Julian Besems stage 2 architecture portfolio by Julian Besems

Julian Besems BA Architecture Stage 2 2014/2015

Learning summary One of the main concerns I have about my experience of this year is my interest in architecture, or rather the lack of it. A lot of my fellow students seem to be more genuinely interested in what is going on in the current field of architecture. Opposed to this my interest is mostly limited to the problem solving elements in a project, this means that my interest in architecture is largely restricted to projects and does not expand into my daily interest. A factor that might influence this is that I don’t experience the course to be particularly intellectually difficult, but mainly a struggle of time. There are hardly any moments when I’m stuck on something because I can’t figure it out; it is mostly the rush to get things done in time. I think because the intellectual challenge is not present enough, it starts to feel more like Some of the peaks I experienced during this year were the first project, Placed Displaced, and a physical challenge, sometimes causing me to lose interest. I think I should start to be more active in looking for theories and including those into the projects to satisfy the intellectual side especially during the 120 hours competition I participated in, together with Alex and Jack. of my learning process. I think there are various reasons for why these projects interested me more than the others. First of all Placed Displaced was the first project of the year and thus the first design work I had done Another concern is about my project output of this year. I am very confident that my designs since four months so I had more motivation than usual to get started. Other than that it was the work and am very content with the marks I am getting, which is why I haven’t added any extra work for my portfolio. Regardless I am rarely happy with my eventual design product. I am not kind of project I enjoy because of its puzzle element, my main interest in architecture. Opposed to that 120 hours was not in a relaxed setting at all since it was during a university entirely sure why I don’t like my designs but I presume it is because I feel like it could still be project. It also had no spatial puzzle element whatsoever. What sparked my interest and better resolved or that it isn’t innovative enough. These assumptions inspire the aspects that I motivation for this project was the goal of something other than just an individual presentation, aim to develop more next year. it had a competitive element. Other than that working with the three of us worked really well, and was a lot of fun. I found that having a conversation about a design with the others enhanced I was however very pleased with one of the review comments I got for prospect and refuge, which said that the Japanese influence into my designs suited my style very well. This is something I my usual, sometimes very one-sided way of thinking. aim for, an elegant but still practical design with mostly geometrical shapes. The troughs were mainly during the middle of living on the edge and right after 120 hours, I think the most evident development I made this year was my capability of efficiently conveying again triggered by different circumstances. my design ideas by visual presentation. However I do not think that that is the most important During living on the edge there was a time when I was really unhappy with my design and development I made, to me that is a far less evident and straightforward development. Through subsequently lost partial interest in the design process. This was later resolved by a small the difficulties I had this year I feel like I have gained a broader view at architecture that makes breakthrough triggered by looking at various precedents and going back to my initial concept me appreciate different approaches to design more, mainly experienced when working with and interpreting that in a broader way. Something I should probably do more in all projects, others. Another useful lesson was to experience how different group work can be. I enjoyed 120 but which is not often triggered because I don’t usually encounter problems that make this hours a lot, but then the mountain hut competition and crossover where a challenge in terms necessary. Because of this I do think that due to the difficulty I had with the project I was forced of teamwork. out of my comfort zone of designing, kick starting a different more abstract design process than My objective for next year is to try and combine my logical way of thinking with more innovative my usual approach. influences and various theories to eventually be able to produce a design both intellectually The reason for my dip after 120 hours was mainly due to boredom and stress, a combination intricate and spatially well resolved. I hope that in that way my interest in architecture will be that seems to contradict itself. The reason for the boredom was simply because I had to go more continuous. back to the by now almost routine like university project. The stress was caused by the fact that I had to catch up on an entire week of work because I spent the whole week on the 120 hours competition. I managed to turn this around by simply working harder than usual for the 2 following weeks by pure self routine. The catching up wasn’t too hard since this project actually suited my way of work very well. It was about figuring out the inside and the structure without worrying about the form, which is what I usually do for the beginning of each project. Because of this I did start to enjoy the project and eventually managed to produce work that I was reasonably happy with. My overall experience throughout second year can be described as sinusoidal. There were a lot of moments where I was more driven to work and had a higher interest in architecture than before. These peaks however then rapidly made way for periods of low motivation for the course and a reduced willingness to put in the hours. The remarkable aspect of this work rhythm was that the quality standards I set for myself did not decrease, because even though I wasn’t as motivated to work or as interested in the course, I still wanted to produce a design I could be happy with. This meant that there were times where I had to compensate last minute for the moments when I didn’t work as much or efficiently as usual.

Due to my usual design approach, Crossover was a real challenge to me because it was more of a sculptural project, as opposed to the usual process of resolving the layout of a building through its function. I do think that is one of my weaknesses and something I ought to be working on.

Julian Besems AP2 Learning Summary, Stage 2, Session 2014/2015

Contents

* I have not added any new work

CHARETTE

PLACED, DISPLACED

LIVING ON THE EDGE

120 HOURS

PROSPECT AND REFUGE

HIMALAYAN MOUNTAIN HUT

CROSSOVER

NON DESIGN WORK

LEARNING JOURNAL

www.learningjournaljbesems.tumblr.com

Julian Besems AP3/AP4 Original and Final Design Submissions*, Stage 2, Session 2014/2015

CHARETTE The week-long project at the start of each year where the different stages work together in groups.

Unheard + Unseen

I was in the project called Unheard + Unseen. We were divided into smaller groups each making a small installation.

Unheard + Unseen The final aim of the weak was to produce a model with some form of viedeomapping projected onto it, accompanied with a recorded sound. After a day of recording different sounds with various microphones our group chose to use the sound produced by a steel mesh fence, recorded with a contact microphone. This sound reminded us of bomb explosions. It inspired us to create an intimidating space, evoking an apocalyptic feeling. We gave this shape by constructing a narrow passage formed by 2 of the fences used for the recording. Onto the fences and the wall behind an inverted black and white video of people walking was projected, interrupted by strobe lighting in sync with the sound explosions.

PLACED, DISPLACED A three week long project on designing a small row house for a three person family, with the overall aim to create a good livable home within a limited space.

The site for this project was situated on Waldo Street in North Shields

Sun intensity on the facades throughout the year.

igher ceiling towards the south, on the ground floor to let sun into the dark basement corner.

Design 1

ouse in Skuragawa, Suppose Design Office

The first design for this project was mainly influenced by looking at Japanese row house architecture. I chose to look at this because Japanese cities are very densely populated and thus the houses have to be very efficient in their use of space, one of the focal points of this project. A common problem in row houses is privacy, which is why I used split-levels to increase the level of privacy within the spaces, without taking up more floor area. This advantage of split-levels is mentioned in Row Houses, A Housing Typology, and can be seen in the precedent on the left; a house in Sakuragawa by Suppose Design Office. Under one of the overlapping levels a bed is located, inspired by the Japanese capsule hotels, as seen on the left.

Capsule hotel Tokyo

Design 2 Another important aspect of the brief is that there has to be a safe place to put the bikes of the family. Instead of making a place for the bikes in the front it seemed more logical to put the bikes in the back garden to save space. This meant however that there had to be a connection form the front door to the lower situated backdoor. This reminded me of the old Dutch row houses as portrayed by Johannes Vermeer, like his painting on the left called â&#x20AC;&#x153;Het straatjeâ&#x20AC;?. In those houses there is a small door next to the house that opens up into an alleyway leading directly to the back garden. I tried to do something similar by making a glass bike tunnel running through the house straight to the back garden.

Het straatje, Johannes Vermeer

Combination Eventually I combined the key aspects of both initial designs. The staircases were brought more to one side of the house. This made a division and alignment between circulation and living spaces throughout the entire building, emphasizing the privacy concerns. ather than fitting in both a bike tunnel and a staircase leading to the ground floor I chose for a different adaptation to connect the street and the garden. The front and backdoor are both situated on either end of the staircase leading to the ground floor, both glazed, maintaining the visual connection between the street and the garden. The staircase is slightly wider with a small steel ramp alongside it, making it possible to bring bikes down to the garden.

Floor Plans Scale 1:100 1

th floor

1st floor 1.1m

rd floor

. m

round floor 0.0m

2nd floor 2. m Basement -3.0m

10 12

To emphasise the division between living and circulation there is a division and allignment between materials and levels throughout the entire building. The circulation spaces have white floors. The living spaces have wooden floors. This line is consistent throughout all levels.

Section Scale 1:50

The ground floor breaks with the continuity of the materials. The higher level is covered with tatami panels, which can be lifted up to use the space below as storage. The sofa in the living area continues this level, inspired by traditional Japanese homes where a higher level within the room was the seating area. The sofa can be closed off from the staircase by two sliding doors.

The facade consists out of thin wooden slats sat on top of a white polymer panel. These materials reflect the interior floor materials. The thin slats extent partially over the windows providing a higher level of privacy. They also make up a vertical sliding door in front of the bin storage.

Wall detail The structure consists of a steel frame structure with a white plasterboard finish on the inside and white polymer panels on the outside.

LIVING ON THE EDGE A six week long project on designing a foyer aimed at accommodating disadvantaged young people. Focusing on the delicate boundary between community and privacy.

The site for this project was situated at the Ouseburn river in Newcastle. I chose site C

Initial considerations for circulation around and inside of the building.

Concrete Bamboo Steel Water pipes

Early thoughts on materiality.

Diagrams

Reuse of heat One of the first main considerations of mine was to find an effective way to reuse the heat generated by the glass workshop. This is why the workshop is on the ground floor with an atrium space directly above it.

Site analysis

Enclosed to open

After talking with Ben Simpson and Finlay McGregor, we decided to each choose one of the three sites and up to a certain level relate our buildings to each other. I chose site C.

I wanted the youngsters to have an enclosed personal area bordering to a semi opened public area in front of their room, which leads to an almost external area. This is to give them safety but still encourage them to go out in a gentle gradual way.

Cultural setting

Vertical layout.

During the site visit the area struck me as alternative non corporate almost hippie like scene. I wanted the foyer to blend into this scene, making it less imposing to the youngsters.

The previous two considerations led to the concept of an open glazed atrium above the workshop, working as a thermal buffer and the semi external area, with balcony walkways around it leading to the enclosed rooms.

Site BCA

Thatch

Because of the orientation of the site it would make sense when the foyer on site B would be lower than the one on site C, and the foyer on site A the highest, in order for all to get access to direct sunlight.

