portfolio reader Joara Tomba Pereira . k1549948 Studio 3.3. Kingston University
Urban context . THE COSMOS
“Cities have the capacity of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody� (Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, 1961)
The fourth-largest urban center in Portugal, Coimbra, is the urban context of the project. An ancient city that was the capital of Portugal from 1131 to 1255 and has become an important cultural center, mainly after the establishment of the University of Coimbra in 1290, the oldest academic institution in the Portuguese-speaking world.
Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Illustris_civitatis_Comimbriae_in_Lusitania_1600_Georg_Braun.jpg
The Coimbra’s hill and the Sofia Street are the center and the main axis of the university life, respectively. They materialize the extensions of the university and the movement of the urban context. And, for that reason, the main historical typologies can be found along them. The Royal College of Arts, the University Palace, the College of Jesus, the Santa Cruz Monastery, the College of Espirito Santo and the Palace of Justice are just some examples. Considered part of the World Heritage, the University of Coimbra holds a singular group of architectural elements whose importance goes beyond their national context, and takes an international dimension.
This truly vivacity cultural context can be felt walking through the streets, where the historical typologies are settled among archaeological structures and where the new elements are combined with the ancient ones. This coexistence of different historical times is one of the most enriching characters of a city, according to Jane Jacobs. And the human beings are the urban social capital that creates this context and establishes a system of human relationship.
1
2
Planta das áreas candidatas e zona de protecção [1.e] Plan of the Nominated Property and Buffer Zone [1.e] N
file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/1387_Portugal.pdf
The open spaces, such as courtyards and public squares, conform one of the system, as well as the traffic and pedestrian flow, the social relationship, the different typologies, the topographic, the uses of urban spaces, the surrounding nearby, and so on. There are an uncountable systems coexisting in the urban dynamic and they need to be considered properly in order the project could be seen as a piece of the entire city, a microcosm of Coimbra. The definition of “microcosm”, according to “thefreedictionary”, as “a small, representative system having analogies to a larger system in constitution, configuration, or development”. (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/microcosm)
Therefore, reading the city as an overlapping of systems has guided the development of this project. The city is seen as a grid of systems that coexist in the urban dynamics and work together synergistically, due to its historical background not be forgotten. And considering a well-known historical city as Coimbra just contributes with it.
TYPOLOGICAL STUDY The process of reading the city has also included the study of the College of Espirito Santo, which is settled in the Sofia Street and has passed through the last centuries by a significant process of changing its uses. As an important example of the typology of ecclesiastical colleges, it shows some important urban questions, such as the role of the courtyards, the organization of the spaces and the relationship with the street through distinct levels. Characteristic that occurs in the project as well.
The brief
The project site is located along the Figueira da Foz Street in the center of Coimbra, Portugal. It is one of the three possible urban voids that could be chosen as the site, and it needs to be reintegrated in the city through the project. The client is a group of seven families that could not afford the construction of seven houses and their specific work necessities. Therefore, they had settled a deal with the municipal government (Coimbra City Hall) and in exchange for this capital allowance, it is required two more residential units (per each house) for selling. More residential units are also required in case of reallocating families that were previously living in the project site. The thesis project consists therefore in a minimum of 24 units of residence (21 units of the brief plus 3 units for the preexisted families) associated with distinct uses in multipurpose buildings, combining a co-housing with a range of different forms of urban living. These other uses can be related with the specific necessities of the seven known families as well as other collective uses that might be required by the urban context. • • • • • • • •
Minimum 24 units of residence; Communal laundry; Ballroom; Parking lot; Yoga studio; 02 Workshops; Architecture office; Playground (specific facility that is required for this site).
Project . THE MICROCOSM
The development of the project has started based on two distinct readings of Coimbra: the reading of the city in an urban scale (The Cosmos) and the reading of the direct surrounding of the site. These two distinct scales of approaching led the project to consider, for instance, the blank walls that limit the site, the heights of the closest buildings and, in the same time, the role of Santa Justa Church for the whole Sofia Street and the important location of the Palace of Justice.
