ISSUE no. 20 : 2012-2013
TWE
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TWE
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CAN WE RELATE ALL PROJECTS TO DESIGN ONE EXERCISES? The lessons set forth in the first studio at the University of Florida, design one, resonate within our Architectural education and practices. Beginning projects lay forth the foundation upon which we explore new issues. The three exercises presented in design one - the cube, the matrix, and the room & garden - bring unique skills to the table and begin to develop an architectural “toolset� for the designer. This Architrave issue traces back the roots of each project. In the top left corner of every page, you will see two words. The first word is the root project: cube, matrix, or room & garden. The second word is the modifier. This is the consideration, lesson, or exploration which makes the project different than its root. We hope that by organizing the content in this manner, you will clearly understand the logic and purpose behind our book. More importantly, we hope that considering the ontological roots of each project will enable you to better question design decisions and their consequences.
[ ]+#=[#] ROOT
MEDIUM
PROJECT STAMP
CRITICS SEASON MEDIUM ROOT + MODIFIER CUBE + COMMUNITY
AUTHOR
MEXICO
SUMMER 2013
[ $ ] JOSEPH MURGUIDO
A NEW PUBLIC SPACE LINKED TO A LIBRARY AND MEDIA CENTER
ALFONSO PEREZ + WILLIAM TILSON
[CUBE]
[+] ROOTS
[] () {}
CUBE MATRIX ROOM & GARDEN
MEDIUMS
< > ^ & ¶ ? ¥ $ €
STUDIO: LOWER DIVISION STUDIO: UPPER DIVISION STUDIO: GR ADUATE ELECTIVE/ EXTR ACURRICULAR WRITING: ESSAY WRITING: INTERVIEW ABROAD: EAST ASIA ABROAD: MEXICO ABROAD: EUROPE
<
+ CUBE
14
?
+ INCUBATOR
18
&
+ HUMAN
20
<
+ CIRCULATION
22
¶
+ PERSONALITY
28
<
+ VERTICALITY
30
^
+ CONSTRUCTION
38
>
+ CITY
40
>
+ COOKING
42
&
+ SUSTAINABILITY
48
€
+ MARKET
52
$
+ COMMUNITY
56
^
+ FAMILY
64
&
+ FABRICATION
68
&
+ TECHNOLOGY
70
?
+ PRACTICE
72
MODIFIER
PAGE
MEDIUM
(MATRIX)
{ROOM & GARDEN}
(+) {+} <
+ R&G
138
<
+ MATRIX
76
<
+ OBSERVATION
142
¶
+ MEDIUM
80
<
+ GRAFT
143
<
+ FAMILIAR
82
?
+ POLICY
146
€
+ PHOTOGRAPHY
86
^
+ PSYCHROMETRY
148
€
+ SKETCH
88
<
+ ISOLATION
150
<
+ ANALYSIS
90
<
+ CLIMATE
152
<
+ CULTURE
94
<
+ MEDITATION
154
<
+ HISTORY
95
<
+ STRUCTURE
155
<
+ ELEMENTS
96
<
+ VIEWS
156
<
+ TIME
97
<
+ BLUR
158
¶
+ BUNNIES
98
<
+ CLIMATE
159
>
+ NATURE
100
&
+ PHOTOGRAPHY
160
>
+ CLIMATE
102
?
+ LENSES
162
>
+ EIDETICS
104
>
+ PATTERN
166
>
+ ELEMENTS
106
>
+ TRANSPORTATION
168
&
+ GEOLOGY
108
>
+ LINK
170
¥
+ CITY
110
>
+ GREEN SPACE
172
¥
+ MEMORY
114
>
+ RELIEF
174
¶
+ PARK
116
>
+ RECYCLING
176
¥
+ ART
118
>
+ WATER
178
¥
+ OCCUPATION
120
>
+ VOID
180
?
+ TULIPS
122
€
+ COURTYARD
182
&
+ MATERIALITY
128
?
+ ECONOMICS
184
^
+ BOTANY
132
>
+ COMMUNITY
186
^
+ FRAMEWORK
134
>
+ PUBLIC SPACE
188
MEDIUM
MODIFIER
PAGE
MEDIUM
MODIFIER
PAGE
TWE
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The cube is an introductory exercise in architectural design. Working within a set of conditions, it is the beginning of an education in abstract thinking, acting through intuition and an ability to focus on what is important. The cube becomes a fundamental building block by introducing basic design concepts, as well as strategies in communicating these concepts. In the beginning, concepts can be relatively simple, condensed to a small set of words that can be successfully articulated in basic manipulations of space. As design progresses, concepts go beyond sets of words and can formulate more complex ideas. But the lesson from the cube remains present: an idea, however complex, can be manifested into an object that negotiates within space and form to communicate a concept.
ROOT 1:
CUBE
CUBE
[<]
DESIGN 1
DESIGN 1
TUNG HUNG HSIAO
LAUR A RODRIGUEZ
FALL 2012
LISA HUANG + BR ADLEY WALTERS
15
SAR AH RUTLAND
ALYSSA WHITE
CUBE
[<]
DESIGN 1
DESIGN 1
AMANDA RUTHERFORD
MENGJIE ZHU
FALL 2012
LISA HUANG + BR ADLEY WALTERS
17
MIMI KURPIER
JOHN FECHTEL
CUBE + INCUBATOR
[?]
INTERVIEW
FALL 2012
JASON JENSEN/ WANNEMACHER JENSEN “To make something with the thinking that I’m going to use this to make a discovery, and then I am going to look at every aspect of it: What did I do? What did that mean? And is it relevant or not? And, it may not be, and it is ok to make mistakes. It is ok to make something that is not beautiful, and that is very difficult for us to grapple with. Do you define the parameters to equal a beautiful object or do you follow the parameters wherever they lead?” Jason Jensen, a principal at the firm Wannemacher Jensen, is a UF alumnus working out of St. Petersburg, FL. Working to push to the extents of his clients’ imaginations, Jensen has been making a concerted effort to bring new and innovative design to the people of his hometown. Upon graduation from UF, Jensen spent a year in New York, gaining some perspective on the design he would then bring home. He felt he could have a greater impact on the community here in Florida, than in New York, where good design was already everywhere. For Jensen, bringing new, unique design ideas to his community, while innovatively meeting all their needs, is the most important part of his practice. So, obviously, he plays a large role in his community and is particularly involved in Tampa’s art community. In fact, he was actually enrolled in two programs when he began at UF. Not only was he enrolled as an architecture student, the major he would eventually pursue, but, originally, he was also enrolled as a musician, with a full scholarship to play the saxophone. Although he did not professionally pursue music, Jensen says he still plays, having picked up a few new instruments over the years, and that he has been able to apply the process he uses in music to his process in architecture. It is all a process of making. The temporary nature of music, and other forms of making, like wood and metal work, has allowed him to experiment and learn from his what he has made, routing him down different “innovative avenues.” It is these ideas he is now works to apply in architecture. Beginning as side projects that stemmed from his MRP at UF, lighting installations, among other small projects, have become a focus in the architecture Jensen designs. His challenge: How to convince clients to let you use their small project as an “incubator,” a term he uses to describe his design experiments, in that these explorations in making are consistently being kept warm by being reworked while they wait to form into the next project. The temporary nature of these projects allows him to be able to constantly ask questions, making changes on the fly, and to learn as he goes, a luxury not always available in the permanent nature of constructing a full building. The next step then becomes applying what he’s learned to a larger scale or a broader setting. This requires an exhausting amount of analysis, but the experiential nature of this type of experimentation allows for the trial and error system that often gets lost within the wider breadth of the architectural field. Jensen’s is a process of making to discover. By allowing himself to make mistakes he is ultimately finding how he can make the largest difference in his community, while convincing clients to allow good design into their buildings.
19
[ 20 ]
CUBE + HUMAN
[&]
SAM SIDERSKY
DESIGN 3
DESIGN 3
FALL 2012
21
CUBE + CIRCULATION
[<]
DESIGN 3
LAURA RODRIGUEZ
[ < ] ALYSSA WHITE
FALL 2012
MICK RICHMOND, JOHN MAZE
CUBE + CIRCULATION
[<]
DESIGN 3
FALL 2012
JOHN FECHTEL
Taking inspiration from John Hejdukâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s theoretical House of the Inhabitant Who Refused to Participate, The issues of misanthropy and civic-mindedness came to be the main a topic of further exploration. How does one who does not wish to participate in society arrive at this eremitic ending point? Cues from the sectional studies generated a possible itinerary to its resolution as the space for the Disenfranchised, the Objector, and finally the Misanthrope. Beginning from a series of line drawings, this project shifted from plan to section to ward off a slavish recreation of the original objects abstracted, and began as a programfree exploration of vertical space. The initial manifestation arrived as a series of cavernous, carved interventions that hinted at a central, civic space around which various semi-private programs rotated.
MARTIN GUNDERSEN
23
CUBE + CIRCULATION
[<]
DESIGN 3
REBECCA GAWRON
FALL 2011-2012
BRIAN SMITH, ALBERTUS WANG
25
[<]
EMMA CALDWELL
CUBE + CIRCULATION
[<]
DESIGN 3
FALL 2010-2012
JONATHAN WESLEY WRIGHT
[ < ] BERNIE DIOGUARDI
REBECCA WALKER, MARK MCGLOTHLIN
CUBE + CIRCULATION
[<]
DESIGN 3
NICK JOHNSON
[ < ] STEPHEN PETTIS
FALL 2012
MARTIN GUNDERSEN
27
CUBE + PERSONALITY
[¶ ]
ESSAY
SPRING 2013
IGNACIO PORZECANSKI/ UF SCHOOL OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
POLITICAL SCIENTISTS AND PSYCHOLOGISTS HAVE NOTED THAT, ON AVERAGE, CONSERVATIVES SHOW MORE STRUCTURED AND PERSISTENT COGNITIVE STYLES, WHEREAS LIBERALS ARE MORE RESPONSIVE TO INFORMATIONAL COMPLEXITY, AMBIGUITY AND NOVELTY. BEGINNING OF PAPER BY AMODIO, D.M., J. T JOST, S. L. MASTER & C. M. YEE. 2007. NEUROCOGNITIVE CORRELATES OF LIBER ALISM AND CONSERVATISM. NATURE NEUROSCIENCE VOL. 10 (10): 1246.
If true, this means that architects are neither conservatives nor liberals, or possibly both: “more structured” but also “responsive to informational complexity”; “persistent” but also prone to “ambiguity and novelty”. It doesn’t matter. In fact, political scientists and psychologist should stop doing these things, running electroencephalographs with right-handed subjects, looking the MRIs of brunettes who are shown images of a beach, or analyzing the brains of gamblers. The problem with this research is that it purports to show deep personality structures where none may exist. Our views and preferences are surely influenced by a myriad of factors; trying to tie us down into a particular narrow niche is useless. But, this last view (that we are far too complex for any attempt at character discovery) is not a research program, so how shall we study behavior?
The short answer is: do not do it this way. There are at least two reasons for this. In the first place, even if we succeed in finding out some patterns of behavior at the brain level –say, for example, what triggers rage or happiness or nostalgia- we shall still be unable to predict when and under what circumstances any one of us will behave in such ways. And, more importantly, unless any of these patterns is seriously grave, it does not matter: what matters are the impacts upon the relationships we have with those near us -family, friends, and colleagues. Is a Plan or a Project the result of our brain chemistry, of our particular whim in a particular context? Is it the fruit of genius and creativity? To some extent, yes. But generally, to a larger extent, it is –explicitly or implicitly- the outcome of an intricate web of social interactions, the result of dense selfinspection and cross-checks, the channeling of long periods of learning, of visiting other works, of walking the streets, entering the spaces, sketching, drawing. Hours, days in front of screens large and small, engaging with objects and peoples. Conversing, discussing, checking and re-checking ideas, shapes, intentions and opinions. To reduce this process, a truly interpersonal, highly interactive process to a pattern of brain signals that are simple reactions to simple prompts is pedantic, primitive, pretentious and primary. Crude. The only way to study behavior is by entering this complex creative narrative by mapping out real behavior under normal circumstances. But the tendency, when one reads about these kinds of neurological research, is clear: we are committed to finding out what each and every brain cell does, and reacts to. We are committed to its chemistry, its genetics, and its impulses. There lies the future: take one green pill and become a liberal environmentalist, take a blue one and become a conservative guitar player, take an orange one and become a quarterback; or take a blend, a mix of pills of many colors, and become an…architect? So our characters will become as unpredictably complex as reality itself.
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CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
REBECCA GAWRON
STRENGTH OF VERTICALITY FOR AMAZING ACROBATIC TECHNIQUES Using Chicago’s grid as a generator, I constructed a vertical plexiglass model with the intention to house a Cirque du Soleil acrobatics team. While focusing on the strength of verticality needed for nailing amazing acrobatic techniques, I recognized the need for mirrors in the practicing spaces as well as the idea of sound traveling within the multiple public spaces. In theory, a “sound wall” would accomplish a comradery between the acrobats during practice and performance even while they occupy different parts of the tower. Music and voice could resonate and create efficiency in light of this precicely collective sport. Mirroring created a meshed space development while the sound wall connected top to base.
MARTIN GUNDERSEN
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2011
JONATHON WESLEY WRIGHT
THREE MOMENTS INTERACTING WITH A THICKENED WALL Undulating forms from ink washes evolved into a thickened wall which acts as the main structural support for the tower. The thickened wall contracts and expands as it shifts back and forth along a vertical axis. At some points the wall expands to become inhabitable so that occupants can venture through it and at other points, it contracts so that occupants must go around the wall as they make their way along the vertical itinerary.
LEE-SU HUANG
31
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
COLLIN COBIA
TACTFUL MANIPULATION OF SPACE WITHIN THE VERTICAL DIMENSION The armature of the construct is composed of two primary systems: an opaque planar system that maintains a sense of rigidity throughout, and a translucent skin that is thoroughly integrated at the base but begins to peel away as it continues to the apex. The project explores the tactful manipulation of space within the vertical dimension, beyond the floor that you walk on, or stairs, or other faculties of transition. The vertical datum explores the fastening of individual occupiable moments within a delicate tectonic framework. The moment at the top of the construct embodies the architectural idiosyncrasies of a library, the moment in the middle embodies a practice studio, and finally the moment at the base embodies a performance studio.
REBECCA WALKER
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
LUIS RAMIREZ
FORM SPACE BETWEEN THE NODES This vertical composition of spaces begins to pull and push its tectonics conforming to the programmatic elements given by Cirque de Soleil. It is divided into three pivotal nodes, each with changes in height and widths spans to accommodate the acrobatics imposed by the performers. As you begin to transition vertically through the nodes there is a specific alignment and spatial connection. The top node aligns its bottom spatial feature with the hierarchical space of the second node; giving a relationship to its tectonics and purpose for the space. There is an overall framework that confines these nodes into a cohesive system of spatial relationships. Its extrusions not only hold these pivots together, but also begin to form the space in between the nodes, becoming another factor in the quality and quantity of its form.
LISA HUANG
33
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
ELIZABETH CRONIN
VAULTING, JUGGLING, AND EQUILIBRISTICS This tower project was meant to act as a new headquarters for the Cirque du Soleil. Contemplating the spatial implications of a vertical program led to much research and thought about the way the spaces should be used and how they should flow into one another. In the research of this project, I began looking into the circus arts as a whole. I found that they are divided into three categories: vaulting, juggling, and equilibristics. For this project I chose to explore an equilibristics act: the aerial silk act. This datum is meant to show a sort of stretching or pulling apart of two pieces, while focusing on spaces of production, training, and performance.
LISA HUANG
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
MIGUEL CASTANEDA
VISUAL VERSUS SPATIAL CIRCULATION THROUGH MEDIUMS The vertical datum proposal was based on the exploration of visual versus spatial circulation through mediums of opaque and translucent materials. The structure is the results of tectonic experimentation that either antagonized or inhibited spatial circulation, while inversely affect visual circulation. The control medium for the exploration was the organizing central void that was dominantly vertical. This void however, had secondary arterial organizing spaces that ultimately became interventions. These interventions had qualities which mirrored the quality of the circulation context: levels of spatially or visually translucency. The outcome was a multi-quality intersticial circulation tower, with moments of programmatic voids.
LISA HUANG
35
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
TIM PETERSEN
VERTICAL SYSTEM INFECTED WITH A DISEASE A system is a collection of parts that interact together for a common purpose. The parts are related in such a way that each depends on the others to do whatever job there is to be done. Organs, tissues, cells, and cell products work together to respond to dangerous organisms (like viruses or bacteria) and substances that may enter the body from the environment. There are three types of response systems in the immune system: the anatomic response, the inflammatory response, and the immune response. This Vertical system has been infected with a disease that runs throughout the construct interacting with the different systems acting as a vertical datum. The structure houses a dance company in a city like context. the intervention contains large scale performance spaces, group practice spaces and individual study spaces.
REBECCA WALKER
CUBE + VERTICALITY
[<]
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
TRACEY WEISMAN
STRENGTH AND INTERDEPENDENCE The trapeze act in Cirque du Soleil generated the ideas of strength, interdependence, and suspension and are portrayed in this project. Trapeze demands trust in the other performers, a large amount of courage, but it is also necessary to be strong while maintaining the lightness of performing in the air. The program spaces are organized based on the physical or intellectual representation of the ideals of Cirque du Soleil. The training and performance spaces act as the catcher and flier, respectively, in a trapeze act. The performance depends on the strength of the trapeze artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s training. The performance is where all the other parts come together to produce the show, which is the final step in the process of Cirque du Soleil.
LISA HUANG
37
CUBE + CONSTRUCTION
[^]
GR AD 3
FALL 2012
CHARLIE HAILEY
ASHLEY CINO + ERICA AZORIN + RYAN MCGINN + NICHOLAS LOWE + DANIEL GUTIERREZ + JENNIFER PRINCIVIL + ELIZABETH DESMOND
A RINSE HOUSE DESIGN-BUILD PROJECT AT CAMP CRYSTAL LAKE This studio project focused on designing and building an outdoor education facility at Camp Crystal Lake near Keystone Heights, Florida. At the intersection of three major ecosystems, the camp is a unique, environmentallycharged setting for Alachua County’s schoolage children, all of whom will visit the camp at some point in their education. The camp’s ecological and historical layers, its intensive and indispensable resources for public education, and the multiplicity of stakeholders and participants afforded the designbuild studio rich opportunities to explore a
complex, pedagogically charged program and to rethink ecological frameworks for design at three scales: material detail, open-air building type, and master plan. Along with the Trailhead Project, the project for a RinseHouse facility engaged its context, recycled materials, and offered a setting for “reflective building.” Andrew Herbert, Mark Thomas, Allison Angle, Shawmeron Seal, Liu Yang, Jacob Peel, Froukje Akkerman, Dereck Winning, and Kevin Priest also contributed to this project.
