Experience

'Continuing on from the group project, this individual design report stayed in-keeping with the concept of organic encounters. During the group phase, the term was developed into the idea of creating an architectural scheme that can create and nurture conversations between different groups and individuals in the town that perhaps wouldn’t interact otherwise. The concept is something that feels very human, and very needed following the isolating experience over the pandemic years.

Following a similar process to the one taken by the group, this redevelopment started with a key concept image. The 'Organic Encounters Vision Image' celebrates the coming together of different people all under the vaulted ceilings of the theatre. The image has an assortment of different people, each are their own vibrant character, but they can come together and share their presence and their everyday with others – perhaps by looking out of a window together or simply playing on the grass outside. This leans into the three principles of organic encounters as explored by the group: physical, visual and object-focused

Colour became something of an integral part of this scheme following the creation of the vision image. Various precedents were explored to see how the vibrancy of the users and these encounters could be developed into something of a physical representation within the scheme. As seen in the 'Intention of Spaces', the colour initially manifested purely as a way to sign post to the different spaces, however it felt as if it could have more function than that. Inspired by the stripped back and celebratory structural approach developed as a group, as well as the Centre Pompidou, the services were developed and designed to be exposed and colour-coded so it was apparent how the building was functioning in a honesty of construction sort of manner, whilst being a readable guide around the building. Aside from pedestrian flow, the idea of integrating fire and life safety into the readability of the building was also highly desirable. In addition to the required signage, pipes with the emergency lighting wiring would lead the way through routes and to important features like extinguishers and alarms.

Later investigations with a colourful physical model turned up interesting results with when using daylight as a designing tool. Whilst acting simultaneously as an analysis of the quality of light in the group’s proposal and the comparative feel and function of the spaces created, the model was an investigation of into daylighting and the reflectivity of the finishes. Given that the colours would have a high level of influence on the rest of the finishes in the space, these were important to consider and test at this early stage.

Light was also investigated in terms of precedent techniques. Emily Event Hall by YOD Group is important to the concept of puncturing the theatre in a grand way as seen in the group proposal. Currently in the Miners’ Welfare theatre the windows have been boarded up to prevent light from entering the theatre. The last thing this proposal should do is render the theatre space unfit for purpose. The precedent shows the potential for dynamic control over the atmosphere in the space, presumptuously based on a timetable and current atmospheric needs for that function. This is explored in a sketchy manner over a render of the theatre space in 'Applying Precedent Strategy to a Lighting Analysis'.