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Journal entry 1
As requested, my first design journal entry will deal with buildings that, in my opinion, advance architectural discourse. At first, I found architectural discourse a difficult concept to understand. But after doing some backround reading, I’ve come to see it as being a philosophical but similar concept to architectural innovation. Accordingly, the projects I’ve chosen are somewhat atypical to the current architectural zeitgeist because I believe that they show a way of thinking that covers a step further than the current way, or they follow a completely new way of doing so. My first choice was something rather unconventional, a project designed by BNKR Arquitectura. Unlike other large scale projects, it is quite large, at 65 floors. Unlike other projects, however, it is built into the ground, thus earning the title, the “Earthscraper”. As with my other choices, building into the ground is certainly not a new idea, as many buildings already have below ground floors, but to construct a 65 floor building straigh into the earth for public use, is something completely different. Of course, with such an unbelievable idea comes new issues, such as light and ventilation, as well as any difficulties that would arise in construction, such as ensuring stability of the surrounding ground and finding some way to actually dig and remove the earth from that deep, especially when it is such a massive amount. However, different issues arise at the start of any new paradigm, but as the concept develops, new ways of thinking develop with it which, historically speaking, allow the new paradigm to become reality.
1. Earthscraper concept drawing 2.
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bearing on their outcome. By this, I mean that it seems like their was probably a much higher budget and a much larger space to work with, as well as more freedom to focus on the overall disgn of the space, rather than the efficiency with which that space was filled.
3. Palm Islands satellite image 4.
4. Diagram of Palms Islands 5.
Lastly, a personal project that also deals with advancing architectural discourse. The project I have chosen is something I produced in my first architectural design studio, which required that we design a discovery centre for Herring Island. The result of my work was something which did not focus on the spaces within those strustures, as my thoughts were that the outdoor spaces were the key area, and the the indoor space supported it. Accordingly, the resulting spaces I formed were perhaps not the most innovative, but the idea of using the created space to support the natural space (it should also be noted the while this is not a new idea, it is not a particularly commonly used one) can be viewed as a potential direction for architectural discourse.
2. Earthscraper concept model 3.
The second project I have chosen is the Palm Islands, Dubai. This project is of great interest to me because I find the concept of creating a space, in this case, using reclaimed land, to be an idea which is very different to other building and planning practices. The Palm Islands are not the only area to use this idea, of course, with other examples being seen in Monaco, the Netherlands and Hong Kong. What sets the Palm Islands apart however, is the form that they’ve been created in. While I can’t subjectively say that the Palm Island are more aesthetically pleasing than other examples of land reclamation, it seems as if they have been designed with many fewer restrictions
5. Rough site plan of Herring Island.
6. Rough concept image of Herring Island.
1. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2048395/Earth-scraper-Architects-design-65-storey-building-300-metres-ground.html 2. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/10/12/article-2048395-0E57066400000578-620_964x568.jpg 3. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/10/12/article-2048395-0E5705F600000578-848_964x800.jpg 4. http://kuusanmaki.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/dubai_masterplan_t.jpg 5. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Sztuczne_wyspy_w_Dubaju.png/617px-Sztuczne_wyspy_w_Dubaju. png