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christina b. hackett
bachelor of architecture\\2012

advisor karen lange\\college of

architecture & environmental
design\\california polytechnic
state university, san luis
obispo

CONTENTS
018

thesis

040

research

123

studies

142

design

PROLOGUE
Who hears me, who understands me, becomes
mine, a possession for all time.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

[the day the sun smiled]

In Springvillea town where the people are
protected and caressed among Natures
great walls, the Sierra Nevadaexists a world
that I share with my friends, the famous
Transcendentalists of the nineteenth century:
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Emily Dickinson,
Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Henry David
Thoreau. Every evening throughout autumn,
I leave the cold, trifling world behinda life
where I am socially inept because of my lack
of commonalities with the public worldto
my world--where I am among many who
are like me. Here no longer am I in a town
located in the San Joaquin Valley surrounded
by people who feel humans cannot achieve
or conquer the trials and tribulations of life
without the Christian Godfor humans are
merely helpless sinners. In my world, my
friends care not about which is the right
godonly that I find god through the leaves
of the Sycamore trees and love through the
fragrance of the mystic lavender lupines. In
my world, I am no longer shunned by religious
conservatives, but I am one of the many
who question Who is god? The many who
search for god in Nature; the many who find
love through Nature.
One afternoon, as I sit outside reading my
book Emerson Essays and Lectures, I feel
a beam of sun caressing my cheek with
warmth. Looking up into the sky, I see the sun

smiling upon Black Mountain. It is a moment

of awakeningmy call from natureto walk
down the street and meet my friends. As I am
about to begin my afternoon journey, I stare
down the straight road. Off in the distance I
can see the small, brown, nondenominational
church; quickly, I reminisce about my naive
youth. I revisit my seventh grade year, when
every Tuesday I had to leave my home and
attend Catechism classes in order to receive
my First Communion. I think of all the lessons
I took, how everything was straightforward
every Sunday I must attend Mass to listen to
the Priest tell me how to go about life and
live by the word of the Lord; I must go to
Confessions regularly to share my sins with
a man God has chosen to communicate with
his children, and I must live by the rules
of the Church in order to go to heaven and
see the light of God in death. I then turn my
head to the left, and I see the slow curving
road that passes by my neighbors beautiful
green pasture, leading me to a mysterious
bench near the end of the road. I think of the
mystery that lies in that path, and realize tis
left I shall go.
I look into the beautiful blue sky, knowing
that too many tears are cried in life and not
enough smiles go around. I stare in awe at
the enigmatic sky and smile, appreciating
all the secrets Nature has kept to herself.

011

Stopping momentarily, I hear nothing but

the steady murmur of a small stream, which
is cloaked by the dense blackberry bushes.
Here, on the country road, the stress from
the trifling world may be left behind, allowing
me to confide within, leaving me with my
thoughts; thoughts not bemused with the
homework at school, not bemused with the
war in Iraq, nor bemused with the hurricanes
in the southeast. Instead, I contemplate
esoteric Nature, wondering if there really is
an almighty being up in the mystical heavens,
watching our every move and step, or if She
in every leaf, every petal, every cell, able to
interact with our daily lives, causing life to
happen for a reason: serendipity. It is this
time, while walking Springvilles country
roads, when tranquility engulfs me and I can
realize how beautiful life can be.
I have grown a new identity, another life,
another worlda world away from the
conservative publicwhere I have grown
to know every oak tree, every wild rose,
popcorn flower and lupine, every deer and
fawn, every raccoon during the night: all the
treasures Nature benevolently shares with
us. I walk down this peaceful road, exploring
what we have been given, what we can never
replicate, nor ever own. I continue walking
to my destination: a small oak bench, which
seems to have been there for an eternity
like Longfellows Old Clock on the Stair
watching nature act as a mutable cloud,

engulfed by the ever changing maple trees,

evening primrose, and wild roses. As I walk
along, I pass a pastureabundant with fresh,
sweet green grassand glimpse a flock
of turkeys where the males spread their
ravishing tail feathers, gobbling, and trying
to attract the females. As I admire their
beauty, the mother turkeys and their little
babies take their time to cross the fieldtime
not concerned with being to work at 8:20 in
the morning or concerned with being at an
appointment at 4:00 in the afternoon but
a time that is limitless to get to the other
side, only to fly into the caring arms of the
Eucalyptus trees.
To the left of me, I see one black-tailed deer
family that consists of a mother and two
adorable fawns that still have their white
spots. This family of deer is intriguing to
the eye, for while the mother and one fawn
begin to graze, the other slowly follows while
looking at the grass that surrounds him, the
sun above him somewhere in the divine sky,
and the mountain misery and farewell-tospring flora all that Nature has given him:
food, time, and beauty. With this simple
beauty, I find reasons to smile and topics that
I may discuss with my dear friends sitting on
the benchmy destination.
Finally, I make my way past the pasture
where the wild turkeys echo in the wind, up
the small-sloped hill where the mockingbirds

dance and flutter in the air, and past the

fence lined with climbing red roses that are
filled with love, to the bench where my four
friends sit. This journey I have made to this
old weathered bench is like my journey to
my heaven; a heaven, where I become one
with Her greater presence: Nature. Here I
can live eternallybecoming a part of every
stem, leaf, petal, and wild rose. My four
friends greet me and I receive a hug from Ms.
Dickinsonwho is like I, socially inept from no
lack of commonalities shared with the public
interest. Finally, I am home in this great
big world, for at least a little while, where I
can discuss the wonders of the world, the
wonders Nature has chosen to keep hidden.
Sitting down on this bench, my friends and
I experience the slow paced country life of
Springville. As Mr. Emerson, Ms. Dickinson,
Mr. Holmes, Mr. Thoreau, and I realize, we
have the opportunity to just sit back, relax,
and watch the quail flutter by. For a moment
we sit back, appreciating the serenity of
nothing but the ruffling leaves of the maple
trees, which are caressed with love by the
wind.
Sitting on the bench with these four erudite
philosophers, I realize the importance of life:
how we should explore nature, finding what
god is to us, not just what the priest, pastor,
or parent says god is.
After a relaxing moment in silence, Ms.

Dickinson and I become effervescent with

discussion. So how are you dear? she
curiously asks.
I slowly declare, I guess Ive been OK.
You guess youve been OK, she quickly
remarks. By OK, what do
you imply? Through OK are you frankly
saying life is simply dear? Through OK
are you implying that you fit in not with
societys commonalities? Or Through OK
are you implying life has been not swell?
Ok, I effortlessly say, as in I feel displaced.
Upon her face, I see her concerned hazel eyes
slowly replaced with a smile of knowledge
and love. Im nobody. Who are you?/ Are
you nobody too?/ Then thats a pair of us/
Dont tell, she slowly adds and then playfully
whispers in my ear, theyd banish us you
know. Then with a sigh of loneliness, a sigh
that signals the desolate life she chooses to
live, she begins to speak again: How dreary
to be somebody,/ How publiclike a frog/
To tell your name the livelong June/To an
admiring bog.
At first I feel quite sadsad for my lack
of friends that might give me a feeling
of belongingbut after only the first few
minutes of talking with my ghostly friends,
did I feel right at home.

013

While deep in thought, Ms. Dickinson begins

to give me more words of wisdom: The
soul selects her own society,/Then shuts
the door./To her divine majority/Present no
more.

is my letter to the world/That never wrote to

me,/The simple news that nature told/With
tender majesty./Her message is committed/
To hands I cannot see./For love of her, sweet
country men/Judge tenderly of me.

This is exactly what I have done, I slowly

begin to say. I have explored the philosophies
of religion and chosen Transcendentalism.
With my decision, I have become one of the
only Transcendentalists in my town. With my
decision, I have closed the door; no longer am
I present in the majority. No longer do I fit in
with my once dear friends who go to church
every Sunday morning, living an austere life
by the word of the Lord. I have closed the
door between my friends who believe that
females and males are not equal, for I am
quite a feminist.

Seeing the puzzled look she cajoled upon my

face, she simply adds, Once you find love
in your surrounding environment, you will
no longer feel alone, for once you find love
in nature, you will see me in the sun smiling
back at you with warmth, in the sweet wind
that caresses you, and in the flowers showing
off their simple beauty.

Do not worry, Dear, she says. There

are many who are like you. I, for one am
exactly like you. At the age of twenty-three
I withdrew myself from social contact, for I
was dreadful of the outside worlda world I
could not understanda world that was quite
religious and expected all to attend church
weekly. I, of course did not adhere with
societys expectations. Instead of going to
church, I stayed at home and wrote my poetry
in secret. I stared outside at the beautiful
rollong, green hills with the pines, or I talked
with our friends sitting at the bench right now.
After thinking of lifes purpose, I decided This

Awww..., Mr. Emerson slowly chimes in: The

earth laughs in flowers. He sagely begins a
new topic, You know Christina, The simple
perception of natural forms is a delight. The
influence of the forms and actions in Nature,
is so needful to man, that, in its lowest
functions, it seems to lie on the confines of
commodity and beauty.
What do you mean? I curiously ask.
Well, Mr. Emerson begins, to the body and
mind which have been cramped by noxious
work or company, Nature is the medicinal
and restores their tone. The tradesman, the
attorney comes out of the din and craft of
the street, and sees the sky and the woods,
and is a man again. In their eternal calm,
he finds himself again. The health of the

015

eyes seem to demand a horizon. As the

tradesman and the attorney come out to
enjoy and be replenished by nature, students
need to as well. What I mean is, I am so glad
to see you, dear, to take time out of the day
to come and enjoy what nature has given us
and benevolently sharedwhat we can truly
never own and never be able to emulate.
Mr. Emerson, sir, I say. As though I would
miss my time with you, Ms. Dickinson, Mr.
Thoreau, and Mr. Holmes. This is the time
of the day I most anticipateit is my escape
from the harsh realities of life. For a moment
I pause, lost in thought.
Suddenly, my teenage spirit bursts out Guess
what dears! Next year I plan on taking an art
history class and it appears to be appealing
to the senses.
An art history class you say? Emerson
asked. Do you know where art was derived
from? The creation of beauty is Art. The
production of art throws a light upon the
mystery of humanity. A work of art is an
abstract or epitome of the world. It is
the result or expression of Nature, in the
miniature. Nature is a sea of forms radically
alike and even unique. A leaf, a sunbeam, a
landscape, the ocean, makes an analogous
impression on the mind. What is common to
them all,that perfectness and harmony, is
beauty.

