PROCESS BOOK Veronica Magner Design IV - Spring 2013
INTRODUCTION
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CASE STUDY: CASA DJ Urban Site Investigation/Thesis
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BELLA VISTA: ROWHOUSE Objective/Approach Schematic Design Design Development Solution Masterplanning
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BELLA VISTA: SITE ANALYSIS
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CASE STUDY: SANGATH Live/Work Investigation
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BELLA VISTA: TEKTONPHILADELPHIA Objective/Approach Schematic Design Design Development Solution
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INTRODUCTION Design IV for Architecture is a course which concentrates on general issues concerning dwelling, and addresses specific issues of housing and residential design. Emphasis is placed on designing in the urban context, as opposed to the preceding design course which focused on site relationships in a natural environment. This course also implemented the use of research, writing and analysis as a means of exploring human behaviour and patterns within the urban environment. The process through which the course developed inspired a number of developments in my skills as a designer, namely the refinement of graphical representation and a greater understanding of the urban condition and how to approach building within it. The emphasis placed on research and analysis served to reinforce this need for understanding, and the designs produced by the class aim to reflect a sensitivity to their context. The majority of the projects in this course were designed using a given location within the city of Philadelphia. The studio was divided into two groups, and each group focused and designed based a particular site. The site to which my group and I were assigned is located in the neighborhood of Bella Vista, Philadelphia and is bounded by Catherine and Christian Streets to the north and south, and 7th and 8th Streets to the east and west. The given buildable site consisted of a portion of the existing parking lot, and is adjacent to Philadelphia’s popular free art studio, the Fleischer Art Institute.
INTRODUCTION
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THE DESIGN PROCESS Over the course of the semester, two primary design projects were completed using the Site in Bella Vista, Philadelphia. Our first study was in residential design, and was preceded by a case study of an approach to building in an urban setting. Through preliminary analysis, site visits and the study of these precedents, I was able to approach the design of my rowhouse unit and its masterplan with a foundational understanding of site context. Upon completion of the design of the rowhouse, our groups worked together to produce a thorough investigation and analysis of the site in Bella Vista, through use of diagrams, graphics, modeling and writing. Our results were presented collectively in the format of a booklet and a 1:10 scale site model. This analysis, in addition to a case study of an existing live/work facility, set a stronger foundation of understanding for our final project, the design of a 60,000 sq.ft. design school and residential facility.
INTRODUCTION
CASE STUDY: CASA DJ Carcavelos, Portugal
[i]da Arquitectos
The semester’s first project, this case study was an investigation of I found this study particularly important in that it demonstrated an interpretation of the fundamental components of a house. The architects prioritized a sense of introversion and relative privacy, as was articulated by the centralized courtyard. Throughout the semester, I found myself referring back to this precedent, primarily in the design of my rowhouse. It set an example of how multiple levels can allow a division of space based on degrees of privacy. Additionally, the central axis of the courtyard in articulated those inner divisions and allowed ample natural daylighting and ventilation. The house demonstrates an urban designer’s acheivement of solace in an urban setting, while other student’s case studies provided examples of the priorities determined by other architects when faced with building in an urban setting.
URBAN SITE
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URBAN CONTEXT ESTABLISHING HOME AS REFUGE
THESIS The central void of space created by the patio not only blurs the definition between interior and exterior space, but also embodies the essence of the house’s design, articulating solace within its urban setting.
INVESTIGATION/THESIS
THE ROWHOUSE In urban settings, rowhouses serve as a practical solution for acheiving urban density and form a distinguishing part of the identity of Philadelphia. In the Bella Vista neighborhood of South Philadelphia, the task was assigned to design a rowhome which is conscious of its surroundings and mindful of the design challenges that come with its placement. In designing a rowhouse for six people, one must be mindful of zoning regulations, programmatic requirements, contemporary dwelling issues and find a way for their design to be duplicated to form a cohesive masterplan. Through precedent study and analysis, I determined that the primary objective of a rowhouse's design should be the allowance of light into the center of the building. Thus, my schematic designs were centered around the incorporation of light wells, as I saw them as the most fitting solution to solve the issue of daylighting. In my exploration of diffused light, I determined that a louver system on the south facade of the house would allow low-angle winter sun in for thermal heating, but block the intense glare of the high angle summer sun. This system also expresses the horizontal brick coursework of the surrounding buildings.
