Creating starting points for exterior structures This was done by using 6 random pieces of MDF and placing them in a order that looks pleasing to the eye and that can also be used as a starting point in creating an exterior structure/building. I took pictures of plan and certain elevation so that I could add silhouettes of people to give a sense of scale, this makes it easier to understand what you are working with and allows me to start giving this structure a function of what it could become and start to manipulate certain parts of this model to suit the functions needs.
Personally I see this model as something for tourists such as a gallery in a warm country (somewhere that has minimal rain) as the space is very open and doesn’t seem to have great shelter. However I also feel like this model could be the entrance to a huge building, so when I start to manipulate and changing this model I have a choice of two directions to follow.
Model 1 development drawings As the model was very open and did not have much shelter, I modified it slightly allowing the space to be more covered allowing it to protect and shelter people from bad weather conditions. As this was a big problem that the model had. Making it more sheltered also made the building become allot more structural and actually gave me a 2nd floor. I drew elevation, plan and just different angles and perspectives of the building to allow me to see any problems so I can develop this model even further. I still feel as if this design would have a function of a sort of gallery or a very small museum . However I will carry on developing this idea until I Get a full final solution, I will do this with all my models to allow me To discover and design the best possible building and give it a function Suit it.
Creating starting points for exterior structures I repeated the same process using the exact same pieces of MDF however arranging them in a different order, as I am trying to get the most out of the same blocks showing how rearranging can change a buildings style and function completely. I also used pins and nails to allow certain pieces of wood to stay up and stand allowing me to arrange them differently. I could imagine this model following a cafe route as it has a reasonable amount of shelter to provide for the actual shop and has areas where people could sit out in the open. However it will be rather small so there is plenty of changes to be done to allow the space to fulfil a function.
Model 2 development drawings I started to draw out different elevations/view points to understand the space more which then lead me to creating a line drawing where I started to modify sections making it into more structural and making it look more like an actual building. However I feel like this model would also be suited to be something such as an art gallery or a small cafĂŠ with an outdoor seating area just like I said before. I will carry on to modify its design and I will try to link this with my design brief that can be found a couple slides later into my project.
Creating starting points for exterior structures This starting point was also created using the same pieces just reassembling them in a different order. This is by far the biggest model out of the three due to its scale. This model has a really nice open section going through the middle with some nice shelter and has other pieces surrounding it that appear like sky scrapers.
I could imagine this model becoming something like an office space for a large company somewhere in central London. However due to my other models seeming like museum/art gallery's I will try and adapt this building to suit that style so I could combine all 3 together later on to match a theme and function.
Model 3 development drawings I used the same method as the previous drawings where I drew out different elevations and views to give me a better understanding of the space which then lead me to a line drawing where I modified certain sections , trying to make the model more like a building rather than just a structure. I made this into a triangular structure, which actually looks like stones placed together and that form a natural triangle giving this building more of a theme which is nature. I also added a glass wall where there was an open space, which people could see into the many different floors of the big building. I feel like this still seems like it could be something like a company building with many offices. However I will try to combine this with other structures to try create a Space that would match the theme and function Of my design brief and specification later on.
Function research
As my models are rather open and space full I have decided to look at 3 possible functions, that my models can develop into and the 3 I have chosen I feel match the models the most at the moment these are a museum, show room and a gallery. Here are some images of existing spaces that follow these functions. This slide will allow me to see which would be the best for my project and which function has the most potential In my eyes
Structure mood board
Due to my models already being very structural I have chose structure as one of my themes as I feel like it can make a building really stand out if its done correctly and you want your building standing out as it attracts more people. So I created this mood board to inspire me and potentially certain pieces here my influence my final model.
Organic/Nature Mood board
My second theme will be nature, I chose this theme as I feel like due to my model being rather open a nice theme would be organic/nature I also chose this theme so I could explore natural forms and structures as this would link in with the other theme which is structure. Here I have added images that could possibly give me solutions and ideas when developing my models.
Understanding limitations and freedom Limitations and freedom mean
very different things to different people however what it means to me in architecture is to be able to fully explore and develop my ideas (until the final limit) having the freedom of making something that may not seem possible to make to an average person but it actually is possible and is fully functional, making people stand back with an amazed look in their face. This is what my understanding of limitations and freedom is and this is what will push me to create an amazing final design that is fully functional and can actually be built even though it looks like there would be no way of structurally making it in the real world.
Brief I have decided to make my space a art gallery as I feel from the models I have made already I can manipulate them and create a modern and very unique gallery using the themes of structure and nature to fully show of the wonderful art work that I feel the whole world must see. However I want my gallery to stand out even more, I want people to look at the building itself as a piece of art work and I really feel this could be achieved by making a combination of natural structures and forms such as branches, leafs etc. really exploring the limitations within this world, through mother natures art work, the work that we walk past every single day without appreciating it sometimes. My target audience will be aimed to please everyone as there is no age with art, doesn’t matter if how old you are, art is there to just take in and admire.