In awe, I stare at this collegiate man sitting

next to me. Speechless, I sit.
Before Mr. Emerson can continue talking, Mr.
Thoreau quickly bursts out, Even though it
is a little late in discussion, Do not trouble
yourself much to get new things, whether
clothes or friends... Sell your clothes and
keep your thoughts. Christina, my dear, I
would have loved to have said this earlier,
you see, but Ralph, I am afraid, ranted on
before I could even talk.
Heavens Mr. Thoreau! What do you wish
me to become? I inquire fervently. Already
do I have trouble finding friends, and here
you wish for me to stay in my secluded
imagination and live a renounced life away
from people, just so I can keep my thoughts.
Well, my dear. It is you who was discussing
with Emily how you have no friends in which
you share common philosophies or beliefs.
You, like we do, feel that Heaven is under
our feet as well as over our heads. For
heaven is also in the soil that makes up our
beloved Nature, while the many Unitarians in
our society feel that below our feet, lies the
devil and his fellow sinners, remarked Henry.
After this assertion from Thoreau, we all just
seemed to sit and listen to the wind that
whistled through the branches of the maple
trees above our heads.

You know, Oliver, I found The Dante Club

quite a fascinating mystery novel. And might I
add, you had quite a good part in it. However,
I did find your statement so cryptichow you
and Longfellow feel that ones Beatrice is
a lady whom you come across while young
and learn to love and gain inspiration from,
but do not marry. Even James Russell Lowell
agreed, that no one marries his Beatrice. Is it
just because Dante could not have the hand
of his beloved Beatrice Portinari? I feel quite
differently, of course. I must say that I do not
agree.
Well, Oliver begins, to each his own.
There is no law stating a man cannot marry
his Beatrice. Just remember Christina, dont
flatter yourself that friendship authorizes you
to say disagreeable things to your intimates.
The nearer you come into relation with a
person, the more necessary do tact and
courtesy become. All I do know, from my past
experience in the mortal life that love is the
master key that opens the gates of happiness
and love prefers twilight to daylight.
As I think over what Oliver just said to me, I
then respond to him with gratitude.
My, it is getting quite late and close to the
time I will be having tea with my Dear John
Keats, said Emily. I am sorry, my Dear
Christina, but it is time that
I depart.

Ah yes, it is getting quite late Christina. It is

best that you go home now before it gets too
dark, they all seemed to say.
Saddened at these words of departure, I
slowly mutter, I guess you are right. Goodbye
my dear friends, until tomorrow.
After our long discussion, one-by-one, my
friends stand up to say goodbye and turn to
walk away, only to be picked up by the cool
breeze, disappearing somewhere among the
clouds. I am left alone sitting on the little
country bench, when a cool breeze comes
my way, kissing my lips with candor. This kiss
is a gift from HerNaturea reminder that
even though my friends have left my side,
they are still indeed with me: engulfing me
with every breeze that comes my way, every
smile I receive from a passing deer, every
sunray that tingles my senses as it soothes
my cheek with warmth. I then smile: a smile
from the realization that I do not have to
wait another long twenty-four hours to meet
up with my friends at the bench of time and
share another conversation with my eternal
friends.
As I get ready to depart my benchmy
worldI glance at it one more time and think
it has replenished my soul with a sense of
who I am and the meaning of god. Comforted
and eased, I make my journey back to my
home, where I once again return to the reality
of our arduous life. Walking to my home, I
think about all that I have learned that day.
Pondering, I realize what Ms. Dickinson was
saying as I feel the warmth of the sun smiling
on my back. No longer am I alone

017

THESIS
We do not yet possess ourselves, and we
know at the same time that we are much
more.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

019

inte
rcon
nect
ivity

[abstract]
architecture as a tool to facilitate
interconnectivity among users, the natural and
built environments
The act of having relationships and forming
bonds between one another, between one
and nature, between one and architecture
defines interconnectivity. This connection
creates not only a mutual understanding but
also consoles the feeling of belonging and
placethe feeling of purpose in an elaborate

web of society, technology and nature.

Today, we are struggling to establish
equilibrium in our technologically advancing
communities with the preservation of our
natural resources. Our architecture is no
exception in this struggle, for our buildings are

responsible for at least 50% of CO2 emissions

generated.1 As Michael McDonough said,
Every building has connections to the sky,
ground and community, but these could be
appreciated and utilized much better.2
Architecture throughout the United States
is essentially static everywhere, for the most
interaction users will typically have consist
of opening a door or closing a window.
Buildings have become permanent entities
to accommodate the settled existence
the majority of the population has grown
accustomed to. The fixed architecture of
today far from represents the ever-changing
lifestyles of its occupants and the changing
needs of a digital society.
Unfortunately, our buildings today negatively
impact the environment. High rises and
corporate buildings from city to city, even
country to country, look the same: large
glass boxes that allow extensive views and
an abundance of daylight to penetrate into
the interior spaces; large glass boxes that are
extensively heated and cooled by electricity.3
The nonexistent interconnectivity between
architecture and its users jointly affects the
interconnectivity between architecture and
the environment, and the environment and

1 & 3 Lechner, Norbert. Heating, Cooling, Lighting:

Design Methods for Architects. New York, NY [u.a.:
Wiley, 2001. Print.
2. Mau, Bruce, and Jennifer Leonard. Massive Change.
London: Phaidon, 2004. Print.

people. By enhancing the relationships

between the user, architecture and
environment, the result will be a structure
that redefines and strengthens our
connection with the natural and built
environments.
Architecture should have the ability to
adapt to new living conditions rather
than stagnate users, it should be able to
transform rather than restrict users, and
most importantly, architecture should
have the ability to interact rather than
restriscts users.4 As Nitschke said, Place is
the product of lived space and lived time.
In other words, buildings should have a
significant degree of adaptability, flexibility,
and have the capacity to change with and
for the users.
These connections will be used to influence
a design that helps educate its users
and residents of the community about
sustainable living. Not only will the design
act as an educational device for society,
but it will also be a responsive tool that has
the ability to adapt to human needs and
change throughout the seasons of the year,
for architecture should have the possibility
of being developed and redeveloped as
efficiently as possible.5

4 & 5: Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That

Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

021

URBAN VOIDS PHILADELPHIA: Project by Ecosistemo Urbano in Madrid.

The design firm created a project that makes Philadelphia greener while also giving residents new ways of getting
together by redefining urban life. The goal for the project was to create ecological corridors that make people travel
and move in new ways, seeing the city in different ways and also bringing people together.6 The project also focuses
on turning the negative social development around in slum areas of the city, which is what Detroit needs. Ecosistema
Urbanos vision for the city is to create a more cohesive whole, by enticing people to become involved in the project
that will in the end improve not only the environment but also the social life of the residents.

023

6. Holm, Michael Juul., and Kjeld Kjeldsen. Green Architecture for the
Future. [Humlebk]: Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2009. Print.

[issue]

architecture should adapt rather than

stagnate, transform rather than restrict,
and interacts rather than inhabits

Today architecture is stagnating and it

typically inhibits users from living their lives
that are constantly changing. It is important
for designers to break away from the typical
architecture that has become the norm,
architecture that is made of large spaces
that do not have the capacity for change,
architecture that is nonresponsive.
By refining the interconnectivity between the
people, architecture and the environment,
this will create a space that not only benefits
the environment, but also betters the quality
of the community as a whole.
The advancement in technology should
be integrated cohesively together with
architecture so that they work together to
create a more comfortable indoor space
by working with the climate of the site
rather than just using air conditioning or
heating and electrical lighting. It is important
for architecture to be designed so that
the building responds to the client and

occupants, but also so that it responds to

its site and the climate7. Kinetic architecture,
architecture that that physically transforms to
accommodate different functions and uses, is
a strong solution for an architecture that has
the ability adapt rather than stagnate.
Kinetic architecture will recreate the
relationship between not only users and
architecture, but also architecture and the
environment. One example is the Starlight
Theater in Rockford, Illinois designed by
Studio Gang. The program called for a
transformable architecture that allows
occupants to enjoy an open-air theater
that has the ability for shows to proceed
regardless of the weather8. During nice
weather, users have the advantage of listening
to concerts with an open roof, enjoying the
beauty of the sky and nature while listening
to music that stimulates their mind and
soul. In the Starlight Theater, users have the
opportunity to engage with the structure and
also the environment. The advancement in

technology has also started a new science

that investigates and creates smart materials
and their applications in architecture.
Smart materials is another solution to
creating an architecture that strengthens
and influences the bonds between users,
structures and the environment for they
have the ability to interact and change based
on users and the environment. One example
is the development of the smartwrap by
kierantimberlake, which is an innovative
use of material. The building skin that
kierantimberlake and DuPont developed
can be customized from project to project
allowing for user customization. The
smartwrap also allows for interconnectivity
between the environment and the building
for this skin provides protection external
weather through the use of a phase change
material.
Smart buildings benefits are also an
important aspect to having interconnectivity
between users and the building for it allows

7&8: Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That

Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

for a people centered design through an

architecture that is responsive. However
Adam Somlai-Fischer/Aether Architecture
have reinvented the idea of the smart
home where the design of the house and
the system are truly user centered. Typical
smart homes are not truly smart because
they are simply pre wired systems that are
based on decisions made by the designers
of the systems. Adam Somlai-Fischer/Aether
Architecture feel that instead the system
should have the ability to be changed and
designed by the users so that it is adaptable
structurally over time, allowing the home to
be endlessly over time as occupants change
their minds.
Through kinetic, flexible and smart
architecture, interconnectivity among users
and architecture and the environment will
not only be redeveloped, but also refined.
It has the opportunity to educate users on a
sustainable and interactive architecture that
responds to both the decisions of users and
the changes of the seasons.

025

[kinetic architecture]
Individuals need buildings that are
responsive to their needs; therefore
buildings for any purpose would better
suit us of they had a sginifcant degree
of adaptability, flexibility and capacity
for change.
Architecture should adapt rather than
stagnate and architecture should transform
rather than restrict. Kinetic architecture has
that ability to both adapt to users needs
and transform, creating new and desirable
spaces. Used in conjunction with technology,
kinetic architecture will improve current
sustainable strategies that increase the
resource of efficiency of the operation of
buildings.9 It is also a powerful solution to
create interconnectivity between not only
users and architecture, but also architecture
and the environment.
The average lifespan of buildings in America
is just shy of 50 years10. The amount of
embodied energy in modern day office
buildings is roughly the same as the amount
of energy the building will consume in fifteen
years11. To conserve energy that is put into
building structures, existing buildings should

be reused. Kinetic architecture has the

opportunity to rethink the idea of building
permanence, while also creating a greener
solution to built structures since it has the
ability to readily adapt to users needs and
adapt to the ever-changing weather of the
seasons of the year.
Kinetic architecture is an adaptable
architecture, with the ability to create flexible
spaces that respond to the requirements of
varying user activity ranging from habitation,
leisure, education, medicine, commerce
and industry. As Robert Kronenburg
states, buildings using fewer resources and
buildings that adapt efficiently to complex
site and programmatic requirements are
extremely relevant to an industry that is
increasingly growing aware of environmental
responsibilities12.

structures also exist within the larger

structure as a whole, but act independently
with respect to control the larger context.
Conversely, deployable kinetic structures
exist in a temporary location with the ability
to be transportable, and therefore having the
ability to be constructed and deconstructed.
With a society that is becoming more
dependent on the quickly evolving
technology for interactive communication
via multimedia environments, typical
building use is becoming irregular due to
a new emerging way of living. Embedded
intelligence in kinetic systems will present
practical architectural solutions that coincide
with the development of technology. The use
of an adaptive control system used within a
building allows for automation by a system
that has the ability to observe not only user
needs, but also the changing environmental
conditions. These systems have the ability to
operate and adjust to the lowest acceptable
energy savings, benefitting the environment.

