ANDREW MADDOCKS
ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO
The Reading Corner
Parallel Postulate
Design and construct a portable, open-air READING ROOM, to share books, showcase the act of learning, and improve public space. Through the design and construction of a portable, open-air reading room, to share books, showcase the act of learning, and improve place making the studio will examine how architecture provides the very qualities for a productive and dialectic relationship between context and making. In the Reading Room project, you will explore detailed material design at the 1:20 scale by applying knowledge gained in studio as well as methods/ ideation in Architectural Contexts Methods. Try to challenge yourself in this assignment by exploring your skill and knowledge of architectural design through versioning, repetition and iteration. The reading room is programmatically simple and is restricted to a maximum cube of approximately 2700x2700x2700 mm
The second assignment is a group exercise in tectonic making and conceptual construction at full-scale. You will construct a 1:1 mock-up of your chosen Reading Room with an emphasis on material, detail and assembly. It is worth 40% of the course marks. You will be allocated a site within the Curtin Bentley campus and your group task is to develop and construct a detailed material expression of a Full-Scale Mockup to be sited within this physical context on campus.
Andrew Maddocks 16159354 Architectural Contexts Studio Semester 2 2015
Deisgn Development Team: Andrew Maddocks Chris Mitchel Jhonny Forbes Michael Pharoah Oliver Fenner Shelby Bassett Photographs by Oliver Fenner
part one
part two
D E SIG N
REA DI NG C OR N ER
SITE
The selected site for the reading room is the grass clearing outside the aboriginal studies building with a secondary site just west of the Tim Winton lecture theatre. Both of these sites offer the same in poetics with a slight difference in spatial qualities. Protected by a small canopy of trees allowing a controlled level of light in both locations are perfectly suited for a small reading room.
In locating a site the major qualities sought after were a controlled level of light, low to medium pedestrian traffic and a quite cove or niche to build in. Although better suited for reading a completely secluded area would not have been a wise design choice due to a lack of exposure.
SPAC E Utilizing the space I took the floor plan to the maximum that the brief allowed, 2700x2700. Instead of creating a room with reading chair in it I wanted to use the shape of a reading chair to form the space around it. People are unique individuals and what makes them comfortable represents that. Using the shape of an ergonomic chair as a basis then adding to it creates a shape which acts as a chair no matter how you sit in it.
The entire structure is braced off 12 stumps, 4 in the corners and 8 supporting the internal structure. The pivotal connections of the chairs are supported with timber slats. The walls are clad on both sides with either plywood or a thin timber.
Because the space is there it should be utilized, the area beneath the North western chair was free of use and was simply an enclosed mass to begin with, by opening it up a bookshelf was made by adding plywood to the support already in place.
The timber slats that compose the roof, when companioned with the hanging columns on the north-west elevation offer a cascade of striped shadows through most of the structure during most of the day, the orientation of the reading room ensures that from sunrise to sun set a reasonable amount of shade is provided while enough light is let in.
SOUN D Controlling the sound of the site proved to be a challenge. With the reading room sitting so close to the carpark there was a wall of subtle but unwanted sound washing through the site. To combat this the west elevation combines a sound barrier facing the bulk of the carpark with loose hanging timber or bamboo poles. The hanging poles are intended as an audio kinetic device. With a gentle touch by either the wind or a hand the hanging poles act as a chime providing a range of subtle tones.
Hollow timber or bamboo poles arranged in a way to provide an audio kinetic device. The arrangement and consistence of loose to rigid poles would need to be the result of trial and error to ensure that the sound provided is not too weak or too overpowering.
Chain links or rope used to fasten the chimes to the structure
LIGH T
Light plays a paramount role in the act of reading, too much and a page becomes harsh and uneasy on the eyes, too little and the ink markings disappear into the page. The design of the reading room aims to provide stark contrast between light and dark and offers a playful balance of the two. The inspiration for this came while reading on a train, the shadow of a window frame being cast onto the page of a book did not distract from the book but offered a dynamic reading environment as I would need to subtly move the book from left to right, up and down with each turn of a page.
D E SIG N D EVEL OPME NT
PAR A L LE L P OST U L ATE
The guiding principal behind the development of the parallel postulate design was modularity and movability, we wanted to maintain the essence of the original design however the major flaw in that design was strength of the individual members. By creating a complete shape we not only added to the stability of the structure but created additional seating spaces at an alternative sitting angle.
The angle of the back rests was calculated to be both ergonomic for a reading position and structurally stable.
We experimented with several arrangements for the modules and cast a vote on the above examples with C being chosen as the final shape of the parallel postulate.
There were 3 primary considerations in the design process, stability, aesthetic and fabrication. Through a careful balance of these ideas we found the structure coming together at an incredible pace taking only several days for the first module to come together.
The modules are bound together by rope. The decision to use rope came from a need to bind the modules together while also allowing for movement and rearrangement of the structure.
The modular design of the Parallel Postulate allows for the construction and placement of additional seats opening up a variety of arrangements and possibilities for the reading room.