Racing for Design Project #2

The historical city centre of Port Elizabeth will have a new centre of fun. Our second project will require us to design an indoor kart racing centre on a open lot across the Campanile near the harbour entrance.

The submission will include plans, sections, elevations and a model in a time frame of two weeks.

Final hand sketches for Des Baker

"The process of drawing is, before all else, the process of putting the visual intelligence into action, the very mechanics of visual thought. Unlike painting and sculpture it is the process by which the artist makes clear to himself, and not to the spectator, what he is doing. It is a soliloquy before it becomes communication."

-Michael Ayerton

First project hand in for design

With the first design project handed in, a light feeling rushes over me. And just before I can catch my second breathe we have been informed that the actual hand in will be the next Wednesday the 30th.

The good news, if any, is that we can work on things that are missing from our design.

First stages of a school.

In relation to a school there must be children to occupy the space.

And the space mostly occupied is the classroom.

The layout of the classrooms are fairly simple, as there are several blocks and

each block contains two classes.

The wall facing the north-west is built as rammed-earth,

as this will cool down the building during the summer and

retain heat during the winter.

The remainding walls are buildt of clay bricks, and the windows are of

sustainable timber.

Bringing reality to AutoCad

Reality..

A cold dark room that manages to attract light.

A rendering of the same image in AutoCad 2011, and I still think it needs work.

The first stage of the design process.

The main concept for the design of the primary school is based on the entire idea where the community and the school can be sustainable not only as a building that adheres to sustainable building requirements.

My site layout involves all the classes to be accessible from the playground, as it will be easier for the school children to visually distinguish the classrooms from the open public spaces.

However, I do feel that although this is the the starting point of the design process, my design itself is lacking a feel of the connection to the community. And I wish to solve the issue in due time.

Inspiration from Gando for design

http://www.kere-architecture.com/bf/bf_001.html

The building in Gando, Burkina Faso, was designed with sustainability in mind in a rural community. The architect and a local, Francis Kere, wished to built the first school for the community. Not only is the building sustainable in design but also provided the community, especially the adults, new building skills that would be used to improve the community itself.