Kinetic systems are classified into three

categories: embedded, deployable, and
dynamic kinetic structures. Embedded
kinetic structures exist within a larger
architectural whole and have a primary
function of controlling the larger system
within the structure, responding to changing
factors. Like embedded, dynamic kinetic

9: Michael A Fox. Sustainable Applications of Intelligent

KineticSystems.
10: Gellner, Arrol. The Ultimate in green Construction
| Inman News. Real Estate News for Realtors and
Brokers | Inman News. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.
inman.com/buyers-sellers/columnists/arrolgellner/theultimate-in-green-construction>.

A strong example on the benefits of kinetic

architecture with embedded intelligent
systems that respond to climate and users
is the conceptual design called Kinetower
by Kinetura, a multidisciplinary practice that
focuses on bringing flexibility to life. Their
design for the conceptual skyscraper is a
metamorphic building that has the ability to
adapt and respond to its environment based

11. Lechner, Norbert. Heating, Cooling, Lighting: Design

Methods for Architects. New York, NY [u.a.: Wiley, 2001.
Print.
12. Kronenburg, R.: 1996, Portable Architecture,
Architectural Press, Oxford

027

of the amount of light and sun that is wanted

or needed in the building. The skyscraper has
flexible exterior windows that respond to the
sunlight throughout the days of the year.
The architects of the project, Barbara van
Biervliet and Xaveer Clearhout explained
in an interview that the current static
architecture that is being designed today
no longer has the ability to compete with

the quick advancement in communication

and transportation.13 Using the philosophy
of form follows function to guide much of
their design work, their aesthetic design
for the external cladding proves to also be
functional, as it has the ability to breath
in and out depending on the availability of
sunlight.
This kinetic reaction creates interconnectivity

029

with not only the building and the environment,

but also amongst the building and the users
and the users and the environment, for it
creates this understanding for users of how
the weather affects their living environment.
This interconnectivity creates a strong
connection to the sky, ground and community
that has the ability to be greatly appreciated
and utilized in a much more efficient way
than typical static buildings that do not have
the ability to react to the changes of nature
and the changes of occupants daily lives.

The use of kinetic architecture can also

strengthen the functions of interior spaces
by becoming more adaptable to the needs
of users. An example of flexible spaces that
are interactive with the occupants is Shigeru
Bans Naked House in Japan. The client
specifically asked Ban for home that provides
the least privacy so that the family members
are not secluded from one another, a house
that gives everyone the freedom to have
individual activities in a shared atmosphere,
in the middle of a unified family.14

13. Laylin, Tafline. Cutting Edge Kinetower Is Literally

Mind-Bending | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the
World. Inhabitat | Design For a Better World! Web. 09
Dec. 2011. <http://inhabitat.com/morphing-kinetowerskyscraper-is-a-mind-and-literal-bender/>.
14. Poucke, Van. Naked House by Shigeru Ban
KineticArchitecture.Net.
KineticArchitecture.Net.

Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://blog.kineticarchitecture.

net/2011/01/nakedhouse/>.

To fulfill the clients needs, Ban designed a

simple, rectangular shed like structure made
out of timber framing. Service rooms that
allow for cooking, a bathroom and storage on
one side board the main internal space and
the other wall consists of translucent and
opaque cladding. Within the interior space
are mobile rooms that can be rolled to any
location within the home, allowing the rooms
to be grouped together or to stay as separate
individual spaces.15 The rooms have the ability
to be occupied inside, or they can be used to
create a mezzanine space within the home.
Through this application of kinetic interiors,
valuable efficiency is added to the buildings
functionality, enabling the space to be more
productive since it now has the ability to
be used for many different purposes or
activities, while also being used by different
groups of people at the same time. The use
of kinetic architecture also has the ability to
create a unique connection with the external
environment since it can open up spaces
to the outside. Through the use of kinetic
architecture, users involvement with the
building then becomes an interaction rather
than merely just a reaction to the structure,
creating connectivity with the building that
did not exist before.
Another successful application of kinetics to
strengthen the relation between the building,

15. Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That

Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

031

is an incredible increase in flexibility with

the look and behavior of the home for the
residents.
The sliding faade has the capability of
altering the lighting and mood of the interior
spaces, which can be altered by the simple
movement of the exterior walls and roof.
This also allows for the ability of the users to
manipulate the heating and cooling loads of
the home throughout the year.16
Arranged in a cluster of three buildings along
a longitudinal axis, there is a garage located
off to the side perpendicular to the home
and a small patio is located in the front. The
material choices of dRMM for the home
consist of glass and red rubber, which work
in unison with the timber exterior cladding of
the walls and roof, allowing for the home to
blend in with the rural countryside setting of
the home. Sitting on a concrete bed allows
for the mechanism that moves the second
faade to be hidden.

users and environment is the Sliding House

by dRMM in England. Designed minimally,
the architect designed it by just using the
archetype as a moveable cover. The houses
exterior walls and roof act as a second skin
that can slide across a longitudinal axis,
revealing the second faade from within.
Through the use of a mobile exterior, there

The mobile roof/wall structure allows for

a combination of enclosure, open-air living
and framing of views depending on the
position of the outer membrane. The use
of kinetic architecture is used to alter the
overall building composition and character
depending on the season of the year, the
change in weather, or simply for the desire of
delight to alter the spaces of the home.

When using kinetic systems, an assessment

of embodied energy should be considered.
While the initial costs of fabrication and
installation can be higher for kinetic systems,
the long-term benefits are great since they
aid in creating a more efficient and affordable
solution that has a longer lifespan.
Kinetic architecture is interactive with users
and the environment for it can respond and
adapt to the climate, changing so that the

16. Chapa, Jorge. The Sliding House by DRMM |

Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World. Inhabitat
| Design For a Better World! Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://
inhabitat.com/residence-sliding-house-drmm/>.

interior environment can take advantage of

natural ventilation and day lighting, which
minimizes electricity used and minimizes
costs.
With the ability to adapt and transform,
kinetic architecture is a viable sustainable
and interactive solution that can create
interconnectivity among users, architecture,
and the environment.

033

[smart materials]
At first sight, surfacesare boundaries,
apparently enclosing the substance of
things.
-Thorsten Klooster

035

A recent innovation in the application of

materials and architecture is also proving
as a viable solution for a more interactive
architecture. The use of new material can
strengthen the relationship between the
building and the environment, allowing the
building cladding to change in response
to the sun and weather. A changing faade
that responds to nature also creates
interconnectivity amongst the user and
building and the environment, for occupants
are a part and can witness the metamorphic
phenomenon.
Smart materials allows for a modular
framework for integrated and interactive
buildings that has the ability to create smart
surfaces that are self organizing networks of
cells. Each cell that makes up the material
incorporates networked communications
allowing for the individual cells to change
based on sensing and actuation, allowing for
the material to change from being translucent
to transparent depending on the weather

17: Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That

Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

and day lighting available.

LiTraCon is a material that enables solid
walls to be transparent enough for occupants
to detect what is on the other side. The
innovative material is made from concrete and
glass fibers that are .003 across which causes
the concrete to be transparent. Nanogel
is another material that is becoming more
widely used for its transparent properties.
Because it encloses oxygen atoms in tiny
spheres of bonded silicon, making up just 5%
of the total mass, it is an extremely insulative
and hydrophobic material.17 Nanogels
properties makes it a very useful material
that can be used to reduce the amount of
thermal transmission in faade systems that
require high performance and transparency.
The most innovative material, however, is
SmartWrap by Kieran Timberlake Associates,
which is a 1millimeter thick composite building
skin that responds to the weather and sun.
With the ability to be customized from project

To create a material that has the ability to

change and moderate climate control, Phase
Change Materials, also known as PCMs,
are implemented into the film through
microcapsules that are embedded in the
polyester resin and then extruded into a film
through a die. PCMs are used to allow for a
change in material depending on temperature
of the physical environment- when the
substance reaches a certain temperature;
the material goes through a phase change
between the different states of gas, liquid or
solid.

to project and to replace conventional built

up construction, SmartWrap has the ability
to perform in a range of interactive ways
the ability to create interconnectivity
between the building and environment and
the building an the users.
Kieran Timberlake and Associates worked
with DuPont to create the polyester film
that can provide protection from the harsh
changing exterior weather conditions. The
material also has the ability to react and
change based on climate control, power
supply, lighting and information display.

PCMs allow for energy to be created, for

example, the change of state from liquid to
solid results in the release of heat. When
a substance changes from solid to liquid,
there is absorption of heat. When applied
architectural, the SmartWrap material has
the ability to absorb climatic heat when the
weather is really hot during the day, and
release heat as the temperature drops during
night.
SmartWrap also implements the use of
OLEDs for lighting and information display.
Consisting of organic molecules that emit
light caused by an electric current applied
to the material. Used for the lower energy
use and better resolution, OLEDs can be
deposited into the polymer substrate making
it easy to use.
While the technology behind SmartWrap has

been proven, it is currently still undergoing

its transition into full manufacturing. The
potential of the material as exterior cladding
will allow for a direct connection to the
changing seasons, as it can create a more
comfortable living environment while also
being a more sustainable choice.
The aim of recent developing technologies
in innovative materials is to create and
more efficient and sustainable architecture,
while also making the users relationship
with their built environment more engaging
and responsive, therefore making it more
comfortable and suitable to users needs
and desires. The importance of a responsive
environment is that it creates a connection,
encourages human engagement, which
allows for an understanding of control within
the building systems.

