01. Alis Lucis

Responsive Facade System Group Project

Category : academic

Completion : Winter 2021

Instructors :Nathan Bishop & Maria Yablonina

Class : ARC380 Technology Studio III & ARC385 Physical Computing

Collaborative Contribution:

Puxin Yang & Jihao Shen & Haolong Chen

This project explores the collisions between a contemporary kinetic facade system and the traditional Gothic orders. The design elements are guided by the symbolic meaning of light and shadow in the traditional catholic culture. It is an attemp to moderate the duality between contemporary technology and traditional culture.

The Whitby Abbey was originally built in the 7th century as a Christian monastery and later became an abbey. The cathedral collapsed in the early 16th century and its ruins remained on the shorelines of Whitby. The project is building upon the ruins. Reconstructing the basic sturcture and adding the new facade were the major steps. The facade system is able to control the lighting conditions inside the cathedral. It can respon to the sunlight intensity and keep thermal comfort inside. It can also create shadows to form religious patterns or symbols such as the wings of an angel.

Site:

Whitby Abbey is located at the shorelines of Whitby, England. The surrounding area is open and therefore the abbey will receive more sunlight than needed. The site has become the local landmark and attracted many tourists each year.

Skylight Control