Michael Archer M
(neue)Einsteinturm Housing Wave B.C.V.C.B. Rended Flesh Joint Tectonics Nano Tectonics Sukkah City Evolo 2011 Thesis
(neue)Einsteinturm
(neue)Einsteintürm In October 2007, a group of 15 Nobel Prize winners gathered at the Telegrafenberg, a hill south of Potsdam that is home to several renowned scientific observatories and facilities. Together they formulated a new global deal for sustainability, which included the idea of a new dedicated research institution. Subsequently, under guidance from the Postdam Institute for Climate Research (PIK) and the Geo Research Center Potsdam (GFZ), the Institute for Advanced Climate, Earth System and Sustainability Studies (IASS) was founded in May 2009. The former executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, Dr. Klaus Töpfer, was appointed founding director.
Im Oktober 2007 versammelte sich eine Gruppe von 15 Nobelpreisträgern am Telegrafenberg, einem Hügel südlich von Potsdam, die Heimat von mehreren renommierten wissenschaftlichen Observatorien und Einrichtungen ist. Gemeinsam eine neue globale Übereinkunft für die Nachhaltigkeit, die die Idee einer neuen Forschungseinrichtung widmet inbegriffen formuliert. Anschließend wurde unter Anleitung vom Potsdam Institut für Klimafolgenforschung (PIK) und das Geoforschungszentrum Potsdam (GFZ), das Institute for Advanced Climate, Earth System and Sustainability Studies (IAS) Mai 2009 gegründet. Der ehemalige Exekutivdirektor des United Nations Environment Program, Dr. Klaus Töpfer, wurde zum Gründungsdirektor.
The project is to design a permanent home for the IASS at the Telegrafenberg. The facility is located next to Erich Mendelsohn’s iconic Einstein Tower (Einsteinturm). Like the Einsteinturm, the new building for the IASS will be a machine housing technology and the spatial topology conducive to collaborative research and development.
Das Projekt ist auf eine ständige Wohnstätte für die IASS auf dem Telegrafenberg Design. Die Anlage befindet sich neben dem berühmten Einstein Erich Mendelsohn's Tower (Einsteinturm). Wie der Einsteinturm, wird das neue Gebäude für das IASS einem Maschinengehäuse Technologie und die räumliche Topologie förderlich für gemeinsame Forschung und Entwicklung sein.
Potsdam Institut für Klimafolgenforschung
ORGANIZING SCIENCE Science is not always the source of trans disciplinary exchanges; the field of architecture seeks to inherit the discoveries of others and contribute the discoveries of its own merit to the world. Thusly, organizing an environment that encourages this inertia posits a tremendous opportunity for the synthesis of two fields. Architecture, in this case, takes the form of a scientific chain of researched design catalysts. Science, on the other hand, seats itself at the prescriptive head of the design methodology. The result is a machine. The machine produces laboritorial design methodology and architectural science. Research surrounding natural models, nano structures, and topology were principals from which the design developed.
NATURAL MODELS The development of a formal and structural language was derived from research of natural specimens. A generous grant from the Hitachi Corporation made it possible to look at various formal tendencies within the natural world. To derive the function and performative aspects at an architectural scale was the goal.
TOPOLOGY The continuity of surface formation in natural specimens prompted investigations in possible topological conditions for the building. The continuity of surfaces meant that information could travel freely, finding circuitous networks within the built environment. The torus was an integral part of our topological genesis. The ambiguity of interiority versus exteriority within the torus meant that, by cutting and manipulating the form itself, we could further this notion of what it meant to be within/without the space of science. This ambiguity was discovered in orthographic projection as moments of the torus were fused with their opposites to create continuous surface and spatial networks simultaneously.
(NANO)TECTONICS
IDEA MACHINE
Nanotechnology allowed investigation into nature’s structural logic at a microscopic scale. The growth and logic at this scale is almost free of material constraints, physics, and formal limitation. These nano-scale worlds were the key to understanding these radical organizational possibilities and principles. Like all things scientific, the possibilities needed to materialize and be subjected to testing. Beyond the bionic, which idealizes living structures as resolved and completed systems, and beyond biomimicry, which strives to copy those systems in their full complexity, we are in search of procedurally optimized building methods employed in living systems.