037

039

RESEARCH

To the body and mind which have been cramped by noxious

work or company, Nature is the medicinal and restores
their tone.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

041

[site history]
I dont divide architecture, landscape
and gardening; to me they are one.
-Luis Barragan

043

An Unnatural History
One of the United States major genuine
contributions on the principles of democracy
to the world is the creation of the public park.
Before the eighteenth century, land that was
owned and used by the public was entirely
unheard of, for parks were traditionally only
for people of nobility and wealth.18 This all
changed in the early 1900s when Teddy
Roosevelt realized the need to conserve
the abundance of Americas beauty and
natural resources for future Americans to
enjoy when he signed legislation to establish
national parks across the US through use of
the Antiquities Act.19
The first few parks in America to change the
idea of open land being only for the wealthy
were Yellowstone, Yosemite, Sequoia,
General Grant and Carter Lake. All five of
these parks shared a combination of beauty

18. Rothman, Hal. The Park That Makes Its Own

Weather. (2002). Print.
19. National Park Service History: Theodore Roosevelt
and the National Park System. U.S. National Park
Service - Experience Your America. Web. 09 Dec. 2011.
<http://www.nps.gov/history/history/hisnps/npshistory/
teddy.htm>.

and inaccessibility for commercial economic

purposes and Roosevelt wanted to ensure
that their pristine beauty and openness
was available for all Americans. This crucial
feature of the government giving land to the
whole public was an example of reinventing
and establishing relationships between the
government and its people.
While the idea of the national park was
an amazing act of democracy for the
citizens of the United State, the parks sadly
functioned more as symbols rather that as
participatory realty since they were out in
the wilderness of America, miles away from
the city. When the national parks were first
established, the select few who were able
to visit the treasures of America were only
the people who had the resources to travel
and education to regard nature as a cultural

045

heritage.20 Sadly, visitors did not include the

citizens who would benefit most from the
public act of patrimony for they lacked both
the resources and inclination at that time.
When America was first settled, it was a new
and open world with an abundance of open,
free land that had yet to be used. This was
very different from Europe, which had been
settled for thousands of years. All open
and free space that would have once been
available has been built upon for housing
and business and education. The creation of
parks came out of this realization and desire
to cherish and keep the pristine natural world
away from the smoke and thunder of the new
modern day society that would soon spread
across America.
This act of conservatism in America began
around the start of the 19-century, and the bay
area had many notables among the founders
and early leaders. The protection of public
land became a powerful symbol of American
intellectual and cultural transformation with
the preservation of land to be used freely
by all. San Francisco became a hotbed for
conservative sentiment and the Golden
Gate Park is no exception. Today, the Golden
Gate Park is an infamous icon and keystone
of San Franciscos devotion to being socially
equitable when it comes to public parks.

047

The 1860s Gold Rush, discovery of Comstock

Lode and completion of the transcontinental
railroad brought a flood of people to San
Francisco transforming it from a minor
port town into its current day metropolis.
While the newly Californians were proud
of their isolation in the Far West, they
were also aware of their difference from
the established, cultured East Coast.21
San Franciscans realized that they were
missing the landmarks that established a
sense of wealth, education and greatness
local museums, wide tree lined boulevards,
monumental civic buildings and also a

20. Rothman, Hal. The Park That Makes Its Own

Weather. (2002). Print.
21. Pollock, Christopher. Golden Gate Park.
Encyclopedia of San Francisco. Web. 09 Dec. 2011.
<http://www.sfhistoryencyclopedia.com/articles/g/
goldenGate-park.html>.

grandiose public park.

With the sudden increase in population in San
Francisco due to the blossoming of business
that created an abundance of jobs, the
bustling city sought for a balance between
the urban and natural worlds, which were
quickly becoming one a densely populated
and crowded, fast paced city. The rapid
growth of the population went from 1,000
in 1848 to over 149,4000 by 1870, leaving the
city busy making room for the new occupants
and little time to spare for the planning of
parks. An early chronicler Frank Soule urged

in his 1854 Annals of San Francisco, There

seems no provision for a public park-the true
lungs of a large city. After Soule had scolded
that every parcel of land had been slated for
building lots, San Francisco slowly worked on
regaining land for public use.

the peninsula. Once the land for the park was

finally acclaimed in 1868, Mayor McCoppin
ordered for a survey to be taken for potential
park sites, which then led to the 1,013 acres to
establish the Golden Gate Park with a value
of $801,593 at the time.

During the volatile growth of San Francisco,

a local financier persuaded the board of
Supervisors to hire Frederick Law Olmstead
to advise on the possibilities of a grand park
on the western side of the peninsula. Mayor
Henry Perrin Coon then contacted Olmstead
in1865 about his desire for a similar plan to
Olmsteads recently successful Central Park,
but unfortunately the two men had different
beliefs for the possibilities of the public
domain. The western part of San Franciscos
peninsula was a sandy oasis, which Olmstead
felt was not an adequate terrain for local
green park. He instead proposed a greenbelt
that would stretch across the city and
connect to other local parks, but the mayor
instead longed for his city to have their own
Central Park.

The two men who share credit for the

success and beauty of the park today are
William Hammond Hall and John McLaren.
An engineer, Hall is greatly responsible for
the parks framework and initial landscaping.
His previous job as a draftsmen for the
U.S. Corps of Engineers, where he had
surveyed the west coast, lead to his success
in transforming the sandy dunes of the park
into the rolling green forests that can be
seen today. In 1870, Hall won the contract for
designing to park. During his time working for
the park, Hall hired and trained John Hays
McLaren as assistant superintendent, who
later became superintendent in 1890.

The city of San Francisco worked hard and

ardently to acquire the land for the public
park land that was not originally within
the city limits. A legal fight with people who
occupied the area served as a long battle
until U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen
Johnson Field gave a decree to the city
giving San Francisco the entire west side of

At the beginning of the parks transformation,

of the area was covered with ocean dunes
and bleak sand. By 1875, however, much
of park became blanketed with trees and
shrubs. Four years later, over 155,000 trees
had been planted within the 1,000s of land
in the park,
During the growth of the park, a plethora of
unique attractions have been added, ranging
from the Japanese Tea Gardens, Botanical

Gardens, lawn bowling and horseshoe pits.

In 1921
Today, the legacy of Hall can still be seen
throughout the park in which he designed
roads and pathways to have curves and
bends in order to discourage horse and
buggy drivers from going too fast.22 Hall also
designed the park to ensure that visitors
would be sheltered from wind, while placing
walkways away from roads. To attract birds
and small wildlife for visitors to enjoy, Hall

planted low spots within the park with

specific shrubbery and plants. Home to
680 acres of forest, 130 acres of meadows,
15 miles of drive, 33 acres of lakes and
numerous fields and open space areas, over
15 million annual visitors enjoy the various
activities and pleasures the park has to offer.
Surprisingly, one half of these visits are by
the residents of San Francisco, showing that
the park is a public space equally enjoyed by
all ranging from tourists all over the world
amongst residents.

049

22. Early History of Golden Gate Park. Museum of the

City of San Francisco. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.
sfmuseum.org/hist2/ggpark.html>.

Some of the attractions enjoyed at Golden

Gate Park are:
Childrens Playground and Carrousel
Sharon Art Studio
Conservatory of Flowers
The Music Concourse
Lawn Bowling in the Park
National Aids Memorial Grove

De Young Museum
San Francisco Botanical Garden
Japanese Tea Garden
Stow Lake
Bison Paddock
Golden Gate Park Tennis Complex
California Academy of Sciences
Dutch Windmill and Queen Wilhelmina
Tulip Garden

Districts of San Francisco

051

San Francisco Streets and Green Spaces

San Francisco Geology Study

053

San Francisco Educational Facilities

preschool/daycare
elementary school
middle school
high school
university
miscellaneous

San Francisco Public Transportation Routes

055

Parking Facilities in San Francisco

Nice Views in San Francisco

057

Golden Gate Park in San Francisco

Kortent
Childrens Quarter
The carrousel at Golden Gate Park has
created memories for generations, young
and old, of residents and even visitors from
across the world. Located in the southeast
corner of the park, Koret Childrens quarter
opened in 1888 and is thought to have been
the nations first public playground.23 In an
era where the use of public land for all was
novel, providing a space dedicated to youth
recreation was also extremely innovative.
Located at the childrens quarter is the
Sharon Building, which was built to allow
children to play indoors during poor weather
throughout the year. Today, the structure is
now called Sharon Art Studio, which offers
art classes to children and adults.
In 2007, the playground underwent
renovation; new features at the park range
from a climbing wall and rope climbing
structures. Historical aspects of the park
were taken into consideration during the
renovations in order to preserve the concrete
slide that had originally been built at the park.
The carrousel was built in 1914 and has also
undergone renovation. Including 62 colorfully
painted animals, the inside panels have been
repainted to depict Bay Area landscapes.

23. Koret Childrens Quarter and Golden Gate Park

Carrousel - SFRPD. San Francisco Recreation and Park
Home Page. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://sfrecpark.org/
Carrousel.aspx>.

059

Conservatory of Flowers
James Lick, once the richest man in
California, originally purchased the California
the Conservatory of Flowers at Golden
Gate Park once. After his passing, a group
of businessmen in San Francisco purchased
the grandiose Victorian glass kit of parts
structure and donated it to the San Francisco
Park Commission, when it was then moved
to the Golden Gate Park. Since benevolent
donation, the conservatory has grown, along
with the variety of floral and fauna at the
conservatory.

Visiting the Conservatory of Flowers allows

people to take a breath and enjoy the change
in ambience in a calm and peaceful setting
while surrounded by exotic plants from
around the world. Today, nearly 2,000 plant
species decorate the exhibitions, invoking
thought and wonder at the irreplaceable
beauty.24
While the exhibit is not free to the public,
it does off free programs and tours to the
public and private schools of San Francisco

061

between 10:00 am and 11:15 am, making the

attraction somewhat socially equitable.
Children have the opportunity to take
pleasure of the tour to see a variety of plants
ranging from lowland and highland tropic
climates, aquatic plants and potted plants.
Today the Conservatory is the oldest building
in the park and is the oldest municipal
wooden conservatory that remains in the
United States and is on the National Register
of Historic Places.

24. Conservatory of Flowers. Golden Gate Park - San

Francisco, CA. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.goldengate-park.com/conservatory-of-flowers.html>.

Sharon Art Studio

Sharon Art Studio is a Romanesque
sandstone building designed by architects
George W. Percy and Frederick F. Hamilton
in 1888. The building originally served as a
canteen for mothers and children visiting the
childrens playground at the park. Today, the
building is home of San Franciscos largest
public community art center, where classes
in fine and applied arts can be taken.
Golden Gates Art-in-the-Park program is
associated with the art studio, which is an art
enrichment curriculum for youth at the ages
of 11-15. The studio offers free classes to teens
on a first come, first serve basis. Classes in
jewelry making, glass, ceramics, watercolor
and drawing can be taken throughout the
year.

