Thursday 30 August 2012

Assignment 2 - Mystery Play


The second submission requires us to form a group of four and use the Four Square House Design Problem by John Hejduk. We are to divide a 36 x 36m block consisting of 16 9 x 9m squares between our four clients. We then choose one design from the Equus assignment and develop it so that all four designs can co-exist on the site.

Considering they will all be sharing the one site together, it is important to establish the relationship my character, Terry the male park attendant has with the other 3 characters. Terry's three neighbors and the relationship he shares with them are:

Louise Eason

Wolfgang the Trolley Man
Terry doesn't have a lot of similarities with Wolfgang other that that they are both very hard workers and enjoy their jobs vastly. Wolfgang prefers a home that has crazy trolley interiors and enclosed spaces surrounded by solid objects where as Terry prefers the outdoors and freedom.

Stuart Dowie

Lily the Silent Juror
Lily Abott and Terry Hargrave both share a common interest in reading, keeping to themselves and avoiding the drama and technology from the world. Lily also doesn't bother with people unless they share the same interests. Both designs are in their own space and both are form of bridges whether that be in-between two existing buildings or a bridge towering over a river bed.

Paul McFarland

Thor the Lightning Man
Thor and Terry both share common interests in nature. Thor has much appreciation for unobstructed natural light and natural beauty. They both prefer to be alone, however they will assist others who share common interests such as nature, this will benefit my design as there will be a free flowing shared zone of nature between the homes. Thor is also a hard worker which terry can relate to.

Submission 1 - Equus


The four designs below are to reside Terry, the park attendant and his wife Gloria. 
All four designs are situated in the Yellowstone National Park alongside a river. The client lives to feel part of the landscape, and doesn't like to 'stand out' from the forest. He uses his home as a retreat from the surrounding society and drama. The client feels a strong connection to nature which must be considered. I believe I have accomplished this by nestling a shelter into the landscape with surrounding and never ending views to the park. The client specifically doesn't want a large house or even any 'rooms' he just wants a place to eat, relax and clean.

All of the designs are hidden between two mountains, with a flat area between. In the first design, a plat form just above from the riverbed steps up to the flat area on the ground where the main shelter and bed lies. The shelter extrudes from the existing mountain looking natural and like it is supposed to be there. the first design is extremely simple but effective. The tower of this design is represented by the jetty over the river and mirror is represented by the glass floor reflecting the water beneath. 

Design 2 has a very similar shelter design, again coming out of the mountain. however, in this design, the tower or 'jetty' is more narrow and almost reaches the other side of the river, and the mirror is represented by circle glass windows on the jetty. The fire pit beside the bed provides warmth and something for terry to cook on. There is an outhouse out the back as there is in all other designs. 

My third design is my first handmade model. it begins with  several wooden planks of different lengths protruding from the mountain representing the new 'jetty' in a less obvious form. The planks form a flat surface over the river where the shelter lies. The small tent like structure provides only a place to sleep and eat, which is all Terry and Gloria want. it is protected by the trees and bushes behind the back wall. There are two long windows in the frond wall which provide view to the long river. There is room for a small fire area at the opening of the tent to provide warmth during the winter season.

The fourth and final design is the second model. Very similar to the first two, it consists of a shelter coming out of the mountains. This time there's no walls apart from the mountains to protect from wind and storms. this is why 3 long planks of timber are stacked on top of each other on the back of the shelter. In this design, the jetty is dislodged from the shelter but is still representing the tower idea, along with the mirror being represented by the water, reflecting Terry's interesting life.