Sophomore Studio Spring 2020
As with any well-designed university campus, students are attracted to aesthetically pleasing spaces to relax, gather, and study. The task at hand with this project was to first analyze which locations on campus, based on the amount of student traffic that passes through that area on a daily basis, would be a contender to host a shaded pavilion. The site chosen for this project was on Gregory Street, directly across from two major libraries on campus and the undergraduate Architecture Building. After choosing a location, the climate conditions of the site had to be extensively studied in order to provide the best possible shade and comfort to anyone that would use the space recreationally.
1. Microclimate Analysis
Using a real-time sun pattern analysis program, the general behavior of the wind and sun in Champaign was analyzed and later depicted using a grid system. Shaded squares indicate where the wind and/or sun were more prominent. Then, using a microclimate analysis for the summer and winter, each area of the grid was labeled on a scale of 3 to 12: a score of 3 would indicate that this spot was the least suitable for shade, while a score of 12 would indicate that this spot was the most suitable.
2. Concept Exploration
3. Parametric Parti Exploration
Two designs, the original and an altered iteration following it were put into a program to determine how much sunlight each area would be receiving over a 9-hour period on June 21st and December 21st. Yellow areas indicate that the sun would be shining on the area consistently, while blue areas indicated that the sun would not shine on the area for that long. The original design would gather too much sunlight, while the altered iteration showed much improvement with the amount of shade that it provided. However, an open-view analysis showed that while the original design had a high percentage of exterior views, the altered design was shown to be more restrictive.
4. Renderings
The final pavilion includes a mesh dome, made with white painted steel, which allows natural sunlight to filter through a tilted fiberglass roof. Wooden platforms with varying levels of height create a set of stairs for users to enter and exit the pavilion. For complete shade, a second, larger tilted granite roof is in place on the eastern side of the pavilion. Users can utilize the sitting areas either directly underneath the parallel tilted roofs, or on the exterior deck surrounding the foundation of the mesh dome.
5. Concept Illustrations
