ink island /school
the final project for studio this term was the complete redesign of the island which currently houses Toronto City Center Airport.
i was inspired by the action of a drop of ink in water; a dense drop disperses into feathery wisps of color until it vanishes. Ink Island will explore this as a gradient of activity, from active and social to quiet and meditative.
i decided to do a complete overhaul. the flat would would be excavated from the center out, creating a ridge of land in the shape of C. the center-line would be elevated, creating a distinct active zone on the exterior, and a quiet and darker interior.
the language that is carried out through the island is that of the path. the path is warped by the landscape or by an invisible force to alter the experience, be it to shelter or seat.
three of the main buildings on my island illustrates this idea of the methods of manipulating the path:
+ the ferry terminal is formed by the nudging of the ferry, rippling the path
+ the path between the two beaches forms a knot: a cafe to service both
+ the path is severed to form to disparate structures: the bathhouse/lighthouse
the same manoeuvring is extended to the path system in the interior marshes.
the interior paths are shattered and forms a discordant network: exploration and isolation.
photographs that reflected the composition of the interior.
↓ click on image to advance.
the final piece was the design of the chapel/cemetary: the moonlit chapel.
the concept was to have a building that did not have an apparent path leading to it, nor did it fully appear as a building until you reached the end. this would be done by the use of a light system which ushers guests through the threshold of tress.
the chapel itself is another play with the forms of nature. the rectilinear path forms the shape of the building and frames the view across the watery cemetery, but the water (which enters the space through the sloped stage) informs the rippling interior. this divides the building into 4 parts: the prep rooms, the back corridor, the main atrium, and the hall.
↓ click on image to advance.
the above vignettes illustrate the passage through the building, from the atrium to the hall to the stage: the framed moon and eery cemetery.
this ritualistic procession is designed to accommodate both weddings and funerals, whereby the the ashes of the deceased may be scattered at the edge of the water to be washed away by the rippling lake.
to complete the journey, one follows the path at the northwest corner of the building which peels away, boring through the hill. one is then led through a different path in the trees by the same method of lights by which one came, and the secret journey vanishes behind.
+ autoCAD
+ photoshop
+ 3DSmax
+ paperxfingers
