Hurva Synagogue in Jerusalem, First Year Paradigms Project

This first year group have made a great set of models to demonstrate the various design considerations used in this Louis Kahn design. The building was designed in 1969 but never built.

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The group decided to produce a 1:50 section model showing the internal construction. This was achieved through a combination of laser cut and hand made components. The original design proposal was to be made from stone and would appear consistent throughout. For this reason the group decided to make the model’s using wood with light staining to blend the lighter timber with the MDF sheet.

First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (26) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (28) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (31) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (33)

The groups 1:100 model (below) shows the extent of the proposed completed building. The group used pine to cut the outer wall components which were stained. A nice feature of this model is the ability to remove the roof sections to view the internal layout.

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This is the groups site plan model demonstrating its relationship geographically to the nearby mosques which had be a key element of the design from an early stage. The line of sight is shown using red thread across the landscape.

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City Tower Project, 1st Year ‘Group 8’ Paradigms Project

This first year group, also looking at the work of Louis Khan, have been looking at the un-built City Tower Project. The design was  intended to be built in Philadelphia in the 1950’s but stopped after several stages of development. despite this it is still regarded as an important study and influenced future designs with its use of space frame technology. (Albani, 2013)

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The group used laser cut floor and base plates to build the structure around central wooden dowels as the building core. The outer ‘web’ skin the binds the floors was represented with string threaded through pre cut holes in each plate.

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The group used our new studio space to photograph the model against a white backdrop.

First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (18) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (19) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (21) First Year Louis Kahn Architects study (22)

As several people pointed out, the addition of scale people and cars really help to convey the size of this design to the viewer.

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Albani, City Tower, Architects,Architecture,Architectuul, [Online Article] Available from: http://architectuul.com/architecture/city-tower , 2013

Trenton Jewish Community Bath House, Antoinette Y. Oni and Paul Wright, First Year Paradigms Project

This first year project looks at the work of architect Louis Kahn and his Jewish community Bath House design for Trenton, New Jersey constructed in 1955.

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An important part of the overall design was the inclusion of the surrounding landscaped and wooded area. For this reason particular attention has been paid to the representation of each tree on the site using the abstract use of wooden dowels.

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SEED B.15 Modelmaking Workshop: 2 WEEKS IN 2 MINUTES

 

Not long after I started here in B.15 it became very apparent that the constant hive of activity we have here was often unnoticed. I decided, amongst other things to document a period by setting up a camera to record two weeks in time-lapse format. Taking place over two weeks last May, this footage gives a brief insight into the fantastic and frantic creativity we host day to day.

Please share with your friends and keep making!

Scott

2nd Year 1:20 Detail Section ‘Halley 6’ Project

Second year groups were asked to produce a 1:20 detailed section model of their construction pack which was provided by another group in the year. The objective of the project was to use the model to demonstrate their understanding of the buildings construction in terms of its technical details, services and environmental performance.

This groups building, known as ‘Halley 6’ is the British Antarctica research station. The chosen section featured two supporting legs and look at internal structural elements in relation to the outer facade as well as ducting voids.

The submission was given in alongside a report including a 3D Digital structural model that also showed the main structural components.

The model was made using plastic tubing for structural space frame components, vac forming plastic sheets to form the leg supports and clad the exterior. In order to make the leg shape a former was made to wrap the plastic around which was heated and glued into shape. The leg assembly and skis were represented with laser cut elements that were spray painted. Flooring and interior walls were made using 3mm MDF.

Andra Calin Group. Halley 6 project (3)

“Poppy” Pavilion at Dunham Massey

As we have documented since the start of this academic year, the poppy pavilion project has taken many hours of development and construction to create. Much of the final structure assembly was completed in our store space due to the sheer size of the piece. Alex, Lorena and Nancy assembled of structure in two main parts before transportation to the site.  

 

The group met on a cold and rainy February morning to assemble the pieces at Dunham Massey National Trust park. The poppy was anchored using 3 fence piles which were fixed to the bottom of the structure. The final assembly too a full day and another morning to complete not to mention some frozen hands by all accounts!

The completed structure held its form well and had withstood the recent stormy weather with no problems. The structure along with the other Pavilion projects can be seen on display at Dunham Massey over the coming months.

Well done all involved!

Workshop Closure Dates This Week

Due to new equipment training and critique involvement the workshop will be closed for two days this week.

Monday 03/03/2014 – Open 09.30 – 04.30 (Closed 13.00-14.00 1hr Lunch)

Tuesday 04/03/2014 – Open 09.30 – 04.30 (Closed 13.00-14.00 1hr Lunch)

Wednesday 05/03/2014 – Closed

Thursday 06/03/2014 – Open 09.30 – 04.30 (Closed 13.00-14.00 1hr Lunch)

Friday 07/03/2014 – Closed

 Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Normal opening times will resume week commencing 10/03/2014

Scott & Jim

1:200 Castlefield Site Model, Richard Coskie

Year Six student Richard Coskie has a history of making things from clear cut hand finished materials in our workshop. This project is no exception and as Richard explains, is continuing to influence his design decisions as the project develops.

“My project is an Urban Cultivation Cooperative Centre, located on a site that is nestled between train tracks and the canal, on the old Castlefield junction at the south end of Deansgate. The 1:200 scale site model I have crafted in the workshop from pine, is proving very useful in the development of the project for investigating relationships between different programmes. I hope to display the final scheme on the site model, as well as creating other models at other scales.

The decision to create the site model void of any digital fabrication was an easy choice for me. Firstly, because the site has a low-tech and industrial aesthetic, which is better achieved by sculpting arches from a single, chunky, piece of wood. But most importantly, as a designer, I feel it is important to learn the dimensions of a site, by actually planing the topography to scale, or sawing, carving and sanding the arches to size. For the moments that one is engaged with the manipulation of their model, I believe that it is as vital a time as any for visions to come to fruition.”

We will add some studio photographs of this model in the near future. Find out more about MSAp here: http://www.msa.ac.uk/atelier/msap/

Warrington Town Centre Flow Model, Baljit Panesar

Baljit is using a slide system to convey the different mapping she has looked at in her study of Warrington High Street.

The key question for this project was ‘What is the future of the High Street?’.

The project has looked at empty shop spaces and their potential for non retail use as a reinvention of the traditional high street. Baljit mapped the variety of creative industries in the Warrington area and is looking at the potential to place them within the empty high street store spaces.

Contested Peripheries Baljit Panesar (5)

Her main site focus is the Garnetts Cabinet Works which is due to be demolished. By using this site as an ‘incubator’ or hub for creative services, Baljit proposes a ‘launch site’ for services that would normally be based outside of the high street with the Garnetts site acting as the gateway for those services.

This working model is constructed as a grid allowing pins to be placed in the board to indicate changes in site flow at specific locations across the high street and bigger city site.Points of intervention can easily be updated by simply relocating the relevant pin.  Each mapped industry or feature has been screen printed onto acrylic slides which are stored in the base of the model and slotted in above the engraved map and below the grid. This model will continue to change and inform as this project is refined and understood, partly due to the creation of the model itself.