Barbican

Academic Project 1
A.Y. 2014/2015
Barbican
“Understanding space and identity”
Additional + permanent
Autumn
School of Architecture and Landscape
Kingston University London
Camille Trinidad
BA Hons Architecture

Brief
Being a new student of Architecture in London is exciting yet overwhelming.
With diverse architectural works and influences, ranging
from period style buildings and villas to contemporary skyscrapers
built across the city, it is a difficult task to introduce specific architectural
precedents to first years in architecture school. That is why in my
student’s point of view, starting the course through a small project in a
large site that has modern and historical importance in London’s urban
fabric is critical.
Located at the northern edge of the once Roman Londinium is the
Barbican. The mini-city that we see today is the result of redevelopment
and infrastructure projects done after the Second World War. The
bombings left the city damaged so greatly that it killed the life of some
towns, declining Cripplegate’s resident population to 0.01% in 1952.
Now, it has become a city within a city. With the Barbican complex and
estate occupying the land, the whole vicinity stands as a landmark that
showcases a principal example of London’s Brutalist architecture. And
is the site of the first semester project.
But since Barbican itself is substantial in size, two site options were
presented for the project. First, the high walk facing silk street outside
the conservatory and the other is the outdoor area near the restaurant
at the lakeside terrace. Depending on which site a student chooses, the
scheme changes to either a botanist lab or cafe. I chose the botanist lab.
1. Kiosk for an exhibiting space
Propose a temporary structure or a pop-up space that will act in support
of the conservatory.
Done through design workshops in a form of charrette; divided to two
studio days that included the site visit, 2-hour session of site model
making and the deadline of proposing a design for a kiosk, presented
with complete set of drawings.
2. Botanist lab
Using and applying the initial learning and experience on the first project,
the key task is to come up with a scheme for a compact structure
that can accommodate a small laboratory for the botanists working on
the Barbican conservatory.

The site
The Barbican is a 15.2 hectares multi complex compound made up
of residential estates and a performing arts centre. Designed and
redeveloped by Chamberlin, Powell & Bon, it was a project that
took nearly three decades to plan and build.
Surrounded by high blocks of commercial buildings, it became the
centre for commerce, making it the heart of business and finance
in the world. With the office hours, it is always busy twice a day, 5
days a week. This then was the reason in reforming the area after
the war. Yet the place became a space for working but not for living.
As a resolution, private companies and the wealthy which saw
it as an opportunity, built a residential neighbourhood in which
people can live close to their work, where there are schools, shops
and other amenities in which they can live a life with purpose and
pleasure.
The residential estates are designed to provide as much housing as
possible to offset the cost of the land while retaining appropriate
amount of open space for the residents. The design solution was to
build vertically and horizontally, hence the creation of three residential
towers that juxtaposes the elongated and curved blocks to
create a sense of order without monotony.
Another aspect of the design are the raised podiums, segregating
pedestrians to vehicles which doubles the usage of land area - the
high walks, the building space over vehicular access and parking
spaces and as well as the residential blocks across the lake. Using
this design strategy as their primary planning feature (as they
have lost space at earth level due to the building’s built area) helped
them regain the open space through the terraces, conservatory
and the lake. And like how mirrors are used in small rooms to
trick spatial perception due to their reflective ability, the element
of water was then used. The overall outcome reflects on both soft
and hard landscaping at the Barbican.

Micro-scale site analysis
The high walk is a wide curved outdoor walkway on the second
level of barbican centre and is accessible via the hallways outside
the library and Frobisher crescent. The area itself connects the silk
street entrance and the stairwell and lift access from ground level to
the high walk in Moor lane. It sits right above the Guildhall School
of Music and Drama and acts as a pedestrian street connecting the
school, the centre and the estate. The project site is opposite the high
walk entrance of the conservatory and is adjacent to the logo structure
of the Barbican.
The construction technique used for the Barbican was mainly in-situ
concrete poured over a rebar. The concrete surfaces was then
textured via handheld pick-hammers to expose the coarse granite
aggregate of the material. This is a massive and intensive labour
technique considering the size of the entire project and the amount
of surface area. This technique is usually found on New Brutalism in
which encourages the use of raw concrete whilst producing surface
patterns using wood shutterings to replicate raw material textures.
But this is not the only Brutalist attribute of the site; the massive
forms, its scale, the impression of its visual density, the odd shapes
and the exposure of raw materials, all which Brutalist architecture
is known for are found not just within the project site but over all
the exterior and interior of the Barbican, making the building as
expressive as it is distinct.