Considering the project as a microcosm is entirely connected with these approach in two scales, once the microcosm, responding for inside strengths, also replies for outside ones, being connected with the entire city by a grid of systems that coexist in the urban dynamics. The development of these conceptual ideas bases the design of substantial spaces, where people could recognize themselves with it, taking these spaces as their home. This microcosm is created and should be held by the citizens that fill its space with the energy of social vivacity, in such a way that it can adapt itself to different necessities, combining distinct temporalities.
Taking all this into account, and highlighting the role of Sofia Street, the idea of creating an important public square on João Machado Street has been the main attribute of the project. Reinforcing the system through Sofia Street, this open space aims to point out the dual aspect of the Street, dialoging with “8 de Maio” Square, in front of Santa Cruz Church. And this dual aspect should also call attention for Santa Justa church, putting it into the context again. Moreover, considering the concept of social urban capital, the important of the streets and sidewalks as public spaces that hold the true vivacity of the urban context (where people meet each other and exchange experience) was another relevant dimension that contributed to the establishment of this square. The courtyard is also an important open space that rationalizes the entire project and establishes the dialog with the typologies along the Sofia Street, bringing the project into the system of courtyards as well. It is an attempt to translate and reread this historical open space into a modern language, keeping its importance character for a building. Therefore, these two important open spaces defined the main dimensions of the project and guided its development. http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1036275
site plan
The square on João Machado Street, in front of the Project and the Palace of Justice, is designed as a public open area, where the urban dynamics happen. The high pedestrian flow through this street (mainly due to the presence of two bus stops) and its strategy location go forward with its intention. The pre-existing threes have been kept and the topography goes down lightly, keeping as much as possible the natural topography situation. Beyond the the project of the square “8 de Maio” by Fernando Tavora on 1992, other reference ideas have been used to the design of the main square, such as the “Largo do Toural” (Guimarães, Portugal), the “Les Quais” (Brussels, Belgium), Neue Meile Boblingen (Boblingen, Germany), Sechseläuten Square (Zurich, Switzerland), Havenplein Zierikzee (Zierikzee, The Netherlands) and so on.
The drawings on the pavement are totally related with the main lines of the faรงade. In the lowest level, they follow the lines of the project and, in the highest level, they dialog with faรงade of the Palace of Justice. The pavement is a simple graphic connection between these two buildings, and the clean and wide impression the square transmits is exactly to allow this dual dialog to happen. http://www.arquitectes.cat/iframes/paisatge/cat/mostrar_projecte.php?id_projecte=8095&lan=en / http://www.landezine.com/index.php/2015/10/les-quais-by-espace-mobilites/ / http://www.landezine. com/index.php/2015/02/sechselautenplatz-by-vetschpartner-landscape-architecture/ / http://www.landezine.com/index.php/2014/10/havenplein-zierikzee-by-bureau-bb/havenplein_zierikzee-bureau_bb01/ / http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x8U--N-RNfM/VjPf46K2sVI/AAAAAAAACd8/H54Vi7rs56A/s1600/Praxa8deMaio_coimbra_GuacamoleGoali.jpg / https://br.pinterest.com/pin/520095456941645930/
The ground floor of the buildings (that defines the square) is conceived for other uses, such as a restaurant and a library, and is designed with an arcade that continues onto the courtyard. The rhythm of the façade dialog with the Palace of Justice and the double-height space that faces the square is responsible for an important scale transition to the courtyard, which scale is more human “proportion” and the character more familiar. This transition is represented also in the number of floors. In the square façade, this building has four floors, while the façade to the courtyard it has 2 floors and a terrace, taking advantage of the topography and creating a distinct atmosphere.
