Fall 2010, Comprehensive Architectural Design Studio
OVERVIEW
The University of Washington Special Collections Archive and Media Commons is a facility that houses rare media alongside new and innovative digital media. The building lies on the boundary of the campus’s northwest side on the open green space known as Parrington Lawn. The building concept developed from the relationship between different programmatic elements, while paying the most attention to the archive and rare books.
The University of Washington Special Collections Archive and Media Commons is a facility that houses rare media alongside new and innovative digital media. The building lies on the boundary of the campus’s northwest side on the open green space known as Parrington Lawn. The building concept developed from the relationship between different programmatic elements, while paying the most attention to the archive and rare books.
Collage perspective view from northwest (urban face).
SITE+CONTEXT
The building is on the campus of the University of Washington, located in Seattle, Washington and responds to the challenges of the site by allowing for light to enter the building from all sides. The building responds to the climate by utilizing daylighting strategies as well as solar orientation to reduce the need for active systems. The building reacts to the site by activating the street and setting up a dialogue between the campus and the adjacent context of the city.
CONCEPT
The concept of the building is based on the polarity of the program. The two elements of the building are divided by a central service core. This area allows for the storage of building services, as well as structural support. The core also serves to divide the context of the site. The core marks the boundary between the urban fabric and university campus.
The building is on the campus of the University of Washington, located in Seattle, Washington and responds to the challenges of the site by allowing for light to enter the building from all sides. The building responds to the climate by utilizing daylighting strategies as well as solar orientation to reduce the need for active systems. The building reacts to the site by activating the street and setting up a dialogue between the campus and the adjacent context of the city.
CONCEPT
The concept of the building is based on the polarity of the program. The two elements of the building are divided by a central service core. This area allows for the storage of building services, as well as structural support. The core also serves to divide the context of the site. The core marks the boundary between the urban fabric and university campus.
Preliminary structural parti sketches.
Floor plans (first through fourth floors, left to right respectively).
Site plan of proposed building on Parrington Lawn.
Section through north-south axis of building.
STRATEGIES
Unique strategies that are implemented in this building are the interior gardens that aid in the building’s water system. Water collected from the roof is brought into the building and cycled through the enclosed living machine. Interior spaces are programmed to allow the maximum amount of public interaction on the ground floor, layering up to more private spaces on the upper floors. This allows students, faculty, and researchers spaces that will provide them with the least amount of disruptions, while enhancing their personal experience.
Exterior spaces are created that allow for a more formalized Parrington Lawn, as well as creating a more defined axis into the campus interior. As a continuation of the building’s water treatment system, a series of exterior pools and plantings aid in the filtration and circulation of the water.
Elevations from left to right: south, east, north, respectively.
East-west section, highlighting interrelationships between program and space.
Interior perspective collage of central atrium.