39
CUBE + CITY
[>]
DESIGN 6
SPRING 2013
STEPHEN BELTON
SASHA LEON
CHARLESTON, SC: OBSERVATIONS IN HYPER-REALITY dichotomy one: dweller + transient King st. is a major artery, running north-south, a conduit for consumerism, the meeting place of for the dweller + transient alike. West side: residential. East side: historical district, business, industrial ports. This is where commerce and the consumer intercept. This is where the spatial conditions of the city split/shift. dichotomy two: peninsular + insular The geographic peninsular form is seemingly outward, centrifugal. From above we see the land mass engulfed by water. The street tells a different story. Few roads actually string together the harbour and the city. Instead, the city is a multi-fibrous fabric stitched onto itself. Penetrating the circle is a line that is
King st. the points along the line are the roads that stitch to the artery. The larger stitches reach from the Ashley to the Cooper. dichotomy three: amalgamation + compartmentalization Each line is a road that ends, severs, shifts, penetrates or interrupts at King st. its connective arc length is the magnitude of the roadsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; vector. The area created by each arc is a territory that the roads define. The DNA of the various streets - Traffic, volume, function, vegetation, age, distinguish the spatial characteristics of the territory. These segments of a circle are radially dispersed clock-wise, east- west. The territories overlap + pull apart to form the dynamic urban fabric of Charleston.
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DICHOTOMY ONE: DWELLER + TR ANSIENT
DICHOTOMY TWO: PENINSULAR + INSULAR
DICHOTOMY THREE: AMALGAMATION + COMPARTMENTALIZATION
CUBE + COOKING
[>]
DESIGN 6
SPRING 2012
STEPHEN BENDER
CHARLES GREEN
VOID BECOMES A MEDIATOR FOR THE INTERACTION OF INSTITUTION AND PUBLIC, ENVELOPED BY A MAJORITY OF THE SPACES Charleston is a city based on historic preservation and the history directly influences the culture similar to that of a museum. The Un-Museum anchors to the site by going against the philosophy of Charleston. A museum, being a place where art and research are displayed/preserved (physical form). In contrast to Culinary Arts which are displayed but constantly consumed with knowledge being the only thing preserved (not physical form), which consistently create a void, being filled with new forms of art, research, and technology. The strategy of the void has a close relationship to the program of the Culinary Institute. Following the proposals based on square footage, food state process, and visual adjacencies. It is apparent that a central void is enveloped by a majority of the spaces. The
void becomes a mediator for the interaction of institution and public, containing a bake shop, pastry kitchen, teaching kitchens, a roof garden and a culinary restaurant that folds down into the void as the primary support of the program. A primary consideration in the thought of the program is based around adaptability in terms of adjusting to consistent new creation, occupation, and technology. This became one of the driving criteria for the form of the multistory public space, the other formal driver of the public space was based off an open air circulation system between the conditioned institutional and public space in order to provide a constant flow of fresh air in and around the enveloped volume exiting at the top of the building.
43
CUBE + COOKING
[>]
DESIGN 6
SPRING 2012
WILLIAM TILSON
LAUREN FRIEDRICH
BY ORGANIZING THE SCHOOL AROUND A CENTRAL VOID, OCCUPANCY BECOMES MORE OPEN, SPACIOUS, AND INTERACTIVE Charleston, South Carolina, may be recognized for its historical modernity, but the architecture speaks a subtle language. Associations neglectful of scale, color, texture, volume, and placement, can be organized by the definition of an edge, a distinct accentuation provided upon any perceptible change. Whether it be for the placement of a window, a door, a corner, a balcony, or an impression, the architecture draws perhaps too much attention to the existing condition by overlapping system upon system, and by hindering any attempt for one movement with the interception of yet another. An ‘edge’ in this sense thus becomes a “hinge,” a connection or a “joint,”
a moment indicating change but existing upon impermanent similarities. By organizing the culinary school around a central void, occupancy becomes not only more open and spacious, but also more visibly interactive. From moment of entrance at café and restaurant all the way westward to the more private and enclosed theater and offices, a ‘spatial hinge’ works to connect northern and southern program, program dispersed across three individual floors, and interior occupation with skylight. Lines are proportioned by the populations of occupancy, and the intersection of these lines, or rather the union of these edges, begin to shape geometries.
45
CUBE + COOKING
[>]
DESIGN 6
SPRING 2012
WILLIAM TILSON
JOSEPH YOUNG
UNIQUE AND BEAUTIFULLY PROPORTIONED SPATIAL COMPOSITION FOR CHARLESTON, SC. I made a project for historic downtown Charlestan primarily with function in mind. This building combines a culinary school and a restaurant into one entity, so inventive juxtopositions were necessary (see section). To accomidate these unique programatic necessities, I needed to introduce a greatly systematised level of hierarchy into the structure in which different elements were clearly delineated. Columns were exagerated. This allowed for greater spans and more
open floor plans. This in turn created a need for beams with a greater depth, and a roof system capable of containing all the utilities of the building as well as supporting its own weight. Thin, metalic walls, including layered sunshading devices, could then be safely inserted between floor and roof. The resulting project was the sort of unique and beautifully proportioned spatial composition that Charleston deserves.
47
CUBE + SUSTAINABILITY
[&]
EXTR A
FALL 2012
GIOVANNI TRAVERSO
TVZEB: A ZERO ENERGY DESIGN STUDIO IN VICENZA, ITALY TVZEB (traverso-vighy zero energy building) is an experimental building developed in collaboration with the University of Padua on the basis of the new EU legislation that prescribes zero energy performances for all the new public buildings from 2020. Tvzeb project is completely supported by the energies of the site (bush wood, sun power and light, geothermic heat) and the building performances data will be remote analysed by the University for a study period of three years. Daylight plays a key role in the building design on climate, visual performance and users well-being. The building is shaped as a funnel, calculated to maximize the use of direct sun during the winter time and to cut it out completely in the
summer. All the inner vertical surfaces such as the floors, are covered with a special cast aluminum metal sheet, design to improve the daylight penetration inside the building and to integrated it with a specific artificial lighting system in quality (color temperature) and quantity (light intensity). All the design concept of the building is centred on the users well being (the building has been design to be the new architecture studio for traverso-vighy): the integration with the nature, the landscape views and the massive use of daylight help the users to feel the seasonal and circadian mutability of light. The day-lighting control as been achieved through the proper shaping of the building and with some automatized external curtains.
49
The daylight is punctually integrated with a special system of recessed LED-bars, lighting the vertical aluminum screens. The LED-bars are using a mix of normal-white 4000°K , cold-white 6000°K, and Amber led, with the intention of achieving a good level of spectral integration with the daylight color. The lighting system is dynamic in time and in the space, following the sun position. The design idea focuses on using also artificial light to shape the architecture and to achieve fluidity in the variation of space’s perception. The interaction between light and materials,
modulation of light and darkness, variation of different light colors aim to achieve a “peoplefriendly” dimension. In this sense, the lighting system is flexible and can be set as a “corrective” of the exterior lighting conditions. The climate of the Veneto region is characterized by hot and humid summers and misty winters: so the design idea is to have a warm mutable artificial light in the winter foggy days, or a fresh cool artificial light, when outside the climate is hot.
Giovanni Traverso is co-principal of Traverso-Vighy, a firm based in Vicenza, Italy. Giovanni’s work is concerned with creating innovative spaces through the manipulation of light. Giovanni has teaches a lighting seminar at the University of Florida’s Vicenza Institute of Architecture. He also teaches at DaylightThinking, a summer program in Vicenza, Italy which incorporates lighting workshops, speakers, and building visits.
[&]
GIOVANNI TRAVERSO
51
CUBE + MARKET
[â&#x201A;Ź]
DESIGN 8
SPRING 2012
BR ADLEY WALTERS + STEPHEN BELTON
MATTHEW TRACY
REINVENTION OF MARKET THROUGH SHIFT AND EXPOSURE The program of Market Shift is primarily an open air vertical market. Utilizing the analysis of Vicenza, differing edge conditions are created to create a system of hide and reveal. This is used to draw people into the space and at the same time allow people from afar to have a different experience. The program of the structure comes from the need of a constant market presence in the city. The city presently has street markets which occur twice a week and other markets which occur every few weeks. The gasps that are created leave a void for people looking to sell goods and buy goods that would predominantly be from a more mobile merchant.
In order to maximize space, the different market elements were vertically stacked. This stacking also allows for shoppers to have more one on one connections with the merchants as spaces can be utilized by one large merchant or a few small merchants. At the top of the structure a small food court exists. This food court is meant to create a local food area where people can stop for a quick lunch or try a new cuisine.
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[€]
IMAGES: CHRISTIAN POPPELL
55
CUBE + COMMUNITY
[$]
MEXICO
SUMMER 2013
JOSEPH MURGUIDO
A NEW PUBLIC SPACE LINKED TO A LIBRARY AND MEDIA CENTER San Martin de las Ca単as is isolated from modern conveniences. The community is selfsustaining in its agricultural roots. Therefore, there is no real need for occupants to travel outside the community. Its isolation from other regions of Mexico keeps it anchored to the traditions of the past, which raises questions about the relationship of the town to its future in a time where technology provides opportunity for growth through access to information and communication on a daily basis. This project proposes a new public space linked to a public library and media center, a solution which connects the local community, gives it access to information and an ability to connect with other communities through technology
ALFONSO PEREZ + WILLIAM TILSON
57
CUBE + COMMUNITY
[$]
MEXICO
SUMMER 2012
ALI ATABEY
LIGHTING IN A ROOM CREATES AN INTERACTION WITH THE OCCUPANT Penetration of the light is part of the choreographic qualities of a building. Depending on the time of the day, the light penetration creates a three dimensional existence in the building the occupant can feel. Even though the light in non-tangible it appears otherwise. They reveal secondary and tertiary details of the facade assembly, creating a rhythm of optical illusions to the occupant. Controlled lighting through the roof manipulation the conceived measurement of the room. Lighting in the building is the only element that physically hugs the occupant.
ALFONSO PEREZ + WILLIAM TILSON
59
CUBE + COMMUNITY
[$]
MEXICO
SUMMER 2012
ALFONSO PEREZ + WILLIAM TILSON
ASHLEY FUCHS
ABSOLUTE LITERALITY: A BEACON OF LIGHT FOR COMMUNITY Water plays a vital role in San Martin de las Ca単as. Water is collected in a central pond which is supplied by a river within a miles distance. Water also adds a significantly different characteristic on this sire especially when it rains. It is through this quality in which the diagrams were most influenced off, which then created a volumetric exploration based off absolute literality.
The skin of the building came from an ornate door in the city of Guadalaraja, Mexico. The skin incorporates the pattern only on the second floor volumes in rider to pronounce their presence and importance. It also talks about private vs. public. The first floor is relatively open, while the second is enclosed, making the space designated for more intimate programs.
Tectonics played a large role in the overall structure and form of the building. It was important to keep the tectonics not he ground floor relatively simple in order to distinguish the second floor volumes from from the main, ground floor volume. In doing so, it made the overall volumes on the second floor appear as if they we protruding out of the main floor.
The spatial layout played an important factor in the overall form of the building. The volumes were the man catalyst behind the overall form of the building, due to the strong form. Raising the volumes to the second floor allows these volumes to become the main formal focus both during the day and nighttime by becoming illuminated and acting as a beacon for the community.
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CUBE + COMMUNITY
[$]
MEXICO
SUMMER 2012
CHRISTIAN POPPELL
FORMAL FUNCTIONS ANCHORED TO LANDFORMS A community center was chosen out of a need to create a sheltered space that can support more formal functions: town meetings, family celebrations, and community gatherings. Its connections to the landscape are vital for anchoring the project to the area. In San Martin. the ground moves like a shifting structure, shearing vertically, earth is piled up behind bearing walls, creating stepped platforms and ramps. This idea of the ground as a construction is reinterpreted into the landform and roofs cape. Shifting continues to manifest itself in the spatial and construction methodology of the community center. Shifting the volume creates access at both ends. The spatial quality of the center gathering areas can be changed by moving the large operable doors.
ALFONSO PEREZ + WILLIAM TILSON
63
CUBE + FAMILY
[^]
MRP
SPRING 2012
NANCY CLARK + LISA HUANG
D. ALANA TAYLOR
A MULTI-GENERATIONAL HOME WITH BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SPACE FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL The state of Kerala sits on the southwestern seaboard of India. The climate of the region is described as tropical monsoon and experiences a temperate climate, with temperatures ranging from 60 to 90°F throughout the year. The positioning of the state on the windward edge of the Western Ghats intensifies the monsoon summer. The humid nature of the climate develops Kerala’s traditional architecture of sloping roofs, gables, and screen-like exterior surfaces that allow cross ventilation through the constructions. Since the 1970s, Kerala has experienced a housing crisis marked by a transitioning economy and new architecture forms stemming out of the Middle East. During this time period, a democratically elected communist government began to transform the political
landscape of the nation. Decentralization of power led to efforts to create a bottom-up planning methodology. States were given funds directly placed in the hands of the community encouraging micro-enterprises and community involvement. The state of Kerala embraced the changing dynamics and demonstrated a clear transformation of the people’s role in planning. Community groups, NGOs, and state government became leaders of change. When examining India’s family structure, it becomes clear that an investigation of shared space could occur within one household, rather than at the scale of a community. Within Kerala, the man and woman share similar positions of power within the household,
65
CUBE + FAMILY
[^]
MRP
SPRING 2012
NANCY CLARK + LISA HUANG
D. ALANA TAYLOR
SLEEP MEDIATE
LEARN ASCEND
and there is a deep respect for family across generations. The investigation of space within a single home that could serve many becomes a strong concept in this Master’s Research Project. When designed a single house can provide a multi-generational home with both public and private space for each individual. Through the study of screens, variations in the separation of space are composed. The “single house” also demonstrates a vessel in which climate response can be clearly demonstrated through orientation, placement of windows and an abstraction of traditional Keralite forms. The work of Laurie Baker has inspired an understanding in cost efficient building that embraces the clients needs and desires while responding to the climate of site. The materiality and typologies present in his architecture, including the brick jalli stand as inspiration for the MRP’s initial response to climate, materiality and the evolution of jalli, or screen. The project for this MRP is a single house
GROW SHARE EAT
for many, a multi-generational house. The program will be based on providing communal space and individual space for a shared or expanding household in modern Kerala. Emphasis on form will be made based on climate response and the controlling or displaying of views into the natural environment. This investigation of the in between sets up the groundwork for investigating the placement of jallis at internal points within the plan. The points of connection, determined to be visual, acoustical or a combination of both, become investigated through an architectural study of permeability, apertures, and light play. The open floor plan expresses an overall sense of permeation linking the main spaces and providing crucial ventilation pathways through the abode. This interconnectedness is reinforced by the jalli, acting as a screen, rather than barrier between individualized spaces.
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CUBE + FABRICATION
[&]
CNC MILL
SPRING 2012
TIM BEECKEN + LEE-SU HUANG
A CNC-MILLED BENCH REALIZED IN TWO WEEKS Presented with a machine on which we must use to fabricate with, we set out for innovative ways to use a traditional material in less natural operations. Programmatic elements such as standard seating, lounge seating and a space to sleep led to the form of the bench. Through surfaces and curves we formulated the optimal design that would utilize the abilities of the CNC machine, minimal finishing work was required as careful planning accounted for the positioning of all links and holes. Assembly is straight forward and relies on tension and compression that allows the four foot cantilever. The entire process spanned only two weeks from design to fabrication, prototyping was done five minutes before final cuts.
69
CUBE + TECHNOLOGY
[&]
ELECTIVE
SPRING 2012
DANIELA DASWATTA + ELEANOR MCKENNA
DANIELA DASWATTA
ELEANOR MCKENNA
LEE-SU HUANG
71
[&]
BRYANT NGUYEN
SLEEPING PODS IN THE ARCHITECTURE ATRIUM â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Kickâ&#x20AC;? is a construct made up of a series of sleeping pods located in the atrium of the architecture building in the University of Florida. It is a public feature that can be utilized by architecture students as a place for rest and rejuvenation, to put it succinctly a place to nap. Students can reach a pod by entering one of 5 boarding platforms, which are interconnected by a series of ladders accessible, by each floor of the architecture building. An alternative means of circulation is an elevator built into the boarding platforms for fast, efficient access.
CUBE + PR ACTICE
[?]
INTERVIEW
FALL 2012
KELLY ARD/ DESIGNLAB
“We’ll take a line drawing Bob’s done over a digital model someone else has done, then I’ll Photoshop it for a half a day, then Kelly will do it…and it is analogous to the end result.” -Sam Batchelor, AIA, Partner designLAB Architects is a firm based out of Boston, Massachusetts. Headed by Robert Miklos, this firm was founded with the intent to invent a new practice model, using the concentrated efforts of the entire firm to design and make; thus, the firm was launched in order to create the environment for this collaboration. Not surprisingly, then, designLAB is described as being a completely horizontal studio. It consists of anywhere between eight and twelve people, all sitting at open desks, which allows for a complete submersion within the firm. Everything is done in-house, including PR, marketing, and LEED development, and everyone does everything. According to Robert, “There is no support staff [because] architects are extremely versatile and can do anything.” This type of studio culture yields a firm that lends its design ideas to the diverse range of experiences of its members. One such member is Kelly Ard. Kelly is a UF alumnus. She describes her experience at designLAB as being very similar to her studio experience in school. She is able to stop off at other people’s desks to see what they are up to, making and receiving contributions, not unlike the collaborative studio culture of UF, and she recalls her first day at the firm, where Robert handed a pen to an intern, asking her to, “Sketch out what [she was] thinking,” an example of the design cooperation that occurs within the firm. Not only has she been able to contribute to such projects as the renovation and addition to the Claire T. Carney Library, originally designed by Paul Rudolph, she has also been the lead designer for the Emery Community Arts Center for the University of Maine. Both projects are pictured here with the photographs taken by Peter Vanderwarker. designLAB seems like a fun and vivacious design environment that is working to question the structure and hierarchy of the architecture firm. From a practical view, this collaboration is a very effective and efficient way to work. designLAB has about half the staff of a competing firm, since the horizontal studio setup allows for ideas to be shared and conclusions to be drawn rather quickly, and, although they work hard, the studio culture is fun, albeit disruptive, at times. Within this, Robert Miklos alleged that he has rarely been disappointed with the young people who work at the firm because “young architects can contribute in remarkable ways.”
