Design IV: Astronomy Center for the Blind - Storybook

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You Think...

An Exciting Beginning...

The semester started off with homework assignment sent through email. The purpose of the assignment was to research the Ethos and structure of a certain educational discipline, thus formulating a deeper understanding of the essence of that discipline.The final result was to be presented in a visual manner, without any restrictions as to what “visual� means,

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E M O S E W A Lesson Say what you have done without any additions; you have already thought it through.

Be confident about it.

HOW?

STRUCTURE & FORM

CONNECT WITH ARCHITECTURE MOST RELATABLE FIELD OF RESEARCH` HUMBLE & ACCEPTING OF DIFFERENT

HUMAN-CENTERED APPROACH

VIEWPOINTS

CHARACTERIZED BY A LONG TIMESPAN CAN BE EMPLOYED OR FREE RESEARCH

INVOLVES A LOT OF DEBATE

HIGHLY BROAD AND INVOLVES MANY FORMS

ANTHROPLOGY IS TO HUMANITIES ANTHROP

PRODUCES AN ABUNDANCE OF ACCOUNTS TO THE SAME TOPIC

WHAT ARCHITECTURE IS TO

ANALYZES MULTIPLE LAYERS OF RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS

ENGINEERING

INVOLVES A COMPLEXITY OF MANY NETWORKS IN RESIDES IN A CONSTANT STATE OF EXPLORATION

WHAT? FOCUS ON DIRECT COMMUNICATION - EXTROVERTED & INVOLVE FIELD WORK

ANT ANT HRO HRO POL POL OGY OGY

ETHOS CREATIVE HONEST IN ACCEPTING BIAS HUMBLE LAYERS OF SCHOOLS OF THOUGH

DEEPER LEVELS OF EXPLORATION

EXPLORATIVE METHJODOLOGY

- INVOLVES ROLE-PLAY, TRAVEL & OBSERVATION QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS - ARTISTIC DEPTH & THE READER IS AN ACTOR DETAIL-ORIENTED APPROACH DE

PURPOSE

EMPOWERING MENTALITY

UNDERSTAND THE UNKOWN

- THE HUMAN IS AN ACTOR

MAKE SENSE OF THE CONNECTIONS

CREATIVITY IN TOPICS

VARIOUS FORMS OF EXPRESSION OBSERVANT OBSE PARTICIPATORY IN EVERY TOPIC PATIENT

HUMAN AS AN ACTOR HUMAN AS A MEMBER OF A NETWORK PREDICT HOW PEOPLE WILL ACT

The final desugn included a collage of graphic design and pictures, taken by me. A layering of the titles was added to represent the different layers that go into the thought process of an anthropologist.

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A New Means of Expression Afterwards we were divided into groups of 4, where we were asked to decide on a discipline for the group, find its ethos and structure, express them in a visual and physical manner, respectively, and then come up with the bridge between the two disciplines.

Architecture Ethos: “Architecture holds the hand of its inhabitant onto a path of self discovery and thus connects the human spirit with the universal concept of presence.”

Architecture Structure: “Architecture properly conceived is a series of shearing layers that evolve in different timescales.”

Astronomy Ethos: “Astronomy has long been revolutionized into being shaped according to people’s perspective of it. Its source of infinite energy is used to drive people’s hopes, reflecting upon their deepest desires.”

Astronomy Structure: “Finding order with an illusion ignites human creativity while satisfying its endless curiosity. Through this equanimity, humanity gains perspective about what has been and what is to come.”

Lesson As an Architect all your expressions should touch people at a deeper level.

Architecture Ethos: “By engaging the mundane, architecture holds the hand of its inhabitant onto a path of self discovery thus connecting the human spirit with the concept of presence” Architecture Structure: “Architecture properly conceived is a series of shearing layers that must adapt as well as respond to the ongoing change made by the time-factor” Astronomy Ethos: “Inspiring a state of human awe by challenging the earthly sense of scale, astronomy creates a revolutionary capacity to being shaped according people’s perceptions of it; reflecting upon their deepest desires” Astronomy Structure “Astronomy functions in a constant progression towards deconstructing and translating the immaterial concepts into material language, aiming to reach a higher level of consciousness that demands to be felt” What Is A Bridge Between The Two Disciplines?