Music Concourse
The infamous Music Concourse at Golden
Gate Park is located right between the de
Young Museum and the California Academy
of the Sciences. During the summer, the
concourse hosts free concerts Sunday
evenings and serves as a favored picnic spot
year rounds for locals and visitors. Excavated
in 1893, the oval shaped basin formed the
Grand Court for the California Midwinter
International Exposition in 1894. Later in
1900, the concourse itself was built to
accommodate audiences during concerts at
the Sprekels Temple of Music.25 Also known
as the Bandshell, the temple was donated as
a gift from Claus Spreckels.
The original layout for the site can still be
seen today. The basin was designed to
protect occupants from the summer winds,

25. SF Rec & Park Music Concourse Page. San

Francisco Recreation and Park Home Page. Web. 09
Dec. 2011. <http://sfrecpark.org/MusicConcourse.aspx>.

063

while the terraces alongside the perimeter

provide seating for up 20,000 people.
Along with the M.H. de Young Museum, the
Spreckels Temple of Music was one of the
first buildings in the concourse area.
Today, the concourses groves of severely
pruned trees, also known as pollarded,
primarily consist of London plane trees
and Wych elms. Like many other buildings
in San Francisco and around the park, The
Spreckels Temple of Music was damaged in
the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, but was
seismically restored in 1994.

065

Lawn Bowling
Unique to the Golden Gate Park is the San
Francisco Lawn Bowling Club (SFLBC) an
organization that is devoted to the health and
well being of members of all ages while also
promoting the sport of lawn bowling. The
club is the oldest public club in the country
and the bowling lawns at the park are the first
municipal lawn bowling greens in the city. The
sport is easy to learn and very competitive;
an easy game that can be enjoyed by people

of all ages and people of all levels of physical

fitness.
Making the sport socially equitable for those
in the community and even visitors, there are
free lessons each Wednesday at noon with a
club instructor. Every bowler has the ability
to progress at his or her own pace to acquire
tournament level skills or to just enjoy the
social side of the sport.

SFLBC was formed on October 7, 1901 by a

Scottish fraternal organization. At the time,
McLaren appointed a green lawn in the west
corner of the park for the bowlers to use. A
permanent green was placed at the site and
in 1912 a number of women were attracted to
the sport. McLaren had a love for the sport
as well, realizing the potential of the sport at
the park, having said, Its introduction on this
coast would be beneficial both to young and
old alike as it combines an exercise with the
pleasures of amusement.26
The recreational sport grew to the point
where one lawn was no longer sufficient, so
the Parks Commission laid down Green #2.
In 1914-15, each member in the club donated
$500 to McLaren for construction of a onestory wooden clubhouse. Again in 1928, the
number of members and bowlers exceeded
the two greens and a third had to be laid
down. Today the club has over 130 members
who enjoy playing the recreational sport at
the Golden Gate Park.

26. SF Rec & Park Golden Gate Park Lawn Bowling

Page. San Francisco Recreation and Park Home
Page. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://sfrecpark.org/GGPLawnBowling.aspx>.

067

Bison Paddock
Strangely enough, located at the Golden
Gate Park is a herd of American bison
browsing in a meadow at the western end of
the park.27 The shaggy mammals have called
the park home since 1892.
Many other animals were kept at the park
before the opening of San Franciscos first
zoo in the 1930s.The animals that could
be seen at the park ranged from elk, deer,
sheep, bison and even bears. Staff at the San
Francisco Zoo cares for the buffalo heard at
the park.
McLaren suggested that the city find a
better-suited site for the zoo, and so the zoo
was moved to become part of the nucleus of
the San Francisco Zoological Gardens. The
strong connection to the history of the zoo at
the park still remains the eucalyptus trees
grown at Golden Gate Park are what supply
the food for the koala bears food.

069

Dutch Windmill
Two windmills located in the park are what
once helped supply the water to keep the
parks lawns and gardens green and abundant.
McLaren lobbied for the windmills to be built
to help with supplying fresh groundwater to
ensure the parks successful transformation
from the sand dunes that once covered a
majority of the area.
In 1902, the first windmill was constructed,

27. The Buffalo Paddock - SFRPD. San Francisco

Recreation and Park Home Page. Web. 09 Dec. 2011.
<http://sfrecpark.org/BuffaloPaddock.aspx>.

known today as the Dutch Windmill, and the

second was built in 1906, which is known as the
Murphy Windmill. In 1913, motorized pumps
were installed in the Dutch Windmill in order
to augment the power system. Shortly after,
the Murphy Windmill was electrified. Sadly,
the two windmills are no longer functioning,
but are undergoing extensive restoration

Japanese Tea Garden

The history of the Japanese Tea Garden in
the Golden Gate Park is rich with culture
and family tradition. During the California
Midwinter International Exposition, which
was held at the park, a rare opportunity to
display cultural identities was created. At
the time, a wealthy local Japanese landscape
designer, Baron Makoto Hagiwara, took
notice of the rare opportunity and decided
to fund, build and manage the placement of
a Japanese Village on the west side of the
Horticulture building at the park.28
The extraneous project was done out of love
and passion by Hagiwara, depleting the family
fortune so that he could share his beloved
culture with the city. During the late 1800s,
Japan maintained as a closed society, a
society and culture that was greatly unknown
to most of America. Very few Japanese
immigrated to San Francisco, unlike the local
Chinese population.
Hagiwara is responsible for the first fortune
cookies to be served in America. For the

exposition and the visitors of the Japanese

Village, Hagiwara had his baker produce
Japanese sembei cookies, which are
traditionally served at Shinto Shrines during
New Years. The cookies were sweetened to
appeal to the vastly different Western tastes
and the cookies were served as welcoming
refreshments for visitors.
After the closing of the exposition, the park
asked Hagiwara to continue to maintain his
gardens as an attraction and asset to the
park. Until 1942, the family maintained and
lived at the gardens when sadly, the federal
gardens sent the family a notice to quit, while
also evicting them and transporting the family
to an internment camp. Renamed Oriental
Tea Garden, it fell into despair because it no
longer had the intricate care to maintain it.
After the war when the Hagiwara family was
released from the internment camp, the
government refused to honor McLarens
promise to resume management of the family
garden, while also failing to reimburse them

28. Smith, James. Japanese Tea Garden | San Francisco

History | Guidelines Newsletter. San Francisco Walking
Tours | City Guides. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.
sfcityguides.org/public_guidelines.html?article=41>.

for the cost of creating and maintaining the

garden.
To honor the family for their service and
accomplishments, the City placed a bronze
plaque in the Japanese Tea Garden. Sadly,
the garden still does not resemble the look
and feel the family had designed. The garden
is currently undergoing restoration, as many
of the rare plant varieties can be found once
again throughout garden.
Today, the garden is continued by the family
tradition and is managed by the great-great
grandson of Baron Makoto Hagiwara, who
has donated a thousand flowering cherry
trees to the Arlington National Cemetery.
The Japanese Tea Gardens endures as one
of San Franciscos most popular attractions,
featuring many classic Japanese garden
elements such as an arched drum bridge,
pagodas, stone lanterns, stepping stone
paths, koi gardens and a zen garden.

071

073

de Young Museum
Like many other structures and attractions
at the Golden Gate Park, the de Young
Museum was originally designed and built
for the California Midwinter International
Exposition in 1894. Michael H. de Young,
co founder of the San Francisco Chronicle,
was the chair of the exposition organizing
committee.
Due to several earthquakes, the de Young
Museum has undergone many face changes
and transformed from temporarily housing
oddities and curiosities, to being the fourth
most visited art museum in North America,
16 most visited in the world. The museum
today focuses on American art, including
international textile arts and costumes, along
with art from the ancient Americas, Oceania
and Africa.
The original structure for the Fine Arts
Buildings was designed in a pseudo Egyptian

29. History of the De Young Museum | De Young

Museum. De Young Museum | De Young Museum. Web.
09 Dec. 2011. <http://deyoung.famsf.org/about/historyde-young-museum>.

Revival style, adorned with images of the cow

goddess, Hathor. After the exposition, of the
success of the art museum was realized and
designated as a museum where no admission
was charged. Most of what was on display in
the museum had been acquired during the
exposition.29
Only eleven years after the museum first
opened, an earthquake struck causing
significant damage to the building, leaving
the museum closed for a year and a half while
repairs were being made. Not much later
after the museum reopened, the museums
success required a larger space to serve the
quickly growing audiences. de Young helped
plan the building that would serve as the
heart of the Fine Arts Building throughout
the 20th century. Completed in 1919, the
Spanish style building, but soon enough
additional space would be required.

075

Again in 1921, an addition was added to the de

Young museum, which consisted of a central
section and a tower that would become the
museums signature feature. Until 2001, the
layout assumed the same basic configuration.
Over the years, many earthquakes deemed
parts of the building as unsafe until 1989
when the de Young museum suffered great
damage from the Loma Prieta earthquake.
Realizing that a long term solution was a
must, the board of trustees sought solutions
for the popular museums structural issues
and feedback throughout the community.
The decision was finally made in 1999, when
the board decided to plan and build a private
institute as a philanthropic gift to the city of
San Francisco in the name of M.H. de Young.
An architectural selection took place when
the board decided to endorse the museum
concept from the Swiss architectural firm
Herzog & de Meuron.
The firms concept weaves the museum into
the natural environment of the park, while
also embracing historic elements that still
remained from the original art museums
design, such as the sphinxes, original palm
trees and the Pool of Enchantment. Finally in
2005, the de Young museum was opened to
the public with not only an amazing collection
of art to be viewed, but in a new building that
connects to the history of the museum and
the city.

077

Herzog & de Meuron designed the landscape

so that visitors experiences would begin
before they even enter the museum. A
public garden right outside of the museum, a
terrace beneath the structures cantilevered
roof and a childrens garden allow visitors
to enjoy Californias pleasant climate.
The architectural firm designed the rest
of the landscape around the building to
create a link between the museum and its
surroundings through incorporating the
historical landmarks with their design.
As a firm infamous for their experimentations
with material applications in architecture,
Herzog and de Meuron designed a modern
structure that would age with time like the
artifacts within. Through the use of natural
materials, like copper, wood, stone and glass,
the design becomes a part of the landscape
the building occupies. Through the use of four
main entryways, visitors are allowed to enter
from any side of the building- any direction
in the Golden Gate Park. To remind visitors
of their surroundings, Herzon & de Meuron
use ribbon windows to allow for panoramic
views of the outside that blur the boundaries
of interior and exterior.
Their most interesting choice in material was
the use of copper for the exterior cladding
a material that would change throughout the
years as the copper faade would slowly turn

079

green due to oxidation, allowing the museum

to fade into its natural surroundings at the
park.
To connect the building back to the city and
back to the history of the original art building,
the design incorporates a monumental tower
that rises 144 feet- a tower that twists from
the ground towards the sky, a tower that
aligns with the gird of the San Franciscan
streets in nearby neighborhoods. At the
top of the tower is an observatory floor that
allows for gorgeous panoramic views of the
Bay Area a tower that reminds visitors of
their current surroundings.
The museums open and flexible floor plan
allows for community events to be held
not only in the public gathering space, also
within the museum exhibits as well. Just like
the Golden Gate Park itself, the de Young
museum allows for an opportunistic chance
of gathering by visitors and locals alike an

opportunity for everyone to mingle, for

interconnectivity amongst the users. Local art
events to raise money for clubs or charities
are a common scene on Friday nights at
the museum. The open floor plan allows for
the opportunity to display work from local
artists, to display the local culture and share
with tourists from all over the world.
Herzog and de Meuron also incorporate
a sense of interconnectivity between the
building and the landscape through their
choices in material. Through the use of the
digitally fabricated copper clad skin, a texture
is created that represents light that is filtered
through a tree.30 Over time as the building
ages, the copper skin will slowly oxidize
and turn to green, a green that is meant to
blend the building in with its natural setting, a
change that will be witnessed by visitors, thus
creating a subtle interconnectivity between
the users and the building.