The idea of a thermal box surrounded by a more private building gave rise the use of a thick fluffy material for the main building as if to wrap the atrium. I chose to use thatch like the precedent on the left. Following the concept of a thick material that also blends in well with the alternative scene of the Ouseburn.

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-JWJOH PO UIF FEHF "SKFO 3BFT

ESBHPO DMPVE IPTUFM 4IBOHSJ MB

Heat reuse

Bamboo

Another method I used to reuse the heat generated by the workshop was to put a glass tank above the furnaces. This lets diffuse light into the workshop and works as a heat circulation system in combination with the glass water tank on the roof of the glass atrium, also heated by the sun.

A shallow external staircase supported by a bamboo scaffolding construction provides the access to the roof garden. The advantage of the bamboo is that it is a very sustainable material and in this way it shields off the glass atrium ensuring more privacy.

Chinese hostel The indoor balcony corridors were inspired by a Chinese youth hostel where they glazed the walkway around the old courtyard forming a seating area in front of the rooms.

Panel construction

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Circulation and Seating

The layout of the individual rooms, and the use of panel construction are inspired by the rooms of the Biohotel im Apfelgarten, by Deppish Architecten.

This use of the circulation area in front of the rooms would hopefully encourage the youngsters staying in the foyer to socialize in a less forced way.

Glass

Sustainability

The windows in the glass workshop are also the storage shelves for the colour rods used for glass blowing. This will colour the light coming into the workshop.

To fit into the Ouseburn area I deemed it important to make a sustainable foyer. The main measurements I took for this was to use hemp Crete for the main construction clad with a layer of thatch, both organic materials. The reuse of the heat in the workshop was another driving idea behind the design.

Section Scale 1:100

Floor Plans Scale 1:200 1

round floor

1st floor

Floor Plans Scale 1:150 1

2nd floor

Floor Plans Scale 1:200 1

rd floor

th floor

Combined photo montage with Ben Simpson

120 HOURS An

annual global competition for architecture students. Together with Alex Borrell and Jack Lewandowski, I participated in this competition. This year the competition was about experimental preservation. The objective was to propose a means of architectural preservation of the abandoned settlement Pyramiden on Svalbard.

The most northern settlement in the world, Pyramiden, is a town that time forgot. As architects, we often look to solve problems through construction; this however is not applicable in the preservation of Pyramiden because the destruction is not that of buildings but of society itself. Pyramiden was a coal mining town founded by the Swedish in 1910, and later sold to the U.S.S.R.. As the abundance of coal diminished, the only thing left is the relentless light that is continuously present in summer, and constantly absent in winter. Optical manipulations of light are used to tell the story. We aim to repopulate Pyramiden by preserving its history of depopulation. The title ‘The Wisps’ stems from European Folklore, in which wisps are atmospheric ghost lights seen by travellers. Here they are represented as holographic images. In folklore, wisps disappear when a traveller reaches them, guiding them along a path. Pyramiden’s Wisps are not intended to dictate a route but create destination points. They are triggered by EMF’s emitted by satellite phones, gps and other technology. Sensors placed around the town control the projections. By doing so, the Wisps appear upon the presence of the 21st century man, not by nature.1

had significant fauna before. They planted grass, and with it a community. The grass pier that visitors walk along upon first arrival brings growth to an unexpected place. At the end stands a transparent cube; encasing a singular grass seed in the centre. By making one of the sides a magnifying lens it emphasises the significance of the seed and with it the introduction of life.2 The journey then leads to the town square, where there is a sign of the Trust Arktikugol coal company. A red shipping container, broken down into quarters stands along the plaza, each with a lens placed within. Together they form a cloaking device based on the Rochester cloak. If one stands in front of the first container, the lenses hide the sign, revealing what’s behind – a bust of Vladimir Lenin, the forefather of communism. The intention is to symbolically reveal the truth behind the dark history of the communist regime.3

The story begins at the dock, the arrival point of Pyramiden. The Russians introduced nature into a place so barren it never

The final chapter leads to Pyramiden’s coal storage building. By placing 60 holes in the roof, the lives of the last people to live in Pyramiden are represented through beams of light that pierce the space. In the winter months when daylight does not reach Pyramiden, this space will be illuminated. This reverses the effect,v with beams of light projecting into the night sky creating a beacon, seen for miles around as a monument to the lives and tales of those who have been forgotten.4

2618

GRASS PIER

TRANSPARENT CUBE

CLOAKING DEVICE

VIEW THROUGH FIRST CONTAINER

THE BEACON

BEAMS OF LIGHT

2618

PROSPECT AND REFUGE A six week long project on designing a university building with community aspects in Amble. The project focuses on three main elements: Reciprocity, Tectonics and Sustainability, to be contained within a cuboid building of 15.6 x 15.6 x 15.6m.

The site for this project was situated near the harbour in Amble

Location chosen after consideration of the following site factors

Noise from the quayside

Shadows cast by buildings, so avoid placing the building there

This line is more than 30째 of south, less good for sustainability reasons Following this line is within 30째 of South, better for solar gain Not possible to place building due to restrictions in the brief

Sun path

Early sketch of the structural grid

Early sketch of the division of the two cubes

Recycling Since two of the key elements of this project outlined in the brief are sustainability and a timber grid structure I wanted to combine those factors. A personal opinion after reading the brief was that it seemed like a very incoherent and possibly not very plausible use of a building in that place. This is why I chose to use standard measurement materials where possible so that if the building would have to be deconstructed the materials could be easily reused. A consequence of using standard materials was that the beams were not the 15.6 m given the brief, but 13.5. To still make a cube of 15.6m I combined two cubes of 13.5 metres forming a cube of 15.6 with two cut out corners of 2.1m.

Two cubes The form of two smaller cubes forming one bigger cube fit in well with the prospect and refuge and the twin phenomena theories. I chose to make the cube orientated to the north the refuge and thus more enclosed cube, and the cube directed to the south and thus the village the prospect cube. To form a weather resistant sheltered cube on the north I chose to clad that cube with dark blue almost black corrugated steel, inspired by the two precedents on the right. To make the most out of the sunlight on the south that cube has more glazed areas. To contrast the north cube it is cladded with a light timber.

Adaptable

Komyo-ji temple, Tadao Ando

A further elaboration on the concept of being able to recycle the building is to make it adaptable to different ways the building can be used in case the destination plan for the building changes. After looking at various Japanese timber structure buildings I came across the Komyo-ji temple designed by Tadao Ando. This temple has columns consisting out of 4 smaller timber columns. This gave me the idea to make doors that can be unbolted and bolted into place in between four columns. This forms another twin phenomena within my design, Flexible and Fixed.

Sustainability strategy

Prospect

I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want the main staircase to be in the fire core so I chose to have a wider staircase towards the outside of the north cube. Since staircases have the lowest mean temperature within a building this would also work as a thermal barrier since it is situated towards the north. The concrete fire core is situated towards the south behind a glazed atrium space in order for it to act as a thermal mass. The atrium enables natural ventilation by means of stack effect.

To draw people interested in Newcastle University into the building one of the walls of the south cube on the first floor is a projection screen. The projection is projected form the inside onto a semi transparent panel in the wall.

Light and journey Since Alex Borrell, Jack Lewandowski and I participated in the 120 hours competition during this project I wanted to integrate our concept for the competition into this project. Our main idea was guiding people through the abandoned village of Piramiden by light. I adapted this idea by forming making different light effects by using various windows within the circulation spaces. For ideas to do this I once again looked at Japanese architecture and specifically Tadao Andoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work. The passage to the lecture theatre is mainly inspired by the first two precedents on the right. The external elements and the north staircase use slatted windows that get higher towards the destination, inspired by the third precedent on the right.

Minamidera, James Turrell & Tadao Ando

Koshino House, Tadao Ando

Sound The external area around the cube is clearly split into two areas the busy uayside and the uiet grass field with the sand dunes. I aimed to enhance the grass field by making it more split off from the disturbing quayside by making a sound barrier between them. I chose to design a brettstapel covered walkway with entrances on intervals from the customs house to the cube. The side towards the quayside would be covered with plants to improve itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sound blocking qualities, and towards the grass there would be benches on the outside of the walkway.

Section Scale 1:150

Section Scale 1:500

Site plan

Floor Plans Scale 1:200 1

round floor

Floor Plans Scale 1:200 1

1st floor

2nd floor

Floor Plans Scale 1:200 1

rd floor

th floor

Adaptable wall system

Lecture theatre wall To underline the Japanese influences in my design and to make a connection between the corridor to the lecture theatre and the lecture theatre itself I chose to use a paper wall for in between the top of the lecture theatre and the top of the corridor. This would let sound through to the corridor to form an audible connection and let a dim light through from the windows in the corridor.

HIMALAYAN MOUNTAIN HUT An international architecture competition organised by HMMD. Together with Alex Borrell, Tom Badger and Jack Lewandowski, I participated in this competition. The objective was to design the first mountain hut in the Himalayas in a sustainable and community-friendly way.

THE NEW VERNACULAR

The first mountain hut in the Himalayas offers a unique opportunity, not only to create a new building, but an entirely new vision of innovative design. In order to accommodate for programmatic change and a profound sense of place, a modular system is proposed, not a fixed building design. Inspired by local practices and materials, the project offers a truly flexible, transportable and sustainable architecture. Each hut is based upon the premise of giving back to the community, beginning with a modular system based on the traditional DOKO baskets, used by porters in the Himalayas. These modules maintain the same ergonomics of the traditional baskets, being the width of the waist at the base and the width of the shoulder at the top. In transport, the modules become an efficient way of carrying material, on site they form a rigid, cross-braced wall system. Each module is woven out of bamboo, a material that has the potential to make great social and economic changes. Under an already existing legislation, the material can be grown by Community Forestry Users, on land received from the government. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also a chance to reintegrate the traditional bamboo craftspeople; who belong to the poorest of castes, into society. The module and its contents would be weighted so as to not cause unnecessary strain on any porter. Alongside a positive economic and social impact, this proposal offers a chance to bring the culture of Nepal to international attention.

GROWN BY

MADE BY

TRANSPORTED BY

COMMUNITY FORESTRY USERS

THE POOREST OF CASTES

THE PORTERS OF NEPAL

Ground Floor Plan

First Floor Plan

The design shown is for a mid-sized hut offering comfortable accommodation for 14 people. Depending on the location and required program the design can be extended or condensed on any of the three axes to accommodate.

