Volume 1
Workshop: The Series Sunday, 08.28.11 to Friday, 09.23.11
An Introduction This is a documentation of five workshops attended by thesis and outreach students at the Rural Studio between August 28 and September 23, 2011. The workshops will explore the initial design phase of two projects in Lion’s Park, a Greensboro Boy’s & Girl’s Club and an ADA accessible 20K house. The goal of this book is to capture the design process, using sketches, photos and words, and to summarize it into a coherent story. But, more important than the book itself is what we will learn while creating the book. The act of creating the book will teach us about design and documentation by requiring us to participate in design and documentation. We will chronicle our logic, and by doing so we will become aware of the daily conversations and decisions that constitute final designs. We will learn to synthesize our work by recognizing those decisions that are most important. We will learn a way of documenting and representing our work that can be used for future projects. The result will be this book, a documentation of our workshops, and a reference that will help us remember our process of design.
1
Rural Studio
2
Volume 1
W.S.1
Sunday, 08.28.11 to Monday, 08.29.11
Our first assignment was to write a book documenting our decision making process throughout the schematic phase of our project selections. The purposes of this first workshop were to establish a method for making this book and, more importantly, why we would make this book. Our first workshop was led by a graphic designer named Clifton Burt, and a former Rural Studio student/ staff member named Danny Wicke. The goals were to open our eyes to the possibilities of this book’s layout and physical production, while also focusing a writing and documentation process. The process of proposing ideas and then making decisions consisted of smaller groups meeting to brainstorm, then presenting their conclusions to the entire group. The larger group would then discuss and evaluate the different proposals to find the best option. This sort of decision making continued throughout the workshop series.
Small group working on charrettes for ideas.
3
Rural Studio
4
Volume 1
Instructors Daniel Wicke “I’m Danny Wicke. I’m not a graphic designer. I used to be here. I used to teach the outreach program about two and a half weeks ago, right before you got here. I have since taken a job with an office in Chicago and you’ll meet my boss this semester sometime. I got involved with this project to spearhead it from the Rural Studio side, but my interest in this is a little deeper than just starting this sort of stuff. I do a lot of photography, so I have done a lot of the photos that aren’t Tim Hursley photos for the Rural Studio. I also do a lot of letter press printing as a hobby, which is basically the fundamentals of graphic design. A lot of the language that you hear talked about in graphic design is actually translated from letter press printing. So, that’s a hobby interest that has become real work over the last few years.” Danny Wicke is a former outreach instructor at the Rural Studio and originally hails from heaven. His involvement with the Rural Studio includes work on a second year house, completed in 2006, and the Akron boys and Girls Club, completed in 2009. He currently works at Wheeler Kearns Architects in Chicago. Danny Wicke 615.423.4087 danny.wicke@gmail.com
5
Rural Studio
Instructors Clifton Burt “I am Clifton Burt and I am a graphic designer. I used to live in Mississippi and now I live up in Portland Oregon.” Clifton Burt is a smiling, soft-spoken, red-bearded graphic designer who wears flannel shirts and jeans, even in the sweltering heat of Red Barn. His most recent projects include [insert examples here]. He is a freelancer who works at ADX, a design collective out of Portland geared towards creativity and craft. He is married to Kate Binghaman-Burt, who is a fellow artist and graphic designer, working on a project called “obsessive consumption,” a daily buying and drawing exercise. Together they founded The Public Design Center, a nonprofit organization with the mission of helping people solve graphic design problems. His most recent projects include a book for the Museum of Contemporary Craft that just went to print and another one that’s just getting started. He’s also producing letterpress wood type. “All I want to be is someone who makes new things and thinks about them.”
Clifton Burt 505.333.6809 cliftonburt@gmail.com www.cliftonburt.com 6
Volume 1
Graphic Design tips Sunday, August 28 It is a hot morning in Red Barn. We all walk in to find a familiar face in Danny Wicke, and an unfamiliar beard in Clifton Burt. The two of them gave us a brief history of graphic design, followed by a series of lessons on photography and layout softwares. The following is a list of a few of the terms and ideas that we learned:
Page layout •
•
•
•
•
7
Leading: This is the name for the space between text lines. Like several graphic design terms, it is rooted in early letter pressing techniques. Lead was used to physically space out the lines of text on posters and other promotional material. The larger the lead, the greater the space between the lines. When graphic design was transferred primarily to computers, lead was obviously abandoned, but the term stuck. Baseline grid: The funny thing about this grid is that it almost isn’t a grid at all. It’s made up primarily of horizontal lines, and only two or three vertical lines when necessary. As architecture students, it is often tempting for us to layout everything in a typical square grid. This can be a helpful layout grid at times, but according to Clifton, the baseline grid is much more flexible with a substantial amount of text. Ragged Right: This is a term used to describe the effect of singular left justification. In one of our first exercises we broke up into groups of four and laid out a couple pictures and text blocks onto an 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper. Almost every group double justified the text blocks. According to Clifton, you rarely see double justification anywhere in books, unless they’re architectural books. His thought was that perhaps our minds like to see text as blocks to construct a page with, as opposed to reader friendly material. Images are adjusted to fit to grid Furniture: This refers to page numbers, navigation, book title- is placed outside of margin in a smaller font (6 pt). This reinforces the margin lines and emphasizes the main text. Full Bleed: When the ink on a page extends to the edges of the page cuts.
Rural Studio
Typography •
•
Serif vs. Sans Serif: Most fonts fall into one of these two categories. A serif is an ornamental stroke added to the end of a letter for style. Serif fonts are typically used for lengthy text and sans serif (without serif) text is typically used for titles and headings. According to Clifton, architects tend to use sans serif fonts for the majority of their texts, probably for the same reason we tend to stay away from ornament in our buildings. However, this is not the direction we intend to go with our text. The majority of our text will be in Galliard, which is a serif font. Franklin Gothic: This sans serif font was the most popular among southern print makers in the century. It is the font that Danny and Clifton have agreed will best represent the Rural Studio’s history and sense of place. We will follow this decision in our book
Infographic references • • • • •
• •
www.Lynda.com: a great website to get tutorials to softwares relevant to the architectural/graphic design fields Always with Honor - www.alwayswithhonor.com Good Infographics - www.good.is/infographics Nicholas Feltron - www.feltron.com DAYTUM - www.daytum.com: a website dedicated to making it easy for people to record whatever data they choose, and immediately represent it in graph/chart form. This could be useful if we ever decide to chart things like how many miles we each drive, how often we eat fast food, and how often Andrew Freear makes a joke at Danny Wicke’s expense. Things Organized Neatly - www.thingsorganizedneatly.tumblr.com/ Information is Beautiful - http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/
Photography • •
• • • • • •
Raw Files: keeping photographs in this format is the way to ensure that they retain maximum quality Histogram: this is a graph representing the color contrast of a given photograph. The less difference there is between the highs and lows of this graph, the less washed out the lighter/darker portions of the photograph will be. Always shoot at the highest possible resolution. Keep camera parallel to object. If the object is bigger than the frame, move further away, shoot the object at a high resolution, then crop the photo. Save photographs as 300dpi ‘.tiff’ files. Shoot a range of photos- building shots, details, textures. Editorial photos yield more questions than answers. Technical photos yield more answers than questions. 8
Volume 1
The questions of who the book would be for helped to determine many of the issues regarding the level of information shown and how it might best be presented. For instance, we were interested in focusing on our own understanding of the process rather than presenting finished work for 9
Rural Studio
Group one book proposal : Accordian – style book.
publication. For this reason we chose to document the book chronologically by workshop to show how our understanding of each project progressed from one workshop to the next.
10
Volume 1
Group two book proposal: Spiral bound with separate volumes
A lot of consideration was given to the type of book itself. The accordian seemed a better option for showing a linear process, but the box set or multiple volume option allowed a way of distinguishing between each workshop. We eventually decided on the set of volumnes, as we thought it was more durable and easier to use rahter than an accordian might over time. 11
Rural Studio
12
Volume 1
The Book We originally considered splitting the workshops into seperate individual volumnes, but decided they would be more useful as a single volume with dividers between workshops.
13
Rural Studio
The role of the Production Team in making the book.