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[ 20 ]
The matrix is the first introduction to diagramming. It is a lesson, beginning with seemingly random sets of information, which allows us to extract useful data in order to organize it with strategic hierarchy into a system. The matrix forces the designer to look at familiar objects and ideas in a new light to draw different conclusions, to see what may not so obviously be there. This invaluable concept continues to be relevant throughout later design projects, where information often becomes the driving force behind making architectural decisions. The matrix can be taken even further when introduced into concepts of digital design and information modelling; as the role of technology becomes increasingly prevalent in making design decisions, information-extraction becomes its own project in terms of collection, organization, and reinterpretation.
ROOT 2:
MATRIX
MATRIX
(<)
DESIGN 1
DESIGN 1
FALL 2011-2012
MCGLOTHLIN, HUANG, WALTERS, VIVES
77
ALYSON SILVA
MENGJIE ZHU
AMANDA RUTHERFORD
SAR AH RUTLAND
MATRIX
(<)
DESIGN 1
DESIGN 1
LYNN SITACHITT
P. KYESMU
FALL 2011-2012
MCGLOTHLIN, HUANG, WALTERS, VIVES
79
ALYSSA WHITE
P. KYESMU
JOHN FECHTEL
MATRIX + MEDIUM
(Âś )
ESSAY
SPRING 2013
BRADLEY WALTERS/ UF SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
IT IS POSSIBLE TO USE DRAWING TO PROBE AND ARTICULATE SPACE ITSELF, ABSENT ANY PHYSICAL AND/OR DIGITAL CONSTRUCTS To say that the drawing has been displaced by building may be all too self-evident, both in practice and in academia. It is interesting that the displacement has been caused in part by the success of architectural drawings, drawings that evolved from two-dimensional ideas to three-dimensional models to photorealistic renders to full-motion video. The drawing has become such a successful and necessary simulacra that today it is often read simply as building, eliminating the space that previously existed between the drawing and built work. New alternative or parallel realities can be rapidly constructed with such a degree of precision that fact and fiction are blurred, the (construct of the) drawing dissolves, and proposed constructions are read as built work, fait accompli. This shift has occurred precisely at the moment that two- and three-dimensional drawing techniques have been subsumed by component-based information modeling. While relationships between components can always be identified, the data-driven model allows and encourages a certain emphasis on independent architectural objects: walls, floors, columns, beams, door hardware, etc. The tools favor an approach that begins and ends with physical things, things that are deployed, repeated, arrayed, and/or collaged at the will of the designer, architect, or parametric operator. The emphasis resides within the physical constructs and/or on the resultant operational pastiche rather than on the spaces shaped within and around them.
To be fair, it is always difficult to talk exclusively about either architectural objects or the spaces they define, since the experience of built work binds both aspects together. But this realization about built work can too quickly be transferred to digitally modeled and/or rendered constructs (which read as built work), with a similar de-emphasis on space as an issue, topic of concern, and/or a point of origin. It can be argued that it is the architectural object that matters, and that the architect and/or student of architecture should work to shape the thing itself such that it, in turn, can shape space. In architectural curricula, it is becoming increasingly common to favor the physical and/or digital model in this way, assuming that through skillful manipulation of it, the space will become clear, meaningful, and/ or functional. Unfortunately, the space is often seen as a resultant, occasionally welldeveloped but often merely residual, able to be bent, broken, stretched, and torqued at will. As an alternative, however, it is possible to use drawing to probe and articulate space itself, absent any physical and/or digital constructs. This requires a type of operative drawing that allows for the drawing construct to offer some resistance to the will of the designer. Rather than drawing inert objects, the process involves equal parts animate and inanimate subjects. Drawings are built of lines that map movements, vectors, forces, and weight into space. They are occupied and motivated by a body or bodies in motion, each engaging their environment with fingers, toes, eyes, tongues, and ears. These drawings can allow for the graphic communication of haptic and experiential aspects of space by making visible that which is typically unseen and/or relegated to words. These apparitions can then haunt, inform, shape, and challenge the design process. Drawing Space suggests the need for both drawings that describe a dense, fertile, and full space as well as the need for a space in the design process during which this thoughtful drawing may occur.
81
WALTERS, BR ADLEY. “DR AWING SPACE.” PROCEEDINGS OF THE 2012 DESIGN COMMUNICATION ASSOCIATION. STILLWATER OK: OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY, 2012 IMAGE: URBAN ANALYSIS OF NEW YORK: A HYPER-MEDIATED SPACE OF NETWORK AND FLOWS. DR AWING PREPARED BY JUSTINE ALA AND PATRICK LITTLE FOR ARCHITECTUR AL DESIGN 7, ARC 4322, FALL 2010. INSTRUCTOR: BR ADLEY WALTERS.
MATRIX + FAMILIAR
(<)
DESIGN 2
BERNIE DIOGUARDI
DESIGN 2
SPRING 2012
MARTIN GOLD, MARK MCGLOTHLIN, LISA HUANG
83
(<)
DESIGN 2
K ATELYNN SMITH
ANDRES CAMACHO
MATRIX + FAMILIAR
(<)
DESIGN 2
AMANDA RUTHERFORD
DESIGN 2
SPRING 2012
MARTIN GOLD, MARK MCGLOTHLIN, LISA HUANG
85
JOHN FECHTEL
K ALOB MORRIS
(€)
THERME BATHS, VALS
87
TR AJAN FORUM, ROME
IMAGE: BEN VONGVANIJ
MATRIX + SKETCH
(€)
VICENZA
FRANCISCO GIL
MONTE BERICO CHURCH, VICENZA IT
ST. BENEDICT CHAPEL, CH
FALL 2012
ALFONSO PEREZ
MATRIX + SKETCH
(€)
VICENZA
JESSE MANTOHAC
BASILICA PALLADIANA, VICENZA IT
PUNTA DELLA DOGANA, VENEZIA IT
FALL 2012
ALFONSO PEREZ
89
MATRIX + ANALYSIS
(<)
ALYSSA WHITE
DESIGN 2
DESIGN 2
SPRING 2012-13
MARK MCGLOTHLIN
91
K ATIE FISHER
MATRIX + ANALYSIS
(<)
DESIGN 2
SPRING 2012
MARK MCGLOTHLIN
DESIGN 2
K ALOB MORRIS
JOHN FECHTEL
ALYSSA WHITE
K ATELYNN SMITH
93
ALYSSA WHITE
K ATELYNN SMITH
JOHN FECHTEL
ANDRES CAMACHO
MATRIX + CULTURE
(<)
DESIGN 3
ALYSSA WHITE
FALL 2012
JOHN MAZE
MATRIX + HISTORY
(<)
DESIGN 3
FALL 2012
ANDRES CAMACHO
JUXTAPOSITION BETWEEN TWO FORCES, ORGANIC AND ORDERED The project originated from the careful analysis of the city of Pompeii. This particular analysis focused on the pre-existing cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s condition before it was conquered by the Romans. The older city was originally small, and very organic, in which people would construct depending on their needs and what was allowed by the condition of the land. Romans believed in order. The end result giving rise to the juxtaposition between two forces, that of the natural (organic) and that implemented by the Romans (ordered). These two forces have a strong sense of tension and the concept of modular pieces emerged.
MICK RICHMOND
95
MATRIX + ELEMENTS
(<)
DESIGN 3
FALL 2012
JOHN FECHTEL
A CENTRAL BEACON FLANKED BY A LARGE PUBLIC SPACE This project began as an exploration of an abstracted ruin surrounding the grand circus in Rome. Immediately, it focused on the convergence of several intersecting paths and the new information created at the intersection of these paths. After developing an initial context from this generator, we were given an additional set of abstract parameters, the four elements: Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. Each of these elements became an intervention within the site we had already built, and relate to a program of our own development. I immediately saw Fire as the locus around which the other three elements were spread, and that the connections between these elements and Fire would form (or be formed by) the existing context.
MARTIN GUNDERSEN
MATRIX + TIME
(<)
DESIGN 3
FALL 2012
ALBERTUS WANG
97
ZACHARY WIGNALL
THROUGH TIME, THE BODY WILL EXIST AS A RUIN The ruins project explores the dialogue between landscape [site] and architecture [intervention]. Through studying monastic culture within Umberto Eco’s novel, The Name Of The Rose, a conceptual generator was created. Monastic metaphysics serves as a title to hint at the physical and spiritual qualities of monastic living. An excerpt from Eco’s novel involving the experience of a monk’s thought process inspired the genesis of the project: the evolution of a concept. The Monk solves a mystery through logical deductions based on past experiences. This anecdote analyzes the idea of concept and its evolution to reality.
Through experience, a concept becomes a body, a body then comes into existence, and through time, the body will exist as a ruin. With the introduction of programmatic elements, the project transforms into a spatial conflict between an edifice [a moment for radical and liberal teachings] and a chapel [a moment of structure and routine teachings]. The conflicting space between these two programmatic elements creates the site for monastic metaphysics – the library. The library functions as a space for knowledge before choice. Programmatically, the library sits within a conflicting space, acting as a threshold to either the edifice or the chapel.
MATRIX + BUNNIES
(¶ )
ESSAY
SPRING 2013
CHARLIE HAILEY/ UF SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
The following excerpt comes from the Preface of Charlie Hailey’s forthcoming book Spoil Island: Reading the Makeshift Archipelago, due out Summer 2013 from Lexington Books. The project explores humanmade islands that are overlooked places combining dirt with paradise, waste-land with “brave new world,” and wildness with human intervention. Mundane products of dredging, these islands form an uninvestigated archipelago that demonstrates the potential value and contested re-valuation of landscapes of waste. Research navigates the U.S. east coast from New York City to Key West, examines these marginalized topographies to understand emergent concerns of 21st-century placemaking, public space, and infrastructure, and discovers that spoil islands constitute an unprecedented public commons, where human agency and nature are inextricably linked. The book is dedicated to the memory of Professor Diana Bitz.”
Bunnies live on spoil islands. My son and daughter have returned to our camp breathlessly to share their discovery. It is an unexpected find within a landscape that is at once ordinary and strange. Only an hour has passed since our four-mile kayak trip across oyster beds, channel cuts, and drifting manatees brought us out to this island, and we are still adjusting to the flatness and to sounds of the wind and water. We had seen birds, sea turtles, stingrays, and dolphin in the familiar waters of Withlacoochee Bay. On the island, we weren’t surprised to find ants, no-see-ums, and more birds, but we did not expect rabbits. These islands have come to rest near the southern end of what is called the Big Bend, a still intermittently developed part of northwest Florida, eighty miles up the coast from Tampa. I joke that this island chain is the Big Bend’s version of the Florida Keys, but the Keys sweep comfortably along the Gulf Stream to form a bay linking them to the State’s main peninsula. The spoil islands jut out unnaturally—you might even say recklessly—into the Gulf’s open waters. Our island camp feels like the middle of nowhere. That night, a half-moon illuminates what already looks like a lunar landscape. After it sets, the Milky Way—a rarity in Florida’s incandescent lands—will structure the dark sky from horizon to horizon, shadowed only by the silhouette of passing clouds, just before dawn breaks, and shrimp boats return to port. It’s unusual to be on dry land this far out in the Gulf of Mexico. Toward the mainland, the bay’s flats are pulled taught by tide and suspended sediment. Shallow waters barely hide what might be land. When we look out to sea, channel markers stitch water and sky in a vertical suture. The tide is out now and this
horizon line has also sewn in the mud banks revealed by the bay’s “skinny water” far off the coast. High tide on the island has deposited familiar clusters of shells and tannin-stained sand. Just above this line, cordgrass and Florida privet have rooted between fossilized sea urchins and other graying stones that support a collage of scrub—cabbage palms, mangroves, prickly pear cacti, and twisted driftwood. Further down the beach’s slope, smaller white rocks and shells rest with a confetti of thinly bladed sea grass, and then at about mid-tide, grass and seaweed are rolled into elongated bundles. Tightly woven by tidal movement, these rolls look just like the geotextile “logs” that are laid across street drain inlets to filter pollutants during roadwork projects. On the island, receding tides have machined these tubes so that I question their provenance and wonder if either the Department of Transportation of the artist Andy Goldsworthy—known for land art that integrates ephemeral human intervention within natural settings—has been here. Below these matted rolls, larger sun-bleached stones have come to rest, revealing the same limestone that makes up the lowest, algae-browned rocks, glistening and slippery at low tide’s quiet ebb and flow. On our passage along the chain of spoil islands, we are able to read the topographic record of their formation. Islands closer to the shore, and consequently in shallower water, are high because dredging was deeper. Vegetation on the islands diminishes along with contour, and the last is marl and sand. From above, you would see the clarity of the tapering archipelago’s plan, with islands larger in area and closer to land, and the last seaward mark visible as a spectral bank or reef just below the water’s surface.
99
Angled a few degrees south of due west, the datum that controls this island chain’s incipient logic is the channel that also hints at this area’s unlikely history as an industrial landscape. The channel is the terminus of the Cross Florida Barge Canal, partially dredged between 1964 and 1971. The consistency of its controlling depth and width yields greater volume of excavated material in the shallower waters closer to shore. History is made legible in topography… …To look at a map of this area is to read an unnerving index of earth marks: jetties, spoil areas, canals and rivers all measure the transition from land to sea. Some are scars, with the river as their vein, and others are more like scabs, unmoored from the dredged incisions that have bled limestone, fossils, and sand. The barge canal borrows from the Withlacoochee River’s natural flow to form an artificial delta, and the natural tendency for oyster bars to form at river confluences with this coast means that similar banks form at the canal’s mouth. Unsettling to navigators of commercial barges, these earth marks are the weft to the dredged canals’ warp and even pose hazards to the shallow-draft vessels of kayakers and recreational boaters. Even though we left shore a few hours after low tide, we still had to negotiate the oyster bars at the mouth of the Withlacoochee River. This navigational impediment-set up by human intervention and then carried out by natural forces-requires that barges pause for high tide and alongside the spoil islands that have also been adopted by their natural setting. The power station’s jetties follow another model. They refuse adoption, and their sheer size and continuous landform disrupts natural currents, spawns erosion, and disperses sediment throughout the bay. Though modest in comparison, these jetties give a sense of what the Corps of Engineers’ first canal scheme might have looked like. The originally-proposed 17-mile extensions would have superseded not only the antiquated three-mile territorial line but also the twelvemile demarcation of territorial seas. While the broken spoil islands submit to wind and wave, the jetties resist these forces; and where the spoil islands are public domain, the jetties are spikes of private land, off-limits to camping. No bunnies on those lands, but in winter months manatees flock to the power station’s warmed effluent.
TO LOOK AT A MAP OF THIS AREA IS TO READ AN UNNERVING INDEX OF EARTH MARKS
IMAGE: “SPOIL ISLANDS AT WESTERN TERMINUS OF CROSS FLORIDA BARGE CANAL NEAR YANKEETOWN, FLORIDA. DERIVED FROM HISTORIC NOA A NAUTICAL CHARTS, USGS TOPOGR APHIC MAPS, AND AERIAL USGS PHOTOGR APHS AND CREATED WITH HELP FROM KIMBERLY NOFAL.
MATRIX + NATURE
(>)
DESIGN 5
MARTIN FERNANDEZ
FALL 2012
MARK MCGLOTHLIN
101
MATRIX + CLIMATE
(>)
DESIGN 5
FALL 2012
STEPHEN BENDER
FELIPE HERNANDEZ
CONNECTION OF SPACE TO LANDSCAPE, AND LANDSCAPE TO HABITANT The design of the intervention was inspired by the forces of mother nature. Plan was created to capture the sensations produced by ventilation and the textures of lighting space. The surface creates a direction through the open plan which allows the habitant to experience the light forms within and without the intervention. The layout of the structure reaches out to the open landscape which shifts gradually to different elements of the site rising up like walls panoplied in the power of their coefficient. The U-shaped plan creates a grey-scale space for vegetation and to create a system of circulation for ventilation
from the northeast. Stratification, materiality, and movement is combined to introduce a new architectural language. The structure is within natureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s open space. It is to relate to the region, folk, and culture. Climate is a factor that can affect the position of the structure that creates a micro-climate environment that unites the man-made intervention to a void on the site. The space is a machine whose functions meet the needs of living and the conditions of the environment. Light and shade reveal its form and creates a harmonic connection of space to landscape, and landscape to habitant.
103
MATRIX + EIDETICS
(>)
DESIGN 5
FALL 2012
MARK MCGLOTHLIN
SASHA LEON
FIRST, LOSE YOUR BEARINGS; SECOND, GATHER NEW ONES Stitched into the canvas are nodes of vulnerability/comfort upon arriving at the site. First, lose your bearings. Second, gather new ones. The purposeful absence that has presence: Newnan’s Lake. Early morning. Dark moist ground, sparingly streaked by long blades of light escaping through the folds of a curtain of trees. Seventy
foot cypress, severing the site. Land—water. The water becomes a sacred site. The itineraries of the land are preparation for the momentous event that occurs on the lake. The sport of rowing. The lake is encircled by the tall curtain of trees and bathed in light. It is the luminous amphitheater, reaching out through the trees; a declaration of the event to come. “The purposeful absence that has presence.” -Stephen Bender
105
MATRIX + ELEMENTS
(>)
DESIGN 5
FALL 2O12
DANY IZQUIERDO
THE COLLECTION OF WATER AND AIR FIXED INTO ITS ENCLOSURES A dwelling for Le Corbusier and Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. The design is extracted from many elements in its context. It fuses and grows from the land and is embedded between the towering mass boundaries that are the trees on its sides. It extends towards the path of the sun--east to west. A livable machine, the collection of water and air fixed into its enclosures. Walls that satisfy the taste of Corbusier, calm rooms that echo Marjorie. A dock that ties together their love on the infinite horizon of Orange Lake.