Cross Section

At the heart of each mountain hut is a fireplace and a large table, a place to sit, talk and enjoy. The warmth from the central fire radiates in to the inhabited spaces, being used as a focal point for seating on one side and a kitchen on the other. The large stonewall offers a thermal massing system to create consistent heat. A minimal material pallet is used to highlight the use of bamboo and the beneficial impacts it has on the people of Nepal. The exposed space frame creates a feeling of openness to the space.

The lightweight suspended staircase leads into the bedroom, situated into the roof space to minimise space-heating requirements. The dividing walls are integrated into the roofs structure and allow a sense of privacy. If required curtains can be drawn to close the bed off completely from the space. Storage for personal belongings is located beside each bed in the eaves of the pitched roof.

Longitudinal Section

When stacked, the Doko modules form a rigid, cross-braced structural wall that can be quickly constructed on site. The large cavity in the modules offers space to be filled with insulation to create optimal thermal performance in such cold climates.

Due to transportation limitations, small components offer the most efficient method of construction. A space frame is constructed using sections of bamboo no longer than 800mm in length. These lengths are designed to fit within the dimensions of the porterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s baskets.

The gabion wall foundation is divided into three sections along the length of the building. These spaces house servicing; a cold storage* for larger items, a water filtration system and waste collection. *(Further storage is situated within the building)

Each module contains two types of joint. Steel screw joints (A) are used to connect the cross bracing, whilst a telescope joint (B) is used to create vertical continuity through the modular walls.

Sections of bamboo within the space frame are fixed using a steel ball and screw mechanism. This allows for a strong, yet lightweight system that can be easily constructed on site. The building can be extended post construction to accommodate changes in building program.

The foundation design offers flexibility of location. By using a gabion wall system a stable foundation can be achieved regardless of site typography. Material can be sourced at site, reducing transportation needs.

CROSSOVER A three week long group project together with civil engineers. The objective of the project was to use timber constructions to form stages for a busking festival set in the chares of Newcastle.

Chair Additionally to the posters we also designed a chair to promote the festival. The idea was that these chairs would be situated throughout Newcastle the weeks before and during the festivals. The weeks before the festival the chair would start playing music from bands scheduled to perform at the festival. During the festival it would play a live feed of the main stage of the festival whenever someone sat down on one. The idea behind this was to emphasise the fairy tale and magical influence of the festival. We made one functioning prototype of the chair. On the photo of the right you can see the pressure button held down by a block of wood connected to a lever that lifts the block up when someone sits on the chair. This means that the button lets through a current closing the circuit of the speaker and the iPod connected to both end of the wire.

Flipbook For the video we made a flipbook serial vision walking down from the top of broad chare towards the quayside. The thought behind this was to illustrate the fairy tale concept by using a book and a less realistic representation of the site. The video of the flipbook is in my learning journal.

Section W-E

Section E-W

PART 1 After a treacherous voyage through the orth Sea, the thick fog that had indefinitely enveloped the lone sailor began to lift, and through the haze, far in the distance, appeared an arch. leaming, pointed and magnificent in its stature, its magnetic allure pulled the sailor and his ship towards the enchanted shores. The bitter, relentless force of nature had now ceased from the water and the wind; replaced altogether by an unfamiliar peace and tran uillity. A sense of calm overcame the sailor for the first time since his departure. Confused and perplexed, the sailor moored his battered boat and eagerly jumped ashore. He was confronted by a vast land of fantasy, unlike anything he had seen before. From the sight of large lily pads floating on crystal waters to the sweet pollen scents that wafted up his nostrils. He bounced onwards, guided only by an innate yearning to discover more of the uncharted lands, until abruptly stopped in his tracks buy the faintly audible sound of a sweet melody in the distance. He turned, and was lured to the archway; moving without intent but transfixed by its beauty and magnetism. e entered through the all encompassing construction only to find his perception distorted. Feet moving almost without consciousness, he floated through the tunnel, carried by a weightlessness conducted up and down to the faint musical notes reaching his ears. His euphoria and jubilation began to overwhelm his true self. Then he saw it. A giant figure, tall in stature, directly in front of him and perfecting framed by the arches, strumming a cool melody. The looming giant and his companions, that seemed to rally in numbers as seconds ticked by, just as stars multiply the longer one stares at the night sky, was defensive and intimidating in appearance; but before the sailor could consider turning back to safety, they spotted him. There was a momentary standoff, where the sailor locked eye contact with the obvious leader of the pack, and then a sudden jolt of moment. Winding, zigzagging, twisting and turning the sailor avoided the numerous giantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smacks and whacks and quickly turned his hurried walk to a panicked sprint through the illusive arches. As he ran, a change occurred, a transition of space and perception. He escaped the desperate advances and grips of the giants and all of a sudden panic subdued slightly. Calm sounds arose again, stirring an empowerment within. He persevered through the arches, an inquisitive desire driving him again; and as the music grew so did he. With every step he took, he experienced a physical growth that gathered until he and the giants were equals.

Cross section 1

PART 2 Without a glance back he continued to run until he came across a small and rickety house, placed upon a series of thin stilts, spindly but anchored to ground by the power of nature and the passage of time. The quaint cottage was encased within a beautiful garden of brightly coloured trees. Most intriguing of all, however, was a gigantic and mysterious egg perched delicately underneath the house. He ran and cowered behind it, too distracted by the giants to realise the impending danger from aboveâ&#x20AC;Ś The panicked sailor cowered in his place of refuge while the giants continued their search past the egg and into a mythical forest further up the cobbled path. nchanting music, surely a witchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work, began to infiltrate the na ve mind of the sailor. It made a crescendo up, in, around and down throughout his consciousness until it began to take over completely: entranced, and unable to call for help, the sailor was trapped. The egg was not musical, not beautiful, not truthful, but solely a distraction to lure the vulnerable in. The music continued, magically delightful tunes from above. The most beautiful acoustic melodies the sailor had ever heard... until they stopped. There was a sudden blinding gleam of light, so encompassing that what seemed reality became distorted as the sailor felt himself being lifted by his collar by an unknown gravity-defying force, still out of control of his own movements. Little by little he rose, until the egg and the witches house vanished within its entwining garden into a mere mirage of memory. The sailor began to regain a sense of perception and noticed two small, brightly coloured winged creatures, were lifting him. Each no bigger than a large insect, they carried him past the vast enchanted forest that now passed below him, a few metres from tickling his dangling feet. Now apparently safe from danger, the sailor was overwhelmed by a sense of liberation, as he was now able to appreciate the beauty of the forest beneath. Legs swinging, wind on his face, for a moment the sailors mind was at ease, until he realised he was heading towards the dark depths of the woodland belowâ&#x20AC;Ś

Cross section 2

PART 3 “To save the princess, follow the music,” the fairies whispered simultaneously as they dropped the sailor on the dark, dirty forest floor. And there he was, lost. Desperately searching he looked left and right, but it was all identical. The paths warped as he looked down, and looming sinister darkness descended upon the forest, whistling wind carrying the faint undertone of a beautiful song. He began to feel like he was being watched. From the depths of the dense woodland, paranoia started unsettling his every step as his footsteps squelched on the slippery, lifeless cobblestoned pathways below him. The smell of rotting vegetation filled his nostrils whilst the rough textured bark scratched at his hands as he used the dead trees to steady his balance. He continued to make his way through the perilous terrain towards where he believed the sound was resonating. Time ticked away and as the night fell the forest became even more alive… Suddenly, out of the darkness a bright light in the distance illuminated a small window looking over the forest. A woman stood in the frame, a dark silhouette standing in all her splendour, singing a lullaby into the dark night. It was not only the flickering light that became visible as darkness fell, but also the eyes of the beasts hunting the movements of the sailor. With all his energy he hurried towards the princess, shouting as he went. In his terror however, not only did he attract her attention, but also the attention of the unwanted… A dark creature emerged from the undergrowth, with the large devil-like threatening yellow eyes that had been scouting the sailor throughout his forest voyage. He continued to run, with the tall, dark shadow galloping after him, its footsteps shaking the vegetation below. It was getting closer…closer, and then they came back for him. The small winged creatures once again lifted the sailor from his collared uniform directly into the window where the princess stood, knocking her from her feet as they threw the sailor from danger into the top comfort the vast candle lit stone structure. Music had brought him here; it had been his calling ever since he arrived in this perilous land. He had succeeded.

Cross section 3

NON-DESIGN WORK Various coursework assignments on different topics, such as structural details and the comparison of two buildings built within 20 years of each other.

Contents Architectural Technology ARC 2009

Environmental Design and Services ARC 2010

Twentieth Century Architecture ARC 2011

100

Dissertation Studies and Research Methods ARC 2020

105

The Place of Houses ARC 2023

107

Julian Besems AP5 Non-design module coursework, Stage 2, Session 2014/2015

Architectural Technology ARC 2009

Primary, Secondary and Tertiary structure

Architectural Technology Coursework Living on the Edge Employed form of structure The glass workshop itself is embedded into the site. It consists out of in-situ cast concrete with retaining walls and a concrete floor on top of it, also forming the floor of the rest of the foyer. The foyer building itself is a hempcrete construction supported by a timber frame structure. These frames are precast as panels and brought to the site ready to put in place. Where possible the intermediate floors are also made out of hempcrete construction with timber I beams, but on floors where there are cantilevers this is not possible. The structure of the cantilevered floors are cross laminated timber sheets, shown as solid floors in the diagrams. The roofâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s structure is a cross laminated sheet as well. The separation walls of the foyer rooms are timber panels, partially bearing the load of the cross laminated panel above. The glass construction on top of the glass workshop consists out of a steel beam structure.

Primary structure

Scale 1:200 Colour indication

Primary and Secondarystructure

Section of North-East facing wall 1 2 .1 .2

Scale 1:20

Roof External wall round floor Intermediate floor Intermediate floor Window

Tectonic intent

The choise of materials I used was mainly influenced by the presence of the glass workshop. This needed to be concrete both because of the need for retaining walls and because of the fire hazard caused by the glass blowing. In an effort to reuse the heat generated by the furnaces I chose to make a high space right above the glass workshop heated by the heat generated by the ovens used in the workshop. All of the spaces in the foyer are adjacent to this space. In order for those spaces to have access to daylight the high buffer space has to be made out of glass. This creates a reasonably poorly insulated and fragile inner core of the building. To counter this on both sustainable and esthetic level I wanted to wrap this core in a surrounding building built up by a thick and â&#x20AC;&#x153;fuzzyâ&#x20AC;? material. Because of sustainability reasons I chose to use a hempcrete construction, also to adapt to the relative alternative area of the site, with the Ouseburn Farm as its sustainable centre. To improve the insulation of the external wall I cladded it with a layer of water reed thatch. This combination of the glass core with a thick construction around it results in a thick and protecive shell towards the street but a more open and inviting core towards the river encouraging the youngsters to get out of their room and into the open again, but still protected form the outside.

