Horhizon Unit E at Oxford Brookes University

Unit E book

2011-06-15T11:38:00.000-07:00

Unit E / Project highlights 2010-2011

2011-06-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

Unit E studio

2011-06-02T12:14:00.000-07:00

VENETIAN PIGMENT CHROMATOGRAPHY LABORATORY/ Sarish Younis 2nd year

2011-06-02T11:14:00.000-07:00

Venetian Pigment Chromatography Laboratory

Constructing a celebratory space through exploration of Venetian colours and the connections and influences of Venice (the West) and Istanbul (the East) on architecture. This project articulates the colours of Venice through digital design methodology that is driven by the poetic history of Venice and constructing pigment scientific investigation laboratory and sculpting the process of making ink inside the existing Campanile of Venice. St Marks Square is full of exuberance, opulence, sculpture, and colour; the landmark of Venice also required these astonishing architectural elements. The architectural design is elaborated through exploration in Venetian patterns, ornamentations and the influences of domes that links both Venice and the East while also creating functional spaces that also provide a sublime spatiality in contemporary context.

Contact Details

sarish_y786@hotmail.co.uk

THE VENETIAN REPLICA PAINTINGS CENTRE - THE FLYING PAINTINGS / Uieong To 3rd year

2011-06-01T16:19:00.000-07:00

THE VENETIAN REPLICA PAINTINGS CENTRE - THE FLYING PAINTINGS / Uieong To

Seeking to retrieve the celebratory atmosphere of St. Mark’s Square as depicted in Canaletto’s paintings, the proposal is an intervention that try to animate the public space with a venetian ‘color palette’ even under its constant flooding condition. The scheme is a new design replacing the existing structure behind the façade of the Procuratie Vecchie building. It provides space for artists from China to facilitate the production of the Venetian replica paintings, and gallery space which holds permanent exhibition of the originals. At time intervals, the replica paintings will ‘fly’ outside the building, forming an ephemeral exhibition in the square which aims to create a surreal scene featuring the venetian palette in the reflection of the flooding with the St. Mark’s Basilica as the backdrop. The event brought forward by the architecture is a celebration of both the square and the Venetian Art.

Contact Details

uito@ymail.com

WATER TENSION: DIVINE INTERVENTION / Christos Markides 3rd year

2011-06-01T10:01:00.000-07:00

WATER TENSION: DIVINE INTERVENTION / Christos Markides

Upon my visit to Venice, I soon came to realise that for all the benefits of being in such a unique watery environment, the aesthetic beauty, the element of romance, and the distinctive character – not to mention the touristic perks – are qualities the town can boast due to the presence of its canals. Yet there seems to exist the islands own set of obscure social effects of living in such a water-surrounded environment; a ‘dark side’, if you will.

Venice’s condition has affected the ways in which the public use outdoor spaces. I observed that there seems to be an undercurrent of tension present between man and water. This idea of tension I felt was a key concept in, and main inspiration for, the project. The project explores the possibility of a provoking water pavilion next to the Palladian master piece San Giorgio Maggiore and how the locals and tourists respond and adapt to its creation.

Contact Details:
cmarkides.0@gmail.com

08074440@brookes.ac.uk

SEAWARD PILGRIMAGE OF AN ARTISAN FISHERMAN / VENETIAN ALGAE FISH FARM / Helena Howard 2nd year

2011-06-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

SEAWARD PILGRIMAGE OF AN ARTISAN FISHERMAN / VENETIAN ALGAE FISH FARM / HELENA E. HOWARD

The proposal represents a meaningful journey from the abandoned island of Torcello to the open sea.

As Fishermen embark beneath tensile mesh canopies and across the marshlands of Languna Veneta, their arrival at a bountiful pool of fish, bring back industry to the ghost island, once alive with people and trade. An algae farm located at the North end of the proposal serves the purpose of attracting fish to the lagoon, and to provide energy to illuminate tensile meshes by night. Annually, costumed festival guests, dance, sing and march in procession, along undulating walkways, towards a pavilion looking out at the open sea in celebration of Venice’s fishermen and women.

