Biophilia by Taylor Tomman

Bio philia

Contents I. Frontage Project

II. Capitol Park Library III. Detroit to Berlin IV. Mauerpark Memorial IV. Circle of Life VI. Nordic Timber Construction HQ

VII. D.E. I Arts

Frontage Project The frontage project is a temporary building structure with multiple interior functions. My group and I worked together to design a structure that was easy to assemble and dismantle to rebuild elsewhere. My group and I wanted to design a facade that would feel welcoming to the people within the community, so we designed the facade from polycarbonate panels. These panels appear frosted to protect from over lighting while also providing a glimpse of the building’s interior functions. On the ground floor is the main lobby with a reception area. The second floor, serves as a book donation center/tutoring space for children, and the third floor serves as a food bank. On the roof, the community is welcome to an outdoor theatre.

Capitol Park Library Typically when I think of the word “park,” I imagine a space full of vegetation. However, Capitol Park, Detroit, Michigan lacks in this area. In my final design, I decided to pull the outdoors in, by incorporating vegetation into my design. On the facade, perforated metal louvers protect the library from solar heat but also offer a place for vegetation to grow. At the top of my building, a roof garden controls rainwater and provides a relaxing space for the community to enjoy.

Coffee Shop

Roof Detail 21 3 4 5 6

1 Engineered Soil & Planting 2 Drainage Layer 3 Root Barrier 4 Membrane Protection 5 Structural Support 6 Hanging LED Lights

Wall Section 5 1 2 3 4

6 7

1 Wooden Floor Finish 2 Decking 3 Electrical Space 4 Ceiling 5 Perforated Metal Panel 6 Glazed Spandrels 7 Insulation

Translucent glass Metal louvers White painted metal

The children’s floor offers an upper loft area for a more quiet space for tutoring. This floor also offers book shelves that have little “nooks” for children to sit in comfortably.

Section A 1/16”= 1’

Section B 1/16”= 1’

Section Model

The Capitol Park Library serves as a space where members of all ages within the community can find something of interest. The building is more than a library, it is as extension of the park from the ground up.

Detroit to Berlin After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Germany struggled to reunify itself. There were two of everything. The arts in Berlin especially were impacted. Cultural controversies of the 1990s underscored the significance of the city’s elite musical institutions to its new identity as the capital of the Berlin Republic. By removing the Fox Theatre from Detroit, Michigan and placing it in Hackesche Höfe, Berlin, Germany, it functions as a new unifying theatre for the arts. Keeping the “heart of the building,” the backstage walls remain on the site as a remembrance of the countless famous performances that once took place here.

Detroit, Michigan

What I took away from this project was the significance of taking something out of its original context. A lot of times, buildings, monuments, and other historical are removed from their original location to be placed elsewhere. Studying the cultural impact that the Berlin Wall had on Germany and the arts, I found a shared connection between Detroit and Berlin. In this design I learned how to retain the context while also providing a green space that honors what was there.

Mauerpark Between 1961 and 1988, 100,000 citizens of the GDR tried to escape across the inner-German border or the Berlin Wall. More than 600 people were shot and killed by GDR border guards or died in other ways during their escape attempt. They drowned, suffered fatal accidents, or killed themselves when they were caught. It was not until November 9th, 1989 that the wall came down and both East and West Berlin could unite again. However, even with the wall down, parts of it still remain today throughout the country. Some remain and serve as memorials, while other parts of the wall remain forgotten. One of these pieces remain in what is known today as Mauerpark, Berlin. Displayed along its sidewalk, quotes serve as a reminder to what the wall once meant to the people it impacted.

Site Plan

East Elevation 0’

3’

6’

9’

Japanese Maple Arborvitae Tree

Site Section 0’

Butterfly Bush

Bottlebrush

Latanas

3’

6’

Setsugekka Camellia

9’

Light is everlasting, timeless even. Using natural light during the day to artificial light at night, symbolizes change over time, much like use of the site. Alongside the wall, stemming from the bottom of the wall are acrylic strips. These acrylic strips sink into the ground so that guests can walk over them and read the quotes underneath. What appears to be an “invisible memorial” by day, illuminates by night revealing quotes of those who crossed the wall and those who wished to.

