Micro Studio Project - Emma Lee

Micro Studio Emma Lee

The Mountain Refuge is a “prefabricated cabin-style micro-home built from plywood”.

(Reference here) The two architects built these micro cabins in Italy with the aim of having a “contemporary twist” that would help occupants find a “connection to nature”. The purpose of the shape of the building “sits at an exaggerated angle above an exterior wall that is glazed from floor to ceiling” in order to “maximise views over the landscape.”(Block, 2020)

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/07/06/mountain-refuge-is-a-concept-for-a-tiny-modular-cabin/?li_source=LI&li_medium=bottom_block_1

Precedent #1 Project name: The Mountain Refuge Location: Milan, Italy Architect: Massimo Gnocchi and Paolo Danesi Date: 6 July 2020

1 Dezeen (2020). Mountain Refuge is a concept for a tiny modular cabin, Retrieved from https://www.dezeen.com/2020/07/06/mountain-refuge-is-aconcept-for-a-tiny-modular-cabin

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/07/06/mountain-refuge-is-a-concept-for-a-tiny-modular-cabin/?li_ source=LI&li_medium=bottom_block_1

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/07/06/mountain-refuge-is-a-concept-for-a-tiny-modular-cabin/?li_source=LI&li_medium=bottom_block_1

This particular article interested me because I was inspired by the angle of the sloping roof and the shape that this gave the large window.

The room is simple in shape yet effective, and the warmth of the wood and the fire gives an impression of comfort and safety which I would like to incorporate in my pod.

My favourite aspect of this micro apartment was the block staircase leading up to the bed, and the concrete beam resting over the doorway works really well to preserve space and elevate the room to fit more furniture.

For my pod I would like a second floor for comfort and resting time, and the layout of this pod particularly inspired me.

Precedent #2 Project name: A Little Design Location: Taiwan, China Architect: Szumin Wang Date: 5 February 2019

https://www.dezeen.com/2019/02/05/tiny-apartment-little-design-taipei-taiwan-micro-home/

This building is a small building converted into a tiny apartment, measuring 17.6 metres and has a ceiling height of 3,4 metres.

The owner of the apartment travels frequently with work, so she decided to invite Wang to create the project of a tiny apartment with “space-saving furniture� (Morris, 2019).

1 Dezeen (2019). A Little Design creates 17.6-square-metre micro flat in Taiwan, Retrieved from https://www.dezeen.com/2019/02/05/tiny-apartment-little-design-taipei-taiwan-micro-home

https://www.dezeen.com/2019/02/05/tiny-apartment-little-design-taipei-taiwan-micro-home/

https://www.dezeen.com/2019/02/05/tiny-apartment-little-design-taipei-taiwan-micro-home/

Artists took a pared-back design ethos of the shaker (religious style of furniture that had simplistic attributes). Ambrosi said "With that premise, we imagined an architecture free of ornament, where the correct use of simple materials enhances the quality of the space“ (Levy,2020).

Precedent #3

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/10/04/circulo-mexicano-hotel-interiors-shaker/

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/10/04/circulo-mexicano-hotel-interiors-shaker/

Project name: Círculo Mexicano Hotel Location: Mexico City, Mexico Architect: Jorge Ambrosi and Gabriela Etchegaray Date: 4 October 2020

This hotel inspired me because I was drawn to the minimalism of the interior and the wood and beige colour schemes. I like this style because a building with less attention to detail means being free from distractions therefore better concentration. I want to adopt this style of minimalism into my own micro pod.

1 Deezeen (2020). Shaker- inspired rooms feature in Mexico City’s Circulo Mexicano hotel, Retrieved from https:// www.dezeen.com/2020/10/04/circulo-mexicano-hotel-interiors-shaker

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/10/04/circulo-mexicano-hotel-interiors-shaker/

This is a 19th century building that underwent an interior transformation by artists to make it a more welcoming residence.

The Design Concept For my Micro Studio Project, I chose the site to be in my back garden which is approx 19.2 metres in length from west to east, and 13,7 metres north to south from the decking. I chose this site because of its easy access, the back fence overlooking the view and the idea that I wanted my micro studio site to be placed within a naturous area of solitude and tranquility.

The function of the studio involves being a creative space where one can visit to work on art and painting., and provides an environment that one can concentrate best in. From the entrance of the building there is a a small bar area with stools as a space to relax and take a break. From this room there is an open room with a sofa area and a large window covering the north wall to view the scenery over the fence. This scene makes use of the large sliding canvas spreading across the west wall. This wall is replacable from the outside and is an inn0vative alternative to painting sat down and is build into the architecture. There is a staircase leading up to a mezzanine floor which features a hot tub with a large circular skylight window directly above as another form of relaxation and thinking time to gather inspiration. On the east side of this floor there is a slide leading down to the ground floor which prives quick access to reach the canvas when having brainstormed in the hot tub.

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Iteration Process - #1

For my first iteration I took inspiration from my first precedent n terms of shape, however the sizings of the roof did not turn out as planned and this was taken into consideration for the next iteration. I alao felt the shape of the studio was too basic and box like so I wanted experiment more with shape for the next iteration.

Iteration Process - #2

The second Iteration is a slight improvement in terms of the structure, I added the small addition on the corner for the hot tub area, and experiemtned with how I wanted the roof to sit with this addition, as well as the mezzanine floor. My next iteration is a build upon this one where I begun to add interior architecture.

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Iteration Process - #3

For this iteration I took into consideration my preferred structure shape from the previous iteration. More of the interior strcuture was added such as the stairs inspired by my third precedent of “A Little Design�, the bar area was to be to the left of the door and a small cabinet underneath the stairs, as well as a hot tub and balcony on the mezanine, and a slide down to the ground floor. However, I was still not completely happy with the shape of the studio and wanted to attempt to create a better experiment in style of my first precedent.

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Iteration Process - #4

This next iteration is an experiment in a different structure style just focusing on the main body, however overall I was realy happy with how this turned out and wanted to progress more into adding greater detail to the interior structure.

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Iteration Process - #5

My final iteration put together everything that I had created during the model making process where I finally came to my favourite iteration, where I built upon the previous by adding greater structure and detail into the interior, as well as the addition of the slide.

Overall this was my favourite iteration as I feel like it had the most interesting shape and fits its function the best. Here the bar area has been moved to the back room with the addition of the platform ground and mini staircase leading up the entrance.

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Sketchbook Documentation

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Digital Progress

SECTION AA

AXONOMETRIC

FRONT ELEVATION

2D Perspective

Overall I’m really pleased with the outcome to this project. I believe it perfectly captured my vision of creating a micro studio for a personal concentration space for my painting. I used my knowledge from previous experience when using AutoCad and creating models from the Kit Of Parts module, to further develop my skills and creativity, and produced a series of visual designs which exhibit my perfect concentration space.