EarthJournal_Secret Trees

Architecture Design Studio: Earth SM1, 2017 The Earth Book - Portfolio For Studio Work Ho Lam (Jason) LEUNG (794491) Tutored by Marcus Fajl @ Studio 13

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Table of Contents 1.0 Point/ Line/ Plane 2.0 Mass 3.0 Frame & Infill 4.0 A Place For Keeping Secrets 5.0 Bibliography

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1.0 Point/ Line/ Plane

The tectonic of point, line and plane is the foundation of any kind of design. With different way of composition, these three simple elements can create infinite possibilities of ideations. Point, line and plane can also be understood as an evolutionary conversion of graphics, from a 1-D points and lines to a 2-D plane. Moreover, a 3-D volume can be further developed by the integration of planes. In terms of science, the concept of point, line, plane and volume embodies a dimensional movement, from a stationary status to a motion vector, as well as a spatial area and a volumetric space. Thus, this interesting theme will be interpreted deeper in the following exercise.

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Precedent Research

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Model Details

Inspired by the precedent research, I began the design with the idea of pixelism in response to my interpretation on P/L/P. This concept is about to integrate a form of design by many points of unit. Thus, an outline in shape of two circles connected by filleting was drawn in advance.

This form is symbolizing the instant moment of transition that two points are joining together into a line segment. Because of the process of pixelization, the overall form were converted to a network of tiny square plates supported by the erect slats. This tectonic also links to the concept of P/L/P. Every modular component is just like a blossoming flower, which is grown from a seed buried in the earth. The evolution between P/L/P abstracts the logics in growth of plant, from germination to bearing fruits.

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From the view of elevation, it is clear to see that the pixel plates are arranged in various levels and resulted in a tilting landscape. The overall dynamic facilitates a volume for the whole model, and creates another spatial atmosphere for the underneath. Furthermore, theory of cycles was also implied into the model’s form. As mentioned before, each pixel plate represents in a capacity of plane. However, this cognition goes wrong, as they appear as points when they are observed in certain distance. In short, this phenomenon means ‘a point can be a plane, whilst a plane can also be a point’. This paradox is the representation to consolidate the interpretation on P/L/P interrelationships in this model design.

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2.0 Mass

Underground gives a preconceived sense that is in a close relationship with darkness and mysteries.

Under such conditions, it is somehow effective to isolate any external interruption from the ground level. In playing with the composition of mass and infill, this exercise explores the underground space by the medium of a section drawing. The black and white tone in the design not only embody a sense of weight and solidity created by the mass, but also enhances the effect of light and shadow created by the soil arrangement. The combination of solids and void in various forms facilitates different spatial atmospheres for people to experience.

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Precedent Research

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Drawing Details

Lighting for the underground space is one of my focus during design process. With referring to my precedent research, I created spaces with various lighting atmospheres by manipulating the shapes of earth with rough finishing. While for the light setting, I chose a single spot-lighting, as it can facilitate a good performance in playing the light and shadow for the underground space.

On the left of the drawing, triangular geometry was applied to there. Such formations cause the light from above space to be redirected and projected on the underground space diagonally.

Moreover, the soils in the middle of the drawing are carved into several vertical openings with changing densities and levels. This promotes an interesting lighting interference outcome due to the condition of diffractions by the openings.

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Three persons were added in the drawing representing different spatial experiences in respect to their positions. The one striding on the slope is shined by the light above, which shows the energetic and active space in this underground world. The guy standing in the shadowed void, in between two bright spaces, stands for the transition of light and dark environments, as well as the shallower and deeper fields. Furthermore, the man going downstairs symbolizes the sense of continuity for this underground world, which is designed for accessing a lower and darker space with more mystery things. Besides, the staircase above is set in a reversed direction. This expresses a contrast between the ground and the underground by using a same component.