14
Volume 1
Consistent and effective presentation Clifton and Danny provided us with font and document size precedents. They explained their reasoning behind font choice for the Rural studio as a whole and gave us sketchbooks that we determinded to be a convenient size. Their exhuberance and enthusiasm regarding Franklin Gothic- a historically southern rural font- led us to accept the sans serif as a pleasant and legible choice. Though we disagreed as a larger group about whether a page would be better as a full letter size of half, we fancied maintaining a consistency with this year’s sketchbooks and chose a similar format, the half letter. This also led to the choice of red for the books highlight color, as it is legible and relates this book to our sketchbook.
.
15
Rural Studio
The role of the Layout Team in making the book.
16
Volume 1
Team Process Throughout the workshop, the class has broken into smaller groups, allowing the ability to work on a more specific scale.
After decisions are made, the smaller groups then present their work to the rest of the class.
The smaller groups often use a variety of different presentation methods, ranging from hand drawings, printouts, to models.
After presentations are made, the class will form as one group to discuss the different teams’ designs. Andrew Freear, Clifton and Danny will tell us how wrong we are and fondly reminisce about the past. We’ll pause to consider their expertise, then forge ahead if we still think it is the best option.
17
Rural Studio
18
Volume 1
After working in groups to discuss concepts for making the book, the studio met as a whole with Danny, Clifton and Andrew to make conclusions and concrete decisions. We formed a series of questions and listed points that we all agreed should be integral to the book making process.
19
Rural Studio
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: How do we physically break up the book? Into chapters? Into 4 or 5 seperate physical books? Should we have a container to hold them all? A: Chronicling the sequence of decision making will allow us to reflect on our logical successes and failures. The organization of the book will be dicaqted by the content of the workshops.
Q: What kind of book are we capable of producing with our own resources? Q: Should we buy a wire binder for our own benefit and for future Rural Studio classes? Q: How do we categorize the book? By workshop or by project? A: Breaking the book up by workshops rather than by project will allow us to better understand our process. It will also allow us to discuss the ideas that tie our projects together in one place, rather than spread between 4 - 5 books
Q: Who is this book for? A: This book is for us. We’re making it so that we can record our decision making process, and re-examine it in the future.
Q: Why would ANYONE read it? A: Good Question.
20
Volume 1
W.S.2
Tuesday, 08.30.11 to Thursday, 09.01.11
21
Rural Studio
Workshop two was directed by Tom Forman and John Forney. The purpose of the second workshop was to introduce the thesis and outreach projects and to analyze them in the broadest sense. During this workshop Andrew Freear fell ill with vertigo and was unable to inform our effort. We had full group discussions concerning each project and we were led by John and Tom to challenge assumptions and define our projects as clearly as possible with the limited information we were given.
Day one of Lions Park charette introductions and expectations.
22
Volume 1
Instructors John Forney “I’m a visitor here today. Andrew asked me to come down here a few weeks ago. I describe myself as an alumnus of the rural studio- not because I was a student here but I have been a teacher here. My name is John Forney. I am an architect in Birmingham and I used to teach outreach a while back in ‘03-’04, ‘02-’03, and taught on campus at auburn sort of ‘99-’02 and so was here with Sambo a little while and with the transition to Andrew. I think Andrew has invited me to come here today because I haven’t been here for a while... I understand my responsibility as to help sort of throw things up in the air a little bit because I am unfamiliar so, y’all will probably have to educate me a little bit... but, to put it briefly, i’m an architect and former teacher and pleased to be here.” John Forney is an architect who lives and works in Birmingham, Alabama. He has worked extensively with the Rural Studio in the past, and has served as Outreach Professor. His history with the Studio includes the early years of 1995-96, teaching alongside Sambo Mockbee, as well as more recent years with Andrew Freear.
23
Rural Studio
Instructors Tom Forman “My name is Tom Forman. I’m from Chicago. I taught at UIC and then I also practice architecture. Andrew and I taught together for 10 years in Chicago before he came to Auburn. The last time I was here, we were just putting the first sod down on the fields, so that shows you how long ago. And I had a really good workshop session where these [Lions park restroom pipes] were invented, so there’s a little bit of history about the place I. I’m really interested in the stories each of you is going to be telling today. And most importantly how we link those stories up to walking the site and just begin to get you to feel and know the place as well as everyone else. “ Tom Forman is a retired UIC professor who lives and practices architecture in Chicago. He worked with Andrew Freear at [name of firm] in Chicago ten years ago, and has been involved with the Rural Studio throughout the many phases of Lions Park.
24
Volume 1
Greensboro Rec. Zone OVERVIEW Greensboro Recreational Zone is a name given to the area of Greensboro south of State Street that encompasses Lion’s Park and the Greensboro Recreational Center (GRC). The recreational zone is the proposed location of three Rural Studio projects: a Boys & Girls Club on the site of the Greensboro Recreational Center and two projects within Lion’s Park. The studio was asked to examine the zone and to make a proposal for the possible locations and orientations of a Boys & Girls Club, a Boyscout Hut and a group of 20K houses. The concept of a Greensboro Recreational Zone allowed us to envision the projects on a larger scale. It helped us recognize the proximity of the Greensboro Recreational Center to Lions Park and the potentials of connecting the two. The expanded map also allowed us to visualize the impact of introducing multiple 20K houses into a community.
25
Rural Studio
Masterplan charrette for locations of Lions Park additions/improvements in the Greensboro Rec. Zone
26
Volume 1
20K Neighborhood The Rural Studio has successfully developed three 20K House prototypes: Dave’s house, Mac’s house and Joanne’s house. These prototypes meet the aspirations of the 20K House and are ready to be marketed. It is no longer necessary to design a 20K House. The challenge now is to determine a new direction or a next step for the 20K House. The assignments in workshop one investigated the possibility of grouping the exiting 20K prototypes into small neighborhoods. Two other directions for 20K research were discussed in workshop one but not investigated: the idea of making a 20K house ADA accessible and the idea of making a 20K with a storm shelter.
THE TASK • •
Place a group of twenty 20K houses in the Greensboro Recreational Zone. With tape, arrange and mark the footprints of the three 20K prototypes on the gym floor of the GRC.
Full scale floorplans taped on the GRC gym floor.
27
Rural Studio
How a neighborhood of 20K houses would interact with eachother
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: What will this year’s GOALS be? Q: Is it ETHICAL to build houses without shelter from tornadoes? Can we even build houses with shelters for 20K? Q: Would you want a 20k in your neighborhood? Does this change our design? Q: Is it more ethical to group the 20K houses together, or to scatter them throughout exiting neighborhoods?
28
Volume 1
GRC and B&G club A deal has been made with the Boys & Girls Club of America and with the City of Greensboro to design and build a Boys & Girls Club on the site of what used to be the Greensboro Armory and is now the Greensboro Recreational Center (GRC). The Boys & Girls Club will share the site and the gymnasium with the GRC but the two will remain separate entities. The Boys & Girls Club is envisioned to be the first phase of and ongoing series of projects to develop the GRC. The assignments for this project investigated possible orientations of the Boys & Girl Club and future expansions to the GRC.
THE TASK •
Estimate a rough size for the Boys & Girls Club and generate four options for connecting it to the gym.
Individual iterations of a Boys and Girls club expansion
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: Is STREET PRESENCE important for independence of B & G? Is 1st street or Armory Street a better road for this presence? Q: What is the effect of orientation on street presence? Q: Can we create useful courtyard space with certain orientations of the Boys & Girls Club? 29
Rural Studio
A placement diagram showing how a new Boys and Girls club would fit in with the existing structures.
30
Volume 1
Lions Park The development of Lions Park has been an on-going Rural Studio project since 2005. As the park nears completion, we are asked to determine its next phase of development. The assignments for Lions Park investigated the possibility of initiating a new thesis project in the park. We were asked to consider the needs of the park and whether these needs could form the basis of a new project.
THE TASK •
• •
Get to know Lions Park. Spread out and walk around the park and find beautiful or interesting places. Create a map that documents the locations of your findings. Find out who uses the park and when they use it. Identify the needs of Lions Park. Make a list of things to do in Lions Park this year, and after this year.
A map of individual icons placed to illustrate where in the park one found a beautiful place 31
Rural Studio
Understanding how Lions Park interacts on both an urban and rural scale.
