RE: al jazeerah al za`ab

working with texture

room75 — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:15:13 +0000

i have made different textures in gypsum to explore possible surface on my added buildings. in the hub i have added new buildings, where old buildings have totally collapsed. so, with adding one new type of architecture, i am just adding to the historic way of dealing with architecture in the village. there are basically three typologies in the village ( five, if you count some “imported” architecture on a couple of buildings.) but, the rule has been to evolve and adapt. so, for me, to evolve and adapt one new typology is a terms with the way of dealing with architecture and materiality throughout the history of the place.

anyway, these are some of the explorations i have done now. working with negative structure. using materials from palm-trees and leafs to create a negative structure. (i actually saw this being done in Mosambique, and will post the picture later).

close to solving the masterplan

room75 — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:55:02 +0000

the issue with the parking is difficult. but i have decided to situate it as close to the center of the village as possible. this, for several reasons. one, is because of heat. the car is as fact, and the heat is a fact. in summer, it gets close to 50 degrees, and you do not want to walk for 10 or even 3 minutes from your car to your house. secondly, to generate more life and use of the suq-axis. if you park your car at the outer perimeter of the village, the chance of going in to the center and doing your shopping is smaller. by putting it in the core of the suq, it will be more attractive to use it on a more regular basis. another is use of space. there is a good deal of space in this area, and this will make the logistic of the village much more practical and smooth. and, lastly, to gather all cars, and create some sort of shelter for them, both for the cars, but also to eliminate the visual pollution that cars will have in this village.

some pictures from the model

room75 — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:41:25 +0000

this is to give an idea of how the hub will function, in a social matter. the focus is on the private meeting the public.

solar shading

room75 — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 16:16:32 +0000

once i have figured out the system, it`s function and amount, the real issue is now to adapt it to the existing situation. to make use of the solar pv system as shading is to give meaning to the system. it could have easily been put on top of the roof, but the importance of making the system visible needs to be emphazised and gives the technical system a important function in the public space.

this solution is a structure of cables stretched between four columns and has solar pv panles of varied sizes lying on top of them. this will give the important shading, but also letting in light and giving the rather rigid system a more organic aspect.

adding to the system

room75 — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 17:15:39 +0000

I have for some days been exploring the use of desalination plants. United arab emirates has some of the world biggest plants for transforming saltwater into fresh water.

UAE is the country in the world with the least amount of fresh water pr capita, and the country in the world with the highest use of water pr capita. This is a problem. A desalination plant uses a huge amount of power to transform seawater into fresh water.

I have been looking at small scale solar stills. They transform seawater into fresh water by condensation. This system require little power, and is first and foremost run on solar heating. Connected to the greenhouse roof, this can also function as shading for the plants, making the greenhouse cooler but as efficient. I have also done some calculations in regards to need.

One hub is connected to appr. 20 units.

In relations to the village, and it`s history this is a perfect adaptation to how they retrieved their water 60 years ago. Back then, there was underground water and wells. So, gatering fresh water on site is keeping it authentic, and autonomous.

working in model

room75 — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 17:03:22 +0000

i have been working in a 1:100 scaled model for some weeks now, trying out different ways of connecting the system with the social hub. this hub has been chosen because of it`s position in the village. this is a area where workers are starting to move in, and it has a diversity of buildings and history.

my aim is to solve this one hub, so that my system can easily adapt to the other 11 hubs, when necessary.

based on the input of the systems I want to re-generate the social living-conditions in this area. With fresh water, a greenhouse that provide food, electricity that provide shading & shelter and blackwater-cells that provide greeneries i hope to establish a foundation for people to start living here again.

infrastructure

room75 — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 15:53:55 +0000

infrastructure has become a important factor in my project. How to re-establish a system that works on a sustainable level and at the same time keeps the authenticity of the village intact.

i have looked at different ways of solving this issue. and have landed on the hub-system. first of all, this is clearly strengthening the idea of the mosques as central hubs in the village. secondly it allows for slow development of the village, giving room to adapt and integrate.

..and now, there is a mosque in Sogn, Norway

room75 — Thu, 20 May 2010 11:40:53 +0000

last weekend i was with my family on our farm, where my grandmother grew up. it is a small valley called Kinserdalen, deep into the Sognefjord. at this point i had not yet learned that there was an ongoing debate about building a mosque in the community of Sogn and Fjordane. this is the last county that has not established such an institution. but now there is.

related to my project, my thesis, i decided to build a small mosque near our farm, linked up to the road that leads further into the mountain. this is a public accessible road, but with few visitors. the aim for my build was to pinpoint my idea of re-developing the mosque as a social hub, a public arena.

this mosque also represents a connection between me and the Zaabi-tribe. with this mosque, i have created a physical link to the tribal people who are now situated in several locations in the United Arab Emirates. the link being Mecca.

Bioengineered Brick Wins 2010 Metropolis Next Generation Design Prize

room75 — Thu, 20 May 2010 10:41:59 +0000

An American architecture professor, Ginger Krieg Dosier, 32, Assistant Professor of Architecture at American University of Sharjah (AUS), has won this year’s prestigious Metropolis Next Generation Design Prize for “Biomanufactured Brick.” The 2010 Next Generation Prize Challenge was “ONE DESIGN FIX FOR THE FUTURE” – a small fix to change the world. The Next Generation judges decided that Professor Dosier’s well-documented and -tested plan to replace clay-fired brick with a brick made with bacteria and sand, met the challenge perfectly.

read the article here

public arena as social core

room75 — Sat, 08 May 2010 19:37:26 +0000

with the new residential area in the 70`s, the public arena was turned outwards towards the new coastal road. the social interaction was then on the outer boundaries of the residential area.

my proposal to extend this line into the old village, will create a new public arena right in the core of the village. social interaction becomes the spine of al jazerrah al hamra.