OBJECTIVE
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In each of the above explorative schemes, the columns of space direct and diffuse light throughout the building. These openings lent themselves to circulation, as they travelled vertically between floors.
SCHEMATIC DESIGN
In the design of the singular housing unit, I began to explore ways of multiplying this house to fit into the site in Bella Vista. I found that mirroring the design would allow the light wells to fit together, doubling their light allowance. To maintain privacy and still incorporate the use of transparent glass, a hanging metal trellis serves as a visual barrier between houses. I began to develop a solution for on-site parking, with the design of a minimal, lower level parking garage. The space above would be preserved as green space, and the view of cars would not permeate the terrain.
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
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LOUVERS ON SOUTH FACADE
DIFFUSED LIGHT IN SECOND FLOOR BEDROOM The louvers serve as both solar shading devices and as a way to unify and compose the facade. Areas of the exterior that do not need louvers are brick. The same thin metal bands are used in the trellis, and has been turned vertically to form a visual barriwer between two housing units. The trellis forms a roof on the deck terrace, creating the option for private space, shading and greenery.
SOLUTION
The central column of space serves as a a more public, family gathering space, while the north and south ends of the house are reserved for more private spaces. .
STAIR LIGHT WELL
DIFFUSED LIGHT IN OPEN FIRST FLOOR PLAN
SOLUTION
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In plan, a heirarchy of spaces develop as one moves upward vertically in the building. The first floor is open and the most public, while the third floor is reserved for the most important private spaces- the master bedroom and the home office/ study.
SOLUTION
In the design of a masterplan, I organized the units into two groups of four, one on the more private Catherine St. side and one on the more public Christian St. side. In elevation, the units link together to form a cohesive pattern, linking together gracefully. The park space between the units is gated off so as to create a private community space. Parking is included in a small underground garage. Community gardens provide an opportunity for neighbors to interact, and a path is included for students of the Fleischer Art institute to circulate back and forth between their two buildings.
MASTERPLANNING
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During this project, our group began our investigation and analysis of the site in Bella Vista. Preliminary research included multiple trips to the site to photograph, measure, and aesthetically study the neighborhood. Throughout the design of our rowhouse, we compiled information regarding architectural charachteristics, zoning, history, and other factors which contribute to a broader understanding of the site.
INITIAL SITE RESEARCH
A number of students began crafting a site model of the block surrounding the buildable site, and the state of the model at the time of our rowhouse and masterplanning critique can be seen at lower right.
SITE MODEL IN PROGRESS
SITE ANALYSIS
SITE ANALYSIS In preparation for our final project, the class collaborated within our respective groups to produce a detailed analysis of the site and the neighborhood of Bella Vista. A continuation of the preliminary research completed during project two, our group delegated areas of research amongst ourselves and composed our findings at the close of our investigation into one booklet. My role was an investigation and analysis of the history of our site, as well as its context within Bella Vista and the City of Philadelphia. An understanding of historical context is critical in approaching any given site, and is particularly important in our site due to its adjacency to Fleischer Art Memorial and, more broadly, the responsibility of building within an urban context. I also investigated the prevalant architectural styles on Catherine and Christian Streets, and the materiality of these streets’ rowhomes. With such a significant portion of time dedicated to the development of an understanding of our site, I was able to approach our final project with a clear idea of its potential implications on the neighborhood. Constant reworking and analysis of findings required us to be critical of our own methods of graphic representation.
SITE ANALYSIS
Bella Vista Neighborhood Mapping the Urban Fabric South Philadelphia 7th and 8th Between Christian and Catherine Street Design IV Spring 2013
COVER PAGE OF FINAL BOOKLET
HISTORY
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The Emergence of Philadelphia’s Rowhouse Neighborhoods “Philadelphia’s neighborhoods—rich in history and culture, recognizable and distinct—are more complex than they may appear at first glance. Three centuries of history is written in the landscape itself; in the streets, in the vernacular buildings, the churches, in the things made here, and in the visible and in the invisible boundaries between neighborhoods. These boundaries are defined as much by internal perceptions as by official geography, and the use of public space is both formal and improvised. Buildings old and new, ornate and ordinary, tell the story of change over time.” Outside of William Penn’s original city plan, a number of waterfront communities started to grow. Clustered along the edge of the the Delaware River, to the north and south of Center City, these neighborhoods grew to accomodate the industrial districts and neighboring townships, and in 1854 became part of the city itself.
