We've been exploring the notion of big box architecture and tilt up construction. The mammoth buildings that dot our landscape are pretty darn generic to say the least. How can we make them more meaningful - feel as though they are an integral part of the landscape and growing out of the earth, as opposed to the painted ladies we have become all too familiar with and accepting of within industrial projects.
Exploiting the panel; both skin and structure, and expressing the process of how these panels are made was the ultimate goal of our research. By chance an opportunity arose to push research into practice for a building study on the site of the former Bethlehem Steel Plant.
A little chance inspiration, a misprint from our color copier, arrived during the charette. Zoom in and see the subtle beauty that only a mistake could yield.
Our field research revealed some further nuances to exploit within the finish of the system itself and the component pieces that make the process of site cast tilt up construction come together.
Shown above is a view of a "pick" void which allows the panels to be grappled and hoisted into place. Marks of construction are routinely hidden from sight, our interest is in understanding how they can be expressed in the building facade as evidence of a logical system of construction and ultimately as adornement that reveals how the building is constructed.
A gnarly slab edge condition, shown above, provided further inspiration to study the possibility of markings that could be worked into the site cast process while reducing labor cost, creating a beauty of economy and system.
Credits:
The photos were taken with a Lumix DX3 camera but edited entirely on the iphone using an app called snapseed. This particular edit style is referred to as the “#mustangedit” and was first used by Vicki Liantonio on her image “For on the Floor” which can be seen on her InstaGram feed under the user name “piccolotakesall”.
We thank Vicki for sharing her editing process and the continued collaborations and inspirations she provides, as always we advocate supporting the arts and the artist:
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