32
Volume 1
A list of priorities for Lions Park, with a line designating the current year’s goals.
33
Rural Studio
A list of priorities for Lions Park
34
Volume 1
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: What should the unknown thesis project be? An enrichment of Lions Park or an overhaul of the rodeo arena? Q: What needs to be done ASAP? Q: What could be done in the park this year to help?
What does Lions Park need?
35
Conclusions: Certain things should be done immediately. Lights should be erected at the peewee football field and the field should be painted. Storage should be provided for peewee football and baseball. The walking trail should be completed. Way finding devices, shade and water are needed in the park and could be provided this year.
Rural Studio
Boy Scout Hut The Rural Studio has accepted a request to build a scout hut in Lions Park to house the Cub Scouts and Boyscouts of Greensboro. The project was attempted by a previous group of Rural Studio thesis students, but was left unbuilt. The assignments for this project investigated the placement of the building and it’s programmatic needs.
THE TASK • •
Identify on a map of Lions Park the location that is most suitable for a scout hut. Develop a schematic design for the scout hut.
A map of individual icons placed to illustrate where in the park a scout hut could be placed 36
Volume 1
Understanding how site placement affects the Boy Scout Hut’s program Across: A study of who the Boy Scouts are and what they need
37
Rural Studio
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: Is this project doable, considering it was canceled last year? Q: Should the a private Boyscout hut be located in a public park? Q: Should the hut be placed in the forest or in the open? Q: What are the programmatic problems that last year’s group ran into? Q: Could thinnings be used to give the building a “rustic” quality? Could thinnings bring a new language into the park? 38
Volume 1
August 30, about 8 PM. Interview at Lion's Park with pee wee football coach: STUDENT: COACH: STUDENT: COACH: STUDENT:
COACH: STUDENT: COACH:
STUDENT: COACH:
STUDENT:
COACH: STUDENT: COACH:
39
Hey, do you guys come up here a lot, to the park? I coach football. Yeah? Because we’re some students with the Rural Studio and we’re doing some work on the park. OK So we’re walking around asking people what they would like to see at the park. So do you know of anything that you need here, new additions, stuff that could be built that you think would be good? Honestly? Yeah, just be completely honest. Yes! A space where they don’t have to practice football on the baseball field. Something drawn out with the lines. It doesn’t even have to be 100 yards. It could be arena sized, just forty or fifty yards. A fifty yard patch just where they could have the lines with a complete sideline to sideline length and fifty yards, so they can get a real feel for what a football field feels like instead of waiting for a game. I coach 6, 7 and 8, and some of that we’ve got in there playing have never played on anything but sandlots, never. When we put them in these small spaces, when they get out onto the big field it seems like a way big world to them. We are still the undefeated champions, still, but I’m just saying. Where do they play regular games? They play regular games at West Campus. Or, we’ve got to play a lot of our games on the off field. Like, when we start our games we’ve got to be in either Tuscaloosa or Ewtaw. Because a lot of our games have got to coincide with jr. varsity and the highschool which has absolutely nothing at all to do with this program. What do you think of the field over there that doesn’t have lights? The field in the back corner. Is that the problem, that it doesn’t have lights? If you put lights over there and get it actually marked off, that would be great, yes it would. Ok. For me that’s all you really need. Unless you want to, you know, get a pool out here or something.
Rural Studio
“If you put lights over there and get it actually marked off, that would be great, yes it would.�
40
Volume 1
John Forney on 20K: I do think that there should be this year one investigation that is barrier free and has a storm shelter. It will not be a 20K, it will probably be a 30K, but i think that should be in the product line. Probably, the storm shelter should be the bathroom. Probably, it should be poured solid CMU. Probably the door to is should be a 3’0 hollow metal door that opens in so that when the tornado is sucking you out, it is up against the jams. I also wonder whether you might change the process for the 20K by letting the 20K students build one immediately. Boys & Girls Club: We’ve already recognized that the design is going to be a process. It’s going to be a very tightly run logistical thing to pull that off. You have to infiltrate both of those organizations. Strongly. And both of those organizations exist now. Join them, get involved with them, participate in them. Rent space from the GRC... because you’re going to need to be seen as an ally and a participant when the things start going badly, and they will. And you’re not going to be able to save those relationships if you join when construction starts. You will not be trusted. You’ve got to become a citizen in those groups. I would rather see the entry to the Boys & Girls Club to the west facing the street that leads to the park. I think process wise, you need to try to get a sidewalk built from that front entrance to the park, even if you don’t own the property. I think the hairball that this parti would create is that you would have a courtyard between the two wings leading to what we read now as a loading dock. But I don’t think there’s that much damn loading going on. So I think that courtyard should be a different kind of courtyard from the hospital courtyard. I think it should be an open courtyard that when it’s three to six on a weekday, it’s an enclosed space where the space outside bleeds into the gym inside. And tomorrow evening at 7 o’clock, when there’s a dance, it becomes a beautiful courtyard for having a dance and the other side closes. I think you need to put civic front on the western road. That way the two organizations can have different addresses, different identities and come together, unbeknownst to each other in the gym and in the courtyard. The other process thing that I would ask about the armory project is ‘what is the big idea?’ I think that it’s going to be so easy to get caught up in the problem solving of plan and volume that you’re just going to build a building and I think it’s got to be better than that. The new wing has got to be spectacular in some way...don’t confuse the process by which it is arranged with the process of imagining it. 41
Rural Studio
There’s also a strong architectural vocabulary in place that’s two sliding volumes that overlap. It’s a very mid-century kind of thing. And those flat roofs have a quality, as the canopy does, and whether you try to play quiet and try to be semiinternational style with a very simple frame...or let it be some kind of a big fun thing. One of the reasons that i want you to build toward the existing roads is that I want it to feel more town-y. If you build over here (points at eastern side of existing building) I don’t think you’re making any sort of civic impact whatsoever. I think civically, if this is the way you can do more, then do it. Lion’s Park: I think one great place to start, of course, is Lion’s Park where if those kids are not playing under the lights by October, then you should say ‘we are failing. we are not doing as well as we need to be doing.’ It shouldn’t take that long. Those light posts are years late getting up. No excuses. Get on it. That of course raises the question ‘where in heaven’s name does the electrical power come in?’ ‘what is a needed structure that can carry that?’ We just talked about the need for storage. For heaven’s sake, it’s not rocket science, find out what it is and the only storage that I’m really aware of that needs to be a storage were two trailers for the boy scouts, and that is a real storage need. I think that there is actually a need for storage for pee wees and for baseball, and i think, if I understand baseballs and footballs, i don’t think that’s a big storage problem. I think that’s a good, hard weekend. So, make those projects investigations, research. Build them out of thinnings. Build them out of rammed earth. Build them out of something, but make it interesting by virtue of...folly. Make a play thing. Play with an idea and get this stuff built. Comb that part of the hair. Some of the things that I’m talking about as investigation or research are not building necessarily, they’re rather getting the social clock ticking. Start making the activities that you want to see happen, happen, and use that as a means to research and to learn. One thing that I admire about this group is that y’all really are careful and thoughtful. What makes me anxious about this group is that y’all are waiting for the answers before you do anything. And so, I want to flip that process. I want you to do, and the doing will inform the thinking. I think all those industrial uses on the western side should help make a garden at the property line and they should see that as part of their responsibility to the park and city. I think the Boy Scouts’ feet need to be held to the fire as far as: ‘you want it, 42
Volume 1
