Graduate Portfolio by Joshua Kuffner

JOSHUA KUFFNER PORTFOLIO

CONTENTS ILLUMINATING THE SUBLIME RUIN

VITRUVIUS REVISITED

COLD STORAGE RE-SKIN

CRANBROOK WELLNESS CENTER

ILLUMINATING THE SUBLIME RUIN MASTERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S THESIS The sublime aesthetic manifests itself in the colossal scale and numerous privations of post-industrial ruins. However, these places are marginalized by society and are often demolished to return land to productive use. This thesis seeks to instead foreground the ruin in society by means of engaging its innate sublimity. The resulting site intervention is a picturesquely planned landscape park with instances of the sublime. Term: Fall 2012 / Spring 2013 Research Chair: Vincent Sansalone Site Location: South Cumminsville, Cincinnati

THESIS DEFENSE 2012.04.17

ABSTRACT The feeling of smallness is a disconcerting experience. When one faces the vastness of nature or contemplates the endless progression of time, their sheer incomprehensibility intimidates. But there is also pleasure from such encounters, liberation from conceding to oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s limitations. Since antiquity, a term has been used to signify the origin of these paradoxical experiences: the sublime. In a site in Cincinnati, a place that embodies the vastness and privations characteristic of the sublime, an architectural investigation was carried forth. The site, once part of a productive industrial corridor, has decayed into ruins following the retreat of industry and the subsequent closure of rail lines. Ruination, in its physical manifestation of temporality, constitutes a sublime concept. Everything turns to dust. In the post-industrial city, abandoned sites such as this are prevalent, but societally ambiguous. They are marginalized for their lack of defi ned purpose, islands of void in the urban fabric. The fate of industrial ruins is typically demolition, particularly if the original buildingsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; purpose was to accommodate specific processes. As a result, the latent potential of these places to convey the sublime is experienced by few, by urban explorers, by squatters. In order to reincorporate society, these places must be foregrounded. How does one engage the sublimity inherent to a specifi c post-industrial ruin, while reintegrating the place with contemporary society? Through analysis, the sublime elements of the site will be identified and dictate the intervention. The context will inform the program and defi ne its place within society. The site is relatively isolated from the city, and yet, this detachment provides a setting for contemplation. By implementing various concepts, including site specificity, the terrain vague, and the picturesque, the inherent sublimity of the site will be amplified, and the previously overlooked will be illuminated.

LEFT: Study drawing of the site in plan. OPPOSITE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Picturesque drawing of site, layered blind contour of site from four vantage points, section through grain elevator. 5

MILL CREEK

SOUTH CUMMINSVILLE

M EK BE

CINCINNATI

ROAD

AN S TR T EE

HOPPLE STREET

SITE APPROACH VIEWS

REFLECTING POOL ENTRANCE

THE MILL CREEK

3140

8 FOREST PATH / MILL CREEK OVERLOOK

3090 / 3140 BEEKMAN ENTRANCES

3090 K B EE MAN S TR

GRAIN ELEVATOR COMPLEX

HOPPLE STREET VIADUCT ENTRANCE

RAIL PLAZA

EE T

REFLECTING POOL ENTRANCE – Vehicular and pedestrian access point to park. – Large reflecting pool with two rows of steel poles demarcating path. – Rows of poles and dynamic water surface draw the eye of passerby. – Cars drive through shallow water on path, over two sets of rumble strips—experience of threshold to someplace “other.” – Pedestrians cross on path built in disused rail line; start of Rail Path which links the entire site. CONCEPTS Succession / Uniformity, Picturesque Narrative, Framing, Drawing Attention to the Overlooked, Threshold, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS D.I.R.T. Studio, Urban Dry Dock No. 1 (2009) Mary Miss, Field Rotation (1981) and Greenwood Pond: Double Site (1996)

FOREST PATH / MILL CREEK OVERLOOK – Row of steel poles leads visitors from the reflecting pool entrance to the parking lot. – Parking lot is repurposed from a disused lot. – Forest path compounds isolation of site: immersed in forest, then below grade. – End of path bursts out at the level of water in the Mill Creek, re-orients viewer to new Grain Elevator focus, then follows the banks south. CONCEPTS Isolation, Picturesque Narrative, Expansion + Compression of Space, Contrast in Light, Framing, Threshold, Focus / Goal, Re-orienting, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS Michael Heizer, Double Negative (1969) Mary Miss, Greenwood Pond: Double Site (1996)