Contact details
helenahoward90@gmail.com
09032658@brookes.ac.uk

THE GLASS BLOWING WORKSHOP OF VENICE / Rodolfo Rodriguez 3rd year

2011-06-01T07:57:00.000-07:00

THE GLASS BLOWING WORKSHOP OF VENICE / Rodolfo Rodriguez

The theme of this project lies beneath the artistry of glass blowing & the method in which the craftsman executes his work. Having had the experience to manipulate this material, my aim was to create an environment that reflected the physical curiosities that glass undergoes during its formation. On top of this, the conditions required for the workshop presented as great environmental control challenge in terms of heat gain and ventilation. However, it was the very same expression for thermal dynamics found in glass blowing that proved to be the solution. Furthermore, the project took on the technology used for gathering methane gas and implemented it on the site. The idea of a fluid, heat and air been combined for generating energy could add to the intention of translating the craft of glass blowing into a building.

Contact Details

08063652@brookes.ac.uk

+44 7732 826040

INTEGRATED IRRIGATION: BIORESEARCH LABORATORY AND EXHIBITION GREENHOUSE TOWER / Harry Grocott 3rd year

2011-05-29T16:55:00.000-07:00

INTEGRATED IRRIGATION: BIORESEARCH LABORATORY AND EXHIBITION GREENHOUSE TOWER / Harry Grocott

Picture a growing, evolving, ever changing structure; a beacon and catalyst for the spread of greenery and foliage across Venice.

This project proposes a Bioresearch Laboratory for the engineering of resilient, colourful plant life that will transform the currently grey San Marco District into a thriving garden. Along with a laboratory, this intervention will provide a hydroponic greenhouse tower, giving the structure and nutrients required for new plants to thrive.

The idea of symbiosis has inspired the project on many levels, leading to a new structure that integrates with an existing. The laboratory will allow visitors to view the process behind the conception of the plants, while the vertical greenhouse will display the adapted plant life in all its glory.

Contact Details

harrygrocott@hotmail.co.uk

CELEBRATING SPACES OF FOOD & GASTRONOMY - VENETIAN COOK SCHOOL, FARM & MARKET / Amy Wong 2nd year

2011-05-25T09:17:00.000-07:00

CELEBRATING SPACES OF FOOD & GASTRONOMY - VENETIAN COOK SCHOOL, FARM & MARKET / Amy Wong

Venice is a city located at a prime position where East meets West, which has generated a taste for the exotic. Food is a central aspect of a culture, an important piece in celebration.

The project proposes a revitalisation of Rialto Market’s. To celebrate Venetian cuisine, a Cook School will be established which will run a public restaurant allowing visitors to taste and experience the exhibition items. Not only restoring the fruit and vegetable market; a self-sustained energy efficient urban farm will be constructed to provide fresh produce all year round to the market and cook school without transportation needs.

The program will be integrated within an existing Venetian building, housing the cook school, restaurant, student accommodation, aerophonic farm, and roof garden. Indoor aeroponics allows produce all year round without interference of seasonal changes; and more crops can be yielded from a smaller area in comparison to traditional farming methods.

Contact Details

amystwong@hotmail.com

BEVILACQUA VELVET FACTORY / Juliet Burch 3rd year

2011-05-24T16:39:00.000-07:00

BEVILACQUA VELVET FACTORY / Juliet Burch

This building is a factory for the Venetian company Bevilacqua, which will enable them to expand their business to accommodate for the growing demand of their fabric. Furthermore the building is an exhibition of Bevilacqua’s products with interior spaces being created, divided, multiplied and enrobed with their fabric. Visitors can follow the production process from above as they walk around the building, from the initial stages of production to the finished fabric- which travels up from the ground floor through to the top of the building where it can be purchased, marking the end of the visitor’s journey. The building is a celebration of Venice’s ancient velvet manufacturing industry, the Venetian desire for quality but most importantly a celebration of an acclaimed Venetian company.