you’ve got to pay a price for it’. They should be involved in its creation and its maintenance and its guarantee. I think if you give people things for free...they are worth to them what they paid for them. You’ve got to invest them. Just as I believe investing yourselves will make you better at designing, only by investing them, will you get them to care. And that is not easy, but it is the only way. I’m shocked to learn that we don’t know the relation of the south edge of the park to the lake...you should know by Tuesday afternoon, and we’ll give you until then. Scout Hut: ...and that woodland is going to be better, and already is better, than anything you’re going to build this year. It is a lovely hardwood woodland, and it is just sort of there. I really think it needs to be cultivated. It needs to be thinned. It needs to be seen as a cathedral as it really is. It needs to be inhabited. I think, probably, if the boy scouts are going to be in the park, they need to be in the woods. Not deep into the woods, but in the woods. Because I don’t think the South end can handle that. It’s a little overcrowded I guess. And I would not, in your shoes want to try to propose anything next to the playscape. The playscape is fabulous, but it is not a good neighbor. I think it’s not enough to merely thin out the understory [of the forest], I think you need to plant it as well. Maybe ferns, I’m not sure. I think that south wood is going to be the most beautiful thing in the park no matter how hard you try. I can see maintaining the same vocabulary of galvanized shiny metal that would be kind of a ghost in the woods. But also there’s this other notion of the rustic scout thing which would be camouflaged and recessive, which I think could also be nice. At present I think thinnings are structure and galvanized is the roof floating. I vote for less program at the scouts thing. I think if it’s got too much it gets very clunky. It’s got so much [inaudible] not inhabited during the week. I think it needs to be more along the line of the great Rural Studio pavilions. The question I have is ‘can they come in and roll down the walls for the three hours that they are there during the week? Or is there someway that the scouts could make it an enclosure temporarily? And then those enclosures could disappear so that for the rest of the week it’s kind of a wonderful, weird woodland pavilion. I think a latrine is perfectly good for boy-scouts. Other things to do: Complete the walk. I’ve been wondering how to make the permeable concrete and the red 43
Rural Studio
disintegrated brick or whatever read continuous enough that people will walk it. And I think that is research that you all need to do. One stupid suggestion would be to take these stupid wood arches that keep cars off of the asphalt road...they do sort of say ‘this way half a mile”...and i think you might just replicate those on the other side of the path. To say “O, I get to continue.” Maybe that’s enough. Maybe those arches should be made better. Are those Rural Studio arches? [No] Oh ok. Well those should of course be demolished and made better, right? I do think y’all need to make two calendars, and these calendars need to go into 2013. The need to say, ‘Here’s what we see going on in Lion’s Park day in and day out.’ What’s anticipated. There needs to be another calendar that needs to be how we’re going to be intervening in Lion’s Park. I think that same thing could be done for the other two projects- trying to map time. I don’t think you should spend so much time worried about irrigation. If you all cultivate your relationship to the place, y’all can identify the trees that are alive, identify the trees that are dead, and you can locally irrigate through the crises which will not be going on much longer. Get them into October and they will be ok. You need to test the concession relocation. You can make that an assumption. You can make that conventional wisdom by just doing it. Maybe you’ll need to open the damn concession stand, buy a bunch of cream, open it up, find the busiest time of the week, for grand central, and the busiest time for the skate park and move it and open it up and sell ice cream. Move it there and make it happen so often that no on will ever, ever say again that we need to build another concession stand in Lion’s Park. Which is the most preposterous redundancy in a sequence of incredibly preposterous redundancies which is thesis at the Rural Studio...a new concession stand is just unconscionable. And especially because serious effort by your predecessors was put into making it do it. Honor them as you would be honored by your successors. Don’t waste their effort. Make it pay. Keep in mind that it needs to be a destination for everybody. Right now it is still people kind of wanting their fiefdoms, and I kind of resent that. I have been too prescriptive, too long, and too much of a blowhard. I will probably not come back before pig roast, so I wanted to make sure that I am an oar in the water. I look forward to seeing what you all do.
44
Volume 1
Forneys Finale SUGGESTIONS • • • • • • • • • • •
Learn about the 20K by building a 20K There should be a barrier free 20K with a storm shelter. Become involved in the community. A Southwest Boys & Girls Club connection is best because of the civic impact and the courtyard that the connection creates. Pay attention to the strong architectural vocabulary already in play at the GRC. Start making social activities happen. Provide for the storage needs of Lions Park using experimental structures that research materials. Cultivate relations in Lions park and get the community involved. Cultivate forest in Lions park. Locate the scout hut in the forest. Thinnings and galvanized roofing could make a nice scout hut.
TO DO LIST • • •
• •
45
Complete the walk. Educate yourselves on the boundaries of the park. Make two calendars for Lions Park. One describing the activities that occur in the park, the other describing the interventions that need to be made in Lions Park over the next few years. Move and test the concession stand. Keep in mind that the park is for everyone, not just sports.
Rural Studio
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: What should our third thesis project be? An enrichment of Lion’s Park, or the rodeo? Q: What needs to be done ASAP? A: Light for the peewee football field, and it should be painted. Storage should be provided for peewee football and baseball. The walking trail should be completed. Q: What could be done in the park this year to help? A: Way finding devices, shade, and water. Q: Is this project doable, considering that it was cancelled last year? Q: Where in Lion’s Park should we put it? In forest, or out in the open? Q: What were the PROGRAMMATIC PROBLEMS last year’s group ran into? A: There was too much storage program (rumors and light research) Q: Should it be in Lion’s Park since the BSA is a private organization? Q: Should THINNINGS be used to give the Boy Scout Hut a “rustic” quality? Can the rodeo project also use this? This could bring a new language to the park. Q: What will this year’s GOALS be? Q: Is it ETHICAL to build houses without shelter from tornadoes? Can we even build houses with shelters for 20K? Q: Would you want a 20k in your neighborhood? Does this change our design? Q: Is street presence important for independence of B & G? Is 1st street or Armory Street a better road for this presence? Q: Can we utilize the L shape by turning it into a Courtyard with B & G addition?
46
Volume 1
W.S.3
Saturday, 09.03.11 to Tuesday, 09.06.11
47
Rural Studio
The purpose of Workshop three was to devote a day to each project, shaping and defining it. After workshop two with John Forney and Tom Forman, and with new information provided by the remedied Andrew Freear, four distinct projects were generated: a Greensboro Boys & Girls Club, an ADA accessible 20K house, a Boyscout shelter in Lion’s Park, and a Furniture or ‘Kit-of-Parts” project for Lion’s Park. These are the four projects that will be developed, and hopefully built over the next few years. Each day, Javier conducted a series of charrettes. We were grouped into new teams for each charrette, so that we were sharing each design, continuously taking ownership of each idea and making them our own.
Rainy day charrettes at Lions Park, discussing the ‘kit of parts’ furniture concept
48
Volume 1
Instructor Xavier Vendrell “Xavier is an architect and landscape architect...well there’s no differentiation between architecture and landscape in the education or the architectural world in Barcelona. I’ve known him, and he’s been coming to the Rural Studio since about 2001, so 10 years now. He’s helped change the game for us- helped us be ambitious enough to take on large scale projects. It’s what you all think you can’t do because you’re not landscape architects. We tend to think that landscape and the building are separate. I’ve enjoyed working with Xavier because of that that he doesn’t really see any difference between what’s inside and what’s outside, it’s all one big landscape. And I think we’re very lucky to have someone of his sensibility and ability to come to the Rural Studio. He made his name working for the Barcelona Olympics, he was very involved with the teams that were successful designing for the Barcelona Olympics. Thankfully he decided to have a career change and come to the United States and that’s where I met him. So he’s been visiting with us for the last ten years and I think everyone’s always enjoyed Xavier. It’s my pleasure to have him here tonight to show you what he’s up to at the moment.” -Andrew Freear, introducing XV’s final lecture 49
Rural Studio
50
Volume 1
20K House Excursion PREVIOUS DESIGNS Dave’s House • Windows are set between studs so they don’t need to be cut to create headers • Partitioning the house, as opposed to Frank’s house, makes it easier to heat • Dave’s is a departure from the North Ward 20Ks in that it has corrugated steel but painted white, which is better recieved. • Joists are situated hortizontal to piers so they cantilever, getting the most out of the girders Mac’s House • Cross ventilation through aligned doors • 4’ studs on center prevented a conventional air conditioning unit and also required that the ceiling be feathered down to support drywall, which requires 24” on center spacing. • 2x material is used around bottom to finish off floor joists and hide end grain. • Sheet material should be used as siding. Hardyplank looks good here but was time consuming and difficult to install. • Bedroom and bathroom are a bit too small. • Mac’s front porch is a social center, but the back porch (intended as a way of expanding the house) may have been more of a Rural Studio desire than useful to and realistic for him. It is much cheaper to simply build the house in one go than to hire a second contractor for a later addition. Joanne’s House • Kitchen is clearly designated, though not cut off. Half-height partition walls make the space feel larger. • The living room and porch feel clearly devoted to relaxing and socializing. • The house is designed for flexible orientation to the street. • Ceiling and floor joists are larger to accommodate for the larger span, but the square is efficient for creating more floor area at a lower cost.
