AS Tectonics

Torre Niemeyer Residencial

Villa Mushroom

Bogota, the capital of Colombia, is one of the most vibrant and culturally rich cities in Latin America. Throughout its history, Bogota has been home to a large number of indigenous, Afro-descendant, mestizo and foreign populations, which has generated a mixture of traditions and customs.  We can understand Bogota as an intercultural space where different populations converge and coexist in a city that celebrates its diversity. Colombia has a rich musical history as well, which has been nurtured by the influences of different regions of the country.  Although conditions have not always been adequate for different cultures to live together in harmony, the city has made progress in promoting interculturalism and respect for differences.   

From this, Odeon Center was born, a cultural center based on the understanding of music as a universal form of expression and a powerful tool to connect people, regardless of their cultural, social or economic background. This architectural proposal is a micro-cluster of music, a platform to celebrate music and explore this cultural richness through exhibitions, workshops, teaching spaces, classes, concerts and other events.   

Initially this project was born from an intention based on the concept of fusion. This, materialized by creating a “knot” folded building that is constructed by means of a double fold, which unfolds organically merging with the ground. It then grows, weaves, and becomes the walls, floors and ceilings. In this way, the entire program is enveloped by its passage, responding to the particular needs of each space in relation to areas, heights and lighting. Finally, the folds fade into the sky.  

Architecture as a musical instrument.  

The building was design in order to formally communicate the experience of music: rhythm, movement, tempo and harmony. In this way, architecture is aimed to be transformed into a melody, into an architecture that sings. Inside the building, the world of music is celebrated in different thematic areas. A program that houses didactic and experimental teaching spaces, commercial areas, exhibition spaces, entertainment, and an auditorium. This cultural center proposes a variety of educational programs and activities for all ages, an articulating axis where architecture becomes an important tool for the cultural development of the city. Odeon center is a space where people can gather to listen and play music, it is a way to foster unity and social cohesion in the city.  

The architecture from the promenade architecturale  :

The building has multiple paths. The first floors invite people to enter the project and experience it in different ways: entering by the subway, directly on the street and by going up to the upper floors. Stairs and ramps are strategically placed, always keeping in mind the search for a continuous and fluid spatiality, a promenade accompanied at all times by music.  

The architecture from the concept to its materialization:

  From these conceptual intentions, the structural system is based on a central core in concrete from which continuous viereendel beams in steel are detached giving support to the cantilevers. One of the challenges of this project was to design curved steel beams hidden between the folding that gives greater rigidity to the structure. The slabs are lightened by means of cassettes.   

Architecture in harmony with the site:  

The building is implanted consciously and harmoniously with its context. This contemporary architecture based on the concept of merging with the ground and the context of the site is an innovative and respectful way of integrating modern architecture into the rich cultural and architectural history of the city. Another way to merge the building with the context of Bogotá is to include local cultural and artistic elements in the architecture of the building. This is manifested through murals, sculptures and many others types of public art, which represent the history and culture of Bogota and where different communities can find a space for expression and integration.  

This unconventional building aims to become an architectural landmark, an emblematic building that stands out in the urban landscape, attracting the attention of locals and tourists, which in turn has a positive impact on the local economy. The building's design is attractive and memorable, a design that takes into account the acoustics and the structure's ability to accommodate different programs. By becoming an architectural landmark and a space for social integration, the building fosters the connection between different communities and becomes a reference space for culture and music in the city. Finally, Odeon Center is a project that understands that music is a universal art form that can unite people and improve the quality of life in the city, and that together with architecture it can promote spaces for the social integration of the different cultures and communities that coexist within the city of Bogota. This architectural proposal is an invitation to celebrate the cultural richness of Colombia.

This back- side axonometric view shows the general design of the tower by means of a double folding that conforms all the spaces of the building.

Axometric back view 

This zoom drawing shows different layers of information from the building , it allows to understand the internal steel structure,  and its relationship with the envelope . 

Envelope and structural system in transparency 

This section of the building allows us to understand the internal relationship between the spaces, the continuity of the folding and the structure. In addition, the "heart of the project" is evidenced by a closed space made of metal that crosses several floors. This unique place is designed to allow sound to travel through several spaces to have a sound experience where the building becomes a musical instrument.

Longitudinal section

This isometric plan view of the 3rd floor shows a music retail space, and a live music space. In addition, it shows the way in which the building unfolds from the ground revealing different accesses across the floors.

Isometric Floor Plan - 3rd floor

This isometric plan view of the 6th floor shows the "heart of the building" this meeting space covered by a metallic structure, it also shows how the building is a space that invites people to appropriate it through various artistic manifestations such as graffiti.








Design: Sofia Hernandez & Amadeus Arteaga
Tutors: Claudio Rossi & Daniela Atencio


Isometric Floor Plan - 6th floor

Odeon Center; A space to celebrate Colombia’s cultural richness

The recent agenda of the architectural environment is about the difficulty of constructing new buildings in cities, the inability to meet the needs of the current dense population, and the transformation/reuse of existing structures. Considering the sustainability of cities, it has become important to reuse the structures, which are the cultural heritage of the cities, depending on changing cultural, social, and physical environmental conditions. It has become a necessity to bring buildings that cannot meet the needs functionally but have not completed their structural life yet to be brought to the city and continue to be used. At this point, the transformed building is re-evaluated in terms of both spatial and design criteria. For this reason, we used the endless inspiration of 'midjourney' to transform existing structures by utilizing alternative architectural perspectives. In doing so, three dynamics, in particular, were addressed: (i) The relationship of the 'residual' spaces of the existing building stock with the existing texture (ii) transforming the existing structure with futuristic approaches by relating the existing urban fabric. (iii) The recapture of 'residual' spaces by nature. You can see examples of all three approaches below.

Team Members: Melike Atıcı & Tuğçe Utku Sümer & Melek Demiröz & Nil Akdede

Recapture of 'Residual' Space

Reuse of Abandoned Modern Architecture

Urban Infill in a Traditional Environment | Istanbul

Urban Infill

Biomorphic Infill in an Urban Environment

Infilled Space in a Historical Environment | Rome

Infilled Space by Nature | Desert

Infilled Biomorphic Space by Nature

Urban Infill and Adaptive Reuse - Is architecture dying? Or does it transform?

