth along college st. will create a diminished boundary. there exists a confusion as to what is for community and what is for institution.

ground broken, soil transformed, hill accessibe. space that allows people to circulate the hill and approachable campus and an inviting neighborhood.

a transition to solitary - one of reflection and understanding

exploring narratives through the form of tangible library

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MALLEABLE BOUNDAR

MALLEABLE BOUNDARIES seeks to restore dignity to the harsh lines that divide the community of Mecha with the institution of Knoxville College. Architectural consequences form blurred spaces that exp potential of transition spaces between school and community. The landform boundary of Knoxville resting on a hill above the Mechanicsville community creates a physical separation between town an As a continuation there persists a boundary within McKee Hall- one that separates the spaces of the in from the spaces designed for communal interactions. Maintaining these boundaries is crucial in maintai identity of the community library and spaces for Knoxville College, but allowing this divide to be malleab importance. What if such designed boundaries formed a comfortable transition space and interactions b those participating in the public library and those in McKee Hall for Higher Educational purposes? This p addaptable wall seeks to form potential interaction spaces, a shared desk within the wall, a shared surface, holding the potential for visual, physical, and conversational interactions between the two comm

SHIFTING SPACE N DN D

SHIFTING SPACE- this malleable

boundary allows for the interactions between institution and community to be blurred, offering a place for students of KC to share a desk with community members, or for a visual connection to form between the two entities.

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INTERSTATE SYSTEM

KNOXVILLE HEALTH DEPARTMENT

PROMINANT STREETS

MCKEE HALL KNOXVILLE COLLEGE

CONVENTION CENTER

AYRES HALL UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE

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+ PAST: Rich’s Department Store + CURRENT: UT Convention Center a place where KC students would peacefully protest segregation at lunch counters, Rich’s is monumental in marking the transformative efforts of KC students throughout the Civil Rights Movement. a space that mimicks that of the lunch counter “sit-ins,” allows people to sit and imagine such an experience, informing the public on the history shaping occurances that once took place here.

+ PAST: Knoxville General Hospital + CURRENT: Serene Manor Medical in the basement of the former KGH at 970 Wray St. once was the Rosenwald Wing, housing the only beds in Knoxville to medically treat black patients. this unjust form of treatment paved way for KC to fund a medical center, treating and educating the black community of Knoxville. to educate the community, that which symbols the existing beds will seek to inform those that pass by, as a way to educate and create informative experiences

+ PAST: Old College + CURRENT: Ayres Hall a place where the University of Tennessee considered its primary home in the 1880scontributing funds to the institution of Knoxville College. due to laws of integration, UT did not want to educate blacks, and funded additional opportunities at KC. a desk sits as a way to inform. allowing visitors to sit, read, and begin to imagine what this transaction might entail and mean to each of the communities.

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