Kiosk research, development and proposal
Scheme: Exhibition space in a form of kiosk
Programme: Flower and plant stand
The aim of this project was to learn about design research, how to come
up with a proposal and getting used to the iteration design processes
when making a proposal with a focus on relating a project to its context.
Coming from an art background, I used to brainstorm a lot of
ideas by looking through built examples and precedents that are similar
to the programme yet found it difficult to relate the design to context.
Hence, resulted lots of inconsistent design proposals. So the strategy
was to list down the elements of design that I personally like and proposed
an architectural interpretation of that collage.
The exercise project dealt with the design strategy in a narrative approach,
making the research plausible to explain how the spaces will be
used and how it is related to the conservatory. Architectural principles
such as flow of movement, symmetry, scale and the tectonic characteristics
such as materials, character or architectural style were all completely
designed to be logical, sustainable and easy to build by using
the basic post and lintel idea of a structure. Grids were used to define
structural support points and allowed the proposal to be flexible, symmetrical
and geometrical.
The kiosk proposed shows how structural elements can be used as auxiliary
spaces particularly as an exhibiting space and storage. The initial
idea of using a tree as the central post was interpreted in and around
the structure. Using the vertical element as support to its vertical connections
provided opportunity for shelving and was used as display
platforms. Meanwhile, the openings of the structure was reflected from
the arched shape layout of the plan, which is a common theme found
within the Barbican.
Security, access and sustainability can be applied to the design using
temporary wooden joint structure techniques, allowing the kiosk to be
closed when not in use and to express the texture of raw material using
wood. It juxtaposes the heaviness of concrete and extends the relationship
of natural and man made objects pertaining to the conservatory
and its contents, but most importantly relates to how the landscaping
inside the barbican was made to exist in such a concrete jungle.

Programme research
The second project requires a scheme for a botanist laboratory. But
following the kiosk project, I wanted to incorporate an exhibiting
space related to the workspace. The idea of treating the laboratory
as an atelier or a workshop space where professionals showcase
their knowledge, process and outcome to the public can encourage
outside participation which can help in promoting the study of
Botany either as a subject itself or as a subject to explore in different
field e.g. fine art and photography. Inspired by the famous
microscopist Franz Bauer and biologist Ernst Haeckel which are
also known for their botanical art and biological illustration, the
idea to display works of art related to Botany in conjunction to the
current research or project on going in the laboratory can diversify
the audience of the research.
The scheme needs to produce two types of spaces that have different
programmes yet similar in objectives. This strategy reflects
on how museums and galleries exploit our visual senses to learn
things we usually do not have the knowledge of by using the idea
of a workspace in a gallery. It establishes the relationship between
the process and the by product e.g. resident artists’ workshops in
galleries or on site laboratories for biologists and scientist’ in museums
- which are usually partially viewable by the visiting public.
The concept of curiosity and learning are important fundamental
elements of any type of institution and is also reflective of the
Barbican’s ideals; like how spaces within the site and the school of
music and drama can almost easily intercept, allowing the voids
to act as accessible platforms for performers in showcasing talents
that were enhanced within the school.

Hierarchal definition of space: How the proposal will
affect the site
The relationship formed between the proposal and the structure
that has a logo on it can quickly redefine the existing elevation and
their relationship with the conservatory. For example, the spaces
enclosed by these structures can affect the circulation fo pedestrian
traffic and the use of space. But in this project, the purpose
of the site was questioned. Is it possible to use it to propose a new
entrance for the conservatory?
The original entrance is accessible via the open space connected to
sculpture court and the staircase landing connecting the art gallery.
The site where the project will be built acts as the rear side of
it, allowing entry only and specifically for personnels or delivery,
yet the walk way is at least thrice the size of it. This questions the
original purpose of the high walk and why the space was designed
in a way to accommodate more people yet does not serve as much
pedestrians as it should, leaving the space dead and unused.
With the project brief pre-requisites an exhibiting space in addition
to the lab, the structure can be designed to attract public interest
and can help revitalise the open space’s function and use.
One possible objective was how the enclosures between the proposed
structure, the existing structure and the conservatory can
act as a new entrance or receiving area. Reception rooms or spaces
where first point of contact is required should be visible enough
yet the conservatory did not use the silk street high walk, which
places the entrance hidden within the other side of the building.

