full speed ahead...to the end!

after the midterm critique we spent about 10 days on each floor, focusing on each one specifically. from there we had our final pin-up and presented inside the actual building downtown this past friday, december 6. it went well! here is my final board:

my haiku graphic turned out to look like this: 

this project really helped me to think about the potential we have as designers. it made me think about my intentionality and my purpose behind everything. being able to focus my project around bringing people together was so helpful and encouraging and fun! blending truly is beauty and there is much blending to be done in greensboro and around the world. no two people are alike and new people are worth meeting. i'm thankful for this project and for this opportunity. 

now on to the next semester!

modernism at home

last friday i attended a lecture given by patrick lucas on modernism at home. he has been researching (with the help of others, too) the legacy and innovation of edward lowenstein, one of greensboro's most prominent architects. having started his work solo in the 40s, lowenstein did much of his work during controversial times. he was the first to incorporate race relations and design and hired african americans to work at his firm.
patrick talked a lot about how lowenstein "worked things out" in his designs. his buildings just..work. they answer questions you never even realized you had. he also noted that building appearances can reflect the cultural issues of the time.

he talked about modernism and how, at first we don't really get it. but when we live with it for a while we start to understand. I thought that was very interesting and it kind of spoke to lowenstein'is "working things out".

lowenstein layered buildings according to light, needs, and experience. he was also very interested in highlighting the bones of the structure and often did so with lighting.

i'm definitely glad that i attended the lecture and wish i could've done the walking tour and saw the houses in person. when thinking about greensboro it's easy to think of it as old and beaten down, outdated. but now i have a new appreciation for our city. i think that the more that people start to build up parts of it, our city will really come together. whether modernist, traditional, or something in between, greensboro is a mix of creative minds just waiting to be showcased!




side note: lowenstein's "working things out" reminds me a lot of something that jerry told our class the other day while filling in for jo. he said to, "answer the questions first and the design will unfold." this has stuck with me ever since. i think that it's really easy to get caught up in design and keep designing forever without ever really finishing anything. answering the main questions helps set up the foundation for the rest of the design to transpire. and for me, that is unbelievably helpful to hear.

MIDTERM REVIEWS

midterm reviews proved to be insightful, as expected!

jo: suggested that i improve my renderings and add people

lauren: addressed the doors in the back of the building (currently there are a lot!)
she also talked about how i'd have to have a public restroom if i have a lunch counter
she mentioned that my apartment rendering was cold and that it could be warmed up a little

robert: agreed with lauren about the doors and the restrooms
he also addressed front stair travel distance and said it might be too far and should be looked at
also mentioned that there were venting solutions to allow me to have a grill and such in my food area (i was concerned about where it would vent to).
he said that i'd need to close off the bike shop if i want different tenants to coexist in the building.
he said my basement looked good as far as the code was concerned, and that i could use the back stairs for something else since i already had 2 stair cases and ways out.

jerry: had a lot of advice. i think he's quickly becoming my favorite person to talk to by far. we talked about his process because personally, i'm bad about the delivery but i love designing. i asked about his process and he said that he starts where the most life is present and moves forward. for this project, that is the street. start designing for the street view and move in.
he also talked about hand rendering and its importance.
we talked about how design can go for forever and that planning time wisely is key. he said to start with the most public spaces.
overall, the process is better than the product but the product makes you the money.

hugh: another of my favorites, talked all about the front, street experience. he said to go crazy with windows on the street level. he also emphasized sketches and hand renders.

i didn't get my poster printed, but here is what it looks like:

personally, i think that there is a lot of work to be done still! i really want to focus on the experience that one has in the building, i just need to get all of the essentials nailed down first. moving forward, i plan to hammer out the last crucial details and then focus on the experience from the outside moving inward.

FIRST STEPS...3

from our haikus we went on to develop space allocation diagrams. we met with code experts downtown to understand our restrictions and limitations as far as safety and accessibility in this project. we also considered how the 6 tactics (plane, objects, light, opening, surface, movement) we learned about in integral urbanism apply to each of our spaces and filled out a sort of precedent matrix for each space. we combined these together for a gallery-style critique this past friday and had a few guests attend. sidney and his wife ricky, the building owners, showed up as well as hugh, a local architect, lee, head of downtown, and jerry, another local architect and jo's husband!

the feedback was hugely helpful in this stage of the project. at first, feedback this early didn't seem desirable but after talking to the guests many of us realized that it was actually a great time to have outside opinions come in. this early, we're not as committed to what we're going with and are more able to change and develop our projects. overall, it was a success.

FEEDBACK:

jerry: he really got to the heart of WHY i chose my haiku and how that pours into every single thing that i do (even where i put my light switches). we talked about what resonated with me from the tactics. for me, objects and surfaces stuck out. we discussed multifunctionality and depth of objects and he suggested i think about how that can resonate to my design.

jo: jo was able to help me think about the way that i had things laid out and what was effective versus what wasn't. we decided that i had a little too much lounge space and that i could use some more pharmacy storage and display area. she suggested that i reconsider having my elevator in the middle of the building and also that i refine my drawings.

sidney & rickey: being the building owners and not licensed architects, they mainly listened to what i had to say and seemed excited about the project. i can imagine that it was exciting and a little overwhelming to have so many dreams for their building being presented to them at one time!

katie moyer: in looking over her project she really related her designs to her concept and that stuck out to me.

monica browning: we talked about taking our projects to the next level and really getting to the heart of things.

lee: she mentioned that realty in the downtown area is great and that they want to get people down there! she didn't hate my small apartments and thought the more the merrier as far as residents went. she suggested that i keep the existing elements and what gives the building character, but just update them. she suggested painting the tin ceiling to update it. she also suggested that i make the most of the front window display spaces and take advantage as them as my "money shots".

matt weikert: matt definitely spread his concept all over everything that he did. i thought that it was a great idea to introduce more windows along the washington street side to stir interest.

lauren p: we discussed my huge hallways and she suggested that i take advantage of some as small meeting spaces. we talked over my code issues (and i had a bit) and she made some great suggestions.

hugh: words can't sum up how helpful hugh was to me. he told me to think outward and to really consider the people living there and what they do, their life styles, etc. his energy was contagious and breathed a new life into this project for me.

moving forward, i've got a lot of refining and adjusting to do but i think that this critique was so necessary and helpful.

FIRST STEPS...2

we also had to create a haiku graphic to convey our concept for this design. it was challenging to sum up my concept into 3 lines of 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables! in short, my concept is a puzzle. here is my first attempt and the revised version. we'll see if i need to do any more refining!

FIRST STEPS

to prepare to move forward in this project, we did some reading from integral urbanism by nan ellin. we split into groups and read and shared different chapters with the class. we presented in the form of a pecha kucha: 20 images for 20 seconds. challenging but helpful! here are some images from my group's presentation on authenticity.

REIMAGINING SILVER'S FIVE AND DIME...1

this semester our 411 studio is taking on the old silver's building downtown. it's located on the corner of washington and elm street and currently only has one tenant, glitters. the building itself  has a basement, ground floor, second floor, and partial third floor as well as an alley behind it with great potential. in this project, we're hoping to give this old gem new shine and contribute to the downtown area. we're imagining a local pharmacy, bike rental/sports shop, lunch counter, gift shop/connection to uncg, and apartments to go here. our final exhibition of ideas will be held downtown on december 6 for many guests to attend.

some images from our initial site visit...
(thanks again to sidney for letting us explore his building!)

view from washington street

view of back of building, alley, and biltmore hotel

alley

street entrance...left of glitters store

back storage

   
back staircase


clutter everywhere



empty rooms



view from the roof!