ACADEMIC PORTFOLIO 2020/21 Isobel Prosser 170801977 City Ruins Architecture, Planning and Landscape Newcastle University
Contents
Illustrated Reflective Diary
4
Framing 6 Testing
40
Synthesis 76 Cultural Bibliography 87 Appendix 91 List of Figures
114
Bibliography 115
Work produced/ developed after final review Included in ARC3013 Integrated Construction Work produced as a group My contribution to group work 2
ARC3001 | 170801977
3
ARC3001 | 170801977
Illustrated Reflective Diary
The City Ruins studio has allowed me to explore my interest in heritage and conservation architecture in new ways, as my design does not preserve the existing dilapidated buildings on site – which would have been my approach before starting Stage 3 – but instead explores the history of the site itself and seeks to represent this, and my idea of ‘ruins’, through the architecture.
My Theory into Practise essay also explored ideas of layers of history, and how not only individual buildings, but also the urban environment as a whole displays traces of its past. I began my proposal by researching the history of the site, discovering that the hill the site is built on was artificially constructed using ballast from ships in the nearby Tyne River during the 19th Century, and that the whole area of Ouseburn was fields for cultivation. This gave me a new perspective on heritage, as, instead of blindly maintaining the existing decrepit buildings on site for the sake of preserving materials, I would instead revisit the history of the site itself, and respect the heritage of the area in a more sensitive and poetic manner.
Our studio began by making observations of Newcastle, and through these observations I developed an approach towards what a ‘ruin’ is. My immediate assumption was that a ruin is a building which looks old and worn down. However, through further observation I noticed that there are different ways in which a building can show age. The first, and most immediately apparent, is through the deterioration of the building’s materials to the point where its overall form changes. The second is the exact opposite of this – the changing of a building’s form by extending the building, adding other forms which merge with the original to become a new overall form.
That is not to say that the environmental impact of demolishing the existing buildings was not considered in my design. The primary material of my proposal, rammed earth, uses aggregate from the demolished buildings. However, rammed earth on its own would be washed away by water, which makes it a difficult material to use in Newcastle. Balancing the poetics of exposing the rammed earth to show a connection to the Ballast Hills with the need to protect it from the rain was challenging. This challenge became an opportunity to bring forward my initial ideas of ruins and the degradation of form, which my Integrated Construction report helped to resolve. Adding a small percentage of cement to the rammed earth, and increasing the thickness of the walls to allow for weathering over time, meant that the buildings would remain structurally sound and watertight, whilst also being allowed to age over time and take on a ruinous appearance. My second interpretation if ruins – additive forms – is less obviously achieved in my design. I use lightweight timber forms above heavyweight rammed earth bases as an attempt to show the timber forms as “additions” to the buildings. Although I believe that the lightweight to heavyweight contrast is successful, its connection to ruins is less apparent than the intentional deterioration of materials.
I took these ideas forward into my Ruin Lust work, where I used printmaking techniques to explore deteriorating and additive forms in abstract. I found during this work that I often had to artificially ‘age’ my pieces to get the desired ruinous effect without spending the time to let my prints deteriorate naturally. I continued this exploration of artificial ruins in my Theory into Practise essay, where I explored how follies are ‘fake’ ruins and artificially replicated the layers of history present in genuinely old buildings, which highlights the importance, to me, of allowing a building to age naturally. Moreover, follies were constructed for their aesthetics, whereas my project must suit the users’ needs and be functional. Constructing my design as a ruin would not only shorten the building’s lifespan, but could also hinder its suitability for the users’ – a collection or artists requiring live- and workspaces - needs. The Professional Practise and Management module particularly highlighted to me the priority of the artists’ requirements and how this influences not only the design itself, but the construction process and the type of contract between the client, architect and the contractors.