“They both focus on the individual. Astronomy tells you where you stand in relation to the universe. Architecture gives you the freedom to either alter What Is A Bridge? that position or keep it as it is. In the third reality, lies the connection. ” “It creates a third reality in between where both territorialities merge and create a spontaneous and dynamic blend of experiences”

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Lesson

As an Architect all your expressions should touch people at a deeper level.

Worst Visual The ethos of Architecture turned into a deconstructed literal collage.

Best Visual The ethos of Astronomy, represented as a deep picture showing scale and a path to the unkown.

Worst Physical The model was so simple that the audience did not really feel the structure.

Best Physical This expression went beyond the physical by giving people a full experience about the scale of Astronomy, through sound and visual illusion.

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A New Means of Expression - Final Result

LA LA LAND!!

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What Is Architecture?

What Is Astronomy?

“Architecture is composed of a series of shearing layers that are constantly changing according to the mundane, creating a path to self-discovery. This connects the human spirit to the universal concept of presence.”

“By challenging the earthly sense of scale, astronomy ignites human imagination, shaping people’s perception of the immaterial concepts. Through their deconstruction, a higher level of consciousness is reached.”

What Is A Bridge?

The Connection

“It’s a trance between two worlds where all the rules, cultures and experiences collide to create a balanced complex.”

“Between the geographical boundaries of each discipline lies a paradox of scales, creating spiritual balance.”

In the end a mindmap was designed to retrace the whole journey between the disciplines and decide on the final keyword for the bridge.

Lesson If you do not see it, then it isn’t there.

A tensegrity model was chosen to represent the paradox between both disciplines, where architecture compresses the indivudual into the earthly scale and astronomy pulles them out into the infinite scale, creating tension.v

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Exploring a New Material & Materializing the Concepts

1) Experimenting with the material without a concept

2) Form was thought of more than the structure

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3) Attempt at a frame, but without enough research, soc it did not stand

4) Finally figuring out how the structure and material work, by researching a real structural system, frames, and applying their laws into the structure, such as bracing and corner connection.

As an Architect, you do not invent new structures. You manipulate what is there to create your experience.

Lesson

Lesson

Structure can be a powerful tool of creating architectural experience, form & conept.

AWESOME!!

The frame, as a structural system, represents the geographical boundry present both in architecture and astronomy. The changing scales show the drastic expansion from an earthly architectural level, to a universal astronomical level. A whole new frame is created to expand the scale, just as astronomy as a discipline continues to expand throughout history, in a non-gradual manner. The result is a paradox of scales where the user’s experience is constantly pulled between the small and the large scales. The duality between the frames and the bracing structural systems further emphacize this paradox, where one is always dependent on the other.

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Envisioning an Incclusive Educational Building

Inclusivity was seen through the perspective of targetting the extreme to achieve all the in between. Accordingly, and seeing as Astronomy is mostly an observatory discipline, blind people were chosen as the target user group.

Education Program Self-run after-school for children & research facility for adult students & researchers. Making astronomy accessible to the blind, thus targetting the extreme to reach the in-between.

ARE YOU UP FOR IT?!

Blind Design Considerations

Lesson When you open up your mind, you can great great things.

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C I M A N Y D NOT ENOUGH!!

A multisensory experience was envisioned to cater for the blind. Within that diversity there is a certain rhythem that allows for with multiple entrances 13

Experimenting with Different Structures

NO T HI TO NG DO WI TH TH E F U TIO NCN!!

Branching Structure

Cable Net & Arches

Hybrid Structure

Arch Frames & Concrete Shell

Lesson

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Structures should not be over-conceptualized. It is important that the structure satisfies both the concept and the function.