STEPHEN BENDER
107
MATRIX + GEOLOGY
(&)
COMPETITION
SUMMER 2011
DAVIE MOJICA + STEVEN ALBERT + ALI ATABEY
PULLING THE MONOLITHIC FACE OF THE BASIN TO CREATE PROTECTION FROM THE ELEMENTS Symbiotic Dwelling is a set of metamorphose spaces, splicing within the Skaftafell basin, positioning the individual between the severity and serenity of the wilderness. The brutality of the basinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s volcanic rock is tempered by the surrounding seasonal vegetation. The shelter utilizes these opposing features by pushing and pulling the monolithic face of the basin to create protection from the elements while folding in the fertile green plane into the core of the shelter. This dwelling is an extension of the natural environment, lightly reflecting its context on a finished volcanic stone exterior and warming its interior with indigenous
birch wood. Each of the rooms within focuses on specific qualities of the natural environment, heightening the relationship between humanity and the essence of environment. Rather than allowing program to dictate human activity, open, adaptable spaces function as places of meditation, sustenance, and rest. This flexibility allows for a single individual to commune with nature or for a group of people to reflect on their cumulative relationship with the environment. Symbiotic Dwelling provides a place for the modern-age human to rediscover the juxtapositions within nature and their symbiotic relationship within its complexity.
109
(짜)
IMAGE: MARIDALIA CEDENO
111
(짜)
IMAGES: MARIDALIA CEDENO
113
MATRIX + MEMORY
(짜)
EAST ASIA
RAQUEL KALIL
SUMMER 2010
HUI ZOU + ALBERTUS WANG
115
MATRIX + PARK
(¶ )
ESSAY
SUMMER 2012
ALBERTUS WANG + HUI ZOU
JESSICA ELLIOTT
IN CHINESE CULTURE, THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY IS DEVELOPED THROUGH URBAN PARKS AND GARDENS In the rapidly urbanizing cities of China, the necessity of maintaining and creating additional public spaces is an issue that requires more thoughtful consideration as these cities continue to grow at the expense of the people. The essential interaction between the people within China’s urban cities is of extreme importance in order to maintain strongly interconnected communities and social and cultural expression which these public gardens, parks, courtyards, and squares help to provide. Problematically, the availability of urban public spaces is growing smaller and more inadequate in many Chinese cities, as the rapid achievements of urban development and display of government power overshadow the necessities of the citizens. As cities expand and skylines grow ever taller, the place for respite and reflection within an urban setting is forgotten. The memory of the sense of peacefulness and connection to the metaphysical begins to diminish with the loss of these public spaces within growing urban landscapes, and the struggle to preserve and develop new spaces for public enjoyment has become a main consideration and challenge for local Chinese architects and international architects alike. In Chinese culture, the sense of community and the source of interaction within an urban setting are developed most completely within the public spaces of urban parks and gardens. In Chinese philosophy, “Tian ren he yi – harmony between man, nature, and the universe… postulates that there is a total interdependence between humans and nature, since the cognitive subject and the object both belong to the universe.” Believed to be incomplete without the presence of nature and its metaphysical harmony, the body would be at a loss in an existence devoid of the beauty and spirituality of the garden. These natural public spaces are of heightened value in an urban setting, where the people of the city have very limited access to garden spaces and have encountered such a significant loss of memory due to the stifling enclosure of the city skyline and the drastically changing environments in which
they live. Constantly displaced and living at the mercy of urban expansion, the citizens of these growing Chinese cities retreat to these public spaces when they exist or quickly develop their own within the urban environment to withdraw from the stresses and confinements of daily life. “Upon entering an urban park, one immediately senses the relative tranquility and slower pace of activity… While the parks are public spaces (gong yuan), these sites are also arenas where urban dwellers seek refuge and attain a semblance of privacy in anonymity from work or home.” It is within these urban public spaces where the atmosphere encouraging cultural expression through dance, games, and the conglomeration of the people within an open public environment is harbored. Beijing, the capitol city of the People’s Republic of China is strongly lacking a sense of peacefulness in its public spaces. The purposefulness of the urban public spaces and the ability to relax and enjoy the nature and culture seems to be absent within its large courtyards and vast spaces such as those found in the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, where the feeling of freedom is disoriented underneath memories of government oppression. There is strong political control over the populace and the ability to exercise leisurely activities, “thus ‘free time’ is only ‘free’ in the sense that time at one’s command is free of duties. Like everything else, the ‘free’ time is more or less regulated” and the suppression of the people can be felt even in the spaces that should be meant to harbor recreation. The squares are overpowering symbols of the power of the government, providing the unsettling feeling of constantly being watched and it is instead within Beijing’s park and garden spaces where the missing serenity and spirituality can be found. Parks and sacred sites such as the Temple of Heaven are the true public spaces that now belong to the people of China, rather than an emperor and are where the people flock to celebrate in Beijing. These vast parks and gardens allow for the wanderers to free themselves and
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become completely surrounded by nature; “being lost in remote landscapes is good for enhancement of virtues… withdrawing from the bustling world and moving into remote nature.” In Chongqing, public spaces such as those experienced in Beijing are dwindling. Chongqing residents have a single public park that is growing smaller due to the constant expansion of the public sector. The loss of these spaces symbolically demonstrates a momentous loss of peacefulness and cultural unity in China’s urban environments. Shenzhen is a new, rapidly growing city whose existence as an urban center has only been a matter of decades. Although Shenzhen is a clean slate in which to design a more perfect city for expansion as well as for the culture of the people, the city does not offer much to its citizens in the ways of enjoyable public space. The city of Chendu, however, experiences the opposite of most Chinese cities. Whereas in many Chinese urban public spaces the people are not allowed to touch the grass or ride their bikes in the public park, the people in Chendu enjoy much more of the urban spaces. “Despite being planned by the government and bounded by fences and admission gates, the park remains a place where popular and personal healing can occur.” The older, traditional architecture of China is in many ways more readily expressive of the values and beliefs of Chinese culture. Whereas the architecture of China in the present sense seems to aspire primarily to seek attention in individual design and monumentality, the architectural theory of more traditional Chinese values sought to achieve much greater purposes. In traditional Chinese architecture, “the original natural conditions were respected and the optimal conditions for harmoniously combining buildings with nature was sought.” With the unwavering pressure of maintaining an amazing speed to design and the growth of its urban centers, “many architectural designs today lack a respect for and sensitivity towards nature and the environment, whereas in the past landscaping was an area in which the ancient Chinese were masters.” The deterioration of this connection with garden spaces as they were originally designed in conjunction with the built environment is becoming more apparent to the Chinese architects as they begin to more heavily urge the importance of these public spaces within new architecture. Architects designing in China, whether local or international have begun to recognize the importance of this preservation and seek to incorporate public spaces within urban buildings and larger scale projects to better
provide for the people and to give back to the culture amidst change. Projects such as Steven Holl’s Linked Hybrid and Horizontal Skyscraper seek to design buildings around vast areas of open outdoor spaces and to provide a strong correlation between indoor and outdoor spaces, fostering an interaction between the body and the landscape. Though designing urban projects in China as a foreign architect, Holl’s ideals that “the reciprocal insertion of the body – oneself – in the interwoven landscapes of architecture yields identity and difference,” reflect similar ideals embraced by Chinese philosophy. It is within projects such as Linked Hybrid and Horizontal Skyscraper that the resuscitation of urban public space is assisted and the preservation of the sense of community within an urban work is defended. Although the over indulgence in Western culture has greatly masked Chinese culture behind the search of identity within a globalized world, the presence of international architecture within China’s era of rapid urbanization can also seek to revive the ideals of Chinese culture. REFERENCES: XIN LU CHINA, CHINA… WESTERN ARCHITECTS AND CITY PLANNERS IN CHINA (STUTTGART, GERMANY: HATJE CANTZ VERLAG, 2008), 64. DEBOR AH DAVIS URBAN SPACES IN CONTEMPOR ARY CHINA (NEW YORK, NY: WOODROW WILSON CENTER PRESS, 1995), 351. HUI ZOU, “THE IDEA OF LABYRINTH (MIGONG) IN CHINESE BUILDING TR ADITION,” FORTHCOMING IN THE JOURNAL OF AESTHETIC EDUCATION, 10-11. STEVEN HOLL, “INTERTWINING,” INTERTWINING: SELECTED PROJECTS 1989-1995 (NEW YORK: PRINCETON ARCHITECTUR AL PRESS, 1998), 11-16.
MATRIX + ART
(짜)
EAST ASIA
SUMMER 2012
ALBERTUS WANG + HUI ZOU
ADAM TORREY
A PUBLIC ART VENUE IN THE SHIBANPO DISTRICT Comprised of the strong horizontal pools of water and the abruptly interrupting vertical of the historic water tower landmark, the site is perched upon the highest ground of the Shibanpo district. Both a relic of the territory and coveted for its views of the river and city, the site is proposed to become a public art venue. Opportunities for the venue exist in the tension between the historic water covered ground, and the potential for the introduction of a creative, active, and accommodating program to sensitively touch down upon it, or even hover above. The ground, conceived as the history of the site, provides a public gathering space, with much of the site left as pools of modern water gardens. The occupiable overhead is designed for gallery and studio space, floating above and stitched
with the historic ground below; a ground intended for exploration and creativity. Paths reveal and disappear with the raising and lowering of the pools, a mercurial state of existence tied to the ebb and flow of the Yangtze.
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MATRIX + OCCUPATION
(짜)
EAST ASIA
SUMMER 2012
ALBERTUS WANG + HUI ZOU
CHARLES GREEN
AN INTEGRAL ARCHITECTURE HYBRID BETWEEN BUILDING AND GROUND Taking inspiration from the master plan proposal, this study begins to further explore how the people of the Shibanpo District occupy the mountainous landscape. There are endless possibilities for how people use the landscape but this architectural/urban proposal focuses on just a few: cantilever, embed, depress, etc. The driving force of the project looks at taking the ways in which people use, move, and occupy public and private spaces in a urban context and create a combinatory condition that acts as an anchor to the site and can link/respond to its context. These forces combined helped create an architecture that approaches something
like a building at times, something like a landscape at others, where the edge between the horizontal and vertical become blurred. The formal proposal has a strong gestural approach but was not intended to be just a form in a field, and yet, the form derived itself from a process of making as many connections as possible to the infrastructure and topography that are already in place. The programmatic proposal is affected by the formal proposal and allows for an integral architecture for the users of Shipanbo that functions as a hybrid between building and ground.
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MATRIX + TULIPS
(?)
INTERVIEW
SPRING 2013
MACK SCOGIN/ MACK SCOGIN MERRILL ELAM ARCHITECTS A: We want to ask you about tulips.
Mack Scogin is a principal in the firm of Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects, in Atlanta, Georgia. He is the Kajima Professor in Practice of Architecture at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, where he was the chairman of the Department of Architecture from 1990 to 1995. He offers instruction in the core studio sequence and in advanced studio options. Recent studios have included: Everybody loves Frank, Field Trip, “My Way”—A Trip to Gee’s Bend, Symmetrical Performance, “Empathy”, 13141516171819, Beige Neon, and Doing and Dancing. With Merrill Elam, he received the 1995 Academy Award in Architecture from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a 1996 Chrysler Award for Innovation in Design, the 2006 Boston Society of Architects Harleston Parker Medal and a 2008 Honorary Fellowship in the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Projects by Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects have received over fifty design awards including six national American Institute of Architects Awards of Excellence. Their work has been widely featured in popular and academic publications on architecture.
S: Ok. A: What about tulips? S: What about tulips? A: What about tulips. S: Merrill loves tulips. A: Does she? S: Tulips are interesting because, you know, you can buy tulip bulbs and plant them, and then you have to replant them, or something like that, right? Merrill’s told me why tulips are very important. What was it about tulips? Tulips are fantastic, just look at the shape of them, you know, and where they come from. They have a place, they have a home. They all come from the same place. I don’t think you buy tulips. And they all come from Holland. When you fly into Holland you see all of these tulips, and you think, like how did those tulips get all over the world? A: It’s intriguing. S: That’s something Merrill would know, so I’m trying to recall. It’s a thing Merrill likes, just ask someone who works for us…I have no idea. Seriously, I think tulips are things you associate to something very, very specific, and, on the other, they’re absolutely beautiful, and they have this kind of magical shape to them, weird, strange, where it’s like a figure, and you know exactly what it is, and you say the word tulip and you associate it with the exact shape. But, on the other hand, it has this kind of mysterious feel to it, where it’s precious and comes from a source that has a very strange originating condition. So it’s a funny flower that questions origins and things like that. Where maybe roses, roses, its kind of universal, where as tulips are foreign and at the same time very familiar and very personal. You know, multiple readings. A: Not to side track too much from tulips, but, with the extent of the practice and the teaching that you’ve done, what, in your opinion, is wrong with architecture today?
IMAGES: MACK SCOGIN MERRILL ELAM ARCHITECTS OFFICIAL WEBSITE: MSMEARCH.COM
S: What is wrong with architecture today? Oh pewwhh. Whatever is wrong with architecture today has been wrong with architecture for a millennium. It’s what will sustain you forever in the profession. There has to be something that reinvents or your not challenged by it. And I know this for a fact. That’s why you’re sitting right here and you’re going through a really interesting and challenging education process to learn something that always has problems. If it didn’t have problems and challenges than it wouldn’t be worth doing. You’re all too smart. You can do a lot of things. Creative, smart. I’m always amazed by it. It’s just astonishing to me how smart students are coming into architecture; really, really brave kids, well they’re not kids anymore.
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But I think it’s the challenge of what is the problem of today in architecture. To be more specific, whats the problem? Um, I think it’s a large problem, a large challenge. A change in the world, cultural change, environmental change, political change, religious, all of the things that are making our world a very, very different place than it was twenty years ago. Incredibly different than it was forty years ago. Or thirty five. I mean, it’s very hard to keep that in perspective. It really is. I’m old enough to have seen the transformation of the whole profession, but also the transformation of the discipline, and its struggle to address this kind of dynamic. It’s multi-layered, the economics and the culture, everything that has brought the world to a seemingly more educated and enlightened place and at the same time has become more dismal and more, I don’t know how to say this, more prejudice, and more sort of, um, challenging in terms of recognition of difference. It’s funny, you can say, back in the 50’s and 60’s, where such huge cultural and social economic difference existed, that you could put it aside, and, I’m talking about in terms of architecture, you can kind of like, not dismiss it, but you could somewhat just keep going on. And then all of a sudden, it has to do mainly with technology. Everybody can find out about a lot of things, and very fast, and it’s just changed things. So, how does the profession react to that? I think that that’s sort of the challenge and problem with architecture. Architecture is essentially slow. And probably will never be fast. Hopefully we’ll never be fast. And that’s all relative of course. It will never be as slow as it once was. It’s all relative. Architecture probably, it’s hard to tell, and some a lot smarter theorists or historians could answer this question better than I could, but it’s a gray question as to architecture as a fact of culture. And is architecture a fact of culture? Is it pushing culture or is it reflecting culture? Those are the questions that are really exploring this culture, being in broadest terms. Can it sustain itself? That’s a really great question. Is it becoming less an act of culture? I’d like to argue that its becoming more and more important to a fact of culture than not, because so many other institutions of man kind have been rethought in the last 50 years. And we have been stacking architecture as being pretty consistent, comparatively so. Again, the theoreticians and historians can probably argue differently. We’ve still been stacking stuff on top of each other. We still have gravity. And we have stairs. Hallways. Legos. It’s still pretty archaic in comparison to lots of things, and I think that’s fundamental…I don’t know that we change or not.
