Pues, principalmente, en definir la planta bien... empezando por la planta baja o "fase embrionaria" como le llamo yo, porque contiene el programa que responde directamente a la resolución de problemas más urgentes o directamente relacionados con el lugar, mientras que el resto son económicamente o estratégicamente más ambiciosos.
Y dándole infinitas vueltas forevah a la estructura. Por coherencia con el discurso de regeneración además de subrayar el criterio compositivo de líneas (uno de los mejores hallazgos aunque se está desdibujando un poco) querría usar estructura de muros y pilares de hormigón de ceniza (CENOCELL® se llama la marca, tiene mejores propiedades que el hormigón de cemento y me libra de toda la ceniza de los alrededores... realmente caído del cielo).
La cubierta, que en un principio pensaba como más invisible, totalmente transitable y etc, ahora me inclino más por hacerla de madera (la zona tiene una de las mayores producciones de madera de España) y con más relieve en ambos sentidos de la estructura. Pero no sé bien qué forma quiero que tome hacia dentro (pórticos sin más, con formas más o menos caprichosas siguiendo el exterior? pilares ramificados? catenarias que sostienen la cubierta?)
Pensé que nunca iba a volver, pero aquí estoy de nuevo. PFC MOTHERFUCKAHS!
Esto es de febrero-marzo. Primera aproximación a lo que es ahora...
Al principio vinculaba el pueblo con las ruinas industriales en una especie de gigantesca diagonal..... Quizá demasiado gigantesca. Por cierto, esta planta maravillosa es influencia directa del MAXXI de Zaha
Así que me pequé al borde del desnivel que rodeaba la mancha de carbón...
Tenía una cierta pinta de confluencia de caminos. De hecho tenía varias entradas, una de ellas desde el tren, otra desde el pueblo....
(aunque siempre se ha leído muy longitudinalmente)
La crítica fue que había espacios demasiado de "estancia". Así que me puse a pensar espacios-corredor superpuestos y a hacerlo más largo.
Poniendo en situación:
Los primeros croquis que fueron saliendo en el solar. Siembre había un rollo muy lineal, que fue materializándose cada vez más en superposición de terrazas con las ruinas resaltando por su esbeltez.
Estas secciones me parecen alucinantes. No sé cómo recuperarlas del todo.
(Hay unas plantas asociadas a esto sobre las que voy a correr un tupido velo... ejem)
Email to the assistant from the CISV workshop at Lyon... no autocad, not much time to think either...
"Hi Andreas,
Just a hint of the thoughts Ive been having these days...
I wanted to come up with a coherent system that could articulate the spaces and facilitate the decision making process. That understood in the fluid way we had seen last time. For the moment the 3 path system in plan seems to work, but taking to the extreme the longitudinal way of working of the entire mall: that is, all the mechanisms, placements, transports, storage and everything necessary set in "the path". Like a mall_machine where everything works together with a logic but specifically a longitudinal machine. No center spaces (just centers created by intersection or "swallowing" of fluxes.
Then I thought about this thing of "the feeling inside and outside"; and what the mall has to offer that is unique to it and its main attractive. The idea of the pipes, though it worked with the fluxes and everything; probably is not the best quality space to offer... so I am reconsidering the metaphor as a scheme of organization but not as a form. And the main attractive was that obvious that didnt come to me at first... but it is the own essence of my shopping mall: being up in the sky!! it would probably be the only one in the world.. so i am trying to find ways to reinforce this idea, more than with appearance. As much exposed/open to outside program area as possible, for instance.
So this could be one parameter to place the program path, another that they have to be continuous, other that the accessess from buildings correspond with an intersection and are anchor points ( have programs like wc, small cafe, wifi area, etc that are not part of the main program areas..) and so on.
And then well, as an exterior appearance and possible structural solution I am exploring Roman aqueducts because, as well as being a clear metaphor of fluxes and a beautiful and interesting object to inhabitate (in different levels too), they got to solve topography problems (irregularities, gaps, rivers etc) with great flexibility and success.