Design iteration
Designing a permanent structure that can deeply affect the context
both in use and existing *urban fabric* should be done sustainably
in response to the needs of the site but without taking away the
creative freedom of the designer. In this particular project, I was
interested on how forms, building structure, openings and other
elements of architecture can affect the entry of light in a space,
addressing light as a major factor on the process of photosynthesis.
Biological forms and patterns were also explored during the
design process, as to how it can be interpreted as a form of fabric
in architecture. And as well as how the relationship between two
spaces can be expressed, the differences between the private and
public spaces but most importantly what comprises a botanist’s
day to day life.
With the research about what does a botanists’ laboratory look like
merged with the idea of expressing spaces using form and light
which was inspired by Tadao Ando’s Water Temple in Japan developed
the scheme in a concrete proposal. By reflecting on the
existing buildings and heavily textured raw materials within the
site, the proposal was resolved to stand as a structure on its own
without overbearing the conservatory. Using basic geometrical
patterns that are found within the Barbican like arches, circles,
squares and the various techniques on how shapes were repeated
without showing monotony produces a landmark like, ‘iconic’
structures e.g. the elevation of silk street entrance, the sculpture
court and the tower blocks.

The proposal
Design strategy: Play on simple geometry - square
inscribe in a circle defines the proportion of the
structure and its structural integrity to support
load. The circulation of space and how the spaces
will be used by different users i.e. public and the
botanist, affected the form and layout of the structure
and the interiors. As laboratories are specifically
designed to accommodate the needs of its
users, it has less flexibility in terms of layout. The
aim is to create a workspace, convenient and comfortable
enough to produce work and research
within its walls but as well as in collaboration with
the conservatory. It is a small laboratory that can
easily house two botanist with dedicated spaces
for storage, microscopic work, computer work,
laboratory instruments and small environmental
controlled shelves for their experiments.
In comparison to the laboratory, the exhibiting
area is a small and simple circular space with open
interior. The room is divided halfway by the entrance
stairs but as well as the sensorial experience
with light. The particular element can deeply affect
the ambience and the environment of the room.
As the site is facing northeast, daylight penetrates
through the structure and traps the heat (ceiling
to floor windows), rising the interior temperature
of the room - the reason why the conservatory
faces this way and was made of glass.
Meanwhile, the other side of the exhibiting space
is made out of concrete and designed with series
of little windows on the top and bottom of the
wall running across it. With the stairs blocking
the light coming in and the shadow trapped at the
expense of being blocked by the conservatory on
the the other side, the temperature and the lumens
of this particular half of the area will be of opposite
of the other. This difference in environment
creates a micro climate within the structure which
can affect the user’s experience and understanding
when visualising artwork.
This reflects to the focal point of the structure
which is the stairs which acts as the public entry
to the small exhibiting space. The entrance was
interpreted using the concept of how stairs can
be used as thresholds. In spatial design a staircase
can be a fundamental structural element but it can
also intensify or act as an instrument of amplification
when entering a particular space. Like the
long continuous stairs at the Kolumba museum or
in Water temple, it does not only exist just connect
two spaces, but as well as to separate them.
Stairs can also be used as a sculptural expression
in architecture. But its most important function
is its ability to move the user from one place to
another. The objective was to be able to give it a
different function using light and texture as an expressive
resolution in redefining the experience of
the movement of people.

Elevation
The conservatory’s facade and roof are made out of glass and steel,
appropriating the environmental and structural need to emulate a
tropical green house. The existing facade features subtle jalousie
windows on the top of the fenestration to allow passive wind-driven
ventilation (releasing heat using pressure). This is overall creates
a facade that is transparent during daytime and reflective during
night time.
Whilst not in a large scale, the front facade of the proposal uses
similar elevational design strategy to its background building. It
allows the structure to integrate with its context via mimicking the
proportion, repetition and and the scale of the existing fenestration,
creating a new layer of facade. Together, the existing and the
proposed creates a foreground and background effect, adding texture
and depth on the whole appearance of the facade in context.
There were few things observed when studying the elevational
drawings:
1. Due the structure’s scale and proportion in relationship to its
context, negative vertical spaces and enclosures were moulded
by the form of the proposal and the existing building elements,
which created accidental series of spaces, losures and as well as
viewpoints.
2. With the proposal sitting in front and the sun’s movement, some
shadow will be casted towards the conservatory. This might affect
the existing indoor environment of the conservatory.
3. And although relatively minimal, the height and the size of the
proposal will have an impact on the wind pressure and direction
across the walkway.