Specification This list is what my art gallery must include within it: • Art work displayed through out the whole building • Protection (protecting the artwork) • Front desk • Exhibition furniture • Car park • Elevator • Disabled access • Security • Toilets • Fire exit The art gallery will be fully modernised inviting people of all ages to enjoy and take in some of the worlds finest work.
Location Here I have selected where my final piece will be located I decided to choose a well populated area with plenty of tourists and multiple attractions near by meaning more visitors to the art gallery and due to the well known train station 5 minutes away it makes my art gallery accessible to a lot of different people .i also made sure to find a location that is rather green so the nature theme can be fully adapted to the building. Here on the far right you can see arrows that lead to the art gallery showing people coming from the train station, the copper box arena, Stratford station and the main part of the Olympic park. Showing you what is around the area and how my art gallery will hopefully attract people from all around to come stop by and enjoy the wonderful art we will have displayed within.
Primary images- nature/structure I took pictures in Stratford Olympic park (the location where my gallery will be located) this, shows I would have used influence from local structures and plant life so the final gallery should fit In with its surroundings. I also took these to potentially influence my ideas .
Tate modern Gallery I then visited the gallery Tate modern by Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron to see what the inside of a existing and successful gallery looks like so that when creating my own I can display my pieces in a similar way. It also allowed me to understand the mixture of art work that can be found within the gallery such as painting, models and sculptures etc. I feel like this gallery is very spacious and does not display a lot within the space it uses, yes it makes the place look simple and nice however in my own version I would use up the space more as I feel like there wasn’t a lot to look at in each room due to the amount of art work with in.
Drawings of the Tate modern layout
Here I decided to draw out each space just showing how the walls are formed and using coloured pencils I displayed the windows one colour, walls a different colour and then furniture or different display items a different colour this allows me to understand the space better and how I should be laying out my interior, it also showed me how all the walls are made differently and have different designs in each room.
Creating my own interior design I decided to use one of my primary images and cut out the shapes and forms within it, then I glued them altogether creating a unique set of walls that could potentially become my interior. Doing this uses my theme of structure as the walls are now all different and a very structural, I could utilise the different levels as they could become different floor levels or they could become shelves that hold pieces of art work or sculptures. I also decided to draw out different elevation views, this allows me to understand the actual space more so when I decide to add this to a model I know how the walls should be set up and I can adapt it to the exterior design. It also gives you a different point of view .
Creating potential interior spaces This slide shows the proportion and scale compared to people, this is roughly how I would imagine my interior walls looking. With multiple floors that lead to more art work. I feel like this is good as it matches the structure theme how ever I will have to still develop this further, later on in the project to make it both structure and nature.
Here is another look at what the interior could look like within the real word, I used one of the images from Tate modern as the background to show what that size space could be used for. The read lines represent another floor and where the roof would begin, I think this design actually works really well and is something I would definitely want to include in my final design
Creating exterior designs Due to how well my previous wooden models were I decided to try one again however I decided to change it up slightly. Once I put my wood in the order I wanted it to be I then decided to attach pins in to create a frame for me so I can use string and rap it around trying to create a different form making it even more structural.
The rope can represent anything from windows to more walls , I then wanted to further develop this model so I decided to add plaster and I allowed to run down so I get more of a smooth and flowing design, creating an Flow kind of design, this links in with nature as its almost like water flowing down from a rock. Making this design successful as it uses both of my themes and shows the freedom flowing from this building, however I will fully develop all 3 steps of this model showing that I fully develop this to its limit.
Model 1 development this was the first step to the last slides final design and I decided to draw out and fully develop this design, I tried to combine some of my primary and secondary mood board research. I feel like this design is okay as I like some parts of it but I don’t think it looks like a gallery that much or like a piece of art work so I will either develop this even further or not use this design at all. It also looks very structural but lacks the nature side so that is why I don’t think this idea is that great.
Model 2 development Here I drew up the second step which I think came out very successfully , yes it is also very structural and does not have that much nature within it however that can be developed later on. I used the strings to create the window frame and also it helped make that spike style roof top. I could imagine this being an actual gallery however it still needs to be worked on as It looks rather simple at this point.
Sketchup Model of a developed drawing I decided to recreate the drawing you saw in the previous slide as I really liked its design and recreating this on sketchup allow me to understand its set up more so if I was to use pieces from this model in my final design I already know how it would look in 3D and weather it would be a good choice to use it or not. Here you can see I decided to include a car park as my spot is based in a very green area so there will not be any where to park a car near by so I decided to include a car park. This model has 3 floors in total and you can see the size proportion compared to the man and the car next to the building. I feel like this design is rather simple and does not explore the limitations of nature enough so I will take certain pieces from this design such as the roofs design and the car park aspect and try to incorporate that into my final model as I think they are two nice ideas .
