Experiment 3: Image Captures

Moving Elements

The staff office modules are one of the structures moving elements that allow transportation for staff from their facilities to the Lecture Theatre, and although the idea was somewhat lighthearted in its conception, the decision began to be crystallised by the space restrictions. With a small space elevators and stairs consume a lot of room proportionally and thus it only makes sense to design responsive space. Following this it almost cements the ideal that space can be smaller as long as it is not immovable.

The second moving element is within the top floor studio spaces. As the design is for a School of Architecture I believed it would be beneficial to create a space that can change its orientation in order for students to read and learn from different aspects of the urban landscape.

The extension has the capacity to rotate outwards from either edge differing the orientation of the facade and hence the view of those within the space. This movement was inspired by the accordion and its dynamic nature.

(unfortunately this effect was unable to be obtained through my use of Lumion or Sketchup)

Main Spaces

Gallery Space: located on ground level, below Staff facilities

Library: Acts as both library and Second bridging causeway

Staff Meeting Area and Offices: Offices located to the bottom left
of picture. This space also serves as a research area for staff

Lecture Theatre: On the lowest level of the bridge structure. Glass
wall acts with latest technology to double as presentation surface

Workshops:  Three are located on the same level as the lecture theatre

Studios: There are five located on the top level and are not fully
enclosed. 

Experiment 3 Overview

As alluded to by my mashup, I was drawn to the idea of all the necessary space of the school to be confined to a reasonable bridge space, without bordering upon the claustrophobic. The mashup - although residential in focus - purveys universal messages of the practicalities and necessities of dwelling space.

A class investigation of the 'House for New Media' by Hertzog and De Meuron furthered my interest in not only small spaces but the dynamic between spaces within a confined boundary.


My design process as a result drew upon designing a series of relatively incongruent forms in order to resolve their connection through rendering smaller space between and around them.

  

Top Floor

Site (Square House bottom right NIDA top left)

Anzac Parade Northbound Elevation

Anzac Parade Southbound Elevation

South East Elevation

Mashup

Small Space, Big New Thing

After years of building ever-bigger houses, we’re looking for new values, the average size of new homes has swelled by 50 percent since 1970, despite that the average family size decreased during the same period.

There has been a backlash against conspicuous consumption, and we’re seeing a new understanding of smaller, higher functionality houses. During the late 1980s and 90s Heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson occupied a mansion now abandoned in Southington, Ohio. The property lies eerily quiet, cold, a shell of what was once a home. fortunately people are now fed up with such wasteful spaces as five bedrooms, several living spaces, seven and a half bathrooms, a full kitchen, a mini-kitchen/washroom, two attached garages, one external garage, full-size pool and Jacuzzi, tiger cages and a basketball court - sustainable design is no longer just for the Birkenstock set.

Most tiny houses are tailored for middle-class and wealthy families who made a conscious decision to “build better, not bigger.” It’s a challenge, of course, balancing people’s memories and the functionality of their new spaces but we’re seeing a new understanding that true luxury is comfort, solace and connection. It’s a practical response to reconnecting with family and friends in deeper ways than in show-off houses like Tyson’s decked out, abandoned mansion with crystal chandeliers, a pool larger than most homes.

1.     “Downsizing to Smaller Homes is the New Trend,”  Tallahassee Magazine, accessed May 20^th, 2015, http://www.tallahasseemagazine.com/July-August-2014/Downsizing-to-Smaller-Homes-Is-the-New-Trend/

2.     “Inside Mike Tyson’s Eerie Abandoned Mansion” News.com.au, accessed MAY, 22^nd, 2015,  http://www.news.com.au/sport/american-sports/inside-mike-tysons-eerie-abandoned-mansion/story-fnq2nnu6-1227286085514

3.     “Tiny Houses With Big Ambitions” Time Magazine, accessed May, 22^nd, 2015, http://time.com/130959/tiny-houses-with-big-ambitions/

Patterns

Perspectives

Perspectives "1", "2", "3", "4", "5 and "6" were drawn more strictly for the freehand experimenting with the relative numbers e.g "1A" and "1B" relate to figure "1"