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Look In, Look Up, Look Out
Look In, Look Up, Look Out
Even creative activity calls for an unfocused and undifferentiated subconscious mode of vision, which is fused with integrating tactile experience. The object of a creative act is not only enfolded by the eye and the touch, it has to be introjected, identified with one's own body and existential experience. In deep thought, focused vision is blocked; thoughts travel with an absent-minded gaze.
Juhani Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin
Iliana Mitova Interior Design BA(Hons) THE CASS Faculty of Art, Architecture and Design
iliana.mitova@me.com http://www.linkedin.com/in/iliana
Concept brief
The Regents Canal function, as a fast infrastructure to enable business and building projects, linking the East to the West, has long been superseded by train, roads and bridges. The canal barges are no longer needed. Thus the boating lifestyle has declined for the last couple of decades. It is only within the last 2 decades that the canal has been thought of as desirable place to live, reside or visit. The regeneration project of Kings Cross has seen the Regents Canal transform its derelict and rundown properties, to an area of diverse communities enjoying the wealth of opportunities it offers, either living on the water or land. Attracted by the nomadic lifestyle of the boating community is on the increase, regardless the inconvenience of not having the usual commodities of a house on ground. However boaters and local residents around Regents Canal still share two different worlds in a common urban area. The project will aim to provide a space where local communities can share a common space that is pertinent to all.
al
Matt 50100 % Closed
Technical
Fire resistance UV Resistance Weather resistance Strong Good Good
ness
ucence
ure
Kinetic lamellas
ess
erature
resistance Good 3Smooth mm GFRP -Scratch Glass Fiber Reinforced Weight Hard Polymer, supported at theModerate top and the Chemical resistance Good Medium bottom edge of the faade Poor None Renewable No
ics
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Floating base
Materials
Rooftop 80mm Green Roof 200mm Centrosolar Solar Panel Glass 18mm Marine Ply
Glass Walls 5mm Toughened Glass 18mm Marine Ply Stripe Frame
Reclaimed wood flooring 22 mm recycled timber tongue and groove flooring highly conductive aluminium sheet, cross-linked polyethylene tubing 36mm plywood, rebated with tubing cavities 200mm compression resistant rigid goam thermal insulation 18 mm Marine Ply
Orthographic Drawings
Long Elevation
Short elevation
Coordinated Community
The introduction of digital technologies has seen a sharp decline in the use of local libraries. This shift has seen councils closing much loved spaces, where the community not only borrowed books, but met, interacted and communicated with a diverse body of the community. The proposal is to create a mobile floating folding structure, which will host a library and meeting space for the communities around the canal, for both, boaters and local residents. The aim is to encourage the community to share a common space, where they can not only find interesting books, but also socialize and attend literary/cultural discussions, as well as being able to share a different point of view over the canal. The concept is a hub for social literation and inspiration, as well as a spot for meeting two different worlds that share a common space.
UP IN
OUT
design process
Reading and Observation area Multimedia area Lobby and Social area
Kinetic flaps
Regents Canal
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Structure Grid
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Kinetic flaps
IN
BL OW ING
Model making
Process
The shape and functionality of the structure was developed trough the media of model making and experimenting with light and shadows.
SKETCH MODELS
Final Model
Interior Sketches
Ephemeral Interior
The interior of the library is made of modular furniture flexible to be moved and re-organised differently depending on the use of the space. Folding paper partitions divide the space onto different rooms for reading, multimedia and observation deck. There is also a stair that folds into the wall, when not in use, to go to the rooftop garden on the upper deck. The bookshelfs are made of easy to assemble and disasemble rectangular modules to ease the moving of the books from the British library to the floating one and back.
Interior Render
Paper dividers are used to separate the library into smaller spaces
Description
The Floating Library is a structure of 4 x 18m (72 m2), which works within the confines of the canals locks and bridges. The journey to the structure will aim to attract the viewer by revealing new possibilities from day to night, through kinetic mechanisms. Once at the threshold of the structure the vista provided through emotionally charges drawing the individual in to the space. As they walk through they look up through a skylight that adds a new perspective. The space will be divided into 3 main spaces, Connect, Contain and Commune. The first space allows for creative connections with books, technologies and community, while the Contain area, is for quiet contemplation, research and individual activities. The final area Commune is an observation deck for a wild life platform that is connected to the structure. The Space supported by the British Library will contain a set of modular units that will refresh, restock and change offer wide ranging themes, depending on use or events. Targeting educational events can meander its way up and down the canal, encouraging the community rise up and engage.