Tangible Architecture

TANGIBLE ARCHITECTURE AN ATHENAEUM FOR 2050

Studio 6.1 Instructors: Thomas Kirchner/Daniel Chung/ Uk Jung Group4: Thomas Keller / Jacobie Smith / Rob Avellino / Neil Ryan Young

Project Information

Drexel University Architecture | Studio 6.1 | Fall Quarter - 2018 All drawings, images and associated text included within this book was created by Thomas Keller, Jacobie Smith, Rob Avellino and Neil Ryan Young unless otherwise noted.

Original project design concept for Philadelphia Athenaeum Design Competition Looking Forward 2050.

Title: Out of Touch, An Archive for the Human Hand by: Lulu Loquidis, Daniel Martinez of Fox in the Snow Studio

Cover Image. Competition Board for Out of Touch, an Archive for the Human Hand

by Fox In The Snow Studio. From: The Athenaeum of Philadelphia, http://www. philaathenaeum.org (accessed December 06, 2018)

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Contents

Design Investigation and Analysis

Page 2

Design Concept and Project Narrative

Page 10

Final Design Iterations

Page 28

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Design Investigation and Analysis

The 3D model above was developed to study the existing designs facade patterns

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Spatial Sequences:

Left: Diagram illustrating the gradient of spatial privacy and spatial illumination patterns found within the original design.

Right: Public (green) and Private (blue) spaces are stagered throughout the building, but are separated by an elevator/stair core.

Far Right: Composition of public/private space overlayed by the north facade & roof.

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Roof/Facade Daylighting Diagrams

Vertical elements of the facade act as an aperture , creating an experience of light that changes as one moves through the building.

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These light patterns inflluence the private / public spatial arangements.

Structural Grid / Circulation Core

The original design incorporated a structural grid with column bays of approx. 16’ X 32’.

This configuration allowed for a simple strutural system that we interperated as a heavy timber structure.

The location of the core (stair, elevator and bathrooms) in the center of the buildign further simplified both the stryuctural systems, as well as the program ajacencies.

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Site Context With the site, we began analyzing the factors involved in the Athenaeum’s success. Who would use this Library? And for what? We decided upon the 4 Factors: Tourism, Repository, Academia, and the Community. Tourism coming in from Independence Mall, Repository for Professional Use, Academic for Education, and Community for local support.

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Understanding these demographics of people using the Athenaeum would later help us grasp how to organize the building in the most intuitive modes possible.

Street Context As important as understanding the User context of the site, we wanted to further understand the Street context of the Site. Washington Square is extremely rigid in its walled-off presence and geometry, alongide the buildings that enforce that around its perimeter.

How can we design a building that supports Washington Square but also welcomes the Public in?

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Design Concept and Project Narrative

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Tangibility Concept Narrative Audio Tangibility

Visual Tangibility

Physical Tangibility

PLACE INFORM

COMPOSITION CONNECTIVITY

OPERATION ACTIVITY

Taller spaces create reverb, informing activity and presence. Smaller spaces soften noise, creating more removed experiences.

These same principals can be applied to floor materials. Various types of wood flooring can be utilized to direct circulation paths, ushering their own set of sounds upon walking. Finishes like concrete or carpeting could help inform lounge or study areas.

The continuity of datums across our design is key, especially found with the patterns of the vertical slatting detail. Vista too can be expressed through these interconnections, views curated through the facade’s rhythm

With wood being the primary material and tool of the design, expression of the handcraft is vital. Interventions like counter-space, or storage could be integrated into the structure of the building. Stepping conditions create landscaped surfaces, offering scalable forms for public play.

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Athenaeum ~27,000 SF

Provided Program ~25,000 SF

Primary

Remaining Space ~2000 SF

Support

Utility Program When initially laying out the program, we wanted to utilize the separation of the Core to the fullest. We began placing components to fit within a Front-Back type structure, allowing the Primary Usage of program like the collection space in the front, and the support spaces like Staff in the back. Our basement space also allowed for the fitting of Archive space, which left additional space on the third floor to be programmed.

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Landscape Design Process

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When starting the design for the Landscape, we knew that this element had to encompass the concept of Tangibility to the fullest. As an armature to both the building and the narrative, the Landscape could have the most important role of engaging the public and activating an otherwise stagnant corridor.

We began testing forms Tangibility could take within this feature. Areas for seating and climbing would come naturally, but focusing on qualities like visual and compositional connections would be vital. How could we form a framework to inform the concept?

Partial Plan and Section

Development To start, we began to draw datum from the Building itself.

This involved carrying lines such our Structure grid through, as well as acknowledging the presences of the Concrete walls on the North Facade. We also needed to include a segment of the form to beckon towards the sidewalk to help inform a more inviting quality. Vegetation was also a factor, to help liven and invite nature into the scene.

Initial Framework

Facade into Landscape

These factors translated in moments like Stepping and Material Swapping, alongside gridded guidelines that provided us more than enough framework to work with.

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Amphitheater Another feature that began developing was a type of amphitheater in the backyard, continuing the activation to behind the building.

Angular v Circular Working around our framework, we began to detail different design motifs to play with. An angular Motif versus a Circular one? Geometric versus Organic? How could we choose a mode that would best fulfill our conceptual and narrative needs?

Development

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As the process developed, we realized using the Angular motif was fitting our needs the best. It provided a playfulness that parralled an organic nature, but still retaining a geometry we could use to relate to the building with. We further developed the framework by drawing proportional lines started to surface intimate connections across the landscape.

Final Building on the dynamic approach, we designed to Weave and Fold the wood and concrete materials between each other.