The highest building of the project is also a transition between the closest building and the scale of Sofia Street. As a response for the pre-existing blank wall, it means an end for the massive block and, in the same time, it opens for the square and the context of Sofia Street. In the intersection of these two volumes (that defines the square), there is an amenity area, a public terrace that is connected with the courtyard through an exposition room. It creates an open space that orientates the view to the square and to the hillside. Facing the square, there is also the ballroom. A public facility situated in the corner of the volume, where there is another important access to the project. This access is a pedestrian axis between the volumes surrounding the courtyard and the volume on Figueira da Foz Street. The last one has two floors for distinct uses and two floors for housing, representing the building with more mixture of uses, once it is situated in the corner of the site, directly connected with the surrounding. The volume in front of Santa Justa Church represents also an end for the closest building, as an answer for the preexisting black wall. It is orientated perpendicularly to the street in order to create an open space in front of the church, changing the experience of walking through Figueira da Foz Street surrounding by walls. This space not intends to be a second square neither to have a direct relation with the church, once the topography is deeply relevant. However, it intends to point out the presence of the church and to free the front of it, changing also the view from to church to the river.
The other two volumes around the courtyard have a smaller scale than the other ones. The two-floor volume is only residential and the three-floor volume has a ground floor for commerce. It takes advantage from the topography and what would be an underground space is instead the ground floor, once it has direct access from the street inner the block. The courtyard is, for that reason, three meters upward the first level of the project and the commerce is intended to be an exchange (with the neighbor project) for using the inner street. This three-floor volume also solves the third black wall of the site. Beyond this volume definition, the connections between two open spaces are always relevant moments of the project. The connection between the main front square with the courtyard is through a wide stair in a three-height space, where the effect of spaciousness can be felt by the lighting getting into it. The other connection between the courtyard and the open space in front of the church is through an arcade (that defines the fourth side of the courtyard), while the connection between the courtyard and the pedestrian axis is a wider way beneath the ballroom’s terrace.
Workshop Commerce
Workshop
Yoga Studio
Entrance hall Ballroom
Playground/Courtyard
Exhibition Hall
Commerce
These connections show how important is the courtyard for the arrangement of the whole project and how it acts as the core into which every single space converges. For that reason and because of its familiar atmosphere, the playground (the public required facility for the site 3) is placed on the courtyard as well. The project “Südpark” in Basel, Switzerland, by Herzog & De Meuron was a strong reference for the courtyard, due to the position of the courtyard above the parking lot. As a similar situation happens in the project, the solution for increasing the layer of soil by elevating the surface level of the “plant bed” has been applied in the project as well. This mechanism allows the presence of small trees even being above the parking lot (whose waffle slab had been dimensioned considering this extra load).
CO-HOUSING . typologies
The typologies of the project do not have a perfect separation among them. There are moments of exception throughout the project. However, they are arranged according to the size of the family and the proper place for their housing units. The volume on Figueira da Foz Street is directly related with the street context, being the closest building to the urban dynamics. For that reason, the ground and the first floor are designed for shops, a workshop and a yoga studio and the third and fourth floor, for one-bedroom units. The volumes around the courtyard are designated for younger families that are directly “connected� with the ground. Therefore, the majority of the housing is two-bedroom units, and there are an exception with four bedrooms and another one with three, because of the pedestrian way and the library, respectively. The highest building is designed for three-bedroom units (two units per floor) and there are some social facilities on its ground floor, such as the rubbish storage and a communal laundry. Finally, the volume in front of Santa Justa church has three floor for five-bedroom units and there is an exception on the ground floor, where is settled a two-bedroom unit (with a private garden) and a workshop facing the street.
10 one-bedroom units 12 two-bedroom units 13 three-bedroom units 01 four-bedroom unit 03 five-bedroom units Total: 39 units of residence
Filipe and Patricia: two-bedroom unit (with private garden and connected directly with the workshop)
Paulo and Sofia’s five-bedroom unit
family:
Renato and Leonor’s family: three-bedroom unit (unit with terrace as an open space for the dog) + workshop
Cecília: one-bedroom unit (above the yoga-studio)
06 03
07 04
05
Afonso and No’s family: two-bedroom unit (duplex)
Senhor Relvas: two-bedroom unit (duplex next to the exposition room)
Antonio and Silvia’s family: three-bedroom unit
materiality
The architectural language of the entire project is based on the idea of translating the architectural features of Coimbra into a more contemporary language that could be appropriated for the urban context. The gestures of some Portuguese architects, such as João Mendes Ribeiro and Alvaro Siza, have been the main examples, and the dialog created between their project and the city context, the main aim. Therefore, the exposed concrete façades have been chosen due to their not-contrasting tone and puristic, modern and clear impression. The smooth texture of the concrete panels, combined with minimalist windows and wood movable panels, create the architectural language of the project and ensure it entire integrity. And the combination of these two materials, wood and exposed concrete, refers mainly to the Salk Institute of Louis Kahn.
