A1 Summary Board

The Presentation: The Place to Be

Information Booklet (Including Seeds) & Structural Integrity Test Model

Presentation Reflection

Comments made

• Alternative arrangement of pods for different areas around Australia.
• Response:  I had considered this and there is definatley potential for the pods to be rearranged because of the flexibility a module system offers.
• Solar Power Panels.
• Response: I had discussed the option of solar power panels being integrated into the screen as a type of cladding.  
• Disability Access.
• I had considered disability access and thought because the structure is inteded to be easily dismantled, distributed and reassembled in new locations, that it would make it too difficult to incorporate a lift.  However, on reflection I agree that it would be essential to incorporate the lift to avoid discrimination and truely make it an inclusive event.  

Could have shown the Hive in a location closer to the railway.

Response: The Hive would utilise the railway between cities and a truck would be used within smaller regions to take the structure to a green space. 

The Hive: Program Timetable (4 Government Services)

The Hive

Elevation

Elevation

Virtual Learning Screens.

Level 2 Perspective.

Community Event Space.

Learning: Healthy, Avtive and Sustainable lifestyle.

A space to meet, collaborate and share.

Lecture space: Learning.

Brisbane.

Brisbane.

The Screen: Flexibility

The screen offers the opportunity to be changed depending on the area the Hive is located.  Options include:
Solar Power 

http://www.solartechnologies.co.uk/Technologies/Wallcladding.aspx

Different types of Plastics: http://www.materia.nl/

Drawing Process

 Presentation Method: Exemplar
Reference: Berman, I., & Khafif, M. (2008). Urbanbuild: Local Global. China: William Stout Publishers.

Response to Criteria 3: Poetic Resolution

Presence and Identity (12.5%): Has the impact of the proposed entity's presence been considered and its identity been chosen with strong understanding of what it needs to represent and signify?

Description: It is vital that the presence of your proposed entity is appropriate for the context and signifies the services it offers. It therefore is very important to give specific consideration to how people identify and recognise your proposed architectural entity as a whole and/or a part.

The structure represents the hive mentality, an approach based on a distributed system, all working together.  The structure itself is strong because each unit works together to disperse the loads.  
The 'Planting the seed' structure is a temporary event, where the community can get involved in learning about healthy eating and growing your own food from a hands on experience.  The structure is quite large, so it will stand out and grab peoples attention, however timber panelling and the plants will soften the structure.


It is intended that the structure could be placed in a park, which would have the space for a temporal farmers market to occur if the locals wanted to have one.  The idea that the individual garden beds can be removed at the end of the 'event' and given to locals, means that it is an active approach to inspiring healthy living for individuals and the community.  

The 3 original ideas in creating identity and presence that are adopted from Parliament House, 

• The Flag: the emblem of the nationhood
• The Hill: embodiment of place
• The wall: mark of human inhabitation

The Flag: the emblem of nationhood will be represented by what Australia wants to be recogised for in the future: Healthy, integrated and sustainable practices.

The Hill: Embodiment of place: Through research it has been found that people involved in farmers markets and community gardens highlight the sense of place that is present.  Key aspects will be the energy of the people who visit as its a temporal event, the connection to the landscape through views and the unique experience.  Taking home either the knowledge and inspiration or for some locals, to take home an established garden bed, means that the governement can communicate an idea to people on a daily basis within their homes.

The Wall: Mark of human inhabitation: The temporal intervention within a local park and the life it will bring to the space for the time it is there will represent the mark of human inhabitaiton.  The limited disturbance to the landscape will represent the idea of 'Self-Engineering Ecologies', where Australia can aim for...

 'A future where we understand just as much about the "removal chain" as we do the "supply chain" (Doherty &Mostafavi, p 168)

User Experience (12.5%): Has the experience of users been considered and effectively presented from the perspectives of users?

Description: It is imperative that you made your design decisions based on the requirements of people who will experience and use (a part of) the proposed entity. You need to demonstrate not only generic appearances of spaces with people, but also construct scenarios to orchestrate how specific people in specific need experiences and utilise services offered by the proposed entity or parts.

Looking from stairs, as you enter the platform on Level 3.

Looking towards stage from second level balcony.

Aesthetic Rigor (12.5%): Has the effort been made to pay attention to detail in your communication?

Description: This criterion is to reward your attitude towards preparing successful architectural communication. As architects, you will spend majority of time communicating ideas to your peers, bosses, clients, engineers, contractors and/or other stakeholders. What and how you prepare and present directly influence how others evaluate the credibility of your claim. Your commitment towards visual communication during development stages (through blog entries), final presentation and in your final submission is to be assessed.

Response to Criteria2: Tectonic Resolution

Purpose and Function (12.5%): Has the purpose and function of the architectural entity be chosen in response to (latent) needs? Is the design response appropriate?

Description: It is imperative that your design effectively provides parliamentary and/or governmental services in response to needs. You are to creatively investigate the (latent) needs, and it is essential that your proposed architectural entity provide solutions or opportunities for people to resolve issues.