Being informed by the North facade, concrete motifs translate with vegetation to create moments of seating for rest. The form wraps from front to back of the building, offering opportunity to the Public to enter as they please. The final form itself informs a playful geometry that complements the Building’s narrative, as well as encapsulates the Tangible concept to the fullest.

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Approach

Porch

Experiential Process As designing continued, we started to craft the experiential qualities of our building. Focusing on key moments like the Porch and the Public Collection, we developed the moments what a normal Patron of the Library would experience.

Through these views, it also helped us to start thinking about how our Tangibility concept could carry into every aspect of the building. How were elements being touched? How were they being seen and read?

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Public Collection

Choosing the method of hand drawing these Tangible views helped us really hone in on how to make these spaces and forms really fulfill the narrative.

Porch

Communicating Stair

Public Collection

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Section C

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Section A

Sketch Section

Experiential Sections In Section, we detailed the interior experiences of the spaces across the whole building. Here, the varying nature of each space is highlighted from the ceiling profile down to the background material designations.

With the building being organized in the Front-Back nature, one can easily see the differences in spatial quality across the both.

Program Section

Section B

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View across from Washington Square

Site Plan Located at the corner of 6th & St. James streets, the Athenaeum is located right on the edges of major tourism and local destinations. This site has much opportunity to further engage the public and support these presences.

Attractions like Washington Square, Independence Hall, and the Liberty Bell a mere walk away, this building could become its own source of support and feature to this area.

How can we design a meaningful approach to attract the Public and provide an armature to the building’s street presence and context?

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Sustainability Narrative 1. RAPIDLY RENEWABLE MATERIALS: The buildings facade will be constructed of untreated black locust beams that 1. RAPIDLY RENEWABLE MATERIALS: support vertical climbing plants/vines. buildings facade The structural elementswill of be theconstructed building will of untreated locust beams that be constructedblack of engineered timber. support vertical climbing plants/vines.

The structural elements 2.

VEGETATIVE WALLS: of the building will be constructed engineered timber.

Climbing plants of and vines will be utilized on the facade to contribute to a more natural urban environment, as well as support birds or other wildlife.

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3. HIGHLY TRANSPARENT FACADE: The transparent facade will provide shared views of interior space and streetscape, and will allow pedestrians to experience a the building interior.

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5. VEGETATION @ GROUND LEVEL: Grasses and other vegetation will be located at the intersection of the facade and street , allowing the building to seemingly float, while providing additional green space at the street level to encourage the sense of smell.

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4. STREET TREES:: Street trees will be planted along the North facade of the building to provide shade, and create a more natural urban environment.

6. URBAN LANDSCAPE FEATURES: Natural materials will be used to create an urban landscape to encourage the sense of touch and allow visitors to directly interact with the buildings facade. This feature also adds urban green space.

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The sustainable design concepts that we explored focused on the tangible qualities of the building. This approach allowed us to incorporate sustainability in a way that we felt would more strongly enhance the design experience while teaching the principles of sustainability to the public.

These diagrams (left and above) were used to illustrate the sustainable design features explored on this project. In addition to these diagrams, we explored sustainability throughout the project in our discussions of material use, the facade’s energy use and the impact that our buildign might have on the surrounding environment.

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Iterative Design 1

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2

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Multiple design options for vertical sun shades were explored throughout the project.

The design options (1 & 2) began in sketch form and were then created in 3D modeling programs to test the light and spatial qualities that they provided for the project.

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Final Design Iterations

The original structural design called for a heavy timber frame configured in a 16’x32’ grid. There was no information on the floors and no information on how the envelope attached to the main structure. These ideas were developed through a series of sketches shown here.

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Structural Systems

The final structural design maintains the 16’ x 32’ bays, but incorporates concrete bearing walls (shown above in grey). These walls were incorporated as a design choice, and to increase thermal performance but also provide a sturdy anchor for the engineered wood frame to attach to. The floors consist of steel reinforced wooden web joists. These joists have an open web allowing building systems to pass through, minimizing the overall thickness of the floors.

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The driving concept of tangibility is expressed mainly in the facade by the wood fins. The original design did not show much about the fins themselves so they had to be designed to create a streamlined experience for the visitor.

These fins presented an opportunity to design at the scale of the human hand.

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Exterior Details

Original the idea was to cover the mullions of a typical storefront system with custom wood elements to provide a tangible surface. While this system worked in theory, this method compromised the thermal performance of the facade due to the amount of metal required to build this system. Eventually a high performance system was found (shown above) that mostly consists of rubber gaskets. Metal is required

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Daylighting Analysis

Through the use of BIM and energy analysis software (left), we were able to quickly understand the influence of natural daylighting on our design as well as discover areas where artificial lighting would have to be utilized.

In addition to energy modeling, design models were created (right) in order to explore the influence of light on the design. This exploration led to further exploration of facade fenestration patterns that would provide a variety of lighting levels and experiential qualities to the design.

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Floor Plans

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Process Elevations

Using the tangibility concept, facade variations were studied using the above diagram as a driving force. Ultimately, the elevations evolved to provide a solid and void relationship between the concrete and glazing facade systems overlayed with the vertical wood fins.

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Final Elevations

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Final Elevations

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Wall sections showing fin system

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Building Envelope

T.O. ROOF DECK 56'-0"

THIRD FLOOR 42''-0"

12'-0"

TYP CLG HT

MEZZANINE 28'-0"

14'-0"

TYP FLR TO FLR

SECOND FLOOR 14'-0"

16'-0 3/4"

FLR TO FLR

FIRST FLOOR 0'-0"

BASEMENT FLOOR -16'-0"

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Section Perspective

The use of bracketed time was used on our sectional exploration of the interior space. This allowed us to understand how the facades glazing would influence the interior experience of our building. design.

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8:00 am

11:00 am

4:00 pm

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