Reflection

1. What you have learnt in Semester 2

• How to use Google Sketchup
• The need for precision in architecture
• Whether I can be an architect (NO. i can die)

1. Difficulties encountered

• Sketchup lagging
• Making my building special and different from others
• Understanding why my building cannot be a combination of the best parts of the different buildings/facilities needed

1. How did you overcome them?

• Learnt to be patient and wait/do something else while waiting
• Accept the rubrics and edited my journal accordingly
• Attempted to be more creative

1. How do you think you can do better?

• Start earlier
• Don’t slack
• Don’t major on the minor
• Organise my journal more neatly

ADMT Poster Text (part 2)

Design

My building will have these facilities:

- One level with gymnasium/sports facilities 

- One level specifically for meeting rooms and lounges for group meetings or conversations 

- Ground level with a sundry shop that is different than the others nearby, 

- Ground level for some tables and benches for resting 

- Ground level with vacant stalls for small business initiatives to sell their goods in the mini-stalls. 

- Ground level with pathway across it

Have these characteristics in terms of how the building functions/looks like: - Insulated glazing (eg. double-skin) for windows in the study room and the ground level 

- Solar panels on the roof

Text for the poster (part 1)

What I want to build

I would like to build a small recreation centre. It would be 5 levels high.

It would have facilities for different group of people. There would be a level with gymnasium/sports facilities, a level specifically for silent rooms and lounges for group meetings or just for conversation, while the ground level would have a sundry shop, some tables and benches for resting, as well as vacancies for small business initiatives to sell their goods in the mini-stalls. There would be a pathway across the ground level.

Where I am going to build it

I plan to build the recreation centre on the grass patch opposite Old SST, surrounded by Blocks 304, 310, 311 and 312.

Why I am building it

The demographics of the population around the grass patch are mostly students getting home or going to school, some adults travelling home or to work, and some elderly taking walks/exercising along the path.

Some of their needs would be to have a sundry stall, for those who have to leave home without breakfast or those who need a drink after exercising before going home, as well as those who need to buy some food for the next day.

Students nowadays do not have many choices for their location of their project group meetings as well as for studying. With the lounges and silent study/reading rooms, they can choose to meet there instead of in school all the time. Adults who wish to have conversations with friends can talk at the lounge as well.

In a community that is noticeably sedentary, the gymnasiums are to encourage exercise.

The mini-stalls are to encourage our budding innovators to have a go at conducting business. These stalls are for small projects such as lemonade stands, or even a familyʼs garage sale after cleaning out their rooms.

There would be a pathway across the ground level so that those travelling from the Clementi Avenue 6 to Block 310 by foot/bicycle would be able to take a short cut by cutting across the recreation centre.

Values it would bring

This recreation centre encourages social life, as well as good habits such as studying. This centre would also encourage innovation and enterprise, which are all very important. With this centre, I hope that people from this estate would not stay alone in their homes as much, and bond with other neighbours through this location.

Design of a recreation centre

How the centre looks like from the outside

First floor

Second floor

Third floor

Fourth floor

Fifth floor

Sixth floor

List of interesting buildings (and other sources)

This post would be updated quite often, so that I can refer to this post for any of the interesting building designs that I have seen (it helps for citation too.)


About good architectural design
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architectural_design_values#Aesthetic_design_values
http://keithelder.net/2007/08/08/good-architecture-design-creates-more-code-and-takes-more-time/


Awesome houses

Zero-Emission Polar Station:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/category/eco-buldings/

Green Commercial and Entertainment Centre (in Korea):
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/green-commercial-and-entertainment-center-in-seoul-korea/

Sustainable Modern House Boat:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/the-sustainable-modern-house-boat/

Top 10 tree houses in 2008:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/top-10-tree-houses-of-2008/

Thai Temple made from plastic bottles:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/thai-temple-built-from-one-million-recycled-bottles-more-pics/

Transformer house:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/m-velope-transformer-house/

Treehouse cafe in Japan:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/amazing-banyan-treehouse-cafe-in-japan/

Foldable bamboo house:
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/the-origami-inspired-folding-bamboo-house/

China's first Zero-Emission building
http://solarenergydream.com/blog/china%E2%80%99s-first-zero-emissions-building/

Two Siberian Projects
http://www.cumbu.com/two-projects-in-khanti-mansiysk-by-erick-van-egeraat-in-siberia/

What makes a good architectural design?

1. Technicality
First of all, no matter how the design looks like, the design must be feasible, detailed, and able to stand. Do note that technicality does not equal to practicality - the design may be technically possible, but some of the unnecessary materials can be removed when considering the cost/practicality of building the building.

2. Aesthetic design values
Once the technicality requirements are fulfilled, the next aspect would be the aesthetic aspect. It should be timely (suitable to the styles of that period of time). It should also be the designer's self-expression. Aesthetics is very subjective; thus the designer needs to consider the culture of the region and the context for building the building.

3. Social design values
The building might be feasible and look pretty, but if it does not serve the community in any way, there is no use in letting the design come to fruition. For example, the concept of having HDB flats in Singapore was to make public housing affordable, and it has successfully done so. Also, if a designer designs a building that can conserve energy, or be built in such a way that it can be more affordable for the homeless or for those in slums, that would add a social value to the building design.

4. Traditional design values
This value would apply according to who the building is designed for. For example, if the building was to be an Asian Museum, tradition would have to be considered when designing how the museum looks like.

5. Economic design value
This value would be very important when a designer is designing a building that needs to be mass-produced or be made affordable to the masses. The building should be simple and minimalistic, such that less materials would be used without compromising on quality, so that it would be sold for a cheaper price for the masses.

Source of inspiration: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architectural_design_values#Aesthetic_design_values
(Explanations and examples stated above are just my point of view, it's not based on the source.)

Define: Architectural Design

Architecture:
-The art and science of designing and erecting buildings and other physical structures.
-A style and method of design and construction of buildings and other physical structures.

-The character or style of building: the architecture of Paris; Romanesque architecture.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecture
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/architectural-design.html
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/architecture


Design:
-Informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system (as in architectural blueprints, engineering drawing, business process, circuit diagrams and sewing patterns) while “to design” (verb) refers to making this plan.
-To create or execute in an artistic or highly skilled manner.
-To prepare the preliminary sketch or the plans for (a work to be executed), especially to plan the form and structure of: to design a new bridge.
-A graphic representation, especially a detailed plan for construction or manufacture.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design
http://www.answers.com/topic/design
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/design
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/design

Architectural Design:
-Concept that focuses on the components or elements of a structure or system and unifies them into a coherent and functional whole, according to a particular approach in achieving the objective(s) under the given constraints or limitations. See also behavioral design.


Conclusion:
Architectural design is basically an artistic way to design/construct buildings.