Projects

To create a shelter that shows movement and standstill, the idea of light and cavity came to mind.  ““I purposely use the word “cavity” because I believe it illustrates this type of architecture better than the more neutral word “space” so often used in architectural writings nowadays.”” The cavity of the individual column provides a standstill moment for the occupier to find light and darkness along with silence in a hectic bright world. The holes poking through the ceiling provide a light source in the form of stars. The stars, reflections, and shadows move throughout the cavity that they occupy to provide the occupier a presence of time as the sun shines over the shelter. When Bachelard mentions daydreams in his Poetics of Space, the idea of daydreaming and mediation brought to focus the need to bring reality back into the cavity. “When such daydreams as these take hold of mediating man, details grow dim and all picturesqueness fades. The hours pass..”, this passage gives another reason light movement is imperative. Sunlight dancing around from one wall to another brings the passage of time back to the mind of the meditator. The reality remains while creating a mindful space to be with one’s thoughts.  “Movement itself has, so to speak, a favorable volume, and because of its harmony..”. The physical movement through the shelter, within the cavities, and along the walls of the cavities creates a vast space. Each ingredient brings in another form of volume and them all working together brings in harmony within the structure.  

 

Rasmussen, Steen Eiler. Experiencing Architecture. M.I.T. Press, 1964. 

Bachelard, Gaston, and Maria Jolas. The Poetics of Space: the Classic Look at How We Experience Intimate Places. Beacon Press, 1994. 

Contraction and expansion. When using these two concepts in terms of designing, the human body’s place in the world and its senses need to be considered. Walking into a room, one instantly can feel their surroundings whether they expand around you and give your lungs the ability to breathe in deep or contract and bring you the sense of being wrapped up in a warm blanket. Using both can trick the mind into not only feeling free but still private, exactly how this public restroom will allow the inhibitor to feel. “Formsand shapes affects our senses to an acute degree”, using a flowing shape that contracts and expands throughout the public space can bring one the sense of freedom and seclusion while walking around, “it is then that we experience the sense of beauty.”.

Using the south Florida environments to keep this public restroom functioning was important, especially because of the valuable resources that can be found here. The sunshine will create dancing shadows throughout the park brought on by the metallic roof which will provide shade. The pool in the middle will catch the rainwater to provide potable water to the toilets and sinks. “The toilet is simply not open to architectural experiment or speculations” which is why I wanted to provide a safe space for the toilets while still considering them in the architectural concept. The stalls go from the floor up to provide more privacy than a standard public restroom because of the relationship to the rest of the park. This building will blend into the environment using landscape and the lightseemingly floating roof that can be absorbed into its environment.

A perfect example is the Gort Scott Wembley WC Public Restroom which provides an elegant piece of art using the metal screen as a source of light and ventilation without letting views in to the streets of London. Using these concepts has created a publicbathroom and space that provides everything a park go-er could need while creating a spectacle.

 

 

Colomina, Beatriz, and Mark Wigley. “TOILET ARCHITECTURE: AN ESSAY ABOUT THE MOST PSYCHOSEXUALLY.” PinupMagazine.

Jeanneret-Gris, Charles Edouard, and Frederick Etchells. Towards a New Architecture. The Architectural Press, 1946.