Darwin Yellowhair's Final Chapel Project

I had a few major themes and ideas starting this project: the ocean, the sky, symmetry, triangular forms and hierarchy through height. I wanted the architecture and major forms of the building to bring a sense of sacredness to create a sanctuary. I felt that triangular forms were exotic, but if used correctly could be simple and astounding. This combination could create a wonderful experience, which I strived for in my design. I felt that the irregularity of the forms could be controlled if symmetry was incorporated.

The main structure of the chapel is where my design started with other spaces branching off. I chose the make the chapel not face the ocean, but face north to avoid since the wall between the pews and ocean is glass. So if they turn they can see the ocean, which adds to the experience. My zen view uses this same pane to view the ocean. It is seen in transition in the lobby where a slit, much like those outside, is cut through the thickened wall between the ocean and lobby.

I wanted a hierarchy of height to symbolize the journey to the "heavens" or "god" from Earth. The ground floor of the building is at 10' which surrounds most of the building. A 20' scoop can be seen in the lobby as the person journeys to the chapel. Then I used the 30' vertical limit in the chapel to give the feeling of ascending to "god's hands" or "heaven". The vertical beams at the highest point symbolize this as well as add expressive light for the chapel.

Interior:

The spaces within the chapel determined much of how the building was shaped. They all revolved around the pre-determined chapel structure. The side chapel is directly of the chapel proper on the south wing of the building. The classroom is on the east side of the building opposite of the chapel, which was intentional for optimum noise control. The play area is accessed directly from the classroom through a sliding door. In the center of the building are the restrooms and storage room. A thickened wall will separate these from chapel. The offices are on the north side of the building at the end of the hallway/lobby. The administrator's office is directly tied to the hall. The minister's office is past the admin. office and also directly ties to a private restroom and, more importantly, the alter. This is one of my strong points in my plan.

I tried to follow a clear and logical circulation with the chapel being the center of the building while maintaining the symmetry. It was difficult since the walls of the main chapel structure are angeled. So this naturally carried on to some of the interior walls, which I feel adds to the wonder of the building. In the chapel I wanted to maintain the concave shape of the greater chapel structure for the alter. This goal along with the angeled walls made the corridor from the office to chapel hardest to resolve. However, in the end it all worked out making the minister appear from the alter.

Expressive Lighting:

Each of the rooms excluding storage and restrooms have some form of expressive lighting. The chapel has a scoop formed by vertical pillars and translucent material. The outside rooms have slits that bring in various forms of light. The lobby has two translucent windows and two transparent windows that let in interesting light since they are in irregular triangle shapes.

Half-inch section model:

My section is cut through the center of the chapel and bounded at on the front pain to act as a henge so the chapel can open for viewing the inside.

Eighth-inch Site Model:

Inspirations:

Here's the link for the PDF of images that inspired my final design in one way or another:

http://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B2IxVOaCmBSSYjBkYTM5ZTUtNDBmZS00OWE0LWJiZWMtZmM5ZDBhMGE3ZmEw&hl=en

Thanks to all for an awesome quarter!

Addendum to Final project Posting

Because of the format of this blog, it looks like a precursor.



Views from the birdy's perspective View of front if You were pretty tall




Normal sized people might see things like this. And this.




Side chapel light at two different times.


Very low ceiling Inside with an impostor cube.


Pictures of the real cube, in an impostor setting



mmmmmm, light.

Alex Landeros' Final Chapel Project

My interpretation of a contemporary spiritual space involves massive objects, heavy forms that are simple yet inviting, which is why I began my design process with squares. Upon experimenting with layering, shifting and joining, I developed a deep appreciation for a variety in levels which convinced me that even if I decided not to stick with squares I knew heirarchy in height was going to be an important aspect of my design. Upon accepting the fact that squares are rather limiting in terms of program I moved on to hexagons which really provided me with a lot more options.

In an attempt to really make my design memorable and moving I spent countless hours scouring through thousands of examples of churches for inspiration. It was my stubborn indecisiveness that really prolonged this process and resulted in another hundred hours or so of brain storming and sketching. Obsessed with the physical, I found myself investing entirely too much time on the aesthetics and really disregarding the experience once inside the chapel. Once again refocusing my approach, I started thinking about ways to really make my internal experience powerful. Drawing inspiration from Alvar Alto’s Vouksenniska Church in Imatra,Carlos Scarpa's Castelvecchio, as well as Tadao Ando’s Church of the Light I really became fascinated with the illumination of space. What most attracted me were floating walls that would allow light to pour in from the sides and really scatter across the entire interior. In addition to this lighting scheme, I also fell in love with Ricardo Legoretta’s work of alternating slices of light. I felt that this theme would work well in my transitional spaces, serving as a directional guide encouraging a forward motion towards the main chapel. The tall repeating bars of light also served as a nice contrast to the more massive main chapel exterior, providing a skeletal element to balance out the design.