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3.0 Frame & Infill

In reality, the applications of frame and infill are universal in every part of our daily life. Frames, as permanent and static capacitors, function as a structural members to support the whole, whilst infills perform in contrary, more often as some transient and dynamic components. The interaction between frame and infill seems to be a dialogue, sometimes becomes a debate, about which of them should have superiority over another. But for most of the case, frame and infill are a pair of inseparable combination. If one of them is missing out another, it loses its own interests and becomes an empty capacitor and an isolated part.

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Precedent Research

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Model Details

For the composition of the frame, a regular and traditional geometrical composition is implied to the frame design. This modular system, built by balsa wood strips, only consists of two types of dimensions, and embodies a sense of simplicity.

Three of those rectangular voids are allocated the infills. In order to highlight the elements from the frames, a black-and-white tone is used for those materials. Each part of the infills has their particular compositional features, but contributes to achieve an overall dynamic flow from frames to frames. Furthermore, the hidden logic of this transition is similar to the findings from P/L/P, everything is originated from various tiny units. This concept does not only influence the infills’ positions, but also facilitates the idea of ‘from micro to macro’ in this model.

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The bottom infills are formed by numerous rectangular blocks. As some of them are made up by semi-transparent material, interesting shadows are created by the diffused lights.

Besides, a clear contrast by black and white blocks magnify the collage outcome at all. The outlook of the middle one is inspired by a parallelepiped, which symbolize a motion shifting from left bottom to right top. At the right end, the pipes penetrate the frame and become an extension of the model. Such design is representing ideas of ‘thinking out of box’ and ‘breaking regularity with exception’, to enhance the implication between frame and infill. The remaining one is attached from top to bottom. It expressed the thought of anti-gravity, in contrary to the void underneath.

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4.0 A Place For Keeping Secrets

A secret is something that is known by only a small number of people, and is not told to anyone else.

An outsider may know the presence of secret, but don’t know what it is. It is something abstract, but really exists. You know you don’t know, that is the mystery of a secret. This final design project will be consolidated from the three previous tectonic exercises, by integrating their components to embody the ideas of secret. The design will be compiled with the spatial relationships between the ground, below ground, above ground. In respect to the spatiality, different amenities will be allocated to those space respectively, to facilitate a place for keeping secrets.

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Site Analysis

Sun Path

Contour

Circulation

Noise 26

Vegetation

Artwork Distribution

Potential Sites 27

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Something Like a Pavalion

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Concept Development

In term of the site of a secret place, the exact location should be known by only a small group of people, and is difficult to describe it to anyone else.

Moreover the site should be located somewhere far away from any kinds of human activities and artificial things. Thus, the pavilion can be isolated from any external noise and disturbance and provide a private and silent atmosphere for having secrets. Based on these requirements and the site analysis, a river bank facing southwest, indicated in red dot, was chosen as the site to be developed. With referring to the noise and circulation diagrams from site analysis, the site is not accessible by the current route and gets away from those existing amenities on Herring Island.

This suits the design purpose of ‘secret place for secret people’. To avoid outsiders discover the secret place by simple observation, the design will be somehow immersed in the surrounding. In such natural environment, nothing is better than using the existing vegetation as the hidden sphere.

Hence, the place with densest vegetation, which is the chosen location, can perform this important function for the design.

Chosen Site (maked in red)

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Based on the concept of natural immersing sphere applying to the design, the below diagrams shows the effects in different vegetation condition, simulating the actual river bank on Herring Island. The top one presents a comparison of a block-like design situated in a cluster of trees, a field of grass and on a ground of sole earth respectively. It is clear to see that the view cannot be blocked if there is only soil with short grass. For those longer grass, they can practically cover the design. However, it only works for the ground level, the above ground level is still exposed to the surrounding.

The most significant effect is by the trees. The top part can completely be hidden the block with their branches and leaves, whilst the ground level is surrounded by trunks. To sum up, the diagrams tells that, the best approach to utilize the advantages is to design something just like trees and immerse it into surroundings.

