DO Workshop : Faculty of Architecture Entrance

Designing spaces through physical models.

I selected the entrance of our faculty, the faculty of architecture at the main Chulalongkorn campus as the site for my architectural intervention. With a road cutting through the front of the building and the building itself being the first one from the campus's main entrance the area has a certain amount of people pass through everyday, both architectural students entering the building and other students heading for buildings further inside. All not necessarily staying for long but rather traveling through it or lingering for a short while, waiting for a friend or a ride. 

The design aims to make this space that is currently bare and empty become more exciting and playful to accommodate both those who are lingering and passing through the space. Proposing a design for a solid surface that spills out of the entryway into the flat area in front, extruded in parts to form abstract shape to create an open-ended playground for adults to freely occupy in their own liking; so that the idea of 'waiting' is not anymore 'boring', and walking doesn't have to be 'simple'.

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Working with physical models allow for a real-time interactions with the material and shape. Firstly a rough model is made first to communicate the main idea and concept of the project. The second model is made of material that can generate free-form shape to explore the nature of the material and the possibilities for different forms that people can actually occupy. Then, the material is lined with wires to control those free-form shape, enabling the material to form even more abstract shape to create a varying degree of immersive environment.

In the final model, the forms are generated out of solid material to unite the structure into a whole, there are varying degrees of extrusion from subtle to bold to generate a sense of excitement and allows people to explore and make familiar with the space through the increasing number of times they pass through it or the amount of time they spent in it.

The models are photographs at eye-level to show the atmosphere that the actual space can create so that immediate adjustment can be made conveniently. As to physically capture the real experience of a moment that occurs in the design. 

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