Table of Contents STAGE I - PLACE ............................................................................................................................... 1 Site Study & Analysis ................................................................................................................................................... 3 Light Study: Luminosity .......................................................................................................................................... 11
STAGE II - IDEA .............................................................................................................................. 13 Design of the Light Pavilion ........................................................................................................................................ 15 Light Study: Reflection ........................................................................................................................................... 21
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Table of Contents STAGE III - FORM ............................................................................................................................. 1 Spatial Articulation & Contextualization ...................................................................................................................... 2 Light Study: Opacity ................................................................................................................................................. 3
STAGE IV - MATERIAL ........................................................................................................................ 4 Tectonics & Materiality ................................................................................................................................................ 5 Light Study: Filtration ............................................................................................................................................... 6
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SITE PLAN
Locale Plan ⎥ Scale 1:1000
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IN GKARNI WA RDLI
Elevation NNW ⎥ Scale 1:500
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B A R R SMIT H L IB RARY
Elevation ENE ⎥ Scale 1:500
E N G I NEERING M AT HS
Elevation NNW ⎥ Scale 1:500
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B R A GG S B U ILD IN G
Elevation SSE ⎥ Scale 1:500
M O L E C ULAR S C I E NCES
Elevation SSE ⎥ Scale 1:500
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Site: Access & Movement Molecular Sciences Building
Braggs Building
Engineering Maths
Barr Smith Library
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Ingkarni Wardli
Views & Atmosphere
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Sunlight: Shade & Shadow
9:00 am
12:00 pm
3:00 pm De c e mber 22 n d 9
June 22 n d
Photo Study: Ambient & Natural Light
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Light Study: Luminosity T H E O RE TIC AL A N D A R CH ITE CTUR AL S T UDY O F ‘ L U M IN O SIT Y ’ Luminosity can be defined as the state or quality of being luminous, known as the measurable intrinsic brightness of an object in its quantitative sense. A luminous object epitomises the condition of radiating or reflecting light and its intensity as a source of such per unit area.
architectural realm exampled by the work of Hadid, Zumthor and Holl of which are part of an infinite series. The symbolization of luminosity began with the study of the sun and henceforth sunlight’s relationship to space, physical qualities and the built environment.
While luminosity can, scientifically, be noted quantifiably, luminosity is prominently acknowledged artistically for its qualitative and aesthetic value. This is where the notion of luminosity meets architecture and the urban environment.
As a philosophical concept, luminosity represents many liberalizing and metaphorical ideas. From a sociocultural view, the idea of luminosity signifies the aptitude of independent insight and understanding.
Also known as enlightenment, luminescence or luminous intensity, luminosity is a concept greatly practiced in aesthetic ethos. It is significant in the
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This ties in with the metaphoric association of ‘light as knowledge’ in that luminosity and light epitomize enlightenment both in the literal and philosophical sense.
Case Study: Cathedral of the Northern Lights The Cathedral of the Northern Lights by Link Arkitektur is a symbol and landmark of the Norwegian town Alta. Standing 47 metres tall, the design won the architectural competition for the project being a product of cultural setting and natural beauty. Design collaborator schmidt hammer lassen [shl] explained the project to reflect the art of the polar northern lights; ‘ethereal, transient, poetic and beautiful’. The piece’s titanium clad façade reflects the northern lights of the Arctic winter darkness.
The sentience of the building harmonises with the dynamic surrounding of both harsh conditions yet incredible examples of light play from the geography’s unique sun azimuth. “The cathedral reflects, both literally and metaphorically, the northern lights: ethereal, transient, poetic and beautiful. It appears as a solitary sculpture in interaction with the spectacular nature.” [J. Lassen, shl] The interior of the building is laden with bright strip luminaries which interplay with skylight able to enter the building through slats, reflection and diffraction. Empirical glows emanating from wall lighting illuminates the interior walls which circulate light in and around the cathedral. Strips of window also create light-as-space directly into the central piece. While the exterior examples an experiential display of reflection and titanium clad diffraction, the interior of the building relies on the glow from building forms and the walls inside, creating a metaphorical atmosphere of timidity and warmth.