4
ARC3001 | 170801977
5
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing began with observations of the city, and printmaking through which I developed my approach to ruins: changes in form through subtraction of material and addition of other forms which merge with the original. My prints which explore this are very successful, however transferring the ideas which are abstractly represented into architecture proved challenging. My focus on additive forms, combined with ideas of making and shaping earth from the Ballast Hills, led to several large blocks with bases of rammed earth and lightweight timber forms on top rising from the topography of the site. The steepness of the site lends itself well to ideas of shaping earth, as I needed to redevelop the topography to create a more open, welcoming atmosphere. Although the contrast between the lightweight and heavyweight forms is convincing, it connection to ruins would not be immediately apparent without the context of my observations. The weathering of the façade that I develop during Synthesis is a more direct connection to ruins.
FRAMING
I began my initial development work using analogue sketches, but quickly moved to digital media as I had no means of scanning large scale drawings. As a result, I found that using combination of CAD, Sketchup and Photoshop meant I could create iterative drawings very quickly, as I did not need to redraw or trace the same drawing repeatedly. This made my development process more efficient, but also felt more restrictive than being able to physically sketch.
Framing
6
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
7
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - Ruin Lust Exploring the City
In my observations of Newcastle, I focused on the forms of structures and evidence of how buildings change over time. The most obvious evidence of change is in the ruined form of the Old Mill in Jesmond Dean. Its crumbling walls give the building an organic outline, and the decay of the walls has led to the wheel of the mill being revealed. I found this in particular very intriguing - that the use of the building is clearly visible as a result of the building aging. Another aspect of changing form that I looked at was buildings being added to over time - rather than decaying and getting smaller, the buildings evolve and grow through additions. In particular, Seven Stories in Ouseburn has a side extension with a lopsided roof, and a fire escape. The character of this side of the building contrasts with the front facade which has regular window openings and is otherwise flat. Yet the extension becomes part of the building as a whole, changing and - in my opinion - improving the character of the whole structure. Other aspects that I explored were older materials gaining more texture and character through age, such as the glass and steel building on City Road that seems to reject the context of the old, worn stone wall and stairs that lead to the building. The abandoned warehouses on Lime Street, with their peeling paint are more visually interesting than the newlypainted structure next door, despite its more complicated form.
City Road
Old Mill, Jesmond Dean
Seven Stories, Ouseburne
Lime Street
Framing
8
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
9
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - Ruin Lust 2D Print Development
The key points that I took from my observations of the city were: 1. How the form (and texture) of a building can change through decay.
Having explored ideas of decay, I moved to exploring how additions can change overall form. I took simplified shapes from my observations of the city, such as the wheel of the Old Mill and a parallelogram from the fire escape of Seven Stories.
2. How the overall form and character of a building can change through additions. In this series of prints I have explored the former by using the same printing block - a simple cardboard square - repeatedly and observing how the card wears down.
I experimented with different configurations of colours and shapes, working over the top of a black square and around it.
I found three main ‘phases’ during the printing. For the first 100 prints, the cardboard remained mostly unchanged until the top layer of card was wholly saturated from the moisture in the ink. At that stage, fragments of the cardboard began peeling off and remain stuck to the print, yet once the layer had been entirely removed the prints were almost textureless black squares again. The final stage was when the layer of cardboard peeled back to reveal the corrugated card beneath, which is similar to the corrugated steel often found in industrial buildings.
The configurations at the top of the page ignore the square entirely, and the each overall shape includes the square but is not derived from it. Those at the bottom work around the square, incorporating the black shape so that the overall form is derived from the initial square. My chosen configuration is a balance of the two extremes. The additional shapes are formed around the square, but also overlap and integrate the square, connecting every individual shape into one new form.
When I began, I expected the shape of the square itself to deteriorate. Instead the surface of the printing plate decayed first. The same could be said of buildings - the materials of the facades will weather and age before the overall form of the building begins to crumble.
Framing
10
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
11
ARC3001 | 170801977
Plain paper
PVA
As an alternative to the idea of adding shapes to create new forms, I also experimented with working in negative - removing ink and creating new shapes.
