Architecture 101 Final Project

Rue Critchfield!Fall Semester 2013

Shaping Wonder: seeking beauty, the unexpected, and the unfamiliar in architectural and interior design expressions (project duration: 9 weeks)

A Void in the Cliché!

!Members: (Left to Right)! Siamak Aadati , Brett Stone , Beatriz Carbajal , Tiare Noelle , Carlos Esquivel , Rue Critchfield

RueCritchfield

FinalProjectSiteAnalysis

Week 9 10.7.13! Program & Site Analysis with Documentation !

SiteHistory

•  CCSFfoundedbyArchibaldCloud.Doorsopened8/26/1935(notcurrentcampus)

•  1859–1892,sitehadalargecorrec9onalins9tu9onforwaywardboys

•  Currentsiteapproved2/10/1936&Classesopenedatnewcampus8/27/1940

•  Cloudchosesiteforit’sarchitecturalpoten9alandtheadjacentcityland

•  363%increaseinenrollmentfrom1960to1971–  Babyboomersgradua9nghighschool

–  Draadodgersenrolling

–  Generalawarenessofimportanceofcollege

•  ThedifferentstyleswasdeliberatechoicebySuccessorLewisConlantodisplaythedifferentarchitecturaldesignsthathappentobeinvogueatthe9me

•  BatmaleHall,completein1978byMiller&Pflueger(iconicSFArchitects)

Assigned Site : The Courtyard (Town)!The fact that our class has been assigned the courtyard section is important to determine!our design approach. The courtyard is the depiction of the manmade side of our world. !Surrounded by concrete and glass, it creates a dichotomy with nature. A concrete wall mimicking the staircase height behind it literally splits the area into two, shielding the classroom from some of the natural surroundings it could potentially have. !The single grouping of trees are the only existence of nature in the courtyard. I feel it is important to highlight the qualities the tree’s hold, such as the lightness and tension created in the long spanning beaches, that seem to defy the concrete grounds. !!!

Site 1 Analysis

SunOrienta9on

Calculatedfor

December10th

2013

Sunrise

2pm

(average

9mefor

Presenta9on

&Cri9que

Aerialshotanalysis

Site1 Advantages

•  Thecornerwiththeroof

heightensthesenseof

in9macy

•  Barricadedfromthe

wind

•  Possibili9esfor

aKachmentduring

construc9on

•  Surroundedbymul9ple

textures

•  Glasswindows

•  Concrete

Disadvantages

•  WillbeinShade(Mayget

uncomfortablycold)

•  Viewisblockedbythetreegrouping

•  Isolatedfromforcesofnature

comparedtoothersites

Textures

Strengths!• Opportunities to utilize existing surfaces and edges!• Visible from the opposite end of the building via the outdoor

corridor !• Can interact with the only instance of nature that exists in the

town!• Due to the size of the trees, the structure can be hidden from

the south side, while well exposed from the north side. !• Possible interactions with student on the inside of the class

room with the glass panels!• the cantilevered edge provides shelter from rain during

presentation and construction time

facing south

Facing North Facing East

Weaknesses!• Dominated by shade!• hidden from southside entrance!• Southern winds of the winter are strong on our corner

Decided Site Location by group

Sketch Up model courtesy of teammate Siamak Aadati

Existing Structure to integrate

These edges give potential for suspending and !securing objects and structures. !They also serve as a starting point to extend and!morph existing surfaces

Research

❖ Research happens all the time, through every step of the final project

Week 10 10.14.13

Desired Materials to use and reason

I would like to use natural materials such as wood for the dominating element. !The reason is to respond to the trees that we are emphasizing. In using wood, we !can relate to the trees, to work with them instead of against them. !The skin can consist of either more wood to create implied surfaces, or fabrics that can !either compliment or contrast the existing elements (concrete, glass, the trees)!

Week 11 10.21.13Research Continued & Individual Design Work (Iteration 1 & 2)

Iteration 1I had individually chosen the corner of the courtyard before!teaming up with everyone else. Thus my First iteration is considering the site !conditions of the corner instead of by the tree. !