081

30. M.H. De Young Museum / Herzog & De Meuron

| ArchDaily. ArchDaily | Broadcasting Architecture
Worldwide. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.archdaily.
com/66619/m-h-de-young-museum-herzog-de-meuron/>.

083

California Academy of Sciecnes

The California Academy of Sciences started
out in 1853 as a small group of naturalists who
met weekly to present scientific papers to
interested residents in San Francisco. From
a small Victorian office in the downtown
San Francisco area, the California Academy
is become the fourth largest natural history
museum in the country and the oldest
scientific institute in the West now located at
the heart of the Golden Gate Park.

With a mission to explore, explain and

protect the natural world, the academy has
worked hard to spread awareness, instill
knowledge and create memories for the
millions of visitors they receive annually.
When the group of scientists first formed the
academy, they had a small growing collection
of specimens that were put on display for
the public to visit in a museum on Market
Street. Displays consisted of birds, mammals,

plants, skeletons and insects in which many

locals in San Francisco took treasure in
visiting. Unfortunately, the small collections
were burned to ruins due to the fire and
earthquake in 1906.
In 1916, the academy relocated to the
Golden Gate Park, including the addition
of the Steinhart Aquarium in 1923. The new
collection for the exhibitions were discovered
during a two year expedition taken by a few
of the naturalists in the Academy, which are
still an essential part of the nucleus of the
institutes collections. Over the following
eight decades, five additional exhibit halls
were constructed to assist in the academys
mission, and in 1952 the Morrison Planetarium
was added. The addition of the planetarium
completely extended the scope of the
academys mission, encouraging the museum
to grow even more.
Like many other buildings at the Golden
Gate Park, such as the de Young museum and
the Conservatory of Flowers, the California
Academy of Sciences greatly suffered during
the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, forcing
the academy to move to a temporary facility
elsewhere in 2004. With the need for a
new facility to withstand the frequented
earthquakes in San Francisco and a design
that would be driven by the academys
mission, the California Academy of Sciences
hired Renzo Piano for the job.

085

087

The new home of the California Academy of

Sciences is rooted deep with cultural history
dating back to Modernism and Classical
Greece serving as a comforting reminder of
the civilizing function of great art in a barbaric
age.31 With an impression of weightlessness,
the building has a row of steel columns that
soar 36 feet high alongside the faade. A
thin canopy that appears to be as if it is only
millimeters thick further accentuates this
illusion of lightness.
Piano preserved the African Hall from the
original structure, allowing visitors to still
enjoy the gorgeous vaulted neo classical
ceilings that were built in the 1930s. The
massive stone structure was originally
intended as a symbol of the Westerns
perception of superiority and the ability to
triumph over nature.
One of the main design goals for the academy
was to create a balance not only between
private and public spaces, but also amongst
inside and out. The lobby is completely
glazed by glass manufactured in Germany
that is famous for its clear composition,
allows visitors to see through the building to
the other side of the park. Views elsewhere
throughout the museum are also opened up
to create a framework that causes occupants
to ponder over the natural world, in a worldthe Golden Gate Park - that is deceivingly
unnatural.

The design of the exhibits embraces symmetry

and geometry while also being reminiscent
of a Mies glass and steel museum. The roof
within the lobby is supported by gossamer
like webs of cables, creating yet again a sense
of lightness throughout the facility. Lining the
top of the lobby is a narrow row of clerestory
windows that operate automatically, opening
when warm are needs to escape from within
the building, creating a natural breeze
that reinforces a connection a sense of
interconnectivity- with the natural setting of
the space.
The main exhibit halls within the academy
are in two 90 foot tall spheres on either side
of the lobby. As the most solid forms within
the open interior, the spaces seem to hover
in the space. The planetarium floats in a pool
while the rain forest sphere has a broad
wooden ramp that follows the curved walls
and is enveloped in gnarled branches is if the
exhibit had been taken over by the artificial
landscape over the years of its existence.
Once of the special features of the academy
is its green roof, which is the largest native
planted spaces in all of San Francisco. The
hallow, round mounds are supported by the
web of cables from below in the lobby. The
skylights provide day lighting in the spaces
below including the coral exhibit, which are
punctured through the green mounds.

The California Academy of Sciences has a

great sense of interconnectivity between
the environment and the building, including
the environment and the users because of
all the sustainable features the designer
incorporated throughout the structure. In the
rainforest, the distinction between interior
and exterior is blurred, as visitors are able
to walk through and down into the aquarium
portion of the museum. The glass curtain
walls on all four sides of the structure create
a sense of transparency within the park and
a feeling of weightlessness that holds up the
rolling green mounds that are reminiscent of
San Franciscos terrain.

31. Ouroussoff, Nicolai. Architecture Review - Renzo

Pianos California Academy of Sciences Blooms and
Grows, Balancing Man and Nature - Review - NYTimes.
com. The New York Times - Breaking News, World News
& Multimedia. 09 Dec. 2011. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://
www.nytimes.com/2008/09/24/arts/design/24acad.
html>.

089

[case studies]
Every building has connections to
sky, ground and community, but these
connections could be appreciated and
utilized much better.
-Michael McDonough

091

Starlight Theater
Location: Rockford, Il, USA Date: 2003 Client: Rock Valley College Design Team:
Studio Gang Architects Area: 135,000 sq ft. Cost: $8.5 million
Bengt Sjostrom/Starlight Theater in Rockford,
Illinois underwent major transformation in
2001. Originally an exterior amphitheater like,
concrete bowl that housed 600 people and
a small stage, the theater had limited ticket
sales and revenues that were at the mercy of
the changing weather throughout the year.32
At 36 years old, Rock Valley College decided
it was time to redesign the community
theater to allow for better quality and scope
of the programs hosted at the facility.
The clients wanted a facility that would
not only maintain their tradition of openair performances, but also to increase the
flexibility of the space and expand the
buildings use throughout all seasons of the
year. However, like in most projects, funding

32. Kamin, Blair. Architectural Record Building Types

Study | Bengt Sjostrom / Starlight Theatre. Architecture
Design for Architects | Architectural Record. Web. 09
Dec. 2011. <http://archrecord.construction.com/projects/
bts/archives/perform/03_bengt/overview.asp>.

was a key issue that would determine

the limits of the design. As a non-profit
organization, Rock Valley College had
hopes that lay in the stars, but had little
money to carry out the renovation.
Understanding their clients big wishes
and their limited resources, Studio Gang
Architects created a three year phased plan
that had the ability to deliver the wants of
the clients gradually. With this three-year
plan, the college was able to keep their
normal summer schedule of performance
sand events without any interference
during the construction period.
With the need for an open-air facility that
had the ability to be used year round, the

093

firm designed a kinetic structure a structure

that had the ability to transform shape and
form, thus allowing a significant alteration in
how the facility is perceived.33
During the first phase of the project, which was
completed in2001, the seating of the theater
was graciously expanded to 1,050 seats.
Phase one also included the construction of
the theaters aesthetically pleasing entrance
that gave the facility the appearance of
being placed among the constellations in
the night sky. Gang designed a curving,
18-foot-high concrete structure that would
house bathrooms and ticket booths. The tall
concrete mass, however, was dematerialized

095

33. Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That

Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

through the use of porthole like windows

that displayed patterns of constellations. At
night, the backlit constellations illuminate a
sense of fantasy against the sky.
The second phase was completed in 2002
and consisted of sensually incorporating new
materials into the project, such as the 50-foot
tall copper clad fly tower. The new addition
allows for sheltering a full proscenium stage
house along with fly equipment, expanding
the facilitys ability to display multiple sets.
Rather than using the traditional theater
velvet curtains, Studio Gang used translucent
weather doors that had been adapted from
old airplane hangers.
In final stage, the final transformation
the transformation that would answer the
clients wish of having an open air theater
with the ability to be used rain or shine
was constructed. Studio Gang collaborated
with Uni-Systems, a firm that specializes in

34. Kamin, Blair. Architectural Record Building Types

Study | Bengt Sjostrom / Starlight Theatre. Architecture
Design for Architects | Architectural Record. Web. 09
Dec. 2011. <http://archrecord.construction.com/projects/
bts/archives/perform/03_bengt/overview.asp>.
35. Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That
Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.

moving structures, to design the theaters

crowning touch.34 The two firms devised
a moving roof that opens like petals of a
flower. The kinetic roof is a hybrid pyramid
that is composed of six identical triangular
panels hinged along the bottom edge.35 To
save their clients money, Studio Gang and
Uni-Systems designed the roof panels to be
constructed off site, which would save the
costs for scaffolding. Operated by a torque
tube drive system allowing the panels to
open simultaneously, the theater allows
for the sky to emerge above and awe the
audience. When seen from directly below
the open roof, the void is shaped like a star.
The end result was a design that allowed
for an intimate social setting, beautifully
designed landscaped boundaries that frame
the theater, and at the click of a button- a
dynamic observatory to the stars roof that
can be opened on a cool summer night.

Print.