Thats all for now. I am keeping on thinking and I will keep you posted on the evolution
last time i hadcritic i had defined quite clearly where the program was, in plan and section, and how the communications related to each other.
i dont know at what point i decided to start from scratch. i mean, not completely from scratch (obviouslyfor 2 reasons:
1- "never throw a project away, make it evolve"
2- i would've been completely out of my mind)
i guess it was because of the problem of the area (yeah... couldnt let it go unnoticed as id have wanted) and the structure.
apparently i cant just lie on the buildings and trust their structure to work well for the additional weight.
so this has caused a revision of the geometry, and means the "parasite" is not going to parasite bone anymore, which essentially sucks. it is against the core of the thing.
anyway i figured i can reinforce the existing structure from the outside and go up from there. it would cling to the facade in order not to bend to one or the other side because of the weight. from these "legs" there can be an entirely separate structure, a platform that holds whatever is above.
it is kind of what oiza did with the bbva because of the train tunnel that was below.
thats a very good idea, in fact. i dont know how it works, i think it had to do with pre-tensed concrete.
so lets say a platform for the first level (9? 13?) and from there all the richness i want in the path. i dont know. somehow it feels fake.
then i have the problem of the bathrooms and supplies in general. common sense tells me there have to be "anchor points" with bathrooms and hangout-little cafe kind of commerce not very far from each office.
what is the criteria? where does the water come from?
i thought maybe they could be linked to main support cores... but since im just reinforcing the structure outside there are none. where then? where the existent cores break through? -that would be good if i knew which ones im going to keep and which i just go above...
i used to think letting all the cores show through and articulate the space was simplistic, and that i had to choose some to connect to the ground and some "blind" ones. ok. but as a geometric developer they helped me so much, so i think im keeping them. i will just not open them, let them be like huge opaque courtyards, or big pilars, whtever one sees...
i developed a path with the geometry of a highway. it was so beasutiful. structurally impossible though. i dont know whether to go to the critic with my stuff having not thought about structure and see what the critic says (hes supposed to be specialized in that). that would be easier. im so stuck right now with my pilars and my blablabla.
the highway was so aerodynamic. i lost this, but i guess the principle remains. that is: the flow of people defines where the program is and how its related to the path. it is a mall to be walked by.
it is probably a good idea to let the level rise and fall a little bit.... say a couple or three floors up or down. that way it is not so dramatic when it gets to a 9th or 6th floor. 9 floors of difference vs. 5-6 is quite considerable. 6 floors vs. 3 is quite much. i will try to work more on this (and end up with ramps, like 40% of the class!! yeha!)
i had this crazy idea today of making the path a tube and the program going from there tubes that superpose to the first. it would be powerful, in fact. i might consider it more seriously. plus, i would get the ultra-pure geometric approach theyre always asking for.
i have to work in transversal section first. i am lost!
then i can see how separated one and other parts are and fit it into the plan. the curves in plan nd section have to talk to each other.
first same size circles.
then difference program - path
then difference between programs
then difference between paths
ahhhhhhh...... wtf
worst timing ever. im going to lyon on wednesday and i cant have a critic, neither on thursday... its tomorrow or never - and i bet i dont have much to correct tomorrow.
like i promised, the top five quotes from our Beloved:
"Architects have these obscure so-called "ideas", that are not ideas, and they cover them in tasteful materials"
"You have a tactic. A tactic is not an strategy. (It is like you say well, in this war we are going to go to France with guns, then shoot and return home)"
"Your building has to be challenging!! It has to be difficult!!"
"The idea should be able to be formulated in a sentence"
"Any decision you take might be right or wrong, but it has to be a positive decision"
** ps. im finding an awful lot of freaky and really gross stuff about parasites. man i really wish id chosen simbiosis or something like that. it makes me feel like all the insects in the world are going to come put their worms inside me.
yestarday and today ive been studying the area of south Canal with the demographic info i got from NYCgov.com (awesome idea, i thank the government and kindly ask them if they could post some CAD plans... if its not too much to ask for)
its been really productive. jesus! first of all i didnt think censuses could give you that much information.. now i can figure exactly the kind of people there is in every couple of streets, their interests, income, activities... and that obviously makes the choice of program way easier.
now i need to combine it with the reality of the buildings (shape, height and so) to see if i can make it happen.