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Aug-Sep Issue – Light pentagon as a collinear border of the ideographic star
soul and skeleton – within
Design Conceptualisation
form generation – light as space
Aug-Sep Issue – Light
Design: Light Pavilion one DE SI GN ON E – L I GHT C OM E S FR OM W I T HIN
“Light must come from inside. You cannot ask the darkness to leave; Sogyal Rinpoche
you must turn on the light.”
Elevation 1 ⎥ Scale 1:150
Elevation 2 ⎥ Scale 1:150
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Aug-Sep Issue – Light
Plan ⎥ Scale 1:250
E-W Section ⎥ Scale 1:200
N-S Section ⎥ Scale 1:150
Design: Light Pavilion two DE SI GN T W O – L I GHT COM E S FR OM W I T HIN
Stars are little holes in the floor of heaven.
Aug-Sep Issue – Light
Elevation 1 ⎥ Scale 1:150
Elevation 2 ⎥ Scale 1:150
Plan ⎥ Scale 1:250
N-S Section ⎥ Scale 1:150
E-W Section ⎥ Scale 1:200
“Stars are little holes in the floor of heaven.”
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Aug-Sep Issue – Light
Light Study: Reflection T H E O RE TIC AL A N D A R CH ITE CTURAL S T UDY O F ‘ R E F L ECT ION ’ Reflection is a phenomenon of light in which an incident ray alters trajectory at contact with a medium. Light striking a surface changes angles and rebounds into the same optical medium at which it instigated. This transitional spectacle is categorised into subsidiary concepts such as diffused reflection, refraction, diffraction and dispersion.
a way, conscious of events in that they directly perceive a notion and act unequivocally. This is associated with insight and the philosophy of reasoning in biological thought. . Direct or scientific reflection can be philosophically aligned with the perception of reality as would a still medium, for example, water. Reality can be reflected undistorted in still waters while unsettled
Reflection represents something that is a direct product of its incidental emanation. This idea is observed as both a metaphor and notice of contemplation and thought. Reflection as an abstract theory is often linked to taking another route or interestingly, personification of the mirror. Mirrors do not ‘see’ in the sensory sense but are in
mediums cause diffraction, or the inadequate direct perception of actuality. As a practical term, reflection expresses what many consider to be afterthought of the perceived or the contemplation of thought alone. It is sometimes theorised that our thoughts ‘reflect’ upon our subconscious understandings of ourselves.
In the years after the modernistic movement the development of many structurally glazed skyscrapers have made their place on the urban skyline. While many within the movement were conscious of the monotony of large glass facades and the transparency of architecture, an aesthetic architecture of reflection set its roots in the backdrop of full forward convention. Architects such as Mies van der Rohe even used elements of full façade glazing, but in the years since, countless uniform skyscrapers have emerged and bored urban citizens. In response, the notion of the unconventional reinterpretation of façades able to reflect the quality of light have gained ground. (Archdaily: How Reflective Façades have Changed Modern Architecture) In sequence with the argument that light and brilliance could help in creating iconic architecture and a better human world, glass and metals have been artistically manufactured to epitomise the reflective spectacle. The definition of architecture in the urban, city and business realm has changed from the ‘internal form towards the external surface’. Paul Scheerbart and Bruno Taut envisioned a new idea of architecture made of “colored glass” “sparkling in the sun,” “crystalline shapes of white glass” which make the “jewel-like architecture shimmer.” (Schielke, 2016) Mies van der Rohe absorbed the imagery of a new ‘glass culture’ when he moved away from the urban rectangular design in favor of a free-form glass skin. His work, the Glass Skyscaper in Berlin in 1921, however, exampled his negative view on the simplicity and monotony of merely glass as a mirror.