VIADUCT ENTRANCE – Pedestrian south access point to park. – Visitors follow Corten sheet pile wall down from Beekman Street under the viaduct where it joins the Rail Path’s southern end. – Elevated walkway extends out through arched openings in bridge piers and over the Mill Creek, engaging “infi nite” yet unattainable corridor of arches. – Walkway re-orients visitor to new Grain Elevator focus, then returns to the Rail Path. CONCEPTS Drawing Attention to the Overlooked, Picturesque Narrative, Succession / Uniformity, Dislocation in Space, the Unattainable, Framing, Threshold, Focus / Goal, Re-orienting, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS Latz + Partner, Parco Dora (2004+) Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Carceri (1761)

3090 / 3140 BEEKMAN ENTRANCES – Pedestrian Beekman Street access points to park. – 3090 Beekman, a functioning supply warehouse with a roof level with Beekman Street. This is spanned with an elevated walkway on axis with the Grain Elevator tower. – 3140 Beekman, an abandoned manufacturing building, is re-purposed as an extended hypostyle hall threshold with potential use as an activity pavilion. Basement houses park maintenance and restrooms. Upper floor left inaccessible, preserved as a ruin. – Elevated walkway connects the two buildings, then steps down to the Rail Plaza. CONCEPTS Drawing Attention to the Overlooked, Succession / Uniformity, Contrast in Light, the Unattainable, Framing, Threshold, Focus / Goal, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS Latz + Partner, Parco Dora (2004+)

RAIL PLAZA

GRAIN ELEVATOR COMPLEX

– Central space of park, accessible from the Rail Path and 3090 / 3140 Beekman.

– Focus of park and culmination of the picturesque narrative.

– Derelict rail lines used to delineate hopper railcar sized recessed planters.

– Destroyed silo basement walls repurposed as entrance maze.

– Discarded rail ties set in exposed aggregate concrete randomly with a higher tie density near the tower.

– Maze resolves into grain conveyor path that travels beneath earthen mounds with instances of picturesque framing.

– Horizontal foreground contrasts vertical Grain Elevator focus.

– Earthen mounds are positioned as a trace of former silo array, and are inhabitable.

CONCEPTS Traces, Entropy vs. Order, Expansion + Compression of Space, Contrast, Indirect Circulation, Framing, Threshold, Focus / Goal, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS D.I.R.T. Studio, Urban Dry Dock No. 1 (2009) Latz + Partner, Parco Dora, Turin, Italy (2004+) Pinós-Miralles, Igualada Cemetery (1994)

– South silo array has been re-purposed as experiential chambers, each differently themed, with the walkway punching through their midpoints to increase the apparent dislocation in space. – Headhouse tower has been re-purposed as an observation deck that views the marginalized industrial landscape and the distant skyline. – Cantilevered walkways at the top hover over a reflecting pool, creating the illusion of a 400 foot drop with nothing below but sky. CONCEPTS Traces, Obscurity, Presence vs. Absence, Expansion + Compression of Space, Picturesque Narrative, Succession / Uniformity, Contrast in Light, Dislocation in Space, the Unattainable, Framing, Threshold, Focus / Goal, Re-purposing PRECEDENTS Tadao Ando, Meditation Space (1995) Latz + Partner, Landschaftspark (1991) Maya Lin, Wave Field (1995) Gordon Matta-Clark, Circus (1978) Pinós-Miralles, Igualada Cemetery (1994) Andrei Tarkovsky, Stalker (fi lm, 1979)

EARTHEN MOUNDS / CONVEYOR TUNNEL

BASEMENT WALL MAZE

UNATTAINABLE CORRIDOR

DARK CHAMBER

SOUND CHAMBER

MEDITATION CHAMBER

REFLECTING POOL

OBSERVATION TOWER

VITRUVIUS REVISITED BOOK + NARRATIVE DESIGN The starting point of this studio was to ask: how might the subjects of Vitruvius’ Ten Books on Architecture be revised for our time? Each student selected one of the ten subjects, and then compiled a new book on each in a way that is of our time. The subject I selected was “Public Buildings.” To arrive at the fi nal book, additional books were produced, focusing on different means of visual narration. The studio also focused on a greater understanding of Adobe InDesign, graphic design, book binding, and typography. Term: Spring 2012 Professor: Luke Bulman, Thumb Projects, NYC Site Location: N/A

FRONT COVER CONTENTS AMUSEMENT PARKS BANKS BARS CONCERTS GOV’T INSTITUTIONS GYMNASIUMS HOSPITALS INTERNET LIBRARIES MALLS MEDIA MUSEUMS OFFICES PARKS PLUGGED IN

256 The concept behind this book was to collect 256 images related to the Vitruvian subject selected, and then sequence them, with no more than two images per spread. Only black and white printing was permitted. For my 256 project, In Public: An Experience, I selected 32 different categories of public and semi-public spaces, including digital spaces, and produced an eight-image section on each. Each section was governed by a consistent format that provided a series of contrasts.