IDEA SPIRAL
In October 2007, a group of 15 Nobel Prize winners gathered at the Telegrafenberg, a hill south of Potsdam that is home to several renowned scientific observatories and facilities. Together they formulated a new global deal for sustainability, which included the idea of a new dedicated research institution. Subsequently, under guidance from the Postdam Institute for Climate Research (PIK) and the Geo Research Center Potsdam (GFZ), the Institute for Advanced Climate, Earth System and Sustainability Studies (IASS) was founded in May 2009. The former executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, Dr. Klaus TÜpfer, was appointed founding director. The project is to design a permanent home for the IASS at the Telegrafenberg. The facility is located next to Erich Mendelsohn’s iconic Einstein Tower (Einsteinturm). Like the Einsteinturm, the new building for the IASS will be a machine housing technology and the spatial topology conducive to collaborative research and development.
SITE CONTEXTS
siting a new institute amongst an old legend
MOVEMENT Early interests in circulation and the ability for intellectual exchange to occur outside the confines of the built environment developed into a site bias that took into account the circulation on the site at Telegrafenberg. Much of the productivity of the campus’ researchers comes from the ability to meditate on the meaning of their findings with themselves and their colleagues. A walk in the woods becomes a catalyst for new understanding, not simply a moment of travel.
CONTINUITY The ability to move from inside to outside freely often blurs the boundaries between interiority and exteriority in the Telegraffenberg. To move between institutions and facilities is a great advantage, and it is done so frequently that the notion of “inside” seems to be in respect to the confines of the campus itself, not any given institutions walls. With this in mind, seamless integration of the new building into the physical site was vital in perpetuating the continuity of program.
TOPOLOGICAL SHIFT The building’s unique topological condition allows for a certain fluidity with respects to the exchange of information and research findings. The site, conversely, must have its own topology prior to the introduction of new architecture. The site’s topography was used to draw force lines that would be used to direct the erosion and sculpting of certain topological models. These models informed the intraspatial pressures on the site that might act on the building. Existing site circulation, new building orientation, the existing Einsteinturm by Mendelsohn, and the topography of the site all acted as site pressures.
RESULTANT SITE MESH FROM CIRCULATION SEAMS
CIRCULATORY SITE PRESSURES
PIK
ROTUNDA
FACILITY ENTRANCE
EINSTEIN TOWER
EINSTEIN TOWER AND ADJACENT SITE
NEIGHBORING CLIMATE RESEARCH FACILITY
VIEW FROM EINSTEIN TOWER TO CAMPUS
TOPOGRAPHIC SITE PRESSURES
SITE PRESSURE MESH
TOPOGRAPHIC VORONOI
CIRCULATORY SITE PRESSURES
SITE PRESSURE MESH
CIRCULATORY VORONOI
bioSTRUCTURE digitized nano tectonic systems
Scanning electron microscopes (SEM) reveal hidden worlds that grow and develop in methods unbeknownst to us. Systems too small for sight carry on covert operations, the result of millions of years of evolution and refinement. To adapt this scripted perfection at the human scale was the goal, a living, breathing building was the result.
SHRIMP SHELL 40x
SHRIMP SHELL 400x
SHRIMP SHELL 4000x
SYSTEM EXTRACTION
SYSTEM ABSTRACTION
SYSTEM APPLICATION
performative skin BUILT SYSTEM - CLOSED
BUILT SYSTEM - MODERATE
BUILT SYSTEM - OPEN
materialized nano tectonic systems
SECTION RENDERING
N SITE PLAN
LONGITUDINAL SECTION
The incorporation of science and its methods into the design process yielded exciting spatial, tectonic, and material results. Considering the relationship this new institution would have with its neighboring structures was of deep concern. In this particular field, a level playing field is considered important for the steady development of research in various disciplines. If these disciplines are able to grow simultaneously they will enhance the productivity of each other symbiotically. The Potsdam Institute has had a legacy of ground breaking research and contributions to its field. The motivation found when designing something for such an esteemed organization is inspiring.