Reflection!Strengths: !• Display of repetition and consistency.!• Beginning to create a rhythm!Weaknesses:!•No sense of direction!•Students deemed it unorganized!•needs to be more accurate to site connections!not enough interactions between connections!Challenges: !•avoiding glue!•creating nodes with different experiences!!Discoveries & Opportunities:!• I respond best to tough criticism!

Inspiration Sketches and Notes

Narrative:!One arrives on site, to walk up to a large!beckoning arch entrance. !As one walks down the path, !which diminishes the further !it goes, forcing one to bow !and humble ones self !before entering the sacred!space dedicated to the !tree. !The tension is release as !the space opens back up. !The inside is soft!and frail, vulnerable. !The outside, solid. !protecting one form !the elements. !the outer skin seems!to wrap its, protective!hands around to !keep it’s core !safe. !!

Iteration 2 - The SnailStrengths: !• no use of glue, forcing me to use weaving and

opposing forces to hold structure!• An clear entrance!• use of repetition and rhythm in tectonic language!• contrasting qualities !

• hard shell, soft core!• transparant entrance and interior, solid exterior!

!Weaknesses: !•difficult to emulate outer shell material !in real life construction!Challenges: !•trying to surround the whole tree bunch !is difficult for they are larger than I expected. !Discoveries & Opportunities !•could place the tree’s at the entrance instead of inside the structure. This would eliminate the need to create a space large enough to surround the trees!!!

Week 12 10.28.13Planning, Coordinating, Individual small scale design charette (iteration 3)

Assigned role:!Co-Design Director! &!Handyman!!

(Trees larger in real life)

Strengths:!• following and growing on qualities of the previous iteration!

• rhythm!• lightness and transparency!• manipulating path for desired effect!• consistency in materials!

Weaknesses: !• too transparent!• unrealistic materials for real size construction!Challenges: !• creating the model was a challenges for wood is not too easy to weave!Opportunities & Discoveries : !• soaking the wood in water gives it the desired flexibility. !!

!

Individual small scale charette continued Iteration 4

I decided to choose a different approach for the following iteration. !I wanted to see the different emotions that could be evoked.

Strengths:!•this approach gives many unique !views and frames!•evokes the feeling of lightness and!movement!Weaknesses: !•no variation in the tessellated strips!• no distinct pathway within the space!Challenges: finding a real material that!could have the same effect as the model!Discoveries & Opportunities !I have yet to use the existing surfaces and!edges besides the trees in all of my models. !nor change the bottom surface !! •potential can raise the floor to take walker to another world once entering my dwelling

Week 13 11.4.13Further Iterations

My creations always root from the trees. !from there, I envision how the qualities of !the trees could be enhanced and grown.

This is a iteration !for a portion of the !structure. !!!The solitary space!where one can be !closest to the tree, !where one is climbs, !to isolate oneself from!the rest of the world. !

Merging of elements from Siamaks iteration

Discoveries:!We are starting to grasp the possibilites for the !existing site conditions (walls, edges, boundaries)!Coexistence of opposing design elements

Week 14 11.11.14Final Iteration

Facing west

Different Perspectives

Facing North

Facing South

additional tessellation!

altered entrance

Strengths:!•The model satisfies all the criteria ( entrance, different experiential nodes, pathway, !hiearchy in space and line. !Weaknesses: !•potential for a tighter knit language!•slightly chaotic, but possibly in a good jazzy form!Challenges: !•the biggest challenge was to respond to the other teammates design ideas also, the more!voices I try and combine, the more difficult it gets to keep the harmony within the design !language!Discoveries & Opportunities !•My Co-Designer Tiare came over to help with ideas and to include her distinct array!designs. The Cooperation was a success. The power of 2 people design is indeed an exponential display. It gives me an insight into what 6 people could possibly achieve!