“Walls in people’s heads are sometimes more durable than walls made of concrete blocks.” -Willy Brandt

“Last train to freedom!” -Harry Deterling

“I’m getting out of here to the West, anyone want to come along?” -Wolfgang Engels

“I wanted to know what it was like to have freedom, to not be constantly restricted.” -Alexandra Schmidt

Circle of Life The Parliament of Trees serves as a memorial for those who died by the Berlin wall. Planted by Ben Wagin, he claimed this site in protest of the wall. He created a space of peace and unity within Berlin. Influenced by the natural landscape, the center and surrounding garden is designed as a natural extension of the Parliament of Trees. The center and garden serve as a space of spiritual healing and a space to commemorate loved ones.

Berlin, Germany

Reinickendorf

Pankow

Mitte

Spandau

Lichtengerg Marzahn-Hellersdorf

Parliament of Trees CharlottenburgWilmersdorf TempelhoffSchoneberg Steglitz-Zehlendorf

FriedrichshainKreuzberg

Neukolln

Treptow-Kopenick

Germany: Religious Affiliation Orthodox Christian Muslim Total Population 82.92 million

Other Protestant Catholic

Bees in Berlin

Candle Cycle

A common practice in the Catholic and Protestant religions is to light a candle in memory of someone. Using natural ingredients such as bees wax from the bee harvest, guests create their own candles and release them into the garden. Once the candle melts away, the ceramic bowls remain, moving on to its next life as an archive in the site itself. Not only do the bees provide wax, but they pollinate the garden facing the Parliament of Trees as well.

Interior View Apiary

Site Plan

0’

8’

16’

32’

The site itself sinks below grade, pulling guests away from the bustling city, and invites them into a natural, illuminating space. From Margarete-Steffin StraBe, the stairs lead down into the garden and guide across the bridge towards the center underground. The center holds an office space, a café, a studio, candle store, and ceramic archive. The center is designed to not only meet the basic accommodations for the community but also engage people in the natural life cycle of the garden.

Site Section A

The landscape design of the garden is manipulated to separate public spaces and private spaces for guests to reside in. Using “bee friendly” plants, the vegetation hides what is private and illuminates what is public.

Ginkgo Tree

Cosmos Maple Tree Agastache

Calendula

Site Section B

Nordic Timber Construction HQ Located in Oslo, Norway, the Barcode District is a strip of office & residential buildings that reside along the waterfront. The District lies between a bustling main street and train station. Chain restaurants and local businesses line the street attracting visitors year round.

Highlighted in blue are the primary

means of transportation surrounding the site. The dark blue lines show the train station behing the site, and light blue arrows show the alleyways used to get from one street to another.

Office Residential Arts Train station Multi use

This diagram shows building use throughout the Barcode District. This helpes to determine who will occupy the space and how to best engage the community through design.

All buildings part of the Barcode District offer 50% outdoor green space, allot 30’ between each property for circulation from train station to Queen Enfuman Street, and connect to form a continuous walkway from one end of the district to the other.

Active Alleyways Green patio space

Waterfront View

The waterfront receives very high winds from the south, plenty of sunlight from the west, and gallons of rainfall throughout the year. Each of these climatic factors influenced the building form and the systems integrated within its design from start to finish.

All Glass Building 40 KBTU/sf 30% well lit

Add Public/Private Outdoor Spaces 40 KBTU/sf

Add Shading West Facade 21 KBTU/sf 50% well lit

Decrease Glazing 0 KBTU/sf 70% well lit

Queen Enfuman Street

To ensure continuous use and visibility of the alleyway, both the main & theatre entrance face east. The theatre entrance is also conveniently in alignment with the Barcode District pathway. Here, employees and visitors gain easy access to the site from the Train station, Queen Enfuman Street, and the Barcode pathway.

Maximizing the waterfront view, every other floor of the NTC Headquarters provides an outdoor space for employees to reside during breaks.

Hydronic (liquid-based) radiant heating systems use little electricity, which is a benefit for buildings in areas with high electricity prices or are off the power grid. It works by running warm water through durable PEX tubing that is installed in the floor and is heated by a boiler, water heater, or geothermal. A radiant floor system provides direct diffused heat for cooler days.

Vegetation native to Norway’s climate, grows off the edge of the 3rd story balcony. A drip irrigation system uses stored rainwater from the roof top to sustain plant growth.

Roof garden harvests 246,000 gal/yr, while the solar chimney improves natural ventilation pulling in cool air and filtering out hot air.