Using the form that I had chosen before, I experimented with applying different materials to paper, and printing on top of them to see how they would affect the quality of the print. Additionally, I tested applying materials to the cardboard printing plate. This is similar to using negative space, as the places where I applied the materials dictated where the ink would stick to the paper.
The top row are prints that I took from the ink that was left where I had applied ink to my printing plates. The shape outlines are a result of multiple layers of ink being applied to an area over time. As time progressed and more ink was applied to that area, the more distinct the shape outlines become. This is like aging backwards, as usually as time progresses the form decays and becomes less distinct.
UHU
In both sets of tests, the pritt stick was most successful as it created texture within the print without altogether losing the form of the print, such as with the lollipop sticks and the paper straws.
The other prints are taken from where I applied ink to my roller. I drew shapes into the ink, making each drawing more detailed between each print so that even as the images become more resolved, they are less distinct as there is less and less ink with which to define the image. This also relates to how, even as buildings are added to and extended, the original structure still continues to age and will eventually decay - if it is allowed to do so and not demolished or replaced.
PVA
In this way, I could recreate the effects of my first test with the black squares, without needing to make 200 or more prints. Pritt stick
Pritt stick
Lollipop sticks
Masking tape
Framing
Fixing spray
12
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
13
Paper straws
Wet and torn cardboard
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - Ruin Lust 2D Final Print
My final print aims to show both of my initial observations of the city. In each print, the additional shapes are added and the overall form grows, whilst at the same time the quality of the prints deteriorates. This represents how buildings are added to and grow over time, but will also age and decay, gaining more history and character through this process.
Framing
14
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
15
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - Ruin Lust 3D Sculpture Development
For the development of my sculptural piece, I returned to my observations of the city and focused on more general city scapes. The key forms that I picked out were the towers, bridges and chimneypots of the rootops near the Quayside. Untitled (Humpty Dumpty), Cy Twombly, 2004
These forms are very different in scale, yet similar shapes are repeated, so at the same scale these forms would appear very similar.
Untitled, Cy Twombly, 2009
In my sculptures I explore these everyday forms at a similar scale in an abstract way. In addition, I return to the idea of creating one form from multiple shapes layered together. I was inspired by Cy Twombly’s sculptures which combine multiple objects, but through a coating of white paint, these disparate objects become one cohesive form. From my city observations, I initially tried to directly recreate some of the forms that I found - such as chimney pots and a cylindrical tower - however this was too literal and may have led to a simple recreation of a cityscape. Instead, I turned to ‘as found’ recycled objects and combined them in various ways, taking inspiration from these bridges, chimneys and towers. This process resulted in four small scale sculptures that emulate the much larger city scape forms.
Untitled (Funerary Box for a Lime Green Python), Cy Twombly, 1954
Framing
16
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
17
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - Ruin Lust 3D Final Sculptures
These two sculptures emulate the chimneys and towers within the roofline of Newcastle’s Quayside.
Inspired by Newcastle’s bridges and towers, these sculptures are coated in paper mache and white paint, respectively.
Similarly to Cy Twombly’s work, I covered the sculptures in one material to create one cohesive whole.
Unlike the previous two sculptures, these are not fully coated so that part of the original colour and texture are still visible. This gives a more direct impression of the materials being aged.
As I was wrapping the sculptures, however, I found that both the newspaper and tinfoil tore very easily. These tears and other imperfections can relate back to ideas of ruins and aging, particularly through the texture of a building - or in this case my sculptures - changing through decay.
Moreover, being able to see parts of the original colours - in addition with the original shapes being very distinct - supports ideas of using shapes ‘as found’, and reusing material for a new purpose. This is an idea that I will take forward into my massing proposal.
This especially applies to the tinfoil, as the foil is originally a smooth, flat sheet, yet wrapping the scultpure created small wrinkles and facets which adds more complexity to the sculpture’s appearance and fundamentally alters how the tinfoil and sculpture beneath is percieved.