Building a tree-like object not only satisfies the design needs, but also links its tectonics to the circulation of three secret zones of spatiality. The root functions as the secret passage between the ground level and underground voids. Secrets can be delivered to those darkness and uncertainties. The trunk provides spaces for amenities to take place. Secret can be developed either upward to the tree-top or downward to the root. The branches forms a tree-top areas for secrets exposed in exterior. This embodies the concept of faintly discernible secret.

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P/L/P

Design Development

Mass

F&I Three Tectonic Exercise 32

Reference Images

With referring to the precedent research and the concepts of secret, a design prototype of something bounded by four columns, which symbolize the trees’ structure, was developed beforehand. The core form of my design is originated from a cubic block. It was divided into four even segments, to represent trees, and built a pavilion structure. In playing with the outcome resulted from various combination of blocks in different size, the core structure was converted to a rectangular shape. This is for unifying four trunks into a single object and providing irregular openings as entrances, which embody the symbolic meaning of tree holes as experiencing a place contains secrets.

The overall plan was integrated from the P/L/P exercise, from two-circle connection to fourellipse overlapping. The tectonics of branchleaf was abstracted from the F&I exercise, which creates a volume by strips in different lengths overlaying each other. This idea was further revised and implied the concept of metabolism design, transformed it from running in single direction to three directions. The Mass drawing exercise was taken as the reference of the groundunderground layout, Stairs would be added to the design, while the ways of transferring light from the above to the belowground would be also implied in design.

Development Sketches 33

Conceptacle Model

This conceptacle model is done in a scale of a quarter of the whole design structure, which is a prototype of a tree structure. It is composited by two part, the strips for sharping the form and the grids for supporting the structure. The main aim of building it is for exploring the application of tectonic of metabolism into a regular grid structure. Furthermore, this conceptacle can also help to understand the spatial atmosphere of the ground level in elevation view. The circulation between different zones will be developed in the space of the tree trunk. The strips component are all in pipe form. Some of them are designed as the light channels to transmit sunlight to the underground voids, which will achieve a similar outcome as the reference image in the design development.

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Final Design Drawing

Site Plan 1:2000

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Room For Secret Store Room Multifunction Area

Meeting Room

Underground Floor Plan

1:100 37

Male Toilet

Female Toilet

Section A Picnic Area

Technical Room

Section B Ground Floor Plan 1:100 38

Viewing Platform

Aboveground Floor Plan

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Section A 1:100 40

Section B 1:100 41

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Final Design Model

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Precedent Research in: (Organizied in the order from left to right, from top to bottom in respective page layout) 1.0 Point/ Line/ Plane Archilovers (n.d.). [Archilovers_pixelism]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://www.archilovers.com/stories/6191/archiloverspixelism.html.

DeviantArt (n.d.). [Ink Splatter 02 by Loadus]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://loadus.deviantart.com/art/Ink-Splatter-02-141615874 ABACUS (n.d.). [Communication Design Practice]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from https://3st.com/work/abacus#1 IUBIRE (n.d.). [Quelle: excisions, via wuunderwall]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://iubiree.tumblr.com/post/27696476304 Divisare (2011). [stARTT , Simone Capra · whatami]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from https://divisare.com/projects/173017-whatami ArchDaily (2016). [Elytra Filament Pavilion Explores Biomimicry at London’s Victoria and Albert]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http:// www.archdaily.com/787943/elytra-filament-pavilion-explores-biomimicry-in-london

2.0 Mass Dezeen (2012). [Ryusenji House by Tomoaki Uno Architects]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from https://www.dezeen.com/2012/11/19/ ryusenji-house-by-tomoaki-uno-architects/ Overblog (2015). [Neanderthal Museum - Estudio Barozzi Veiga - Art+Tech Magazine]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://art-tech. over-blog.com/2015/01/neanderthal-museum-estudio-barozzi-veiga.html Weheartit (n.d.). [b&w image on We Heart It]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://weheartit.com/entry/82038277/via/madison_r_ traylor?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=image_share&utm_source= ArchDaily (2011). [AD Classics: Church of the Light / Tadao Ando Architect & Associates | ArchDaily]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/101260/ad-classics-church-of-the-light-tadao-ando ArchDaily (2012). [Church of Seed / O Studio Architects]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/253115/church-ofseed-o-studio-architects ArchDaily (2010). [AD Classics: Ronchamp / Le Corbusier]. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/84988/ad-classicsronchamp-le-corbusier