Industrialization and the rise of immigration were forces that helped shape the fabric of Philadelphia, largely defining the neighborhoods which surround William Penn’s original plan. Philadelphia stretched out into the surrounding land to accomodate its increased population, and with this expansion came row after row of low-rise attatched housing units.
Historic Southwark Rowhouses The rowhouse form was ideally suited to meet the needs of a quickly growing population, as well as the regulated building plots and street grid system. Plan of the City of Philadelphia and Adjoining Districts, 1828
SITE ANALYSIS
BROAD STREET
BELLA VISTA Many of those with an Italian lineage in the Philadelphia region can trace their roots to this sevenblock-square district, with its brick rowhouses and narrow streets. In the late 19th century, the area recieved a large influx of Italian immigrants, many of whom first resided in Antonio Palumbo’s Boardinghouse until they could afford a house of their own. It was during this time that American cities saw waves of European immigrants settling in the populated, downtown neighborhoods. Most of these immigrants would move to upscale outskirts of the city once they had established themselves, but in Bella Vista, the Italian population remained. At the beginning of the 20th century, the residents of this area founded the Italian Market, which has become the largest and possibly the oldest open-air market in the country. The market, as long as the familyowned corner shops, helped define the ethnic and cultural identity of the district.
Progression of Development on Christian and Catherine St.
SITE ANALYSIS
1875
MARKET STREET
Location of Bella Vista, Philadelphia
1895
1962
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HISTORY
Then (1958) Then (1940s)
Now (2013)
Now (2013)
SITE ANALYSIS
Palumbo’s Boardinghouse, later Palumbo’s Restaurant Founded by Antonio Palumbo in 1884, Palumbo’s originated as a boarding house for newly-arrived Italian workers. Antonio’s son, Frank Palumbo Sr., transformed Palumbo’s into a multi-building banquet hall and entertainment complex that became the center of Italian-American social and political life. Mario Lanza, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Frankie Avalon and Sammy Davis Jr. all performed there. Palumbo Park The site was purchased by the Philadelphia School Board in 1875 for the construction of Thomas B. Florence public school. By 1954, the school was deemed to have outlived its usefulness. The property was deeded to the City of Philadelphia for use as a park. In 1978, the park was given an $81,000 overhaul and named in honor of Frank Palumbo Sr., philanthropist and restauranteur, the son of Antonio Palumbo.
Italian Market The Italian Market, which stretches along S. Ninth St. for about ten blocks, is one of the largest and oldest open-air markets in the country. In the early 20th century, as the area saw a significant influx of Italian Immigrants, a number of shops opened on 9th street. Some of these stores included butchers, cheese shops, and the vast variety of goods one might find was enough to satisfy a European immigrant in a new country. Though the identity of the neighborhood has been largely defined by its Italian population, the market has recently accepted a diverse range of ethnic shops, from Vietnamese to Mexican.
SITE ANALYSIS
Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial“The Memorial, originally known as the Graphic Sketch Club, was founded by Samuel S. Fleisher in 1898 in the Jewish Union building that then stood at 4th and Bainbridge Streets. In 1915, Mr. Fleisher purchased Saint Martin's College for Indigent Boys to house his expanding Graphic Sketch Club, then the only free art school in the nation. Originally the Episcopal Church of the Evangelists, the Sanctuary next door was purchased by Mr. Fleisher in 1922 and connected to the school building. Both buildings were designed in an Italianate Romanesque Revival style by Louis C. Baker and E. James Dallett of the Philadelphia architecture firm Furness & Evans. Housing a collection of European art from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries, the Sanctuary was intended to give the students a place for quiet meditation. Fleisher later acquired the adjacent row of houses for additional classrooms.�
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Casa Ravelio Now an empty parking lot, the Casa Ravello, a model tenament house, was founded in 1902 and provided the Italian community with affordable housing, penny lunches and educational services.
SITE ANALYSIS
ARCHITECTURAL STYLES Characteristics: • Three to three and 1/2 stories high with basement. • Brownstone base with brick upper facade.
The Greek Revival Style was popular between 1825 and 1860 in Philadelphia. A large number of the rowhomes on Catherine St, were built in 1885. The style is characterized by simple and bold architectural elements, imitating Greek motifs.
• Stoop of medium height with wrought-or cast-iron handrail. • Vertical paneled wood door. • Double-hung windows.