Contact Details

08019104@brookes.ac.uk

TOPOGRAPHICAL VOIDS - A LAGOON RESEARCH CENTRE / Elizabeth Johnson 3rd year

2011-05-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

TOPOGRAPHICAL VOIDS - A LAGOON RESEARCH CENTRE / Elizabeth Johnson

Venice is in a state of disarray with the effects of climate change meaning that in 100 years time the extraordinary and fragile city of Venice will no longer exist.

The aim of this design was to raise awareness of the lagoons ecological complexity and beauty through both a museum based around the findings of the venetian atlas ‘Atlanta della Laguna’; exhibiting historical and contemporary data on the area's geography, hydrology, bio-diversity and the flora and fauna to illuminating the fragile ecological balance of the lagoon and the consequences of its disruption for the city of Venice. And live research laboratories that creates both a live exhibition space and allows the visitors to understand and learn about how we can ensure the survival of the city.

Contact Details

08040086@brookes.ac.uk

PONTE PADIGLIONE DELL'ACCADEMIA / Paul Boldeanu 3rd year

2011-05-22T09:36:00.000-07:00

PONTE PADIGLIONE DELL'ACCADEMIA / Paul Boldeanu

Carefully balanced between the worlds of art and science, Ponte Padiglione

dell’Accademia becomes an object of desire like Venice itself. Half transparent,

shimmering, glowing, alive and poise with clarity and tectonic strength, the

inhabitable gallery across the Grand Canal becomes an embodiment of the city.

The structure is inspired by the local shipbuilding industry and vernacular venetian

human and marine art.

Contact Details

paulboldeanu@yahoo.com

THE REVISIONMENT OF THE GATEWAY FOR VENICE / Chiok-Junn Li, 2nd year

2011-05-22T08:50:00.000-07:00

THE REVISIONMENT OF THE GATEWAY FOR VENICE / Chiok-Junn Li

Many centuries ago the historic gateway into Venice was St Marks Campanile Tower. However times have changed and the location of the “true” gateway has changed. This project proposes to re-establish a modern gateway into Venice. At this new gateway people from all around the world will once again have the chance to truly enter the city of Venice in style. The program and festivities of the gateway aim to invoke a welcoming atmosphere for tourists and allow them to travel high in the sky, just like the campanile and for the first time, see the true view into Venice.

Contact Details

+44 7965 575155

MUSIC CHAPEL OF SAN MICHELE ISOLA, VENICE / Stiliyana Minkovska 2nd year

2011-05-21T08:43:00.000-07:00

MUSIC CHAPEL OF SAN MICHELE ISOLA, VENICE / Stiliyana Minkovska

Music chapel of San Michele isola is a holly place, representing the frozen music of Igor Stravinsky. It is a place where one could go and feel, experience and remember this genius of 20th century through shapes, volumes and dramatic climaxes. The design is located on San Michele isola which the cemetery of Venice since Napoleon occupied the area. The elegance and colour of the place are inspirational and very significant for the design. Music chapel is a celebratory space for spiritual music lovers who appreciate sound of silence.

Contact Details
stilianaminkovska@hotmail.com
+44 78 6546 9144

HARNESSED EXCAVATION: THE MERCHANTS LOST SHIP / Daniel Sweeting 2nd year

2011-05-20T15:47:00.000-07:00

HARNESSED EXCAVATION: THE MERCHANTS LOST SHIP / Daniel Sweeting 2nd year

Influenced by the mechanical devices of lagoon fishing, and the rich trade history of Venice and its surrounding islands, the project proposes the excavation of a ship belonging to the lagoon's most noted merchant: Marco Polo. A permanent exhibition centre celebrates the treasures of the ship and is located on the sparse marshland of the island of Torcello. Simultaneously, wind harnessing devices inspired by Venetian sails, move quietly across the lagoon by land and water, compressing air to power mechanical excavation components seeking the lost ship and its worldly treasures