Balsa wood panels serve as a shading device to prevent over daylighting. They hang only attached by two joists. This allows for a ripple effect as the wind blows across the facade, mimicking the ripples of the water.

D.E.I. Building Arts With partners Bella Hartsig and Summer Rayess, the D.E.I ( Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) Building Arts serves as an eductional extension for the community of Southwest Detroit. By providing the necessary tools and resources, this building inspires the youth to pursue careers in the building arts.

Interior Rendering by Bella Hartsig

VERNOR HWY

SCOTTEN AVE.

CLARK PARK AVE.

Site Plan

25’

50’

100’

250’

Design Goals “To inspire the youth in an inclusive (safe) engaging space that supports a cultural community proud of its diversity while learning building arts careers”

Through community exercises, we asked teachers, counselors, and other educational staff of the neighboring schools what they liked and disliked about the images above. Discussions surrounding safety in terms of inclusion, visual aesthetics, and link to historical preservation were all important aspects we needed to address in renovating what used to be the YMCA Building.

Color & Material Analysis Inspired by the pride expressed by members within Southwest Detroit’s community, we studied the existing building, street art, and murals found in the surrounding neighborhood to influence our design.

Terrazzo white Porcelain Tile

Turquoise green Pewabic Tile

Street Art

Mural

Using photos taken at the site, we extracted a color palette and material palette to use in the building. This design move not only relates to the community visually, but also reflects the old YMCA.

Public Egress Private Egress Public Gallery Staircase

residential living spaces communal bathrooms communal kitchenette lounge area

private staff offices shared staff offices intro studios administration gallery/exhibition

gallery/exhibition space junior studios senior studio lounge area

welcome area cafe lounge area courtyard ceramics room computer/plot lab woodshop

The following diagram breaks down the path of circulation in correlation to what programmatic elements are public and private. All public spaces in the building are highlighted in yellow, where as all private spaces are highlighted in green. This design move was made provide the community with a safe space where everyone felt welcomed.

dwn 4 risers up 8 risers

up 8 risers

dwn 4 risers

design build:2,100sf

design build:3,030sf

woodshop:2,650sf

Student Drop Off

computer lab: 460sf

3 0x48

ceramics: 640sf

3'-0"

2'-6"

3 0x48

2'-6"

3 0x48

5'-0"

3 0x48 3 0x48

janitor's closet

storge

3 0x48 3 0x48

CLARK AVE.

Ground Floor Plan 5’

10’

20’

50’

The ground floor plan of the D.E.I Building Arts is designed to accommodate the needs of students, staff, and guests who visit. A daycare and cafe lie adjacent from the welcome area. To ensure safety, these areas are separated from the building spaces where tools and heavy machinery are used. An addition was added to the left side of the building to not only highlight the building arts, but to also provide easy access for trucks to transport supplies to and from the building.

dwn 4 risers up 8 risers

up 8 risers

dwn 4 risers

design build:2,100sf

design build:3,030sf

woodshop:2,650sf

up 8 risers

dwn 4 risers

design build:2,100sf

design build:3,030sf

woodshop:2,650sf

computer lab: 460sf ceramics: 640sf computer lab: 460sf

30x48

ceramics: 640sf

3'-0"

2'-6"

30x48

2'-6"

30x48

5'-0"

3'-0"

2'-6"

30x48

2'-6"

30x48

2'-6"

30x48

storge

30x48

5'-0"

30x48 30x48

30x48

janitor's closet

30x48 30x48

janitor's closet

storge

30x48 30x48

North- South Section 5

East-West Section 50

The north-south section (left) shows the courtyard as it expands as you move up through the building. The east-west section (right) details the interior programing by each floor.

Section Drawings by Summer Rayess

North- South Section 5’

10’

20’

50’

Each floor provides a view of the interior courtyard. This is to spark inspiration for students in the building arts program.

Added to the courtyard, this water wall creates an illusion of water cascading down both sides of the rippled glass abyss. Since you can see the waterfall through the glass, it makes the ideal water feature in the garden. It works with an internal pump that lets you adjust the flow of water from a soothing rhythm to an accelerated stream. The slanted reservoir guides water into the base, preventing water splashing around. The neighboring pavilion shares a similar feature on its interior.

This pavilion was designed to not only display the work created by students from the D. E. I Building Arts, but also provide the community with a glimpse as to what goes on inside the newly renovated building.

In the climate controlled pavilion, all projects are encased in glass and protected from natural elements.