Week 15 11.18.13Construction

The first piece of the structure to get started on !would be the wing-like structure that consists of the longest pieces of wood used for our model.!we spent a good week doing a lot of talking, disagreeing, breaking a lot of connections.

Classmate Progress

Today, I made a proposal for my idea of using!rope to hang the horizontal beams, along with !using them to tie difficult joints and connections.!I first pitched the idea to Siamak, who had agreed to make some tests. !I then had a team meeting, proposed the idea, showed evidence through photo and video documentation and provided a pros and cons list. The group agreed, then built it. It made me realize that providing proof of the ideas success is the most important part in proposing an idea in a group project. There were many what if’s and possibilities that could work. But without concrete evidence it is still simply a floating thought with no ground underneath. !It was exciting and informing to be in a scenario that I can envision happening in the professional world.

Reflection

Week 16 11.25.13Now that we have figured out the method, it is time to create it in real scale. !one thing that I have learned from this so far is that everything takes longer than expected.

an extra hand really helps

Siamak gets the award for the best photographer !for a group project ever. For none of us could have!captured the beauty of our work as good as him. !He never fights for attention or credit. He is indeed !like the moon. Shining best when everyone else is at !rest.!

Strengths: !•rope suspension allows the structure to!move with wind without snapping !Weaknesses: !•the rope on the outer edge of the structure is not as clean. !Challenges: !• the biggest challenge was erecting the wing

with 4 people. While the structure is horizontal it is quite delicate. Once the forces were placed on the vertical, the structure was very strong.!

Opportunities & Discoveries!• since the suspension method was a big success, the second wing would not take as long for we have a direction from the start

Week 17 12.2.13Wing # 2

Strengths: !• The pace of our work was much faster today. It is no surprise for we took on the same

method as the first wing. !!

Weaknesses: !•even with the articulated connection that we created to connect the 2 beams to get the desired length, there is still a slight bend at the joint. !Challenges:!• the knots to hold the beams had to be passed through the wood after the second wing had been suspended. Therefore we had to create a temporary tie, intersect the beams, and then tie the permanent rope connection. !Discoveries & Opportunities!•I have discovered that knots and rope are very useful for we can adjust the placement of the knot, along with the length. This would not have been possible had we drilled all of the connections.!

Week 18 12.9.13Final Push!

Strengths: !• the rhythm is in sync with the previous

installment!• we achieved our goal of creating the levitating

corners !Weaknesses: !• not integrated with the previous installment!

• we attempted to interconnect them but failed!

Challenges: !• due to the unevenness of the ground, the installment did not lay flat on the ground as intended!Discoveries & Opportunities !• the base piece that lifts the bottom beam off the

floor solves the problem of the uneven floor, along with giving it a lighter feeling!

• the array at the beginning continues the lines leading upwards. It also served as an anchor to keep the heavy end from lifting up!

Final AssessmentStrengths:!•definite sense of wonder, the unfamiliar, and the unexpected is evoked!•stays true to our motive of connecting the natural with the unnatural, through the use of a natural material (wood) that is manufactured in a unnatural way (long straight planes)! !• our interpretation of continuing the will of the tree is evident to the audience!!

Weaknesses:!• there could be additional skinning of some of the frames.!• some elements were not integrated with the rest of the structure!Challenges:!• The biggest challenge was dealing with the strong opinion of one individual who’s standards for other people were much higher than that of himself. It is hard to work with someone who’s punctuality is nonexistent. If it he were compliant !Discoveries & Opportunities!•The best discovery I had was encountering all the curious students who couldn't help but be intrigued by our creation. It is visible from the complete opposite end of the classroom, along with inside the outer classroom. seeing students put their faces to the glass of the classroom to see what we were doing during their class was quite entertaining. !One student asked me “So is this thing supposed to fly or something?” seeing as how flight represents ultimate freedom, and our motive was to illustrate the tree’s qualities of freedom of will, I think we have succeeded.

