Category: 2019, Semester 2

This week I finalized and solved the problems I was facing with my refreshment area and the far end of the basement. I was really struggling with design with the rounded columns and utilizing the space the best way possible. I was also unsure of where to position my refreshment area concept. I cam up with the idea to produce a fake wall at the far end of the space and create cubby holes as storage and a dry seating area. With this I was able to place my refreshment area idea on this fake wall with the cubbies and keep the flow and unity of the space. This design also allowed me to include another bath, this one heated, as I had space and had already provided a dry seating area.

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I had explored previously in my initial concepts both dry and wet seating areas but this design allows me to do both without crowding the space. I did want a space where occupants could sit and look into the forest through the opening and the smaller, heated, seated bath allows this. It is also in the ground so the experience of this bath is more immersive in the context of the forest.

For the piping in the refreshment area, I have decided to use copper. I feel that this gives off a more natural, organic finish and, because the piping is a large design feature, it also allows it to stand out. After some research, I also found out that 90% of copper is recyclable which is an important point in the sense that my design is considerate of the surrounding environmental impacts. I want the piping to be made from recycled copper to create that further link between the integration of urban and nature.

This week we looked at the human factor and how to give context to an image using people and details such as the edge condition of our baths. We did an exercise around drawing our classmates along an edge condition. These are my drawings:

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I really wanted to explore my concept further through materiality. I wanted the space to integrate outside and nature with the inside urban space and I wanted the design to be immersive for the occupants of the bath house.

Recently on a walk to the beach, I found some amazing rock forms that boldly exposed their layering and time encapsulation of their formation (below).

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This natural layering reminded me of a story I recently watched on Seven Sharp about a Centre being built in Kawakawa as a tribute to Friedensreich Hundertwasser, an artist and architect well known for his public toilet design in the small Northland Town. One of the main features of this building that has already been made is the rammed earth walls which create a series of organic and vibrant exposed layers (Story available at https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/small-northland-town-unveils-new-buildings-in-tribute-architect-friedensreich-hundertwasser). These walls inspired me to take a similar approach in my design but in concrete form and as a flooring feature. Because my pool cut into the floor, The layers are exposed in these parts, creating an immersive sense for occupants entering the bath.

From here I did some sketches to show how this concept would work in my design and how i would show it in different views. Because this is a large and main design feature in the space, I wanted to demonstrate and explore it well.

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This week I designed a wooden pole barrier separating the bath from the entry into the pocket forest. The reason why I decided to design a barrier was because I didn’t want leaves and other natural debris blowing into the bath. Also, the barrier helps in creating a sense of division as the space is quite open.

I decided to use slats rather than one solid surface to continue the theme of manipulating thresholds and barriers to create integration between two opposite worlds. These are the concepts I explored:

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I decided on my second design as the first one feels more constrictive and enclosing whereas the second design coming from the floor as apposed to the ceiling creates a better sense of openness. This is important as the space is a low lying basement and needs to be opened up as much as possible.

I decided to give a variation in the height of the poles to create a more organic feel and less clinical. It also creates a better flow into the space from the pocket forest.

This week we made a material, texture and colour palette. This helped me to start thinking about the materiality of my design and how I could depict my concept trough my choice of materials.

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I chose a neutral and natural palette to add to the sense of creating a bridge between the urban and natural environment. This mood board will initiate ideas of how I can take the materiality of the space further.

Image Reference List:

https://www.cheaptilesonline.com/product/ice-stone-white-internal-satin-matte-tiles-600×1200/

https://www.shutterstock.com/search/polished+concrete

https://calicoproducts.com/product/01-concrete-stamps/proline-super-skins/seamless-roman-slate-super-skin-concrete-stamp/

https://www.expressions-ltd.com/products/concrete-hand-texture-roller-heavy-slate-9-inch

https://3dexport.com/3dmodel-rock-texture-100204.htm

https://www.woodchipandmagnolia.co.uk/products/concrete-texture-effect-wallpaper-wm-014?variant=50267743379

https://www.istockphoto.com/nz/photos/copper?sort=mostpopular&mediatype=photography&phrase=copper

http://yklmetalrecycling.com/services/brass/brass-bg/

https://protectaqua.com/Page/7/What-is-wood

https://ardec.ca/en/p/209/brio-wooden-walls-and-ceilings-oil

This week I focused on developing the entrance. In my previous model, I showed the ramp leading down off of Mount St into the space but I wanted to design the space so that the experience of the bath house begins before entering it. I wanted to explore how I could use plants to initiate the immersion into the bath house. My concept is blurring and manipulating the thresholds between urban and nature. I didn’t want the occupants to go from the urban environment of the city straight into the nature and forest embracing space of the bath house because it wouldn’t fit with my concept. This is why i decided to add plants to gradually immerse the occupants as they travel down into the space from the ramp. I wanted the entrance itself to be an experience.