To begin our narrative, we must first ask ourselves: What is a Utopia? Philosophers and writers have asked themselves the same question, and their writings picture dozens of different utopic scenarios. From Plato to Marx, from Thomas More to H.G.Wells, their texts led us to reflect on our society and what we seek to achieve for humanity. From the most fantastical to the more cynical utopic scenarios, the concept of Utopia generally dwells on the balance between the individual and collective needs, the harmony between the happiness and freedom of the individual and the collective necessities of his community and the whole of society. 

In that way, the concept of Utopia is deeply connected to each individual’s personal view of the world, his thoughts, and experiences, as well as the collective needs, flaws, and challenges of each society in its time. To think about a Utopia is to think about the future we would like to achieve for ourselves and the others around us, it is to dream about the society we would like to be a part of.
To wonder what the future would be like has always been part of our society’s collective imagination. For the last centuries, humanity has imagined many different futures.19th-century illustrations depict futuristic cities with dozens of airships, balloons, and machines assisting or replacing humans in toilsome tasks. Concept arts from the ’50s and 60’s illustrate flying cars, rockets, space stations, and robots.

Whatever the age we live in, our dreams of the future always seem to be a reflection of our own time. Our collective imagination is bounded by the necessities, the technology, the challenges, the culture, and even the aesthetics of the present. When we think about Utopia, our thinking is limited to the problems that can be perceived in nowadays society but we, of course, fail to perceive the problems that are yet to come. Imagining the future has always been a tough task, and through the ages, technology has always been the focal point of our dreams about the future in illustrations and books. What technologies will the future bring? What new challenges will technological advancement bring to society?

With the emergence of Artificial Intelligence our society is once again fearful about the future and our relation with technology. Technology advances faster than we can keep track of and it once again threatens to change or dismantle the structures of our society. The illustrations from the past have always shown the machines replacing us in laborious tasks as a good thing so that humanity could concentrate on activities that required thinking and creativity, but now, even that seems to be at stake.

It makes us reflect not only about technology but about our society itself. Why do we feel threatened by something we created ourselves? Why the idea of a machine doing our work for us is something that causes us fear, instead of relief? 

In my own personal Utopia, technological advancement has evolved not to turn Man obsolete but to relieve the burdens of his life. In this utopic society, the true value lies in human life itself, not in what it can produce, and every man and woman is free to do what they choose with their time on this Earth without being threatened by poverty and humiliation, while the machines work on the most arduous task, such as industry and agriculture. In this society, universal basic income guarantees that every basic need of people will be attended, to so they can spend their time not for generating profit, but for personal growth. Where people may dedicate their lives doing what they truly love, and work not for greed or survival, but for solidarity and the collective good and advancement of society. Where their work not only is fairly compensated, but fulfilling as an effort towards the collective wellbeing. In this Utopia, people can spend less time worrying about money or pointless consumption and more time dedicated to their loved ones, art, religion, philosophy, and the search for enlightenment.

The creation of this Utopic society might seem completely naïve, unreal, and impossible by any means, maybe just as impossible as the things we see in those 50’s illustrations, the families cutting through the city sky in their flying Cadillacs or the hotels on the moon. My predictions for the future, my own personal Utopia is probably just as imprecise as theirs, and that is why I wanted to represent it in an aesthetic similar to those mid-century retro-futuristic concept arts, with a focus on its architecture and urban design.
To conclude, I'd like to cite a quote by Fernando Birri, made famous by the Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano. When asked what is the purpose of a utopia, he answered: “Utopia is on the horizon. I take two steps closer, it takes two steps away; I walk ten steps and the horizon runs ten steps further. It doesn’t matter how much I walk, I will never reach it. What is a utopia for? That's what it's for: so that I don't stop walking.”

A futuristic self-sustainable city, filled with gardens, parks, and nature. A city designed by and for the people. Walkable streets and public transport take you everywhere you need to be. A city accessible to all its inhabitants, not divided by class or racial profiles.

Aerial view of our Utopian City Landscape

The streets of this utopic city are lined with gardens that bloom with colorful flowers and lush greenery. The scent of fresh herbs and blooming flowers fills the air, making every stroll down the street a delight for the senses. The gardens are tended with care and attention, creating a harmonious and peaceful environment where both humans and nature thrive together. It's a true paradise in the midst of the bustling cityscape.

Street level view of our Utopian City Landscape

Eye-level view of the gardened streets

In this Utopia, the conservation of the environment is not just a distant concern, an issue beyond the grasp of the common man, but a genuine interest of each individual and society as a whole in contributing to causing the least amount of damage to the environment, to produce the least amount of waste as possible and to live in the most sustainable way possible, in addition to always seeking technological innovation to reduce our impact over the planet.

Public transport in our utopic city is truly a marvel. The network of buses, trams, and trains is extensive and highly efficient, with frequent and reliable services that make getting around a breeze. The vehicles themselves are eco-friendly and equipped with the latest technology, ensuring a smooth and comfortable ride for all passengers. 

The outside view of a futuristic multi-transport station

People live in a peaceful and safe community where everyone is friendly and welcoming. The building itself is modern and well-maintained, with stunning views of the city skyline fand beautiful gardens on its rooftops. 

Outside view of a residential building

The modern yet vintage-looking apartment is spacious and bright, with all the amenities a person could ask for. With easy access to public transportation and plenty of services, schools, hospitals, shops, and restaurants are within walking distance. 

Inside view of an apartment

There is no more need to devastate millions of square kilometers of forests and nature for agricultural purposes. No more need to exploit the lives of millions of animals. These enormous Vertical Farms can produce agro-toxic free lab-engineered food for thousands of people while only occupying a small portion of the soil.

A glimpse on the monumental Vertical Farms

Culture and art are essential to the human spirit, and are an inherent aspect of our utopian society. Without the need of working for survival, people can dedicate their lives to higher purposes, such as art, philosophy, and politics in academic spaces such as this one.

The inside of our retro-futuristic Library

In this Utopia, diversity is not only tolerated but celebrated. Different cultures, creeds, ethnic and social groups live alongside each in harmony, and their differences are no longer the cause of prejudice and fighting, but admiration and interest for one another. The pursuit of spiritual enlightenment is highly praised in this new society. 