Contact Details

09072151@brookes.ac.uk

+44 7861 735001

EXCAVATIONAL STRATA: THE EXCAVATION FOR THE LOST CITY OF TORCELLO / Matt Sawyer 2nd year

2011-05-20T12:57:00.000-07:00

EXCAVATIONAL STRATA: THE EXCAVATION FOR THE LOST CITY OF TORCELLO / Matt Sawyer

Plunging into the depths of the Torcello Lagoon we find an ancient civilization thought to be lost. Through the removal of earth stratas are created allowing an immersive landscape of layers to divulge. The celebration of this lost city is physically documented through time by the use of a complex ecology, which embeds itself within the site regenerating the desolate marshland giving life once again to a lost thriving city. The celebration is the main activity although a natural exchange between the site and the marsh exists within an internal waterwall in a celebration of nature alongside the great civilization.

Contact Details

09071398@brookes.ac.uk

matty_sawyer@hotmail.co.uk

ISSEY MIYAKE'S HOUSE OF FASHION AND TECHNOLOGY / Eugenie Bliah 3rd year

2011-05-19T04:38:00.000-07:00

ISSEY MIYAKE'S HOUSE OF FASHION AND TECHNOLOGY / Eugenie Bliah

Issey Miyake’s House of Fashion and Technology serves as a lab for 21st century creativity as well as a flagship store for the brand in Italy. During the Renaissance, palazzo’s lured visitors into their business through decorative ornamental facades. Likewise, the Japanese designers love for folding and pleating appears through this contemporary façade along the Grand Canal. The different lines of the brand are cantilevered over the canal, allowing the consumers to view the beauty of the canal. While the private and public spaces are clearly divided, a visitor may sometimes get a glimpse of a designer designing the latest dress through the open polyester curtains.

Contact Details:
08064911@brookes.ac.uk
+44 7540 282487

EXPLORING THE HIDDEN CHOREOGRPHY OF GONDOLA: A DANCE THEATRE / Konstantinos Papaoikonomou 2nd year

2011-05-19T04:32:00.000-07:00

EXPLORING THE HIDDEN CHOREOGRPHY OF GONDOLA: A DANCE THEATRE / Konstantinos Papaoikonomou

One of the most iconic things in Venice is Gondola, which is related with the history of the city. Inspired by the movement of the gondolieri and the light dancing inside the curved spaces; I created this imagery of combining thoses 2 aspects into a structural form that its purpose is to enhance and emphasize movement. I took the principles of the customization of each different forcola and applied that aspect into my structure. creating forms and spaces ideal for every room.Studying the form and trying to develop it in a more functional as well expressional manner, I came to the conclusion that minor changes regarding it's shape should be taken. Ending up with a more elegant and ideal form, which supported as well enhanced the functionality of the spaces within celebrating the movement and more specific Dance.

Contact Details:
+44 7850 072573
faspinos3@gmail.com

BIOMORPHIC ARCHITECTURE: PEGGY GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION, VENICE / Jonathan Wilson 2nd year

2011-05-17T06:58:00.000-07:00

BIOMORPHIC ARCHITECTURE: PEGGY GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION, VENICE / Jonathan Wilson

The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, situated on the Grand Canal, provides Venice with a cultural landmark and a significant collection of modern artworks. This project aims to extend the building, allowing for a larger collection of more contemporary artworks and installations. Preserving the existing neoclassical facade, the new building morphs from the existing, forming two new gallery floors and an events spaces. The Biomorphic Architecture allows the formation of fluid internal space and architectural elements. The new building, having “grown” from the existing site provides Venice with a contemporary continuation of Peggy Guggenheim’s legacy – the celebration of modern and contemporary Art.

