Site Tectonics , Year 3, Landscape Architecture, Core

pei kwek + ruth Ng = site tectonics folio

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+ in class exercise- model making

assessement 1

+ esquisse 1 - fill

+ esquisse 2 - cut

+ esquisse 3 - cut & fill> modification of esquisse 3

+ esquisse 4 - ramps on slope> modification of esquisse 4

+ esquisse 5 - water retention & mounding

assessement 2

+ refined design intervention

+ individual reflection

contents page


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esquisse 1 - fill To allow a commanding view for the Farnsworth house we created a steep slope by fill. the house overhangs and oversees the entire site. Also as the original location of the farnsworth floods, by elevating the platform for the house would prevent flooding from happening. vegetation planting will be on the slope in order to retain the soil and a plus for aesthetic purposes.

in this esquisse, we learnt how to add contours to fill the site. the proposed contours have to be in continuous lines on a grading plan, while dotted lines represent existing contour lines. Although we managed to achieve what we wanted, we were a little ‘timid’ in terms of design.

fill


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precedents

GRADING BY FILL - CREATING A PLATFORMTo bring levels up to an acceptable grade

FARNSWORTH HOUSE DURING FLOODING CONDITIONSAs chosen site is near river, considerations were taken to prevent a similar situation where the house gets flooded with water during heavy rainfall periods.

COMMANDING VIEW To achieve something similar where the farnsworth would have a commanding view of the site. Gives a feeling that house is “suspended” in the air.

ECOLOGICAL- a sloping platform for vegetation to prevent erosion

fill


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AA

site contour plan Not to Scale

fill


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section a-aNot to Scale

fill


7fill

model photos


8fill

model photos


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esquisse 2 - cut in this esquisse, cutting the soil of the slope and building terraced walls to prevent soil erosion which also acts as a planter for plantation and it acts like a backdrop for the house.

Aesthetically, it looks nice to have a huge planter wall as a backdrop, however, the cut was too much. In terms of the environment, such huge cut is wastage and thus, not good in terms of sustainability. we should consider cutting less to accomodate our design, however we did now know how to approach this as the height difference was 12m which is hard to deal with.

cut


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CUTTING GRADES TO CREATE TERRACESTerraces were cut through grading like planter boxes to

CUTTING GRADES TO CREATE TERRACESTerraces were cut through grading like planter boxes to grow vegetation on it.

cut

precedents


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site contour plannot to scale

cut


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section a - anot to scale

cut


13cut

model photos


14cut

model photos


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esquisse 3 - cut & fill in this esquisse, we learnt that cut and fill is a great strategy to aim for a sustainable environment. in this cut and fill exercise, besides fulfilling an envionmental intent, we also focused on the experience for the users through the landscape. the transitions between an open space to the closed up tunnel and finally moving out from the tunnel to the house.

this was our most daring design, we wanted to try something different, thus looked at digging underground and creating mounds. having to model this esquisse in 3ds max was a challenge since we only learnt this in wHowever, we managed to produce some simple renders in 3dsmax.

cutcut & fill


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CREATING INNOVATIVE CIRCULATIONCutting through the land for spatial exploration and unique views. Also creates a focal point when looking from afar

GRADING BY FILL - CREATING LANDFORMSTo bring levels up to an acceptable grade for greater functionalties. Adopted idea of having house within low-est ground, Surrounded by hills and slopes

TUNNELS WITHIN SLOPES AND MOUNds Adopted the idea of creating tunels through mounts and slopes. However ours would be a ramp-tunnel.

