Some of the main aspects I wanted to incorporate in my design included:
- To make a more inviting entrance, making the act of entering the site interesting. To do this I played with the concept of threshold. By framing the entrance way between the two adjacent buildings and enclosing the space when parsing through it you move from a small framed view of part of the site to a large space where the entire site opens up. The use of compression here helps to emphasise this point on entering the space.
- I also wanted to create a space that was easy to navigate around as this is a community centre spaces and activities should be easily accessible. To do this I used different wall thicknesses and placements to push and pull the occupants around the space.
- In terms of the outside of the building I focused on the concept of recoprocity. This idea focuses on the relationship between architecture and the surrounding landscape. I didn't want it to feel as though there was a definite back and front to the building. I just wanted to create a sense of openness toward the site. To do this
I used a glass facade that looked out onto the oval. The north elevation opens up to the playground in a way pulling these elements of the building into the landscape resulting in the playground not being viewed as a separate part, it now becomes involved in the program.
- The west elevation steps back at certain intervals to pull people toward the entrance and into the site.
- The retaining wall then continues to pull people toward the grandstand with its curving shape allowing the existing grandstand to be incorporated into the design.
Overall I wanted to produce a building that complemented the already existing grandstand and to use ideas of engaging with the surroundings and becoming part of the urban context while also facilitating connections between certain objects.