so the study was basically identifying main residential, commercial and scholastic areas (apparently there is a university campus) and the access , parking facilities, main streets and of course public spaces.
it is quite easy in fact bc as i understood it there are basic divisions such as the financial area, the commercial Canal area, 3 residential areas: one rich (above the financial), one mid-high-class professionals (tribeca) and one mid-class workers (west of tribeca, the so-called "battery park city". the streets are pretty clear too: theres broadway and west broadway as highlights, as well as a highway running from battery park up.
all of that having the vacant land in the lots as a reference.
finally ive arrived to some main spots where the accesses and "stay" areas can be placed. the program is really quite defined in each: grocery and basic goods for the west side, hang out and young-oriented entertainment/shops for the college and midschool students, cafes and rest/alternative shopping for the commercial side of Canal, wellness and luxury + everything-to-go for the rich and financial quarter and two centers for larger scale and area of influence events.
in other words: 1 - NEED 2 - HANG 3 - BUY 4 - LUXURY 5 - GO SPECIFICALLY
as well as that ive been looking at some pictures and thoughts very interesting to the idea of lightness and heaven. surprisingly i had a book on my shelf on Terragni's Danteum and the entire point was to explain the building in terms of hell-purgatory-heaven through the massive and light character of the construction. some other references: Boullée's Bibliotheque for the clean, huge spaces with everything happening on the sides, construction with glass and plexi, utopian glass columns in frescoes, the futurist culture of density and skycrapers, Delirious NY, Mies (not only his early works but also the Exhibition Pavillion in Berlin or any other "mass floating on air" work), Sejima's Mediatheque and other ways of creating structure...
notes just in case (not developed ideas) - organising functions in mezzanines with a continuous reference to a main space (Panopticon sorta) - continuous connection to the sky and natural light - would be nice to have good views for cafes and rest spaces - go down to the street when possible offering services to attract people up.
and then again the classis question: how am i going to make it continuous????
so! i thought about it and its not exactly parasiting. parasiting is a word with too much negative connotation.
this place saves you from the hectic life of the streets. it gives you space to enjoy, air to move and breath in. thats what public space is supposed to do. it is a place of social interaction, or individual rest. on the way, of course, it profits from your being there.
it cannot be oppresive to the streets, it cannot be massive. it is a CLOUD. it effortlessly lies on buidings. it is light and luminous. it is heaven. there is no effort, no suffering, just enjoyment and peace. the PARADISIAC PARASITE.
so the question is obviously: how do people spend their money in Paradise? not an easy question. material goods? services? lifestyle?
i could think of some things we, mortals on earth, spend our money on: -living: rent, food, clothes, education (1st worl mentality of course, essentially should be food... and yeah food) - transportation: public (tickets), private (car, gas...) - unecessary: turism: plane, hotel, eventually souvenirs... "choice" goods: brands, complements, music, books..... everything really choice services: headresser, sport, wellness... entertainment: cinema, eating out / going out (drinks, club), all kinds of games...
i think it's most likely that in heaven people would like to spend money on services. there are no material needs anymore. there is no matter, as a matter of fact (ho ho ho, im so witty making word tricks) following a principle of concentration of activity it should help to make them spend money on other things on the way.
* and then a reflection on the way: the architectural idea doesn't have to be related to the connotation of the program (i mean, it can't but it is not necessary to make a big bluntant metaphor). it is purely architectural, more of a response to the site, situation, size, typology, character.... -so context or structural/metaphysic reflection)
i still have a HUGE structural problem. i really don't know how to solve it. the piece is huge and the idea was to make it all connected. on existing buildings. over the streets. it is really crazy if you think about it (and even if you don't, just from hearing). i figured it could (maybe, hopefully) work like a spider. there would be a body (the cloud) and these sort of legs arriving to the ground. that would be the way to get in, too.
two more problems coming up after this decision: 1- how far away from each other are these legs? 2- how the f*** is it going to be continuos if it just has the buildings to go over? as for the first issue, i should detect the holes in the urban texture where i can go down and see if it works. there will not be empty lots (density was the entire point of it in the first place), but maybe some non-occupied room in lots. i know they have most probably used all the edificability permitted by NY law, but im a student. i can disregard law. and about the second... i really don't know. depends on geometry and structural possibilities, i guess.
