rocray architecture portfolio selected works 2017
contents
chelsea tandem
GRWML
m/y mtl
20
30
paths and mazes
continuum
4
40
44
Chelsea Tandem tackles a problem that is getting bigger every year in North America: food production. With the whole land agriculture of the state of New York not even able to meet the food demands of New York City alone, it is hard to imagine a bright future for
4
local food production: New York City is relying more than ever on importation to meet its demand. And yet, a new building typology, if duplicated throughout the city, could begin to challenge the status quo....
chelsea the tandem vertical proposal for nyc farm competition chelsea, manhattan collaboration with kamilla jolicoeur
farm
5
The idea of having a farm inside a high-rise building located in Manhattan is an opportunity to create a new space that differs from the existing concept of rural farm. The following proposal for the urban farm stands more as an urban vegetable garden than a farm. Indeed, we believe it should be easily accessible, such as a backyard vegetable garden is, to the residents of the complex. It would allow them to have access to fresh local vegetables, as well as develop a consciousness about the food they are eating and its provenance.
01/ site area
05/ rotation of residential and farm
6
Secondly, as vegetation often does, the farm should be an element of protection and a filter from the busyness of the city and the street. Thus, we use the farm in this project to layer the residential part from the city. Thirdly, the urban farm element of the project should remain an independent entity, since an urban New York lifestyle does not usually allow the population to devote its entire time to the management of a farm, which requires a lot of work. We think the farm should be complementary to the residences; not dependent on them.
02/ site volume
06/ commercial set back
03/ mixed use program
07/ public stairs
19TH STREET
10TH AVENUE 18TH STREET HIGH LINE
chelsea district
04/ separation of volumes + FAR 6
08/ horizontal and vertical circulation
01/ The site is a 21m x 53m lot = total buildable area of 1 165 m2
volume. Thus, the three program blocks are separated and shrunken to be FAR 6
02/ Maximum allowable height = 50m high building
05/ The residential and farm blocks are rotated in order to benefit of more sunlight
03/ Three main programs: commercial, residential and farm. The disposition of the commercial is set by the accessibility from the street and the High line. The one of the farm is defined by the most sunlit portion of the site volume, and the residential block is set back from the street and has view to the waterfront 04/ To respect the FAR 6 reglementation in NYC, the building area has to be 60% of the total buildable area of the site
06/ The commercial block is set back to create a front public space and layer the building from the street 07/ Public stairs are added to create a fluid connection with the highline 08/ Main veritcal cores service the vertical circulation, and bridges connect the farm and the residences
7
new york high line
8
section cut
condos
farm
crossventilation
winter solstice
summer solstice
spring/fall equinox
commercial space
9
The rotation of both the farm and the residential block was performed in order to maximize the amount of natural daylight that the farm recieves per day. This organization allows the farm to have a minimum of 7 to 10 hours of sunlight per day thoughout the year. The farm block was optimized with the goal of using a minimal amount of artificial lighting, since a great problem of vertical farms consists in the great quantity of energy used to light the farm.
Not only the rotation angle of the farm in relationship to the site is optimal for daylighting, but the 5 meters slab height also lets more light in. Furthermore, the depth of the slabs being of seven meters, the slab is almost entirely lit from dawn until dusk. The skin is composed of a double glass facade that lets a maximum amount of sunlight in.
sun trajectory
10
fa
rm
t
en
sid
re
k
loc
b ial
ck
blo
shadow superposition during winter solstice; the farm is completely lit by natural light
11
ground floor
12
third floor
13
high line level fourth floor
14
seventh floor
15
16
view out of the residential block, through a bridge and to the farm
17
18
19
The flemish town of Wemmel (just north of Brussels) is an intricate combination of urban and rural land. The junction of these two is drastic, and often appears as a road that sharply dies into the fields and into nature. Taking into account the impeding expansion of the town, the focus of the project stands in the protection of these tipping points
20
where nature meets urbanity. The preservation of the green land is detrimental for the preservation of the life quality that inhabitants of Wemmel currently enjoy. There is a a captivating and intricate quality to these unfinished roads, and we want to exploit it in this project.