The Final Structure

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G N I T S E R E T IN

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Finding the Architecture

Initially the plan was quite complex, and though it would have made an interesting overall experience, it did not cater for the target user group.

Lesson

Too much research can leave you lagging in design, but it did help later on.

Scanned with CamScanner

H C U M O !

O !

T H C R A E S RE

Later, the plan was oversimplified, into a simple spine, which was completely boring. The structure was also overly complex that it seemed like child’s play.

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D AR

H O TO Attempt at play with outer shell to resonate the sounds of the starts

This section was extremely dynamic, that it did not seem to complement in form. It was also structurally unsound. It was then found that the tensile fabric used in a cable structure, does not provide the desired acoustic diversity.

ION B-B E 1:250 1

NOT INTE REST ING ENO UGH !!

The prefinal structure seemed interesting, but the structures did not speak to eachother well. Also, it was important to understand which spaces will need to be dynamic and which not.This was especially noticable in the ball that was created, in a very simple space in the plan.

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Final Design Statement of Purpose Creating diverse tectonic experiences to aid in wayfinding and provide a new perspective of Astroxnomy, for the visually impaired.

Wayfinding Techniques

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THIN PLATES (SHELL EXTENSION) PC 4.00 CM

BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 20 X 10 CM

BOLTED CONNECTION

BOLTED CONNECTION BRACING HARDWOOD 10 X 10 CM SKYLIGHT BOLTED CONNECTION

THIN PLATES (SHELL EXTENSION) PC 4.00 CM

JOINT STEEL 2.00 CM FRAME LAMINATED WOOD 40 X 25 CM MAIN BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 30 X 15 CM

CLADDING HARDWOOD 2.00 CM INSULATION ROCKWOOL 6.00 CM CLADDING HARDWOOD 2.00 CM

SHELL BRACING 1

SHELL BRACING 2

SCALE 1:10

SCALE 1:10

THIN PLATES (SHELL EXTENSION) P.C. 4.00 CM BOLTED CONNECTION BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 20 X 10 CM SKYLIGHT

CLADDING HARDWOOD 2.00 CM INSULATION ROCKWOOL 6.00 CM CLADDING HARDWOOD 2.00 CM

JOINT STEEL 2.00 CM FRAME LAMINATED WOOD 40 X 25 CM

THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO DESIGN IV - STRUCTURE ARCH 4555/454 COURSE INSTRUCTORS: DR AMR ABDELKAWI DR MAI EL-IBRASHI

THIN SHELL THIN CONCRETE (CASE IN PLACE) 4.00 CM BOLTED CONNECTION NADINE HANI 900150398

BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 20 X 10 CM

FRAME LAMINATED WOOD 40 X 25 CM WOODEN BLOCK 10 CM

BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 20 X 10 CM

ASTRONOMY CENTER FOR THE BLIND A501 DETAILS

MAIN BEAM LAMINATED WOOD 30 X 15 CM

SHELL CONNECTION SKYLIGHT

SHELL BEAM EXTENSION

SCALE 1:10

SCALE 1:10

2/12/2018 FINAL SUBMISSION

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THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO DESIGN IV - STRUCTURE ARCH 4555/454 COURSE INSTRUCTORS: DR AMR ABDELKAWI DR MAI EL-IBRASHI

NADINE HANI 900150398 ASTRONOMY CENTER FOR THE BLIND A601 STRUCTURAL FRAMING DIAGRAM SCALE 1:200

STRUCTURAL FRAMING DIAGRAM SCALE 1:200

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2/12/2018 FINAL SUBMISSION

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-4.00

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OUTDOOR REFLECTION SPACE

LIBRARY

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THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO

