PRISMA

DESIGN BUILD FOR REIMAN GARDENS

SPRING 2018 -- ARCH202

PROFESSOR -- ROMAN CHIKERINETS

GROUP -- ARCH202 STUDIO

Our client, Reiman Gardens, invited our studio to take part in their Kinetic Art exhibition by using the forces of nature as inspiration for our installation.

I, along with 76 other students were to consult with Reiman Gardens to create an interactive design for their site. The project was set to open on April 13th, 2018 and we began work on January 8th to make our ideas come to life.

PRISMA introduces an interactive way to experience the gardens that all ages can enjoy.

Photo Credits: Chris Gannon Detail Credits: PRISMA Publication

Our site was a 200ft by 80ft plot of land at Reiman Gardens. The site had a parabolic slope from a west facing section, and a downward sloping gradient from a north section having its highest point at the west. The Design

The final design of PRISMA reacts to the site in its form and is a response to the natural forces that inhabit Reiman Gardens. It creates an interactive sculpture that engages all types of people. The monolithic design cretes a streamline design responsive to the site’s topography.

The design focuses on the use of straight lines to create undulating forms and curved modules. It is self-supporting to emphasize the hyperbolic structure and creates an illusion that it is tumbling through the site.

The rigid members of the hyperbolic form create an overall organic form while keeping in mind flexibility. “The Primitive Hut” is a concept that explores the origins of architecture and its practice. This installation was designed to represent this fundamental concept through its representation of the 5 elements: pediment, column, wall, entableature, and furniture.

The installation explored how these elements can be transformed into the modern world.

Panels

Cables

Hammock

Footings

The method to create footings involved sight surveying equipment that marked a datum point which was used to locate all the other footings. The setup involved a tripod with a leveling device ,a laser secured on top of it, and a plumb hanging from it to mark the datum

One of the key elements in maintaining the structural integrity of the installation was to have solid concrete footings. Once all the footings were accurately located a group of students worked on the assembly of all the components needed for the footings Prisma’s main structural component is composed of 4”x4” cedar boards. Research was conducted on methods of cutting such a slot the safest, most consistent, and most efficient way possible. This research resulted in the purchase of a Prazi beam cutter attachment, a miter saw, and a drill press.

Timber Assembly Manual

Due to the many purposes of the installation, this requires unique connections at nearly every module

Timber with Infill Detail

Timber with Infill Detail We created a hub method to hold the wood members together consisting of a 2’ 7/8” metal pipe, 3/8” thick and 3’ 1/2” wide mild steel for fins, and 3/8” and 6” wide plates for the bases.

Each hub was uniquely modeled. This is an example of one hub detail that could be sent to the metal fabricator.

Timber to Hub Detail

Weaving

PRISMA includes two different styes of hammocks: sitting and climbing. Triangle hammocks are for sitting and the square hammocks are for climbing. For sitting hammocks, we decided to use a 3” gap distance. That size is the most comfortable for people lounging on it. For climbing hammocks, we decided to use a 2” gap distance. This smaller gap can prevent children’s feet from falling through.

All nine of PRISMA’s hammocks were made with 1/4 inch tan Poly Dacron rope. They were measured, assembled, and woven with 13,000 feet of rope.

The infill on PRISMA is a powerful visual image reflective of the natural forces in Reiman Gardens. After testing prototypes, it was decided to go with iridescent acrylic panels.

In the final construction, the iridescent panels were installed vertically. We found that the wind would spin them easiest in this orientation.

Each of the over fourteen-hundred panels were installed by hand using snap swivels and cable ties. They are easy to replace when damaged and once placed become shining beacon to visitors well beyond the limits of gardens’ fence line.