A Temple for religious diversity

A Retro-Futuristic Utopia

AS Env Systems I

Situated on Gowanus bay and aiming to revitalize the once-industrial waterfront of Sunset park that is being rapidly gentrified, the factory is an urban metabolism that renews the site while also transforming organic food waste into innovative raw materials, thus creating a closed loop system. In addition to its productive, social, and educational aspects, this urban metabolism provides a rich natural habitat for the local flora and fauna. The factory edges are a living shoreline and deep landscape serving as a mitigator between machine and the environment. The wetlands carry the flora of the dry landscape into the water, providing additional types of wet habitats. The water plants do their part in cleaning pollutants from Gowanus Bay. The landscape operates as a tool for soil bio-remediation. It is planted with crops such as mushroom. The mushroom roots, or mycelium, have many benefits for eliminating pollutants embedded in the depths of the soil.

The dense covering of the factory creates a threshold between the controlled and mechanized processes of the interior with the wildlife that activates the site. The roof is heavily planted with lavender as to infuse the air of the adjacent neighborhood with fragrant aromas rather than smelly food waste. The building is strategically situated as to take advantage of the prevailing winds both in the exterior and interior functions.

Working Landscape - Pedestrian Entrance

The complex consists of open air, semi enclosed, and enclosed spaces. Essential spaces include the waste processing room, the triple deck refinement platforms, the bio-packaging manufacturing workshop, the processed goods export hall, the water treatment and energy generating rooms, the mushroom processing space, the hands on visitor classroom and the offices.

Ground Floor Plan

Skylights run across the roof structure in alteration with planters to provide a well-lit and ventilated space for all workers within the building. The planter beam structure of the roof folds down to shape the facade of the factory. This facade is planted with mushrooms. The mushroom roots, mycelium, are harvested and used in factory processes in combination with organic food waste to manufacture biodegradables.

Water Edge - Planter Variations

One of the main focuses of the factory is the educational component. Its program falls in line with NYC Mayor DeBlasio’s initiative for food waste as the next recycling fronteir. The invisible processes of transforming agrowaste into innovative raw materials are made visible for everyone to observe. Organic waste travels to the site on barges, reducing carbon emissions from vehicular transportation. This factory introduces a significant shift in the paradigm, shrinking distances and transforming waste into biodegradables, offering an alternative to a linear model where waste ends up in Landfills.

Factory Processes

This living remediation machine is a deep landscape. It emerges from the soil and grows incrementally. The productive beds are sloped with two orientations. While the mushroom beds face north and are planted with heavy tree canopies for shading, the crop beds face south. These planting beds are used for lavender as well as urban farming. The planter beams of the roof are a continuation of the landscape. They vary in depth, sometimes even extending from the roof to the ground. Along the walkable roofscapes are ramps leading down into the building. They function as viewing platforms for visitors to see into the activities of the factory floor. This bustling urban metabolism renews the site on a daily basis. It has many scales of impact, from the very local to the larger urban.

This project was done in collaboration with Yasmin Ben Ltaifa.

Organic Waste Processing

Urban Metabolism: The Factory Studio

Team: 
Ana Clara Cavalcante
Luca Augusto
Gustavo Zorzeto
Ana Paula Gomes
Otávio de Souza

Caio Frederico e Silva
Renan Balzani

Through the holistic lens of nature, waste is a mercurial concept. In a cyclical
dance, living things preserve the dynamic stability that colors the Earth. From
plants to fungi, and back, resources are continually transformed and passed on,
but never wasted. Notwithstanding, fervent as it is, urbanization has long evoked
a different picture. In Brazil (and in many countries alike), this scenario is especially
conspicuous, as waste disposal remains largely unregulated and inadequately
handled.
Accordingly, the loop reframes the avail of human overflow. Inspired by
long-established natural mechanisms, it intends to shelter the most affected
ones: garbage pickers. Leaflike, it mainly runs on sunlight and rainwater, while
wastewater and organic residues are harnessed through methanogenesis for
water heating and stove power. The slightly warped envelope is mostly based on
natural and recycled materials, thus it not only enables a sustainable building but
it fosters scavenging as a fruitful activity in modern society. Furthermore, along
with providing adequate housing, the loop's uses are manifold; its versatile layout
may assume diverse functions according to the inhabitants preferences, ranging
from a repair shop to a handicraft atelier.
Hence, this design proposal paves the way for a mindful landscape, in which both
resources and humans are encompassed by the all-around loop of things.

Lateral view of the Loop microhome in an already reconstructed environment.

Loop Microhome

Applied urban and architectural concept. One can observe the ability to change the landscape and people's lives through the application of architecture.

Land development

Exploded Perspective and Constructive System.

The energy cycle starts with the photovoltaic panels installed on the microhome's roof, which capture solar energy and convert it into electrical energy. This energy is used to power the house and stored in batteries connected to an inverter for later use when there is not enough sunlight to power the house.

In the rainwater cycle, the rainwater tank is used to collect rainwater that can be used for plant irrigation or non-potable purposes inside the house. In addition to feeding the hydroponic tank used to grow plants and vegetables without soil, making it possible to create a garden for consumption.

In the biogas generation cycle, the biodigester is used to treat organic waste and produce biogas, which is used to power gas stoves or other gas-powered appliances, such as gas water heaters. The final residue from the biodigestion process can be used as fertilizer for gardens and farms. The gas water heater is used as a source of hot water for bathing.

In the wastewater and organic waste cycle, constructed wetlands are natural water treatment systems. This process is carried out through the use of aquatic plants and microorganisms that absorb and transform nutrients and contaminants into harmless forms for the environment. The tertiary treatment of wastewater is used to purify the water that comes out of the house. This process removes unwanted contaminants and nutrients, making the treated water suitable for non-potable uses and stored in the wastewater tank.

Offgrid System

LOOP

The Mundane registers qualities that often go unnoticed or are deliberately hidden because they are deemed unfamiliar and thus undesirable. But it is precisely in these qualities where we are attempting to locate a new departure point for design which can tolerate the “strange”, and incorporate it as an active and relevant participant in the design process. By the means of hybridizing nature with existing mundane urban elements, parts that are usually unseen to people are now exposed, and become the new norm of design.

New York City is densely developed and highly artificial - The city's urban landscape is largely man-made, with towering skyscrapers, bridges, highways, and other structures dominating the skyline and tunnels, subways spreading out underground. Even Central Park is no natural landscape. Hence, New York City is chosen as the testing ground for the project. A number of “strange” categorical blends are examined together with artificial nature and then used to formulate the new norm.