A: I wanted to mention culture because I think it’s really interesting to start to see the new digital technology move forward and how that interacts with culture, specifically now that you can access these things immediately and share ideas and you can go online and look up how to make certain things in digital media. Do you think culture is getting lost in this? Is it becoming more standardized? Do you think that it’s becoming transculturalthings are starting to become more similar because of this global collaboration…? S: It raises the question of what’s essential. What’s essential? The way to communicate knowledge. The way to communicate creates difference, opinions, individuality. All that stuff is so wound up in our ability to do it at a worldwide scale. I can remember people were talking about satellites, sending stuff like that, and I thought that was the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. That’s just not possible. Whose stupid idea was that? Cable Tv?! Why would you pay for TV? It’s free! It makes no sense. At all. TV used to be free and now we’re paying for it only because its accessibility to the rest of the world. More specific to architecture, my observation is that we’ve gone through a period where we’ve just been fascinated with the technology and its ability. It’s going to go a lot further. We can have all that stuff but there’s something essential to architecture, and it has to do with mankind. The thing that architecture addresses that separates us from other species has a lot to do with esoteric or untouchable realms, where you’ll know it when you see it. There is a feeling you cannot describe the feeling. You have absolutely no way of understanding how that can be what it is. That’s Architecture. That’s a really hard thing to do with the technology. We’re going to go through a period of fascination with technology. What people are beginning to do is exciting. Where do we go from here? This is not just about making buildings quicker and faster and more systematic, with endless forms, no seams in them, and all that stuff. That just doesn’t go….It will sustain itself for a while, but not very long. I think it’s already, in a very short period of time, run its course. And so people looking back inside architecture are trying to figure out where to go from here? Now that we have a different insight, we can relate into perspectival, the discovery of the perspective, and I think it’s very much akin to that. It’s maybe deeper, more complex, more inclusive, and more universal, which makes it much more interesting, I think, and so to me it’s a very exciting moment. It’s what’s kind of depressing, but gosh, if we didn’t have that question in front of us, where would we
MATRIX + TULIPS
INTERVIEW
SPRING 2013
be going right now? So anyways, terrible answer, but it’s a very complex question. I think it’s exciting. Your generation will have the best chance to begin to answer it all. A: In your experience, it seems like a lot of work centers on using materiality as a generator, as a creative process. Could you talk about how you, as a practitioner, use materials in architecture to generate ideas to work with? S: Very simple. I think that’s actually a good observation. I think my work in the end does look as if that’s true, but I don’t think that’s true. Again, I’m proud. Up until about… and this is absolutely true, it was probably 1994,5,7, if you look back--well, you can’t do it--but if you look at our archive, you would never--first of all, you would never find a perspective drawing. All you’d find is white models, white on white models. Never anything that replicated materiality, no renderings. All of our work was drawn with ink on mylar. We had a, and we worked in a firm for years where the materiality was absolutely key. It was cheap materials, very inexpensive materials. Kind of like we went with what we could afford, so materiality was never a big issue for us, actually, in terms of development. You asked how you would establish a kind of process, what originates design with us -- it’s not materials. A: What would you say it is then, if you could describe your creative process? Because your firm seems so driven by that process, seeing a lot of your preliminary work. S: It’s driven by, I would say, we’re not very good at talking about our work. It’s unfortunate! This is really very true, unfortunately for us. I wish we could talk about it better. You’ll see tonight, I’ll not talk very much at this lecture because it’s difficult -- we’ve always had a difficult time talking about it. I think the strength of the work that we get, is people come to us -- the few projects that we get are people that are looking for some kind of architecture that transcends some kind of aspiration that they had before. It goes even beyond their aspirations for a project. They know that they’ve got a project. I’ll be more specific. Carnegie Mellon hired us to do a new school of computer science. They knew inherently, inherently knew, felt, know, experienced the fact that computer scientists communicate in a certain way with each other. And it is really weird, I promise you. It’s not at all what you think. The machine is nothing to them, that’s not what they are about. They’re not about computers. They’re about ideas. And mainly their ideas and the way they talk about them is with
each other. And it’s kind of an interactive interdisciplinary conversation. And it does have a lot to do with simply happenstance and out of a social conversation, just a curious conversation. And they also talk in formulas. You know, it’s a weird conversation. It’s not a conversation you or I can understand. I sat in one time while talking to someone--I guess it would be physics. They were talking about how you represent a black hole. And they had oddly, in this discussion, pictures of black holes, and they had representations of how--they wanted to know how black holes originated. And they wanted the computer scientists to represent how they look. Now that’s nothing you can see. It’s not anything that there is any fact of. They know they exist, but they don’t know how they start; they don’t know what caused them. And I was sitting there thinking “What in the hell are they talking about?” Because they had some kind of representation, and I thought it looked great. It had dramatic music and all that stuff. And they wanted to engage, what they were pitching was, a kind of research grant to go in with the computer scientists to research to represent more accurately the unrepresentable to people. And so I said to myself, “That’s architecture, that’s what we do!” You know, it’s like somebody coming to you and saying “Make my building.” That’s what they said. Our building encouraged people to come together and come up with great ideas. And by the way, we traveled to every single computer school in the world and they had, and nobody had done it. So, they couldn’t tell me to do anything about how that could happen. They didn’t want what they saw. But it was something about it. They thought that architecture could do this. They believed, they firmly believed, that it was very, very important. They felt like it was important that it did this, really important. They said, “and by the way, we were no longer just a research institution, we were going to start teaching, we were going to be part of the broader community of the university, by the way, the building is going in an 80-foot-deep hole. So we thought we’d hire an architect. We want to act as a collective community, but we’re in competition with each other, we’re businesspeople, we’re researchers.” They are. The individual 350 of them were individual business people, who want their own identity at the same time. So all of these kinds of subjective things, they said, “Do that.” There it is. They didn’t say anything about materiality, by the way. Although it was really important to them at the end, it was very, very important. The only thing they said about it to me was probably about the campus, it’s all yellow
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brick. All their buildings were yellow brick, and everything they built they wanted to mask in yellow brick and they said “No more yellow brick road.” The process is to try to find architecture in that situation, to locate it. What are the possibilities for architecture in a situation like that? They don’t know where it is, and we don’t know where it is at the start, and the process is to try to get the information in front of you that will actually locate the architecture and begin to give you hints about where to go with it. That’s very simple, actually, as a concept, and really, really difficult to do. Because in order to do that you have to take all your clothes off and start all over. I mean, you don’t start all over because you’re left with your bodies, and your minds. But it’s a discomfort zone that most architects don’t really like to be in. Where you really are sort of putting aside a lot of historical, theoretical, knowledge base, and putting it aside, and suppressing it long enough to think about the new possibilities. That’s not what a lot of architects do, so the process is to try and find that, and there’s not really a single way to do that, other than a lot of talk and making and researching. Can’t depend a whole lot on the past. But the past isn’t just some symbol. I mean, you can’t just disregard all the knowledge, obviously. I mean that’s not a good answer either. It’s just like a jigsaw puzzle. The problem is that you have to engage people, engage context, engage ideas. You have to be really patient, and you have to have everybody at the table, and all
that stuff. So, it takes a lot longer, but you’ve had studios where it’s a little open ended, and you’re just completely lost. I do studios where people get lost because it’s something you have to experience as an architect. You have to experience the exhilaration of being lost. Just think about, how can you be creative without being lost first? That is not possible, and you have to enjoy that and think you have the ability to find your way out of it. But at the same time, in the end, the trick is to make something that creates just as many questions as you’ve answered along the way. You can never say “Ooo I’m lost, now I’m found.” If that happens to you now, you’re toast. I mean, what do you do after that? You do another one of those, I guess. You lost your curiosity, you’ve lost your attraction to the unknown, and that’s not good. So it’s a funny process and funny feeling. If you can’t be in the position to make yourself uncomfortable, and then get excited about being at another level of discomfort, you probably shouldn’t be an architect. That’s our process. Tulips die by the way, a terrible thought but true. That is why in Japan you do not give people flowers. That’s why they grow Bonsai trees. A: Do you have any particular things that start to inspire you? Any non-architectural things? Books? Music? For example one of your projects began with inspiration from a Polish poem. S: I think my grandchildren, I just can’t believe them, I can’t believe what they can do. What
MATRIX + TULIPS
INTERVIEW
SPRING 2013
young people do to me is just so amazing. Youth, I think, and Merrill too, we’re both just stunned by it. Their interest in people and just what they can do, and how inventive they are, and how natural it comes to them now. That is fascinating to us. On that end of the spectrum, on how pervasive change, ability, individuality, expression of difference and on the other end how rare, absolutely rare all the diversity is in architecture, and when you see it and find it. And in a way, it’s really great because, again, that’s what slows it down, and that’s what keeps it a mystery. You can find it in people, it’s the difference between people and their work, when the work is truly like the person it becomes more authentic. A cheap shot but true, a good reason to teach. You don’t realize how exciting it is to be around really good students. It’s really fun
choose you. It’s basically a contest. I teach 13 separate studios, where each student, let me see if I can describe it well enough. The last video I am going to show tonight in the lecture is the video I showed to my studio. The title of it is “Why Can’t We Just Dance,” and in the first few weeks we have been talking about personal obsessions, which I promise you I will not do again. I had no idea it would get so personal, and it was stated as innocent obsessions. And for the most part they were innocent…, but not all of them. They were way too honest, not publishable honest. The studio is about decorating, not ornamentation! I generally get students to talk about their personal experiences. For example, I’ll ask them to describe to me their first memory of a spatial experience, and I’ll look at their portfolios and try to learn a little
and inspiring, truly is inspiring. Adults are kind of boring, by the way that does not have a lot to do with age.
bit about their past, and, in this case, and in the last several years, it has been where they do videos and talk and express those things. I then turn into different ways of a spatial representation. Either the memory or the meaning of the memory, but not replicating something like the hard wood floor from crawling on the floor. Last year was really bizarre, 3 out of 13 students spatial memory was crawling on their back through their house in 3 completely separate cultures. Then I will listen to that, and look at what they’ve done, and then I assign them a program, and I have done it where they choose their site, and the program is different for each student. Usually the sites, their memories, and now their obsessions, are almost impenetrable. You can’t certainly build on the sites, and if you ask somebody what’s the most spectacular site, what would you choose? And so they normally choose sites which can’t be built on. I had a student who chose Nantucket, what could you possibly do
A: So it is interesting that you mention your grandchildren as sources of inspiration, and the students you teach as inspiration as well, because your role as a professor/instructor is to foster that imagination and creativity and help people along that journey. Creativity is a slippery thing. How do you approach teaching that? What is your role in facilitating that creative process? S: I am going to talk a lot about/show that tonight actually. I think the most important thing in architecture is to empower the individual in architecture before he/she gets out of school. If you don’t find it in school, you’re going to have a really hard time finding it outside of school. I teach a studio, which we generally have 13 students, that’s the magic number. Everybody gets 13 students. At the graduate level, the students actually
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on Nantucket, but this guy was amazing. He created his own newspaper at the GSD, his writing was just remarkable. I gave him a house program for two Atlanta rappers (Ying Yang twins and Lil Wayne). He first did a video on the history of hip hop, it was absolutely amazing. And his project was really good. He managed to make it look like it belonged in Nantucket! And those studios help students to try to get inside of themselves and trust their own instincts. And it’s not just instincts around kind of a normative program, but it’s something more like actual practice than they would ever get. It’s not a collective program; it’s not where everybody does the same sort of project, where they want to all be in competition with each other. It’s about them being lost and needing the table to help get at something; but at the same time, it’s about them belonging to themselves as individuals. It’s not easy for the students, and it’s not easy for me, but after teaching for so many years I cannot imagine doing something else. That’s just not interesting. It wouldn’t be challenging because students are always so different. A: We noticed most of your projects tend to be international projects, and also that you enjoy traveling, and we are wondering what kind of places and cultures do you find yourself returning to for inspiration or for work? And how does travel help you to do that? S: Well, I would say the first thing you said is not quite right. Most of our work is not international. Most of our competitions are international, I have never really thought about that, but I guess it’s right because there are not that many competitions in America. On our website some would argue our best work is our international competitions. Merrill would go every place in the world, absolutely nothing is uninteresting to her, and it drives me nuts! I have left her in separate countries. I would say we love the Italians, we love the Latin spirit. But we really do enjoy almost any foreign place. We went to India together for the first time a couple years ago, unbelievable, overpowering! We went to china in 1985, we couldn’t believe it. I wasn’t kidding with Merrill being fascinated with almost everything; we have an enormous photo collection. If we travel, we travel together, and we photograph insatiably the same thing, and so we have double of everything, and now everything is digital, so it’s ten times worse. We’re coming back with thousands and thousands of photographs. She will photograph anything. I mean she has no discrimination whatsoever. It captures the spirits of things really well, and everything is new to us. We had really interesting
educations, but not even close to what kids have now. We didn’t travel very much until we were older. The only reason why we went to Europe for the first time was because we won a door prize at an antique show. Seriously, it was in Atlanta, and we won two tickets to Brussels, Belgium. I think you are either fascinated with difference or you’re not, and I don’t mean you don’t recognize it, but when your fascinated with it, it’s really something else. It’s a difference between just wanting to learn about something and truly being fascinated by it. And it’s generally the finite things that are the most fascinating. The small things, rather than the big things, but we don’t take pictures of buildings. We’ll take pictures of little bitty parts of buildings or some chewing gum wrapper outside of St. Peters, in the crack between two stones. I think we have 300 photos of sculpted angels on the columns outside and not one of the dome. A: We just have one more question for you, and you kind of touched on it a little bit, working with your partner, how is it? S: If you ask people in our office that question, I’d really be interested to know what they think. Merrill is so stubborn, so when she puts an idea that’s different than yours, just forget about it; you’re not going to get your way. People in our office say, “Why do you even talk with her? You never win.” They are right! I don’t know, somebody wrote about us onetime and they couldn’t describe us or our work and they ended up saying “It was a very creative argument”. But Merrill doesn’t argue ever, she never raises her voice, ever! We think very differently, she works in section and thinks in plan, and I work in plan and think in section. It took a long time to understand that after 30 something years, but that has something to do with the difference in thinking. I mean she really sees things I definitely do not see, and it’s fascinating. And it’s hard to say whose ideas lie where, and that’s never the discussion. We came up in a firm where it was all about a collective experience, and we truly value each other’s and anybody’s ideas. We worked in a place that required that for 18 years, and it was always a collective condition and we truly enjoy that. We have a sense of authorship but we can never say me, or I, when we depend on so many people for their ideas, and it’s true because it’s the way we came up. We don’t know how to work any other way. We don’t even talk about it, though. I think if we did we would lose something. It’s very frustrating for a lot of people around us, but they can’t figure it out because we can’t figure it out. ( 20 )
MATRIX + MATERIALITY
(&)
ELECTIVE
FALL 2012
LISA HUANG
MATERIAL EXPLORATION STUDIO
MATERIALS SEMINAR FOCUSES ON DEVELOPING SKILLS IN EMPIRICAL RESEARCH AS DESIGN POSSIBILITIES Materials Explorations was a workshop seminar offered in the Fall 2012 semester. The premise of the workshop focused on developing a material thinking that folds into creative processes and future practice. Students researched material characteristics, speculated through drawings, and experimented hands-on to understand the limitations and potentials of selected
materials. Empirical feedback from these experiments were used to consequently uncover new and possibly innovative ways to work with these materials. Towards the end of the semester, each student designed a full-scale installation that addressed issues of joinery and tested the material proposal in space and in relation to a viewer.
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(&)
CALVIN DI NICOLO: CAST ALUMINUM
MATRIX + MATERIALITY
(&)
ELECTIVE
FALL 2012
CAROLINA VALLADARES: PLASTICS + FILM
CRAWFORD: ( & ) DOUGLAS WOOD VENEEERS
LISA HUANG
131
(&)
KEVIN FITZGERALD: CONCRETE + GLASS
MATRIX + BOTANY
(^)
GR AD 2
SPRING 2012
NANCY CLARK + FELIPE MESA + GIANCARLO MAZZANTI
ALI ATABEY
THE SITE IS MANIPULATED AND UNDULATED IN ORDER TO ALLOW UNEXPECTED SECTIONAL VARIATIONS The resemblance of the project’s concept with an epiphytic plant is uncanny. As the undulation of the topography acts as a datum, all programmatic activity interweaves with the topography and grows with its aid. The absence of either makes it impossible to survive, architecturally. The natural topography of Miami is predominantly flat like that of the rest of Florida. Miami’s landscape, contrary to that of the rest of Florida’s, has a secondary scale that has been ruptured from the overall context. Even though the aforementioned scale is interwoven with the existing context, such topography is metaphorical in experience due to its scale and limited to a certain audience.
In order to create a balance, the site strategy was composed to reject this stillness and crescendo for the sake of creating a medium between them. Doing that allowed an experience that was quite foreign to the landscape, making it exciting and interesting. The site is manipulated and undulated in order to allow unexpected sectional variations. A person can experience from the point of an ant or a bird, allowing various levels of conditions where one can experience underneath the undulation, around/at the edge of the variations, and on top of it. Therefore, the site enables a notion of expression, but at the same time one can experience disappearance or containment.
133
MATRIX + FR AMEWORK
(^)
GR AD 2
SPRING 2012
NANCY CLARK + ANNE LACATON
AZHAR KHAN
AUGMENTED URBANISIM IN SIX STAGES: MEDIATING ENVIRONMENTS WITH OPTIMIZED HIGH-DENSITY INFILLS Stage 1: Ideal City The first objective was to develop a video that explored the idea of living in urban conditions. The concept of ‘3rd place’ by sociologist Ray Oldenburg was the driving force for this exercise. The lack of informal public spaces, 3rd places, is evident in most American built environments. Vehicular transportation is becoming essential to access 3rd places such as restaurants, parks and shopping areas which in the past were all accessed by foot and usually along one’s trajectory to work. Recognizing the change in the way we work, move, interact and essentially live, it is vital then to accommodate the 3rd place into our current dwellings through densification. Semi-public and public spaces need to be introduced into the fabric of city living in order to facilitate passive and active interaction between neighbors, neighborhoods, communites and the city. The video explores the introduction of private, semi-private, semi-public and public 3rd places into a vertical housing complex. Our character traverses through spaces that transition from private to public spaces with varying densities. The goal is to encourage a diverse range of activities for all ages and peoples, as well as balancing interaction vs anonymity. Stage 2: Site Exploration The Pleasant Street Historic District is home to the oldest African-American residential area in Gainesville and has remained the religious, educational and social center for the African-American community for over a hundred years. When emancipated African-Americans moved into Gainesville after the Civil War, many congregated here where they could buy land and establish their own churches, schools and clubs. Many were skilled workers, tailors, blacksmiths, shoemakers and carpenters who found ready employment in town.
The district has seen many changes over the past several decades. Two of the most notable are the changing demographics in the area and the intrusion of commercial enterprise from the periphery. The analysis of the historic Pleasant Street District was conducted through a series of interviews across a wide range of demographics. Long-time residents, new home- owners, renters and students provided a unique insight into the changing environments and challenges faced by each community. The following is a summary of of the identified issues facing the district. Stage 3: Intervention The aim is to design a system of construction that can be modified in scale and density for each situation. The first experimental construct is a mixed-use housing retail and education intervention that frames an existing open space. “It’s necessary to demonstrate that the act of conversion means that certain structures remain, that they prolong their life, thus providing new ways of being used and lived in.” - Anne Lacaton. Interventions are introduced in phases and can adapt to different conditions of housing, retail, parking, etc. Stage 4: Computational Research For the intervention the goal is to maintain this diversity. By stacking modular plots and offering each owner a double height space, we are able to give each resident twice the building area they would have on the ground. The optimized results ensure that plots and dwelling masses have maximum exposure to solar insolation in winter, reducing energy costs for heating in North Florida’s winter. A by-product of stacking the plots is the benefit of shading during the summer. Each favorable configuration from the optimization process can be analyzed for performance in winter and summer months, helping further reduce energy costs. Stage 5: Implementation The following strategy can be applied to interventions of different scales and
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densities. For example, here we are following a 4plotX4floor strategy. The system can easily be modified to accommodate more residents or a shorter intervention with the same number of residents. The steps remain the same and the resulting intervention can easily accommodate other programs such as education and entertainment. Continuous voids on the periphery as capitalized for vertical circulation. Areas on lower floors can be substituted for retail and other programs to activate neighboring public spaces. Stage 6: Overview and Continuation This process of construction allows to accommodate multiple units over plots of any size. Although the units are stacked
the process of optimization minimizes the negative effects of traditional multi-storey constructions such as availability of light, outdoor space, multi-level units, roof gardens and semi public spaces. This method also allows the system to be adaptable to accommodate offices and retail to increase the diversity of the community. The plots themselves can be adapted to accommodate individual expansion and configuration of living units. Further infills into adjacent lots can then frame public spaces that will be activated through current residents and other consumers.
