This week Greg and I have to nail down a solid facade design. We have to resubmit some information for systems and this requires thinking about shading devices based on our glazing layout and design. This led to me sketching/coloring for an entire meeting period, but I think that something good came out of it. We want to keep part of the L-shape lighter by keeping it all glazing while keeping the base of the building heavier with more concrete present. I took some inspiration from a building we saw on our site visit to incorporate wood elements in the window design. We got something together for now, but it still needs work in order for us to both be satisfied with the overall design.
As if that issue weren't enough to deal with, our core still isn't designed to optimum performance yet. We are closer to that point, but still have some tweaking to do. This core has been more of a challenge than I anticipated and I am looking forward to the day when we come up with the best possible solution and the building functions better because of it.
In place of structures class, we were all required to attend the Rowlett Lecture entitled The Apex of Architecture: Designing a Social Conscience with guest speaker Dr. Chris Luebkeman. I feel like we were lucky to have Dr. Luebkeman speak at the CRS Center because he has a very diverse background of experience. From working with Calatrava, to teaching at MIT, and now being part of Arup, Chris has gained the knowledge necessary to follow his belief of proactively taking steps toward creating our own future. One of the key lessons he brought up was that in nature there are no right and wrong choices, only consequences. Normally, I would firmly believe in right or wrong because wrong normally has negative consequence, but what about the good consequences that no one really thinks about? Consequence tends to have a negative connotation because we feel the reaction more when something goes wrong. Instead of only associating consequences with "wrong" choices, we should recognize that consequences occur everyday as a result of an action. Architecture is full of consequences because each design move makes a difference. If we as architects keep this in mind, I think we can create the environment we want to live in rather than accept the norm of an anticipated future.
Also, he ended the lecture with a knock-off Winnie the Pooh image and quote that I enjoyed. Pooh often brings about simple knowledge that we could all benefit from by slowing down and taking the lesson to heart.
Midterms are officially half way over, and luckily for Greg and I, completely over. Today we presented our project in its 50% not done state. As we started off, I thought I would be okay through the presentation, but as soon as I had to start talking I'm pretty sure my brain forgot how to function. I know words came out of my mouth, but I'm not sure that they were what I was supposed to say and I think there were a couple of times where I forgot to breathe. I hate how nervous I get when presenting even when I know it isn't a big deal. Four years of this and I still can't make it through a presentation without shaking. We made it through the presentation is the suggested 10 minutes and then received multiple comments and surprisingly no questions. Most of comments and critiques involved things that Greg and I knew needed work, so I feel confident moving forward. We didn't get the chance to design our facade so that is the next major step that needs to happen. There are also a few areas in plan the need reworking, but I think Greg and I can handle it.
The hell that is Midterm week seems to have sneaked up on all of us. I don't feel under prepared because we still have some time to work, but I do feel overwhelmed knowing all that needs to get done by Sunday. The only plus is I am looking forward to seeing how much our project develops in the next few days because we still want to have our facade designed and ready to present. In the midst of studio prep we obviously still have to deal with other classes and for systems we got to use the Heliodon. This kind of helped Greg and I understand how the sun will interact with our building in relation to the surrounding buildings so I think we gained some knowledge to be applied to our design in terms of glazing and shading placement.
This week Greg and I have to nail down a solid facade design. We have to resubmit some information for systems and this requires thinking about shading devices based on our glazing layout and design. This led to me sketching/coloring for an entire meeting period, but I think that something good came out of it. We want to keep part of the L-shape lighter by keeping it all glazing while keeping the base of the building heavier with more concrete present. I took some inspiration from a building we saw on our site visit to incorporate wood elements in the window design. We got something together for now, but it still needs work in order for us to both be satisfied with the overall design. 
As if that issue weren't enough to deal with, our core still isn't designed to optimum performance yet. We are closer to that point, but still have some tweaking to do. This core has been more of a challenge than I anticipated and I am looking forward to the day when we come up with the best possible solution and the building functions better because of it. 
