Final Design Item :: The A2 Poster

This is a first draft of the poster...

The composition is based on the fold-ability of the poster down into a pocket which would hold a CD.

I also wanted to be a bit playful with the poster, and it not be such a standard architectural representation of the final design and its process.

3D Views from the Site Model

Here are three 3d views taken from the Autodesk Revit Architecture model...

Random Development Sketches

Here are some early sketches to try and discover some form to the huts and buildings on site. there is also a couple of quick drawings for how the theatre came about. it started at looking at the palm leaf and how the fronds span outwards creating a canopy.

The Amphitheatre - constructed

With the Amphitheatre i am invisioning the base and steps/tracks to be constructed as a perminant instillation of concrete. the columns made from Steel CHS columns with two handles at waist high for ease of lifting and moving by two people, and the truss as lightweight steel connected to a rotating collar fixed to the tops of the columns as indicated here...

Here is an early sketch to work out how high and which direction the trusses were going to run over the stage...

Here are some images from the scale model at 1:50, constructed from laser cutting 3mm mdf, 3mm perspex and 2mm cardboard sheets. the columns were made from 3mm diametre steel rods, cut and grinded to size. the trusses are from the perspex laser cut and fixed using a flexible clear double sided tape...

The people are also laser cut from the same sheets to scale...

the holes in the steps are the placement spaces for the columns to sit into depending on the theatre's configuration.

The Beacons

there are 13 districts in East Timor, and being such a proud cultural country, it would be great to allow each of the districts a chance to ceremonially activate a space in the site with a beacon or totem.

here are a couple of sketches for how they might look...

these were more like a flag concept with the possibility of photo voltaic panels to power lighting.

However, i though it better to showcase a district Tais...

and here is a collage rendered version...

Simple construction from Bamboo poles and a reinforced or laminated timber panel for the headpiece with a Tais hung below. I see the approximate size as being 5 metres tall and 1.6 metres across

Connections

Having started with the ICU joint in a previous blog to try to create a nail-less join for timber or steel beams and posts for simple construction, i thought about the implications for spending a vast amount of money on developing the joints for use in East Timor. It seemed a little excessive to spend the money on such a joint when money could be saved on a simpler system which would allow the funds to be aligned to other areas of construction.

Besides this, there was a fundamental flaw in the ICU joint. It didn't lock down completely as one plane could still come apart if forces pushed that way.

initially i said for the joint to be placed with the first part down to enable gravity to act as the bind, but if in the case of an earthquake or similar force from a strike and the joint was to shift against gravity, the joint would lift off and possibly come apart.

so...

where next?

i then experimented with the idea of joining bamboo...

this joint would seem to work, but would be limited to light weight construction and only to two planes.

so, i then thought about creating a rigid steel connection that could be used for timber and bamboo (although drilling a hole in bamboo is likely to weaken it and make it perceptible to splitting under lateral forces.

here is the sketch...

this looks effective for the type of easy construction needed for the Dili site. it would also be versatile in its dis-assembly also.

Here is a CAD version...

these could be made with any/all combinations for ease of construction.

The wall system of sliding panels (from previous blog) into timber beans could be implemented with this allowing for a simple curtain walling system to be used.

these connections have been designed with a 90mm x 90mm aperture in each connector. if smaller sized timbers were available only, either a chock could be used to wedge in the beam of another set of smaller collars could be developed to slide into the aperture to minimise the hole.

Here is an image of how the panels could be used within the curtain wall...