The final project of the introductory semester is the room and garden. This project introduces a contextual field to the previous lessons of objects and analysis, completing the initial toolset for architecture students. Projects do not exist in a vacuum of space, and this project forces the designer to create his or her own field, negotiate arbitrary moves and collected data, and interact with found conditions. The fields of this project take the forms of abstract settings, natural landscapes, and urban cityscapes. The relationships between found fields and generated nodes of intervention are lessons continuing throughout the design levels and returning in projects warranting ground and facade manipulation, where the lines between what is designed and what is found are as clear or blurry as they need to be.
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ROOT 3:
ROOM& GARDEN
R&G
{<}
DESIGN 2
FALL 2011-2012
LISA HUANG, BR ADLEY WALTERS
DESIGN 1
AMANDA RUTHERFORD
SAR AH RUTLAND
JOHN FECHTEL
MIMI KURPIER
139
VOLUME WITHIN A LINKED SEQUENCE OF EVENTS DELIBERATELY INHABITED THROUGH A RICH AND MEANINGFUL PROGRAM Room and Garden explores the ideas of intervention, occupation, and movement within a selected limit of architectural scales. This project seeks to combine fields and systems as spatial generators, the concept of enclosure within a bounded space, with the added component of studying these ideas in relationship to the human scale. Le Corbusierâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s five stages of a spatial promenade (threshold, disorientation, questioning, reorientation, and culmination) act as guidance in creating spatial events.
Each event is not just one space, but also the series of space that formulate an experience. The perspective drawings illustrate the occupational qualities of the events/ spaces and hint at the relationship between architecture, the body, and the sensatory experiences. These spaces are moments within a created narrative that are shaped by the different spatial qualities of the spaces surrounding it, as well as the kind of experience it is thought to portray.
R&G
{<}
DESIGN 2
DESIGN 1
SAR AH RUTLAND
MENGJIE ZHU
FALL 2011-2012
LISA HUANG, BR ADLEY WALTERS
141
JOHN FECHTEL
ANDRES CAMACHO
COLLIN COBIA
R&G + OBSERVATION
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2013
STEPHEN BENDER
JOHN BRESKE
10:16am
12:12pm
I come across Roger the Supportive and Cindy the Good Influence who are taking a break this Saturday. Not from their moral fiber, but from the daily hustle that America has become. Roger’s dad, Gerald the Willful, recently moved down to Florida from Dearborn, Michigan after he retired and hasn’t found much to do. His wife passed away three years ago, most likely a large factor in his decision to retire, and Gerald has been looking to find himself since. Being from Michigan, there is one thing that he can count on, a good car. I believe this is what led him to the car show this Saturday. It is the heart of this country’s past time in a physical object. How remarkable! Gerald entered an antique car show to display his collectible Ford Crestline, which you can be sure was a big step in his long life of stubbornness, but without his soft hearted wife, he finds himself becoming more like her, simply so he can remember her. Roger and Cindy, who live just a few hours away are being supportive by coming to this car show. They seem to have brought their daughter, Julia. Gerald knows his connection with Julia has been the motivation to execute the will of his wife, but Julia doesn’t. And she doesn’t need to. If she did, it wouldn’t change anything. But she doesn’t. While neither Rog or Cindy are too hot on cars, Gerald seems to be hoping to inspire a love in Julia that he was unable to spark whilst raising Roger.
Cheryl “The Person Beyond A Mom” and Carol “The Mom” do, in fact, seem to be the stereotypical moms. After just a few minutes of observation, I was able to deduce that they each have one daughter, they love to gossip and they both have things they are keeping from the other. But not all of them are secrets or embarrassing. Some things just seem weird to talk about with people before you know how they’ll respond. This was exactly the case with Cheryl and Carol. Cheryl does what most people do and ignores it by staying busy packing boxes to help their daughters set up for the play. It seems to be a win-win, stay distracted as well as give. She is a giver more than anything else: she’s a mom. 1:17pm Ahh Harry “The Fogotten” and Harrieta “Won’t Let Him Feel Forgotten”, what can I say about them? From the way Harry carries himself and interacts with his wife, it is clear that he has recently retired from the corporate life and is finding it somewhat hard to treat people with respect. After 50 years in the business world, he is easily frustrated with a lack of efficiency, which the world interprets into “the grumpy old man” stereotype. And he’s not. He’s got a lot to offer, but hasn’t found someone generally interested in his experience. He can’t share it with anyone and it hurts. From a stern icon of power to a grumpy looking man. That would hurt anyone.
R&G + GR AFT
DESIGN 4
{<}
MICHELLE HOOK
{<}
KATELYNN SMITH
SPRING 2013
STEPHEN BENDER
143
R&G + GR AFT
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
ZACHARY WIGNALL
CARVING TO CREATE A SPATIAL THRESHOLD The existing site offers a displaced art museum, surrounded by a performance center and an indistinctive parking garage. The proposal of the graft is a project that carves away at the existing garage and offers a spatial threshold to the neighboring art museum. An aperture is created through the ramps of the parking garage, creating light infiltration through the northern half of the garage. The intervention extends past the bounds of the existing garage and defines the northwest corner to be a visual threshold toward the museum. Through layered analysis, the ground begins to articulate a shifted grid and topography that guides a visitor from parking garage to museum.
MARTIN GUNDERSEN
R&G + GR AFT
DESIGN 4
{<}
MARISSA VOLK
{<}
JOHN BRESKE
SPRING 2013
STEPHEN BENDER
145
R&G + POLICY
{?}
INTERVIEW
SPRING 2012
MILTON BRAGA/ MMBB A: So to start, we want to know if you can talk to us a little bit about why, in your opinion, the USA is dealing with resources 20 to 30 years in the future, but projects like yours are dealing with resource problems now? What kind of a difference that could make for architects?
Milton Braga studied architecture at the Faculdade de Arquitetura e Ubanismo da Universidade de Sao Paulo Brazil, receiving three degrees, the preliminary degree in 1986, his Masters in 1999 and a PhD in 2006. He has been teaching at the FAUUSSP since 2001, with previous academic positions at the Universidade Sao Judas Tadeu, Universidade Braz Cubas, and the University of Florida. In addition to Milton’s academic efforts, he is a founding partner of MMBB Arquitetos. Since its inception in 1991 MMBB has grown in notoriety, earning recognition through numerous awards and exhibitions. MMBB is a versatile firm, comfortable working a variety of scales, scopes and contexts, responding to the inherently loaded array of design constraints that frame any project with a formal grace and poetic dialogue of space, program and materiality. Fully aware of and respectful to the architectural legacy into which they have ascended, MMBB is perhaps most recognized for their on-going collaboration with Pritzker Laureate Paulo Mendez da Rocha. Yet their efforts are not overshadowed by this relationship. Instead they fold the influences that Mendez da Rocha provides with their own design aspirations to arrive at an architecture entirely their own – one steeped in the canons of modernism while boldly questioning the possibilities that lay unexplored.
B: I don’t know if I understood perfectly, but you are meaning that normally in the U.S., people are researching the future possibilities, and we are researching the more immediate problems that we have to face right now? I think in general here, and in Latin America, and specifically in São Paolo, for instance, it’s quite different because the problems in South America are really, really clear right now, and therefore, it’s very difficult to have the same thinking there and here. Because here, obviously, they also have some very clear problems, but they don’t have the same urgency that they have in South America. And I think here there’s more room for a more speculative attitude, trying to anticipate the problems there’s going to be in 30, 40, 50 years time. And this is very consistent, that here you are thinking ahead, and there we are thinking right now. And what I think would be the perfect scenario, would be to have more contact between the two experiences and to learn out of the others’ experience, and that’s why probably I’m here: to exchange experiences. To give a better explanation perhaps, I would like to cite two projects that more or less answer to the same problem. The Millennium Bridge in London (that’s not in the U.S., but in London, which is a similar condition) designed by Norman Foster. It’s a beautiful bridge, which is really stressing, literally, in that case, the structural problem. It’s a sort of a suspended bridge, but the suspension cables are almost horizontal, so the strength in those cables are really, really huge and the result is amazing, surprising, and I think it was worth doing in London. There’s another project design by an important Brazilian architect, and in the nineties he proposed a system of bridges for Salvador Bahia, one of the poorest areas of northeast Brazil; the capital of music in Brazil, Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil (several very good musicians), come from Salvador, where the African influence is very, very huge, but very poor, so it was very clever to think of a system of bridges maximizing the investments. Each cent there makes several super bridges and instead of making money on an astonishing bridge, he has made, say, fifty bridges. If he would make millennium bridges in Salvador, it would be ridiculous because you would see one bridge in five kilometers of a very expensive one. And if you put the opposite and take his bridge to London, it would be not interesting at al because you would see a very ordinary bridge among several interesting and very nice bridges along the history. A: So it is like the comparison with scale that you were talking about in your lecture, how you have an elevated survey in Chicago, but if taken to a different scale it could be something catastrophic?
147
B: Yes, but in that case that example was to demonstrate that the normal contemporary city has huge infrastructural systems, even the smaller ones, and eventually they are going to face them, because every city nowadays is a part of the metropolitan organization. Expressways, motorways, even the train systems etcetera, etcetera. And in those cases I think, the infrastructure is commanding, knitting the scale and then, I think you need to enlarge the scale of the city like Chicago. We also have some interesting examples in Brazil; Rio de Janeiro has a very nice park, crossed by two sections of an expressway. There you have all these scales, let’s say, the metropolitan scale because of the high speed of the expressway, but still the local scale of the mothers going with the babies to the park. I think of the challenges of contemporary urban architecture is to be able to design spaces that gather all these scales together; make all the scales compatible. A: Can you talk a little about politics? We talked about favelas; what do you think is the role of the architect in politics? Do you involve yourself in politics when you’re trying to do a project, and do you think that architecture can change the way politics work? B: I think every architect should be politically involved. For instance, he or she must think about whom they will support in the next election etcetera, etcetera. I think that every project is also, in a way, political because the decisions have political sides, as always. If you’re in favor of values that are probably connected to those groups, they could immediately be understood as the political values of the project, which is then not an architectural project. Architecture is not dead, there’s always a cultural thinking involving decisions, the free will of the people and of the architect; therefore, it is always political as well. A: Would you say architects have a responsibility to propose projects that are not normally asked for of us- should we propose or should we play the intermediary? B: Well I think architecture is very interesting because we can speak about it in very eloquent ways- in one sense architecture is always a servic—Renzo Piano said that: if it’s not working, if it’s not supporting what it’s meant to support, it’s not a success. But in the other end, it’s a service, but it’s a cultural decision. I’m sure that the demands that come to the architect, like most of the time, have been badly established, and badly thought because people are not prepared to tell the
architect what the architect should do, and therefore, including a method, because obviously we could have methodical attitudes and behavior. I think the first methodical attitude that we should have is to criticize the demands that we get, and that includes, perhaps, an architect that is looking and their condition, and propose things that nobody is asking for. So I think it’s about this critical attitude towards the demands that you get as an architect. A: You’re saying that an architect has the right to overstep certain boundaries when they see a solution? B: It has to be very smart to convince people, but architecture is always seduction. It is a collective achievement the architect is perhaps an important part of, but he’s not the main part, in terms of the connections, for instance, in that the money hardly comes from the architect. Therefore the architect, one of the first skills that he or she has to have, is the capacity of convincing. Convincing is not perhaps the right word of seducing, because for people to view something, they have to be convinced, they have to believe in that, desire in that. I think architecture works with the desire of the architects, of the clients, of the people. So I think seducing, seduction is the right word for that. A: Could you tell us about the project that you’re doing here? B: What I’m doing here is this cooperation. I have been a guest professor here in 2008 and since then I have a cooperative agreement, and this is the first time we are really acting on our agreement between the University of São Paolo and the University of Florida. The cooperation this time is to make further understandings of waterways, the new waterway system that we are designing in Sao Paolo University, with Professor Alexandre Delijaicov that will come later in the semester. He is the main author of the study. I think we have a lot to learn from Florida regarding irrigation, management of water etcetera, etcetera. All the issues we have with management of water. On the other hand, professors here are convinced that they can learn out of the Sao Paolo intensity because I think they agree with me, that some parts of North American cites should be denser. They think they can learn with our real condition there in the city. Some Floridian students are going to study in São Paolo and the other way around. I think this is quite promising. { 20 }
R&G + PSYCHROMETRY
{^}
GR AD 1
FALL 2012
GUY PETERSON
TIM BEECKEN
MORNING LIGHT + ARRIVAL
MIDDAY LIGHT + EXHIBITS
SUNSET + HEAT MITIGATION
NIGHT + LIFE
SCORED LANDSCAPE RESEMBLING ORGANIC PATHS OF THE PARK A common diagram between the landscape and structures maintains a link between the exterior world and the interior. The site also acts as a corridor to Tower Park, which lies on the eastern edge. The landscape has been scored resembling the organic paths of the park and also acting as datum visitors may follow. By allowing moves to penetrate the facade and dictate some interior partitions, movement develops independently. The main
facility being the interpretive center dealing with exhibits of past and future Sarasota, a focus was brought to it. The orientation of the sun developed some of the faceted edges and light wells. The exhibits border the northern edges and allow fragments of uniform light to illuminate the rooms. With the combination of the Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development facilities, this complex is primed to shape the future of Sarasota.
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FOLDED ENCLOSURE
STRUCTUR AL SUPPORT + INNER CANOPY
ELEVATED CORE
SUN INHIBITORS
EXTERIOR CANOPY
FACETED LANDSCAPE
R&G + ISOLATION
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
REBECCA WALKER
COLLIN COBIA
HUMAN EXPERIENCE WITHIN A SPACE OF EXTRAORDINARY MAGNITUDE AND DESOLATION In analyzing and understanding the desert, the project became an investigation of the human experience within a space of extraordinary magnitude and desolation. The vast, boundless nature of the desert induces a sense of isolation. Without a sense of position or orientation, the human feels insignificant and alone. The driving force behind the desert project became an analysis of the mental transitions an individual undergoes when placed in a state of complete isolation. First, there is a yearning for the familiar; the
individual longs for the customs, values, and ideals that compose their reality. Second, is the questioning of reality. When someone endures complete isolation for an extended period of time, they begin to reconsider their understanding of reality. Without any societal validation of thought, the sense of security and confidence in personal truth begins to dissipate. The final mental transition involves the reinvention and reinterpretation of reality into an entirely new perspective.
151
R&G + CLIMATE
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
LEE-SU HUANG
JONATHON WESLEY WRIGHT
A SURVIVALIST COMPOUND INTENDED TO BE OCCUPIED FOR EXTENDED PERIODS OF TIME The project was inspired by two primary design considerations: programmatic function and environmental factors. The process began with the shattering of a plaster mold which later became the landscape of the “desert.” The shattering of the mold produced a large longitudinal chasm from which the desert intervention was both embedded within as well as suspended above. Both of these design features were explored due to the influence of program. This facility is a survivalist compound intended to be occupied for extended periods of time. The concept of embedded and suspended space was not only necessary for the security and ability of the occupants
to observe the surrounding landscape, but it allowed for a dynamic spatial experience from the perspective of an occupant as well. The only entrances into the compound are along an exaggerated, embedded linear axis which all living spaces are suspended above- another necessity of security. The second design consideration was the harsh environment the compound must withstand. Large comprehensive roof coverings, in order to keep the compound shaded during most of the day, as well as a natural wind tunnel, which can funnel the breeze through the main space of the compound, were all results of the compound’s desert location.
153
R&G + MEDITATION
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
ELIZABETH CRONIN
CONNECT WITH NATURE: MEDITATE The desert is a constantly changing environment. Violent sandstorms lead to a very peaceful aftermath within the sand. Patterns are formed by the wind, calling to mind waves and water. As the waves of ocean ebb and flow, so do the waves of sand that flow throughout the desert. This desert is very fragile, but full of movement. I feel that a yoga retreat could work to embody some of the same fluidity, which can be found within the desert sand, through the movement of the construct through the sand and the flow of the body through the yoga ritual. I propose to construct a yoga retreat in the desert. This retreat would have to take into consideration the harsh environment provided by the desert, but in this barren land, certain solitude can be found, and quiet meditation spaces could be easily developed, without other intruding sounds, such as traffic.
LISA HUANG
R&G + STRUCTURE
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
CORINA OCANTO
A SYSTEM OF RIBBONS DICTATE THE STRUCTURE This multimedia library is inspired by simple spatial representations of emotions and shifts that happen when connecting one emotion to another. The program consists of a lobby/ reception area, a cafe with an outdoor balcony, a stack room (the main space), private and public reading areas, an art gallery, a video viewing room, and a computer and research lab. The building is set up by a system of ribbons that dictate the structure. The building functions in two dimensions, where the ribbons make up the horizontal component and a secondary system of columns embed themselves into the ribbons to hold them up and create secondary spaces.
LEE-SU HUANG
155
R&G + VIEWS
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
TIM PETERSEN
MOMENTS THAT APPEAR AND DISAPPEAR INTO THE HORIZON The desert landscape is a continuous surface with occasions of interruption. The vastness of the desert leads to the perception of a mirage. This construct captures the essence of a mirage by creating moments that appear and disappear into the horizon. The intervention is a haven from the desert climate for two groups of people that work with the desert. Anthropologists work and sleep at this structure year round and require a laboratory space that interacts with the ground. A group of land artist also share this space and demand separate studios that harness the essence of the desert.
REBECCA WALKER
157
R&G + BLUR
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
MIGUEL CASTANEDA
BLURS THE RELATIONSHIP OF BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND UNBUILT The proposal is rooted on the idea of a graft onto the landscape that sets up the platform for the exploration of an intervention within a larger matrix. Through manipulation of the existing context, questions through the form of 3-D modeling and 2-D diagramming are formed to portray the spatial interstition between the intervention and the context. Following then the exploration of the folded context, space within the newly created pockets of void are programmatically organized to follow guidelines of itinerary, view sheds, thresholds and figure-ground relationships. The architecture then emerges from the context and blurs the relationship of the built and unbuilt environment
LISA HUANG
R&G + CLIMATE
{<}
DESIGN 4
SPRING 2012
SARAH GLASS
TRANSFORMER OF INVISIBLE FORCES, MENTAL AND ELEMENTAL This spiritual oasis is about transforming forces and the relationship between the human occupant, the material and immaterial elements, and the cosmos through archaeological excavation and the meditative process. The placement of the intervention was derived from two axes: the direction of the winds and the North/South axis; where the two intersect is the heart of the intervention. The intervention acts as a transformer of invisible forces, both mental and elemental.