Greek Revival Rowhouse
• Modest molded stone window lintels and sill. • Wood dentiled cornice.
Rowhouses on Catherine St.
Partial Elevation, Catherine St.
SITE ANALYSIS
Typical Greek Revival Rowhouse
As a whole, the neighborhood of Bella Vista is comprised of a variety of architectural styles. While the Greek and Colonial Revival styles were popular during the time of the neighborhood’s rapid population growth, many other influences can be seen. The Fleischer Art Memorial, for instance, includes a church built in the Romanesque style.
Many rowhomes in the area were built in the Colonial Revival Style. This style is characterized by the use of colonial design motifs, a combination of elements from the Federal and Greek Revival styles.
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Characteristics: • Symmetrical brick facade laid in Flemish bond. • High stoop or simple steps. • Stone trim around doorway and windows. • Simple iron handrails and fences. • Multi-pane, double-hung wood windows. • Delicate, slender moldings • Simple cornice. Rowhouses on Christian St.
Partial Elevation, Christian St. Typical Colonial Revival Rowhouse
SITE ANALYSIS
SANGATH
An Architect’s Studio Ahmedabad, India - Balkrishna Doshi The following case study was an investigation of a live/work precedent. Architect Balkrishna Doshi utilized vernacular building techniques to create a building which responded to its environment and facilitated community collaboration. The influence of this building can be seen in my final project’s approach to circulation as moving visitors into the heart of the site, as well as a precedent for dividing program into heirarchy based on privacy.
Preliminary Section
Preliminary Massing Model
Sangath: v: “moving together through participation” Sangath expresses Balkrishna Doshi’s vision of what architecture for a place should be. The studio is a multipurpose space, inviting the community to utilize it as a discussion and exploration space, a place to talk about their urban environment and become involved in its development. The complex is also home to the Vastu Shilpa Foundation, a firm deticated to the idea of architecture “not as a synthesized container of specific activities but as a place to be inhabited, as a place to facilitate the course of human interaction.”
SANGATH
Exterior Perspective
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Design Objectives: - To function as an architect’s studio, the Vastu Shilpa Foundation’s headquarters, and a community activity and research space - To be energy efficient and expressive of the local architectural environment - To provide for occasional demonstration and exhibitions in the fine arts, with spaces provided for the community’s study of crafts, architecture and the built environment
Project Details:
Upper Level Entry - Vastu Shilpa Foundation
Climate Hot and Arid Year of Construction/Completion 1979-1981
Vastu Shilpa Foundation
Client/Owner Balkrishna Trust
Sanskrit for “Design-altered environment” Foundation based on traditional construction and a broad base of research, reflecting Doshi’s interests in history, art and culture.
Site Area 25,252 sq.ft.
Balkrishna Doshi
Location of VSF Office and Living Area
INVESTIGATION
Community Research and Exhibition Space The welcoming of community involvement stems from Doshi’s belief that in order to survive, life must be centered around a community organization. Furthermore, Doshi states, “Community in order to grow or sustain [must be] built within its main system choices for personal expression.” In his view, Indian architecture has historically facilitated the development of community, and serves as a valuable precedent for the vernacular architecture of Sangath. Collaboration is sustainable; An organized community is sustainable.
Site Plan Outdoor Amphitheater Louis Kahn, a close acquaintance of Doshi’s, often expressed his ideal for the relation between teacher and student, and was fond of saying, “Schools began with a man under a tree who did not know he was a teacher, sharing his realizations with a few others who did not know they were students.” The Amphitheater conveys that impression and is used for lectures and discussions.
INVESTIGATION
27 Construction of Clay & Concrete Vaults In construction, the objective was to make the building simple and economical, so as to utilize both skilled and unskilled workers. The vaults were initially planned to be used sparsely, then multiplied as a reference to Indian vernacular architecture. Construction of Clay & Concrete Vaults
The clay and tile vaults were constructed on-site. Building methods used were brickwork and site-cast clay & concrete. Broken fragments of white china were purchased inexpensively from a nearby factory, and applied to the surface of the vaults.