The brilliance of intriguing imagery through reflections additionally offers different displays for one from inside. The concept of clad architecture and covering a building with reflective effects has been adapted with matte materials enabling a different type of glow.
Frank Gehry’s famous titanium-clad Guggenheim Museum plays with the refraction and dispersion of light. The panels, less than half a millimetre thick embody almost a living form through the movement of sunlight across each organic face. The sparkling light qualities of the titanium sheets and its appearance changing constantly, Frank Gehry has not only brought a dynamic composition of forms to architecture but reinforced the idea of design with a dynamic image varying with every ‘cloud and sunbeam’.
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Plan ⎥ 1:200
Section A ⎥ 1:200
Elevation E-W ⎥ 1 :100
Section B ⎥ 1:200
Approach
Ground Floor Plan ⎥ 1:200
First Floor Plan ⎥ 1:200
E L R S ST
Exhibit & Presentation space Library Reading Area Seminar Room Storage
Ground & First Floor Plans
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Interior Movement Âť
Entrance is achieved through the lift and stairs, granting access directly to exhibition space, leading further onto seminar, reading and upper level spaces.
Light Study: Opacity T H E O RE T IC AL A N D A R CH ITE CTUR AL S T UDY O F ‘ O PA C IT Y ’ First recorded in 1550-60, the word ‘opacity’ comes from the Latin opacitas, meaning shade. In contemporary use, the word opacity is generally applied to the physical properties of a material, for example “the quality or state of a body that makes it impervious to the rays of light” and “the relative capacity of matter to obstruct the transmission of radiant energy.” Cognitive definitions of opacity, and those which relate to the senses, for example “obscurity of sense” and “the quality or state of being mentally obtuse” have also entered the language. Often the word opacity is referred to conceptually in the context of its antonym - transparency. This definition describes the “quality of lacking transparency or translucence” with a range of descriptors including as something that possesses the quality of being difficult to see through, or is dense, or obscure perceptually. Metaphorically, something, for example, a transparent mechanical box that can be seen inside can be understood through vision due to the play of light inside. However, an opaque box limits visual
understanding through the absence of light and ‘knowledge’. This is aligned with ideas of ambiguity and the shrouding of actuality.
In architectural design, opacity is recognised to be a basic quality of a surface in which two sides are separated completely and fully with the result being physical and visual separation. The employment of this quality is generative of many feelings and sensitivities to the built surrounds often employed by architects. Architectural opacity is understood as the combination of form and meaning through closed
and opaque material use. Transparency, which was developed in the Modern architectural era began the shift toward the commitment of universal process through formation. While transparency became representative of and a signifier of modernity both artistically and aesthetically in the 1920s, architects in northern regions of the globe responded to the unique characteristics of available seasonal light using opaque white spaces and surfaces to maximise interior brightness for dark winter periods. The diffraction of light through opaque materials and the positioning of windows to capture daylight from the side, reflect the low position of the sun. (Archdaily: Whiteness in Nordic Countries). “Whiteness” in Scandinavian architecture is both a response to the arctic climate as a natural contrast to the dark winter, and diurnal and seasonal rhythms. It is theorised that the whiteness reflects both the climate and sun movements and the geographical landscape as often snow covered and pure.
Finnish Architect Alvar Aalto introduced white diffusion as a concept mirroring feelings of happiness through purity. Interestingly, while philosophically opacity may contrast the notion of light and understanding, the reflective properties of opaque materials merely divert light and these ideas. Beyond the whiteness that is often present in Scandinavian architecture is the use of pale materials to conserve and magnify the illusion of brightness and a predilection to commune with nature as an expressed cultural choice. (Øyehaug, 2015)
Some religious buildings call for attention during hours of morning liturgy, occasionally welcoming morning sun while others imply subdued light to induce contemplation. The Pirkkala Church by Käpy and Simo Paavilainen is a dramatic example of light and shadow sequencing, the altar appearing as a canvas for the contrasting projections of sunlight . and glass as a lens and mirror. (Schielke, 2014)
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Structure: Frame & Support Setout
Structural Steel frame meets with the concrete bounding walls supporting the interior cladding, windows and soil above.