GRWML the
alternative school elementary school wemmel, brussels collaboration with kamilla jolicoeur and moritz krämer
21
22
The dead-ends, that are the essence of this project, are nodes where logically the densification and the urban development of Wemmel can happen by the extension of the roads. In order to keep the atmosphere that the dead-ends exhibit right now, we want to prevent residential development by creating a non-radical border, a space that has meaning for the residents. By doing so, we hope that residents themselves protect the land and may use the green space.
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
UN UN
ON
UN
UN
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
UN
UN
UN
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON UN
ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON UN ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON
UN
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON OO ON
ON OO
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN ON ON ON
UN
ON ON ON
OO
ON
UN
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON
ON ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
OO
ON ON
OO
ON ON UN
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
UN
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON ON UN
ON
We chose to develop the project around a school integrated in nature, where students have the opportunity to study in the green spaces. By implementing a school, we believe that a great range of residents, from students to parents, will have this area in consideration. The future of the school influences the future of the residents' children and the future of the town.
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON OO
ON ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
OO
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
UN
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
UN
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON UN
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON UN
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON UN
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
UN ON
OO ON OO
ON UN ON
ON
OO ON ON ON ON ON OO
ON
ON
ON UN
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON OO
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON ON
ON ON
ON ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON ON ON
ON
OO
ON
ON ON
ON
ON OO
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON OO
ON
OO
ON ON
ON
ON ON
OO ON ON
ON
ON OO
ON
ON
ON
ON ON OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON OO
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
ON ON ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
OO
ON ON
OO
ON OO
ON
ON
UN ON OO
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON ON
OO ON ON
ON
ON
ON OO
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON ON ON ON ON
ON
OO
OO
ON ON
OO ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
UN
ON
ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
OO
OO ON
ON
ON ON
ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
OO
ON OO ON
ON
OO
OO
ON
ON
ON ON
OO ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
OO
OO
OO ON ON ON
ON ON ON
OO
ON OO
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
OO
OO
UN ON ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
OO OO ON
ON
ON
UN UN
ON
ON ON
ON
OO
ON OO
OO
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON ON OO ON ON
ON
OO
ON OO
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON OO
ON
UN OO
ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON OO
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON UN
ON
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
OO
ON ON
OO
ON ON ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON OO
ON
OO
OO OO
ON OO
ON
OO
ON
UN OO
ON
OO
ON
ON OO
ON ON
OO
ON ON
ON ON ON OO
OO
ON ON
ON
ON UN ON
ON ON
OO
ON
OO ON UN
ON
ON ON ON
OO
ON
ON ON ON
ON ON
ON
OO
OO
ON ON OO ON
ON ON
ON
UN
ON
There are many clusters of dead-ends at the outskirts of Wemmel where other variations of such a project can be developped. Examples of these clusters are represented in the adjacent map of Wemmel.
N
Pr.Joséphine Charlotte
N
Pr.Joséphine Charlotte
Pr.Joséphine Charlotte
N
Pr.Joséphine Charlotte
N
ON
OO
ON
ON
OO
ON
ON
ON ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
OO
ON ON
ON
ON
UN ON
ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON ON
ON
ON
ON ON
ON
ON
OO
ON
ON
ON
ON
UN
UN
UN
ON
UN
UN
ON
town of wemmel
Two-axis alignement : the first axis defining the general shape of the school is the main deadend road, Princesse Joséphine Charlotte The second axis shaping the school is the NorthSouth axis.
The cantilever pointing towards the Princesse Josephine Charlotte dead-end is longer and relates directly with it. The school is such as the termination of the road.
As the central element of the school is a cafeteria space with greenery, the north-south axis is essential to let sun in during the entire day.
The educational wings containing the rooms such as the classrooms, computer lab and library are directed to the south in order to let the most sunlight in. In addition, they open towards the open space and agricultural fields.
Having many elongated wings creates a greater perimeter, which increases the access from the interior school spaces to the outdoors. This easy accessibility to outside is strengthened by the thinness of the wings, as more interior rooms that have direct interface with the exterior. The circulation happens outside of the building. Therefore, a canopy encircling the school gives protection against the elements.
The gymnasium is located in the North wing and opens to a free grass field and woods to allow exterior exterior activites.