for the body is an extension of great length (we can be talking about an entire neighbourhood) it should be able to change program depending on the character of the population. that's why i'd like it to be on a crossroad of different ny "ghettos" (say, east village, tribeca or chinatown). i'll do as much as i can but i saw they are not that close as i'd imagined.
as for the target and program (all i came out with): - families --> children's leisure, adult relief - teenagers --> place to hang out + eat, movies, sports, some non-necessary products - young adults --> music/events, cafés, bars/clubs, restaurants, sports - adults --> businessmen: quick basics, quick rest, some non-necessary/expensive items --> generally: cultural/sports events, eating out, chill and going out - elder people --> wellness, rest, care, guided activities - economically challenged (omg the american euphemisms) : basic goods, space to hang - different etnies --> associated cultural needs lacking in the area, common activities
plus: if there are no shops in the area, sell goods (basic and unnecessary) if there is no public space, provide it if there are no leisure spaces (eating out, activities), provide them
and the problem now is HOW DOES THE TRANSITION BETWEEN ONE AND ANOTHER PROGRAM OCCUR? at this point i thought it would be common sense (and more operative, too) to focus on main spots well characterized by their particular program. the idea then would be establishing a net of communication (with linkages according to a logic) the action would be at a LOCAL level or a SPECIFIC level the first would focus on neighbourhood-oriented goods and services the latter woul have a bigger program, and would attract people from further away in the city. it would have to be bigger and specific in the attractive, in very accesible spots.
** note to myself: i gotta do some kind of diagram showing 1st: available spaces and 2nd spots of defined program and their level of intervention. for that i have to get informed about the population, kind of families/residence, commercial activity and all. and i have to LOCATE THE ACCESSES!!!
coming back to the idea of light and transparency and the structural problem, some brainstorming: BUILDING AS THE SACRED LIGHT OF THE CITY (Bruno Taut, Mies and expressionists) clarity cleaness transparency openess luminosity lightness THE SKY OVER MANHATTAN making the artifact light (visually and structurally) it is immediately placed on a lower level of architectural hierarchy (and that's why it is a parasite)
structure: the "legs" work structurally and are the main base points for the entire body, which flyes over and takes some anchor points on the buildings (¿?) structure should also show transparency and lightness (see Mies -Barcelona, Berlin-, moderns, Ando/Sejima/Ito, Phillip Johnson's Glasshouse...)
"new yorkers lack time and public space" --> provide a place of pleasure and compatible with work
** so now i have an architectural idea (which could contain whatever program inside). i have to work now on the SPACIAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE PROGRAM (but first goes all this thing of making plans and detecting spots in order to know WHAT program)
(well i guess i could also develop it in abstract and then apply the observations to the real situation)
CRITICS DAY!! parasitingis the word. i am parasiting a highly populated/dense city. i chose new york, but i am really not that sure anymore. it is my excuse to answer a more generic question, i think: how to respond to lack of space (specially public space) or an intention to densify cities.
i chose new york because 1000m2 lots are very manageable. and because i know it quite well. the thing is a size like mine (54200 m2) could easily occupy an entire neighbourhood in a two-floor basis. the program could change according to the needs and ways of life. but i need really diverse characters more or less next to each other. and there is already a lot of existing commerce.
a first thought was connecting residential and office buildings through a network of commercial space and general leisure. that really doesn't exist in new york. i could imagine that on some other city with a more diversified distribution of office space. in new york (as in other many cities - and i can thing of AZCA in madrid, too) there is a financial district that is very compact. businessmen-targeted commerce would really work. and it does work because it exists already! working on ground zero was so tempting. i mean, it is a completely empty space lacking activity, and surrounded by frenetic workers going round and about, hungry and thirsty and wanting to relax after work or buy groceries because they dont have time to buy it anywhere else. there used to be a huge commercial activity, as i have seen in some studies. it is also amazingly connected (there is a train station, 2 metro stations, a huge parking lot nearby and it is even close to the docks!) the problem is i would need a much bigger size to be able to do it well. the place has such a connotational energy that it is very tricky to work in it, and there is a need for a really big emblematic structure to make america recover from 9/11. and, of course, that would mean building from scratch, not parasiting at all. * i went over the idea of parasiting the buildings around to take advantage of the activity i mentioned, but i would really have to make it office-oriented and i dont really see the potential.