Cantilevered concrete support. The above mass balances piece against concrete walls and ground. Steel piece is inserted to withstand longitudinal strain in unison with the frame.
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Materiality & Makeup Dark ashphalt & rubber
Coated glass balustrade
Birch wood plank seater Limestone panel
Aluminium frame
Limestone block wall Titanium matte cladding
White granite
Chromium light shaft
Light shaft precedents
Wall light play
Shaft of light
Form & texture
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Light Study: Filtration T H E O R E T IC A L A N D A R CH IT E CT U R A L S T U DY O F ‘ F I L T R AT I O N ’ Direct or scientific filtration is any of various mechanical, physical or biological operations that separate two elements by adding a medium through which just one can pass. Optically, filtration refers to the resulting quality of light that is altered through transparent or other nonseparative materials such as various glass, plastic or gelatinous elements. Light filtration or optical filtering includes the concept of absorption of different wavelengths with a selection passing through. Any rays of light undergo various transformations in relation to the
magnitude and phase of each frequency component of an incident. Wavelengths and signals of light are modified by an optical filter through inference, dichroic or absorptive manners. As a practical term, it expresses the selective presentation or deliberate manipulation of information to make it more acceptable or favourable to its recipient. The idea of this extends to filtration being a system of decision making through the permittance and non-permittance of different spectacles. Filtering as seen through an absorptive filter enables the transmittance of most rays of light while absorbing the rest. The instrumental characteristic of this mirrors that of selection and preference making in the philosophical realm. While the concept can epitomise direct results against laws of decision, light does not always take a single route. The interaction of light through a semi non-vitreous medium such as a dyed or translucent glaze can redefine it as a smaller, separated or chromatographed reorientation of itself.
The making of an architecture of kinetics with sunlight is a masterful course. Le Corbusier’s work played with openings, textures and physical orientations, and in his chapel at Ronchamp, monastery of Sainte Marie and the parish church of Saint-Pierre show their own distinctively unique approaches to contemplative, antiquated light spaces. (Archdaily: Le Corbusier & The Trinity of Light) The representation of light in antiquity is generally that of the greater, divine, or sacredness. This language is formed alternatively by epoch, be it through the Romanesque style apse, glow of mosaics in Dome of the Rock or stained windows of the cathedrals. Corbusier’s Chapel of Notre Dame du Haut is characterised most significantly by the continuous “circle of solar events”. (Plummer, 2013). The dawning sun illuminates the alcove of the side chapel and turns the red-painted void even redder.
This morning light is analogised to the birth of life by H. Plummer, while later sun floods the interior through slots between the east and south walls. The end of the day produces warm glows through a final opening slot at sunset. A more complicated dispersion of light is exampled in Corbusier’s La Tourette. The Monastery of Sainte Marie de la Tourette embodies a clear counterpoint to the poetic forms of fluid works. Each of the four cardinal directions are open to corridors distinguished with different window arrangements enabling the people to encounter altering light experiences for each. “Unlike the repetitive rhythms of windows and columns in traditional churches, these fluent rhythms are aperiodic, based upon intervals of light and transparency that gradually compress and expand in waves.” (Plummer, 2013).
In La Tourette Le Corbusier wanted to "give the monks what men today need most: silence and peace... This Monastery does not show off; it is on the inside that it lives." It is understood much of the building’s personality is found in the interior, with floor-to-ceiling glazing in the public areas, with their views over the valley, library, and church entrance.
The ramp down to the church entrance is an austere experiential space, the concrete walls with uneven yet rhythmic glazing leading to a steel wall that rotates, giving access to the dark, colored glow to the rest of the church. The types of openings around the church are described as "Light cannons" letting in different forms of daylight. The building’s warm and evocative glow is created by colours present in these cannon openings.
JDH ⎥ 2017