Design Studio Cross Section
Traditional Construction Utilized Skilled and Unskilled Workers
Proportional Elements in Kandariya Mahadeva Temple, India
Proportional Elements at Sangath
INVESTIGATION
Climate and Temperature Solutions Sunken interior spaces are insulated by clay within the structure, and use the mass of the earth for natural insulation. Heat from the sun is minimized by greenery and the reflected off of the white china mosaic that covers each vault. Natural light is also filtered into the interior spaces during the day – a break in the barrel vaults allows sunlight to reach the central studio space below.
Summer Solstice Noon: 89.9 deg.
Latitude: 23 N Longitude: 72.4 E
Location of Ahmedabad, India
Winter Solstice Noon: 43.5 Deg.
Site Section
Sustainability as a Community Space A village-like arrangement – one complex with distinct vaulted roofs – is a reference to Indian vernacular architecture.
Microclimate is created through vegetation as well as through the use of water bodies.
Ample vegetation throughout the site serves to minimize the heat island effect and create a comfortable climate.
Rainwater is harnessed through a collection pool on the roof, this water is then reused to maintain the vegetation.
INVESTIGATION
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Design Studio Interior
Ground Floor Plan
Design Studio Longitudinal Section
First Floor Plan
Entry Sequence
Dwelling Space
Natural Ventilation
“From arrival, the immediate space is actually approached last with a total three hundred and sixty degree movement loop. Here each turn, each pause, each node unfolds newer nuances for experiential enrichment and visual impact.� -VSC
Guests are invited to stay, work and discuss cultural needs.
The vaulted roof forms allow for accumulated heat to rise above the workspace.
The upper level of the complex, on the north end of the site, is used as living quarters for guests who wish to spend the night. The living space is not ample enough for full-time use, but it is available when needed.
Operable windows at the end walls allow for natural ventilation.
INVESTIGATION
MATERIALS
Brickwork at Fleischer Art Memorial
Traditional Construction of a Brick Cavity Wall
SITE ANALYSIS
After fire codes were established in the city, the most common material used for construction of the exterior of rowhouses in Bella Vista was brick. These brick facades were laid mostly in a flemish bond, which alternated a stretcher and header in every row. In a number of houses on Christian St., the brick has been painted or colored in some fashion, but on Catherine St., most facades consist of weathered, aged brickwork. The color of the brick is primarily red, but years of accumulated residue has left dark brown and gray tones on the surface of the brickwork.
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SITE MODEL Our site model was constructed during Project 3 at 1:10 scale, and work was done collaboratively, giving the Bella Vista group an opportunity to develop both modelling and communication skills. Completion of a the site model during Project 3 allowed us to explore scale and utilize massing models later on in the final project in a way that would not have been possible otherwise. The precision of the model allowed for a close approximation of the real-life implications our proposed buildings would have. I found the model especially useful in determining height relationships within the site, based on the adjacent Fleischer Art Memorial and the condominium building on the corner of 7th and Christian Streets.
SITE MODEL
TEKTONPHILADELPHIA The final project of the semester was the design of a 60,000 sq.ft. facility for the non-profit organization tektonphiladelphia, which incorporates apartment-style housing for 50 fellows, a library, studio space, and exhibition space, as well as additional facilities. The organizations aimed to offset the costs of its operations through a vigorous public exhibition and lecture program, and through retail and public food service leases. This project combined the results of our efforts in site analysis, and challenged is to respond to the urban context in a way which demonstrated an understanding of the intersection between building and street. The programmatic requirements demanded careful organization, and due to the nature of the site within the city, the building was inclined to rise vertically in order to accomodate these requirements.
OBJECTIVE
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The first priority in developing a scheme was to determine programmatic heirarchy. By moving private spaces to the upper levels, they retain a sense of privacy and dominance, leaving the space at street level to accomodate public retail and exhibition space.
MASSING MODEL OF INITIAL SCHEME
SKETCHES OF PROGRAMMATIC ARRANGEMENT
SCHEMATIC DESIGN
MODELS Use of the site model helped in my understanding of the building’s implications. As a presentation aid, the massing model articulated the scale and effect of the masonry party walls more effectifly than the drawings were able to, simply due to the three-dimensionality of the model.
MODELS
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SOLUTION
In my final design, the use of materiality to highlight the building’s function as a community-oriented building is demonstrated through the use of the masonry cavity walls. The public is directed upwards as they approach the entrance in the atrium, a feature that was sustained from the beginning of the design process.
SOLUTION
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SOLUTION
VERONICA MAGNER DESIGN IV - SPRING 2013 Veronica Magner Design IV - Spring 2013