(neue)Einsteinturm continuous exchange of information 04
(co)Lab Housing
(co)Lab Housing (co)Lab Housing is a medium density housing building in Brooklyn, NY. The design created a variety of spatial modes for collaboration, exchange, and productivity. Extroverted social spaces encourage and facilitate these interactions. To balance the spirit within the building the alternative introverted spaces allow for a rejection of this collaborative spirit in search of a more independent style of living and working. Within the units themselves the notion of privacy and shared space in urban contexts is posited. The advent of shared living has been around since the dawn of mankind, it seems that, in terms of evolution, our ability to benefit from living together rather than apart has presented itself. Within the spatial premiums of New York City, residents are accustomed to sacrificing certain degrees of privacy in exchange for affordable living conditions. The sharing of intimate spaces within our homes with strangers is something inherent to our lifestyles. (co)Lab Housing creates new benefits to collaboration and communal living. The programming of the space leaves these benefits open to much potential
Medium density housing for the collaborative spirit
IN/OUT
4,8 scale: 1/8” = 1’
The tectonic of the building reflects the variety of unit types and social conditions within the building. The plans indicate floors with large open spaces for intellectual exchange, work space, social functions, and the exploration of space by those who live adjacent to it. Other floors show a more introverted quality as their plans indicate the lack of large open space which has been alotted to the apartment units rather than the social spaces of the floor. The psychological discussion regarding the orientation of the units brings up the notion of social direction. Are the introverted units really more focussed on an ertoverted relationship with the city rather than the building? Perhaps those units thought to be extroverted socially within the building are really introverts seeking a severed tie to the city outside of their walls. The ambiguity of the issue and tectonic response foster discussion. Can we really program our people and their spaces? Can we suggest certain themes and degrees of flexibility through our architecture? The skin of the building takes a more direct approach to these notions. The size and location of apertures and glazing reflect a practical consideration for the amount of exposure certain programs and people may want to the world just outside. Units at street level have the most intense connection to the outside world. Or is it the least?
4,8 scale: 1/8” = 1’
UNIT PHYSICAL MODEL
CONDITIONS The psychology of shared living is something urban residents grapple with constantly. Spatial premiums require us to adjust our sense of security and comfort, resulting in often shared living spaces, kitchens, and bathrooms within our own homes. The ability to engage the common space within a housing building is not something that can be scripted or expected. The desire to seclude one’s self from any social interaction is also possible but, again,, unpredictable. The building was design to allow introversion and extroversion to occur within the unit, floor, and building.
UNIT CREATION
UNIT ORIENTATION
UNIT AGGREGATION
corridor intrusion
skin extrusion
2
2nd floor plan introverted units and spaces
4
4th floor plan extroverted units and spaces
CONDITIONS The psychology of shared living is something urban residents grapple with constantly. Spatial premiums require us to adjust our sense of security and comfort, resulting in often shared living spaces, kitchens, and bathrooms within our own homes. The ability to engage the common space within a housing building is not something that can be scripted or expected. The desire to seclude one’s self from any social interaction is also possible but, again,, unpredictable. The building was design to allow introversion and extroversion to occur within the unit, floor, and building.
UNIT CREATION
UNIT ORIENTATION
UNIT AGGREGATION
corridor intrusion
skin extrusion
2
2nd floor plan introverted units and spaces
4
4th floor plan extroverted units and spaces
G UNIT A
A
D
UNIT D
private shared work
H
B
UNIT B
E
C
I
UNIT E
UNIT C
A
UNIT F
J
transverse section intellectual connection
I
longitudinal section intellectual connection
EARLY FORMS OF AGGREGATION
UNIT PERSPECTIVES WITH MATERIAL PROPORTIONS
UNIT PLAN ORGANIZATION
SLOT FOR PIN CONNECTION
A
UNIT ASSEMBLY via PANELIZED SYSTEM roof / floor panels wall panels wall panels w/ threshold door system glazing panel
3
1
4
2
SHEAR WALL PANEL
FLOOR PANEL
PARTITION WALL PANEL
STRUCTURAL BEAM
1
JOINT CONDITION 1: slab-to-slab
2
JOINT CONDITION 2: slab-to-wall
WET WALL PANEL
FLOOR PANEL
3
JOINT CONDITION 3: slab-to-slab-to-wall
4
PHASE 1: JOINT MOMENT 1
JOINT CONDITION 4: slab-to-slab-to-wall
PHASE 2: JOINT MOMENT 2
PHASE 3: JOINT MOMENT 3
PHASE 4: JOINT MOMENT 4
4
transverse section through units
Drawing in plan and section was subject to much iteration. To adhere to zoning requirements like setback laws and egress planning required working with real numbers and measurements after schematic design was resolved. To work through these design challenges the project was subject to countless floor plan arrangements and sectional relationship studies. These studies took the form of massing diagrams and primitive sections before being turned into working drawing sets. The logic of floors and their repetition was somewhat applicable to the project as the psychological condition varied. But the lack of identical floors in any circumstance meant that each drawing was its own unique component.