LAND CUT TO FIT HOUSE WITHINLooking at unique cut of landforms instead of cut-ting a typical platform.

cut & fill


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site contour plan not to scale

cutcut & fill


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perspective renders

cut & fill


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SECTIONAL PERSPECTIVE RENDER

cutcut & fill


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modification - esq 3 cut & fill through this modification, an additional mound was included for a more dramatic landform in the landscape. this way, exisitng contours do not have to be modified too much. This was a better approach as it did not have much wastage.

cut & fill


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site contour plan

cutcut & fill


section a-a

22 cut & fill


23GRADING

esquisse 4 - gradingThrough this esquisse, we came to understand how the difference in slope percentages/ratios would determine the kind of activities that can take place. Areas which are less steep than others would usually cater to relaxing, lying, sitting, walking, all-purpose activity. However steeper ones such as slopes more than 30% are usually considered extreme for sporting activities or for spiritual enlightenment reasons.

We adopted grading slopes between 9-30% for areas where we would like people to rest, relax and enjoy the site’s views. we also learnt that with grading, a platform is required at certain intervals. An interactive reflective pool was also included to attract people to those areas for social interaction to occur. we found diagrams useful to convey our ideas clearly in terms of usage of the different grading slopes.


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CREATING INTERACTIONTo make maximum usage of the large piece of fairly flat land on our chosen site, we decided to create a space for interaction. We found this precedent very relevant, as a substitution for a point of interaction. Users can enjoy having a feel of water, as though they are able to play in the river, yet provides a safe environment by keeping them from playing in the ac-tual river.

SURROUNDED BY GREENERYThe Governor’s House in Melbourne similar to our fill project, positions the house on higher ground. It’s surrounding greenery has been designed to slowly reveal and hide the building as one approaches it. This cre-ates a dramatic focal point.

GRADING


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SURROUNDED BY GREENERY

GRADING TO ALLOW MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS INTERACTIVE SHALLOW POOL

USAGE DIAGRAMS

GRADING


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SURROUNDED BY GREENERY

OVERALL USAGE OF SITE

INTERACTIVE SHALLOW POOL

GRADING


27GRADING

AA

site contour plannot to scale


28GRADING

SECTION A-A THROUGH SITE WITH EXCESS PATHnot to scale


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modification - esq 4GRADINGPreviously, we had the interactive reflec-tive pool, however it has been removed as we would like to focus more on grad-ing itself. Sections were taken across the several few different grading slopes that was adopted on our site. they now show the activities that could possibly take place at specific areas. This method was more effective in showing the use of dif-fering slopes.

GRADING


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A

A

B

B

C

C

PLAN PROPOSAL not to scale

GRADING


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SECTION A-A not to scale

SECTION B-Bnot to scale

GRADING


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SECTION B-Bnot to scale

GRADING


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SECTION C-Cnot to scale

GRADING


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esquisse 5 - water retention & moundingWe learnt that water retention is essential for residential sites as they help to prevent flooding and downstream erosion. Additionally, they aid in improving the quality of water in nearby water bodies. having our site situated along a river, this was necessary. if water is not drained properly, it will have an underground water table which will cause differential movement in the soils.

With our design, to ensure that we did not waste the retention pond area, we decided to make it accessible to people. Thus, it was designed to have a wire mesh placed over the pond, allowing both water and people to use the space. to add a little fun into our project, a giraffe was added that functions as a water meter, indicating water levels. additionally the intention was for it to educate users on how the retention pond works. in case of overflow, an overflow tank exists.

WATER


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CREATING LANDFORMSActs as a resting, viewing platform and directing water flow into the retention pool

SOCIAL INTERATION SPACES & WATER RETENTION AREARoombeek the Brook- allows social activities and resting places for people to relax and enjoy around the water body.