Model 3 development Out of the 3 developments this is the only design to use both nature and structure how ever I do not really like this one in particular. I do like that this would blend in with a nature/organic setting however I just do not like the design as a whole. So this is definitely something that must be developed later on or just abandoned completely.
Creating exterior design 2.0 I decided to change up my methods on finding solutions even more as the last couple designs were not as great as I thought so I decided to make 3 simple plaster models that can be seen at the bottom of the slide. Which I then rearranged creating different and unique structural forms that I can draw from creating elevation and plan views to hopefully create a new exterior design that could then be developed to make the gallery that matches my design brief and specification and all of my themes.
Model 4 development This model shows the development from the plaster models, it also shows how I was inspired by both nature and structure and how each section is like each part of the leaf getting bigger as you go through the building just like the leafs sections get longer as you go further towards its bottom. I feel like this is a nice design and I would definitely want to adapt this design in some way to my final design.
Sketchup model from developed drawing I created this model with a similar purpose as my previous sketchup model, I really liked that design so I decided to create a 3d form, as you can see this is a very simple but effective design, I feel like this one was also rather structural and less so organic however the way I could fix this is by making the windows have a natural texture such as a webbing pattern or tree branch pattern, making the model blend in more with a green and organic background. So I will take the best parts from this design and include it within my final design.
Combining and manipulating models/ existing designs Here I decided to create new and different forms and silhouettes from my previous models and designs as I feel like it should give me new and fresh ideas that will be better than my previous ones. Doing this will actually help me develop all my ideas into one big final piece so I need to create many different designs so I can take out the best parts from each design and use it within my final design.
The plan view for this design
Creating a design from the manipulated models Here I chose to develop this model, in doing so I started drawing out different elevations with shading so I know which parts will stich out and which will be hidden. However I could not really create a good design from this stage so I decided on making that drawing above into a plan drawing. This solution created a very structural design that you see on your right. I actually really like this design and I think it will work with the spikey interior I created before hand as they both are made from triangles and would go together well, however this solution yet again lacks in the nature/ organic side of views so I will take out parts that I like (the roof and balcony) and try incorporate them with a new design.
Creating a design from the manipulated models Here is my second design from the last slide where I used one of the manipulated images as a starting point. Here you can see a very successful design as it uses inspiration from nature and structure, for example the shelters are inspired by a leaf just like my Zaha Hadid recreation. I also used the pine spikes as inspiration for the side shelter and I feel like it worked very well. I could definitely imagine this being a gallery in the real world. But just like all the designs I have not explored them fully so now I must combine my favourite designs to create my final piece.
Creating a sketchup model from developed drawings Here is my favourite design so for as it looks the most unique and you can see the clear influence from nature and structure so it has an even amount of both themes, making this design the best out of the 3 sketchup models I created. I really like the leaf like shelter and also the clear glass spikes on top of the building bringing through natural light, this model is something you would not see walking down any street due to it actually looking like an art piece which was my goal.
Combining my best designs to form a exterior solution The 3 designs you see above are my best designs in my opinion due to what I could actually imagine seeing in real life and due to their usage of my themes and brief. So I started to take parts from each design to create a final solution. I used a coloured pencil to define each part, making it clearer to understand what I want to create. Overall the designs I just created show how I used the best parts from each design and put it in one however not all of them work well. But I feel like one design stands out clearly. This is the design I will develop to its limit and hopefully will lead me to my final solution
Detailed drawings of semi final solution Here we can see what the detailed drawing looks like and here are all of the specifics for the exterior of this design. • The entrance has a leaf like shelter right at the front • The design allows a huge amount of natural lighting in so we that the building is organically friendly (not needing a lot of electricity to light up the place. • The design has an underground car park with an entrance and also an exit. • There are 3 floors within this building You can also see the clear influences from my inspirational architects and their galleries that I have explored. This is close to a finished product but the making it in a 3d form will help me understand weather or not this will actual work as a building or not.
Sketchup model of the semi final design Here is my outcome when producing that drawing on sketchup. I feel like this turned out exactly how I wanted it to and its starting to come together very well. You can see more angles and perspectives of this building as you can see there is an image of a person walking towards the entrance with the shelter around them and you can also see how the underground car park would work. However there are some issues with this building that I came across when making it. Such as how will the people enter the building once they park their car, the top triangle roof is unpractical for a floor as people would have to travel through triangle to triangle with un even floors and that the building is still heavily influenced by structure and needs to have more of a organic side to it so it can blend in with its surroundings.