EXHAUSTED AIR
UPPER VENTS
OPERABLE WINDOW
OUTSIDE AIR (SEASONAL)
OUTSIDE AIR (SEASONAL)
CONDITIONED AIR
PTAC UNIT
1
transverse section through units / egress
2
transverse section through units
The contexts in which we live often have a bearing on our psychological development. In urban contexts, the frequency of social interface coupled with the shared living conditions of he residents can become mentally ensnaring. The (co)Lab Housing building allows residents to use the flexibility of space and its partitioning within to control their level of exposure to others. As a housing development for creative professionals and students, the intellectual exchange is an important feature of the programming on each floor. Unit types vary from the spatially privatized introvert units to the socially and programmatically synthesized extroverted units. Connecting the public interiority of the building to the street level of Brooklyn allows for extension of public streets directly into the ground floor. Preserving the facade line along Grand Ave. maintains continuity of the built environment. The performance of the skin along this facade is two-fold. The control of apertures for privacy and unfolding process by which balconies and interior surfaces are created formulates an element of dynamism throughout the facade. The building does not use a curtain wall system, the skin is engaged to the structural prefabricated panels that compose the building.
(co)Lab Housing
urban creative exchange + living
Sukkah City 2010
Sukkah City 2010
competition entry for Sukkah City NYC held in Union Squarre
O P E N SHUT SUKKAH
OPEN
NIGHT OPEN open condition that welcomes and invites
must be at least 10 handbreadths tall, but no taller than 20 cubits
the gallery
elevation 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
the overhead condition must provide more shade than sunshine must have a roof/overhead condition made of schach
section 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
the sukkah must have at least 3 walls, but the third doesn't need to be complete must enclose a minimum area of at least 7 x 7 square handbreadths
1
3 the overhead condition must be permeable to rain
plan [open] 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
2
plan [closed]
roof plan [closed] 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
1/4” = 1’ - 0”
CLOSED closed private condition that beckons NIGHT
the lowest edge of the walls (or partial periphery-enclosing surfaces or structures) must be within 3 handbreadths of the ground
SHUT
pivots
the sukkah
elevation 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
section 1/4” = 1’ - 0”
ROOF S’CACH open to the sky and stars above
The traditional sukkah recalls the type of fragile dwellings upon which the ancient Israelites depended during their 40 years of wandering in the desert after their Exodus from Egypt. They were lite and temporal out of necessity, a modest yet proud dwelling composed of what was available. The modern sukkah calls for a strong, firm structure appropriate for a people with a culture, presence, and a now secure place in the world. The sukkah sings of the spiritual and physical transformation the Jewish people have undergone. As the space unfolds and opens its sanctity to the outside world it does so knowing that it will be greeted with warmth. At its most shut condition it is a sukkah in the traditional sense, an intimate realm for a family to reflect on the mitzvah they have undertaken. The spatial experience accommodates the activities of the festival of Sukkos, including hospitality, dining, learning, and sleeping. At its most physically open condition the sukkah is a fluid gallery and public space. The open passage through the sukkah encourages curious passers-by to engage and understand the sukkah as art, architecture, and a cultural symbol. The set of responsibilities accepted by the Jews has given them a guiding ethical role to play in the world. The sukkah’s role echoes that of its people as it becomes a beacon of light for all cultures, a place of harmony and peace. Perhaps at its most physically open it is also at its most spiritually open, an invitation for those who are without to come in and share with those who can provide.
