Digital Portfolio
WSA Year 2 Autumn Work Elin Davies
Phase One FORM FINDING
House Scapes Proposal for a self-sufficient residential neighbourhood block mixed with some shopping and public space. This project took lessons from natural systems relating to water including geological processes such as fluvial erosion and considering how this system might be relevant in generating form, material and structure for the housing complex design.
Eroded shale located on a river bed http://www.flickr.com/photos/justintosh/4467928225/
Digital image representing an eroded rock
Fluvial Erosion Experimentation The first concept I had was water shapes its surrounding landscape and in turn the landscape influences the direction of water flow. I began by investigating this natural system through creating plaster casts of moulds of eroded river beds. Theses casts were then experimented by pouring a liquid concoction over them and observing the flow of the liquid. The outcome that water takes the most direct path and therefore quickest route, very similar to how people behave, and it was thought that we could create an environment that will imply the flow of people through the a site.
Precedents Erosion Inspired Buildings
1.
After exploring fluvial erosion, I then looked at how I could apply this system to a building. I looked at precedents that took inspiration from fluvial erosion to inspire form and shape. Zaha Hadid’s King Abdullah II House of Culture and Art took inspiration from the fluvial eroded walls of the ancient city of Petra, Jordan. The concept that the entrance in eroded away to create a public open space, with the theatre located in the massing of the building. The other precedent was Richard Chi’s store, which is a temporary installation inspired by the erosion of water in a glacial cavern excavated from a single material. Zaha Hadid’s King Abdullah II (1. 5. http://bit.ly/bbWvGd) (6. http://bit.ly/ tiST05) Richard Chi’s Store ( 2. 3. 4. http://www.snarkitecture.com/projects/richardchai/) 2. 3.
5.
4.
6.
Phase Two SITE ANALYSIS
Our site was located in the heart of Cardiff City Centre, adjacent to the railway centre and in close proximity to the Millennium Stadium and the retail district. The site analysis helped with the subsequently stage of the design process aiming to designing a building that fitted into its surrounding vicinity.
Photograph of the street running parallel to the north of the site
Long Section of Site
Photograph orientated to the east of the site
Phase Three MASTER PLAN
Main massing on site
Diagram showing access ways around and through the site, anticipating the passage of people. Massing splits site into two open public green areas
Master plan concept
Phase Four DESIGN
Eroded Landscape To bring fluvial erosion into the design, I created the landscape through overlapping the image of the eroded shale bed over the site and using eroded pattern to contour the landscape, and eventually erode the building away too so that it looks like its growing out of the landscape. The image on the opposing page is a conceptual piece of work demonstrating the above idea, through overlapping several images and paterns of erosion under the main massing from the master plan design.
Massing and Circulation Through the use of laser cutting I created a conceptual massing model that showed the circulation through my programme. Each hole represents a unit with the massing being the flat planes surrounding them.
Floor Plans
Ground Floor
First Floor
Second Floor
Third Floor
Fourth Floor
Fifth Floor
Long SectionFacing South
Tectonic Drawing . . . showing the layer from floor to ceiling of a unit, with an elevation of the same section showing the materials of glass and coloured concrete.
Unit Plans
Bedroom
Living
Bedroom
Kitchen
Living
Kitchen Bedroom Bedroom
W.C
One Bed Unit
Bathroom
Family Unit
Model of Two Bed Unit
Living Room Bedroom
Kitchen
Walkway
Vernadna
Public
Semi Public
Flat
Balcony
Garden
Bedroom
w.c
Two Bed Unit Private
Semi Private
Sahred
Front Elevation
Unit Model
Back Elevation
Side Elevation
Plug In Final Model
Plug In model with surrounding context