Section
It was difficult to compare and contrast the events happening on
the inside between the existing and the proposed due to lack of
information in regards to the conservatory. However, there are
various observations and details that came to light when drawing
the section cuts.
The section drawing showing the stairs tells us that spatial hierarchy
is applied between two different types of thresholds. Looking
at it in conjunction to the elevation strongly emphasises the differences
between accessing the public and private spaces. It is also
reflected on the traffic circulation by the botanist and the public.
Both users follow a U-shape form of movement which is structurally
defined by the positioning of the stairs yet the difference in
form of entry, convenience, atmosphere and scale explicitly juxtaposes
one another.
Although quite public, the positioning of the entrance of the laboratory
is under and beneath the protruding building elements of
the proposal. The losures and voids between the structure and the
conservatory act as its entrance threshold. If similar colour, texture
or material to concrete is used for the door, it can be partially
concealed as a part of the wall.
Meanwhile, the staircase entrance is designed to show formality
and attract public attention. Its central orientation, scale, material
and play of light manifests grandiose and importance, highlighting
its hierarchy in the design strategy. The threshold itself is the
stairs. The principle of interior transitions is applied in external
sense, allowing entry sequences to happen. The ceiling height of
the staircase is indirectly proportional to its width to give such
public space an intimate atmosphere without the claustrophobic
feeling.
The design idea of using stairs as both connection and separation
between two spaces emphasises it ability to
mediate and act as a transitional element. A staircase can also be
a design highlight of a project. It is pure architecture in its own
right. Brutalist architecture tend to extend its common language
and design characteristics not only to the form or shape of the
building but as well as to in-situ elements such as windows, chairs,
and stairs i.e. Barbican and the National Theatre.
In other section drawings, it showed how the walls and openings
were strategised to restrict or allow entry of light and where it travels.
The wall to glazing/opening ratio is most probably close to half
if computed in percentage yet it is not divided equally across all
external surfaces. The intention is to emulate two opposite moods
between spaces in a single room, permitting different environments
to affect the experience of exhibition viewing.
The symmetry of the plan reflects quite strongly on its section. The
proportion of dedicated space shown in both sections and plans
create harmonious and well balanced distribution of space. And
finally, its tectonic presence is strong enough, making the form absolute
even with unequal opening distribution, enabling it to stand
as a separate structure from its context.

Model
Using grey card mimics the tectonic quality of the structure that reflects
on the context and materiality (steel and glass in juxtaposition
with concrete) of the Barbican
The principles and common characteristics of Brutalist architecture
were used to approach the design of the proposal
Exterior losures and threshold - relationship between two small
structures and how it tries to mirror the fly tower (from which scenery
for productions taking place on the stage six stories below is lowered
into place) and the conservatory’s relationship.
Experimentation and play of light allows the architecture to change,
depending on the time of the day and materials used; as well as using
light as an element to control the scenery e.g. like in film sets. Light
helps the structure to distinguish and separate itself from the context
at night, while its absence allows the structure to blend with its surrounding
context during daytime.
The structure emits light at night like the existing structures around
it in the city e.g. office buildings.
Atmosphere differs in different parts of the structure i.e. interior,
exterior, stairs, laboratory and gallery - each has specific distinct environment

Reflection
Architecture help us realise that as designers, our involvement either
in small or large scale projects, have a massive influence not just to
the architectural industry but as well as to socio-cultural, economical,
political and environmental conditions of our city and landscape.
One has to know how to design responsibly and with sensitivity
not only to the surrounding urban fabric but as well as according
to the climate, locality and culture present to ensure the development
of both tangible and intangible elements of the built environment.
Hence the the strategical approach was to design without
overwhelming the existing buildings on the upper podium/walkway
or the overall site. Yet, there still should be a room for expressing
creativity that does not only conform to the existing context’s architecture
but as well as the designer’s freedom to apply their personal
style. And that is the reason why architects and designer have to
build strong relationships with their clients and other stakeholders.
Design competitions and the list of panels are also chosen according
to specific reasons, hence I personally still think its important for
designers to add a little bit of their flavour to their designs or at least
some design principles that stand by with.
Through the proposal, utilising the botanist laboratory using a new
approach on shifting and flexible workspace permit them to visually
share their work process to the public which is often private (e.g.
Natural History Museum). This strategy is often applied to cake
shops or restaurants to attract customers. I wonder how will it affect
the sciences if the same approach is applied to industries like
engineering where there is a large gender gap to its practitioners,
or maybe fashion where majority of the students and people on the
industry are females. The project was also structured to correspond
to the topic of learning and questioning the norm of how we see and
enjoy things that are already by products of the practice (botany) yet
we never fully understood the work behind it.