JAIRO VIVES
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IMAGES: SANTIAGO GANGOTENA, GENNA RECKENBERGER
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R&G + LENSES
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INTERVIEW
FALL 2012
DAVID J. LEWIS/ LEWIS.TSURUMAKI.LEWIS ARCHITECTS
A: What we are most interested in talking to you about is writing. You have your first two books, and now your third one, Intensities, so we wanted to talk to you a little bit about writing and your take on it. To start off, we were wondering, do you have one particular writer you are interested in? Maybe a favorite book, or books? Any type of thing you are interested in reading? L: In terms of reading as a text, I assume, or do you mean reading, as in reading projects? A: Either, that’s very interesting. David J. Lewis holds a Master of Architecture from Princeton University, a Master of Arts in the History of Architecture and Urbanism from Cornell University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Carleton College. David is the Dean of the School of Constructed Environments and Associate Professor at Parsons The New School for Design. At Parsons, he directed the Design Workshop program from 2007 to 2010 and was on the faculty for the Solar Decathlon project in 2011. He has also taught at Cornell University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Limerick, and Ohio State University. Founded in 1997 by Paul Lewis, Marc Tsurumaki, and David J. Lewis, Lewis.Tsurumaki. Lewis (LTL Architects) is an architecture and design partnership that explores the opportunistic overlaps between form, program and materiality. The New York-based firm has completed academic, institutional, residential and hospitality projects throughout the United States, including Arthouse at the Jones Center in Austin, Texas, Claremont University Consortium Administrative Campus Center in California, and the College of Wooster’s Bornhuetter Hall in Ohio.
L: Um, ok, well, how do I answer this in a way that doesn’t reveal that I don’t have any time to read? I would approach it more from a question of thinking about reading in a much broader sense, than just reading text. We can look at the way in which this [Architrave] is laid out. You have this superimposition and a cross between what is graphic, with typically what is understood as graphic, and what typically is understood as text. What we end up doing in the office is really thinking critically about the relationship between the two. And so when I look to reading, it is not an isolated assumption that you are reading things that are text based or not visual based. So as a result, if reading is the passive engagement, but actually an active engagement with the text, I would exploit that it is also the engagement between visual mediums. So, what I mostly end up reading is online: the New York Times, some blogs (not many), bikesnob being one on a pretty regular basis (although it gets a little tedious). And one of the most recent things I’ve read (and it would be something probably pretty interesting for you to interview here, because it is the relationship between writing and architecture and design), a guy named Peter Wheelwright. He was the chair at Parsons and recently released a novel called As it is on Earth. He has a full practice, a licensed architect, and ran Parsons for a number of years and spent a couple of years writing a novel that is not explicitly about architecture or architects. He was recently published in Architectural Record, a review of it, and Metropolis did an interview with Susan Szenasy with Peter, it should be released this month. So it would be worth talking to him, if you can, about that relationship because I think he would have a really clear, interesting position on what it means to work in two very different mediums: the one, primary text, which is the novel, the other being the work of the architect, which he’s done for many years. And what the relationships are and what the differences are. A: So, talking about this idea of writing, text vs. visual, and those kinds of things, do you ever think of writing as a design tool itself? L: Yea, definitely. If you look historically at the role between writing, and I would expand it from writing to publishing, so, the role of publishing has had an absolutely critical base in the construction of the discipline. It’s a way of not only
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reclassifying and recalibrating the way in which one works, but doing so in a manner that allows you to expand the work from simply working just for the clients, to arguing for something, either in service of the clients or in the service, in the best of cases, to arguments about the role of architecture in society. This has to do with the difficulty that many people have in reading the written work of architecture, namely plans, sections, and drawings, that oftentimes would lead to a need for it to be qualified through textual means, to allow them to be appreciated by other disciplines. That’s changing, I think, in a more explicit means of presentation, meaning more graphic forms of modeling and animation have made architecture, in some ways, more legible at a service value, but not very legible from a conceptual value. For me, it is kind of amazing to look at what was winning competitions thirty, forty, fifty years ago. They look like line drawings that were done as a preliminary basis and this was the basis for winning millions of dollars. Now, you are expected to have nearly realistic renderings that paradoxically anyone can generate. So the challenge becomes: on what basis are you doing your work that is consistent with an idea? And that’s what we’ve ended up spending a fair amount of time on in the book Intensities. It was taking the work we have, thinking about how it goes from being a presentation to the board of directors, to clients, to the public, to actually now fitting within the framework of a much smaller bifold layout. A: Do you think of writing as a way of refocusing architecture or a way of refocusing the way people view architecture, construction and the space? (Especially since there is this communication and flow between the two.)
L: I would argue that that assumes, somehow, that images are slippery and text is precise. In other words, and this falls prey to a typical historical split in academia, between the visual discourse as being somehow suspect and the written discourse being much more about truth, authority, and control. You can probably look, I would recommend Jay’s book, called Downcast Eyes, on this historical, essentially, critique of vision, as being subject to misinterpretation, and the privileging of text over visual image. I think what you’re finding now is that increasingly, what I find interesting, is not that false binary but a much more critical investigation of the two, in which the visual and the textual are equally as slippery but open up the potential for exploration. So not seeing them as necessarily opposed, but much more counterbalanced. In other words, right now the legal discourses which run government and set laws and contracts are all text, so you have an entire architectural contract that has no images in it at all. So you are supposed to describe the project by text before you actually do a drawing of the project and what holds up in court is not the drawing that you give it, or the sketch by the client, or anything else. It is quite literally the text that you write describing the project that then has privilege because it is in text form. I think that you can see that changing in the way in which people are gravitating much more towards graphic images, visual images. One of the things to look at is the language in which web systems are set up. So a much more complicated relationship between images and text is moving forward and architects have the capacity that they will engage those. There is a specific reason why text has always been privileged, because of the supposed ability to control it, certainly
R&G + LENSES
INTERVIEW
FALL 2012
through he who wishes. That’s not really the best way of answering your question, which I think was getting at issues having to do with what has it influenced necessarily in the design process, and I would argue that it’s inevitably a both/and approach: that sketches can be very questrative of what you are doing, exploratory, open-ended and the same thing with text. And so the way in which the three of us work, the three principles, are through a collaboration of text, usually around images, around the table-sketches, as well as writing; where almost all the written parts of the publications we do are collaborations and one person takes more of a lead in certain areas of the editorial. It’s part of how we’ve been trained, both in our undergraduate and graduate education, being capable of working in between. A: Do you ever think of writing as a teaching methodology? L: I started out teaching more writing than I did drawing or studio. My first graduate degree was in the history of architecture, so I was teaching courses on the history of architecture as a teaching assistant and then in graduate school. I would have a hard time separating the two, so it’s odd to hear someone talk about it this way. When I teach studios or teach a course, on say the politics of the façade, it is the relationship between the two that can be really the most interesting thing, the thing that’s the biggest challenge. How can you write critically about something in which you are aware that you have to write it, but at the same time believe that one [writing] is not necessarily privileged over the other [drawing]. In other words, what I would argue for, is a both/and approach, as opposed to an either/or. It’s hard to sustain that, though, in an academic structure because usually, you’re going to be judged on one thing or the other. If you’re in a seminar course, often it will be writing based. If you’re in a studio course and submit a written text, then they will say, “Well, where’s your building?” Well it’s embedded in there, but then again, when you’re asked to present a project, you are expected to verbalize it in a performative manner. And if you go into practice, in order to get a project, you have to submit RFQ’s and RFP’s or you submit two RFQ’s and RFP’s. Are you aware of what RFQ’s and RFP’s are? “Request for Qualifications” and “Request for Proposals,” which are typically all written, some graphic support (portfolio support), but they are almost all written, textual responses to a set of procedural questions. You can’t get a project, then, without actually writing, so that’s the paradox and the next step is the contracts. So unless you are very
wealthy and have access to legal council that will do it for you for free, you’re going to be doing the legal counsel yourself if you’re in a small office. This means you need to be able to understand how to carefully read the contracts for it, with those who aren’t going to care about your visual language. All these things are part and parcel to practicing as an architect, so it is going to be one of the few disciplines like this. You will never find this necessarily, generally understood, in the art disciplines, where someone would say, “Yes, you will actually have to write [your art project].” It’s just not something you would have... or in an English major, “No, I want to see the plan of your book. Please give me a sketch of what you are planning on doing.” You could argue that in architecture you are expected to and would have to do both because of this capacity to be able to switch between; that you serve both a question of the discipline of architecture as an art and the profession as an extension of the legal aspects. Those two come into play, so I would encourage anyone to recognize not only the slippages between the two, but where one is much more effective than the other. You’ve probably had colleagues or friends who have done this, who have really really bad projects all the time and they will wow a jury because they are really good at presenting. And you have the exact opposite person who is terrible at presenting and their projects are great, and they get killed by a jury. It’s exactly what happens when you go out. It is no different here than when you go in front a client, board of trustees, or a community review. A person, who is able to verbally present the project, is much more gregarious, is more likely to get hired than the person who fumbles and can’t really hold court but has a really great project. That’s the nature of the game. The person who actually usually gets C’s will have the biggest office. The person who has A’s will have the floundering office. A: Does teaching ever influence the design process of your firm or vice versa? L: It’s probably both/and. I mean, inevitably all three of us have been involved in academia before. I’ve been at Parsons for ten years, and before that I was at Cornell for four years and some other, well, I’ve been teaching for twenty years now. And the same for Paul and Marc. I wouldn’t be able say there’s a hard line in the sand, that one informs the other, but as you start working and setting up pedagogical methods, you have to articulate what is of value and how you are going to structure a course and structure a project. You do that based upon most of your experience practicing, so inevitably one helps you clarify
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the way in which you think about the work, but also this distinction between work that is driven by an academic expectation and that driven by professional, and what are the similarities shared and the responsibilities. I wouldn’t say there is a chicken and an egg, in that one doesn’t drive the other necessarily. In fact, one of the real challenges is not seeing them as radically different. I think some people do and some people don’t. Some people conflate the two in such a way that their studios are literally their office or they use their studios to run projects that are actually claimed by their office. We try very carefully, the three of us, to make a distinction in which the methodology is tailored to the differences and we are not trying to embed one, necessarily, in the other because if you start doing that, you end up undermining the autonomy by which the academic project, or the students who are doing the work, have the authority to go on and do their own work and vice versa. A: So, what do you like most about teaching? L: What do I like most about teaching? It’s always the simplest questions which are the hardest ones. The thing I appreciate the most about teaching is getting to spend an extraordinary amount of time on something you can’t actually do elsewhere. It’s what I call the dominate privileged position of academic space, where you can work on one project in a way that you don’t have the physical resources to do within the frame of professional life. It means there’s an offset, in that you need the structure of academia to be able to allow a kind of exploration, but one that has to be recognized as being distinct. Not that it’s something not real, because it is real. You’ll actually find the dichotomy between the real world and the academic world to be a false one. They are both quite real. There is nothing illogical or unreal about academic work. It’s part and parcel. It’s just the frame by which you are working at is quite different. That’s one of the things I think, for me, is the most enjoyable. It is the capacity to be able to engage a set of conditions in which you are not necessarily, it’s not that you’re not responsible, but it’s not your authority that’s at stake. It ultimately sets up a framework by which the work can achieve excellence as opposed to doing the work with the risk that it’s your work. Probably the best example is: I ran a design workshop, a design studio, at Parsons from 2006-2010. There you had twelve students working for approximately 40 hours a week, so you can quickly do the math. You have twelve students, so 40 by 12 students, times 15 weeks; 7,200 hours of work has gone into the project. Say the project
has an interior cost of $250,000, and you are going to do that at a 10% fee, which would be a high fee. You’d be at $25,000 divided by 7,200. That’s going to be roughly $3.47 dollars an hour. That’s pretty good. I mean, that’s almost minimum wage. So, if you take the one structure and map it onto the other, you start producing absurdities, but on the other hand, the design workshop allows students to take on a project, whether it’s rethinking how we are working with the parks department or, I know you’ve done this with the solar decathlon project, really critically engaging a project that, if you were brought into the office, it would have maybe a hundred hours of work left in it, when much more than that went into these things. So the goal is not necessarily the design of the project, it’s the educational structure and the capacity for that project to elucidate something that can’t be captured with the discourses of the profession. And that’s what I find the most interesting about working between both, and understanding the frameworks and constraints that set up each, but also the opportunities that arise from both. A: Well, we talked about writing, education, and these design mediums, what other lenses to do you see architecture moving through, and what other things do you see architecture progressively moving towards in the future? L: Quantifiable information of energy. One of the riding questions is how to be able to translate data into a recognizable form. So, I frame it not just as energy, but as the capacity to generate that data growth. Increasingly, what you are looking at is architecture taking on the responsibility of being smart information managers. Whether this is in the language, well, if you look at BIM, fundamentally, it is a change from drawing to information. It’s at one level drawing, yes, rudimentarily so, but it’s primarily the ability to manage, organize, and structure information that far exceeds the capacity to just construct a building. Too often it has been understood as purely a more efficient way of doing drawings, but if you look at it much more as a question of giving value to the information; right now it is a valueless program. I call programs effectively neutral. You have to be able to provide a kind of qualified superimposition of values and hierarchies, which then determine what information is of value, and I think this is one of the great avenues for exploration and development in the field.
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R&G + PATTERN
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
DONNA COHEN
CALEB GENEROSO + LAUREN FRIEDRICH
A TOWER THAT TAKES CUES FROM THE ORGANIZATION OF THE SURROUNDING NEW YORK BLOCKS New York City is one of the most well known cities in the world, notorious for its grid structure, density of population, and evercrowding streets and towers. What makes it work so well cannot be credited to just one piece of order, but rather the entirety of a daily struggle for balance often resolved by an unrecognized supporting structure. As a mixed-use building, the tower will take cues from the organization of the surrounding city, therefore beginning as a representation of three city blocks. The middle block will then be tilted along the 29 degree axis, as is the city grid, and work to counterbalance against its supporting two brackets by physical structure, but also by program, density, and view. Public program, those areas
designated more accessible to the city street (the restaurant, library, and theater) will be positioned along the vertical east side, and more private public program (gym, pool, and offices) will relate along the western façade. Outdoor green spaces intend to carry “city level” upward above the horizon. The eastward view is guided down toward the city streets, the small scale buildings, and the water – a clear horizon interrupted by high rises. The western façade, however, will open up toward the sky, the city skyline, Midtown’s large scale buildings – a horizon defined by the jagged profile of roof edges.
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R&G + TR ANSPORTATION DESIGN 7
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FALL 2012
DONNA COHEN
JEFRALL BETANCOURT + ADOLFO MAALINDOG
ENHANCE THE CITY’S SENSE OF COMMUNITY BY REVITALIZING PUBLIC SPACE The main concept of the design proposal is to enhance the city’s sense of community by revitalizing public space. The buildings on the city block are broken up to form a campus-like configuration allowing more open space. Transparency and articulation at the ground level provide variations that welcome gathering and punctuated moments invite interaction. The block is broken up into modules to negotiate the large scale of the site. These modules were used to shape the massing of the project, as well as inform its structure, space allocation, and facades. The block is bounded by 10th, 11th, 44th, and 45th Streets in the Chelsea/Clinton area of Manhattan. The commercial complex’s elevated public plaza invites people to
stroll, linger, and socialize. It features a mini amphitheater where people may sit and watch the media wall off the retail building. A walking path dissects the block, connecting 44th and 45th. The path lined with greenery and seating pulls people along it and allows them to stop and relax. The focus is on the porosity of the block through pedestrian and automotive access and connections. A proposed transportation hub aims to provide easier access to public transportation to the community. The existing railway is utilized and a train stop is constructed which is linked to the commercial side of the development. A below-ground taxi station is also integrated into the project, providing a solution to the scattered cabs around the area.
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R&G + LINK
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
TRISH DRAGAN + MARIDALIA CEDENO
LAYERS OF PUBLIC PROGRAMMING PROVIDE ENCLAVE OF RETREAT In an effort to incorporate planning as a driving force in building design, green spaces and public program were infused within the â&#x20AC;&#x153;bracketedâ&#x20AC;? program. These three layers of public programming not only provide an enclave for retreat but also serve as a method of incorporating beloved aspects of the city much closer to home. From a planning standpoint, it becomes evident that the psychological and social benefits for the public, in addition to the ecological benefits for the Earth, support the addition of secondary and tertiary green spaces. The public is drawn vertically into the blocks and is then released into secondary horizontal landscapes that provide opportunities for interconnectedness.
THOMAS SMITH
171
R&G + GREEN SPACE
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
THOMAS SMITH
CHARLES GREEN + GENNA RECKENBERGER
CREATING GREEN SPACE IN THE CITY The Urban Block Proposal takes place in the Clinton district of Manhattan. Upon examination of the site and its surrounding context, the lack of public space became immediately apparent and brought about the initial concept. The site-specific codes, program, as well as view, light, and sun exposure became the driving performance parameters of the block. Next, we looked at how the structure could remain as such but also serve as a sunshade device. Calculating where sun exposure was highest, the densities were played with until an outcome was achieved that would provide sufficient light within and be proportional with the scale of the towers. Exceeding the required open (green) space, we created a ground plane consisting of a large soft/hardscape mix, as well as a public plaza, and an elevated
green space for residents of the towers. The connections of the towers to each other and the podium portion are significant in how they affect the program and surface detail. When any two towers meet, the intersection becomes a multi-story public balcony, and in the instance where all five towers meet, a sky lobby is created for the residents. The towers also vary in their connections to the ground. Where tower meets the podium, the skin and program are fluent. Where tower connects to ground, the mass is lifted 4 stories above the ground plane to allow for fluid traversing of the site without immediate interruption to the eye. The intent of the project is to achieve positive outcomes and break the typical block experience in order to provide a cohesive interconnected block of public/private program within the Clinton District.