ARCHIVES

DESIGN IV - STRUCTURE ARCH 4555/454

CLINIC

CONSULTATION

WORKSPACE

-4.00

TECTONIC PLANETARIUM

GROUP STUDY

PREPARATION SPACE

CONSULTATION

COURSE INSTRUCTORS: DR AMR ABDELKAWI DR MAI EL-IBRASHI

-2.00

CONSULTATION

GROUP STUDY

-4.00

CONSULTATION

GROUP STUDY

CONFERENCE HALL

STORAGE

LAB

-4.00

LOUNGE

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ALTERNATIVE SPACE EXPLORATION

LAB -2.00

KITCHEN -2.00 -2.00

LAB

-4.00

CAFE

LAB 0.00

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LAB

STORAGE 0.00

LOCKERS WAITING

NURSERY

TECTONIC EXPRESSION SPACE

STORE LAB 0.00

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PROJECTOR ROOM

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SERVICES

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MULTI-PURPOSE HALL

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NADINE HANI 900150398 ASTRONOMY CENTER FOR THE BLIND A101 GROUND FLOOR PLAN SCALE 1:200

GROUND FLOOR PLAN SCALE 1:200

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A B THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO DESIGN IV - STRUCTURE ARCH 4555/454

SPEECH THERAPY

STORAGE MEETING ROOM

MEETING ROOM

SENSORY TRAINING

MEDITATION ROOM

TERRACE FACULTY OFFICE

MEDITATION ROOM

FACULTY OFFICE

+2.00

COURSE INSTRUCTORS: DR AMR ABDELKAWI DR MAI EL-IBRASHI

EXHIBITION HALL

FACULTY OFFICE

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STORAGE

LECTURE HALL

LOUNGE

TERRACE

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LECTURE HALL CLASSROOM

LOBBY

MAKERSPACE

ALTERNATIVE SPACE EXPLORATION MEZZANINE

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EXHIBITION HALL

MAKERSPACE

+2.00

WORKSHOP

WORKSHOP

PLAY AREA

TECTONIC EXPRESSION SPACE MEZZANINE

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STORAGE

TERRACE

ART SPACE

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NADINE HANI 900150398 ASTRONOMY CENTER FOR THE BLIND A102 FIRST FLOOR PLAN SCALE 1:200

FIRST FLOOR PLAN SCALE 1:200

2/12/2018 FINAL SUBMISSION

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Final Model

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Semester Takeaways Academic This design course has provided a completely new perspetive on Architecture. I will no longer only think about form and user experiece. I have learnt that at its core, Architecture is a bout the manipulation of structure to create the desired user experience. Civil Engineers only work with the structures that are there, and they only understand the technical funtionality of the structure, not the essence of it. This is where the Architect comes in. From that the struture will dictate the form and then the user experience.

It is also important to remeber that I am still a student, and that taking areas from other projects as inspiration, does not make me an less of a designer. On the contrary, it actually helps me learn from those who are more experienced, instead of trying to invent the wheel.

Personal Skills More so than academics, this semester has taught me a lot on a personal developmental level that I am sure will stay with me forever. Firstly, it burst my bubble of success, and I found out that if I do not work hard enough, I am capable of failing. But then, I am also capable of picking myself back up, which is the most important thing. The most important thing is that hard work will always pay off.

Overall, this semester has been an emtional rollercoaster, and what started off as a very exciting semester, became quite draining in the middle. From that I learnt the importance of maintaining my personal wellbeing, both the physical and the personal. I found that even though I want to do a lot of things in my life, with extracurriculars giving me more life skills and acting as a place to feel like I am creating an impact, acadmics will always come first.TIme off , without any duties, is just as important. For that purpose, the extracurriculars have become a distraction that needs to be tamed. This is especially true, since I am a focused person, who cannot multitask.

Most importantly, I found that no matter how much I try to convince myself, I cannot work well in last minute, or when I am sleep deprived. In order to avoid that in the future, I will try to work everyday throughout the semester, even if I only start a task, but starting it and then finishing it later, is much more productive than starting everything in the last minute.