Artificial nature
By hybridizing specific natural elements - metal, rock, flower, moss and tree together into one single form of object contributes to the artificial qualities. Traces of these natural elements will still be seen but they are not in their most natural form. Also, to further exaggerate the idea, Artist Takashi Murakami’s super flattened flowers with smiley faces are extracted by AI to contribute to the artificial quality of flowers.

Tunnel ventilation towers are one of the strangest structures in the city. It has the plain and monolithic architectural façade to camouflage itself into the neighborhood. 
Hybridized rock, metal, green and flower with smiley face flowers, keeping the monolithic appearance of the architecture.

Made with Midjourney

Tunnel Ventilation Tower I, New York City

Tunnel ventilation towers are one of the strangest structures in the city. It has the plain and monolithic architectural façade to camouflage itself into the neighborhood. 
Hybridized rock and gold metal, keeping the monolithic appearance of the architecture.

Made with Midjourney

Tunnel Ventilation Tower II, New York City

Modern day rooftop water towers made by hybridized rock, metal, green and flowers.

Made with Midjourney

Water Tower, New York City

A catalog of New York City water tower types, shapes and forms, materials throughout history.

Made with Midjourney

New York City Water Towers, 1978 - 2023

The skyscraper was a new addition to the Manhattan skyline with the wild idea of introducing a vertical central park to New York City.

Made with Midjourney


Manhattan skyscraper I, 2046

The architecture industry, city officials and politicians restlessly explored and realized their artificial nature enthusiasm to Manhattan super skyscrapers. the architecture is meant to be split into private commercial use on half and public landscape park on the other.

Made with Midjourney

Manhattan skyscraper II, 2048

The new Rock gives a new dimension to Central Park. The elevated park is a new landscape trend that responds to New York City, where everything is elevated. 

Made with Midjourney

Top of The Rock

The new Rock gives a new dimension to Central Park. The elevated park is a new landscape trend that responds to New York City, where everything is elevated. Inside the artificial rock park is the home for mechanical equipment, park infrastructure and water facilities for Central Park.

Made with Midjourney

The Rock, Central Park

Artificial Nature of the Mundane

DS 3B Studio ASSEMBLIES II

Pousada 4 Ventos

Team:
Luca Augusto Corrêa
Ana Clara Cavalcante
Lucas Bernandes
Maria Isabela Araujo
Heitor Ribeiro

Cynthia Nojimoto
Ludmila Santos de Andrade
Angelina Nardelli

The main objective of the project is to provide qualitative social housing to the local community, and to support those who are experiencing homelessness. By promoting the interaction of the building with the urban infrastructure in the neighborhood in which it is located, the project centralizes the worker's residence, improving their quality of life. The program includes a complete support system with urban equipment, commerce, educational centers, community centers, health centers, and green areas, in other words, urban planning for the working class, combined with architecture. Typologies are created that meet the demands of diverse families while respecting the individuality and singularity of the users.

Throughout the project, the concept of walkability is presented, where there is a perception of spaces and views through the paths traveled and social interaction, as well as open terraces with vegetable gardens and voids that promote the urban landscape and integration of vertical neighborhoods, spaces of contemplation and idleness essential in a metropolis like São Paulo. Based on the repertoire and design exercises, some elements were brought in to contribute to the guidelines defined for the site and the ideas discussed about the land and formal possibilities.

Thus, the idea of connecting the two buildings was initiated, while understanding the context and the interference of building heights, and bringing references to local architecture into the design, expressing movement and presenting a volumetry that stands out without erasing the existing history, contributing to and continuing with what is present. The connections also have a role in expressing the division of the implemented use sectors in the architectural form, demonstrating the functional character of the buildings, while the protruding slabs and guardrails highlight the structural character.

Concept and Design Approach

Aerial perspective and its relation to the surroundings.

Site Plan

The volumetry seeks to break away from the recurring orthogonality of São Paulo's cityscape while reinforcing the numerous movements and flows that make up the city center with its sculptural curves. Its red color represents its popular and social power, together with its curves associated with the complexity of human relationships and their organic qualities.

A footbridge draws the connection between institutional and residential, between work and home - a key movement for a large part of the population of a metropolis.

The interaction with vegetation and the purity of the materials used harkens back to the Paulista Brutalism and its recurring organic feature. The ground floor seeks to create intimacy with the idea of the high-rise building, inviting the passerby to take shelter.

The loose slabs reinforce the movements generated by the light curves that make up its design, giving meaning to the function of the footbridge and turning its path into a unique experience.

 Its movement understands its surroundings and adapts naturally to fit in, reinforcing the organic nature of the project, drawing light and shadow, and guiding the landscape.

Volumetry

The structures used were divided into three parts, which were reinforced concrete, steel beam, and steel deck for the institutional building's slab. The choice was defined according to the rigid core and the possibility of having no pillars, with one side of the 50m span bridge connecting to this core. Steel beams were chosen for the bridge construction due to the material's versatility, and the arch made along its length allows for a better-structured load support, providing a clear view.

The right building is built of reinforced concrete, with no beams, and its slab has a section to become structural. The pillars interconnecting the floors were made following a curved shape, and the rigid core was removed for better room coverage. A staircase and elevator shaft were placed at the end for better support

A population of approximately 400 people was calculated for the residential building and 220 people for the institutional building, requiring a total reserve of 42,000L in the residential building (divided into 16,800L in the upper reservoir and 25,200L in the lower reservoir) and 15,000L in the institutional building (only in the upper reservoir), with these reservoirs being made of cast-in-place concrete.

According to safety standards, smoke-proof enclosed staircases were designed with only refuge areas, based on the activities involved.

Furthermore, the necessary parameters for the elevators were calculated, using a Schindler model with a capacity of 10 people at a speed of 1.5 m/s. Due to the specificities and minimum times required for each building in their different uses, it was determined that two elevators were needed in the institutional building and three elevators in the residential building.