PRISONS PROTESTS RALLIES RESTAURANTS SCHOOLS SOCIAL NETWORKS SPORTING EVENTS SQUARES STREETS SUPERMARKETS SURVEILLANCE TERMINALS THEATERS VEHICLES VIDEO VIRTUAL REALITY

RIGHT: Section diagram of 256 with categories. Bold categories include a spread that compares contemporary places to their Vitruvian equivalents. OPPOSITE: Plan diagram of the “banks” section, showing the various across-spread comparisons. 26

WELLNESS CENTERS BIBLIOGRAPHY BACK COVER

TRANSITION FROM: “AMUSEMENT PARKS”

TRANSITION TO: “BANKS”

FULL BLEED

ARCHITECTURE

VITRUVIAN ERA

SCALE: DETAIL

USERS

CONTEMPORARY ERA

SCALE: LARGE

FULL BLEED

TRANSITION FROM: “BANKS”

TRANSITION TO: “BARS”

VERSO (PALATINO)

START: PARK

ONE THING AFTER ANOTHER The premise of this book was to branch out and integrate relevant ideas to the subject at hand. Beginning with the subject’s page, twelve other linked Wikipedia pages were to be used to create the narrative.

OPPOSITE: Section diagram of Threads, showing the cyclical nature of the narrative, with “forum” at the beginning and end. 28

START: APPLE STORE

END: PARK

My book, Threads: From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, looks at the concept of “forum” in antiquity and the contemporary era. Beginning with “Public Space,” the book diverges into separate verso and recto storylines, one leading to “Roman Forum,” the other, to “Internet Forum.” The resulting narrative is cyclical.

RIGHT: Plan diagram of one section of Threads. Two separate articles are covered side by side, using different typefaces to distinguish them.

RECTO (HELVETICA)

END: APPLE STORE

BLANK

START: CONCERT

START: IPAD

INT ER N ET

ET RN M TE RU I N FO STA DIU

RO AN FO RU

FO RU M

IPAD

M CO N C

ERT

BACK COVE R

FRONT COVER

ON MM CO B

ON O ST

TRA TH GEDY EC OM OF MO NS

L TRA L C EN N D R M I NA A R G TE

R IG

HT S

AI R

APPL E ST ORE

TS TO M DO OAM E R RE

CO F

O MM

PARK

TITLE GY O M LO M ET Y CE FO R U A IC SP PU B L

FRONT COVER TITLE + CONTENTS WHITE / BLACK PHOTO ESSAY

ARTICLES

IN TRANSITION ESSAY

TWO THIRDS ONE THIRD This book was the fi nal product of the studio, a summation of research on a thesis about the subject at hand. The only stipulation was that the image:text or text:image ratio be 2:1. 500 words on overall conclusions also had to be included (In Transition essay).

ESSAYS

My book, In Transition: From Reality to Virtuality, is a collection of news articles and essays that discuss the contrasting nature of digital and physical spaces, their role in contemporary life, their role in architecture, and how they may or may not coexist in the future. GRAY PHOTO ESSAY BIBLIOGRAPHY BACK COVER

RIGHT: Section diagram of In Transition. OPPOSITE: Plan diagrams of three sections of the book. The White/Black photo essay distinguishes differences between the virtual and the real, while the Gray shows how they are integrated. 30

WHITE / BLACK PHOTO ESSAY

ARTICLE SAMPLE/ IN TRANSITION ESSAY/ ESSAY SAMPLE

GRAY PHOTO ESSAY

EXHIBITION The books produced during the course of the class were displayed in an exhibition at the end of the term. The exhibition was themed as a reading room, repurposing a meeting room in the DAAP Library, and involving the creation of temporary furniture and lighting fi xtures.

