Downland Gridshell. Cullinan Studio with BuroHappold

West Sussex, UK / 2003

Downland Gridshell is a conservation workshop for the Weald and Downland Living Museum, an outdoor collection in the south of England tracing the evolution of dwellings in the British Isles. The assortment of dwellings traces from Paleolithic through Tudor times, making restoration efforts highly specialized. The Gridshell responds to these predominantly woodframed constructions with a high-tech structure made of 4x4 wood members held in a spherical shape by steel plate joints (below). The unconventional form allows for unabridged interior space with great interior volume. The construction process was unique in that the wooden diagrid was built flat and orthogonal before the edges were lowered from the ceiling height for the structure to ‘fall’ into place. In this way, the Gridshell exploits and pushes the boundaries of wood construction techniques to create a form thoroughly unconventional yet suited for its purpose.

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THREADED RODS FOR SECURING STRUCTURAL LATHES

ADHESIVE-FREE ASSEMBLY ALLOWS WOOD TO FLEX UNDER LOAD

BFRESH WOOD LATHES

Polycarbonate Windows Sunlight

METAL JOINT PLATE WITH THREADED HOLES

WATTLE + DAUB COATING PROTECTS WOOD FROM MOISTURE AIR GAP INCREASES THERMAL MASS AND REDUCES MOISTURE DAMAGE

OVERHUNG CENTRAL ROOF PROVIDES EXTRA SHADING AND PROTECTION FROM BUILDUP OF DEBRIS

OVERSIZED SLIDING GLASS DOORS ALLOW WORK ON LARGER ARTIFACTS AND PASSIVE VENTILATION

POLYCARBONATE CLERESTORY

WINDOWS ADMIT DIFFUSE SUNLIGHT FOR USERS

DOUBLE-SLATTED WOOD PLANK CLADDING SHEDS PRECIPITATION AND CREATES UNIQUE PROFILE

OBLIQUE BIAXIAL GRIDSHELL ABSORBS LOADS FROM ALL DIRECTIONS BY FLEXING B