097

Outdoor Classroom at Eibs Pond Lake

Location: Staten Island, NY, USA Date: 2000 Client: The Parks Cousnil Design
Firm: Marpillero Pollak Architects Area: 680 sq ft. Cost: $25,000

In the urban setting of Staten Island, New

York, in the midst of public housing and an
elementary school, a peaceful and gorgeous
picturesque site can be found at Eibs Pond.
Throughout its history, the area around
the pond served as many vastly different
functions ranging from a dairy farm, golf
club, prisoner of war camp, and then most
recently as a dump.36 Today, the site has
been transformed into beautifully inviting
educational facility that is open to all in the
community and a site that is often visited
by the local elementary school and used for
class lessons.
The master plan for New York City called
for the transformation of abandoned lots
into parks for the community, creating
recreational areas for individuals and families
to take a break from the hustle and bustle
of city life. One of the sites selected to be
transformed into a recreational area was
Eibs Pond Park on Staten Island. Seen as
an un-ideal site by many city staff members,

36. Cary, John. The Power of Pro Bono: 40 Stories about

Design for the Public Good by Architects and Their
Clients. New York: Metropolis, 2011. Print.

surrounded by housing projects, felt that it

was unwise to use their resources at that
location.
The architects and park council also took the
location of the site into much consideration.
Located in a tough neighborhood, the park
is located near a school whose academic
scores are at the bottom of nearly 700
New York City primary schools. In hopes of
creating better educational opportunities
for the students at Hubert M. Humphrey
elementary school, they located the park to
only be a five-minute walk form the school ,
ensuring that a site visit could fit within one
class period.
A historical site, kettle ponds at Eibs Pond
were formed when chunks of icebergs
were broken apart and landed at the site
thousands of years ago. Today, these ponds
serve as an important natural resource that
had yet to be developed. Pollak Architects
were hired to take advantage of the natural

099

resource, creating an area that would show

the community the important value of the
site.
The design firm saw the project as a
unique opportunity to create a strong
interconnectivity between the site, users,
and the structure. To create a felling of
connection, they designed the project so that
community members, even including young
people, could build the structure. As desired
by the Parks Council, the construction
process was divided into smaller processes
that would also serve as a unique teaching
opportunity.
The idea behind a project built by community
members was to create a space that would
stay around a lot longer, for when the
community is a part of a building project and
is involved in every step of the design, clean
up, installation, maintenance and teaching
they take pride in their work and appreciate
the final result much more.37
Located on a wetland, material choices
for the classroom were taken into great
consideration. It was important for the
material to look aesthetically congruous
the natural setting but had properties that
would ensure a long life span, while also
being a material choice that was ecologically
responsible.

101

The final material choice was environmentally

certified redwood. As a relatively expensive
material that could only be purchased in
California, Pollak Architects designed the
classroom structure so that all the wood
could be delivered in one shipment.
As a simple, basic structure, the outdoor

37. Cary, John. The Power of Pro Bono: 40 Stories about

Design for the Public Good by Architects and Their
Clients. New York: Metropolis, 2011. Print.

classrooms enables students and people from

the community to value their surroundings
and environment. Built out of 3 x 12 inch
sections for the framing, the building only
uses cladding for a small portion of the roof
and floor. With walls made of slats that allow
light to penetrate through, the classroom is a
strikingly elegant site that seems to blend in

103

with its natural surroundings.

While the design of the facility is clean
and simple, it also has unique features that
strengthen occupants awareness of natures
ever-changing ways. The classroom is a 24
foot long floating pier that floats up and down,
allowing users to perceive the changing water
levels over the years. The classroom also has
an open edge that faces the wetland edge
engaging the users to admire the beautiful
views.
The site design is also unique to the
project, for the designers took advantage
of the location to allow for lessons outsides.
Located next to a grown birch tree, is a bird
wall that frames the main gathering area.

During one community event, handmade

birdhouses made by participants were
hung on the wall next to the tree for bird
to use. Another wall built has a planter box
integrated into the structure to teach kids
and adults about native plantings that are
good and sustainable for the community.
A site that had been negated to merely a
dumb in a densely urban environment had
been transformed into an outdoor classroom
by the park council, designers, non profit
organizes and with the irreplaceable help of
community members, and is now a popular
destination to visit and enjoy the local natural
resources. In the end, the project served as
a unique opportunity to give the community
access to nature once again.

105

Kalkin House
Location: Shelburne, VT, USA Date: 2001 Client: Shelburne Museum Design
Firm: Adam Kalkin Area: 1,600 sq ft. Cost:
107

Originally designed and constructed to be a

temporary exhibition space, Kalkin house has
become a permanent part of the museum
serving as a gallery for special exhibitions of
contemporary design.38 The prefabricated
home is made of three trans-oceanic shipping
containers that help define the interior space
of the two-story structure that are enclosed
within a metal shed. With a footprint of 20
x 80 and with metal exterior cladding, at
first glance the appearance of the home
resembles that of a warehouse. When taking
a closer look at the structure, it can be seen
that within the industrial shell is a suburban
like cottage.

Kalkin, a designer who specializes in prefabricated structures that have the ability
to be mass-produced and shipped for use.
He collaborated with the distinguished
interior designer Albert Hadely to create a
juxtaposition of the homely interior and the
industrial-like exterior designs.

The architect of the home is Adam

Through the use of prefabricated industrial

38. Kalkin House Shelburne Museum. Shelburne

Museum. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://shelburnemuseum.
org/explore/buildings/galleries/kalkin-house/>.

Hadelys main goal for the design of the

interior was to tie the warehouse like
home in with the rest of the facilities of the
museum. While today Kalkin House serves as
a contemporary art exhibit, it was originally
designed to house the folk art collection of
Shelburne Museum.

materials and the use of shipping containers,

a vast, open interior was made possible,
which is intensified by the large enclosing
box that frames the structure that seems to
refuse to enclose the building in many ways.
Part of the design features oversized glass
garage doors that open the interior space
that helps bring nature in.
Another example is that architects use of
large outdoor curtains for the front patio
area that are made from sails, located on the
north side of the of the house. Projects from

109

111

the wall and thus described as the male side

of the house by the designer, the curtains are
used to fold the outside and insides spaces
together. This helps create a manipulation
of space that dissolves the separation from
interior and exterior.
Traditionally, curtains are used to enclose
and protect interior spaces from the harsh
external world, but Kalkin uses curtains in
a new manner to create a large and fluid
external wall ensuring that the home can
never be entirely closed and is always at
the mercy of mother nature. The use of the
sail material, which is heavy and thick, helps
encourage a sense of privacy by providing a

thick protective barrier that can be opened

or closed while also resisting the typical use
of glass curtain walls.
While never actually serving as a home, Kalkin
and Hadely designed the interior spaces
to resemble one. The building includes two
bedrooms that each have a bathroom which
are located in the privacy of the upper level.
The ground floor includes the central kitchen
and main living space which are located
at the heart of the building. Two large and
oversized garage doors are located on both
sides of the kitchen, allowing occupants to
take notice and appreciate the scenery of
the country setting.

Greenwich Academy Upper School

Location: Greenwich, CT, USA Date: 2002 Client: Greenwich Academy Design
Team: Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, LLP Area: 42,000 sq ft. Cost: $12.5 million
Not a typical SOM project with a not so
typical project manager, Roger Duffy set out
to ensure that his design for the campus
would not only be innovative, and stylish, but
also well crafted.
Having received several awards for its design
excellence, Greenwich Academy Upper
School converges the built and natural
landscapes together to enhance the sites
natural beauty. The school uses the sites
topographical complexity, to elegantly and
naturally connect the upper and lower levels
of the building.39
Part of a ten-year plan to expand, update
and replace the original 1950s building, the
all girls 9-12 grade school is located on a 30-

39. Www.SOM.com | Greenwich Academy - Upper

School. Www.SOM.com | Home. Web. 09 Dec. 2011.
<http://som.com/content.cfm/greenwich_academy_
upper_school>.

acre site engulfed in the country setting of

Greenwich, Connecticut. Upper campus is
designed in four clusters facilitated around
learning, which include science and math,
the humanities, the arts, a library, and
nonacademic areas dispersed around the
campus. This includes 20 new classrooms,
five science laboratories, a student center, a
media center and a visual arts complex and
a library.
The design of the new facility enhances
the students learning abilities to learn and
improve their level of performance through
different design criteria. Integration of the
landscape with the new buildings to ensure
that there is a unification of the original
campus with the new facilities, while also with

113

buildings, while also allowing for occupant

comfort. Glulam columns and mullions allow
for the weightless design, while also creating
the illusion of walking through a forest.
Designed and constructed with sustainability
in mind and to create a new identity for the high
school that promotes a feeling of inspiration
in both the students and parents, Greenwich
Academy is a school that aesthetically blends
with the natural landscape with the use of
heaths and heathers on the rooftop surfaces
of the faculties.
Not only were the designs of the structures
carefully carried out, but the placement
of the buildings was also a key part of the
project. The new faculties were strategically
placed in order to integrate both the field
and garden levels, allowing for panoramic
views of the surrounding forest and hills. The
position of the school ensures for beautiful
views that overlook a lake and fields in the
surrounding area.
the incorporation of daylight were a couple
of the criteria. One of the main priorities for
the new Greenwich Academy Upper School
was the integration of sustainable design
measures.
An open and weightless design is applied
throughout the new buildings with the use of
an abundance of curtain walls that allow for
plenty of natural light to penetrate into the

To unify the new addition to the academy,

existing materials were integrated into the
design for the new structures, along with the
use of recycled material. Other sustainable
features include a waste management plan,
storm water and irrigation systems, and high
quality air and energy savings.
SOM designed modern glass pavilions that
are set within a more solid setting that helps

115

weave the architecture of the school with the

landscape of the natural setting. Designed to
inspire the student body and parents, the
campus unique uninterrupted landscape
creates a carpet that flows and expands the
new facility that helps create a new perimeter
for the school.40
The schools library and classroom buildings
use American Hydrotech Garden Roof for
17,500 sq ft. of dead level roof deck, all
directly above occupied space.41. Through
the use of the green roof, occupants are

40. Architectural Record Building Types Study |

Greenwich Academy Upper School. Architecture
Design for Architects | Architectural Record. Web. 09
Dec. 2011. <http://archrecord.construction.com/projects/
bts/archives/k-12/01_GreenwichAcad/overview.asp>.
41. Greenroofs.com Projects - Greenwich Academy.
Greenroofs.com: The Resource Portal for Green

protected from the harsh winters in the

climate because the installation of the garden
roof includes a Monolithic Membrane 6125EV hot rubberized asphalt waterproofing
and Styrofoam installation, which helps
naturally heat the interior spaces. The
use of the garden roof also helps tie in the
buildings uniquely beautiful design with
existing landscape with an elegant transition.
The green roof also allows for storm water
retention that can be reused by the facility.
A part of the schools unique design is due to
SOMs collaboration with James Turrell, who

Roofs. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.greenroofs.com/

projects/pview.php?id=710>.

is an artist that works with lighting. Together,

the designers worked on transforming the
lobby and library of the new building into
glowing light chambers that illuminated in the
night sky.42
To successfully carry out their vision, they
designed muntins on the faade that are
fitted with fiber optics that transform a
straightforward simple structure into a
glowing dematerialized box that draws
attention to the little details that were
considered in the design. The four light
chambers in the lobby are large glass boxes
that penetrate above into the second floor
which also allow for day lighting in the middle
of the spaces.
The school is a prime example, similar to
the outdoor classroom at Eibs Pond Lake,
that ties the landscape and architectural
design together in unison. This connectivity
amongst the site and the architecture allows
for occupants to better enjoy and appreciate
their natural surroundings.