Extensive green roof

Scale 1:10

Soil 100mm Filter fabric Reservoir layer 100mm Moisture retention layer Aeriation layer Rigid insulation 240mm Drainage layer Root barrier Protection course Waterproofing membrane Cross laminated Timber shee 165mm Vapour permeable board 9mm Lime based plaster 3mm

The U value for the wall remained the same: 0.12

After the alteration of materials used due to structural reasons the revised U value of the roof is 0.11

Total thickness: 710mm Floor finish 0mm Screed 40mm Rigid insulation 140mm Concrete subfloor 200mm DPM Hardcore layer 300mm In situ concrete foundation

Total thickness: 767mm (307mm without thatch) Water reed thatch 400mm Perforated steel tray 5mm Timber board 30mm Horizontal timber battens 30x50mm Vertical timber battens 30x50mm Breather membrane Timber frame 265x150mm Hempcrete 265mm Vapour permeable board 9mm Lime based plaster 3mm

Total thickness: 617mm

Concrete ground floor

External hempcreed wall with timber frame

Scale 1:10

Intermediate hempcrete floor with timber beams

Scale 1:10

Intermediate cross laminated floor

Scale 1:10

Wooden frame window

Scale 1:1

After the alteration of materials used due to structural reasons the revised U value of the ground floor of the tutors flat is 0.11

Architectural technology coursework Prospect and Refuge Vertical circulation within the building Lift: The dimensions of the lift serving all floors follow the minimum requirements for a passenger lift. Because the lift opening shifts after the ground floor and the second floor the lift is 1400mm wide and deep. Diagram 11 p 38

Access for All

Disabled parking Since the surrounding area offers sufficient parking space for visitors there is only a small parking area for staff and disabled persons.

There is an unobstructed manoeuvring space in front of the lift opening on all floors. P37, 3.28a

The two disabled parking bays is located as close as possible to the main ground floor entrance to the building, 10 metres from the entrance and on the same level. The parking bay is asphalt, making it firm, durable and slip resistant. The dimensions of the parking bay are 2400mm by 4800mm with a strip of 1200mm surrounding it, with a disabled sign of 1400mm in the middle of the parking bay. No crossing of a road is needed to access the building from the parking bays. pP20, 1.18

The buttons are all provided with braille writing for the visually impaired. P37, 3.28c The wall surfaces of the lift are not reflective to avoid discomfort of the visual and hearing impaired. P38, 3.32 Staircases: The treads of the staircases are 250mm with a rise of 150mm, this is the same throughout the entire building to make the staircases easier to use for the visually impaired. 1.33 p23

Route to entrance There are two primary entrance routes to the building. The one coming from the east is formed by a levelled footpath and thus already wheelchair accessible. This footpath leads to the ground floor entrance via the covered walkway.

All staircases are equipped with a handrail 900mm above the pitch line and designed with curves at the end to avoid clothing getting stuck. P23 diagram 4 and 5

The immediate area around the building is not accessible to vehicles except for staff and disabled parking with an access route of more than 1800mm wide. P18, 1.11

The landings of the staircases are equipped with a Corduroy hazard-warning surface. P22, 1.33c

The area on the west of the covered walkway is all levelled with the quayside, east of the covered walkway is grass and completely non-accessible to motorized vehicles. P18 1.6, 1.9 The main covered passage to the ground floor entrance is 2000mm wide, well lit and indicated with the international symbol of access, also indicated on the side of the passageway making it clearly visible from the parking area. P19, 1.13g, P27, 2.7a The covered walkway access limits the danger of inadvertently walking into the vehicle access route, leading to the parking spaces near the building. P19, 1.13h

Sanitary accommodation For the comfort of wheelchair users at least one Wheelchair-accessible unisex toilet is situated on each floor except for the first floor where the likelihood of staying on that floor for a longer period of time is very low. Every wheelchair-accessible toilet is equipped with an emergency assistance alarm. P52, 5.4 h Lecture theatre The lecture theatre has room for at least 2 disabled seat area’s at the front and has immediate access from the ground floor making the use of a lift not necessary and thus eliminates long waiting times. P44, 4.12

The walkway and the plateau for the first floor entrance provide weather protection. P 27, 2.6

A hearing enhancement system is provided for people with impaired hearing. P51, 4.36

The main entrance is equipped with automatic manually operated sliding doors, which can be completely manually opened in case of fire P28, 2.10

Hearing impairment For people with a hearing impairment like tinnitus rooms with a high sound reflecting property can be very unpleasant because of the mixing of different sound sources, especially in places with a high occupancy level. This is why the ceilings of all rooms are covered with a sound absorbing fabric. P38, 3.32

Access within the building The majority of the corridors within the building have an unobstructed width of 1870mm making it possible for wheelchair users to pass each other. Where the corridors are less than 1800mm the length is very short so that no problems for wheelchair users to pass each other in the intervals between. P36, 3.14c

This is also installed in hallways, so that announcements can be clearly heard. P35, 3.13

The manually operated doors within the buildings do not exceed an opening force of 20N. P34, 3.10a The wooden doors form a clear contrast with the surrounding white walls making it more convenient for the visually impaired. P34, 3.10f

Notes: All article numbers in Means of Escape refer to Approved Document M – Access to and use of buildings

Reception The reception is found on the first floor easily accessible by lift from the ground floor and clearly indicated on the ground floor. The manoeuvring area in front of the reception is 1200mm by 1800mm with a knee recess of 500mm and a height of 760mm. P33, 3.6 d There is no glass sheet in front of the reception, which could limit the possibility of lip reading for persons with a hearing impairment. P33, 3.4 Because the reception is not orientated directly to the main entrance external noise won’t be a problem, and is provided with an induction loop. P33, 3.6a,g The information signs have braille writing to enable efficient coordination through the building for the visually impaired.

Minimum Stair width for each stair

Means of Escape Floor Ground floor

Room

Floor space factor (m2/person)

Occupant capacity (persons)(1)

Floor capacity (persons)(2)

Staircase

1.5

Entrance area

13.4

Exhibition area 1

34.6

1.5

23.06666667

Lecture theatre (3)

157

42.7

6.857142857

Exhibition area 2

41.3

1.5

27.53333333

Classroom

65.1

3 rd floor

Café

32.8

Seminar room

60.5

4 th floor

Open study cells

53.1

8.85

Personal study area 1

Personal study area 2

Personal study area 3

1.166666667

Personal study area 4

7.38

1.23

Office

21.6

3.6

8.333333333

41.2

1.5

floor

2 nd floor

5 th floor

Aquarium room

Area (m2)

Reception Library

Communal study area Observation deck

27.46666667 Total building capacity

100 94

17 36 447

Minimum escape route corridor & door opening width for each storey Number of people using the corridors and door openings

Minimum width (mm) (1)

Ground Floor 157-94=63(2) 850 Lecture theatre 94(2) 850 st (2) 1 floor 43+94=137 1050 nd 2 floor 100 850 3 rd floor 94 850 4 th floor 17 750 th 5 floor 36 750 Notes: 1. As stated in Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses, 3.18, p37 2. The lecture theatre has it’s own corridor leading directly outside without access to the first floor so the capacity of the lecture theatre is not taken into account for the minimum corridor & door opening width of the ground floor, but has it’s own calculation for that corridor. In case that corridor is obstructed due to the fire the other exit will lead onto the first floor which is why the lecture theatre capacity is taken into account for the minimum corridor & door opening width of the 1st floor.

Number of floors served

Number of people served

Minimum width (mm) (1)

Fire core Floor 2-5 4 100+94+17+36=247 1000 Outer stairs Floor 1-5 5 43+100+94+17+36=290 1000(2) External stairs Floor 1 & lecture theatre 2 43+94=137 1000(2) Lecture theatre Lecture theatre 1 94 1000 stairs Notes: 1. As stated in Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses, Table 7, p47 2. Due to the minimum escape route corridor & door opening width of 1050mm on floor one all of the stair cases serving the first floor will also have to be 1050mm wide at least from the first floor to the ground floor, according to Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses, 4.15a, p46

Minimum width for each Final exit According to the formula (1): W = ((N/2.5) + (60S))/80 Where: W=Width of final exit (m)

Notes: 1. As stated in Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses, Appendix C, 2., p137 2. Since persons are not a dividable quantity this value is rounded up to the next whole number rather than rounded off to the nearest whole number. 3. In this table only included on the ground floor bit has both an exit on the ground floor and to the first floor so in some further calculations it will be included into some calculations regarding the first floor.

