Site As Thesis

Site as Thesis_Undergournd

While thinking of ways of optimizing thermal comfort in architecture, I started to question that instead of trying to embrace all the climatic variables, what kinds of spatial condition can be disengaged from these variables. That is underground. In the history of mankind, regardless of the east and west cultures, the concept of underground was often described as death, darkness, disconnection, and seclusion. In many cases, underground spaces were used either as catacombs or military bases. However, with the advent of modern city and technological advance in construction, the underground spaces started to be utilized in many other different ways from the ones in the past. As modern city continued to grow in size and density, more intricate network was required to satisfy the basic needs of its inhabitants. For instance, while the walls and columns support the city’s buildings, bridges, and towers, the cables, pipes, and tunnels carry life-sustaining elements such as water, electricity, and gas. Larger tunnels burrow through the underground, linking places on the congested surface more directly. Through them high-speed subway carry the large numbers of people who live and work within the urban community. Furthermore, the emergence of the notion of mega city and the inevitable human desire of creating a permanent shelter from extreme climate conditions resulted in the idea of underground city. Today, these underground cities are located in many different places around the world. They are certainly providing new ways of understating and occupying the underground space. Unlike today’s underground city largely dependent onto the above ground structure or system, future underground cities would completely substitute the existing perception of cities. What if this new notion of the underground city is foreseen, how we as architects should response to this new urban typology? What kinds of additional or different spatial and environmental quality do we need to consider in designing inhabitable spaces under this circumstance?

Demo Set

Demo Set _ James J. Lee

After reflecting back on my house as thesis project, there were a number of items that need to be changed and improved both in visual presentation and contents.

First, instead of proposing the complete sustainable design development of housing, concentrating on a specific subject or area that related with my architectural interests may result in producing more successful project. Due to this conventional design approach, some of drawings ended up being not exciting. For instance, exploring different ways of designing housing façade and how that skin system is being adapted to different climate conditions would contribute to more interesting architectural discussion. I introduced too many different systems or subjects that sometimes were not relevant to my thesis interest.
Secondly, thinking about the placement housing furniture eventually resulted in limiting potential possibility of house as thesis. It framed viewers or participants into a certain direction and eliminated some of my design intentions. Researching more on my core interest would serve my housing project better in addressing more interesting discourse.

Lastly, presenting more complete proposed site analysis such as topographic studies and historical background would set up good start for the whole presentation. Also my verbal presentation was not well prepared and organized, and it failed to deliver clear ideas about my project.

This project house as thesis was successful presenting cohesive graphic representation; however, its contents should be more carefully studied and designed based on my thesis interest. Some of the subjects in the presentation hindered my project intentions.

House as Thesis

House as Thesis _ James J. Lee

My thesis interest is related with optimizing thermal comfort in architecture. Before the mechanical HVAC system was introduced, facilitating thermal comfort in a building would be one of the most important aspects in building design. However, almost every inhabitable built environment today heavily relies on mechanical HVAC system as its technology is constantly advancing. This may result in for many current architects not seriously concerning about proposing how to control thermal comfort level in their spatial design. What is role of architects in creating desirable thermal condition in a space? Or is it merely engineers’ role? I strongly believe that architecture should continue to be engaged more closely with this matter.

A house has been perceived or seen more as a permanent static object in order to provide better sense of privacy and security. This static nature and desire make the structure more difficult to be changed and adapted to non-static circumstances such as climate. My “house as thesis” project was studied to open the possibility of flexibility and adaptation in housing. By maximizing controllability of building skin embodied within the structure, residents may able to create desirable thermal condition based on their need. This allows not only thermal controllability but also formalistic changes on the building massing and complete natural ventilation.

In additions, the determination of one’s thermal comfort level is often very vague because it is also associated with individual preference as well as one’s psychological aspect. Is it even possible to create a system or architecture to embrace these kinds of variables? How should these variables be measured? I would like to pursueand investigate a way in which architecture would deal with this challenging issue.

Roof Garden for a Residential Tower In Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Roof Garden for a Residential Tower nearby Kaohsiung Arena MRT Station in Taiwan:

A quite number of modern highrise buildings in Taiwan are integrating roof gardens. Providing well-designed private roof gardens for highrise buildings is not only reducing impervious surface areas in the city, but is also creating many other positive urban environment impacts such as reduction of urban heat island and opportunity for urban agriculture. As an architect, we should start looking at this feature as one of prime components or programs of building.

Image & Facilitate

From "Eidetic Operations and New Landscapes" by James Corner

Image (topic based):
an artifact, for example a two-dimensional picture, that has a similar appearance to some subject—usually a physical object or a person

Facilitate (descriptive):
to make something easy or easier to do or achieve

Climate & Embodied

From "Air/Condition" by Peter Sloterdijk

Climate (topic based):
the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elements in a given region over long periods of time. Climate can be contrasted to weather, which is the present condition of these same elements and their variations over periods up to two weeks.

Embodied (descriptive):
inclusive or incorporated; an expression or a representation of something in actions or form; to typify or personify.

AC Systems in Residential Buildings, Taiwan

Residential Building Typology in Taiwan:

Due to the hot and humid climate condition in Taiwan, many buildings are using intense air conditioning system. However, instead of using air duct system that is often controlled by one controller, installing a portable AC unit for each space is encouraged. By doing this, they can avoid cooling down unoccupied space. I wish that this AC method is also integrated to many American housings.