42. Bernstein, Fred A. Not Your Daddys SOM.

Metropolis Magazine. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.
metropolismag.com/story/20031201/not-your-daddyssom>.

117

Brill Residence
Location: Silverlake, CA, USA Date: 1999 Client: Rock Valley College Design
Team: Jones Partners Area: 135,000 sq ft. Cost: $8.5 million
Located in LA, Brill Residence was originally
a martial arts studio. The architecture firm
Jones Partners transformed the 2,500 sq ft.
studio into a residence for a jazz drummer
and his son. Much of the original structure
was torn down, only leaving the retaining
walls in order to create a three-story living
space in half of the new house. The other half
of the house includes stacked private spaces
above the new garage, which are held up by
a new steel structural system that holds
them up and apart from the retaining walls.43
The incorporation of technology is key to
the design of the Brill House, for the new
glass structure is intended to develop a new
technological vernacular. In this project,
the architect uses technology to serve the

43. Brill Residence | Jones, Partners: Architecture |

Archinect. Archinect | Connecting Architects Since
1997. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://archinect.com/firms/
project/6790084/brill-residence/6791285>.
44. Kronenburg, Robert. Flexible: Architecture That
Responds to Change. London: Laurence King, 2007.
Print.

interests of the occupant rather than letting

it control the program.
A special feature within the kinetic structure
is the display shelving for the owners
extensive drum collection, which can only
be accessed through the use of a bicycle
operated traveling bridge within the public
three-story volume. Jones Partners doubled
the function of the guardrails of the traveling
bicycle bridge to serve as a performance
platform in the house when they are
deployed down.
Since the floor plan of the home is open
and flexible, privacy is achieved throughout
bedrooms and bathrooms through the use of
opaque and translucent wall panels that are a

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part of a sliding rail system. This same system

can also be used to optimally tune the space
acoustically for percussion performances.
The home is an interesting example of kinetic
architecture that allow for flexible living and
interconnectivity with the building. Not only
does the home have the ability to serve as
a private residence, but with interacting
with the structure by adjusting the sliding

wall panels, the home is transformed into an

acoustically optimum practice room. This,
along with Starlight Theater and Kalkin House,
is a good example of how architecture should
be designed. It is important for architecture
to be able to respond the needs of users,
rather than stagnate their daily changing lives
and architecture should strong connections
to the sky, ground and even community that
can be appreciated by all.

STEP 1:FILL NEWSPAPER POT WITH SOIL

STEP 2:PLANT SEED IN SOIL

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STUDIES
In nature we never see anything isolated, but
everything in connection with something else which is
before it, beside it, under it and over it.

-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

STEP 3:WATER AND WATCH GROW

[provocation_1]
SKIN: Transformative skin that can slide
left and right, up and down , extude out
or pertrude in based on occupant needs
Skin has the ability to transform, adjust
and interact with occupants and climate in
order to create a more comfortable living
environment for occupants. It is also what
helps create the identity for a building and
what can help establish interconnectivity
amongst the users and building and site.
Through my exploration with skin, I created
a model of a possible kinetic skin idea that
has the ability to be operated by users,
allowing them to adjust the skin to control
the amount of daylight and ventilation in
the space and control. Through the use of a
kinetic skin interconnectivity is established
between the building and nature, for the skin
has the ability to adjust based on the current
weather condition and adapt to the changing
weather throughout the year.
A possible material incorporation could be
the use of SmartWrap, which uses Phase
Change Material that can change from
solid to liquid or liquid to solid inside the
polymeric skin. This allows for the skin of the
building to the release heat into the space

or absorbs heat, therefore cooling the space

when needed. This creates a system that is
dependent on each other, while also creating
a connection with the user.
Through a kinetic skin, users have the
opportunity to adjust their space, creating a
connection with the building, a connection
that was not established before. Buildings
are typically static, and the most interaction
occupants have with structures is merely
opening and closing windows and doors.
Through the use of a kinetic skin, users can
adjust their living space as needed as the
weather changes, which also establishes a
connection with the environment. Users will
have the opportunity to learn what settings
will create a more comfortable environment,
while also learning what decisions can lead
to a more sustainable way of living, but using
passive heating and cooling through the
facade.

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[provocation_2]
SITE CONSTRUCTION: Fragmenting views and
connecting to the city, breaking away
from the city grid
Site construction is an important aspect to
consider when designing a space that has the
ability to reach out and connect with users of
the building and residents of the community.
City grids are confining to spaces, creating
a separation amongst residential and public
areas from the green spaces dispersed
around the city.
Through this provocation I looked at Urban
Voids Philadelphia for inspiration, a project
that connects different parts of the city
through greenbelts in order to create a more
cohesive whole.
By creating a structure that reaches out and
breaks away from the rectilinear and confining
city grid, opportunities arise to allow for
bringing residents and tourists together in
new ways by creating a connection to other
parts of the city.
Currently, the Golden Gate Park does try
to do this, for a portion of green space does
extend out to the east where basketball
courts can be found, and it does extend a

green street north and south, connecting

other major green parks in San Francisco,
such as the Presidio to the north and Lake
Merced to the South.
A great opportunity exists to extend the
park to other parts of the city, such as the
local schools, which surround the park.
The park has a lot to offer to the schools,
as it is a plethora of history and research
opportunities. An example of a site that
establishes a connection with a local school
in need of educational opportunities is the
Outdoor Classroom on Staten Island. The
facility is located near a school that has the
lowest test scores in New York, and helps
provide the students a new opportunity to
create a learning experience and reach out
to kids and even adults.
By creating a space that reaches out to the
community, there are opportunities to create
a new connectivity within the city that can
provide learning about the ecology of the
environment in a new and interactive way.

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[provocation_3]
CIRCULATION: Everything is connected
through circulation, which can be used to
provoke human interaction

Golden Gate Park, which receives 15 million

visitors annually with half being locals, offers
a great opportunity to create a connection
amongst both tourists and residents. A
Rubiks cube is similar to the organization of a
city, which is confined, separating structures
and open spaces such as parks.
For my thesis, I want to do the opposite
and reach out into the city, making users
aware of their surroundings and how they
are apart of a bigger system that affects the
ecological footprint of the built environment.
The Rubiks cube is similar to what I want
my design to facilitate, for when you move
on side or piece; all parts of the whole are
affected, changing the look of all 5 other
sides. This creates interconnectivity amongst
all parts of the object.
The modification of the Rubiks cube breaks
away from the confinement of the landscape,
opening it up to the environment and
creating continuity with the building and
the surrounding area. The Rubiks cube also
creates interconnectivity amongst all 6 sides,

as it mixes all pieces together, unifying the

whole system.
The Rubiks cube can be applied to circulation,
as it is constantly changing based on the user,
while also allowing for new experiences to be
created.

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[vellum]
The creative reuse of existing materials
is central to the new movement that is
driven by an appreciation for the often
overlooked beauty that can be found in
the things other people throw away.
-Marcus Fairs

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Upcycling is a new trend that is becoming

more popular in design. A wasteful society,
we easily throw objects away when a new
version is released in the market. For vellum,
I wanted to find thrown away objects and
reuse them to give them new life and beauty.
At the ground floor of the architecture
building, an old metal teachers desk was
left to be thrown away. I saw the desk as
an opportunity to create a dresser made
of found drawers. I took a few of the metal
drawers, and found others around campus to
create a dresser made of found drawers.
I cut the drawers to size, so they would fit
in the dresser frame I would make out of
plywood and then made backs out of scrap
wood for each of the modified drawers. The
design of the dresser was to create a space
for storage for a variety of other objects
such as books and plants that could fit in the
various cubbies.
The dresser made of found drawers is a
look at reusing old objects to create a more
sustainable way of living. The beauty of
reusing old found objects, is that is part of
the whole has its own story and memory
associated with it. Each drawer has its own
story and through the process of constructing
the new home for the drawers, a sentimental
connection was created along with a valuable
learning experience.

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[24 hour site]

Playing with context of urban space
through reflections, light and interaction
of passerbys

Golden Gate Park in San Francisco is a

unique location that attracts both tourists
and residents. Since my thesis is on
interconnectivity, I plan on setting up an
interactive installation for my 24-hour site
investigation over winter break.
Looking at heavy trash as inspiration for my
installation, a group of architects that try and
draw public attention to urban issues in Los
Angeles, I want to create an installation that
allows passerbys to reflect on their current
environment. Heavy trash creates large,
disposable art objects that are placed in
areas of the community that draw community
and media attention to issues such as the
segregation of public parks that have been
locked up, making them inaccessible to
everyone in the public.
Another example that I found is the ring
installation by Arnaud Lapierre in Place
Vendome, Paris, France. His installation is
made of mirrored cubes that play with the
context of the urban space through the
reflections and light created by the mirrors.

The cube installation deconstructs and

morphs the surrounding buildings and sky
and nature and occupants, which is similar to
what I am researching for my thesis.
During the break, I am going to create a wall
out of different mirrors and set it up in the
Golden Gate Park. Through the installation,
I hope to view the park in a different way,
for the paneled mirrors will deconstruct and
morph the views of the park and the visitors.
I plan on using the pictures I take of the
installation to guide the design of my project,
since I am hoping they will reveal new views
or scenes that are often overlooked, which I
can then use to create a connection to.

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[program]

conceptual program

GIFT SHOP

CAFE

INDOOR/OUTDOOR THEATER

LOBBY
VISITORS
CENTER/
MUSEUM

EXTERIOR PLAZA
MUSEUM

EXIBITS

CHANGING EXIBITS

PUBLIC GATHERING SPACE

SEMINAR SPACE

ADMINISTRATION
LECTURE HALL

ENVIRONMENTAL HALL

LAB CLASSROOMS

MULTIPURPOSE ROOM

PUBLIC GARDEN
SMALL LIBRARY

programmatic diagram
The program of spaces within a building
should allow for flexible use by creating an
interactive environment with a constant flow
of people among the different spaces. Like
the de Young Museum, I plan on creating
an open floor plan that can host community
events throughout the center so that there
can be installations of public art and crafts to
be displayed and shared with visitors.
Designing a floor plan that has the ability to
be rearranged is also an important design
aspect that will be incorporated. As exhibits
change and functions change, the spaces can
be rearranged to allow for a more suitable
plan that also allows for interaction with

the building, for users have control of the

structure.
For program, I am also considering the
integration of the landscape within the
building, to create an awareness of the users
surroundings. This will also help establish a
connection with the environment and the
building and the environment and users.

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DESIGN

By enhancing the connectivity between the user and the

architecture and the environment, the result will be
construction that benefits society and community.