CIRCULATIONOur main circulation is visioned to be big for more activities to take place. For e.g. stolling, cycling, roller blading

DEALING WITH FLOODINGActs as a resting, viewing platform, When it floods they will be covered up. During months with less rain-fall, they will be available for resting areas.

waterflow diagram

WATER


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AS EASY AS ABC! (our three steps to approach this)

ACTIVECreating landforms which increase the opportunities of different types of activities to happen

BEAUTIFULBeautifying our environment with flora & giving the users the best views

CLEANEnsure that the water on site is clean, properly drained and safe to use, play

waterflow diagram

WATER


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A

A

Prosped plannot to scale

WATER


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section aanot to scale

WATER


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perspective

WATER


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refined design interventionWe chose one to develop on for our final project and that was esquisse 3- cut & fill. it was the most daring and interesting project out of all 5 esquisses and we believed it would be good to spend more time on it to produce a better outcome.

several improvements were introduced to the design, where users would definitely get to experience being in an enclosed space which slowly opens up before being within an entirely enclosed space once again. the tunnel has been changed to carve into the landscape rather than being entirely underground. the semi-circular shape also did play a part in doing so.

instead of creating a huge mound that covers the entire farnsworth house, it has been sloped to slowly reveal the house as one approaches the site as well. this change also does not block the entire view of the farnsworth house. thus, more thought was put into the refined design, making sure it fit well into the site as a whole rather than individual pieces being added on together.

refined


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1. original contour

2. MOUNd, PLATFORM & RECTANGULAR TUNNEL

design process diagrams

refined


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3. DECREASE MOUND SIZE, LESS STEEP SLOPE & CIRCULAR DUNNEL

4. ADDITIONAL MOUND TO CREATE EXPERIENCE SIMILAR TO PRECEDENT BELOW (open and enclosed)

design process diagrams

refined


43refined

NOT TO SCALE


44refined

NOT TO SCALE


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refined

RENDERED GRADING PLANS


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PERSPECTIVE FROM HIGHER GROUNDS


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PERSPECTIVE FROM LOWER GROUNDS


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FARNSWORTH HOUSE HIDDEN BY HILLS, AS ONE WALKS THROUGH, THE HOUSE IS SLOWLY REVEALED


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refined

entering first tunnel that opens up towards a turn


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SECTION A-ANOT TO SCALE


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SECTION B-B NOT TO SCALE


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SECTION DETAIL A1- RETAINING WALLNOT TO SCALE


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SECTION DETAIL A2 - TUNNEL NOT TO SCALE


54reflection

ruth’s reflection Through this whole course, as a third year landscape architecture major student, site tectonics to me, is a great landscape technical foundation. Understanding the site landforms are essential for designing spaces and planning. Without the knowledge of site landforms, spaces will not be able to put into good use through its maximum potential. Designing a landscape is not just about the aesthetics but also considering the environmental impacts of the design. As designers, it is our responsibility to be able to sustain our environment in the best way. Drafting grading plans, section elevations and technical details enable us to go beyond designing. We understand the levels of our site, the materials used, the construction procedure of our design elements so as to be able to acknowledge that our design is not just conceptual. Lastly, working with an Architecture major student provides me with a broader perspective on how the architecture and the landscape can coexist in the best way possible.

THIRD YEAR|LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE


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pei’s reflection Being my first non-architecture studio, at the begining i did not know what to expect or what was expected of me, thankfully, we were told to work in groups with people from different majors. I feel that working with a landscape architecture student, has opened up my thinking towards considering the landscape, rather than ignoring the fact that the site architects work on are never flat. we managed to exchange differing views and ideas of how to treat the designing of the site each week, although we did have several conflicting ideas, we managed to solve them through further research and discussion. i am sure in the working world landscape architects and architects would have to work with one another someway or another and it was good to be able to experience this in site tectonics. The subject helped me to understand landforms better, knowing how a grading and contour plan should be drawn. it also taught me to consider how i could fit a building and ramps within the site as a whole, rather than having two separate pieces being added together without consideration. not only did i learn more about landscape, my rendering has improved due to the 3ds max class and help from david. i now understand how to work around with contours better and it will be a useful tool for me.

THIRD YEAR| ARCHITECTURE

reflection


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the end.

THANKS TO NANO & DAVID FOR ALL THE CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK AND GUIDANCE THROUGHOUT THE SEMESTER.

it has helped us improve on our work, allowing us to understand the real objectives of the course.

Documents

Site Tectonics , Year 3, Landscape Architecture, Core