Storey

Floors served

N=number of people served by final exit

S=Stair width (m)

The main exit on the ground floor: W=1.0 W=((284/2.5) + (60x1.0))/80 = (113.6 + 60)/80 = 173.6/80 = 2.17 m

N= 447-94-26-43=284 (2)

The ground floor exit from the outer staircase: W=1.05 W=((327/2.5) + (60x1.05))/80 = (130.8 + 68)/80 = 198.8/80 = 2.49 m

N= 447-94-26=327 (3)

For the exit from the lecture theatre: W=1.0 W=((94/2.5) + (60x1.0))/80 = (37.6+60)/80 = 97.6/80 = 1.22 m

N=94

The first floor exit: W=1.0 W=((117/2.5) + (60x1.0))/80 = (46.8+60)/80 = 106.8/80 = 1.34 m

N=94+43=117

Notes: 1. As stated in Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses, 3.23, p38 2. Total capacity of the building minus the lecture theatre capacity and the aquarium room since these have their own immediate exits, in the case of the lecture theatre it has two exits both not using the main ground floor exit. Also minus the first floor because the fire core does not serve as a primary escape route for the first floor. 3. Total capacity of the building minus the lecture theatre capacity and the aquarium room since these have their own immediate exits, in the case of the lecture theatre it has two exits both not using the main ground floor exit. Additional Information -To guarantee fire safety for the staircase which is not the fire core it will be encased in an enclosure of cross laminated timber with a 60 minute rating1, with on the inside a double layer of plasterboard to prevent the inside from catching fire. This way it fulfils the requirements stated in Table A2, Appendix A, P1222 -There is an immediate escape route to outside from lecture theatre because that is the most densely populated area in the building. -Automatically triggered fire curtains are installed around the atrium running from the first floor to the top floor in order to stop the spread of fire through this. -The Central fire core is located most centrally in the building as possible, making it easily reachable in case of a fire. -Every floor has an evac chair on every main landing of each staircase. -All fire alarms emit a visual and audible alarm for hearing and visual impaired persons P21, 1.342 -To reduce the risk of life and damage an automatic sprinkler system is fitted throughout the entire building P11, 0.162 Notes: 1: as mentioned on http://www.greenspec.co.uk/building-design/crosslam-timber-fire-resistance-and-rating/ 2: Approved Document B (Fire safety) Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwelling houses

Environmental Design and Services ARC 2010

In This coursework we were asked to perform an SAP evaluation on the tutors flat in the living on the edge project. I will start with calculating the U values of the different external elements of the tutors flat. Followed by the explanation of changes I made in order to improve the SAP value of the tutors flat. Then I will explain how I distributed the altered areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s of glazing to achieve the optimal natural light quality throughout the tutors flat. Finally I will discuss my overall energy strategy

Walls

battens

The primary wall construction of the building is hempcrete. I chose this material because of the sustainable characteristics it has, thanks to a relatively high insulating quality and because of the use of hemp in the material, a very fast growing and environmentally friendly product. Especially because the Ouseburn area is a relatively alternative area mainly represented by the biological Ouseburn Farm I wanted to use sustainable materials. The outside of this hempcrete construction is covered with a layer of thatch consisting out of water reed, to act as extra insulation, again chosen for its environmentally friendly characteristics. The hempcrete construction consists out of an external sheet of plywood, the hempcrete mass with an integrated wooden frame, and an internal plaster finish on top of a vapour permeable carrier board. The thatch is then attached onto the plywood using horizontal battens. The U value calculation of this wall construction is as follows:

plywood

material

W/mK

thickness in mm

R calculation

plaster

0.46

R1= (1/0.46) x (3/1000)=0.0065

vapour permeable carrier board

0.26

R2= (1/0.26) x (9/1000)=0.035

hempcrete

0.07

265

plywood

0.14

water reed

0.09

400

R3= (1/0.07) x (265/1000)=3.79 R4=(1/0.14) x (28/1000)=0.2 R4=(1/0.09) x (400/1000)=4.44

U=1/(0.12+0.06+0.0065+0.035+3.79+0.2+4.44)=1/8.65=0.12

battens thatch wooden frame hempcrete

Floor Most of the ground floor of the tutors flat is the ceiling of the gallery underneath. Part of it is overhanging over the entrance of the gallery making a sheltered outside space. Because of this overhang a hempcrete floor construction would probably not work structurally. To enable this overhang the ground floor of the tutors flat is a concrete beam http://www.carbonfilmheating.co.uk/water-underfloor-heating-floorand block floor. Possibly with floor constructions.html heating powered by the central water heating system of the foyer, which will be specified later. After adjustment the rigid insulation changed from 140mm to 200mm. The U value calculation of this floor construction after alteration is as follows: material

plaster

thickness in mm

R calculation

wooden ďŹ&#x201A;ooring

0.14

R1= (1/0.14) x (20/1000)=0.14

screed

0.41

R2= (1/0.41) x (60/1000)=0.14

0.033

200

R3= (1/0.033) x (200/1000)=6.06

1.4

150

R4=(1/1.4) x (150/1000)=0.11

rigid insulation vapour permeable board

W/mK

concrete blocks

U=1/(0.12+0.06+0.14+0.14+6.06+0.11)=1/(8.65)=1/6.63=0.15

Roof The roof area functions as the personal outdoor space for the tutors flat and is thus a green roof. The roof of the main building is the communal garden and has larger plants on it thus being an extensive roof construction. The private garden for the tutors family has less vegetation and is and e x t e n s i v e g re e n ro o f c o n s t r u c t i o n . Hempcrete is not suitable for flat roofs Knauf insulation green roof brochure because of its vulnerability for liquid and certainly not suited for a green roof due to the load. Due to this the roof has a standard concrete warm extensive roof construction.

The most fundamental change I had to make to the tutors flat was to reduce the size of the flat, in the initial design the tutors flat consisted out of one ground floor with another split level floor above it making it a total of 146 m2. This resulted in a high ventilation heat loss and a high heating cost. I chose to get rid of the higher bit of the split level floor, making this into a roof garden for the tutors flat, reducing the total floor area to 110 m2. Another issue was that because of the split level the ceiling hight of the lower part of the split level was very high, 4.8m. I reduced this to a standard ceiling height of 2.5m. Making the roof of the second floor about 1 meter higher than the roof garden, allowing for a south-west facing window strip. On top of the second floor there is a public indoor seating area mainly made of glass to continue the style of the rest of the foyer building. Just like the ceiling of the second floor I reduced the lower ceiling height of the ground floor to 2.5m. There is still a loft on the ground floor of 4m high. Initially the north-east facing wall was not covered with thatch, the heat loss because of this was very substantial so I chose to cover this wall with thatch as well. The window area on the north-east facing wall has been reduced to prevent excessive heat loss. Because of the removal of the third storey the bedroom of that floor moved to the ground floor. I also chose to transform the open plan layout of the ground floor to a partition between living room and a combined kitchen and dining area, in order to reduce the mean internal temperature. Because of this there had to be two separate windows, one for the living room and one for the kitchen and dining. I made the main window smaller but the overall window area on the south-east facing wall increased. but because of the removal of the third floor the eventual window area on this wall is still smaller than it was. After the removal of the third floor, which had a door leading straight onto the communal roofgarden, there are no doors leading straight outside anymore. The two entrances to the tutors flat are now from the main circulation area of the foyer building and the communal seating area on the roof. Because of the heating system of the foyer that will be discussed later, I chose to install a smaller boiler which is only for backup.

The U value calculation of this roof construction is as follows: material

W/mK

rigid insulation screed concrete plasterboard

thickness in mm

R calculation

0.033

240

R1= (1/0.033) x (240/1000)=7.27

0.41

R2= (1/0.41) x (40/1000)=0.098

1.4

150

0.16

R3= (1/1.4) x (150/1000)=1.1 R4=(1/0.16) x (13/1000)=0.081

U=1/(0.12+0.06+7.27+0.098+1.1+0.081)=1/8.73=0.11

Windows

Because of the reasonably large amount of glazing in the tutors flat the windows were the cause of most of the heat loss, which made it necessary to find a low U value window. The windows I chose for after alteration are: ANDERSEN® 400 Series Picture Low-E4® SmartSunTM w/ HeatLockTM With a U value of 0.22

Andersen product detail brochure

Energy Efﬁciency

I used these U values and other factors to determine the SAP and CO2 emission values of my tutors flat, these are the outcomes from before and after the alteration of the design and use of materials.

DER/TER % Initial

-4%

Altered

45%

Credits

SAP

CO2 emission

kg CO2/m2

kg CO2/year

N/A 9

total energy cost £/year

solar gains in Watts

internal gains in Watts

useful gains in Watts

Heat loss parameter

total floor area in m2

81.5

3213

22.1

537

961

881

1680

1.7

146

87.3

1762

16.0

300

459

711

978

1.1

110

Distribution of Glazing

The main entrance to the flat is a glass door (window D) coming from the glazed main circulation/indoor garden of the main foyer building. Because this is a very bright area some light will come through this glass door, the degree of transmission of this door is set to 40%. The main issue of not enough lighting on the ground floor is the back area of the bedroom which is too dark, and the circulation are between the entrance and the kitchen. But since these are both not primary living area’s this is not a mayor issue. And there is some excessive daylight right in front of the windows of the living room and the kitchen.   ground ﬂoor in lan

After the changes made to the design in order to achieve a better SAP score the windows also changed but the form and exact place of those windows were not yet determined. Only the area of glazing per wall. I distributed these glazing area’s in the way that gives the best natural day light levels throughout the different area’s by using Dialux. Because the second floor has a long window all along the south-west side the light levels are quite good in the circulation area and the bedroom. Because of this the north-east facing window in the bedroom on the second floor can be slightly smaller so that there can be a small ventilation window in the bathroom. Artificial lighting will be required in the bathroom. lu

se ond ﬂoor in lan

ground

indow si es in olour

indow si es in ro

C ro

ground

D A

ground

A B

se ond ﬂoor seen ro sout east ir ulation and utilit s a e le t at roo rig t

ground ﬂoor seen ro sout east edroo le t li ingroo rig t

se ond ﬂoor seen ro nort west edroo

A B

ground ﬂoor seen ro nort west entran e on t e rig t it en and dining on t e le t

100

Energy Strategy The energy strategy for my design of living on the edge is mainly based around reusing the heat generated by the kilns and furnaces of the glass blowing workshop. I tried to reuse this heat in different ways. First of all I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to place any normal living spaces directly on top of the glass workshop due to overheating so I chose to make a large high central atrium area with circulation in it where all the other living spaces open into. Because this space is directly positioned above the glass workshop a lot of heat of the ovens will flow into this area, especially because the chimney runs straight through the middle of this space. So the temperature of this central area will be regulated by using the hot air of the glass workshop. And because all of the other spaces are adjacent to this space there will also be less need to use additional heating in those spaces. The other way I planned to reuse the heat generated by the glass blowing ovens is to wrap a water tank around the back of them and above them. The water tank will mostly be embedded into the retaining wall at the back of the glass blowing workshop but a part of it is made of glass and is positioned above the ovens functioning as a skylight. Only letting through diffuse light so that it is not too bright for the glass blowers. This Water tank is connected to a larger water tank on top of the atrium. Because the atrium is a glass structure there is a danger of overheating especially if the roof is glass as well. Therefore I chose to make the water tank on top out of glass so that the water in it will absorb most of the heat but still lets light through, which is necessary because I wanted to have an indoor garden in the atrium area. In this way the hot water of the kills flows up into the glass water tank on top of the atrium where it is mostly kept warm through sunlight. The cooled down water will flow down again and will be reheated by the furnaces in the glass blowing workshop. With this system my aim was to limit the energy needed for the heating of the building, and the energy needed for the warm water supply as much as possible.