Governmental Service in response to the Economic & Social Cost of Obesity in Australia

The statistics on the costs of obesity on the Australian economy total to 37.7 billion dollars and through research it has been found that ‘lifestyle intervention’ has a cost-benefit to the economy.  As a result the Government has developed an education facility that will be distributed throughout Australia, based on the concept of a hive mentality, community garden and education centre, the aim is to capture people’s attention, imagination and provide education on healthy eating habits, growing your own food and sustainable living.  The overall aim of the project is to “plant the seed” to inspire healthy and sustainable living practices as a means of prevention of obesity and the economic and social cost it poses on the Australian people.

From a qualitative research assignment myself and a group completed last semester we found through research and interviewing members of the Community Garden in West End, that the benefits were extensive and extended beyond the community garden setting.  The members spoke about how people who were just passing by would stop in for a chat, local residents would drop of unused materials for recycling and re-use and parents would bring their children to learn that tomato's don't just come from the supermarket.  The community garden broke down the boundary of age, race, language and culture, as it is an inclusive activity that works due to the diverse group of people, where the retired people often would share their knowledge with the younger generations.  

The Parliamentary Agent : Bottom up Approach

In relating the principles of a community garden to a parliamentary agent, it would be a bottom up approach to influence and inspire the local community to improve health, social & community aspects, share resources and information and positively impact the environment, through the production of local food and recycling/ reuse of materials. 

The intention would be that the local community would shift their way in thinking and behaviours, which, inturn would influence and support policies made within the government relating to health and sustainability.

 Reference: http://www.medibank.com.au/Client/Documents/Pdfs/Obesity_Report_2010.pdf

Circulation and Access (12.5%): Has the use of architectural entity been studied and the circulation within and/or access to it been studied? Is it evident in the design? Has the development been well documented and communicated well in the blog and final presentation / submission?

Description: No matter what you design, it will fail if people are not given appropriate access to, within and/or between your proposed spaces. It is very important that you provide enough evidence in your development stages and final outcome that your architectural entity has good circulation and access.

Circulation Design Process

Concept 1:  The circulation wouldn't work, as the it would be mostly vertical and there wouldnt be enough room to move around, considering it is a public learning centre.

Concept 2:  The form may not be structurally sound and there isn't enough flat surface for the public to walk on. Flipping the hive structre around so that the base is flat has the advantage that the pod doesn't need to be as high, however it makes it difficult to have a continuous flat surface. 

Concept 3 (The flower):  Circulation could work with a spiral stair at each end and the continuous flat central walkway, however to join the floor, it would loose the faceted ceiling effect. Also, the structure looks too symmetrical.

Concept 4: Having the pods orientated with the flat surface on the ground means the overal height can be reduced, however it results in people always having to walk up stairs and doesn't provide any resting moments.  The structure is too symmetrical.

Concept 5: The circulation could work if the pods were scaled up.  With the smaller pods, in order to get the flat floor space, means that extra materaials are required, moving away from the hive concept and loosing the faceted ceiling effect.  As a public venue, I think it would be more appropriate to have a flat walkway (means people can enjoy the view).   

Concept 6: The elevated flat walkway would provide good views for the user and allow some time to rest.  Keeping the pods in the original orientation means that the irrigation system can work well, with collection points and drainage, running the water to the pod below.  (It is important that the plants don't get waterlogged for healthier plants).  Scaling the pods up, results in the faceted ceiling effect and means the structure is made from the honeycombe shapes alone, working together to maintain structural integrity.  Circulation could work, except it may be to high, it might be better to keep it at 3 pods high.

Concept 7: Reducing one level, results in the need for less stairs and provides a flat walkway, where people can enjoy the view, partake in gardening and stop and relax.  For the structure to work, it may need another pod added for support.

 Concept 8: Adding the extra pod, has the benefit of making it asymmetrical, also providing a different experience, as there will be room for people to rest on the second level and listen into any lectures or discussion that are going on within the 'lecture' or 'gathering' space. The circulation can work as it would require 2 lots of spiral stairs and then the flat walkway needs to be wide enough for people to be able to stop and learn about how to garden, so there needs to be a central circulation space on the platform and space for people to stop on the edges.

 Circulation: Final outcome
The final solution requires 2 levels of spiral stairs and the elevated platform will be wide enough to accomodate a central flow of people with space to stop in small groups on the edges.  It provides a platform on the second level for people to stop and listen to the lecture, giving them the freedom to leave whenever they like, without disturbing the event. The aim is for there to be 2 programs within the structure, 1) The experience of the gardens & 2) The lecture space.  This solution keeps them separate, however allows a moment of integration on the second level.

 

Structural and/or Operational Integrity (12.5%): Has the structural and/or operational integrity been studied and made evident in design? Has the development been well documented and communicated well in the blog and final presentation / submission?

Description: How believable is your proposition? It is very important that the proposal demonstrates your design decisions are informed by clear understanding of physical and practical limitations. You are required to demonstrate structural integrity of your design proposal, and/or in some cases, operational integrity to show how the distributed or virtual artefacts work as an architectural entity.

Structural Integrity Investigation