Inspirations

Shigeru Ban - Pompidoux Metz!

our fanning beams required an!articulated joint to sustain !the weight of the structure in !the same fashion as a bird wing

Inspirations

more inspiration❖ Treasure Island Music festival

tensile structure of our fabric pieces

Theo Jansen

Church of Light, Ando Tadao !

Just as the Church of Light displays harmony! between the Natural and the natural, our piece!looks to do the same by incorporating the trees!as one wall of our structure

❖ one skill that noticed an improvement in this semester is the ability to narrate; to tell a story. I was never a good story teller in english class. They either had an excess of useless information, or wasn’t detailed enough. This may root from my tendencies to not be specific and expect people to know the same amount of information as I do. Jerry has taught me that without detail or complexity, nothing is interesting.

Reflection 12/12/13Now I am in the finishing week of post production of the Arch 101 Final Project. The seemingly endless days through the night of work has finished. As I skip class the past 2 days because of other class final projects due tomorrow, I feel an easiness in working at my desk all day long. Before this semester, I would have trouble with extended hours on a single assignment. This semester has calloused my mind from fatigue and distractions due to a dire need of it. !It reminds me of an Aesop Fable (or not) that I remember from when I was a young child in Japan. !Theres an old man with a wife and 4 kids and his Mother all living in a small wooden cottage. !alway complaining about not enough space in his house, the old man seeks out a rumored Monk at the top of the mountain who helps people with great fortune. He finds this man, and asks him for a bigger house that can comfortably accommodate him and his family. !The Monk agrees to his wish. But before doing so the old man must house these 4 chickens in his house and come back to him in a week. !He does so, with strong hopes of his house in his mind. !He returns to the Monk, eager to see if his house is ready. The Monk does not have a house for him yet, but now hands him 3 goats for him to take back to his house. !Winter is coming, the old man cannot keep these animals out of the house, the only shelter he has is of his little cottage. they move around the furniture, create shelfs in the open roof space, whatever they can to find space .!The old man a little worried returns to the Monk. He does not say a word, simply hands him 2 full grown pigs to take to his home. Another week of confusion and rising tensions. they start throwing away things deemed unnecessary by the family. He returns again, asking the Monk why he cannot return the animals, what is the purpose. His house is getting more crammed with no space, he’s getting the opposite of what he asked for. !The Monk walks with him to the old mans small Cottage. see’s the space inside used all the way to the roof. Furniture and storage tucked in the niftiest of places. Albeit the already small cottage seems barely livable with 4 chiekens, 3 Goats, and 2 full grown pigs. !The Monk asks him for all his animals back and tells the old man to take another look at his house. !The Old man finally realized what the Monk had done for him. Without the animals in the cottage, there seems to be ample space for a family of 7. It had felt like a Balloon had finally been blown to it’s proper size.

Quotes

“Effort is the difference between dreaming and delusions”!!

-Kent Bazemore , Golden State Warrior

Week 19 12.16.13Conclusion

This has been by far the most intense class that I have taken. I have seen how far I can be pushed, yet I enthusiastically embrace it. I told Jerry hallway through this semester that I feel like I am back to my first passion; Basketball. However I felt as though I was a JV bench warmer, unable to meet the skill level that is expected. In my sophomore year, one year after being a bench warmer on JV, I ended up being a starter on the Varsity team. That was no accident. that summer I played basketball every single day, from day to night. It was an obsession to get better. !I spent countless nights seeing the sunrise while I worked on my models. It was tiring, but extremely fun. Feeling the process getting easier with each iteration, to be able to create solutions for problems that seem unsolvable. At the beginning of our construction, I was worried that everyone did not feel the weight of the task at hand. It seemed like such a crazy tast to finish, yet we thrived by believing in each other, by holding each other accountable, by enjoying the time around eachother. At the end, it honestly felt weird not to see my teammates after a day. !The biggest asset that I gained from this semester is not the ability to read and write in a tectonic language, or the ability to shape wonder. What I gained was a group of friends that I can truly trust and believe in. !I hope to keep in touch with them as long as possible.