The reception and offices are closer to the dead-end roads. Thus, they are the first to be reached when accessing the school from the roads.
23
Since the circulation only happens outside, under the canopy, the classrooms are all connected to each other. They are separated by soundproof curtains, which makes every room very flelxible, and ready to be doubled or tripled in size in case of special events. The middle part serves as a cafeteria and general leisure space. It is essentially a continuation of the outdoors, indoors. The main services and storage are provided in the cores, which also serve a structural role. The structure is formed by the meeting of two intersecting grids, which allows for bigger openings in the middle section.
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
m/y mtl
mbam addition extension to the montreal museum of fine arts, combined with youth hostel downtown montreal
31
m/y mtl is the collision of two programs: it suggests to mix a youth hostel with the future museum of fine arts extension. The coexistence of both programs is meant to create a museum unique to Montreal: with the youth hostel displaying a peculiar Montreal lifestyle, the museum will be impregnated from the qualities of the hostel. The permeability of both programs is accomplished through various ways. The criss-cross of the programs on each storey starts to blend the museum and the youth-hostel together; the use of
32
color, both inside and outside, helps to delimitate the youth hostel, while the color still bleeds out, here and there, in the museum; the central, massive wall that divides both programs is perforated near the ceiling of every storeys, letting smell and sound travel to the other side; and, while the south-west part of the building offers a visual connection, a glimpse of the other's presence, the programs never actually meet until the fifth floor terrace, where outdoor exhibitions, venues, and conferences can happen.
ground floor Ultimately, this museum rejects altogether the idea of the white box; it imposes a way to see art that will be influenced by the sound of a TV playing, the glimpse of a discussion, the smell of a poutine, the sight of people doing laundry. It proposes to enjoy art in an informal context, and takes away its purity to mix it with a lifestyle, a culture. Of course, as the clientele of the youth hostel will change through days and weeks, and the museum being influenced by the very existence of these people, your experience of the art - through noises, smells, and sights - will also change every time you visit. Welcome to m/y mtl.
youth hostel museum
33
second floor
34
third floor
fourth floor
fifth floor
35
youth hostel's side of the wall
36
museum's side of the wall
37
youth hostel balcony looking out to museum
38
view from crescent street
39
mapping experimen
paths and mazes
coginitive mapping strategies materialized through a concrete maze
40
nt
Paths and mazes is an attempt to objectify and understand the process of cognitive mapping through a very simple, small-scale device: the concrete maze. The premiss is pretty straightforward: one has to try and complete the maze with the tip of his finger, without looking. One gets as many trials as he wants, but in the end he has to complete it, from start to finish, without detours; that is, wihtout ever going back on his own steps. The process is very similar to tracing a single line on a paper maze; but this here is a haptic puzzle, which, of
course, makes the task more difficult. Essentially, the main goal is to force one to try and map out the maze - understand it as a whole - before completing it, instead of just going by pure luck, or trial and error. Many candidates tried out the puzzle, and it turns out what should be a relatively simple task is way more difficult to accomplish, when relying only on your haptic senses - the different times taken to complete the maze ranged from 2:33 to 7:40. But should that be the only reason?
41
The original idea that triggered the conception of this project was a fragment from Sebald's Rings of Saturn, where the author, stuck in a hospital room, looks through a mundane window. The landscape extending below is the familiar city of Norwich, and yet, when he finally manages to get up and crawl to the window, he can't recognize the well-known piece of land, because he can't walk it. In the same way, turning a puzzle that we are used to solve visually takes on a completetly different nature, when solved haptically. But the biggest surprise of the experiment remains the stunning range of results: how can one finish mapping the maze in 2:33, whereas someone else will do it in 7:40?
42
After talking to the candidates, the answer appeared quite simple: they were all using different strategies to map out the maze. Some tried using many fingers, others tried to picture the different paths in their minds; some started backwards, others started from both ends simultaneously; some marked the locations of intersections with their other hand, others just tried to memorize the different decisions they were taking (turn left, then turn right, etc). And yet, almost every candidate, after finishing the puzzle, was able to draw, on a sheet of paper, the correct path to the exit. Just like people can try mapping a real environment from different cues, it seems like people make sense of the same space... very differently.