Solving the problems and creating the final design Here are my solutions to the problems I faced in the last slide. To allow access into the building or out the building and into the car park I have added an elevator on the side that would lead you to the car park and then a safety exit in the back next to the elevator. The next problem was the top floor not being level As it made it unpractical to walk about and display art pieces. So I connected the triangles together which should fix the problem. The final solution was to cover The glass with a natural and organic pattern which was covering to long section in a twig like pattern and then cover the entrance section with a webbing Pattern. This should make the whole design blend in with its Natural surroundings and also it makes the building look More like an art piece its self which is what I wanted to Do. I used a sketch that I then added lines to the Top to show how the roof should turn out Then I cropped those Images into the Windows and added in The stairs and doors Into the side to show What I want to make.
Interior plan before exam This slide will just cover how the furniture and walls of my interior space will look like. This shows I will come into the exam prepared and knowing roughly how I want my final design to come out as, due to me mainly focusing on my exterior design I have not got a huge amount to work with as my interior is not as developed as my exterior is. However the majority of my interior will be very structural using the triangle style as can be seen in the model I created early on, I will also try to space my space out like the Tate Modern gallery, providing enough space for people to admire each piece one by one. I will also try to create furniture using the triangle model as can bee seen of the picture of the desk as it would make the whole space look together and according to the theme.
All the work from this point was created within the 15 hour exam, this includes the exterior of my model (adding on the developed features on my previous model and the background to it) on sketchup and then I will create the interior of my final design also.
Here you can see how my final design turned out and how it blends in with the organic background, you can also see how the designs on the windows help it blend in with the trees and bushes surrounding it.
Final Design
Overall I feel like this design worked out very well and it suits my brief and specification and also my themes as I fully explored the models full limitations in its design.
Different angles and perspectives of my final design/ evaluation This slide is just to show you what the finished product looks like from different points of view and so you can understand the scale more compared to the trees and bushes in the background.
Plan views for my interior The bottom floor will include: • a front desk where people can purchase tickets to come in and view the gallery • Toilets M/F • Stairs leading to the top floor • Security check • Art work (Mainly sculptures/ big physical models) • A sanitation station • Fire exit/ back exit The top floor will include: • Art work (mainly paintings, some sculptures) These features all include the required specifics from my specification so this is a successful interior.
Archi CAD 1st floor/ Entrance Here you can see the main entrance to the building. Where you are introduced to the front desk as soon as you step into the building. This is where customers can purchase a ticket to visit the gallery. You can clearly see the influence of the walls from my previous interior spike model. You will then have any bags safely placed in the cabinets located in the front desk. If you take a couple steps forward you will see the mail and female toilets and also the stairs leading you to the top floor. You will also see a sanitation station where everyone is required to use some sanitiser before going into the gallery itself.
1st floor 1st gallery section This shows the basic layout of the bottom floor, using walls that are inspired by the triangle model, it also shows us how certain pieces have a rope fencing system to stop people from touching certain pieces of art work due to them maybe being fragile or old. It also shows walls with informational texts on them providing people with a back story to where to art work originated from and who the creator was etc. you can also see how much natural light is provided due to the design of the building.
1st floor 2nd gallery section Here you can see a very similar layout as the first section, displaying different types of sculptures and models with informational writing on the walls that were inspired from my previous triangle model. Here you can see how many people would be able to fit in each section from the scale of the people that I have placed in the room. You can also see how much natural light is let in due to the design of my space.
1st floor 3rd gallery section This is the final section of the bottom floor, showing you some of the last sculptures and models with the background of the art on the walls just like in the previous sections however this one also has some art work hung on the wall and has an exit (fire exit) that will lead you to the car park elevator.
Top Floor
2nd Floor Here is my 2nd floor created on ArchiCAD, this floor is mainly for the canvas art work such as paintings, however there are some sculptures and models as you can see placed around. You can also see how the roof lets in natural light and gives a triangle style reflection into the building. I prefer this floor much more as I feel that the roof makes this part of the building really look great, the gallery looks like a piece of art inside and out.
Self evaluation Overall I feel like this was a successful design (interior and exterior). I felt like I fully explored the limitations of my themes nature and structure and I also had enough inspiration from all of my primary and secondary images which allowed me to create multiple designs which lead me to gradually developing it to this final design. However if I was to repeat this type of project I would try to concentrate on developing the interior more and I would look at my inspiration for the interior as I feel like my exterior was much more developed than my interior was. So to improve this next time I will look at more interior architects and make more models for the interior which should help me produce a much better outcome. But overall like I said this project was successful and I do like my final outcome as it matches my themes, brief and specification and I finally created a building that actually looks like a piece of art work inside and out just like the art work within the gallery its self.