https://br.pinterest.com/pin/148126275220694028/ / http://tectonicablog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/JMR-0001-A-CALDEIRAS-F03---FG-SG-730x1098.jpg / http://www.archdaily.com/395010/cap-csm-sarria-sulkin-marchissio / http://www.davidzwirner.com/about/new-york-20th-street/
http://www.archdaily.com/61288/ad-classics-salk-institutelouis-kahn https://www.yumpu.com/fr/vergely http://www.davidchipperfield.co.uk/project/joachimstrasse https://br.pinterest.com/pin/561894490981168585/
Some interior references, about the use of exposed concrete on the walls and laminated wood on the ceiling and paving.
http://imguol.com/c/entretenimento/2015/01/15/o-mezanino-reservado-ao-dormitorio-do-casal-recebe-farta-luz-natural-gracas-ao-pe-direito-duplo-do-estar-com-580-m-em-meio-ao-concreto-e-tecnocimento-tres-madeiras-surgem-para-1421341101697_1313x876.jpg http://www.construyehogar.com/planos/moderna-casa-dos-pisos-campo/
The structure had been thought considering the use of these non-structural concrete panels. Therefore, the main structural strategy is based on one-way spanning system, created by loadbearing concrete walls and pre-fabricated hollow core slabs. This strategy is applied on the volumes around the courtyard.
The highest volume and the two volumes along Figueira da Foz Street have a composite structure with loadbearing walls associated with a concrete structural grid of one-directional beams and pillars. This strategy is also based on one-way spanning system, with the prefabricated hollow core slabs.
Appendix . AR6004 The Practice of Making Architecture: Integration and Strategy
01 04 05 06 02
07
03
08 06 09
detail 01
detail 02
01. drainage channel (galvanized steel gutter); 02. vertical shaft (hydraulic axis); 03. 10mm plasterboard, 80mm cavity for hydraulic pipes, 10mm plasterboard (100mm drywall); 04. concrete parapet with metal coping; 05. finishing layer, waterproofing layer, concrete
layer for minimum inclination of the roof, waterproofing layer, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, impact insulation;
06. 10mm screed/structural topping, 140mm insulated hollow core slab, 10mm finishing layer;
10
07. 25mm fair-faced concrete surface, ventilated cavity, 15mm hardboard, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, 25mm finish interior layer (precast concrete sandwich panels, storey-height);
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08. 20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, underfloor heating system, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
09. suspended ceiling; 10. window with fixed panels for cross ventilation of the underground floor;
11. 10mm plasterboard, 80mm acoustic foam,
10mm hardboard, 90mm thermal insulation, 10mm plasterboard (200mm double dry-wall with acoustic and thermal barrier);
12. 35mm special floor finish for parking areas,
35mm screed, vapour barrier, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
13. 150 mm mass concrete slab for light wall
loadings, waterproofing layer, gravel, compacted soil.
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SECTION AA
detail 03
13
integration
| Joara Tomba Pereira
detail 04 detail 04
01 02
01 02
03
03
04
04
05
05
08 06 03
08
06 03
09
09
01. concrete parapet with metal coping; 02. finishing layer, waterproofing layer,
concrete layer for minimum inclination of the roof, waterproofing layer, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, impact insulation;
03. 10mm screed/structural topping, 140mm insulated hollow core slab, 10mm finishing layer; 04. uneven single hung window(storey-height);
05. external wood panel (movable) 20mm;
06. 20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, un-
derfloor heating system, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
07. 150 mm mass concrete slab for light wall loadings, waterproofing layer, gravel, compacted soil 08. 120mm concrete wall, 60mm thermal
insulation, very high density acoustic barrier, 120mm concrete wall (300mm precast concrete wall, internal);
