Michael Lu's Blog

In the endeavor to find a structure to support such a high pitched roof I came upon a system commonly used in Western European churches. The scissor truss in this example has a nominal depth of 6 ft at its highest and tapers to 4ft as the roof slopes to accomodate the angle of the sun. These steel trusses are set 4 ft O.C. and rest upon precast concrete walls. These are not meant to be working drawings but rather diagramatic structural images I will incorporate into the final poster.

The prior site plan, although listed as ‘preliminary’, confused reviewers in its simplicity and rudimentery arrangement. What I had attempted to do before was calculate potential kW harnessed from PV panels. Below is a revised site plan more closely resembling the final product. I am preserving the sun dial homes as I feel they represent the crux the project. While the surrounding homes harness power and house their occupants in the present and near future, the sundial homes are intended to function into the distant future. I have developed several models of home, both single- and dual-family. They are arranged intentionally as to preserve the extant infrastructural grid. Density is exactly doubled. 180 homes shifts to 360. This number represents the solar calendar year of Native Americans in both Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

The mid review last week questioned several aspects of my proposal which I feel need addressed. The thesis is complex and quite loaded which for me is difficult to explain in short ‘blurbs’. The story is multi-facited. How does one design an off-grid desert-based subdivision put forth by a government agency in times of disaster? (This is a short-term question.) In terms of representation, how do I frame the project in such a manner in which the subdivision has a history? That is, beyond a generic context rendering, how can we interpret the life behind the buildings or their historical contexts as they change through time? Do their functions change as time passes? This addresses Darren’s comment on the “premanence of architecture” whereby I am seeking to design an enduring landmark meant to withstand centuries. Finally, along similar lines, why can residential architecture not have functions similar to those of cerimonial/religious architecture of the past as celestial clocks or charts intended to disseminate knowledge into the future. (These are long-term questions.) These are the questions I am wrapping my head around….