Diagram showing the reuse of the heat generated by the glass workshop

Another measurement I took to prevent overheating is to make sure that the wall adjacent to the roofgarden atrium can completely open up to enable ventilation. There are also openable windows on the ground floor of the atrium that will catch the wind channeling through the river valley, enhancing the ventilation through the atrium. The glass structure is shaded by a bamboo scaffolding construction wrapping around it holding up an outside staircase leading up to the roofgarden.

A glass roof covered with water in the Centre for the Performing Arts, Beijing. This was where I got the idea to use the water tanks as skylights.

All non specified images are self made

101

Twentieth Century Architecture ARC 2011

102

One city – Two faces

regulations but was to a degree forced to concessions in terms of design by Ulbricht, the leader of the DDR at the time.5 Henselman also designed the nearby flat building, ‘Hochhaus an der Weberwiese’ built in 1951, seen as the example for the Stalinallee and ironically formed the base point of the architectural style the DDR government was looking for, mainly orientated on Socialist Classicism and the so called National Building Tradition. This style was later referred to as Berliner Klassisismus. 6 Distinctive to this style are elements of classical architecture such as Doric and ionic pillars, and decorative gables with communist reliefs, made by for instance Velzmann.5 The reliefs characteristically depict scenarios of labourers, in order to idealise the communist way of living.7 The street was extraordinary broad: 90m, mainly for political reasons in order for it to be recognised as Berlin’s main street. Figure r g er e i i g e i ee The majority of the buildings were flats with stores and restaurants. In total there were 12 buildings of 7-9 storeys high with 5000 flats. Most of the flats had 2 or three bedrooms, with either 40, 61 or 85 m2 of floor space.6 The apartments are mostly a concatenation of smaller rooms without a distinctive central space. On the first floors there were mainly restaurants and shops. Most of the buildings have a masonry construction and all of the walls are covered with ceramic grey scale tiles.8

Figure 1

Julian Besems 130258852 Question 1 Word count: 1971

When after WWII Germany was divided between the allies, Berlin was located in the midst of the part ruled by the U.S.S.R., but because of its iconic value the allies decided to divide Berlin itself into four districts, U.S., British, French and Russian. Originally, the allies wanted to govern Germany together as one country, but this fell apart in 1946-1949 because of differences in interest. This resulted in a very distinct difference in the post war development of Germany. Whilst West Germany followed the rapid developments of West Europe in the early 1950’s, the DDR progressed a lot slower. The growing tensions between the west and the U.S.S.R. gave rise to the early stages of the cold war. In 1961 this resulted in the Berlin wall being built, dividing the part of Berlin governed by the U.S.S.R. from the rest of Berlin. Roughly simultaneously two rebuilding projects were finished in both East and West Berlin. In East Berlin the most prominent project of the Wiederaufbau was the Stalinallee, as a response to this West Berlin had the Interbau project located in the Hansaviertel.1 These two projects are a very clear example of the difference in architectural development that found place at the same time in one city divided by different regimes. Both projects were developed by a number of different architects. The Interbau project in the Hansaviertel was developed by 53 architects from 13 different countries, including architects like Aalto, Niemeyer and Gropius. 2 Contrary to the multi national selection of architects involved in the Interbau project, the Stalinallee was designed by a group of six German architects, including Henselmann and Hopp.3

er i e Berlin after 1945, http://www.berlin.de/berlin-‐im-‐ueberblick/geschichte/1945.en.html e e u r 1 rger erei ie e The hansaviertel in Berlin, uerger erei ier e er i e ier e e ier e i er i e e 1 u r 1 er e er Baugeschichte der Stalinallee, ui e er i e 1 1 r ei e e e 1 Fe ru r 1

Stalinallee Originally this street was called Frankfurter Straße, located in the Friedrichshain district. It was a well-known street without any fashionable aspects, a street for the workers with a lot of little shops. After the bombardments in February Figure ui g e i ee 1945 and the last days of the war, 27% of all the houses in the district were destroyed and 18.5% heavily damaged.4 After the war the architect Sharoun came with a proposal for rebuilding the entire city together. In this plan the district Friedrichshain played a central role. Initially the DDR supported the plan and two buildings with arcades designed by Sharoun were realized. However after the division of the city, the plan was cancelled in 1949-1950 and the main principles of it were then on referred to as elite and western decadency.4 Henceforth the architectural style of new buildings had to follow the ideas and models of Soviet architecture. The Stalin-allee was to be the first socialist street. To mask the western style buildings designed by Sharoun a lot of fast growing trees were planted in front of them. In 1950 a group of government officials visited the Soviet Union to study the building styles of the Russian cities, giving rise to the 16 Grundsätze des Städtebaus, a guideline for architects in the DDR.3 After a competition in 1951 five architects were chosen to design the Stalinallee: Hartmann, Paullick, Hopp, Souradny and Leucht. Another competition for the design of the eastern plot of the Frankfurter Tor was won by Henselmann.4 He was formerly a follower of the Bauhaus and principally did not agree with the new

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Most of the buildings were finished in 1953, due to protests of the workers the project was finally completed in 1958. Even though the building cost was 150% of social housing before, the rent price was still a lot cheaper because of propaganda reasons. Another problem was that after two years of finishing the buildings a lot walls and floors had cracks in them, which was a result of the so-called “Warschauer Schnellmaurer-Methode”.8 This was all during Stalins reign but his follower Chroetsjov was more interested in a better, cheaper and faster way of building, . This initiated a second building phase of the Stalinallee, starting in 1959 and finishing in 1965. The buildings that were built during this phase were mainly constructed by using precast panels that were easy to assemble. In 1961 the name of the Stalinallee was also changed to Karl-Marxallee.

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A very remarkable aspect is that almost all of the new buildings in some way use the remains of the destroyed buildings. The brick remains were often mixed with concrete on site to use in the new buildings. In the new Hansaviertel there is four times more open space than before the war. Even though the rent of the new apartments was a lot above average there were long waiting lists for the modern apartments.10 I’ll discuss the contributions of Niemeyer and Aalto in more detail, as to illustrate more specific aspects of the buildings of the Interbau project.

Figure e i i e

Das Hansaviertel Das Hansaviertel in Berlin is an area between the river Spree and the Tiergarten district. In 1874 it was transformed into a living area. The overall style of the houses was renaissance. The destruction of the old Hansaviertel began when the Nazi’s burned down the synagogue in 1938. Jews were forced to evacuate their homes and were forced to live in small living spaces. During the bombings in 1943 75% of the district was destroyed. In 1953, as a response tot the Stalinallee project taking place in East Berlin the west of Berlin initiated the Interbau project. An international building exhibition located on the ruins of the old Hansaviertel, finished in 1957. One of the thoughts behind the new Hansaviertel was: “free naturalness and informality for the City of Tomorrow”.9

The building designed by Niemeyer is an eleven-floor apartment block. Niemeyer spent a lot of attention on improving privacy for the inhabitants of the flats by making private entrances to each flat

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Bibliography rather than long corridors. The outer space in front of the building contains a lot of sculptures and canopies, stimulating the life of the block to flow into the common areas and contact with the other blocks. Additionally the seventh floor of the block was completely designed for communal activities.11, 12

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Aalto’s design mainly focuses on humanizing multifamily housing. This is done by trying to integrate as many of the benefits of detached houses into a multi floor apartment block. Like Niemeyer, Aalto also tries to avoid the long corridors. The plan of the Figure u ui i g apartments is ingeniously laid out for human use and according to the historian Kenneth Frampton: “one of the most brilliant middle-class apartment plans invented in the entire span of the 20th century”.13 Every apartment has a living room at its centre with all the other rooms around it, including a generous exterior terrace.14,15

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areas in and around the buildings. Even though the buildings are all in roughly the same style there are distinctive differences between them showing that they are designed by different architects. A similarity between the projects is that they both used the materials of the destroyed buildings that stood on the sites before the new project. There is however a substantial difference in how they did this. In the west they integrated the materials in concrete, as if giving the old a new life in a modern shell regardless of how destroyed the old materials were. But the east sorted out what elements could still be used in their original functions and integrated them in the new buildings in the same way they would have been used originally.17 Both ways definitely have their own charms and advantages. Possibly the best way to demonstrate the difference in success is that even though the apartments along the Stalinallee were held cheap by the government a lot of people wanted to leave the apartments within a few years due to the bad construction. This was however not allowed by the government.18 Opposed to this the apartments in the Hansaviertel were in high demand regardless of its above average prices. Conclusion The differences between these two projects are probably not mainly caused by the differences in views of the architects but are mainly due to the difference in political systems that commissioned them. Where the DDR started a project to rebuild Berlin in a socialist way and for the people the end result was empty shells with the sole purpose of showing how great the state was. On the contrary the Interbau competition situated in the Hansaviertel started off as a countermovement of the Stalinallee and grew to be more concerning with its future residents than its counterpart. The separation of

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Comparison Regardless that both projects were designed and built roughly simultaneously, in the same city, and both built on heavily damaged areas by the war, they differ greatly in both design and underlying thoughts. The Interbau project in the Hansaviertel was originally the western response to the large-scale project of the Stalinallee taking place in East Berlin. But instead of following the choice of the DDR to solely choose German architects the Bundesrepublik chose to write out an international competition, which results in a larger variety of styles than the Stalinallee, where all the designs had to follow a strict design guideline constituted by the government, 16 Grundsätze des Städtebaus. Where the architects of the Hansaviertel made an effort to integrate individuality and privacy into the flats and made the comfort of the inhabitants their priority, the buildings along the Stalinallee are primarily designed to please the government by showing the similarity to Moscow, meaning that the priority was the façade and there was little attention spent on the living comfort, both in design but especially in construction. The resulting styles were completely different, the Berliner Klassisismus style was often referred to as “Zuckerbäckerstil” 16 because of the high amount of ornaments. The buildings are all symmetrical with very little colour and hardly any balconies. They are highly decorated in classical styles with pillars, reliefs and so on. There are no distinctive differences in styles between the buildings made during the main project, there is however a clear difference in style between the two buildings made prior to the main project designed by Sharoun, and the buildings made during the second building stage. Contrary to the Stalinallee, the Hansaviertel is built in a modernist style with mostly asymmetrical buildings. There are plenty of different coloured details in the buildings and the alignment of the windows of the different flats is not always linear. Various buildings have a lot of balconies and attention is given to communal

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Berlin as described in the introduction is reflected by the entirely different ways these projects were designed.

