Arena Green site is a nature’s miracle in the heart of San Jose’s urban environment. Our Proposal “Temple of Nature” celebrates the beauty of nature by creating a spatial experience through dynamic parametric structure and engagement of the surrounding environment with architecture. The Icon (Temple of Nature) will be located in the central portion of the Arena Green site on the Northern side of Guadalupe River between St. John Street and Confluence point.

The Icon will act as a bridge pavilion which will connect the Arena green west to Arena green east through Guadalupe River. The form of an icon evolved from regular hexagram, which allows an individual to capture the breathtaking vistas of Arena Green through its six fins, which are formed by doubly sheltered hyperbolic paraboloid roof. The parametric structural form of an icon celebrates the innovation and technological advancement in Silicon Valley, which facilitates generating the intricate geometric shapes. The circular path surrounded the central void inside the Icon allows an Individual to observe the beauty, sound, and depth of the Guadalupe River. The Oculus (circular opening in the center of a roof) enables the penetration of sun rays inside the structure. Sunrays combined with mist will form a “Rainbow” inside. The mist will be created through an artificial mechanism located around Oculus. Natural lighting, Open cross ventilation, and use of locally available material will minimize the carbon footprint, hence will make this Icon as “Net Zero.”

Temple of Nature will provide a unique opportunity to the viewers to enjoy the phenomenal beauty of nature and innovation in its most mystical way.

The Ambulatory Surgery Center ASC) is located in Ames, Iowa, to provide a facility for an outpatient surgery service in the city through master planning of the whole site. The massing and positioning of the building has been carefully considered for the optimum sun exposure and to allow room for future growth and expansion horizontally and vertically. Amescape is a destination of youthfulness and example of modern design incorporation in the healthcare environment to integrate the facility with the surrounding student community creating a strong architectural statement. Transparent curtain walls around the waiting area, consultation lounge and staff lounge with a unique shading device, and careful placement of skylights imparts a meaningful architectural response to provide natural light into the interior. The placement of PP and all the lounges providing views facilitate a sense of connection to its recreational and empathetic landscape while an interior rock garden provides the same experience of positive distraction as well as daylight exposure within a contained green-house like setting to minimize infection.

Design Process

The demographic and socio-economic analysis for the adjacent area and the county has been a primary design driver – the young and energetic student population of Iowa State University, the predominant age-group of Ames. Adjacency and relational map has been prepared to guide the decision making for efficient space planning and circulation to minimize infection and provide as much natural view as possible for the patients, visitors and staffs. This project was designed during the covid19 lockdown phase, which made me realize the need of a multipurpose and flexible space in any facility to be converted during emergency situation.

Design Concepts

This ASC is designed with the concept of ‘Vogue’ - a prevailing style of particular time. It has imparted its own presence and identity amongst the monotonous architectural style and the flat landscape of Iowa. This facility portrays the gesture of modernity and elegance which will serve as a destination for the millennials surmounting the clinical environment. The strategic goal was to maximize efficiency and quality outcomes in order to minimize risks of infection through space planning and advanced technology. The tactical goal was to provide a variety of design strategies indoor and outdoor, that could make a positive effect on patients and their caregivers to reduce stress and anxiety in different areas. The innovation was to make a provision for a flexible space in an ASC to illustrate adaptability by converting the space with separate entrance and exit, when necessary.

Outcomes

Patient and staff outcome was anticipated through efficient zoning and programming, positive distractions and natural view for stress relief, and daylight strategies with skylights, light corridors, interior garden and windows. The outcome focus was also on the experience of patient family and visitors during their waiting time in the facility with variety of indoor and outdoor landscaping, sitting and lounge provisions integrated with minimalistic and contemporary design elements through material, texture, color and furnishing featuring a modern, transparent and vibrant scheme. The number of young population visiting the facility and the time spent by the visitors and stuffs using various indoor and outdoor relaxing features would be the measure for success. Converting the ASC into a quarantine test center would actually prove the adaptability and efficiency of its emergency pandemic planning. A Post Occupancy Research is needed to be conducted to identify the improvement in reduction of stress and anxiety and minimization of hospital born infections.

