Tuesday, September 4, 2007


The final compendium of ideas: in my last site "regurgitation". Now to the building wants to form evolve.
Gus

3 comments:

bac dmarch said...

Gustavo,

Okay, so the circle is important. What is going on with the building? The concave corner worked well referencing 1/8 of the globe. Gathering naturally due to its form. How does the store do this? The bridges were a start, maybe part of the end is found in these bridges. I would argue that the band that wrapped your building was a version of the winners circle. One that might be diminished by an actual circle on the ground. What I learned from watching stand up comics is that they let the audience do the work. They tell what seems to be an entire joke - then pause long enough for the audience to absorb it and respond - they then take the audience deeper into that same joke finding more places for pause and response. They are masters of timing. They are unfolding an experience as they tell their stories. Architecture is also about unfolding experiences. What is essential is that we find places for the audience to pause. In this case for their eyes to rest.

I think the recessed corner and the wrapping tell a fair amount about the building and the corner. The cricle in the ground maybe tell too-much-all-at-once. Is there a way to reinforce gathering by simply placing a shard of the globe on the corner by the library? Is there a space for a single bench that can place one person in direct view of the globe and thus create a bridge across the intersection?

A move like this is very subtle. It starts telling the story, but allows space for the story to continue as one moves closer to the actual story and into the store. Maybe you should think about phenomenal bridges instead of literal bridges. A preist is a bridge between mortals and gods. How can a fragment bridge across the intersection to create a place in between? How does this experience continue inside, quietly?

Jaclyn said...

Gus,
I was wondering if you have implemented your ideas to the interior of your building? I too am beginning this as we only have a few weeks left! I think there is a lot of potential for you to implement the gathering thesis into the interior. Again, don’t be literal about it though. Think about how you can demonstrate gathering without really gathering. I look forward to your next post.

-Jaclyn

Gus G.-Angulo said...

Ted,
“Comply”, …. I will get to that in a minute!
I am teaching my 3 year old boy to play the piano (all kind of musical instruments for that matter!) and he likes it and enjoys it,….. he plays (on his own way),…..and he “performs” for me when I ask him, but the time I opened the piano and I showed him how the “hammers” hit the strings and that is how the sound is produced,….well that was a revelation for him….. he made a connection!!!
I just feel like that with this project, my mind has made a connection and it is fascinated with it! (something I have been talking with Amr! - that is way the “circle” got mentioned in my previous blog.)
Now back to my initial statement, I am working on the next steps for the project and I will “comply” with the requirements of it (and yours),
I mentioned this, because I feel that the big part of my building is already defined, and now I just a mater of asking the “context” the right questions to get the right answers, and the important part is that I see the “hammer hitting the string” and now I can see where the “sound” comes from, and I am not acting just to the command “play it son” but to the fascination of knowing where the sound is coming from.
It’s exactly like you mention regarding the “embracing” sphere section, or the “unifying” band around my building and for me all immerse in the connotation of “mapping” of Copley square, Boston.
I feel (and this is part of the revelation) that the same shape that is embracing the out side / corner, (not just by transparency), is getting the people inside to the one out side of it, by the canopy effect (one gives one receives).
As well, now that my old “connecting store/square bridge” has evolved to a “space intersecting / corner connector second level plaza” connecting visually and elevation wise. There is the way in which now I am reaching to the church in a suggestive way at both ends of the elevated plaza by an extended “balcony”.
I agree with you that a circle in the ground might be taking away from the “perimeter” band effect of the building, but then I wander if actually to have a more busy ground is what I want to be my “boats ting post”.
I need to ponder in the great idea you suggested about the standing comedians (audience to the work – unfolding experiences – just like your stair) I will get back to you on that.
I think my approach to “tell a story” was suggested in the way I repeated some of the vertical fans (mapping) in the stair at the square, but I take in great consideration the idea of a subtle hints. (Next step is to develop the DD / CD)
I think you are right about simplicity , and the interesting part for me know, is that even if I take out the bridge, the circle, the tunnel, etc, I feel my building still have essence of all that, the “insinuated bone structure” of it (just the way we understand Picasso – another revelation)
Gus