I wanted to play with the south wall of the basement in the entrance space. In the above sketches I look at extruding floating plant boxes from the wall. I also considered making them glass and act as a window to allow more natural light into the space. I liked this idea but I felt it was too fixed and didn’t have any movement or fluidity to it.

I then drew inspiration from the plant wall that covers the facade of the library in WG building on AUT City Campus. I like how the plants are loose and create a barrier and threshold but is still easily manipulated and moved.

This idea of having hanging plants in my entrance articulates my concept of challenging and blurring threshold points create a flow between the inside and outside world and urban and nature. Having the over hang of the upper levels of the Dadley Building gives me the opportunity to have these plants more free flowing and create more movement within the cold, flat, urban space.

This week I began on my digital Rhino model of the space and a plan on Rhino. Even though I have not finalized my design, I have found it easier to visualize the space and explore concepts in the digital model so I have been exploring ideas through a combination of sketches and digital modelling. Doing a digital version of the Plan allows me to add and remove ideas easily and without too much hassle.

This week I have considerd a lot more of the practical aspects of the design. Because I am designing a bath house that includes bathrooms, refreshment area and provided towels, I need to have cleaning suplies and somewhere to store any other practical necesities for the space. After this realisation, I decided I needed to manipulate my floor plan to allow for a storage space. I also felt like my design had made some areas feel and look neglected with no use so I wanted to reconsider the layout of the space. Below is a quick sketch to help me get a better understanding of how I could change the layout to work better.

Also this week, further developing my rainwater concept for the refreshments, I changed my idea to having a larger, buried tank under the car park to allow a larger volume of water to be held and also allowing me to use the rainwater as part of my water wall. Something I mentioned was the affect town supply water has on your skin and hair, so by having a rainwater water wall, I am helping solve this problem.

In my design I have a large open space at the far end of the basement that leads to an opening out onto the pocket forest. I wanted to put some kind of relaxing seating area in this space to allow people to sit down out of the bath and experience the forest differently. Here are some of my concept designs.

Something I struggled with in designing this space was not affecting the flow of movement through the space. Because the space is so narrow and long, I struggled to design an area that utilized the space well and didn’t neglect any space. I also struggled around designing around the columns at the far end of the basement. These are the only columns that are rounded and they don’t sit flush against the wall so I struggled in designing around and including them.

I still haven’t finalized the design of this area, but when I develop these initial concepts, I need to think about how I can be inclusive of these structural pillars.

After getting some feedback in my formative presentation, I have decided to develop my space further and look more into refreshment area. The reason why I didn’t put these in my design as of Week 7 as because I wanted to spend some time to really look into these spaces and make them more of a design feature and fit in with the rest of my design so far. After some further research into the benefits of rainwater, I started developing a concept for a water tank conecting to a refreshment area.

I wanted to keep the refreshment area simple as it isn’t a key factor in my concept but I still wanted it to be a feature within the space. In order for it to link to my concept of nature infiltrating the space, I wanted to make it as organic as possible. I decide to have exposed piping in the north west corner of the space looking out to the forest. The piping is a very urban feature but exposing it makes it more organic and natural, blurring that threshold between nature and urban and furthering the idea of nature and the forest infiltrating the basement of the Dadley Building.

At this point I haven’t decided the path of the piping but I know I want it to be gravity fed to create a more organic flow of the water. At this point, I have focused more on the tank its self and sizing and how I can position it underneath the overhang of the upper levels of the building. Below are my quick process and development sketches I did while working out how I could best design the tank to hold the rainwater.

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I decided that the best way to design the tank was to have an angled bottom to allow water to flow down towards the pipe as it is gravity rather than run by a pump. Below is the final measurements I decided on for the tank.