Contact Details
Jonathan3000@live.co.uk

THE VENETIAN MARKET GARDEN OF INFLORESCENCE / Huda Jaber 2nd year

2011-05-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

THE VENETIAN MARKET GARDEN OF INFLORESCENCE / Huda Jaber

Overflowing vegetation runs along the staircases of the herb garden. As locals pick the leaves off, collecting them for their food, they are lost within an inner city garden. Canopied by thin waterproof membranes, the garden intertwines between Pescheria fish Market and Erberia Vegetable Market. Based on the jellyfish form, the structure is composed of winding staircases, thin canopy membranes and water pipes gushing water round from the river to the herbs. A heavy scent of herbs intoxicates the air, whilst the locals grow and maintain the growth of the herbs. In the hyperbolised tourist franchise that Venice has become, the garden is an oasis for the local community.

Contact Details
+447881594506
09063928@brookes.ac.uk

THE VENETIAN WATERCRAFT: GONDOLA EXHIBITION CENTRE / Stephanie Forbes 3rd year

2011-05-16T10:34:00.000-07:00

THE VENETIAN WATERCRAFT: GONDOLA EXHIBITION CENTRE / Stephanie Forbes

Venice, as a lived-in city, is dying. Its population peaked at 164,000 in 1931 but has now decreased to around 60,000. About 20 million tourists pour into Venice each year - 55,000 a day, so there are almost more tourists than locals in the city. Venice, including its traditional and cultural art forms, is in danger of becoming a ‘museum city’ for tourists.

As a remedy to this, the primary intention of ‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ is to celebrate the Venetian Gondola and make a statement in highlighting the current undervaluation of such a unique and culturally important entity. ‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ aims to provide the opportunity for both a local and global reassessment of this undervaluation.
‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ has two programmes running simultaneously. Firstly a gondola makers workshop located on the ground floor and secondly an exhibition space located above. The workshop level can be looked down on by the tourists from above providing a dual experience for the tourists who are able to learn from the exhibition pieces and information displayed, whilst being able to observe the real-life process of gondola making below.

Contact Details
stephie.forbes@virgin.net

FLUID RECONNECTION: THE LAGOON SPA / Joseph Chilvers 2nd year

2011-05-16T10:18:00.000-07:00

FLUID RECONNECTION: THE LAGOON SPA / Joseph Chilvers

The Venetian people have forever had a unique relationship with water, but through the progressive contamination of the lagoon the venetians are slowly losing connection with the substance that surrounds and pervades all aspects of their lives. This proposal for a spa endeavors to create a unique space that will allow the Venetians to reconnect with water in a totally immersive environment. Inspired by the qualities of fluid forms the building explodes out of the lagoon, illustrating a point of tension at which a water droplet fragments into hundreds of pieces.

Contact details:

joe_chilvers@hotmail.com

Horhizon Worksop series / Kapi / Rhino digital and Cadcaming workshop

2011-01-30T11:07:00.001-08:00

2011-01-01T07:16:00.001-08:00

2010-12-31T19:09:00.000-08:00

Floral Tectonics Pavilion of Eastern Herbs

2010-12-19T16:21:00.000-08:00

Floral Tectonics Pavilion of Eastern Herbs
Design team: Amy Shun Ting Wong, Chiok-Junn Li, Sarish Younis

This pavilion was inspired by Marco Polo's fascination with crane birds and the curing powers of herbal medicine on his discovery in China. The form is inspired from the beautifully, lightweight curvature of a crane birds wings, sweeping over people's heads and souring high into the sky. The program held within the pavillion is the celebration of the preventive cures of chinese herbal medicine.

Unit E interim crit 03

2010-11-25T12:10:00.000-08:00

Group project / interim crit / 23rd October 2010

2010-10-21T10:35:00.001-07:00

RIBA President’s Bronze Medal Nomination / best design portfolio at Oxford Brookes University / Mike Bell 3rd year

2010-10-20T14:46:00.000-07:00

RIBA President’s Bronze Medal Nomination
Michael Bell (Unit E, Oxford Brookes University), The fantasy world of Montparnasse – Celebration of hybridized garden and office, 2009-2010

This project explores the symbiotic relationships of gardens and offices through the narrative of a mysterious exploration into the filmic spaces as experienced by a girl named Ophelia (inspired by the main character in Pan’s Labyrinth). Sited in the brutalistic Montparnasse Office Tower in Paris (commonly known as one of the ugliest office tower in Europe), Ophelia explores a hidden fantasy world of living willow trees concealed within the void spaces of the office tower. Ophelia’s exploration is driven by the prophecies from her dreams that foretold fragments of curious spaces depicting a world inhabited with spirited trees and wonderful architectural forms. She was lead on into a mystical journey to eventually discovering portals and entry points hidden within the office interior that allowed her to mediate into the fantasy world.