Complex 1st of May

nonLiteral.spatialFormations

new geometric explorations with spatial fragmentation and formation based on machine-interpreted emotions.

unTOLD.nonLiteral

4A Studio POSITIONS

Hotal Catussaba

Ritu bhardwaj

"From Waste to Wonder: Transforming Pallikarnai Marshland through Eco-Community Tower Innovation"

The brazen dumping of over 4500 tons of garbage daily in the ecologically-sensitive Pallikarnai marshland has reached alarming proportions. With the vital rainwater conduit reduced from 6000 hectares in the 1960s to a mere 593 hectares in 2012, officials have admitted that current source segregation initiatives have been unsuccessful. In response, an innovative solution aims to not only treat the garbage disposal problem but also create an eco-community tower that hosts multiple functions to restore and develop the ecology of its contextual environment. Join the movement towards a waste-free and sustainable future.

Drawing inspiration from the growing bud shapes of plants, a generative form has emerged with essential geometry that not only captures the beauty of nature but also incorporates aero-dynamical features. Taking into account the heavy wind factor in the vicinity of the site, located near the Pallikaranai marshland, this architectural masterpiece seamlessly blends functionality and aesthetics to create a sustainable and environmentally conscious skyscraper. The design represents a harmonious marriage between nature and architecture, paving the way for a greener and more eco-friendly future.

Nature-Inspired Architecture: Aero-Dynamic Skyscraper Design Based on Growing Plant Bud Shapes

Once sprawling over an area of 80 square kilometers, the Pallikarnai wetland in Chennai, India is a true marvel of nature. However, with rapid urbanization and human intervention, this once vibrant ecosystem has been reduced to a mere 80 square kilometers, with only a small fraction remaining as a natural wetland. As the only surviving wetland ecosystem in the city and among the last remaining in South India, the loss of this precious resource is a sad reminder of our impact on the environment. Let us not forget the beauty and value of nature and work towards preserving what remains for future generations to cherish.

Vanishing Treasure: Pallikarnai Wetland, Chennai's Last Natural Wetland Ecosystem

In a stunning example of form meets function, the innovative design of this eco-tower leverages the power of the Bernoulli effect to enhance airflow and promote sustainability. Facing the marshland, the tower's top portion is expertly crafted to create a negative pressure inside, drawing in air from the surrounding environment. The vertical component of the tower boasts a diverse range of functions, strategically arranged to optimize the building's environmental impact. Inspired by the shape of a growing bud, the tower's block program features a center passageway for the stack effect, allowing hot air to rise and escape from the tower's center, creating a continuous flow of cool, fresh air throughout the building. This architectural marvel showcases the possibilities of combining design and nature to create a truly extraordinary and environmentally-sensitive structure.

Revolutionary Eco-Tower Design: Harnessing Nature's Power for Optimal Airflow

At the heart of this breathtaking architectural masterpiece lies a commitment to sustainability and innovation. The sludges from the nearby dump yard are carefully processed and transformed into bio-gas and electricity, which are then expertly harnessed to power the entire site. The service floors of the towers act as a hub for the distribution of this energy, seamlessly integrating function and form in a way that is both awe-inspiring and practical. To ensure the comfort and tranquility of residents and visitors alike, a buffer zone of lush greenery surrounds the site, absorbing any noise from the gas converters and creating a serene oasis in the heart of the bustling city. This stunning display of architectural prowess is a true testament to the potential of sustainable design and its ability to shape a greener future for generations to come.

Site Plan- Powering the Future: An Architectural Marvel of Sustainability and Innovation

The tower's vertical component is a feat of functional design, with carefully arranged block programs that promote optimal air movement throughout the building. From the bottom to the top, the tower boasts a diverse range of functions, including bio-gas and electricity conversion, and a hub for the distribution of energy throughout the site.

As visitors approach the site, they are greeted by a lush buffer zone of greenery, creating an oasis of tranquility in the heart of the bustling city. Inside the tower, every detail has been considered, from the stack effect allowing hot air to rise and escape from the tower's center, to the carefully arranged block programs that optimize air flow and minimize environmental impact. This eco-tower is a stunning example of what is possible when architecture meets sustainability, and a beacon of hope for a greener future.

Designing the Skyscraper of Tomorrow: An Eco-Tower Built for Sustainability

This eco-tower is a stunning example of the future of sustainable architecture, combining cutting-edge technology with innovative design to create a building that is not only visually striking, but also environmentally conscious. By incorporating vertical farming and indoor recycling into its design, this tower demonstrates that sustainable living can be achieved without sacrificing comfort or convenience. This skyscraper not only features an aerodynamic design and innovative waste management system, but also prioritizes sustainable indoor farming. Its vertical farms use hydroponic and aeroponic technologies to grow fresh produce without soil or excess water, creating a truly self-sufficient urban agriculture system.

Programs and functions

The vertical farming institution campus in a skyscraper is a state-of-the-art facility designed to promote sustainable urban agriculture. It features cutting-edge vertical farming systems that use hydroponic and aeroponic technologies to grow fresh produce in a controlled environment, without soil or excess water. Additionally, the campus houses educational facilities, research labs, and community spaces, making it a hub for sustainable innovation and learning. Incorporating sustainable design elements such as green roofs and rainwater harvesting systems further reduces its impact on the environment. This innovative campus represents the future of sustainable urban agriculture and community-based educatio

The future education - Tower 1

An innovative indoor farming research lab promoting sustainable urban agriculture through hydroponic and aeroponic technologies in an eco-friendly, state-of-the-art design.

Growing Beyond Limits

An indoor farming mall integrating sustainable agriculture and retail in a vertical environment. With a diverse range of crops grown using innovative technology, this mall creates a welcoming space for community members to shop and learn about urban farming.

The Green Oasis - Indoor farming shopping mall. Tower -2

Mall with a stunning architectural atrium, bringing natural light into the vertical farm. With a range of crops and a community garden, this mall offers a unique shopping and educational experience, promoting sustainability and healthy living in an urban environment.

The Sky Garden - Tower 2

An indoor farming skyscraper that connects the community through sustainable food production. With community gardens, a farmer's market, and educational programs, this building cultivates a sense of community and encourages healthy living in an urban environment.

Green Heights - Tower 2

This groundbreaking skyscraper prioritizes community gardening and biodiversity alongside its advanced waste management and vertical farming features. The tower's innovative design creates a welcoming space for the community to engage in sustainable gardening practices, while an indoor recycling plant converts waste into valuable resources for the garden.