Research

Were research papers and other forms of evidence evaluated during design? Were research questions developed? Was there a specific hypothesis about the relationship of a design concept to an outcome? Is a research project envisioned?

EBD based research literature has been consulted to develop a minimalistic and stylistic hospital environment that would attract the youth minimizing the risk of infection and reducing the stress and anxiety for both patients and stuff. The project was also the result of my investigation about transforming a facility during a pandemic situation like covid19. WHO guidelines for Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (Sari) Treatment Facility Design was consulted for proposing a flexible area, envisioned as a consultation lounge to alter and redesign as a quarantine test center during an emergency situation.

Evidence-Based Design

EBD process was applied in the project through defining objectives, and finding sources for relevant evidence in the healthcare environment, for nature distractions and positive effect of daylight, and improved floor layouts and work settings

There are not much EBD research available yet to design hospital environments to combat an infectious pandemic situation which was another driver for this ASC design.

The project sought to establish the identity of a site in its scale and presence within the unique sphere that is Seattle. The perspective to which we view the city tells the story of the place. The Museum intends to tell the story not only of the air and water activity of Lake Seattle but of the sky and the sea that exists within. The site is a portion of Gasworks Park which is renowned for historic narrative and preservation. Respecting the unique rhythm of the site, the museum serves as an axial marker to connect between parks, water and the city beyond. To recognize the nearby seaplane traffic, the building austerely presents itself in the landscape and allows viewers to figuratively reach out and experience the activity of the lake. The concept of this museum from its inception intended not only to be a vessel for objects but to represent a dialogue between buildings and objects. The intricate parametric facade that composes the building also becomes part of the environment. How we choose to interact with the structural internally and externally is part of the experience.

Rwanda Chapel is a space for enlightenment which connects the soul of native people with nature through its program.The Chapel serves as a gathering space for the whole community & enhances the relationship between MAN & NATURE through its connection of indoor and outdoor.

Facade, local material usage, like bamboo, brick ,rammed earth and local stones celebrates the holiness & purity of mother earth to provoke the humbleness of human nature.

BY DEBANJANA & ANIKET

PROJECT SUMMARY:

 Black Contemporary farm serves as an experimental laboratory for ongoing investigation intended to expand our knowledge specific to the study of atmospheric logics. The field station is located at 26107, 530 Avenue, two miles south of Ames, Iowa. Using experiential perceptions as special condition, the project focus on the act of making and curating a series of research assemblies within a dormant seed-drying facility constructed in 1979. This work might be best understood as a peculiar deposit of site adjusted material stagings that indicates the presence of and makes clearly recognizable, its context as referent rather than source or sitting

Mirage is an expression of agriculture landscape of Iowa.  It delineates the seen and unseen energy flow of harvest field.  It is an art installation at Black Heritage Farm which portray our emotions for rural Iowa .

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: 

The sense of spatial and experiential independence has largely associated with the landscape of Iowa. This spatial and unionized form of independence was defined by the economic dependency on market forces, food industry and government policies. Iowa was reinvented in the nineteenth century as a reflection of the rationality of capital production. This resulted in the overlay of a grid system of surveys that indiscriminately subdivided the land subduing its embodied natural and cultural characteristics. Family farms have been consistently mechanizing and increasing production, the demand for more farmland has increased, which resulted in prosperous farmers purchasing production ground from other farmers. This has made the family farmer’s space unstable as it is consistently under market fluctuating demands and trends of government policies. This economic condition has produced spatial and communal instability because it has caused frequent restructuring in the living space. The impact of farming development has been even more apparent, which results into vacant farm sites, along the various roads are a common scene. Black heritage farm is one such quiescent site in which temporary installations being developed which provoke a temporal spatial encounter, fueled by a desire to understand the simultaneous and complex nature of cerebral and corporeal experience.