Digital Flora: Urban Agriculture Bridge / Viral Shah 3rd year

2010-10-20T14:38:00.000-07:00

Digital Flora: Urban Agriculture Bridge / Viral Shah 3rd year
The project addresses a contemporary interpretation of the ‘Inhabitable Bridge’. Providing spaces for urban agricultural growth, public and retail food market, organic food restaurant and cafe, viewing platforms, and most significantly, staggered docks for floating restaurants, below the structure, that will take people along the River Seine to see the sights of Paris.

Unit E PUBLICATION 2010

2010-10-20T10:58:00.000-07:00

http://www.brookes.ac.uk/schools/be/media/Yearbook2010.pdf

Leslie Jones Memorial Prize (RIBA) 2010 / Michelle Evans 3rd year

2010-10-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

Leslie Jones Memorial Prize (RIBA) 2010

Michelle Evans (Unit E, Oxford Brookes University), The ritualistic veins of a winery – Celebration of wine tasting, 2009-2010

The project attempts to investigate cross programming the wine making process with the visitor routes, a winery allows visitors to celebrate and indulge in the art of winemaking through all the different stages. The ritualistic circulation system blurs the boundaries between public and private, ascend and descend, external and internal, sin and sacrament. The roof is integrated with transparent pipes (the veins of the architectural body), servicing and pumping crushed grape juice from the core (interception heart) to various levels of the topographical building. The building makes use of the natural slope of the landscape through a gravity flow system within the winery to minimise energy use and the need for hydraulic systems.

Camille and Enri / The Digital Garden of Sins / James C J Simcock

2010-10-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

Berman Guedes Stretton Architects Prize 2010 / For creative originality in Design / Anna Bear 2nd Year

2010-10-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

Berman Guedes Stretton Architects Prize 2010
For creative originality in Design

Anna Beer (Unit E, Oxford Brookes University), Pinnacle moment– Celebration of garden

The water garden attempts to experiment a spatial boundary between land and water. The organic symmetrical form commemorates the 8m water rise in the 1910 Paris floods. A meteorological research laboratory not only celebrates Paris’ rich academic history, but also regulates and displays the weather conditions, and warns of severe climatic changes.

Unit E in BLUEPRINT

2010-10-19T12:54:00.000-07:00

Edmund's project from Unit E was choosen as one of the best student projects in Britain by Blueprint magazine.

'An inhabitable bridge for performing arts. Seeking to blur the boundary between artist and voyeur anyone using the bridge was to become a part of its exhibition, the performance itself. Taking its cue from a brief of semi-living architecture the bridge became a series of separate organisms each in constant flux between introversion and extroversion imitating the life of plants, slowly gathering energy so as to present themselves to the world. ‘Organism’ has become one of the architectural trends recently. Among those looking at similar approach to organism, this semi-living architecture proposal suggests a new definition of ‘organic architecture. Mami Sayo'

Link: Blueprint

Fluid Dynamic Particle Fields: Dandelion Wishing Platform

2010-10-19T12:53:00.000-07:00

Flexible Fragility / Cultural Arts Centre / Diana Ester Elia / 3rd year

2010-10-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

Flexible Fragility / Cultural Arts Centre / Diana Ester Elia / 3rd year
The proposal responds to the brief and the site as a symbiotic fusion between architecture, landscape and infrastructure. The concept is that of structure which springs from the preserved facade, enhancing the connection of the past to the future, and envelops a cultural centre with a flexible performance hall, a cafe, and a viewing pod which rises from the complex allowing the visitors to enjoy in the inspirational views of the art district of Montmartre. The intent is a building ecology, where there is a strong correlation between the object and the environment with a reference to the metabolic structures of plants and humans. It is a translation of the fragility found in a delicate leaf and the study of the metabolic reactions such as the use of daylight and wind . The building then becomes a semi- living structure which, in the same way as the leaf, is shaped by the context and the environmental factors of daylight and wind.