Building a Thriving Urban Community -  Tower 2

 Skyscraper that blends sustainability, community, and diversity. With vertical farming, indoor recycling plants, and amenity spaces, this building offers a unique living experience. The community garden and green spaces foster a sense of community and promote a healthy lifestyle, while also reducing the building's carbon footprint.

The Eco Nexus - Amenity Spaces - Tower 2

Designed to prioritize residential living, featuring eco-friendly indoor farming, recycling plants, and communal green spaces. The design maximizes natural light and ventilation, reducing energy consumption. The Sky Haven is a model for sustainable urban living.

The Green Haven - Tower 2

A Skyscraper Eco-Community with Farm-to-Table Restaurant" - This architectural marvel features state-of-the-art vertical farming and indoor recycling plant, alongside an eco-community with stunning residential houses and an on-site restaurant serving fresh produce from the vertical farm.

Vertical Oasis - Tower 3

Physical Model

The Rise of Sustainable Cities: Eco Community Towers and Vertical Farming

Sustainable food production and consumption are critical societal demands all around the world. In an era of scarcity of natural resources, frequent climate change, and a society heavily hit by food insecurity, expanding access to and supply of food with less environmental impact while reducing losses and waste should be a priority.

Urban agriculture emerges as a potential solution to a number of interconnected issues in urban systems, including waste management, health, land use, the possibility of reducing distances between production and consumption, the use of open spaces in the city, the disposal of household garbage, and the generation of occupational activity with subsequent income generation. Furthermore, it can actively impact in city adaptation to climate change and sanitary crises, such as the present COVID-19 pandemic.

The Agroecological Pavilion aims to combine the commercialization of affordable food with uses aimed at education and professionalization in a building lined on the premises of sustainable architecture and open to community participation in order to reduce negative environmental impacts, food insecurity, and food waste. Additionally, it enables a generator of employability, income, and education targeted for people who are in social vulnerability.

The agroecological pavilion - an urban farm - proposed in this work, seeks to explore the ways of protected agricultural cultivation, all guided by the precepts of agroecology and technology applied in agriculture, promoting sustainable productive ecosystems, with maximum preservation of natural resources and minimal dependence on external energies and agrochemical substances. 
The production will be destined for the trade of products and low-cost by-products at fairs, subscription sales or harvest-pay system, sectors responsible for the economic viability of the whole, thus being an institution of business innovation. Only the product that is already intended for something or someone is harvested. What remains or passes from the harvest season goes to the compost plants and/or to a biodigestor, which will produce energy to maintain the building, with waste on the brink of zero.

The proposal is that the farm count with the participation of the community, occupying jobs, enjoying workshops in agriculture, cooking, compostage and food and nutritional education, in order to teach the population - especially the most vulnerable portion - to produce food in their communities, to prepare nutritious meals and with full enjoyment of food and also develop a professional vocation in these areas, seeking the integration of these people through inclusion, employability and information focused on promoting means to ensure access and better quality of food.

In addition, the farm will allocate spaces for research in technology related to agriculture and the community will be able to participate in pedagogical visits to get to know the production and have contact with fresh products, seeking to resignify the relationship of society with food.  

Frontal view

In order to make the project relevant to the location in which it is placed as well as to the program and problem to which it seeks to react, the building's design is based on the premise of establishing the pavilion type.
In order to have protected agricultural structures in urban surroundings, the project aims to investigate what architectural features—in terms of materiality, form, and strategies—are required.
The pavilion will display a variety of protected crops grown using hydroponic, aquaponic, and aeroponic techniques, as well as more conventional soil-based farming methods. It will explore the most environmentally friendly methods of using these techniques by fusing architectural and agronomic technologies.

Further, a pedagogical route by means of external ramps to the building is created to promote a route for a journey guided with pedagogical purposes that are attractive to the external public, seeking to narrow down as relations of production and consumption, in addition to presenting as productive activities of minor impact of the farm for a society and inviting to participate in the community in offices of agriculture, compostage, and professionalization in the area.

Concept Diagrams

Considering the temperate subtropical climate that covers the project implementation region, in the city of Porto Alegre in the south of Brazil, strategies for environmental comfort have been adopted in a passive manner, not only for users, but to ensure the good efficiency of the internal and external cultivation areas to the project.  

During the warmer days, natural cross-ventilation and removal of hot air by fireplace effect are used through the ventilated boards and also high flags in the squads. During this period, mobile polycarbonate panels are used to control the desired direct sun incidence and filter the excess UV rays, and the gap between the double facade is completely free for air circulation. Already during the winter, usually strict in the area of implementation of the project, the facade functions as a trombus system on the northern and eastern sides, where the polycarbonate panels remain closed and the ends of the gap between the double facade close, forming a layer of unventilated air that captures and accumulates energy from solar radiation, passively transmitting heated air to the building, and can have the constant exchange of cold air for hot air. In addition, the lighthouse ventilation is closed to preserve the temperature, while the glass planes receive extensive natural, direct and indirect lighting.

The entire building is designed to function as a productive ecosystem, which seeks to renew natural resources rather than exploit them.

A productive ecossystem

The structural design of the project is given by the choice of the independent systems in engineered wood (MLC and CLT) seeking a relevant response, both for the formal and typological proposal, while at the same time being compatible with the intention of low environmental impact of the building and its function. Wood is carbon-neutral in terms of emissions to the atmosphere, as well as being renewable and mitigating the generation of waste at work by being a high-precision industrialized system.

In this way, it was possible to work with modular streamlining and coordination every 1.20m throughout the project, compiling the structure with complementary components and using apparent installations, significantly reducing losses and cuts.

Structure 

Details

Urban Agriculture as an agent of socio-environmental transformation

The project was to design the new gallery space for Ronin Gallery, one of the world’s leading dealers in Japanese woodblock prints and home to the most extensive collection of Japanese prints in the U.S., a highly designed space from museum-grade lighting and flexible exhibition space to unceasing attention to materials and historical details

Slide-out glass cases protect delicated prints, while long drawers below house the collection of larger scale prints.

13' long Japanese charred cedar planks create a continuous horizontal grain across the hundreds of slim print drawers. 

Ronin Gallery, New York

Dear citizens of Tirana,

At the beginning of the semester we received a letter from the Pallati i Brigadave, who sadly told us about his loneliness and splendid isolation. He feels trapped and powerless to change his condition.