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Frame & Infill

The Rumors of Data (2014). [Brute force layout generation made with Processing]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from https://therumorsofdata. tumblr.com/post/52636087103/brute-force-layout-generation-made-with-processing Gobelinus Regius (2013). [iwilldrawsomethingeveryday]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from http://gobelinusregius.tumblr.com/ post/48185501324/iwilldrawsomethingeveryday-1-1-2-stage-8 Andreas (2013). [tokyo: para-modeling / chimerical scheme of paramodellia]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from https://superfuture.com/ supernews/tokyo-para-modeling/chimerical-scheme-of-paramodellia ArchDaily (2012). [House NA / Sou Fujimoto Architects]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/230533/house-nasou-fujimoto-architects

5.0 Bibliography 50

Designboom (2013). [neri & hu: camper showroom/ office in shanghai]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from http://www.designboom.com/ architecture/neri-and-hu-camper-showroom-office-in-shanghai-10-28-2013/ ArchDaily (2010). [AD Classics: Unite d’ Habitation / Le Corbusier]. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/85971/adclassics-unite-d-habitation-le-corbusier

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A Place For Keeping Secrets

Designboom (2013). [sou fujimoto: geometric forest for solo houses]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www.designboom.com/ architecture/sou-fujimoto-for-solo-house-series/ ArchDaily (2012). [Sukkahville Design Competition Winning Exhibition: ‘Hegemonikon’ / Christina Zeibak and Daphne Dow]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/285997/sukkahville-design-competition-winning-exhibition-hegemonikon-christinazeibak-and-daphne-dow ArchDaily (2012). [GC Prostho Museum Research Center / Kengo Kuma & Associates]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www.archdaily. com/199442/gc-prostho-museum-research-center-kengo-kuma-associates ArchDaily (2015). [Vietnam Pavilion - Milan Expo 2015 / VTN Architects]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www.archdaily.com/630961/ vietnam-pavilion-milan-expo-2015-vo-trong-nghia-architects Designboom (2015). [bamboo forest pavilion in tokyo by vo trong nghia architects]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www. designboom.com/architecture/vo-trong-nghia-architects-bamboo-forest-pavilion-toto-gallery-ma-tokyo-japan-11-03-2015/ Architectural Review (n.d.). [Tea Pavilion by Architectural Studio XYZ, Moscow, Russia]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from https://www. architectural-review.com/buildings/pavilions/ Architizer (2012). [Festival Of Lively Architecture]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from https://architizer.com/blog/a-fun-pavilion-for-thefestival-of-lively-architecture/ ArchDaily (2014). [HILA Pavilion / Digiwoodlab Project + University Of Oulu Students]. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://www. archdaily.com/542705/hila-pavilion-digiwoodlab-project-university-of-oulu-students

Design Development in: (Organizied in the order from left to right, from top to bottom in respective page layout) 4.0 A Place For Keeping Secrets ArchDaily (2014). [AD Classics: Nakagin Capsule Tower / Kisho Kurokawa]. Retrieved May 9, 2017, from http://www.archdaily. com/110745/ad-classics-nakagin-capsule-tower-kisho-kurokawa On something (2013). [Uno Tomoaki “I’d like always to express nostalgia radically.”]. Retrieved May 9, 2017, from http://onsomething. tumblr.com/post/37804093554 D.signers (2015). [This is why we Love Architecture! Spaces speak, Are you listen?]. Retrieved May 9, 2017, from https://www.instagram. com/p/42m8eEkqTL/ Cargocollective (2014). [TREE HOPPER - otco]. Retrieved May 9, 2017, from http://cargocollective.com/otco/TREE-HOPPER

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