Vatsal Patel: Selected Works 2015-2020

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Vatsal Patel selected works 2015-2020

Space is not utility

or spectacle but timeless not the final answer or preset rules.

Space is a thoughtful question

Order is not past

Form is not appropriation of nature

or future but experience of presence

not imposed or diminution.

Order is democratic

or destruction of nature but reflection of nature

not complicated style or hollow tropes.

Form is profound simplicity

Architecture is not a building

or an art.

Architecture is unmeasurable

Table of contents

01

Solitude A Cistercian monastery

02 A modern day third place

Council Grove Library

03

St. Louis Crematorium One last journey for love

04 Space for a common man

Time

2

1

SOLITUDE

A Cistercian monastery The ritual of movement is what defines our perception of space as being ‘to arrive from’, ‘the space in between’ or ‘ the place to go’. The notion of transitions is what makes a monastery one unique building.

Monastery in essence is an institute for monks to arrive from a place of personal reflection, be in between to transcend through a procession to go to a gathering of communal contemplation.

3

4

Cistercian monk’s daily routine

Parallel walls

Punctures

In fill

Design parti

5

Concept diagram

(Above) Section (Below) Floor plans

6

7

View of cloister

8

9

Cloister reflecting pool as seen from galleries

Interior view of church 10

Zinc roofing Water proofing layer Wood sheathing Spray- applied foam insulation Building plastic 6” x 18” Wood rafter Wood plank ceiling finish

Wood glass window system 8” x 8” Wood post Wood mullion extension custom element

8” Exterior rammed earth wall panel Steel rebar (reinforcement) Rigid insulation

24” Rammed earth wall

4” Rigid insulation 1/2” Steel reinforcement 6” Drainage pipe Compacted granular fill

Stone finish on 3” concrete base

11 Church wall section

Maple floor, Glued and oiled Heating/Cooling floor screed PU Membrane - Waterproofing membrane Thermal insulation Concrete floor slab

Church cut-away corner 12

13 Light study model

Light study model 14

2 15

COUNCIL GROVE LIBRARY A modern day third place

The library of 21st century poses a deeper question to its existence and its newfound functions. They have certainly moved the library, as an institute, a step further allowing it to become an unmatched third place. The essence of this third place lies in a place just to exist and be part of something bigger than yourself, all while exploring your very own depths. This thesis is what becomes the central idea of the space - where the tectonics of the building and the small town community come together to form a fabric which connects them and celebrates their existence.

16

Second floor

1. Young adult space 2. Young adult general reading space 3. Tech room 4. Maker’s lab

First floor

5. Computer lab 6. Audio|Visual stacks 7. Self checkout 8. Kitchenette 9. Staff work area and book drop 10. Public meeting room 11. Community classroom

Basement

12. Craft space 13. Children’s section 14. Adult space 15. Group learning space 16. Central adult open space

17 Floor plans

Exploded Axon 18

19

Section AA 20

(Above) Main street as seen from inside 21 (Below) Double story reading spaces

(Above) View of the library from main street (Below) Corner view of the library 22

23 Site model

Section model 24

3 25

ST. LOUIS CREMATORIUM One last journey for love

Crematorium may be considered cultural places of death and remembrance. For better or worse, along with every other facet of life, death went into crisis with onset of industrial revolution. The result is lack of ritual that marks the transition of every humans exhaustion of sacred time. The design here explores the possibility of introducing rituals inspired by traditional Viking cremation ceremony.

26

27 Conceptual section

Concept models 28

2 1

4

First floor

3 6 5

7

1. Hearse arrival 2. Abatement 3. Office spaces 4. Ceremony hall 5. Gathering spaces 6. Committal chamber 7. Columbarium

8 9

13

Basement

10 11

29 Floor plans

12

8. Exterior waiting spaces 9. Waiting hall 10. Chamber for final procession 11. Sorting area 12. Crematorium 13. Enshrinement

Exploded Axon 30

31

Building Section 32

(Above) View inside the light tower 33 (Below) Ceremony hall as seen at arrival

(Above) Entry sequence of crematorium (Below) Space for final ritual of cremation 34

35 View inside the light tower

(Above left) Light tower (Above middle) Cremation ceremony hall (Above right) Natural light in ceremony hall (Below)Site model 36

4 37

TIME

Space for a common man The site for the temple for Burning Man presents itself as a place to rest and meditate for the weary travelers, and as a sanctuary. One feels like they are one with nature immediately upon entrance in this proposal. The temple is the vessel through which to find the common man in all of us. Over the course of seven days the temple changes and evolves similar in the ways every person part taking in the festival.

38

Burning Man is cultural movement based on nine practical principles.

They are, Radical inclusion Gifting De-commodification Radical self-reliance Communal effort Civic responsibility Leaving no trace Participation Immediacy

39 Rules dictating the project design

Site - Burning man temple Burning man

Camping grounds

Site map 40

Earthwork

A lattice of 2x4 wood board connected with hinge join forms the floor.

Counterweight - I

Additional wood board on the outside creates the canopy and acts as counterweights

41 Assembly diagram

Enclosure

Vertical wood boards are inserted in between the floor planks.

Counterweight -II

Wood planks on the inside form structural strength against shear.

Initiation

The Perfect Cuboid, with the beginning of festivities, starts to change the space it defines.

Breaking Free

The lack of sand in the end creates causes the structure to open up to its full potential

Change as seen at approach 42

43

Sectional change over time 44

45 Model detail

Start of Burning Man festival.

Last day of Burning Man festival.

Design model 46