SUKKAH CITY Sukkot Festival, Union Square, NY 2010
eVolo 2011
THE VERTICAL NEIGHBOHOOD THE CONCEPT OF VERTICAL LIVING HAS BEEN DEVELOPED AND UTILIZED FOR A CENTURY. THE SYMBOLIC POWER AND THE EFFICIENT CONSTRUCTION HAS PROVED ITSELF AND HAS BECOME THE NEW NORM OF DEVELOPMENT WHERE THE ENVIRONMENT ALLOWS. NEVERTHELESS, WITH ALL THE BENEFITS OF SUCH A CONSTRUCTION, THE SKYSCRAPERS HAVE PROVEN TO LOSE THE BENEFIT ASSOCIATED WITH DIRECT CONTACT TO THE URBAN GROUND CONDITION AT THE STREET LEVEL. THE GROUND SURFACE CARRIES IMPORTANT HISTORIC AND SOCIAL STRATA OF INFORMATION THAT ARE NECESSARY FOR CITIZENS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ORGANIC URBAN DEVELOPMENT. LIVING FAR REMOVED VERTICALLY IN AN ISOLATED APARTMENT CREATES AN ALIENATION AND DISCONNECT FROM THE REST OF THE CITY.
THIS PROJECT ANSWERS THE DEMANDS OF VERTICAL LIVING BY BRINGING THE HORIZONTAL PERFORMANCE OF THE STREET AND EXTENDING IT INTO THE TOWER.
[ KITCHE.N.T.wine ] A New Eco-Neighborhood Tower in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen
THE MASSIVE BUILDING INCORPORATES 40 CITY BLOCKS OF HOUSING, CIVIC SERICES, STORES, RESTAURANTS, GARDENS AND RECREATION FOR A STRONG INDEPENDENT AND INTERCONNECTED VERTICAL NEIGHBOHOOD.
BASE E
OMM MUNAL SPINE COMMUNAL VES S AS A CONTINUOUS CHAIN OF SERVES ROTOTYPLICAL “STREET” THE PR PROTOTYPLICAL GR RAM INCLUDING OPEN SPACES, PROGRAM ULLATION AND PUBLIC CIRCULATION NS SPORTATION. TRANSPORTATION. TIC CAL GARDENS, PLAYGROUNDS VERTICAL UBLIC SPACES ARE AND PU PUBLIC LIM MENTED THROUGHOUT THE IMPLIMENTED JEC CT AND RESPOND TO THE PROJECT AN N DYNAMICS AND STRUCTURAL URBAN DS OF THE BUILDING. NEEDS
COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL MMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL CHORD BOTH H COMMERCIAL AND NDU USTRIAL PROGRAMS ARE INDUSTRIAL REQU UIRED AT A MASSIVE SCALE. REQUIRED THES SE CHORDS OFFER THESE NHA ABITANTS OCCUPATION INHABITANTS OPPO ORTUNITIES AND THE BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES A SELF SELLF SUSTAINING INTERNAL ECON NOMY. ECONOMY.
RESIDENTIAL DENTIAL CHORD THE HOUSING TYPOLOGY OFFERS RSITY AND CHANGES OVER TIME. DIVERSITY THE TRANSITION FROM THE BLOCK HOUSING TO THE ROWBLOCK ICAL STACK OCCURS VERTICAL MLESSLY. SEEMLESSLY.
SERV VIC CE CHORD SERVICE AS ANY AN NY OTHER NEIGHBORHOOD, THE B UILDING REQUIRES PUBLIC BUILDING AND PRIVATE SERVICES SUCH AS SCHO OOLS, LAW INFORCEMENT AND SCHOOLS, CIVIC C FACILITIES.
“The programmatic ‘chords’ allow continuous spatial and physical connections within them. However, the synthesis of these chords at certain moments, allows for
interface to occur between discrete systems.” “These interfaces are modeled after those on the streets of the
existing city. As residential systems, industry, and commercial zones meet with dispersed institutional programs like libraries and schools, a diverse condition associated with neighborhood living emerges...”