09. Concrete beam (30x50)cm.
07
integration | Joara Tomba Pereira
SECTION BB BB SECTION
07
detail 05 detail 05
SECTION CC CC SECTION
THE MICROCOSM ground floor plan
Changing room
Parking lot 23 car parking
Library
A C
C
Commerce
B Communal Living Space
A
B
Communal Laundry Commerce
kitchen Rubbish storage Plant room
5
20
THE MICROCOSM first floor plan
Workshop Commerce
Workshop
Yoga Studio
Entrance hall Ballroom
Playground/Courtyard
A C
C B Exhibition Hall
A
5
20
B
Commerce
THE MICROCOSM second floor plan
Ballroom
Playground/Courtyard
A C
C B Exhibition Hall
A
5
20
B
The project site is located along the Figueira da Foz Street in the center of Coimbra, Portugal. It is one of the three possible urban voids that we could choose as our site, and it needs to be reintegrated in the city through the project. The client is a group of seven families that could not afford the construction of seven houses and their specific work necessities. Therefore, they had settled a deal with the municipal government (Coimbra City Hall) and in exchange for this capital allowance, it is required two more residential units (per each house) for selling. More residential units are also required in case of reallocating families that were previously living in the project site. The thesis project consists therefore in a minimum of 24 units of residence (21 units of the brief plus 3 units for the preexisted families) associated with distinct uses in multipurpose buildings, combining a co-housing with a range of different forms of urban living. These other uses can be related with the specific necessities of the seven known families as well as other collective uses that might be required by the urban context. Minimum 24 units of residence; communal laundry; ballroom; parking lot; yoga studio; 02 workshops; architecture office and a playground. The highlighted building on the floor plans is the building that had been chosen for the development of the integration and strategy analyses.
the microcosm
01. integration
01 interior 02 03
detail 01 esc. 1:05 01.
25mm fair-faced concrete surface, ventilated cavity, 15mm hardboard, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, 25mm finish interior layer (precast concrete sandwich panels, storey-height);
04
02.
20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, underfloor heating system, separating layer (vapour barrier) , 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
03. metal path for the external wood panel;
04. 10mm screed/structural topping, 140mm insulated hollow core slab, 10mm finishing layer.
exterior
exterior 01
02 03
detail 02 esc. 1:05 04
01.
25mm fair-faced concrete surface, ventilated cavity, 15mm hardboard, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, 25mm finish interior layer (precast concrete sandwich panels, storey-height);
02. 20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, underfloor heating system, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation; 03. path for the external wood panel; 04. 10mm screed/structural topping,
interior
140mm insulated hollow core slab, 10mm finishing layer.
01. 10mm plasterboard, 80mm acoustic foam, 10mm hardboard, 90mm thermal insulation, 10mm plasterboard (200mm double dry-wall with acoustic and thermal barrier);
02.
20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, underfloor heating system, vapour barrier, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
03. 150 mm mass concrete slab for light wall loadings, waterproofing layer, gravel, compacted soil;
04. 35mm special floor finish for parking areas, 35mm screed, vapour barrier, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation.
01 04
detail 03 esc. 1:05
interior interior - parking lot
02
03
01
02 03
detail 04 esc. 1:05 01. metal coping; 02. concrete parapet; 03. finishing layer, waterproofing layer,
04 05
concrete layer for minimum inclination of the roof, waterproofing layer, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, impact insulation;
04. metal path for the external wood
08
panel;
06
05. window frame;
07
06. external wood panel (movable) 20mm;
07. uneven single hung window, with 3 panes (storey-height), double glass;
interior
08. 10mm screed/structural topping, 140mm insulated hollow core slab, 10mm finishing layer.
01
02
03
detail 05 esc. 1:05 01. 120mm concrete wall, 60mm thermal insulation, very high density acoustic barrier, 120mm concrete wall (300mm precast concrete wall, internal); 02.