Books Josep Ma. Botey, Oscar Niemeyer: Works and Projects, Editorial Gustavo Gili, Barcelona, 1996 Karl Fleig, Alvar Aalto: Volume I 1922-1962, Birkhäuser, Basel, 1963 Matthias Hunger, Sozialistisches Wohnkonzept und Wohnungsbau in der DDR, Diplomica, Hamburg, 2000 Robert McCarter, Aalto, Phaidon, London, 2014 Styliane Philippou, Oscar Niemeyer: Curves of Irreverence, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2008

“büro für industriekultur Berlin”, Die berümte Stalinallee, http://www.berlinindustriekultur.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id =411:die-beruehmte-stalinallee&catid=38&Itemid=112 Accessed: 3 February 2015 Dankwart Guratzsch, Stalinallee gegen Hansa-Viertel http://www.welt.de/print-welt/article573156/Stalinallee-gegenHansa-Viertel.html Accessed: 2 February 2015 “DDR in Berlin”, Stalinallee / Karl Marx Allee, https://ddrinberlin.wordpress.com/auferstanden-ausruinen/stalinallee-karl-marx-allee/ Accessed: 3 February 2015 “Der Spiegel”, Omas gute Stube (21 December 1955), http://magazin.spiegel.de/EpubDelivery/spiegel/pdf/41960819 Accessed: 2 February 2015

Online Books, Articles and Websites “Berlin.de”, Berlin after 1945, http://www.berlin.de/berlin-im-ueberblick/geschichte/1945.en.html Accessed: 30 January 2015 BUF, Ein langer Spaziergang über die Karl-Marx-Allee, http://www.karlmarxallee.eu/kma.php?menu=1&thema=2&showMe nu1=true&seitenanzahl=21&ht=Ein%20langer%20Spaziergang&nr =1 Accessed: 1 February 2015 Bürgerverein Hansavietel”, The hansaviertel in Berlin, http://www.buergerverein-hansaviertelberlin.de/das_hansaviertel/pdfs/The_Hansaviertel_in_Berlin.pdf Accessed: 31 January 2015

“doppeltes-berlin”, Stalinallee / Hansaviertel, http://www.doppeltes-berlin.de/paare/stalinallee_hansaviertel Accessed: 2 February 2015 Günter Peters, Baugeschichte der Stalinallee, http://www.luise-berlin.de/bms/bmstxt01/0103prof.htm#seite53 Accessed: 1 February 2015 Kai Ritzmann, Karl-Marx-Allee - das Gegenstück zum Hansaviertel, http://www.berlin1.de/berlin-sehen/straen/karl-marx-allee-dasgegenstck-zum-hansaviertel-20141139 Accessed: 3 February 2015

Ota Naotoka, Hansaviertel – Stadt von gestern, heute und morgen, http://www.jdzb.de/fileadmin/Redaktion/PDF/veroeffentlichungen/t agungsbaende/D58/24-pdf-p1227%20ota.pdf Accessed: 2 February 2015

1.5: Ruined Skyline (1946), [Photo] At: http://germanhistorydocs.ghidc.org/sub_image_s.cfm?image_id=1195 Accessed: 6 February 2015

Paul Thiel, Die Bauinschriften in der Stalinallee, http://www.luise-berlin.de/bms/bmstxt96/9609proe.htm Accessed: 2 February 2015

Figure 2: Vom Krieg zerstörte Häuser in der Gegend der heutigen Karl-Marx-Allee, [Photo] At: http://www.zeit.de/kultur/karl-marx-allee/index.html#chapter-02 Accessed: 6 February 2015

Steffen Dobbert, David Hugendick, Das neue leben der Stalinallee, http://www.zeit.de/kultur/karl-marx-allee/index.html#prolog Accessed: 1 February 2015

Figure 3: 1 MAY 1953 German Government Aktivist, [Poster] At: http://www.amazon.com/MAY-1953-German-GovernmentAktivist/dp/B00G1K72KE Accessed: 6 February 2015

Images Figure 1: combination of following images: 1.1: Berlin-Hansaviertel, Niemeyer-Haus von der Fahrstuhlseite, [Postcard] At: http://blog.reflexdeco.fr/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/bloghansaviertel-niemeyer.jpg Accessed: 6 February 2015 1.2: Block C im ersten Bauabschnitt, der 1952 fertiggestellt wurde, [Photo] At: http://www.zeit.de/kultur/karl-marx-allee/index.html#chapter-02 Accessed: 6 February 2015 1.3: Il Muro di Berlino e le sue canzoni, [Photo] At: http://tonyface.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/il-muro-di-berlino-e-le-suecanzoni.html Accessed: 6 February 2015 1.4: Berlin Wall, [Photo] At: http://corktourist.info/tag/images-of-berlin-wall Accessed: 6 February 2015

Figure 4: Eine Aufrisszeichnung eines Wohnungstyps im Hochhaus, [Drawing] At: http://www.zeit.de/kultur/karl-marx-allee/index.html#chapter-02 Accessed: 6 February 2015 Figure 5: Vorzeigeboulevard, [Photo] At: http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/ost-berlins-stalinalleprachtstrasse-in-der-ddr-fotostrecke-107694.html Accessed: 6 February 2015 Figure 6: OSCAR NIEMEYER, [Photo] At: http://laformamodernaenlatinoamerica.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/oscar -niemeyer-por-siempre-edificio-de.html Accessed: 7 February 2015 Figure 7: Oscar Niemeyer, Apartment block for the 1957 interbau exhibition at Berlin’s Hansaviertel: original scheme, [Drawing] In: Styliane Philippou, Oscar Niemeyer: Curves of Irreverence, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2008 p156

Figure 8: Alvar Aalto, [Drawing] At: http://images.lib.ncsu.edu/des/Size2/NCSULIB-1NA/1295/104652.jpg?userid=1&username=admin&resolution=2&se rvertype=JVA&cid=1&iid=NCSULIB&vcid=NA&usergroup=Desi gn_Library-1-Admin&profileid=1 Accessed: 7 February 2015

Julian Besems - 130258852 - Stage 2 Architecture Twentieth Century Architecture, Easter Assignment

The Continuous Monument - Superstudio According to Superstudio “Architecture is one of the few ways to realize cosmic order on earth”. They also think that “it is a moderate utopia to imagine a near future in which all architecture will be created with a single act.”

Collage

These thoughts are very accurately portrayed by their hypothetical project The Continuous Monument, originally called Il Monumento Continuo, Superstudio’s critical response to consumer culture and the role architecture plays in that. The Continuous Monument is an architectural model of total urbanization. It strips down everything in order to offer a neutral space for human activity, however it does not guide the activities of those that interact with it.

Photo Collage was a very important part of Superstudio’s work. Many of their collages are now part of modern art museums around the world.

The project is portrayed through various photo collages, depicting multiple gridded structures placed in well-known urban and natural landscapes. Eventually these structures are meant to wrap around the globe, ultimately covering everything and thus completing a universal neutral living environment. It can be interpreted as an exaggerated take on the modern style of architecture and how it replaces all traditional building styles, thus making cities throughout the world indistinguishable from each other. Through this project they suggest that eventually the world will become so uniform that a global neutral superstructure would be equivalent to modern society.

Since they already made various photo collages of the Continuous Monument I was not interested in making another illustration of one of the hypothetical structures, showing it’s impact on the landscape. Instead I chose to show the global aspect of the project, which to me is the key aspect of their project, yet it has not been illustrated by one of Superstudio’s own works.

This sounds very conceptual and unrealistic but if you think about it a bit longer and compare photo’s of 100 years ago to the current equivalent it is astonishing how similar locations have become even though they are located on the other side of the world. For example photo’s of Shanghai and New York are now almost identical, whereas a 100 years ago they still had clear signs of their own architectural history. Even nature has globally made way for corn fields with identical silo’s in the background.

For this I took the collages made by Superstudio, located them on a world map, and represented them by a more detailed zoomed in satellite image of their presumed location. Even though the global aspect is so important for the concept, all structures seemed to be located in Europe and the USA. This also shows that even those that criticise the consumer culture fall for it, only focussing on their direct environment and America, the clearest example of consumer culture. To illustrate this remarkable limited choice of locations I only used a satellite, and thus modern technology map, for the strips of earth where their representations are located.

Shanghai in early 1900’s

New York in early 1900’s

Current Shanghai

Current New York

These are the collages made by Superstudio that I represented on a global scale:

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Julian Besems - 130258852 - Stage 2 Architecture Twentieth Century Architecture, Easter Assignment

Collage: Global view of The Continuous Monument

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Dissertation Studies and Research Methods ARC 2012

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Julian Besems 130258852

Architectural Acoustics The Ancient Greeks were already heavily concerned about the acoustics in some of their greatest architectural achievements, like the amphitheatre in Epidaurus, as mentioned by Long1. The Greeks Already managed to establish astonishing results in terms of the acoustical performance of those places, both a combination of sound performance and aesthetics. Whilst in modern age architects seem to mainly focus on the visual, hearing is also a very important sense to humans, however it seems to be frequently neglected by architects. Acoustics are not only relevant in spaces for performances or recordings but sound also majorly influences us during our everyday life, and thus should also be considered in our everyday environment. It is not so that acoustics are only about the sound quality, since it is often a personal preference and thus also largely psychologically determined, meaning that the visual and tactile quality of the space also influences its acoustic appreciation by people. Because of this, acoustical “success is based on both objective measures and subjective impressions, guarantees cannot be made that all users will come to the same conclusion regarding the acoustic quality of a particular design” Jaffe stated2. But the general satisfaction can be largely influenced by both objectively calculating the optimal characteristics, and trying to accompany that by the subjective optimisation of the design. What I’d like to look at is what factors; both visual and sound are most important for the architectural acoustic perception of spaces. And also what preferences different people have for a space because of their personal use of it, like a jazz band or a lecturer. My approach will largely be theoretical and informed by books and scientific articles. I also plan to do some calculations and look into the science of acoustics and how the calculations for spaces meant for musical performances are done and what they take into account. I also hope to visit some theatres and maybe studios like the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Sage, and the Philarmonie de Paris. What I aim to achieve by these visits is to compare the obvious and less obvious differences and similarities between esteemed musical performance spaces. What especially interests me in these comparisons is to look at the similarities between old and modern stages, both famed for their acoustic performances. The old stages mainly copied older successful designs and dimensions, and I’d like to see if the modern buildings still follow this procedure or now mostly rely on calculations, and if they use new mechanisms to Fig. 1 Computer-generated image of improve the acoustic qualities, like suspended ceilings inside the Philharmonie de Paris (2015) used in the Philarmonie de Paris illustrated in Fig.1.