After a few conversations with you, we realized that many of you did not know the Palace, or if you did, you did not have an emotional connection with it. We also heard the voices of those who take care of it, which believe that the Palace should be kept as it is. We are convinced that the role of this building has to be rethought in order to start to serve you - the people of this country. Standing empty without serving a purpose to the public is a sad future for the palace. Therefore, we looked for a compromise between keeping the palace protected under a glass bell and opening it completely to the public, we wanted these two expectations to be met.

After hearing your stories, we selected the rooms with the most historical and emotional value to stay in their current state, in order to mediate the visitor a narrative and also to reduce the cost of maintenance. The selected rooms and their connection form an instructive path which runs through the building and touches on the history of the Palace, its beauty, as well as its deterioration. In the new voids, which are scattered between the preserved rooms, we filled programs wich you thought should be enhanced in the city. The two realities coexist and overlap, and in both cases one can always catch glimpses of what is happening on the other side. Throughout this transformation we tried to enrich the building and reached a compromise.

Through the radical gesture of physically and visually open the palace to the city, you can emotionally (re-)connect to this symbolic building and in addition to give you the opportunity to discover for the first time or rediscover the beauty of the whole Palace.

The choices we have made have always tried to respond to your needs as a country as well of those of the city, in all its facets, so that you are a part of the transformation of the Pallati i Brigadave. It is a Palace that has never been a palace, and now it is the time that together we open it to the city and to all those who want to discover its beauty.

Sincerely yours, 

De-constructing Beauty

found objects

catalog of rooms

interaction

feedback

concept model

path section through the palace

axonometry

concrete model

conection to the city

visual connection to the city from the entrance ramp

duality: room of the palace and a new program space

overlap

close up concrete model

garden atmosphere

path through the Pallati i Brigadave

Deconstructing Beauty -Transformation of the Pallati i Brigadave

DS 3A Studio ASSEMBLIES
Instructor: Margaret Griffin

Project Overview:

This project explores the design of a micro-unit housing complex within an urban context.  Informed by the principles of cellularity, repetition, and typology, the project investigates the relationship between individual units, shared spaces, and the surrounding urban fabric.

Design Concept:

The project utilizes a unique generative design approach, employing a letterform as a figure-ground element within a custom JavaScript algorithm. This approach allows for the creation of unpredictable yet visually interesting shapes for the building's footprint. This form-finding process directly addresses the design brief's emphasis on cellularity and the creation of a unique architectural identity.

Generated figureground

Algorithm generating deform typeface

Axon render

Chunk render

Perspective render

Elevation render

Section

Floor plan

DS 3A Studio ASSEMBLIES

Climate change has a drastic impact on our world, irreversibly altering and transforming our built/unbuilt environments whilst beginning to govern where and how we live on this earth. Each of the images below, created by Midjourney, depicts how architecture might react and adapt to these harsh situations and relates to “biophilic design” which is described as “the practice of connecting people and nature within our built environments and communities”. In these images, the little left from nature is tried to be (re-) connected with humankind.
The first concept is related to the desert. Due to the greenhouse effects, the world would experience extreme draughts and have a very restricted supply of water. Therefore, how architects would design structures on such lands might become a critical issue in the future. The second group is related to the rising sea levels. Considering the fact that many coastal settlements are in danger of being submerged due to melting glaciers, evidently, a new style of life necessitates the creation of new dwelling spaces with varying levels of connection to the water. The third and final group includes imaginings of a possible ice age.

Team members are Melek Demiröz, Nur Elif Yurdaçalış, Tuğçe Utku Sümer, Nil Akdede.

Biophilic Design | Ice 

Biophilic Design | Desert

Biophilic Design | Water

Biophilic Architecture of Climate Change

Team:
Luca Augusto
Ana Clara Cavalcante
Gustavo Zorzeto
Caio César
Isabela Drumond

Caio Frederico e Silva
Roberta Carolina A. Faria

Women’s role in society is based on an unequal historical construction driven by men. However, both women and men are equally paramount in terms of collective survival. Female fertility also symbolizes the fertility of a people, whose biological cycles are associated with the natural cycles of the Earth. The nature, materialized by the Casamance river, which permeates the Tanaff valley, is an element of fertility, since it is an important inducer of socioeconomic development in this village. The river’s flowing waters signify hope, which is embodied in outcomes from the fields, nurtured, to a greater proportion, by the hands of women.

Inspired by the nature of women, associated with the natural dynamics of the Casamance River, the project pursues the idea of bringing a Social River to the center of Tanaf.

Therefore, the building seeks to embrace encounters between diverse folks through cultural exchanges and knowledge cultivation. This Social River, embodied in the Women's House, symbolizes a place of welcome, development and empowerment, given its ability to support women who have suffered some kind of violence, to train women for the job market and to stimulate debates about gender equity. While the Casamance River tears through the natural landscape, this building seeks to disrupt the local political landscape built by a patriarchal and macho society. This house opens space for women's insertion in the political, administrative and economic sectors, or any other space where they want to occupy. Moreover, its organic and sinuous shape creates environments that favor the democratic gathering of female diversity and,at the same time, unveils, through its curves, the rise of gender equity in the region.

The project is located in Baghere, in a region called Casamansa, in southern Senegal, one of the countries of West Africa. Located south of The Gambia and north of Guinea-Bissau, it is divided into three administrative areas: Ziguinchor, Sedhiou, and Kolda, with a population of 1.5 million people. It is situated in the central region of Sedhiou, in a valley called Tanaff, consisting mainly of a hydraulic basin of 480 km² that includes four other municipalities: Tanaff, Dioudoubou, Simbandi Brassou, and Niagha. The area is characterized by a rural environment with one of the lowest qualities of life in the region, with a lack of access to essential public services.
Climate change has caused the valley to be affected by desertification and salinization phenomena, resulting in the loss of more than 10,000 hectares of cultivable land and affecting aquifers, whose contamination accounts for an average of 60% of infections and diseases. At a micro-location scale, the Intergenerational Center will be located in the village of Baghere, with a climate similar to that of the city of Cuiabá (MT). The land is located in front of one of the main roads, favoring its enjoyment and is mostly flat, with a partially sandy and partially laterite background, surrounded by mango and acacia trees that reach a maximum height of 15 meters.