Framing
18
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
19
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Site Analysis
Albion Row, Ouseburne is currently a metal scrapyard sat between two housing developments. There are two dilapidated warehouses on the eastern edge, and the site has two 7m steps. The site has an oppressive atmosphere, partially due to the steps and partially due to the industrial nature of the site. In my proposal, I want to make the site more permeable and open, to create an open and welcoming atmosphere.
Framing
20
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
21
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
22
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
23
ARC3001 | 170801977
The Ouseburn area used to be land for cultivation, as shown in the 1860s map. In the next 50 years, however, this land was developed into residential terraces. In my proposal, I want to reincorporate cultivation into the area.
The Burial Ground adjacent to the site has been unused since the 1850s. In 1930, it was converted into a park and the gravestones were used to create pathways. This is a further example of reusing objects, and shows that the site has a history of recycling and reuse.
Additionally, the hill on which my site sits was made of ballast which had been used to balance ships in the nearby Tyne river. This is an example of material being reused for a new purpose, and forms the basis of my design proposal with ideas of making and shaping earth.
Framing
These maps also show that the site sat on a boundary between industrial and residential land, as the land to the north was residential and the area to the sound was primarily industrial.
24
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
25
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Brief Development
Ideas of making and shaping earth, inspired by the Ballast Hills
Discrete forms coming together to create new overall forms, based on my Ruin Lust experimentations
Lightweight forms above heavyweight forms, creating layers
...Painters
Reintroducing cultivation and greenery to the site
....Photographers
Access for all
In recent years, however, the industrial landscape has been increasingly overtaken by residential developments. The site is currently bordered by Byker Wall to the north and the Malings development to the south. The existing scrapyard is currently a barrier between these two developments, so in my proposal I will make the site more permeable, creating routes between the two developments. Live/work spaces for a range of artists, including ceramicists...
...Textile artists
Framing
26
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
27
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Site Plan Development
My site plan development began with creating a grid in line with the housing blocks in Byker Wall. I arranged buildings on the site to create permeable routes between them, with green spaces for cultivation. The existing buildings cut off a corner of the site, which could cause that space to become oppressive. To make the entire site as open as possible, I decided to demolish most of the existing buildings, retaining the walls of the lower building as a walled sculpture garden. I arranged the blocks themselves with a ‘careful carelessness’, to create fluidity between the forms. The finger-like arrangement is similar to that of the neighbouring Malings development.
Grid based on surrounding developments
Initial block running along northern edge of the site, but created a barrier instead of being open
Longer blocks creating north/south and east/west routes, spaces for greenery in between
Adjusting size and location of blocks, an attempt to resolve the existing buildings
Opening the eastern corner by demolishing the larger existing building and retaining the walls of the other
The Malings, Ouseburn, Newcastle, Ash Sakula Architects
Framing
28
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
29
ARC3001 | 170801977
Site strategy showing building uses, key routes through the site, proposed spaces for greenery, and key entrances to each block
Framing
30
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
31
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Massing Development
Haus Rauch appears to be emerging directly from the steeply sloping hillside into which it is built. This fits with the idea of making and shaping earth, and is the inspiration for the basic shape of the stabilised rammed earth building bases of my design.
My massing development follows the idea of lightweight forms atop heavyweight forms. The base of each building will be stabilised rammed earth, inspired by Roger Bolthauser’s Haus Rauch, with timber cladding above. This combination aims to suggest that the upper, timber layer is an addition to the stabilised rammed earth layer below, similar to the extensions and layers observed in city buildings as part of my Ruin Lust.
