Landscaping and Façade Feasibility

As suggested to me last week, I began experimenting with variations on the shape of the façade  Due to the existence of the large light wells and their importance in providing light to the space beneath the structure, I decided that the façade should respond to the sun be angling towards the north. This way the sun will enter the space beneath the façade more directly and provide more sun below. Although I haven't finalised a design yet, I will begin to produce a 3D model to help visualise this element much more in order to choose the most fitting shape. 

I also used the dimension of the streets to explore the feasibility of providing a "natural" topographic sloping form that aids in the transition between levels in the structure. I chose 20 degrees for the hill slope as it can be slightly steeper than a built ramp. Even so, there is also a ramp along one side as it must be wheelchair accessible all the way from the street level. A stairway should also be provided for those wishing to travel between the spaces in a less leisurely manner. The side running parallel to Queen Street may be terraced to provide a variance in provided landscape, though this is still purely conceptual and will also benefit from exploration through 3D modelling. 

Floor Plan Development

I acquired the dimensions to the Myer Centre in order to begin creating floor plans, which measure 160m long (parallel to Queen Street) and 95m wide (parallel to Albert Street). Albert Street also slopes downwards towards Elizabeth Street, creating a height difference of approximately 3m. A similar slope starts on George Street and extends down towards Albert Street, but is closer to a 5m difference. Because of this uneven topography, along with the removal of the lower floors of the Myer Centre creating a void in the ground, I want to provide infill to the ground level that creates a slope aligning to the natural slope of the exterior streets. At certain points where a slope is impractical (such as under the proposed restaurant) the ground will become terraced.

The major elements and characteristics that I want to include in this resident-directed level are

• overall natural parklands atmosphere
• sports amenities and rental shop (out of scale on drawing)
• bike amenities - a car-free Brisbane will be much more heavily focused on bicycles and their provision
• restaurant and cafe(s)
• body of water (likely for swimming) 
• pathways
• vegetation - must research plant life that requires little sunlight to thrive

I also explored multiple floor plan layouts for the retail areas based around major light wells. I decided on the plan with three wells, as it allows fluent circulation as well as multiple shops to be integrated, including a large Myer Centre store in the middle. It also allows service corridors to run behind each of the shops. The chosen layout also creates a stronger relationship with the exterior walkways, allowing for the two to work together to support additional instalments such as coffee shops and seating, which will be developed much further. 

By having smaller shops, they become more sustainable as less products can be ordered and stored within the retail spaces, requiring more utilisation of space and less waste. It also creates a higher turnover as products will be ordered as they are needed, rather than ordering bulk items that are never purchased. 

Façade Similarity

I came across a building that I had seen briefly a long time ago called The Orange Cube in Lyon, France, designed by Jakob + McFarlane Architects. The idea of a mesh façade enveloping a structure that I have used is very prominent in this building, along with the circular perforations. This can prove useful by exploring the materials used in this building as they present a very successful, and similar outcome to what I want to achieve. The article on ArchDaily states that this façade reconciles thermal performance and visual performance from the interior with a daylight factor of 2%, showing that my idea of an adaptable, mesh façade not only aids in social sustainability through circulation, but also environmental sustainability through the reduction of heat loading and reduction of reliance on mechanical heating and cooling.

(http://www.archdaily.com/111341/the-orange-cube-jakob-macfarlane-architects/)

Thresholds and Detail

An important aspect of any building is the way in which it is entered. This is especially important for my redevelopment of the Meyer Centre, as such an immense structure needs to keep the appearance of being at human scale. I want to achieve this through focusing on the end point of the façade at the base of the building, as it will shape the opening. Just by existing alone, the façade already softens the harsh edge of the rectangular building to reduce the appearance of entering a void beneath a large structure. 

In the lecture, we had a guest speaker who studied in USA and has opened her own firm in Istanbul. In the designs she presented, she often dealt with large structures that were composed of complex interiors that were reduced to the human scale through extensive detailed elements. She also talked about activating spaces deep within the building that wouldn't normally see much traffic, but encouraged exploration through the installation of narratives that created activity within the space. I found her approach to the design of large spaces very intriguing, and has resulted in me feeling the need to incorporate detailed elements throughout the interior design to create a sequence that unravels throughout the large space. An example of her work can be seen below:

Salt Research Centre, Istanbul - SANAL Architecture (http://www.archdaily.com/199709/salt-research-center-sanal-architectureurbanism/)

I experimented with some very quick and rough ways of adding detail to the ground floor opening that reacts to the extension and retraction of the facade (as seen below). However, DaVor noted in the tutorial that it was probably best to keep this area simple and not to over complicate it. It will probably be best to reserve this detail for the interior spaces.

