Glenn Katz
Overall, I intend to have my design process guided by a desire to create a space that follows a logic driven by harmonious intersectionality. I would like to develop a space that organically, sustainably, and intimately engages with the surrounding context in the realms of people, community, and environment. I want to create a space composed of dynamic, responsive, modular, and adaptable systems in order to create a building that is both alive and with agency for the community it will house and serve. During this exploratory phase of the design process, I hope to continually reference this quote from the architect Tadao Ando:
“Space will only have a life when people enter it. So the important role architecture can play, and that space plays within that architecture, is to encourage an interaction between people, between people and the ideas being presented in the paintings and sculpture, and most importantly between people themselves.”
In terms of engaging with the environment sustainably, I have identified the following keywords, concepts, and ideas as I brainstorm different approaches:
- fusing built forms into the natural landscape
- utilizing local materials
- natural/organic materials and forms
- sunken; built into the hillside/landscape
- embodied carbon
- interplay between interior and exterior spaces
- terrain architecture
In terms of leveraging technology and the environment in tandem to create a living and breathing space, I have identified the following passive and active design ideas and methods to explore further:
- natural ventilation
- thermal mass elements for heat storage and dissipation
- site generated renewable energy (ex: roof solar PV, geothermal, etc.)
- dynamic and flexible facade fins or perforations for controlled shading
In terms of adequately contextualizing my design with its surrounding communal structure and history to implement social and cultural sustainability, these are the following terms and ideas I would like to explore:
- adapting to the preexisting design vernacular
- large and free form circulatory spaces (ex: atriums, courtyards, etc.)
- public-oriented
- existing as a third space
- adjustable spatiotemporal programming
- accessibility
The following buildings are in my preliminary design inspiration list:
- Giant Group Campus, Shanghai, China by Thom Mayne
- National Theatre School, Cuba by Roberto Gottardi
- City of Culture of Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Spain by Peter Eiseman
- house in Polish landscape by Adrian Kasperski
- Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth by Tadao Ando
- Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Washington D.C.
- The Museum of Liverpool
- Natural History Museum of Utah, Salt Lake City