Potential for maisonettes with a raised, external walkway for access
Haus Rauch, Austria, Roger Boltshauser
The residential blocks have a more complicated language than the gallery and studio blocks, to differentiate the two types. I redeveloped the topography of the site to create a series of shallower 1.5m steps cascading down the site, which make the site more open and accessible. Residential units spanning entire height of the block with individual roof terraces
Experimenting with pushing and pulling the heights of the stabilised rammed earth and timber cladding
Framing
32
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
33
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain
End Unit Height Experimentation
Showing the division of units across the residential block
No additional height
End unit +1m
End unit +3m
End unit +2m
I experimented with raising the height of the end unit of each residential block to punctuate the end of the building as it steps down the slope, but had to consider how much the taller unit would overshadow its neighbouring unit. Framing
34
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
35
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Initial Material Exploration
Stabilised rammed earth uniformly 2 storeys high
Framing
Timber cladding pulled down in places to follow base of roof terrace walls
36
Timber cladding pulled down further at each unit
Timber cladding pulled down to extremes, this loses the impression of a heavyweight base
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
Stabilised rammed earth pulled up to extremes, also loses the impression of a discrete base
37
Timber cladding pulled down in places, but mostly follows the cascade of the building down the steps. The stabilised rammed earth is pulled up at the end unit to punctuate the corner.
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing - City Grain Urban Proposal
Framing
38
ARC3001 | 170801977
Framing
39
ARC3001 | 170801977
The landscaping of the residential ‘streets’ between the blocks and the public squares at the centre of the site was a key focus during this stage of work. Reintroducing cultivation to the site and ensuring access for all are both primarily external considerations, especially considering the stepped topography. Moreover, these are the spaces that create the welcoming and open atmosphere that I am aiming for. The residential ‘streets’ are the more successful external spaces, as the gardens outside each dwelling give the space structure, and the vegetation softens the otherwise monumental streets with tall buildings either side. I found the public square spaces more difficult to develop, as it was difficult to fill the large, empty areas without a clear frame of reference that the gardens provided.
TESTING
Due to the large scale of my project, I focused most of my initial time on developing the residential units. As a result, these parts of the scheme are more complex than the gallery and studio spaces. However, this the language of the residential units differs from that of the gallery and studio buildings, which emphasises the difference between the private and public to semi-public spaces.
Testing
40
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
41
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Landscaping Development
The steep level change of the site means that there is not space for straight ramps to climb between each level change, along every ‘street’ between each block. Instead, I have included ramps at the west and south-east entrances to the site, as they follow the primary route through the centre of the site.
Every unit has a ground level garden at the front of the dwelling, and a roof terrace. The ground floor gardens provide a soft barrier between the dwelling windows and the main walkway, which gives a sense of privacy.
My initial ramp proposal was a tight switchback with stairs incorporated into the angled spaces between each ramp, so that the required 30m of ramps could fit between each level change. This, however, did not fit with the otherwise loose, wandering atmosphere of the site.
Additionally, each unit has a roof terrace where plants could be grown, and every residential unit has a green roof.
To improve, I stretched out the ramps so that the angles are wider and the incline is softer, encouraging a more wandering path.
Testing
42
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
43
ARC3001 | 170801977
Trees scattered across site seem haphazard and too random
Testing
Trees grouped in designated green areas provide better structure to the landscaping of spaces in between blocks
44
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
45
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Final Plans
First Floor
Ground Floor
Testing
46
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
47
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Street View
Testing
48
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
49
ARC3001 | 170801977
Second Floor
Testing
50
ARC3001 | 170801977
Third Floor (Only Gallery Building)
Testing
51
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Final Section
Testing
52
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
53
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Residential Unit Development
Since there is a street on each side of most of the residential blocks, every unit has the potential to be dual aspect. However, the blocks are 18m wide, which is too large for just one dwelling. To keep the units at a manageable size, whilst also taking advantage of the potential for dual aspect, the floors of each unit rotate around the central stairs core. The ground and second floors are single aspect, whilst the first floors are dual aspect, spanning the width of the block and interocking with the first floor of the neighbouring unit. Due to the interlocking, the units step down the site in pairs.
Testing
Accordia, Cambridge, Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects, Maccreanor Lavington, Alison Brooks Architects
54
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
55
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Street Corner View
Testing
56
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
57
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Structure of Two Interlocked Residential Units
Testing
58
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
59
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Residential Plans Development
Ground Floor 0 1
5
10
First Floor
Second Floor
20 m
N
Testing
60
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
61
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Sunlight Considerations in Residential Dwellings
The stairwell cores in each dwelling act as a lightwell, drawing light into the rear of each property. The thick walls provide some solar shading, as the steep angle of the sun allows little direct light into the dwellings during summer, whilst the lower winter sun can penetrate deep into each dwelling. Each unit staggers down the site, which prevents the roof terraces from being too overshadowed by the unit next to it.