20mm floor finish, 90mm screed, underfloor heating system, vapour barrier, 20mm impact sound insulation, 20mm thermal insulation;
03. 150 mm mass concrete
slab for light wall loadings, waterproofing layer, gravel, compacted soil
04
04. 120 mm in situ concrete, 60mm mortar filing, 120 in situ concrete, transferring building loads to shallow foundation (wall footing).
THERMAL ENVELOPE
Precast concrete sandwich panels: 25mm fair-faced concrete surface, ventilated cavity, 15mm hardboard, 100mm thermal insulation, vapour barrier, 25mm finish interior layer. (precast concrete sandwich panels, storey-height). The faรงades of the building are composed by precast concrete sandwich panels, which dimension defines an interior grid that rationalizes the whole interior space. These storey-height precast panels are non-structural elements that occupy the two main faรงades of the duplex. The dimension of the ventilated cavity varies according with the metal path for the external wood panels. When the path is not necessary, the ventilated cavity increases its width.
02. strategy . Structure
STRUCTURAL STRATEGY One-Way Spanning System with load bearing concrete walls and precast hollow core slabs. This configuration leaves two sides of the spatial unit free of loads (external faรงades), giving it a strong directional quality.
FOUNDATION
shallow foundation for the loadbearing walls (wall footing)
LOADBEARING ELEMENTS primary loadbearing elements: concrete walls 300mm precast concrete walls: 120mm concrete wall, 60mm thermal insulation, very high density acoustic barrier, 120mm concrete wall. Two of the loadbearing walls do not achieve the ground directly. There are 2 concrete beams beneath them in order to create a bigger internal space on the ground floor than the upper floors. This space is designated for commerce and the other floors are a unit of residence (duplex).
LOADBEARING ELEMENTS primary loadbearing elements: insulated hollowcore slabs (one-way spanning system). span: 5,0m, according to the structural grid based on the faรงade panels. The loadbearing walls and the hollow core slabs are the two main structural elements. The internal walls and the facades panels are non-structural elements.
LOAD tracing Dead loads: static loads acting vertically downward on a structure (self-weight of the structure + the weight of permanent elements attached to the building). Live loads: unstable loads resulting from occupancy, water, wind or portable elements. live loads dead loads
structure and services vertical shaft (hydraulic axis)
The one-way spanning system contributes for the presence of a vertical distribution through the floors and, in the same time, allows the internal walls (non-structural) to be drywall panels, with easy maintenance and interior cavity for services distribution. The suspended ceilings have an important role for the services distribution as well.
suspended ceiling
suspended ceiling
STRUCTURE AND ARCHITECTURE The structure configuration of the building, based on one-way spanning system, allows two sides of the spatial unit to be designed free of loads, with openings and non-structural elements. This configuration defines the architectural character of the whole project.
02. strategy . services | mechanical, electrical and plumbing
heating system
Underfloor heating system: uniform, gradual, heat distribution across the entire floor area. There is a central boiler per floor, which is localized in the plant room and it is designed to attend four units (services core). The vertical circulation routes are through the suspended ceilings.
Passive ventilation The bidirectional space, defined by the two loadbearing walls, leads the natural ventilation to flow through the duplex. The presence of openings in opposite sides of the dwelling contributes for this cross ventilation.
mechanical ventilation The service shaft is what holds the mechanical ventilation system. At the top of the shaft is an air extractor, which draws the stale air from the bathrooms and from vents situated in the suspended ceilings. Fresh air is also brought into the building through the service shaft.
services distribution
ground floor plan
second floor plan
services distribution
first floor plan
hot water main water drainage electricity
hot water main water drainage electricity
Services AND ARCHITECTURE The concentration of the services distribution in the center of the housing led the faรงades free for architectural design and rationalized the spaces around it.
Artificial lighting
rainwater drainage
waste drainage
Changing room
Parking lot 23 car parking
Library
Commerce
Communal Living Space
Communal Laundry Commerce
kitchen Rubbish storage Plant room
20