December 2009 Archives
A couple of very quick images. As mentioned in the previous post, this is a test that looks at three strands, each bifurcating along their length that create a volume around them; the size of which is determined by the proximity to a neighbouring strand. More experimentation to go...
First go at how I'm negotiating the three strands of the Inverted City: Forum, Vorum (vertical forum, not void!) and infill.
Most of yesterday and today has been figuring out a logic behind how these three weave, bificate, trificate together, giving control over their associations and size at any point. I'll post some renders in a little bit to make the line drawing below a little more clear...
Most of yesterday and today has been figuring out a logic behind how these three weave, bificate, trificate together, giving control over their associations and size at any point. I'll post some renders in a little bit to make the line drawing below a little more clear...
The first of many Technical Studies tutorials happened today with the other 5th years. After an abysmal presentation last Friday, with the research I've carried out on the plight of Los Angeles, I feel as though there's some hope for the future(!?).
TS Outline:
Inverted City Programme. Forum, Void & Filler. The three constituent parts of the Inverted City. For the moment at least, three primary areas for technical studies will be looked at:
Geometry: To create a 3dimensional weave; strands of forum, void and filler that negotiate and mediate between one another, bifurcating, expanding and deviating where necessary to accommodate variables such as forum size and use, movement speeds, light penetration, wind flow (stack effect) and structural configurations. L-systems, scripting and references such as Christopher Alexander will be used to ensure the geometry brings the city back to the scale of the human.
Materiality: Engineered Timber. In the pursuit to design a city that not only reflects the emerging knowledge economy as a sustainable economy, but also uses a material that is fully sustainable in itself. Engineered timber is becoming increasingly used in high rise building projects as a safe, structurally efficient, economically viable, rapidly assembled material. The fast growth of fur trees in California will feed the growth of the Inverted City.
Climatic: Conditions in California look bleak over the next few decades. Droughts will see the Los Angeles River dry. Forest fires will rage and temperatures will rise. The 5th Ecology of The Inverted City will become a refuge from the old city. A new city without distant infrastructure and the reliance on the automobile. A city brought back to the scale of the human, and a city that will become a sanctum from the change in climatic conditions. Water will be harvested from what remains of the Los Angeles River. The city will be self cooling through the void weaving itself through the city.
TS Outline:
Inverted City Programme. Forum, Void & Filler. The three constituent parts of the Inverted City. For the moment at least, three primary areas for technical studies will be looked at:
Geometry: To create a 3dimensional weave; strands of forum, void and filler that negotiate and mediate between one another, bifurcating, expanding and deviating where necessary to accommodate variables such as forum size and use, movement speeds, light penetration, wind flow (stack effect) and structural configurations. L-systems, scripting and references such as Christopher Alexander will be used to ensure the geometry brings the city back to the scale of the human.
Materiality: Engineered Timber. In the pursuit to design a city that not only reflects the emerging knowledge economy as a sustainable economy, but also uses a material that is fully sustainable in itself. Engineered timber is becoming increasingly used in high rise building projects as a safe, structurally efficient, economically viable, rapidly assembled material. The fast growth of fur trees in California will feed the growth of the Inverted City.
Climatic: Conditions in California look bleak over the next few decades. Droughts will see the Los Angeles River dry. Forest fires will rage and temperatures will rise. The 5th Ecology of The Inverted City will become a refuge from the old city. A new city without distant infrastructure and the reliance on the automobile. A city brought back to the scale of the human, and a city that will become a sanctum from the change in climatic conditions. Water will be harvested from what remains of the Los Angeles River. The city will be self cooling through the void weaving itself through the city.
I want to try and make this into a model later on. It looks at how a forum network can interweave itself with a 'filler' network that forms the structure for the city. Although another variation I've begun, which gives less differences between the static forum areas and those that require movement to shift levels. Work in progress.
Furthering research into university campus plans is helping to understand associations between areas of static forums, movement forums and the filler of the private areas. Although what I've been trying to do is relate this into the 3rd dimension and ensure it's a little more dense than the rural sprawl of these campus plans.
Doesn't look great, and needs much more work. From the research of university campus' I've been looking into, I've highlighted key factors which I feel are important to be included with the Inverted City. The drawing below begins to use these factors to create a plan, even though as a whole, I'm far from happy with it.
Some finished White Book pages over the weekend. As well as drawing up plans of different Campus Universities, I've also been compiling everything so far into the White Book. Long way to go yet. I'll post the Inverted City ideas and plan shortly.
So far this weekend I've been looking into University Campus' to help inform how I can use the logic involved in these designs to help inform the design of the Inverted City. It's getting there (I hope). Have been going crazy with the research but need to apply this to the plans...! Images to follow...
To understand the complexities involved in designing a city within a city, or 5th Ecology for Los Angeles sprawling suburbs, the evolution of the university campus will be looked at. The studies that emerged in the late 1950's and 60's concentrated on how education can happen en masse, away from the existing context of the traditional city. Even though the Inverted City will be within the context of the existing city, what this study can do is to establish principals used in the design development of the campus that allowed it to become a self-sufficient centre of education in terms of classroom adjacencies, circulation, and structure. Education = knowledge exchange (although within a city and not within a campus). The study of the campus cities can therefore be closely used to develop a thesis for the Forum for Knowledge Exchange. Projects have been drawn up including the Berlin Freie Universitat competition design by Candilis Josic and Woods amongst others. Aspects of these designs will be taken forward as a proposal for the Inverted City. The 5th Ecology of the Inverted City will therefore consist of multiple Forums of Knowledge Exchange of varying scales that in their adjacencies and scale will determine use.
To understand the complexities involved in designing a city within a city, or 5th Ecology for Los Angeles sprawling suburbs, the evolution of the university campus will be looked at. The studies that emerged in the late 1950's and 60's concentrated on how education can happen en masse, away from the existing context of the traditional city. Even though the Inverted City will be within the context of the existing city, what this study can do is to establish principals used in the design development of the campus that allowed it to become a self-sufficient centre of education in terms of classroom adjacencies, circulation, and structure. Education = knowledge exchange (although within a city and not within a campus). The study of the campus cities can therefore be closely used to develop a thesis for the Forum for Knowledge Exchange. Projects have been drawn up including the Berlin Freie Universitat competition design by Candilis Josic and Woods amongst others. Aspects of these designs will be taken forward as a proposal for the Inverted City. The 5th Ecology of the Inverted City will therefore consist of multiple Forums of Knowledge Exchange of varying scales that in their adjacencies and scale will determine use.