Testing
62
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
63
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Interior View of Sunlight from Stairwell
Testing
64
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
65
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Testing - City Building
Rainwater Collection
Heating and Ventilation Strategy
The residential units use geothermally supported MVHR systems for heating and ventilation, in addition to natural ventilation provided by openable windows and the dual aspect first floor of each unit. Passing the incoming fresh air underground before it enters the building provides natural cooling in the summer, and heating in the winter, which reduces the energy needed to heat or cool it to the appropriate temperature as it enters the building, During the winter, the MVHR system reuses waste heat from outgoing air to further heat the fresh incoming air.
Water is collected from the green roofs and roof terraces by gutters concealed within the facade, and stored in a tank belowground. This water is then pumped back into the building for greywater appliances.
Using the ground as part of the heating strategy is a practical application of my design’s connection to earth.
Testing
66
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
67
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building Galery Plans Development
Shop Gallery Offices
Cafe W/C
Cafe
First Floor
Ground Floor
Testing
68
Second Floor
Third Floor
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
69
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building First Studio Space Development
Individual Studios
Individual Studios
Dark Room Individual Studios
Workshops
Workshops Workshops
Ground Floor
Testing
70
First Floor
Second Floor
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
71
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Second Studio Space Development
Individual Studios
Individual Studios
Dark Room/ Kiln Room etc
Public Workshops Individual Studios
First Floor
Ground Floor
Testing
72
Second Floor
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
73
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing - City Building
Second Studio Relationship With External Space
Testing
74
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
75
ARC3001 | 170801977
My focus during this phase was developing the relationship of the stabilised rammed earth with the timber cladding of the upper levels, and the cast stone window frames. As the rammed earth weathers, it will change in texture, and this will contrast with the clean lines of the cast stone and timber cladding. This will give the buildings a ruinous appearance as material is gradually removed by rainwater, without compromising the use of the buildings as the rammed earth is thicker than it structurally needs to be in order to accommodate the intended weathering. This is the most successful part of my scheme at representing ruins, as it is the most immediately obvious connection to the general idea of ‘ruins’.
SYNTHESIS
Synthesis
76
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis
77
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis - City Threshold Facade Structure
The stabilised rammed earth will have only 1-2% cement in it, which is lower than the typical 5% for this material. This means that the walls will still be partially water soluble, and will therefore weather over time, taking on a ruinous appearance. Moreover, the aggregate used in the walls shall be taken from the demolished existing building on site, to minimise wasted material.
Synthesis
78
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis
79
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis - City Threshold Thinking Through Making
For my Thinking Through Making, I made a series of abstract rammed earth tests using garden soil, sawdust, and various food items pressed into tupperware. I was surprised by how well a mixture of regular garden soil, water, and a replacement aggregate held together without the proper amount of clay to act as a binding agent. The garden soil, fine and rough sawdust experiments were as I expected. The layers of pure sawdust are visible, but the layers where I mixed sawdust with the garden soil are less so. They do, however, demonstrate how delicate the rammed earth mixture can be. Mixing sawdust with the soil created a much dryer mixture than other tests, and crumbled easier, which shows how the rammed earth must be mixed with the correct amount of water otherwise it will lose its structural integrity.
Garden soil
Red lentils
Dry conchiglie pasta
Rough sawdust
Fine sawdust
Cornflakes
The food based experiments surprised me the most. When I added lentils, they absorbed water from the soil and expanded during the drying process. This, combined with the lentils growing shoots, caused the block to crumble slightly. The conchiglie pasta experiment grew mould in the voids left by the pasta shells, which is a good demonstration of how damp, rot, and insects could impact rammed earth walls if they are not treated correctly.
