OG - ON SITE
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Ok, so this has nothing to do with construction but I thought I’d post these anyways. These are some hand drawings I did a few years back with pencil, pen and markers for a Cape Breton project which never got built. These were done for and while I worked at MLS Architects in Halifax.
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These are a few of my favourite details. It’s rough and ready. The wood rafter tails create a shaded area on the upper level walkout. It’s about the deconstruction of the building assembly. The plywood ceiling panels are cut in various strips to produce a more textured appearance. You see electrical cords in beyond the gaps. I love that the grain direction stays in tact. The narrow staircase completely clad in birch plywood creates a tunnel-like space, with light from the clerestory shining beyond. Hope. The handrail is made from bits and pieces from a plumbing kit.
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Above all else, in my work I am interested in light. In the intermediate stages of construction I am able to see the first glimpses of the intended effect of light, darkness and texture on the space. You have an idea of what you want the space to feel like but you never really know until it’s built. Much of what is produced is accidental - but I allow those accidents to happen.
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Always the most exciting part of the project - the framing stage. Each time that I visit the site, major elements of the building form are constructed. The framing process is always the most exciting for the client as they see their future home appear quickly before them. The walls are framed, followed by the major roof framing and the clerestory window. From the interior the long horizontal view becomes dominant.
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Mike Burns and the MRB Contracting crew blast into the first few weeks, clearing the land where required, assembling the ICF foundation blocks and begin framing. It doesn’t take long before a glimpse of the end form is evident.The massive ribbon of windows stretch along the entire front facade.
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The design concept was the re-configuration and distortion of the classical 12:12 roof pitch gable based on programmatic and environmental criteria. A series of process models and minor teaks alter tha gable form into a gable/shed/clerestory hybrid which would accomodate a hill-side building with natural light on an upper level art studio. From the sketch and then the process models comes the presentation model (after weeks of work). The surrounding forest dwarfs the simple building as was intended.
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The project starts, as it always does, on a walking tour of the land. That’s where we walk, talk and sketch ideas together with the client. After this first meeting (with an enormous amount of black flies) we has a good sense of where the proposed building would go and where the road leading to it would be built. As with all of my projects, its important to be as respectful as possible to the land - clear only what is necessary and disturb the land only as much as is required. The design answers to the land, not the other way around.
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3 seasons pass and the project comes to a close. Please visit my project page on my website to see a few more of my own images.
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After months of work the drywall has been hung, primed and painted and the entry flap is nearing completion (including the stone landscaping). Each and every site visit is one major step closer to completion. On the exterior side of the guest wing an exterior shower has been installed - a wash off location after a day at the beach.
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The exterior is insulated, strapped, clad and stained. The deck comes together and the exterior brise soleil which blocks unwanted summer sun is installed. The entry flap is marked by a perforated steel screen which allows light to permeate in the evening.
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