F2013

MOLLY CHEN FRANKLIN HOT SPRINGS PASO ROBLES, CA FALL 2013

MOLLY CHEN CALIFORNIA POLYTECHNIC STATE UNIVERSITY JEFFREY PONITZ - ARCH 251 FALL 2013

(re)construc

cted grounds

A very particular set of conditions must meet in a precise way in order to create an environment in which something as fragile as a dragonfly can exist. In order for it to survive, a dragonfly needs to be provided with an excellent body of water, such as the Franklin Hot Springs. In the same way that a dragonfly is born from the water, so is the site. Everything comes from the nutrient-rich water of the subterranean aquifer far below the realm of the dragonfly. And everything returns to it.

phenomenally figu

ured grounds Mass envelops void as void envelops mass. Interaction with the mass and void at the human scale can be gradual or abrupt. The cuts imply that the void and other interventions continue beyond the envelope, just as everything continues beyond what is originally perceived.

Two framed volumes intersect and interlock but don’t directly touch, yet they are also literally dependent on the other for support. A peculiar duailty is created between the two. Any experience is nothing without something else, independent or not, to support it.

structu groun

ured grounds nded structures People need somewhere to heal--a space that serves the function of promoting rehabilitation with exploration. In the context of our site, such a space can be manifested as a subterranean or otherwise similarly enclosed void with womb-like properties: warm, slightly steamy, and filled with a curiously soft, cushioning, mineral-rich water. But this space is the last stop on the explorative path that a patron would take around the site, much as the void is the last destination of every other journey.

*slow clap*