Jonathan Tat

Bordeaux house - OMA project

Formal devices in the architecture; e.g. proportional systems, facade strategies,
types of openings, geometric shapes employed etc and study the relationship between these strategies and domestic activities in the house:

As we move from one stage to another in our reading of the building we can observe the nature in which the building allows us to 'read' it is written in the materials chosen.
Concrete is often seen as a cold, un-welcoming material. the use of such a material in the construction of the top level creates a warm cocoon and embraces the inhabitants within, this in turn creates the sense of safety and intimacy within the building heightened by the glimpses of the outside world at different levels.
The middle level is define clearly by its complete transparency, this allows the inhabitants to blur the boundary of the interior and exterior space, this is important as it welcomes the country side into the building allowing the disabled and able occupants an open living space.
The ground floor is opened to the world via a singular window, backed by the carved interior walls and cellar like spaces the transition between domestic space and building entry is breached.

Circulation of the house:

The circulation patterns within the house suggests a particular path of movement and life within the house. On one side of the building a strong sense of linear movement is observed, this accentuated by the strong straight lines of the lower cellars and the bold walls within the top floor. The square movement space of the lift is directly mirrored by the circular spiral staircase, it is important to note that the axis of asymmetry is based around the cusp of interior and exterior of the middle floor, this alludes to the division of the disabled and interior living and the able and the exterior environment.
Linearity of movement in one side of the house is attributed to the being wheelchair bound and movement in straight lines is easiest. Curved movement in the opposite side of the house is what the architect must imagine keeps people more engaged when moving within the house.

Structural strategy for the building:

The structural strategy of the building is based around the use of pivots, levers and supports.
The structural elements of the building can be broken down into 4 major components holding up the floor plates of the building.
The structural components of the building can be loosely linked to that of the human form, this can be seen in the central column space which houses the circular staircase which can be seen as the hip or pelvis of the building. The L-Shaped beam are the legs holding up the top and mid floor plates, and the I-Beam being the arm of the building holding up the top floor by pivoting about the column and counter balanced by the large weight.
The use of such structure allows the building to reduce the need for load bearing walls which can impede vision and alter the usability and perception of a space, none more significant than that of living space between the building which is surrounded by floor to ceiling glass windows.
the use of such structural elements also frees the building to furthermore impose the feeling of 3 different 'rooms' or 'buildings' layered on top of each other.