51
Rural Studio
Dave’s House
Mac’s House
Joanne’s House 52
Volume 1
COMMON THEMES • •
• • • • •
53
Reftlective surfaces can be strategically placed beside windows to reflect light: mirrors, fridges, table and countertops, window panes Raising the house onto piers allows for good summer ventilation, is financially efficient, prevents moisture entering house, and makes house appear larger. On the other hand, slab on grade does not require steps to enter house. We believe in porches: Sense of dignity, social interaction, and street presence. Transom windows allow light to enter deeper into house. Views through windows and doors from each angle make the house feel larger: better connection to the outdoors. Use conventional construction techniques and heating, cooling, and plumbing systems so local builders can repair or replace. Eaves throw a shadow on the wall and keep it shaded, like an umbrella.
Rural Studio
20K House ADA accessibility: Frankenstein’s Monster The current 20K prototypes do not meet specifications for ADA accessibility. To diversify the product line, an accessible option needs to be introduced. The prototype designs are limited in two main ways: they are not sized to accommodate wheelchairs and they rest more than two feet above grade on pier foundations. A new challenge for 20K designers is to develop an ADA accessible 20K house while maintaining the 20K price tag. The 20K assignments in workshop three were designed to test the ADA accessible 20K option. We used the existing 20K models as a starting point and adapted their dimensions to graphic standards for wheelchair accessibility. The resulting designs were termed “Frankensteins.” Our goals were to realize the implications of ADA accessibility on the overall size of the house and to calculate the size of a necessary entry ramp.
THE TASK • •
Draw ADA adaptations of 3 existing 20K houses, and a new plan based on the graphic standards for minimum dimensions of ADA accessible spaces. On the lawn of Morrisette House, use string to mock up the floor plans of each Frankenstein created.
Laying out the full scale “Frankenstein” 20 K plans in the backyard of Morrisette 54
Volume 1
Joanne’s
Mac’s
Dave’s Various iterations of ADA accessible 20K plans, based on versions 8,9 &10.
X-factor 55
Rural Studio
Modified Joanne’s Original area: 528 ft2 Original perimeter: 104 ft Modified area: 645 ft2 Modified perimeter: 115 ft Modified Mac’s Original area: 504 ft2 Original perimeter: 116 ft Modified area: 621 ft2 Modified perimeter: 131 ft Modified Dave’s Original area: 509 ft2 Original perimeter: 100 ft Modified area: 584 ft2 Modified perimeter: 106 ft X-factor Modified area: 480 ft2 Modified perimeter: ?
Review of 20K Frankenstein plans with Xavier Measuring out exact square footages of each plan Experiencing the space within the floorplans
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: What 20K can we use as a starting point for accessibility design exploration? A: Dave’s House seems to lend itself to handicap accessibility the most with the least changes. (Based on area/perimeter data from our Frankenstein experiment). We learned from the Frankenstein experiment that Dave’s House, when made accessible, requires the fewest changes to area and perimeter dimensions because the shotgun arrangement of Dave’s House combines circulation and living space. Also, we learned that the ramps necessary to access the existing floor level are enormous and unpleasant. Possible solutions to this problem could be found by minimizing the height of the pier foundation or making the foundation slab on grade.
56
Volume 1
GRC and BGC The Boys & Girls Club must be thought of as the first layer in a multi-layerd cake. Our job is not merely to design a Boys & Girls Club and to connect it to the existing GRC, but also to envision the entire master plan for the site- making proposals for future expansions and providing enough flexibility to accommodate unforeseen changes. The Boys & Girls Club assignments in workshop three investigated various ways that the Boys & Girls Club might attach to the GRC and how those orientations might affect parking, the position of outdoors tennis and basketball courts, and an expansion of the GRC.
THE TASK •
Develop four schemes for the Boys & Girls Club addition and GRC expansion. Make plan drawings depicting the four schemes, sports courts and parking.
THE FOUR SCHEMES •
57
Develop four schemes for the Boys & Girls Club addition and GRC expansion. Make plan drawings depicting the four schemes, sports courts and parking.
Rural Studio
Team charrettes concerning site placement of the Boys & Girls Club
58
Volume 1
Street presence: pros, cons
Courtyard: pros, cons 59
Rural Studio
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: How do we form the Boys & Girls Club that has a private play space, but doesn’t impede the GRC from allowing its court sports? Q: Can we narrow our options to two or three site orientations? A: Yes. Placing the Boys & Girls Club at the Northeast or Southwest ends of the GRC seem to be our best options for street presence, flexibility for future expansion, parking, and circulation. We learned from the master planning exercise that the strongest locations for a Boys & Girls Club are at the Northeast or Southwest corners of the GRC gymnasium. The Northeast connection moves the entrance of the Boys & Girls Club to Green Street, provides an opportunity to combine parking and drop off zones and leaves southern and western property open and flexible for future expansions and court sports. The Southwest connection moves the entrance of the Boys & Girls Club to First Street and creates a courtyard that opens directly to the gym.
“ANOTHER IMPORTANT ISSUE, MAYBE POINTING OUT SOMETHING IN BOTH IMAGES, MAYBE AN IMPORTANT QUOTE FROM SOMEONE? WHICH IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE ABOUT LONGER THAN THIS SHIT”
60
Volume 1
Lions Park The City of Greensboro is in the process of creating a City of Greensboro Parks and Recreation board. This committee will oversee and work to maintain all city parks including Lions Park. There is a suggestion that the architectural languages used at Lions Park might be incorporated into all city parks so that they read as a congruent whole. These languages first need to be further developed within Lions Park. A collection of the uses and options offered by these languages then needs to be generated. This collection will be referred to as a ‘kit-of-parts.’ The Lions Park assignments in workshop 3 investigated the idea of a kit-ofparts. We were challenged to use the existing languages of Lions Park to meet the current needs of the park- be it in the form of benches, lighting, shading, storage, water, etc.
THE TASK •
Visit Lions Park. Utilize existing languages to create a kit-of-parts and identify the location in the park that these parts would occupy.
“THIS PROJECT IS A WET DREAM”
-Andrew Freear
61
Rural Studio
Lions park “furniture” explorations
62
Volume 1
Lions park “furniture” explorations
63
Rural Studio
EMERGING STRATEGIES • • • •
Markers/strategic points (entries, attractions, etc.) Finding secret points/enjoyable spots Routes and streets (connecting various destinations within the park) Programmatic follies (benches, shelter, storage, water, etc.), placed as destinations themselves within park
Questions that arose and Conclusions A: The overhaul is a proper thesis project because it will allow us to give the park the full attention it deserves. (We felt that we might be able to split this project between the Boy Scout hut and the Rodeo, but determined there would be more opportunity to fill in the parks shortcomings if an entire project was dedicated to this.) Q: How can we design places/space/things to cater to all users of the park, not just athletics? Q: How do we tie in the identities of the future Greensboro parks we have been asked to be involved with in the future? A: By designing a kit of parts to be built in the park this year that will be used in these future parks.
64
Volume 1
Scout Hut The Rural Studio has made a promise to provide the Greensboro scouts with a meeting space. The Boy Scouts of America is a private organization, but it’s values are based largely on community improvement, so it is ethically acceptable to locate them within Lions Park. The successes and failures of last year’s group will inform our efforts and will help make the project a reality. Last year, the scout hut was placed in a central location of Lions Park. The scout hut assignments in workshop three investigated placing the scout hut near the BBQ pit in Lions Park. This scheme allows the scouts to use the BBQ pit and it insures that the hut is anchored to a specific site, rather than left floating around in the park (a problem run into by last year’s group.)
THE TASK •
65
Develop a scheme near the BBQ hut. Draw a plan, section and perspective to argue the strengths of each scheme. Include the following program: In 1000 square feet include a large meeting space, storage/office, bathroom,
Rural Studio
Scheme Uno: • Pros: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? • Cons: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur?