THE DIGITAL INCISION FOR ARCHITECTURAL MUTATION: PLANT SPECIES RESEARCH CENTRE / Lee 2nd year

2010-10-19T09:47:00.000-07:00

Unit E Architecture Design studio / Summer Exhibition 2010

2010-10-19T08:11:00.000-07:00

Unit E Architecture Design studio

Kenny Kinugasa-Tsui / Justin C.K Lau

Summer Exhibition

Luxurious, Luxuriance, and Loss

3rd year students / Andrey Mitov, Diana Elia, George Guest, James Simcock, John Barham, Kate Jones, Michael Bell, Michelle Evans, Mital Patel, Pavel Stankov, Rachel Shotliff, Simon Kent, Saeid, Thomas Pniewski, Viral Shah

2nd year students / Abigail Reid, Abigail Whitelow, Anna Beer, Ayiannis Christo, Bharat Pankhania, Edmund Drury, Ergit Bedalli, James Booth, Jonathan Gillett, Joshua Evans, Kah Shuen Lee, Sebastian Andraos

The Agave, often called the Century Plant, can live up to 60 years, but it only blossoms once in its lifetime. When it blooms, it is unexpected, and takes less than 4 weeks for the ornamental plant to grow a thick stem that enable spiraling branches and beautiful fl owers to reach for the sky, up to 12-15 metres. The main plant then dies after its once-in-a-life-time moment. Nonetheless, the after life of the plant provides a wide range of useful resources for human beings. For hundreds of years, humans have used various parts of the Century Plant to produce rope, clothing, pins, needles, food, tequila, and many more. Hence, the blossoming period is a spectacle would attract unprecedented attentions and public interests on an architectural scale, generating a small temporary economy. (e.g. local news, school and children visits, talks, research, education activities, exhibitions, tourist attractions, production of consumer goods, etc) The long and short-term narratives of the Century Plant will be used to initiate a wide range of design themes. Throughout the year, students will be asked to respond to the unit’s agenda, by investigating the spatial enquiries of ‘luxurious, luxuriant, and loss’, and incorporate such qualities into their designs.

Unit E 2010-11 (First day)

2010-09-25T04:20:00.000-07:00

The first unit activity is on Thursday 30th October at the Strollers Cafe of Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, 10.30am. (You must fill in an emergency’s contact form for the office and bring one copy with you for the tutors).

The digital experimentation of unit E focuses on a digital design methodology that is driven by the spatial, poetic and scientific investigations of botany; an ‘organic’ computational design process that is constantly fluctuating to engage with human input of personalities and designer’s emotions. The desire to flourish, manifest, festive, tribute, honour, and celebrate; creates a fertile condition for lifting spirits and constructing optimism in architecture.

Unit E interim crit Schedule

2010-03-11T11:25:00.002-08:00

Unit E interim crit unit brief

2010-03-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

horhizon workshop series_07

2010-03-11T11:23:00.000-08:00

George Guest - Cymatics Investigation

2010-03-09T08:23:00.000-08:00

Cymatics is the study of visible sound and vibration, typically on the surface of a plate, diaphragm, or membrane. Directly visualizing vibrations involves using sound to excite media often in the form of particles, pastes, and liquids.
Here a corn starch solution was placed upon a speaker playing constant sounds that created very interesting shapes. These findings will be studied and incorporated into the design process.
The idea of manipulating geometries through acoustics is a very interesting idea that i believe would benefit my buildings programme as well as the design.

