Stepping, Circulation, Atrium...

Lisa and I had a desk crit with Karl yesterday and came up with some good ideas on how to move forward with our project.

STEPPING IN PLAN AND SECTION:
We plan on stepping our entire building to the North. This means each band will (be coplanar) line up vertically on the northern edge, and the terraces will then peel away from this edge. For example, if we say that the shared northern edge is 15ft wide on all floors, we'd have an arch which extends out from this shared edge. On the next floor, we would copy that edge and that arch and then pivot that arch about 5 degrees inward to form the terrace of that floor. This system would repeat up throughout that band. Each band may have a different angle of rotation based on its position on the site and the quality of light which it will receive; for example, a room which wants more light, will have a greater angle of rotation, wider terrace, and more space for skylights. These rules will step up a more interesting and elegant geometry than our current irregular curves.

We may also figure out a way to have our building step vertically to the North. Basically this would mean dramatizing our current section.

ELIMINATING CIRCULATION:
The next big alteration: eliminate some of the circulation. The majority of our current building is circulation. In order to cut down on some of this inefficient space, we are going to remove some of the connections between the separate bands. However, the top floor of each band, which houses shared program, will still be linked via stairs or ramps. This way, a student in the upper western band can still access the eastern library from the western band without returning to the ground floor and then traveling up the eastern band. This should create more interesting sections throughout our building.

COURTYARD BECOMES ATRIUM:
Another big decision: the courtyard will be enclosed. It will become an atrium with operable louvers which can open up at an angle in the summer, letting the hot air out and shading the courtyard from receiving more sun. In the winter, it will help trap solar heat gain and provide an overall envelope for our building. [If the ground and the surrounding classroom walls have a high thermal mass, this will help cut down on energy usage and heating costs.] The edges of the atrium will begin at the top levels of classrooms on each band. The top floor of each band (the shared program) will remain above the atrium and look down into the courtyard. The stairs which link each top floor will help create the remaining edges of our atrium.

We also want to experiment more with the shape of the courtyard? How can we make it push against the bands instead of a result of the bands?

Lisa and I have a lot to think about, but we are excited to move forward. We plan to have new Rhino models for Thursday which build off of these ideas.