Long, M. (2006). Architectural Acoustics. 1st ed. Burlington: Elsevier Academic Press. p2.

Jaffe, C. (2000). Supplemental Architectural Services: Architectural Acoustics [online]. Available: http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/aia/documents/pdf/aiab089217.pdf [12-0415]. p2. 2

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Bibliography 1: Pallasmaa, J. (2012). The Eyes Of The Skin: Architecture And The Senses. 3rd ed. Chichester: John Wiley & sons. 2: Long, M. (2006). Architectural Acoustics. 1st ed. Burlington: Elsevier Academic Press. 3: Jaffe, C. (2000). Supplemental Architectural Services: Architectural Acoustics [online]. Available: http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/aia/documents/pdf/aiab089217.pdf [12-0415].

Illustrations Fig.1 Computer-generated image of inside the Philharmonie de Paris (2015) [Render] At: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/04/paris-classic-music-row-philharmonie-sallede-pleyel (Accessed on 12-04-15)

The Place of Houses ARC 2012

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A neurological and philosophical critique of le Corbusier

Julian Besems Not only neuroscientists explain that everyone is fundamentally different but also philosophical theorists take this position. Psychologist Maslow (1971: p.376*) writes: “The human organism has an own nature and is more reliable and autonomous than acknowledged thus far”

130258852 Place of houses, Assignment, nr. 2 Word count: 1587

If there were one building form for all of humanity, the problem that could arise is that severe alienation could take place. If everything has been routinized and thus has become in a way uniform, one cannot longer recognise what is his own and what the results of his skills and functions are. Thus losing a part of their own identity and getting alienated from their own functions and needs, since their needs are determined and fulfilled for them and no longer decided or felt by themselves. Architect and architectural theorist Le Corbusier (1923) took the position that: “All men have the same organism, the same functions. All men have the same needs. Fromm (1956: p.140): “If he is completely enmeshed in the routine…he loses his touch with and the grasp of himself and the world.” The social contract that has evolved through the ages fixes standardised classes, functions and needs producing standardised products… I propose one single building If le Corbusiers plan were realised, the house that was once a very personal object fit to everyone’s personal needs would become an alienated object for the inhabitant, built and created by some higher power that is unknown to him. Fromm (1956: p.121): “Man does not feel himself as a creator and centre but as the servant of a Golem, which for all nations.” To me this observation is so explicit that it is worth questioning its propriety. his hands have built.” “He confronts himself with his own forces embodied in things he has created, alienated from himself.” Given that everyone would start to live in uniform housing, this would support the process of alienation to those who live in the houses, because To start with I would like to discuss the first phrase of le Corbusier’s position. “All men have the same organism” The way le Corbusier their way of living is not their own decision anymore but is decided by an alien power, being le Corbusier. Marx explains this process of uses “organism” he most likely means the material structure of an individual life form. alienation in Das Kapital: “[The condition where his] own act becomes to him an alien power, standing over and against him, instead If we look at this biologically there are reasons that suggest otherwise. Indeed all of us consist out of the same body parts and of being ruled by him.” Fromm (1956: p.118) organs but the way these function vary, in small or more fundamental ways from person to person. Probably the most well known difference is the variety in blood types. This is not very relevant for this specific theory but it does show The realization of one building for all nations would also take the intellectual freedom from people as described by that there is a fundamental difference between individual people. Fromm (1956: p.310): “A man is free only if he can choose. He can choose only if he knows enough to compare.” The organ that is primarily interesting in this matter is the brain. Neuroscientists like With only one universal housing form the possibility to compare would be absent as well as the possibility of Damasio, Ledoux and Edelman explain differences in the brains of individuals. choice. And thus in such a situation, mankind would cease to be free. Our brain is built up by billions of cells, called Neurons, that are connected in Furthermore Fromm (1956: p.316) writes that: “Once we accept the principle that the primary purpose of any circuits by dendrites and axons. The connections are called synapses. work is to serve people, and not to make a profit, those who are served must have a say in the operation of those who serve them.” Damasio (1994:112) writes about the build-up of the brain and by what If all houses were be the same for everyone the individual inhabitants would not be participating in the structure of the brain of each individual is influenced, and what the design of their houses in any form. This way of architecture would not be in any way serving the causes those to be different from each other. Our genes provide people. two components; the precise structure and the to be determined structure. This to be determined structure is given shape under Another problem that can arise with one house for all nations is conformity. influence of: “(1) the precise structure; (2) individual activity Fromm (1956: p.150) writes about the problems in a housing community development called and circumstance (in which the final say comes from the Neuron Detail, fig. 1 Park Forest in Illinois, mainly inhabited by junior executives. The urge to fit in with the rest human and physical environment as well as from chance); of the community evokes an overall conformity throughout the community. “This craving and (3) self-organizing pressures arising from the sheer complexity of the system.” The for acceptance is indeed a very characteristic feeling in the second and third influence make sure that the brain of every person has a different alienated person. Why should anyone be so grateful for structure, since every individual goes through different experiences and the self acceptance unless he doubts that he is acceptable, and organizing of each brain is different by chance. why should a young, educated, successful couple have such doubts, if not due to the fact that they cannot accept Similar to Damasio, Ledoux (1998:137) says that even though genes make sure that themselves-because they are not themselves. The only we maintain similar behaviour, genes do also contribute to differences between haven for having a sense of identity is conformity.” If one individuals: “There’s no denying that genes make each of us different from one does not conform he or she is then punished by the rest another and explain at least part of the variability in the way different people act in of the community. dangerous and other situations.” So if like in le Corbusier’s proposal all houses would Park Forest, Illinois, fig. 3 So if one individual reacts in a different way to a certain surrounding than another become identical, this would create one worldwide individual, it is logical that these two individuals require a different home. For community where the only option for the individual example one might feel more at home in a rural house and the other in an urban would be to adjust to the conformity of the community. This causes the individual to be flat. Their preference depends on what kind of experiences they have been through unable to accept himself or herself because they are not themselves. and how this shaped their personality and thus also their needs and functions. Those that do not conform are harshly punished for not being able to adjust to the conformity. Ledoux (1998:178) states that: “Evolutionary programming sets the emotional ball [the amygdala, emotional centre in the Le Corbusier also states “The social contract that has evolved through the ages fixes brain] rolling, but from then on we are very much in the driver’s standardised classes, functions and needs seat. How effectively we deal with this responsibility is a matter of producing standardised products.” And from our genetic constitution, past experience, and cognitive creativity” Amygdala Detail, fig. 2 that he concludes that buildings should also be standardised. But in order to counter alienation The only thing le Corbusier takes into account in his proposal of it is especially important not to stimulate this one building for all nations is the evolutionary programming which is fundamentally production of standardised products further but to identical for our entire species. But he neglects that every individual has unique emotional counter it and certainly not extend the field of it. experiences and thus deals with every situation differently. The approach of the individual is Mandel (1970: p.30) writes that de-alienation can only largely determined by our experiences and our own creativity, which would be greatly impaired occur in a classless society: enable people to develop their in the case of one single housing design. talents according to their personal inner needs. Here Mandel says it is necessary to have a classless society for Nobel Prize winner Edelman (1992:114) says: “Given the fact that qualia [subjective personal de-alienation so that the creator has access to all the means for the Alienation, fig. 4 experiences, feelings, and observations.] are experienced directly only by single individuals, our product and is connected to the entire building process. So contrary methodological difficulty becomes obvious. We cannot construct a phenomenal psychology that can be to factory works where the funder is someone completely different from the worker that makes the product. shared in the same way as a physics can be shared.” For the same reason that we cannot develop one phenomenal psychology, we cannot construct one Architecture In conclusion it is necessary for the inhabitant to at least have the possibility of choice of what he is going to live in opposed for all of mankind. to a higher power deciding this for him, since everyone has their own experiences shaping their personality and individual self. He should have the right to decide how he wants to live. All these elements would be taken away from the inhabitant should le Corbusier’s theory be followed. I think architecture should not generalize people, but should aim to serve every individual equally fig. 5 with his personal needs and experiences in mind. Images

Bibliography Damasio, A. R. (1994). Descartes’ error. 8th ed. New York: Avon Books.

Ledoux. J. (1998). The Emotional Brain. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson .

Edelman, G. (1992). Bright Air, Brilliant Fire: On the Matter of the Mind. 4th ed. London: Allen Lane The Penguin Press.

Mandel, E. and Novack, G. (1970). The Marxist Theory of Alienation: Three Essays. 2nd ed. London: Pathfinder Press.

Fromm, E. (1956). The Sane Society. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.

Maslow, A. (1971). The Farther Reaches of Human Nature. Dutch ed. New York: Viking Press. * Actual text: “Het menselijke organisme heeft een eigen aard en is betrouwbaarder en autonomer dan men tot dusver heeft erkend.”

Lang, J. (1994). Urban Design: The American Experience. 3rd ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Fig. 1: Ledoux. J. (1998). Figure 6-1: A Neuron. The Emotional Brain. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson . P139. Fig. 2: Myers, A. L. (2000), Amygdala [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.memorylossonline. com/glossary/amygdala.html [Accessed 09 January 15].

Fig. 5.1: Bourgery, J. M. (1831), Brain meninges [ONLINE]. Available at: http://fineartamerica.com/products/brain-meninges-mehau-kulyk-poster. html [Accessed 07 January 15].

Fig.3: Park Forest marketing brochure, (1955), Aerial view of Park Forest, Illinois [ONLINE]. Available at: http://amhistory.si.edu/onthemove/exhibition/exhibition_15_2.html [Accessed 09 January 15].

Fig. 5.2: Unknown, (Unknown), Among split br [ONLINE]. Available at: http://imgkid. com/brain-drawing-top-view.shtml [Accessed 07 January 15].

Fig.4: Unknown, (unknown), Barcode Evolution [ONLINE]. Available at: http://marxisttheory. org/alienation/ [Accessed 09 January 15].

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Fig. 5: Self made combination of the following images.

Fig. 5.3: Unknown, (Unknown), Neurons [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.homepages. ucl.ac.uk/~sjjgnle/ [Accessed 07 January 15].

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