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Three Typically poured-in-place concrete is difficult to polish. With tilt-up construction, the horizontal process allows panels to be polished efficiently and economically. This project embraces this property of tilt-up in order to confront the notion of spectatorship through visual distortion. The panels follow the typical tilt-up process: formwork is laid on the building’s slab forming smooth precise panels. While the panels are still in their horizontal position, an industrial machine polishes and grinds the matte surface revealing a reflective surface above an undulating datum. The untreated base maintains a matte boundary where trucks and forklifts scuff and dirty the building. Dark blue pigment is mixed into the concrete so that the wall’s color is intrinsic and its surface more reflective.
MASKSthejournal 2 : SIRENS AS MUSES
Due to truck radii, onramps, dysfunctional railroads, and canals, many buildings in the City of Industry are curved or zig-zagged in plan. This project adjusts to the presence of a freeway onramp by both curving and zig-zagging in plan. The combination of the plan and reflectivity of the surface attempts to create a fun-house effect of visual distortion. The building begins to approximate the appearance of a large blue granite monolith- distinct but reflecting its context. The miscellaneous attachments are painted to match the blue tone of the wall to camouflage their presence, to make them disappear. The interior of the building is fairly standard, apart from a strip of mirror the lines the wall where it meets the ceiling. The ceiling’s insulation is held by a reflective space foil blanket that continues the effect of the mirror. The interiors attempt to produce similar effects to the exterior, to expand space infinitely above a certain datum. The typical vast big box interiors appear even more endless.