Inverting Retail Circulation

The change I am proposing for the future scenario in regards to the retail sector isn't based on how the shops actually work, but rather how they are experienced through circulation. Retail spaces, particularly in shopping centres such as the Meyer Centre act as tightly enveloped spaces, with a linear path surrounded by rows of shops. The user feels completely disconnected from the outside environment, which I feel is a failure in a design sense. Though it was pointed out in the tutorial that shopping centres work this way in order to maintain focus on the shops for greater profits, I feel that by inverting this experience, the user will be provided with a much greater sense of place, encouraging them to return.  

The lower diagram depicts this reversed relationship, where the shops are located on the interior of the floor plan, with a glass exterior wall surrounded by the balcony / exterior circulation space and perforated facade. By having the glazed walls able to remain wide open during business hours, free circulation is encouraged and the line between inside and outside is blurred. I believe that as cities continue their trend towards urban densification, managing the connection with the natural environment is crucial, especially when "inside" a building. As the future scenario includes an immense increase in greenery and natural environmental elements to the former roadways, this floor plan layout can be extremely successful in creating that continuous contact with nature for the building's users. 

Seen below is a comparison of a typical modern day shopping centre with an outdoor market. Although the market is open and organic (similar to my inverted proposal), the stalls are successful and busy, and the users avoid the feeling of being trapped in a massive, lifeless structure. 

What Makes a Public Building?

I read a very interesting article entitled "State of the Arts: What Makes a Public Building?" by John Macarthur, published in Architecture Australia, Volume 96. In this article Macarthur analyses GoMA and the extension to the Library in South Bank from an architectural perspective.

He makes some very interesting points as to why the buildings are so successful in a design and public sense (although he later notes that many non-designers view the buildings as over-designed, quoting that "the public realm is already made up of investments and identifications with architectural ideas about public space on which architects disagree"). He says that GoMAs biggest success is its grandeur and immense scale still being percieved as welcoming and domestic. This is achieved through creating constant occupiable edges that fit the site.

GoMA, Brisbane (http://www.australianhumanitiesreview.org/archive/Issue-March-2008/jolly.html)

Meanwhile, he claims that the library extension is successful due to its characterisation of being largely public. it does so by being "...based around a large public room that is open to the elements and through which passers-by wander. A kind of internet lounge, a creche and a cafe open off the same shaded but open court that houses the library's front desk and security line. he main spaces of the library are then organised and secured at the upper levels, overlooking the public room."

This is very interesting to consider, and I have already begun to use this approach in my current design by having a large open space situated at the base with free circulation, while the retail and other elements are located above where a visual connection in maintained throughout using a transparent façade and massive light wells.

Macarthur goes on to state that the main point for appearing public is that the lobby space is physically open, which is only possible in very few climates (eg: Brisbane), where it is warm and calm enough. This site location should therefore be taken advantage of in such a manner, as very few buildings have the privilege of being able to include open spaces year-round.

State Library, Brisbane (http://mylesmuse.blogspot.com.au/)

Developing Shapes

I have begun to analyse the actual shape of the Meyer Centre, as it's where I'm locating my design. It has proven quite difficult to get very detailed design information on the centre, so I have had to base my findings on the shopping centre retail layout:

The overall floor space is over 63,000 square metres, which means that I won't be providing a detailed design for the entire complex. I will focus on the overall design and systems, along with detailed elements of particular sections that are more informed by the future scenario (such as the open space below consisting of parklands, aimed towards the CBD residents). I'm going to remove the bottom 3 floors of the centre to accommodate this open space. Since Albert Street is sloped up towards Queen Street, this will allow ample ceiling space from all access points. The upper most level will be converted into open roof space by removing its structural components. The resultant section can be seen below:

Although this is still a very rough section, it shows the relationship between the varying structural elements and their gradual transition of levels, mimicking the slope from Elizabeth Street to Queen Street. I want to reflect this form in the top level as well to allow people to move from the upper interior level to the roof space with limited effort.

I have begun to explore ways of creating this transition on the exterior of the building, while visualising the relationship between the circulation space, the main structure of the building, and the moveable facade. As demonstrated in the Giant Interactive Headquarters in a previous post, as well as right here in South Bank, landscaping can be used to successfully manipulate direction on multiple planes. I want to use this idea, as it not only provides terrain for circulation, but it also creates a more natural element that reflects the future spaces of the car-free CBD. It can also aid in creating small portions of privacy to the open space below the structure at the busy intersection of Albert and Queen Street.