DEAN
CULTURE. CONTEXT. PLACE
Animist Sanctuary of Botanical Nurture
Following a trip to Malaysia and the conduct of an urban study for central Melaka. A brief was derived from the place’s ‘special quality’ as a paradigm of cultural and biological diversity; coupled with the site's strategic location, as a gateway to the World Heritage Zone. As political pressures conspire to remove the ancient people of the forest, the true identity of Malaysia is threatened to be lost forever. This project is an emblem of the current research into Spiritual Ecology; producing a programme that combines invaluable lessons from ancient traditions, with world leading botanical research of F.R.I.M. The Forestry Research Institute of Malaysia. Far Left: a rickshaw, passing down the edge of China Town. Left: a scale model of the urban grain, highlighting the site’s position in relation to the World Heritage Zone. Right an axonometric of the Right: Sanctuary, emphasising the hard shadows caused by equatorial sunlight.
Laboratory
Laboratory
Manager’s Office Reading Room
Book Store
Restaurant
Apothecary
Reception
Meeting Room Admin. Office
Canopy Plan. -
Spiritual Ecology Animism is the belief that a soul exists within all living organisms. The belief system of the Orang Asli, ‘original people’, it holds an inherent sensitivity towards nature. A Malaysian moral opposed to deforestation. An open-air communal space is sunk into the earth and heightened by the superstructure. A spiritual space, it reflects the forest and the nave of the adjacent church. Built in 1854, the church is an established symbol of Melaka’s diverse cultural heritage and multi-faith society. The Missing Chapter Tropical Typologies have developed over the trial and error of hundreds of generations. They grew directly from environmental and social applications, resulting in shelters which are profoundly functional: cool, dry and safe. Intrinsically sustainable, they are built from endemic materials. Combining these ancient essays with contemporary precedents, is a means of carrying historical identity through time, via well-adapted climatic filters, spatial arrangements and aesthetics. Left: diagrams from ‘Tropical Urban Regionalism’, explaining the cross-ventilated open plan.
Beneath the Canopy - SECULAR NAVE -
Right: traditional tectonics to be translated into a contemporary aesthetic with an enviromentally sympathetic technology, such as the light-weight cladding of Bilbao Arena.
- SITE -
Event
Marsden, Yorkshire In the second year of my degree all of the design projects were based in and around the post-industrial village of Marsden...
In order to gain a greater understanding of place. A series of projects were situated around Marsden, West Yorkshire. The first of three designs is positioned on the shore of Wessenden Reservoir; embraced by the wild, rolling, Yorkshire moors.
Bothy The purpose of a Bothy is to provide respite for weary travellers. The concept for this design grew from the genius loci - the spirit of the place. The idea of ‘water as it sustains life’ was researched on a microscopic level then interpreted through the articulation of space and poetic tectonics.
The process of ‘making’ has been an integral part of my design explorations. This 1:20 model helped to represent and understand, the materials and the space.
Tectonics
The structure of the Bothy was required to be built on a concrete cube. The glulam timber columns are dowelled into the perimeter of the concrete and braced together by a steel mesh, onto which the greenwall and insulation are fixed. The sculptural glass roof diverts rain water into a central chalice.
Space
The scale was restricted to a 3m3 concrete block. The lower space is shallow with an empty floor and no walls, to connect the dweller with the environment, the strong winds and the surface of the reservoir. In contrast, the upper space has a strong sense of verticality.
Private Annex & Garden
1. Cantilevered Living Space 2. Bedrooms 3. Bathrooms
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Public Replishment Hub
5
5. Threshold 6. Veranda 7. Draught Lobby 8. Kitchen 9. Bar 10. Cafe 11. Clothes - Drying Room 12. Showers 13. Shop 14. Disabled Access
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10 9 13
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7 6
Valley Hub The project’s brief was formed to provide a communal space for travellers to relax and recover. The Hub accommodates a cafe and showers, with a private annex for the owners. A stark monolith cuts into the edge of the cliff, juxtaposing the organic surroundings. The rustic tones of rock in the cliff face are brought into the facade. One panel is missing to entice visitors down a narrow threshold, extended by the view of a distant clough. At the end of the avenue, the vista is revealed.
steel is utilised to support heavy loads, large spans, angled walls and cantilevered space. Trusses are utilised to lower the amount of material used. Note: crossbracing isn’t shown for clarity.
Green Roof
Grass/ Vegetation - Gravel 80mm Growing Medium 80mm: Drainage, Aeration, Water Storage, Root Barrier and Vapour Barrier. Rigid Insulation 300mm In-situ concrete set on corrugated steel sheets.
Steel Frame
Prismatic Steel Girders pre-sprayed with intumescent paint. Pin-joint to column, through pre drilled hole. Steal I-Section. Beam 400x300mm bolted to Column 300x300mm.
Concrete Panel
Prefabricated Composite Panels: DPM adhered to 300mm ridgid insulation then tied between two Pre-cast concrete panels 100mm. Panels connected at corners via a steel plates, which are bolted the columns of the steel frame.
Concrete Floor
Polished Screed 50mm, Concrete 200mm. Rigid Insulation 300mm. DPM - Sand - Hardcore.
Foundation
Pad foundations poured over high denisty insulation. Columns bolted into pre-formed voids, then in-filled with grout.
C O L L A B O R AT I V E C O M P E T I T I O N S
The annual 24-hour, inter-disiplinary design challenge at The University of Huddersfield.
Working in teams of students from a mixture of Art and Design backgrounds including: Architecture, Fashion, Graphics and Communication Design.
DEAN ROBSON VAN-DER-VORD deanvandervord@gmail.com 2013