READING TABLE

EXHIBITION PLAN WITH BOOKS

READING MATERIAL

PLEXIGLASS READING SURFACE

EDUCATION

MATERIALS

TEMPLES

COLUMN STYLES

PUBLIC BUILDINGS

CLIMATE + SITE

WATER

ASTRONOMY

MACHINES

METAL RODS

PRE-EXISTING MDF BLOCKS

7 8

REFERENCES 32 SHELVES

VIDEO AREA

COLD STORAGE RE-SKIN PARAMETRIC FAร ADE This project was a joint effort of the University of Cincinnati and the Perkins + Will Chicago office to investigate new faรงade options for the Fulton Market Cold Storage building, in order to allow for the future usage of the property as a mixed use complex. The class focused primarily on various parametric means of designing a faรงade. This could be done utilizing Maya, Grasshopper, or Revit plug-ins. My proposal involved using Grasshopper to generate the forms of an operable louver system that were then populated across the faรงade. Term: Fall 2011 Professor: Ming Tang Site Location: West Loop, Chicago

NEAR NORTH SIDE

SITE

WEST LOOP LOOP

PROPOSAL While the project did not focus on the design of the building’s interiors, it did require basic plans, a designed green space, and a 50,000 ft 2 addition to replace existing small structures. For my proposal, retail units occupy the fi rst floor surrounding a plaza. The plaza and retail peristyle are designed to add human scale to the massive building.

TO PARKING STORAGE

OFFICE RETAIL 1 RETAIL 2 RETAIL 3

The main designed element was a pivoting interlocking louver system that would control interior climate, operated either remotely by sensor or at the user’s discretion. These would be positioned within a double-skin façade for protection and to insulate the structure. Different colors were applied to different sides of the shutters to dynamically show the façade’s environmental response throughout the day.

LOBBY

RETAIL 4

PLAZA RETAIL 5

ABOVE: Site location map. RIGHT: Proposed site plan of the cold storage building. OPPOSITE: Pivoting interlocking louver system, with its three shading positions. 36

RETAIL 6

OPEN 100% TRANSPARENT

HALF 60% TRANSPARENT

CLOSED 30% TRANSPARENT

PROFILE VARIATIONS

NORTH

SOUTH

EAST

WEST

• 35 angled louvers per shutter • Louvers deﬂect indirect sky glare

• 60 louvers per shutter • Lower 38 angled to counter glare • Upper 22 ﬂat to act as light shelf

• 45 angled louvers per shutter • Louvers deﬂect early morning sun when closed

• 60 angled louvers per shutter • Louvers deﬂect late afternoon sun when closed

DETAIL SECTION

23”x 23” REINFORCED CONCRETE COLUMN WITH CAPITAL

EXTERIOR DOUBLE GLAZING

INTERIOR DOUBLE GLAZING

ALUMINUM MULLION

PIVOTING INTERLOCKING LOUVER SYSTEM

LOUVER SYSTEM ROTATOR MOTOR

STEEL CATWALK SILICONE JOINT SEAL

STEEL OUTRIGGER BEAM 9” REINF. CONCRETE FLOOR SLAB 39

CRANBROOK WELLNESS CENTER STRUCTURE / ENVIRONMENT / CONSTRUCTION This studio was a two-quarter design project for a wellness center for the Cranbrook Academy of Art and Science. The fi rst quarter was dedicated to design process, emphasizing precedent studies, conceptual models, and initial detail design proposals. The second quarter involved developing and refi ning this initial design. The building analysis was split into three areas of focus: structure, environment, and construction. Technical investigations were handled in a separate class, SEC Tech. The technical and process-driven approach resulted in a comprehensive understanding of building design elements. Term: Fall 2010 / Spring 2011 Professor: Bob Burnham / Michael Zaretsky Site Location: Bloomfield Hills, MI

SITE

CRANBROOK ACADEMY

PROPOSAL My wellness center proposal responded to a variety of site-specific forces, from terrain to master planning gestures to environmental concerns. The building upholds a Cranbrook planning tradition where new additions are built off existing Eliel Saarinen buildings’ wings to form courtyards. It also engages a prominent east-west datum with an unconventional second floor entrance to a café bridging this axis and allowing users to view its extent in both directions. More specific design decisions included placing the “wet” and “dry” programs in separate wings governed by formal and functional narrative. The sloping ground of the site enhanced this narrative, and provided a concept for the building terracing down the hill. The programmatic elements within the building were distinguished as volumes with varying material applications. Environmental considerations included the use of a louver system and sun scoops.

ABOVE: Site location map. RIGHT: Conceptual sketches of the building. OPPOSITE: Site vicinity plan, note the building’s role in “completing the courtyard.” 50

PARKING LOT

WELLNESS CENTER