43
library extension
continuum 44
underground addition of offices, archives and library to existing "le prevost"library villeray, mtl
Continuum started as an image. The goal was to first envision what the library should feel like, to imagine it as an affect in the site and maybe even reinvision the site itself. The pictures presented here are both the exterior and interior view of that affect. They are a serie of contradictions: where the exterior view represents an eerie, changing, almost unrecognisable outside, the inside looks stable, solid, tangible. In the outside environment, the library
itself is almost hidden behind the trees, inconspicuous, next to the existing le patro prĂŠvost building; in the interior space, the library is vast, massive, almost labyrinth-like. It is as if one could always find a refuge in the comforting image of the library, from the everchanging world outside. The imagined library builds on these concepts.
45
46
The library is situated in the middle of the park adjacent to the existing building, independent of Le Patro PrĂŠvost, standing on its own, preserving the purity of its shape (and, therefore, the simplicity of the circulation): the circle. Continuum is an attempt to materialize, in a very schematic way, the process of searching, finding and internalizing knowledge. In that regard, the program varies from dark to light, from ignorance to knowledge: the discovery of the book happens in the dark, in the second basement and its mezzanine; the internalization of its knowledge happens under the lightwell of the first basement, where the main reading room is. As if to stress the importance of
this process even more, the discovery of information seems almost difficult; by curving the main walls under the second basement, the library gives an impression of never-ending depth. The almost exclusive use of ramps, descending and wrapping around the core of the building, reinforce this idea of infinite knowledge. The disposition of the stacks, almost mazelike, further disorients the reader; but it is while lost that one can make the best discoveries. The stacks are also the root to the notion of privacy in this vast, open-space building: one can never be seen nor disturbed in dead ends and loops. Little niches, at every quarter of the quadrant, also provide working spaces for the explorer.
47
ground floor
48
first basement
second basement
third basement
49
50
51
Continuum was also submitted as an entry to the Cooper Source Award competition. In collaboration with Kamilla Jolicoeur, Luis Alvarez and Sarah Pradel, the project was taken a step further, with the addition of lighting. Using exculively Cooper fixtures, the challenge was to light an incredibly vast space, using as few iterations as possible, to cut down on energy and costs. The solution is simple: light what is necessary. The result is a building that embraces darkness instead of rejecting it. Indeed, this allows to highlight the important elements of the program; the book stacks, the main reading rooms, the niches and the circulation are all lit. The exterior wall is also lit, but the light is lost as the wall starts to curve beneath the second basement, amplifying the idea of never-ending depth. As the reading room is lit by low, suspended lights, the most part remains in the dark, increasing once more the vastness and solemnity of the space. Continuum celebrates darkness just as much as it celebrates light.
Book Stacks
100 mm
Book Shelf 1:10 100 mm
52
Sectional diagram
SYMBOLS PL_
TYPE Pendant
DL_
Downlight Recessed Downlight 3
Single-Pole Switch
3
Three-Way Switch Duplex Convience Outlet (wall outlet) 110 volts Floor Outlet
20 mm
Switch Leg
50 mm
3
Line .75 Symmetric LED Cooper fixture detail
Reflected Ceiling Plan
Integrated in the concrete stacks
53
54
55
M.Sc. Architecture KU Leuven Brussels, 2016-present
academic formation
B.Sc. Architecture McGill University Montreal, 2012-2015 DEC in Sciences, letters and arts Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf Montreal, 2010-2012 Highschool studies Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf Montreal, 2005-2010
work experience
softwares
Architectural intern Commercial and conception departments Employer: Aedifica, 2016 Tennis instructor Junior + adult group lessons, private lessons Employer: Tennis Montreal + Outremont town, 2009-2016 Autocad, Rhinoceros, Sketchup, 3DS Max, Processing, Grasshopper, GIS, DIVA, Ecotect Photoshop, Illustrator, In Design, Premiere
56
languages
French / English / German
interests
Sketching Sustainable architecture Architecture representation Litterature / Reading Tennis / Slackline / Snowboard Piano / Guitar / Ukulele
charles olivier
rocray
co.rocray@gmail.com
57
58