Scheme Dos: • Pros: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? • Cons: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur?
66
Volume 1
Scheme Tres: • Pros: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? • Cons: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur?
Scheme Quatro: • Pros: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? • Cons: Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es 67
Rural Studio
Starlight house rainy day review
Questions that arose and Conclusions Q: What should its primary material be? A: We should make it out of thinnings for two reasons: 1: To give the boy scouts the rustic look they’ve been requesting 2: To further experiment the material on an enclosed space. Q: What should the building’s orientation/layout be?
68
Volume 1
W.S.4
Saturday, 09.10.11 to Wednesday, 09.14.11
73
Rural Studio
Workshop four was directed by Anderson Inge. The purpose of this workshop was to teach the studio a method of testing structural ideas using comparative modeling. We split into rotating teams and developed strategies for spanning a 40 x 60 foot area, roughly the size of the proposed Boys & Girls Club. We then constructed models of each proposal and loaded the models to failure. By modeling and testing we learned the aesthetic and structural strengths and weaknesses of each design and strengthened our intuitive understanding of structures.
Anderson ponders whether or not one can understand one’s own concept of one’s building.
74
Volume 1
Instructor Anderson Inge Anderson Inge is an architect based out of London, trained in structural engineering and sculpting. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Texas at Austin, and also studied at the Architectural Association and MIT. He has taught at the Architectural Association since 1997, and has frequented the Rural Studio as a guest professor and lecturer since 2001.
75
Rural Studio
76
Volume 1
SPECULATIVE STRUCTURAL SOLUTIONS: In the Eyes of a Worm After making and testing rough models of each system, the studio was asked to create drawings illustrating how each structural system could fit into the site of the GRC. A worm’s eye axon was suggested as a useful tool to see the underside of the gym and armory’s existing structure and how it might relate to the proposed structure for the Boys & Girls’ Club. Issues of connection and coherence were noted as important issues to illustrate.
89
Rural Studio
ASYMMETRICAL TRUSS In order to accommodate an awkward attachment to the existing gym, the team decided to pull the Boys & Girls Club addition off of the gym wall, adding a circulation corridor as a transition space between the two. The top of the truss roughly matched the height of the gym, which gave Ally a smile. The geometry of the truss was negotiated so that it could accommodate the 40 foot interior space and leave room for head height along the east wall of the structure, while allowing the tension cable of the longer chord to run parallel to the ground.
90
Volume 1
MOMENT FRAME The placement of the moment frame system was dependent on the frames running parallel to the open web steel bar joists that exist inside the gym. The team wanted the addition of new structure to appear as seamless as possible, while preserving the opportunity to connect directly to the gym wall. Therefore, the placement of the addition was situated to the southwest of the gym, creating a courtyard within. The possibility of breaking though the gym wall to form a direct connection was important to this scheme, as well as keeping the roof plane as close to horizontal as possible, in order to connect with the aesthetic of the existing flat roofs of the armory.
91
Rural Studio
TENSION TRUSS The placement of the tension truss depended on how the addition was to attach to the original GRC. The team decided to place the structural system perpendicular to the original gym, so that the existing building would not interfere with the new structural system. The flat roof corresponded well to the existing language of the GRC. The group also wanted to capitalize on the ability of glazing that the tension truss provided.
92
Volume 1
TENSIONED CANTILEVER The tensioned cantilever team decided against connecting to the existing gym physically, and instead let the expansive structural system to connect only visually to the existing gym. The cantilevers would continue on the axis of the gym, using the structural system to create a space underneath. This space underneath created a circulation route that led directly to a large opening to the gym. The structure also freed up the entire south facing wall, so that sunlight could be controlled for passive heating during the winter months.
93
Rural Studio
LAMELLA The lamella system uses dimensional lumber to span large distances. This team was focusing on how to contain the lamella’s lateral forces as well as create a functional space underneath. Instead of the past Rural Studio projects that created a semi-circular lamella structure, this team explored the ability of a shallow lamella roof which would break the visible connection to the past projects. The team explored lifting the lamella and using the buildings walls to contain the lamella’s large lateral force. Since the existing gym did not provide enough structural stability, the team quickly learned to move the lamella system away from the gym and use the resulting space as circulation space for both the GRC and the new Boy’s and Girl’s club.
94
Volume 1
Model Similitude
The main goal is to “document a process of modeling that is repeatable throughout the years… it should speak to method ad process as much as it does solutions.”
–Anderson Inge Materials • • • • • •
Airplane grade Birch veneer plywood, in thicknesses of 1/16”, 1/8” and 1/4” [to model various nominal timber sizes] A variety of adhesives, including ‘hot melt’, tacky and super glues Plenty of Exacto Blades Cutting mat Wire in various gauges [to model tensioning elements] CMU block or other heavy object(s) [could be one’s own body weight] to load models
Steve laughing maniacally as Jamin crushes a beautifully crafted model with his sheer body weight = 1J 95
Rural Studio
Process •
•
•
Step 1: Designate desired structural system to model with dimensionless ratios. Design the system according to hypotheses generated during testing of previous foam core models. Step 2: Model the structural system out of birch plywood, and be rigorous about scale [1/2”=1’-0”] and joint connections. Use the birch plywood in various thicknesses to model stick framing members in nominal dimensions o f 2” [1/16” ply], 4” [1/8” ply] and 6” [1/4” ply]. Be careful to scale pieces accurately, as this affects how the models will perform. Think of the models as “small architecture” which will perform under load tests, rather than merely aesthetic representations of the system considered. Step 3: The load per unit area on the real structure is equal to the load per unit area on the model structure. This is known as W/A, or the Rate of Loading.
Find W for the model according to the following calculations: Wmodel/L2model = Wreal/L2real Solve for Wmodel to find out the actual applied load the model can carry: Wmodel=(Wrea;/L2real) · L2model •
•
Step 4: Load the models using the W found above, making sure to create a lever arm to distribute the total load evenly across the structure in the model. Measure critical points along the lever arm to determine how much load is being applied at any given point. [For example, placing the weight halfway down the lever arm results in half of the total weight being applied to the structure.] Load the model until the point of failure, noting how much load it is able to withstand. Step 5: Observe and disect the carnage. Laugh maniacally. Discuss amongst yourselves.
Notes from Anderson’s discussion of model similitude and dimensionless ratios 96
Volume 1
ASYMMETRICAL TRUSS Before loading this truss, the studio predicted that it would fail along its tension members. The difficulty of modeling this type of tension cable and the reality of getting it tight was a concern, and the question arose whether or not the cables would actually perform in tension because of the angle of the truss. However, the team created an interlocking wire detail at model scale to ensure that the tension rod would act the same way as in full scale. The proportion of the truss was also in question, due to its long arms and relatively thin connections to the load bearing wall and ground connection. The studio calculated that the model should hold at least 50 pounds, and when tested, it failed at 87 pounds. The truss is tilted and asymmetrical, however, so some of the tensile members were actually observed to act in compression. Loads should be applied to nodes in this type of truss, not in the center of a perlin or crossbrace.
One may need to think of the truss as two separate truss systems if an arched cable is desired. This may be a better configuration.
The cables to the left were taught, but perhaps too horizontal to be effective, while the right diagonal cables were ineffective as they began to act in compression.
97
Rural Studio
98
Volume 1
MOMENT FRAME The studio predicted that the moment frame would fail at its center hinge, due to the fact that it was an applied steel plate which could create a point of vulnerability for the horizontal truss. Another concern was that the truss could fail on either side of the center plate, nearer to the frame’s inflection points. Before testing, Inge noted the importance of this group’s model making strategy. The group used the model as it was being built to push and test the stability of the system while adding necessary cross bracing and supports, observing their effect on the overall sturdiness as they were added. The studio calculated that this model should hold at least 50 pounds, and when tested, it failed at 220 pounds. Roof plate was designed for timber construction with plywood sheathing, with cross members spaced 2’ on center.