My Lighting:






As for the circulation, I strongly felt that in order to give my chapel a profound spiritual feel it needed a long and defining linear procession, one that would make the journey to the altar that much more meaningful. After dwelling on this idea for a couple days I realized that I was so consumed in this concept that I was completely neglecting significantly more important aspects of spirituality. What I find extremely important about religion is the right to choose which ever path you desire. With that said I, I reconsidered my approach and sought to implement an element of free will to my chapel experience. With the main chapel as the most important component, I really wanted a plethora of pathways to the chapel that would really reflect this freedom of choice. After entering through the lobby, one would encounter a decision of taking the more direct route to the chapel or to travel down a meditative space that is really open and ideal for reflecting before entering the main spiritual room. In addition to those two pathways, one could also go up the stairs to the second floor which leads directly to the balcony overlooking the altar. This elevated space I designated as my zen view and in order to give it that much more significance I provided a clear view to the ocean directly ahead. The balcony would be the only place to really enjoy the scenery and the expressive lighting going on inside of the main chapel which would make this private space the highlight of the edifice. The final route to the main chapel would be a passage around the exterior of the building guided by the fountain river which would lead you to the side chapel and direct access to the main chapel.

















After finalizing my design for both the chapel and offices, I came to the realization that there was a rather annoying void in between both of my structures, a barren space with a lot of potential to really bring the two entities together and create a greater sense of community. A simple courtyard would not suffice so I opted to infuse a river fountain that would meander through the void and carve out paths that circulated the main chapel. The fountain provided a greater sense of peace and was ideal for the courtyard

Process:

For some reason, my last post turned out funny, so here is a re-post of my text:

The architects I drew upon were Herzon and de Meuron, for their sculptural approach to architecture as well as their exploration with materials. My chapel is extremely sculptural, expressing my desire to make the space unique, memorable, and extremely spiritual. My beloved detail and zen vista are both located in the side chapel, which looks out over the ocean. Expressive light occurs throughout the space, but is most impactful at the north (front) and west part of the main chapel. If I were to continue to work on the design, I would probably further explore the experience of being inside the chapel, as well as investigate materials (like glass and possibly other sculptural materials that manipulate light in interesting ways). While there are many aspects of my project that, with more time, could be further developed (outdoor space, seating, circulation between irregular walls, and legible presentation of design ideas, among others, I am pleased with the outcome of my chapel site. I feel that I truly pushed myself, and stepped outside the traditional design process to produce a distinctive and powerful structure.

Final Project

My chapel system is in its most basic elements a rectangle that has been pushed, pulled, twisted, and pieced together. Each room is a unique space, defined by different angles and forms, which are all related to the central corridor and axis. I wanted to create a sacred space in which the individual could have a meditative experience defined by the personal choices off of the corridor. The corridor is compressed and short, with a glass ceiling that allows the individual to see the second, higher, more encompassing ceiling, creating the sense of a room within a room.

The main chapel is inward facing, meant to create a communal worship space. It is defined predominantly by the parallel walls of the back wall and the lobby, in contrast to the rectilinear outside wall. Light is brought in through the falling glass system on the westward facing wall, mean to bring in light from above and allow peak view below, rather than create a chapel based around a large view. The light creates interesting patterns as on the floor and wall, as seen below.

The side chapel, in contrast, is outward facing. It is low slung, and meant to contain two rows of benches/pews facing outward, creating a place for individual meditation.

While the corridor and light system are important in determining hierarchy, circulation, and function the most important, and defining feature of my chapel system is the wave. I wanted to use the wave in recognition and imitation of the ocean at the site. I used depths at Ocean Beach, and information on ocean wave patterns, creating a wave in which each crest was more massive and loose (with a larger diameter). The wave was meant to define the experience inside. The wave of the main chapel draws the attention inward, whereas the wave of the side chapel starts as the roof, becomes the wall, and then the floor, with falling slits of glass to allow ocean views (my zen view), drawing the visitor's attention outward. In the chapel the wave "falls" into a wall (that compresses in the individual into the entrance of the chapel). Where this fall occurs there is a strip of glass to let in natural light, creating a installation-like art experience (my beloved detail). The wall, like the side chapel, has falling strips, through which to view the wave/wall interaction. The visitor would first view this through the strips in the wall in the procession to the main chapel, and as the visitor turns the corner he would then be able to look down the light tunnel that is the intersection of the wave and wall.

I created the wave by laser cutting the wave's shape out of wood, which were thick enough to be structural. I then created beams to go between these shape holders to create more structure and security. I then draped velum over the system. I am pleased with my model of the wave form.

If I had more time to work on this project I would like to return with an editing eye, focusing on one aspect or idea of this chapel and pursuing it throughout, although I am happy I pursued/tried all of them. They may have been too much in conjunction but I am happy with how each idea, or modeling aspect, stands on its own, and brings richness to the final project.