/keena/vaz/

KEY IDEAS

ENTRANCE AS ONE OF THE KEY FEATURES OF BUILDING

• DRAWING PEOPLE IN FROM THE STREET INTO THE GALLERY
  
• FACADE TURNS AWAY FROM THE STREET BUT INFORMS ENTRY/GIVES GLIMPSES OF INTERIOR AT THE SAME TIME
• INVITING ENTRANCE BY BEING AT HUMAN SCALE AND BY EXCITING CURIOSITY
  
• FACADE PROVIDES VISUAL BREAK FROM THE REST OF KING STREET FACADE

ART GALLERY AS HAVEN FROM URBAN LANDSCAPE

• CREATING A SENSE OF 'HAVEN' BY ALLUDING TO AND INTEGRATING NATURE INTO INTERIORS
  
• FACADE TURNS AWAY FROM THE STREET
• ENTRANCE LEADS ONE DOWNWARDS
• FRONT GARDEN ACTS AS A 'BUFFER' FACILITATING THE TRANSITION BETWEEN THE BUSY STREET INTO THE GALLERY

MOVEMENT AND VERTICAL INTERACTION WITHIN THE BUILDING

• LINEAR MOVEMENT THROUGH THE MAIN GALLERY
• RAMP CREATING A FLUID TRANSITION BETWEEN LOWER LEVEL TO UPPER LEVEL GALLERIES
• VISUAL CONNECTION BETWEEN TWO LEVELS. UPPER FLOOR OVERLOOKS LOWER LEVEL
• RAMP COMMANDS MOVEMENT THROUGH THE GALLERIES BY LOCATING ITSELF AT THE CENTRE OF THE BUILDING
  

SEPARATION OF FUNCTIONS

• ALL ADMINISTRATIVE AND SERVICE SPACES ARE CONCENTRATED TO ONE SIDE OF THE BUILDING
• GALLERY AND SERVICE SPACES ARE DELINEATED BY RAMP
• BOTH AREAS ARE ACCESSED SEPARATELY

FLEXIBLE SPACES

• MINIMISE COMPARTMENTALISING MAIN GALLERY SPACE
• PROVIDING GENEROUS CEILING HEIGHTS FROM MAIN GALLERY
• SECOND LEVEL GALLERIES FOR INTIMATE EXHIBITS OR WALLS CAN BE OPENED UP TO EXTEND EXHIBIT SPACE

LIGHTING

• NATURAL LIGHT DIFFUSED THROUGH SKYLIGHTS AND REFLECTED BY OUTER WALLS AND IN THROUGH GLAZING
  

INITIAL IDEAS: I FIRST TRIED TO EXPLORE HOW I MIGHT ARRANGE THE SPACES IN THE BUILDING. FIRST THE OUTDOOR AND INDOOR AREAS. THEN THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE BUILDING. FINALLY THE MOVEMENT OF BOTH THE GALLERY GOERS AND THE GALLERY OWNER/ARTISTS THROUGH THESE SPACES.


FIRST SCHEME: I TRIED RESOLVING THE BRIEF INTO THE INITIAL SCHEME ABOVE. HERE THE BUILDING, ITS ARRANGEMENT OF SPACES AND CIRCULATION REVOLVES AROUND THE COURTYARD. THE USE OF TWO RAMPS PROVIDES CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT.


DEVELOPMENT: AFTER CONSULTATION, I TRIED TO EXPLORE VARIATIONS OF THE INITIAL SCHEME. HERE, PUBLIC AND PRIVATE FUNCTIONS ARE COMPLETELY SEPARATE. GALLERY SPACES ARE SANDWICHED BY COURTYARDS.


NEAR RESOLUTION: REFINEMENT OF DEVELOPED SCHEME, MAKING USE OF ONE RAMP AS THE AXIS OF THE BUILDING. GREENSPACE RUNS ALONGSIDE THE BUILDING, EXTENDING THE INTERIORS OUT..