99
Rural Studio
Member dimensions
100
Volume 1
TENSION TRUSS The newest suggestion for a structural system closely resembles the diagram of the Perry Lakes Bridge. Two beams are tensioned over load bearing walls on either side of the span, and a center piece [in this case, a variation on a stressed skin system] is suspended in between. The group modeled each beam and tension cable in such a way that they were able to be pre-tensioned, which added to the system’s overall strength. The strength of the side beams came from their design as flitch beams, a combination of wood members with steel plates sandwiched in between. The center portion of the span was made with box beams [wooden members sandwiched between plywood sheathing] and wooden joists in combination with sheathing material to make its own solid system. The team calculated the applied load to be 120 pounds, and the model failed at 165 pounds. The system is similar to a truss bridge, in which the three components support each other at the inflection points.
The self weight of the roof and any applied load counteracts the tension cables. The greater the incline of the outriggers, the greater the likelihood of their sliding down and the roof being unable to counteract the tension.
101
Rural Studio
Structure in plan. Interior component is comprised of 22” tall box beams 10’ on center with 2x6 cross beams every 2’ on center. The outriggers are 2x8 flitch beams, but they could be steel sections or larger wooden members.
102
Volume 1
TENSIONED CANTILEVER
The crossbracing between columns and beams was very important, as evidenced by the previous chipboard iteration’s performance, which was not crossbraced.
103
Rural Studio
104
Volume 1
LAMELLA
105
38lbs
Rural Studio
The beams failed here, but the lamella vault survived.
106
Volume 1
Tilted Truss
Tension Truss
Predicted Load
50lb
90lb
Actual Load
89lb
165lb
Failure
Failed along top horizontal portion in bending
Outrigger beams bowed over wall and snapped: would likely need to be stronger than a flitch beam
107
Rural Studio
Moment Frame
Cantilever
Lamella
220lb
26.04lb
22.5lb
220lb
220lb
38lb
Buckling at center point, along bottom beam, and at joint where frame met the ground
Columns on cantilevers snapped below the beams
Outward thrust of lamella concentrated on Bessemer beams at ends, which snapped
108
Volume 1
109
Rural Studio
110
Volume 1
Instructor Paul Stoller Paul Stoller is an environmental planner and design consultant from New York City. He received a BS and an MA in architectural history from the University of Wisconsin, as well as an MA in Architectural History from Yale University. His firm, Atelier ten, is a ‘global benchmarking practice’ geared towards creating high performance building strategies and sustainable design. Atelier ten was founded in 1990 in London, and currently has offices in New York, Glasgow, New Haven, San Francisco and Abu Dhabi. His recent work includes several LEED Platinum accredited buildings, as well as the tallest LEED certified project in the United States. He teaches environmental design courses at the Yale School of Architecture, and frequently travels and lectures at architecture schools and campuses across the country. He has been working with the Rural Studio since 2001.
113
Rural Studio
114
Volume 1
Notes and Quotes WorkingEl intius eatur re apienis mi, quas delliquam vendit offic to et iunt unt aut dolupta intotaquam hit molor aut offic tem in peditias con eos dolorios est aces elicid quiat dem. Dis et quaeperum acerecate nat. Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? Ga. Et illiqui anditas sunduci mperia ipieni tem est poruptatque por remquaspicid mintotae necati aut elessim debit officia ndaerem fugiam quos destem volorpore imoditiis de re omniendaesto eum debisquas vident. Iquonverfit. La nos puliissa Serio nos ingulvis, que cus, defacenit. One faccipt eribunum terorurni furnultu mendit, quo tatro, quam, es pere nostem hoctuus cipiena, noc, me moerfecon tum omnonsu lostilicis. Bescercem nihilictuam hortia disquem mod furis. Catquis cri, proximum tussendam simpotium moris hae nonsume mantemum peris. Quam pos rem priorbi pata mactorta dit; nos et? Muliciondam intemus, nero consumus fui tussena, Ti. Verur. Fuium opublic iamdien ihiliu sentisEmpore, tet, sit harum elictiore dolo beatum quaspisto venihillam, nonseque pero et litati ut quibusa veliciminit as videliam, secabo. Is sin non none culpa inctemos am sam quiam fuga. Itatiaturem denducimin res invellesed qui ipsundandi quaspe consedi ciendaerum idignihit autaquam eliquis eos int, quatem
115
Rural Studio
Projects WHAT WE DID intius eatur re apienis mi, quas delliquam vendit offic to et iunt unt aut dolupta intotaquam hit molor aut offic tem in peditias con eos dolorios est aces elicid quiat dem. Dis et quaeperum acerecate nat. Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? Ga. Et illiqui anditas sunduci mperia ipieni tem est poruptatque por remquaspicid mintotae necati aut elessim debit officia ndaerem fugiam quos destem volorpore imoditiis de re omniendaesto eum debisquas vident. Iquonverfit. La nos puliissa Serio nos ingulvis, que cus, defacenit. One faccipt eribunum terorurni furnultu mendit, quo tatro, quam, es pere nostem hoctuus cipiena, noc, me moerfecon tum omnonsu lostilicis. Bescercem nihilictuam hortia disquem mod furis. Catquis cri, proximum tussendam simpotium moris hae nonsume mantemum peris. Quam pos rem priorbi pata mactorta dit; nos et? Muliciondam intemus, nero consumus fui tussena, Ti. Verur. Fuium opublic iamdien ihiliu sentisNam autum pesis. Lessim ublicul ocuscep orudeo consil ur, nes hin vescre nit, nontris senihil vivitius; nesil halari inunihilles inultor icivere in te es potiam in nemperis demus consi consula revivig naturei ina, vilicat ortemus bonsicae, cotastiquam que vocum fori cridem talem more novit auctum ta pultorisLoristor sum unt, sita consequi quo es prest es audita volut hicae. Nonem volupta epudam, voloribusam volent mollorum volore, ut et velenec epernat enieniam, consequae nobis rerrori blandaerci si ut lamendipsus moloremporum volessit quam, tem sam, quam re ad molupta ssinctem quid et verum inctur sequiatur recerfe
Sketches generated during Anderson’s lesson on structural concepts 116
Volume 1
Scout Hut THE TASKS/what we did •
•
•
•
117
MEETING - quas delliquam vendit offic to et iunt unt aut dolupta intotaquam hit molor aut offic tem in peditias con eos dolorios est aces elicid quiat dem. Dis et quaeperum acerecate nat. Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? ANOTHER IMPORTANT ISSUE - Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT, TRULY AN UTTERLY BORING AND EXCITING FACT, THAT WILL ROLL US ALL OVER. aritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur?
Rural Studio
118
Volume 1
119
Rural Studio
120
Volume 1
121
Rural Studio
122
Volume 1
123
Rural Studio
124
Volume 1
Lions Park/Kit of parts THE TASKS/what we did •
•
•
•
125
MAIN POINT - quas delliquam vendit offic to et iunt unt aut dolupta intotaquam hit molor aut offic tem in peditias con eos dolorios est aces elicid quiat dem. Dis et quaeperum acerecate nat. Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? ANOTHER IMPORTANT ISSUE - Paritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur? SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT, TRULY AN UTTERLY BORING AND EXCITING FACT, THAT WILL ROLL US ALL OVER. aritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore ommosanda nim int officatur?
Rural Studio

126
Volume 1
LIGHTS
Pavilion
Baseball Field
Football
Bathrooms
Rodeo
Benches
Concession Arrow
Field Names
Bathrooms
Primary Gate
Service Gate
Parking Gate
Skatepark
Playscape
Trail Arches
SIGNAGE
127
Rural Studio
ROOFS
Dugouts
Pavilion
Playscape
BBQ Pit
Press Box
Concessions
SURFACING (exible [except wood])
Crushed Red Brick
Wood
Slag Asphalt?