Testing
80
ARC3001 | 170801977
Testing
81
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis - City Threshold Rammed Earth Weathering
Synthesis
82
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis
83
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis
84
ARC3001 | 170801977
Synthesis
85
ARC3001 | 170801977
CULTURAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
86
ARC3001 | 170801977
87
ARC3001 | 170801977
Digital Drawings
Photography
Improving My Skills With Photoshop
Readings
City Walking
88
ARC3001 | 170801977
89
ARC3001 | 170801977
APPENDIX
90
ARC3001 | 170801977
91
ARC3001 | 170801977
Appendix
Appendix
Initial Massing Development
View From Dining Room
92
ARC3001 | 170801977
93
ARC3001 | 170801977
Appendix
Work Typology
94
ARC3001 | 170801977
95
ARC3001 | 170801977
96
ARC3001 | 170801977
97
ARC3001 | 170801977
98
ARC3001 | 170801977
99
ARC3001 | 170801977
100
ARC3001 | 170801977
101
ARC3001 | 170801977
Appendix
Thematic Case Study
102
ARC3001 | 170801977
103
ARC3001 | 170801977
104
ARC3001 | 170801977
105
ARC3001 | 170801977
106
ARC3001 | 170801977
107
ARC3001 | 170801977
108
ARC3001 | 170801977
109
ARC3001 | 170801977
110
ARC3001 | 170801977
111
ARC3001 | 170801977
112
ARC3001 | 170801977
113
ARC3001 | 170801977
List of Figures
Bibliography
‘Ballast Hills Burial Ground’, Photographs of Newcastle < https://newcastlephotos.blogspot.com/2009/05/ballast-hills-burial-ground.html> [17th December 2020] Berger, John, Ways of Seeing (London: Penguin Classics, 2008) Untitled (Funerary Box for a Lime Green Python), Cy Twombly, 1954: Twombly, Cy, ‘Untitled (Funerary Box for a Lime Green Python)’ [online] <https://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/tate-papers/10/ some-notes-on-words-and-things-in-cy-twombly-sculptural-practice> [accessed 17th December 2020]
‘Cy Twombly: Sculpture’, Gagosian <https://gagosian.com/artists/cy-twombly/> [17th December 2020] Macauley, Rose, Pleasure of Ruins (Andesite Press, 2017) ‘Preservation is Overtaking Us’, Columbia GSAPP <https://www.arch.columbia.edu/books/reader/6-preservation-is-overtaking-us#reader-anchor-3> [17th December 2020]
Untitled (Humpty Dumpty), Cy Twombly, 2004: Twombly, Cy, ‘Untitled (Humpty Dumpty)’ [online] <https://www.thelondonlist.com/culture/cy-twombly-sculpture> [accessed 17th December 2020}
Rowe, Colin, and Fred Koetter, Collage City (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1978)
Untitled, Cy Twombly, 2009: Twombly, Cy, ‘Untitled’ [online] <https://www.thelondonlist.com/culture/cy-twombly-sculpture]
‘Sculptures – Artwork’, Cy Twombly Foundation <http://www.cytwombly.org/artworks/sculptures/11> [17th December 2020]
Haus Rauch, Austria, Roger Boltshauser < https://www.lehmtonerde.at/en/projects/project.php?pID=7>
‘Some Notes on Words and Things in Cy Twombly’s Sculptural Practice’, Tate, 2008 <https://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/tate-papers/10/some-notes-on-words-and-things-in-cy-twombly-sculptural-practice> [17th December 2020]
Accordia, Cambridge, Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects, Maccreanor Lavington, Alison Brooks Architects < https://www.maccreanorlavington.com/work/detail/accordia/>
Weaver, Ben, ‘Washed in White Paint’, THE LONDON LIST <https://www.thelondonlist.com/culture/cy-twombly-sculpture> [17th December 2020]
*All other images are the author’s own
114
ARC3001 | 170801977
115
ARC3001 | 170801977