The project aims to go beyond its materiality, integrating the building with the landscape, people, and local habits in a harmonious and coherent way with the culture and climate of the region. The curved volumetry facilitates accommodation to the terrain while referring to the lightness, strength, and transformative power of the Casamance River, the main means of fertilizing the land and traffic of ideas and technologies. Considering the importance of the natural environment for the socioeconomic development of the village, the design configured to the project prioritizes the association with the extreme climate of Baghere.

Thus, the project develops through studies of solar incidence, wind orientation, thermal and lighting comfort. In addition, a module is extended from its volumetry, which allows for project expansion with the economic growth of the area, optimizing its space and functions. This module consists of the segmented volumetry itself, which allows for the use of the architectural program and ease in the realm of self-construction, with already acquired and specialized technology.

The layout of the Intergenerational Center in Africa was developed in the same way as the building design, using parametric studies to achieve thermal comfort and a sustainable project. The project focuses on a daycare center with spacious classrooms, allowing for ventilation and natural light, as well as an area for assistance, with changing tables protected from direct sunlight, as well as in the kitchen. The temporary lodging for the elderly has zoned rooms with suitable environments for achieving thermal comfort, with shading (using bamboo to create a kind of latticework), cross ventilation (optimized with the study of wind incidence according to the compass rose, dynamic openings that allow ventilation and protect from solar incidence), and chimney effect (through a high ceiling and large openings filled with a bamboo mat produced locally).

Although in the same building, the two proposals have their individualities strongly reinforced by the bamboo lattices used in front of areas 2,3,4,5, and bathrooms, to maintain thermal comfort through solar protection. The proposal aims to promote the vitality of the elderly guests, with direct contact with the children in the daycare center, if desirable, and their integration into administrative and auxiliary activities of the daycare or temporary lodging. Access to the building has been optimized for pre-existing paths, with main access to the daycare area and secondary access to the temporary lodging, allowing not only for thermal comfort but also for sound comfort in the environments. The expansion of the building was designed to maintain a balanced zoning of the spaces, directing the elderly guests of the temporary shelter to areas with the ideal thermal comfort for this typology.

Thermal Performance

Using the EnergyPlus simulation algorithm, an optimization of adaptive thermal comfort was carried out according to ASHRAE 55. The optimization was based on a sensitivity analysis for 5 design changes from the base model (I): change of earth brick walls to rammed earth walls, in favor of thermal inertia (II); replacement of common windows with brick perforated frames, reducing thermal load from direct radiation (III); rotation of the building azimuth from 200° to 255°, reducing solar exposure on the main facades (IV); insertion of bamboo (V) and vegetation (VI) on the hottest facades. As a result, all environments presented less than 65% discomfort due to heat, the expected value for the local climate.


Solar radiation

The solar exposure was examined by the solar radiation incident on the building envelope for four different situations: base model (I); rotation of the azimuth from 200° to 255° (II); insertion of bamboo (III) and vegetation (IV). Therefore, there was a significant reduction in solar exposure on the main facades, as evidenced by the cooler envelope (blue) of the final model (IV) compared to the warmer envelope (yellow/red) of the initial model (I).


Luminous performance

By using the Radiance simulation mechanism, the natural lighting performance of the building was evaluated based on the Daylight Autonomy parameter for 300 lux. Three scenarios were simulated: with the doors always open (i); always closed (ii) and open for 50% of the time (iii).

The construction system is simple to execute and uses techniques widely used in the region. To ensure support and protection against weather conditions, the building is supported on foundation beams, whose concrete is composed of water, cement, sand, laterite rock, and river shells, in a ratio of 1:1:2:2.5:0.5. Self-supporting walls in rammed earth are raised on the foundations. The construction process involves the compaction, every 10cm, of dry laterite soil layers without organic matter, within curved wooden board forms. Above the wall, a 10cm concrete belt is placed to support the roof structure, which is thatched and tied to the battens using wooden needles. A supporting structure made of Jacaranda is provided exclusively for the elevated wooden floor. The main beams of this structure are supported on pillars, while the floor joists are spaced 50cm apart to prevent excessive deflection of the floorboards. The doors of the house, as well as some sections between the wall and the roof, are sealed with woven bamboo, while the openings in the most exposed facades are constructed with perforated laterite bricks.


Materiality and Costs

The material selection was based on sustainability aspects, plasticity, resource availability, local experience, and environmental comfort. Laterite soil is one of the elemental materials of the house. In the form of perforated bricks, it favors natural ventilation and lighting. In addition, it composes the rammed earth walls, which provide cooler and more ventilated environments due to their high thermal inertia. The laterite rock complements the use of river shells as aggregate for concrete, which is limited to foundations and ramps.

The floor is composed of white wooden boards, which rest on a Jacaranda structure, a wood that also integrates the structure of the roofs. Bamboo performs the function of shading in outdoor areas, as well as functioning as a seal for doors and walls, benefiting the chimney effect. Another fundamental plant resource for the project is thatch, used on the roof of the house.

In summary, the use of soil and wood was prioritized because they are widely used resources in Senegal's vernacular architecture, have low embodied energy, and produce little waste. The adopted system facilitates the execution of the project, which was designed in two phases.


Integrated Design

In order to make decisions based on computational simulations in the early stages of the project, the architectural model of the building, developed in the Rhinoceros tool, was parameterized in the visual programming tool Grasshopper. Thus, the geometric information was complemented and explored for the generation of an analytical model, adapted for the performance of thermal and lighting simulations using simulation tools made available by the Ladybug Tools plugin. Therefore, changes in the architectural model, such as geometry, shading and orientation, were automatically translated into the analytical model, which provided feedback on thermal and lighting performance. The development of an integrated design favored the dynamism and flexibility of design choices, resulting in a project that was both aesthetically and environmentally appropriate.

Rain gardens and hydrological cycle

Rain gardens were central to the landscaping project. To assist in the collection of rainwater and the preservation of the hydrological cycle, the allocation of rain gardens of approximately 100m2 was planned, which can be expanded as the project expands. These elements contribute to the maintenance of the water cycle on the land and were strategically located at the lowest points of the land and with the highest flooding, to facilitate the drainage of water to the groundwater table. The project has a social commitment as it anchors the bioclimatic dimension to the dimension of urban resilience, seeking to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).