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R&G + RELIEF
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
DONNA COHEN
MICHAEL GARCIA + DAVID BABB
“RELIEF” SPACES ALONG THE BLOCK TO BREAK A NONSTOP CONTINUOUS RHYTHM The neighborhood of Chelsea, New York historically was utilized primarily as the livery for horses and stables, as well as automobiles in later years. It is also the only remote area within Manhattan to house car dealerships alongside taxi cab storage at night. As a result, there is a density of programmatic elements involving the trade of auto repair and taxis. There is a definite density, primarily because of the displacement of vehicles alongside the street. What is beneficial is the introduction of “relief” spaces along the block to break a nonstop continuous rhythm. There will also be relief programmatically with the inclusion of spaces to house and charge
the automobiles, comprising in a synergetic relationship between the edge of the block and what occurs throughout the site as a whole. To break down the block, the town-homes followed a rhythm similar to the residing blocks west and also initiated a relationship of direct sunlight into the residential spaces. The restaurant along its side reveals itself as an indefinite edge. It propagates space from the sidewalk and interior courtyard to respond to such a programmatic relationship. All the activity within the restaurant will pour onto the sidewalk and courtyard, creating indefinite boundaries of the space.
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R&G + RECYCLING
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
NANCY CLARK
MCKENZIE LENTZ + ASHLEY FUCHS
NEW YORK CITY: PLETHORA OF REUSABLE MATERIALS AND AN UNLIMITED SUPPLY OF HUMAN CREATIVITY Each year, New York City throws away 193,000 tons of textiles. This results in a city rife with inspiring opportunities and resources to recycle while engaging the community in this once linear, now circular process. The re-machine attempts to do just this by allowing NYC to have a place within the urban sprawl to recycle, engage, and inspire children, adults, and artists alike to create a sustainable society. Since there is a plethora of potentially reusable materials in New York City and an unlimited supply of human creativity, re-machine creates an environment that harness both opportunities by synthesizing their raw potential. By taking into account both of these ideas and fusing these two concepts; this block proposes a living center that is unprecedented in
New York City. re-machine will become and sustain a rich cultural hub that allows people to engage with recycling in a way not ever experienced before. By allowing people to live, work, and engage within re-machineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s recycling process, New York is given a new precedent for ideas pertaining to and encompassing recycling. Re-machine creates a circular, inclusive recyclable process in several specific ways. Re-machine fosters a high-quality recycled material which will be used to enhance educational and creative products. Furthermore, by allowing artists and students to live close to creative spaces, the building allows for total engagement within the creative process. Lastly, remachine is a synonymy for adaptive, a key concept in the recycling process.
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R&G + WATER
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
NANCY CLARK
ANDY LIN + LAUREN GARDNER
CYNICAL NATURE OF THE BLOCK ADAPTS TO SEASONAL SHIFTS AND VARIABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS The Manhattan block, running between 10th and 11th avenue and 44th and 45th streets, become a device for transforming the city; by utilizing and layering varying levels of permeability, the site combats the notion of a dense urbanism in order to provide for a healthier, more resilient and highly adaptable living atmosphere. According to PlanNYC, a guide updated in 2011, the toxicity levels in New York cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s infrastructure and water supply are climbing and need to be accounted for. The site consists of two residential towers, an elementary school, retail spaces, and intermediate park, garden and recreation spaces which are allocated throughout different zones of the block. Diffusing the
park spaces allows for a variety of materials to be utilized; these materials range from permeable soils to impermeable concrete panels, allowing for water pollutants to be dematerialized in its interstitial spaces. Water is collected, distributed, absorbed, and filtered; these four mechanisms allow rainwater and urban runoff to be captured, used, and left to infiltrate the permeable membranes within the site. This cynical nature of the block adapts to seasonal shifts and variable weather conditions; it is able to continuously modify itself in order to create protected spaces for recreation and relaxation for residents as well as the public.
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R&G + VOID
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DESIGN 7
FALL 2012
STEPHEN BELTON
CHRISTIAN POPPELL + JOSH VALLE
THE CONSTRUCTION OF A VOID TO CREATE MULTIPLE CONNECTIONS AT VARIOUS SCALES Focusing on landmarks throughout the city and forging a bond between the residents, the Constructed Void seeks to create multiple connections on various scales. The small scale connection is the residents; different view spaces are aligned, creating a line of sight. The larger scale connection to the city becomes the image framed by the view corridor. The city views are captured from beyond the housing. The void also aligns with the sun as it passes, illuminating both the void and 45th street to the north. The view boxes are programmed to accommodate the surrounding inhabitants of the housing
complex. One void can become a playground and another, an outdoor movie theater. An elevated groundwork becomes the canopy for the amenities below. Commercial space at the bottom relates to the local surroundings and above is the displaced volume from the view voids. These become larger commercial units that serve the housing above it. The school faces 10th street and the corner of the commercial space opens up to allow access. Tenth street moves at a slower pace and is, therefore, able to support pedestrian activities.
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R&G + COURTYARD
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VICENZA
FALL 2012
ROLANDO LOPEZ + JENNY PARK
A CITY BLOCK WHOSE PUBLIC SPACE MIMICS THE FABRIC OF ROME The premise of the project is to create a largescale development in the banks of the Tiber River in Rome. The project is driven by two unique and opposing motivations: the desire to conserve the logic of the historic place and the wish to create additional space for people to live, relax, and work in Rome. The project attempts to negotiate urban form and scale, establish a relationship between program and place and develop systems of construction that can be repeated at such large scale. The urban form of Rome is understood as a combination of courtyard clusters and sliced pathways. The project explores the idea of courtyards at different scales and then explores a specific courtyard typology as the main agent in creating form and public space.
ALFONSO PEREZ
183
R&G + ECONOMICS
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INTERVIEW
FALL 2011
GIANCARLO MAZZANTI/ MAZZANTI ARQUITECTOS
A: Politics: M: Part of architecture is politics, and the way of doing architecture is to understand a society. I was visiting the ‘slums’ in the east [of Gainesville,] and they were showing to me and that there is no real clear politics to renovate these areas. Part of my strategy is to approach the politicians and cities with solutions and not wait for them to call us. What we do a lot in Colombia, and the Caribbean, is that we propose model cities and solutions that can be directly applied to these particular places, and then propose them to mayors. The mayors may not know exactly how they want their problems to be solved, and we can catalyze this with specific projects. We are doing new urbanization projects in Barranquilla, which is in the Caribbean, and we are working with a center for music development, artisanal art production places, and education centers that all aim to help those neighborhoods in need, of course, with support from the mayor. No, our work deals with specific parts of cities. I am not an urban planner, and I think these have more impact than large-scale urban projects, that end up realizing themselves into cities like ours. I think small interventions in what already exists, which is what I saw yesterday, that there were plans for the whole city, but not for direct interventions in the existing neighborhood. A: In a place where there aren’t any roads or amenities, do you feel that, from an urban standpoint, the funding you receive could go towards those things, instead of just one building? M: We work with integral urban projects. The first thing we do is work with infrastructure. We don’t work where there is no infrastructure, there is already electricity, water, roads and then we come in, but there is always infrastructure first-be it public service, at least, and then there can be infrastructure that implements roads, because we can’t get to a mountain without roads, it’d be impossible. First are public works, then connections, then us, in a mostly parallel way. We can’t build buildings in the middle of nowhere, instead how to work an urban project that involves urbanism, transportation, infrastructure, architecture,
productivity, education, things that are a part of a larger project. Our work is in sectors, especially in places that already exist, not places that are starting from scratch. A: How do you feel about the system of escalators that were installed in the mountain slums in Medellin? M: I haven’t been there, but I think that what it’s doing is trying to change the time that transportation takes. Because people used to take an hour to get down the mountain, and this is the first kind of largely impactful intervention there’s been there. People used to walk an hour and a half to get down and then to get to the bottom and forget your keys and have to go back. Now it takes 10 minutes. That’s important. Those are small but impactful solutions, I think it’s very interesting. Think about a person that takes an hour and a half to get to and from work, can now do it in 10 minutes. They now have that time to be with their families or educate themselves. It’s a much cheaper solution than the cable car, but it’s equally as effective. A: How do you think the pride of the people in the areas that you work in start to implement success in the buildings? In the U.S. we talk a lot about individuals, as opposed to places that focus on the communities M: That’s a problem that I saw yesterday. The first thing is that models of North American cities are totally different. The model of the Latin American city is one that is compact, where there is public transportation that varies in efficiency, but that’s a different discourse. The North American city is based on the car, so inhabiting the city is totally different. It makes an absolute difference, and I think that it’s going to be totally obsolete in the coming years. They are cities that are going to need more gas, more cars, it’s quite difficult. And part of what I saw yesterday was how to intervene in these areas with low income, low education; these are things that have to be addressed in interventions, and that is with strategies that are not the same as ones we use in Latin America. There has to be different politics. I thought yesterday that it had to do with education and productivity and that’s what I would suggest: projects that have to do with education, especially in technical careers, so that people would exit
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with the means to work for themselves. But that is being submerged in the poor culture, and the US is not tailored to that individual. These kinds of politics are complex, but they make the difference in implementing strategies. There is no model, I would say, that works perfectly; the rich pay more for the benefit of the poor, that is the way that it is in some places in Latin America. I do it, I pay more for electricity than someone with less means, that’s the way it is, but that does not exist in the U.S., and that’s an example of why the model is different here. That raises the question, what should we do in places like east Gainesville. A: You spoke about the public transportation system not being as efficient in the U.S., how do you feel about the TransMilenio system in Bogotá? M: TransMilenio is based on a system that was invented in Curitiba, in Brazil, that’s a mass transportation system that’s fairly efficient. It functions as a system of metro, buses, and, in areas where there are mountains, there are cable cars, leading to where people have never been able to get. It seems difficult to comprehend that American cities are based solely on the car, and we have to rethink about what is going to happen when we run out of oil, out of gas. How we are going to minimize the use of energy here? I think the question I would ask here is, how we could implement modes of transportation that could really help reduce the use of energy in the U.S.? It’s not that in Colombia we have a perfect transportation system, but I like to use public transportation. For example, while I’ve been here, I am only being picked up and dropped off, and I want to say, “No, I don’t want to be picked up, I don’t want to wait.” I want to be able to walk, to feel the street. A: Do you think approaching the module as a way of building could also be similar to the transportation system, in that it’s a more sustainable way of building because you can add onto it instead of knocking everything down and starting from zero?
M: That’s the idea really, that it can operate and grow almost like a living thing. That it is capable of growing because there’s more energy there, and so the structure is able to grow. The more interesting question is how can it grow. Systems have the tendency to grow, but what if you could take away pieces, put them somewhere else because as many pieces aren’t needed there anymore. Until now, modules have worked very well adding, but I am interested in subtracting, too. My interest in modules is more about how it can be a system of adaptable pieces. I think that a fundamental characteristic of our time is adaptability, How to make something when everything is moving, changing. I don’t want architecture to represent that, I want architecture that understands that, that it can manage adaptability. A: Do you ever think of the buildings you are making as icons for the community? That they could bring other people to the area and stimulate the economy, or is it solely for the community? M: That happens sometimes, not always. The library in Medellin turned into a tourist site, where you can take the metro, and go there, and people on the street will be selling you a t-shirt and key chains, and you can pay someone to guide you around and tell you the story of the neighborhood and can show you the library, but I didn’t plan for that when I was designing the building. One designs for the condition, and the idea is that the community will appropriate itself collectively, and that is what turns it into an icon. I don’t believe in architects who declare they’re going to build an icon. No, buildings are not icons before they are built; they are icons when they are received and used by the community. You can try to aim for an icon in some cases, but not every building can be an icon. Imagine if everything was the same. Architecture has to change the people that are affected by it. { 20 }
R&G + COMMUNITY
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DESIGN 8
SPRING 2012
ANDREW PADRON
PROMOTING THE IDEA OF SUBURBAN COMMUNITY AS A SOCIAL DEVICE The project seeks to reconcile the differences between the commercial and more urban condition of Main Street with the degrading urban fabric of the surrounding residential community by emphasizing its mass on the urban Main Street edge. Promoting the idea of the suburban community as a social device, a portion of the raised plinth is developed into a communal part that provides a space for interaction between residents and visits. Additionally, the assemblage of the units allows for smaller scales of communal spaces for residents. The encompassing screen enclosure brings a sense of unity to the entire project, reinforcing the idea of the community while small punctures designate the scale of the individual.
MICHAEL KUENSTLE
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R&G + PUBLIC SPACE
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DESIGN 8
SPRING 2012
MICHAEL KUENSTLE
KIMBERLY CONNELL
ADDRESSING INTER-CITY LOSS OF DENSITY THROUGH THE MERGING OF A PLAZA, HOUSING, AND PUBLIC FACILITIES Due to its social complexities and the formal celebration of its historical links, the area of Springfield represents a site of diverse architectural characteristics bordered by Jacksonvilleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s urban core, which has experienced significant degeneration over the last few decades. Taking this social occurrence into consideration, the project aims to merge the following major programmatic elements to address the inner-cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s loss of density: the landscaped plaza, the private dwelling unit, and public facilities. The joining together of these separate components aids in the stimulation of the neighborhood fabric through the repurposing of a single city block along Main Street.
Together, these elements investigate the qualities of the surrounding Florida landscape through subtle ground shifts and the porosity of surfaces. The project attempts to address a lack of structured green spaces within Springfield while also addressing and emphasizing human dependency on the natural environment and a need for added density. The garden spaces, which formally interlock with the enclosed construct, is conceived as a part of the unfolding spatial sequence presented to inhabitants and progresses from public gardens to private courtyards.
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ORG
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
ACC
AIAS
As the Architecture College Council (ACC), it is our job to bring together organizations of the College of Design, Construction and Planning, as well as represent our college to the Student Government. We collaborate with the Board of College Councils (BOCC) to assist all student organizations within our reach with financial support and special funding. Together, we also collaborate with students of architecture, interior design, landscape architecture and urban planning whenever financial issues come up or budgets need to be discussed. Our goal is to provide the resources necessary for student organizations to function, as well as to promote any event that takes place within the college.
The American Institute of Architecture Students has come together since 1956 with the goal of helping to shape our future practice environment by combining current education and the profession, giving students the opportunity to enhance their architectural education by mingling with other students across North America through conferences and events throughout the country.
ASID/IIDA
ASLA
The UF ASID/IIDA Student Campus Center is a student organization dedicated to bridging the gap between education and the profession of interior design. The group is a joint student organization of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and the International Interior Design Association (IIDA). Members of UF ASID/IIDA have the opportunity to join either student organization and enjoy their respective benefits. On the national level, both ASID and IIDA offer mentoring opportunities, scholarships, competitions, publications and endless resources for students interested in interior design.
The Student Chapter of The American Society of Landscape Architects at the University of Florida is an organization set to unite interested graduate and undergraduate Landscape Architecture students for the purpose of developing an understanding of the importance of designing sustainable, aesthetically pleasing, and functional exterior environments. UF Student Chapter of ASLA provides students the opportunity to participate in organized activities outside the academic realm that improve skills and knowledge, and complement the curriculum at UF. These activities and opportunities include graphic workshops, professional lectures, displays, competitions, field trips, conferences, community projects, and contact with practicing professionals.
To organize students and combine their efforts to advance the art and science of architecture, the AIAS represents the sole student voice in the decision making process of such organizations as The American Institute of Architects (AIA), Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), and National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB).
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APX
SCC
Alpha Rho Chi is a national, professional coed fraternity for the students of architecture and the allied arts. It was founded in 1914 to organize and unite in fellowship the architectural students in the universities and colleges of America so as to promote the artistic, scientific, and practical knowledge of the members of the profession.
The Studio Culture Committee is a studentinitiated organization that seeks to promote respect, collaboration, engagement, and innovation among students, faculty, and staff of the School of Architecture at the University of Florida. Since the Spring of 2006, the Studio Culture Committee has worked to identify existing instruments within the School of Architecture that have a positive effect on Studio Culture.
Alpha Rho Chi is a family with nationwide connections providing support and friendship through lifetime bonds. This brotherhood carries a history that is rich with tradition and whose values allow its members to grow individually and as an organization. Alpha Rho Chi accomplishes this through its activities which promote professionalism and service.
Our goal in identifying these instruments is to ensure the support and extension of their significance, reach, and visibility as opportunities within the school while also discussing critical lacks or problems. Our belief is that the construction of a strong and creative studio culture is primarily our responsibility, our right, and our privilege.
DCP AMBASSADORS
FAB LAB CLUB
The DCP Ambassador program acts to generate interest in the College of Design, Construction, and Planning at the University of Florida. DCPA provides tours to prospective students, giving them general information and insight into the DCP student experience. Ambassadors seek out opportunities to recruit potential DCP students by giving presentations at high schools around Florida, hosting open houses, and attending majors fairs at UF. DCP Ambassadors represent the college with passion and pride.
This is the club where you make how you make how you make. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll make it into whatever it becomes. It could be a way to continually push the limits of the machines. It could be a way to fabricate public art and functional forms, across campus and beyond. It could be a great forum to discuss the newest and coolest advances in technology and the processes of thinking and making digitally and physically. It could be a way to give back to the community, making some really cool holiday festivities for the needy or elderly, or teaching local kids about this inspiring new realm of creation and skills such as 3D modelling. It could be just the push and structure needed to host, and compete in, digital fabrication competitions. It could be anything!
ARCHITRAVE WANTS YOUR DESIGN WORK. SUBMIT TODAY. GET PUBLISHED. WWW.UFARCHITRAVE.COM/SUBMIT
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EDITORS Rolando Lopez, Editor-in-Chief Derrick Archer, Managing Editor Elizabeth Cronin, Writing Editor Miguel Casta単eda, Creative Editor Corina Ocanto, Editor-at-Large Sarah Glass, Marketing Editor Antony Darce, Production Editor
COMPOSITORS Andres Camacho Charles Green Elizabeth Morales Genna Reckenberger John Fechtel Zachary Wignall
CONTRIBUTORS Alyssa White Katelynn Smith Maridalia Cedeno Marissa Volk Rob Riggio Sam Sidersky
Architrave is made possible by the University of Florida Student Government through the Board of College Councils and the Architecture College Council.
Architrave would like to thank Martin Gold, Alfonso Perez-Mendez, Lee-Su Huang, Nancy Clark, Bradley Walters, Charlie Hailey, Donna Cohen and all the SoA faculty and staff for their continued support and assistance in the conception of this publication.
Architrave was printed by Progressive Commucations in Orlando, FL. All rights reserved. Neither this publication nor any part herein may be reproduced by any means without the expressed written consent of Architrave. If you have any questions, please email ufarchitrave@gmail.com or visit our website, www.ufarchitrave.com.