0880
BASE THE B ASE ATTACHES AT THE WATER’S EDGE E TO ALLOW FOR FUTURE EXPA ANSION DUE TO POPULATION EXPANSION NCREASE AND PROJECTED SEA RISE. INCREASE
submission #
FUNCTIONS FUNC CTIONS AS A MEDIATION DEVICE BETW WEEN THE PLANAR CIRCULATION BETWEEN THE OF TH HE CITY AND THE VERTICAL NEIGHBORHOOD.
[ KITCHE.N.T.wine ] A New Eco-Neighborhood Tower in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen
The future of New York is a vertical one. The skyscraper was born here and now, 100 years later, it is necessary for the presence of this built typology to evolve along with the pressures of a world that has changed drastically since its inception. The response to spatial demands of a future, crowded city will cause us to reconsider how we organize our urban program space. We build up to accommodate a need for large amounts of space on small tracts of land. Comprising a mass comparable to 40 new York City blocks, [KitchE.N.T.wine] consists of 6,000 residential volumes, 1,200 individual commerce and exchange volumes, and a 57-story institutional, service, and pre-structural extension of the public realm that will occupy a base footprint equivalent to only 1.5 city blocks. A self-contained vertical neighborhood, the building is able to produce its own energy, manage its own waste, recycle its own resources, and generate its own monetary resources.
Additionally, the extended groundscape creates a port terminal, a 3,200 foot-long green space, road infrastructure, transit connections, and space to extend its built form for future expansion and economic participation. The disparate urban-scale systems stem from north and south on axis with a new 18-block-long extension of New York City. This extension serves as both structural support and beginning of the vertical neighborhood. On this base are direct extensions of both New York’s land mass and its social infrastructure. The edge conditions of the commerce to the south and the residential to the north are left with an open terminus to allow future growth. It is this growth that was the catalyst for the discussion of a vertical neighborhood. As population increase becomes a more prevalent force, it will reshape our urban strategies. The inherent physicality of the skyscraper as a typological solution is obvious in its vertical form.
The footprint of this project questions the role of the ground condition as it seemingly braids together out of existing urban fabric. The idea of extending ground mass and redrawing the coast line of New York is a tactic now inherent to the history of the city itself. This technique offers potential solutions to the limits of planned city space. The residential, commerce, and institutional “chords” of program allow continuous spatial and physical connections within them but, due to the synthesis of these chords at certain moments, also allow for interface to occur between discrete systems. These interfaces are similar to those that occur on the streets of the existing city. As residential systems shift into commercial zones and are met with dispersed institutional programs like libraries and schools a diverse condition associated with neighborhood living emerges.
RESIDENTIAL
[ apartment complex ]
Complex individual cells
0880
[ apartment building ]
submission #
[ apartment ]
COMMERCIAL + INDUSTRIAL
water collection and filtration
[ low density]
water collection and filtration
[ medium density]
solar collection on building skins
[ store ] single-program cells
[ storefront] Long, efficient strips of single-program cells
[ shopping center] Bundles of program strips create commercial bundles and industrial complexes
Large internal spaces
INSTITUTION [ high density]
[ institution ] Large autonomous program spaces
[ bureau ] Linked instutions and programs To create logistic efficiency
[ assembly ] Total assembly of services and institutions necessary to maintain and support others
Vertical assemblage of large spaces
energy + green systems 112th floor plan
33rd floor plan
By integrating the elements necessary for a neighborhood experience to exist, [KitchE.N.T.wine] eradicates the feelings of alienation associated with high rise living. This is achieved by allowing the residential, commercial, and institutional systems to interface at key moments throughout the building. When these moments occur, hybridized moments like outdoor park space and open-air energy collection spaces occur that are completely interactive. These situations are not necessarily a part of high-rise living currently. The lack of this street setting in the vertical conditions within the city prompts a redesign of what the neighborhood of the future may be. Perhaps by 2090, when it is predicted that New York’s population will grow by 2 million people as its land mass inversely shrinks due to rising sea levels, the idea of neighborhoods growing up and not out will be typical. For now, [KitchE.N.T.wine] will be the prototype for this future pattern of growth.
BUILDING SECTION