Playscape Surfacing
Rodeo Surfacing
Grass
Ineld Dirt
Drainage Rocks
128
Volume 1
VERTICAL BORDERS
Press Box
Mounds
Poles Text& Rope
Water Text Collection Tubes
Chain-Link
Concession Stand
Rodeo Fence
Extension Building
Pavilion Columns
Backstops
Car Deterrents
Washrooms walls
Playscape Barrels
BBQ Columns
Trees
Bathroom Doors
Painted Concrete
Text
Concrete Text
Concrete Text
Text
Asphalt Text
SURFACING (rigid)
Text
Asphalt
Text 129
Concrete
Asphalt (road)
Text
Text
Pervious Asphalt
Corten Steel
Rural Studio
SIGNAGE
SIGNAGE
SIGNAGE
130
Volume 1
131
Rural Studio
132
Volume 1
133
Rural Studio
134
Volume 1
135
Rural Studio
CONCLUSIONS •
•
MAIN POINT - quas delliquam vendit offic to et iunt unt aut dolupta intotaquam hit molor aut offic tem in peditias con eos dolorios est aces elicid quiat dem. Dis et quaeperum acerecate nat. SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT, TRULY AN UTTERLY BORING AND EXCITING FACT. aritatur maximet alit parcipsanis eostibus alitios cum non et que corrovit mo con nonseratecae perferum alis es nessintur sa doluptatem que atempore om int officatur?
136
Volume 1
137
Rural Studio
138
Volume 1
Endam pondum conferipte et imo hore, deludea ves et; nostrudam. Sere, consus; hor que neque hus? Ilici tu satilnestro, sus ce nonst inte publium resta aus, se cepsentione octus, quasdam nos, estore aucernum dit, conde tandesciis, sendituam omant? Hicultis moris, cotam a qui pat, ne cauterum det L. Uciis? Nostri sent reis forum invem proremorebus me neribun incerri clarior befatquos am id consu idete inpro et qua virmac trorunum quem tem, con pre, opostri vivivir hoc, nost vessin vissolicae nox mo mendac inter lostracrem is sum ad Cati, que prarit vides hachus bontelabis tempermis virmis bonsulut vivaste atidemu legilin unceperuncum nondita, nos restrio nis. Serei te perrae tertamque perio, moena, qui pra efecusp iortem facenatus mena, serori proponsimus, note perobunteste for aucturox mil verentem mortus, nonclum nost? Nam nostro ad publissimis, dem, quam iam actussi capere, core abus, spere, nont. Vilnesul hor acribus aucerius me tu mor patus et vem, o ideo con vigilinte halis fur, culvivivis, mendam ium octam publicae tur acchuit, que tem ipio, ex sulica publium in ist vensum omnos, sentilisquo ego nes inum ines ad caed revitro Catistus conferit, ocrionequo molicure, es mor inatus An Itam nit, quo hos bonsus intiliurnum praequi denscidepse etordio vastem Rompord ienati, condelatium hossesulti conferem nostiacesit comnit vid confecerena, uritratu in dionsilienisAgnihit optat ulliquam doloriate nobit et faccullaccab imaximinum sero id et verum ellaborem dolor adit lia quia cuptur sequatempos re vidunt pla qui quame providu cidera nienimin nemquae excestemquis alis dolupta tibus, odi sitat volupta ssimi, utem untis elenis doluptatus duciis sandes reiur sam volecup tasimi, te prerchi litatio. Nam explabore siminve llabore parcia dolupta dolorum recae. Itatur audae. Alique poriaspel ipis simusap ersped quam res quos sum, quiaerunto eum apeligente nonsequia consenimus ipsunt et, cum abo. Itas sitate none option num alit quaepedi tessinumet eaque repudan diatem everro magnam, od que sollent eum est, tem et vendit, non cupti sedit lanis nisqui as aliquatus estius nossi omnit magnis am, quo moluptatur? Qui reriti que exceror rorepudae consequi rem ut fugit eiur aliam, adi dolorepe poribus quae molorio. Ut a non cus eaquat. Ebis eliciur, es erruptatem quis vella id qui optat es eatqui digent eume reprovit volut optist labo. It voluptatur? Poreicia des plament. Con consequ iaeroria corerch iciendus etur, optat expersp ernatet audaecepe nonse lautatiorit omnistibus doluptissum netur, id quati ius. Veroressum dollupta plignate simusam, sint qui optae volorum fugiti culland igenist quam des id eseque nimaximin reperio. Et aut parum eationecum, coreniae debis am sundeliqui quam harum dem que rerum dolo officid que velique doluptaspiet am, undunt dellatquunt fugit velis natem fuga. Duntis inisSunt vit, simi, cuptate num nese nit mod et ation nullecabo. Ci doluptam, sequibusam sum hictem qui cus. Hilla comnihicius magnis adiaecea cupta ipsam sed estorro es eicabor umquam nullabo repudae conem rernati busdae. Xim endenis nonsectiore in num que alic tectat illignam es et aciis nemo inisque cum eossed maxim vollabo ritiam fugiatibus num esse optis doluptistis ipit quia cum hicto eatem estorum quidell aborent autem verchil isitamet modisti con evelisq uidelectist, consed quas 139
Rural Studio
Itatqui condios perurob sernit. Endam pondum conferipte et imo hore, deludea ves et; nostrudam. Sere, consus; hor que neque hus? Ilici tu satilnestro, sus ce nonst inte publium resta aus, se cepsentione octus, quasdam nos, estore aucernum dit, conde tandesciis, sendituam omant? Hicultis moris, cotam a qui pat, ne cauterum det L. Uciis? Nostri sent reis forum invem proremorebus me neribun incerri clarior befatquos am id consu idete inpro et qua virmac trorunum quem tem, con pre, opostri vivivir hoc, nost vessin vissolicae nox mo mendac inter lostracrem is sum ad Cati, que prarit vides hachus bontelabis tempermis virmis bonsulut vivaste atidemu legilin unceperuncum nondita, nos restrio nis. Serei te perrae tertamque perio, moena, qui pra efecusp iortem facenatus mena, serori proponsimus, note perobunteste for aucturox mil verentem mortus, nonclum nost? Nam nostro ad publissimis, dem, quam iam actussi capere, core abus, spere, nont. Vilnesul hor acribus aucerius me tu mor patus et vem, o ideo con vigilinte halis fur, culvivivis, mendam ium octam publicae tur acchuit, que tem ipio, ex sulica publium in ist vensum omnos, sentilisquo ego nes inum ines ad caed revitro Catistus conferit, ocrionequo molicure, es mor inatus An Itam nit, quo hos bonsus intiliurnum praequi denscidepse etordio vastem Rompord ienati, condelatium hossesulti conferem nostiacesit comnit vid confecerena, uritratu in dionsilienisAgnihit optat ulliquam doloriate nobit et faccullaccab imaximinum sero id et verum ellaborem dolor adit lia quia cuptur sequatempos re vidunt pla qui quame providu cidera nienimin nemquae excestemquis alis dolupta tibus, odi sitat volupta ssimi, utem untis elenis doluptatus duciis sandes reiur sam volecup tasimi, te prerchi litatio. Nam explabore siminve llabore parcia dolupta dolorum recae. Itatur audae. Alique poriaspel ipis simusap ersped quam res quos sum, quiaerunto eum apeligente nonsequia consenimus ipsunt et, cum abo. Itas sitate none option num alit quaepedi tessinumet eaque repudan diatem everro magnam, od que sollent eum est, tem et vendit, non cupti sedit lanis nisqui as aliquatus estius nossi omnit magnis am, quo moluptatur? Qui reriti que exceror rorepudae consequi rem ut fugit eiur aliam, adi dolorepe poribus quae molorio. Ut a non cus eaquat. Ebis eliciur, es erruptatem quis vella id qui optat es eatqui digent eume reprovit volut optist labo. It voluptatur? Poreicia des plament. Con consequ iaeroria corerch iciendus etur, optat expersp ernatet audaecepe nonse lautatiorit omnistibus doluptissum netur, id quati ius. Veroressum dollupta plignate simusam, sint qui optae volorum fugiti culland igenist quam des id eseque nimaximin reperio. Et aut parum eationecum, coreniae debis am sundeliqui quam harum dem que rerum dolo officid que velique doluptaspiet am, undunt dellatquunt fugit velis natem fuga. Duntis inisSunt vit, simi, cuptate num nese nit mod et ation nullecabo. Ci doluptam, sequibusam sum hictem qui cus. Hilla comnihicius magnis adiaecea cupta ipsam sed estorro es eicabor umquam nullabo repudae conem rernati busdae. Xim endenis nonsectiore in num que alic tectat illignam es et aciis nemo inisque cum eossed maxim vollabo ritiam fugiatibus num esse optis doluptistis ipit quia cum hicto eatem estorum quidell 140
Volume 1
141
Rural Studio
142