Mirage is an optical illusion caused by the atmospheric conditions, pertaining to the appearance of a sheet of water on a hot road caused by the refraction of light from the sky by heated air. The installation is inspired by the same notion within the agriculturally oriented environment in the rural landscapes of Iowa. The arcane ambience and light condition of the bin, creates an optical illusion of desolation. As we explore further the line work expresses the cloaked flows of energy and processes that are central to corn drying bins. By utilizing the muted visual weight and subtle reflective qualities of lines, this plane is concealed upon the introductory approach into the bin and will introduce itself, as the user crosses the threshold into the interior. Aiming for an aura of simplicity, the calibration of the wires and the connection points are essential to the experience evoked.  The indiscernible trait of line work makes the installation vivid and give the bin an idiosyncratic identity. An installation that is more invisible, yet more didactic; an installation that is more silent, yet stentorian.

This Art Installation is done under the guidance of Professor “Peter Goche” from Iowa State University.

See more at

: http://www.vasturaag.com/mirage-reconstructed-space/

Saint Louis has hot and humid summers and cold and humid winters. The goal was to design an energy efficient building with facades analogous to the sun orientation and passive design strategies. We maintained the street orientation which was 21.5 degree off axis to integrate the building with the existing site topography. The important aspects that were considered while designing the building facades were, the amount of natural light for the interior spaces, public/private spaces connection, downtown location, Saint Louis arch vistas and the ratio of transparency vs opaque on the facades. The main building has a user friendly south facade, with operable louvers. Openings in the slabs allow natural ventilation and stack effect.  Roof of the community center will be use for planting vegetables and rain water collection. Solar panels were also installed to consume energy and to lowering the energy cost . The roofs of the town houses were provided by cozy relaxation space, with great vistas of Saint Louis skyline.         

Team : Aniket Nagdive and Bogdan Machedon 

Instructor : Ulrike Passe and Kris Nelson 

The Challenge

Design a mobile visitor center, using shipping containers. The centers will be transported and set up in various locations around the city, based on a specific event.

Conceptual Idea

Visitors Centre is an important building of any city. It gives you the important information regarding the city and the events happening throughout the year. Because of its particular functionality and identity, the building should be something which symbolizes the city and its culture.Considering this concept, I have designed my visitor’s center as an Installation + Visitors center. The visitor’s center consist of 5 shipping containers which can be   accessible for North and South directions. Floor-to-ceiling glazing walls on the east and west facades admit natural light and allow visitors inside to remain a part of the activity of the square.In north and south sides, each shipping container contains colorful vertical metal strips which symbolizes LOVE and HAPPINESS,expressing the culture of brotherly love of Philadelphia. Thus colorful visitor’s center act as a Visitor’s Centre + Installation.Upper floor of the visitor’s centre consist of 40’ long shipping container which act as a "Panorama Gallery" in which visitors can have a panoramic vistas of the particular place.

On Headlines

http://archive.design.iastate.edu/news/6/16/2016/nagdive

In an urban milieu of Chicago this residential building along the Lake Michigan, stand unique with complementing to its surrounding.The structure in this landscape feels something contained rather than a rigid framework.Exposed concrete and brick walls are systematically designed to allow volume of air and light to pass through the building.The spaces are designed considering the usability of the area and its connectivity with the outside world. The juxtaposing of the spaces are done in such a way that it feels they are evolve in an organic progression.The outside sitting space is oriented towards Lake Michigan which gives a canonical view of the surrounding. The sitting lounge consist of two unique spaces, an alcove library in which we can enjoy reading in an enclosed space and a visual corner, I call it as a magical sit out, where we can see an infinite Lake Michigan along with the building skyline.Two bedrooms with attached bathroom are located towards west which are accessible through dreaming space. Dreaming space is a semi enclosed transparent roof space between two bedrooms where we can rest and see the night sky for long hours, hence entering towards dream world.The south is consist of kitchen /dinning space along with one bedroom which are connected with the outside view of the surroundings.

Chatri ruins conservation at Balapur, Maharashtra India

The initial thought of designing the logo was to make it as minimal as possible. I was trying some alteration with Squares and Straight lines. The juxtaposition of words with elongated rectangles were also considered during the initial phase. Gradually, I broke down a square into triangles and played with the words to achieve symmetry.
The final logo was evolved by breaking down the triangle which was separated from a square.

Font : DIN Narrow

Colors : Black & Grey