Michelle Evans- Intergrated network of performance, wine production and local trade spaces.

2010-02-28T03:51:00.000-08:00

Site analysis, programme and conceptual ideas. Looking at the contrasting atmospheres and activities of the bottom of the hill and the top and creating a programme which links the two, filling the void. Using the varying associations connected to wine (Sacred in religion and overindulged in Moulin Rouge area) as a way of connecting the two. Therefore creating pockets of space intergrated into the landscape which incorporate a wine and local produce market for locals, a wine production area, performance space and viewing platforms, as well as an urban retreat to 'cleanse people of sins.'

Anna Beer-Initial Concepts

2010-02-27T12:51:00.000-08:00

Initial concepts for my design were to do with the growth and expansion of Ile de la Cite, a tendancy to flooding, and the loss of the knowledge and academic significance the city has acquired since the middle ages.

Anna Beer-Meteorological Research Base

2010-02-27T12:36:00.000-08:00

Using the geometries of an orchid I am exploring symmetry and reflection which will eventually characterise the aesthetic of my intervention on the Square de Verts-Galents, Ile de la Cite.

George Guest - Hearing Laboratory

2010-02-27T06:59:00.000-08:00

Manipulating Sounds using different shapes and materials in order for blind people to navigate via the reflected acoustics within a space. A space for testing the navigational skills, research laboratories, training centers, receptions etc will also be included within the design.

Mike Bell - PARISitic Architecture

2010-02-26T09:15:00.000-08:00

Edmund Drury initial rhino experiments

2010-02-24T04:38:00.000-08:00

K.S.Lee - 20th Feb. PinUp - Botanical Lab.

2010-02-21T14:28:00.000-08:00

Site Analysis & Conceptual Ideas

The Art Of Tree Manipulation: Living Experiments in Kew Lake - John Barham, Simon Kent, Mike Bell

2010-02-15T09:55:00.000-08:00

K.S.Lee, J.Booth, J.Gillet - Textural Memory: The Cast of Viewing Rocks

2010-02-04T01:06:00.000-08:00

Light Wave Caustics: Vantage Point Viewing Platform

2010-02-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

Sebastian Andraos

Edmund Drury

Anna Beer

Algae Bridge: Stratification of Light- Abi Reid, Abi Whitelow, Josh Evans

2010-02-03T09:40:00.000-08:00

The carnivorous plant exhibition - Andrey Mitov and Pavel Stankov

2010-02-03T05:42:00.000-08:00

Short info:

For our first semester project we designed an exhibition for carnivorous plants. The reason is that Kew Gardens has a huge collection of carnivorous plants which are not available to the public.

We were fascinated by the nearby greenhouse, so we looked more into transparency and how it could be used in our design. We also did a digital models of how we interpret carnivorous plants. It was our main inspiration and a guide to our concept.

Fig. 01 General view of digital carnivorous plant.

Fig. 02 Detail

Fig. 03 Interior spaces

Fig. 04 Exterior view of concept model

Fig. 05 Concept model of the building's program

Fig. 06 Concept model - mysterious exit

Fig. 07 Exterior view towards the entrance

Fig. 08 Exterior view of building in context

Fig. 09 Interior view 01 - general

Fig. 10 Interior view 02 -towards the exit

Fig. 11 Landscape design under the building

Fig. 12 Section 01

Fig. 13 Section 02

The Agave Project: Meandering Walkways

2010-02-02T11:12:00.000-08:00

Ayiannis Christofides

Bharat Pankhania

Ergit Bendalli

Healing Spa House-View from a bathers perspective

2010-02-02T09:54:00.000-08:00

Healing Spa House. Diana, James, Tommy

2010-02-02T09:46:00.000-08:00

Butterfly Mound KateRachel- Team

2010-02-01T05:30:00.000-08:00

Butterfly Mound- Kate and Rachel

2010-02-01T05:14:00.001-08:00

Digital Intelligence

2010-01-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

Unit E _2009 - 2010

2010-01-11T16:22:00.000-08:00