so. being quite generic and picturing a sort of sprawl-like mall on the existent city, i thought it might work on the eastern south canal area (theres tribeca - obviously "triangle below canal" and the meatpacking district over there, some area below little italy that i really dont know much and the financial district). somethig i know is that, whereas soho is fully packed with shops and nice cafes and everything, there seems to be a hole on this area (and then as we go down the commercial activity arises again in the financial district). anyway, i need to get more information about this because i thought about it like 5 minutes before presenting the project - yes, throwing away all the thinking ive been previously talking about.
-----> so he did understand the essence of it, i think. it is not a sole building, not a tower. the idea of parasite implies that it is something smaller than the existent (i dont think he meant literally smaller, but in a sort of hierarchy of usage). and he also warned me that i have to be aware of the fact that i cannot build on the street, under the buildings or through the buildings.
all that said, i think there are some issues to deal with:
- the real size and SCALE of the project and how it could look like for a pedestrian. - what are the active hours and where? WHY is it attrative, to WHOM? - precise INFORMATION. metre squares, population, examples of similar existent buildings (in size and/or function) - what is the height of the buildings? what is their shape? - how does it deal with the streets? - how do people get there? - what kind of commerce is there? material goods, services, entertainment, wellness... how does it materialize in spaces? IS IT EVEN MATERIAL? HOW DO PEOPLE BUY? - make the program RADICAL - how many people are there at the same time? what times of the day?
and more importantly to purify the idea: DOES IT PARASITE... JUST THE BUILDINGS (THE FUNCTION IN THEM) ??? JUST THE STREETS/METRO (USING THE BUILDINGS AS SUPPORT) ???
IS IT A NETWORK OF CONNECTIONS?
HOW DO PEOPLE MOVE INSIDE? HOW DO THEY GET TO/FROM DIFFERENT POINTS?
HOW IS THE PLACE ENJOYABLE?
WHAT IS THE TARGET AND HOW DOES IT CHANGE FROM ONE AREA TO ANOTHER? I REALLY NEED TO GET RID OF THIS IMAGE I HAVE OF IT FLYING ALL OVER. IT STOPS ME FROM GOING FURTHER.
*** and now, some other interesting issues that came up in the critic (i transcribe literally my notes)
. scale . how many people AT THE SAME TIME? . what do they do? . where do they come from? . maximize destination (character) . be specific . give public space . see population! and what kind . 2 pieces of city not connected --> the linkage . (he can be convinced!!) specific: compare size, demography implication . "brand" of my idea! . examples, search references . TARGET --> information + specify . HEIGHT and SHAPE of buildings . MEASURE streets and buildings . something that has been proved to function . references to reality (law, existent m2 + buildings) . large size --> not to make it too abstract, have PHYSICAL connection . ways of relating . EXISTENT COMMERCE . metro (but assume they come walking) . RADICALIZE PROGRAM . middle class goes shopping . HOPE. SOCIO-POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS. INVENT A RESPONSE TO EXISTENT SHOPPING MALLS. INVENT A NEW COMMERCE TYPOLOGY (new way of buying). not just something that works financially . services are a kind of commerce! what other forms? how do they materialize? . generic project in existent places --> generally doent work. if we abstract the conditions it does (prototyping) . program = what we sell, target site = interesting, provide conditions to develop IDEA.... is something else -----> ARCHITECTURAL IDEA (and good architecture please...) . POTENTIAL of place and idea . not good mixing functions. only if it gives sense to the shopping . you can hold on to the ESSENCE (connection, creating new city, parasiting...) . make timetable + areas! . PLAYFULNESS . maybe it JUST parasites the buildings. maybe it JUST parasites the street and doesnt have to do with the building (they are the support) . is it a system of 2nd public space wherever there's place? is it focused on the buildings? is it a 2nd net of quick connections? . interesting how people get in and move around way of enjoying the place way of buying / is it material?
** note: key words for the atelier: "i can imagine it", "be honest to yourself", "a vision", "temple"
