This semester was dedicated to the exploration of steel in order to enter the ASCA steel competition. For the competition, we entered into the museum category, creating a program that was relatively 42,000 sg feet, a building could not exceed a block long, and you had to include long span steel members. Four boards, one abstract, and program brief was entered into the competition.
METAMORPHOSIS_abstract
Braddock, PA, the starting place for the revolutionized steel process, is now a landscape filled with decaying buildings, and relics of the past booming economy. With the industry as the heart, the building type moves into other large businesses, smaller businesses, and then residential areas. Through the documentation of this decaying city, one beings to question why we construct the way we do, and why we do not accommodate future economy within design. Therefore, within this project we distinguish time as an important factor and responding to time through flexible program.
With an abandoned river front and an industrial landscape holding most of the property within Braddock, the site sets in between the two landscapes. The river front, to this day, is polluted with small industries, therefore the placement of our large superstructure adds a precedent of beautifying the river front. Hopefully, pushing those industries out, and bringing things like green space, education, and small businesses to boost the economy and life to the river. The industrial landscape, i.e. the Edgar Thomson steel mill, leaves a large footprint within the landscape, so for our building to compete with the sheer size of the mill, the superstructure spans over 2,000 feet by 175 feet and 45 feet high.
The implementation of four gantry cranes promote this idea of change throughout the time span of a day. They are placed on top of the building connected to a track, allowing the cranes to move across the superstructure to implement program, place relics into display, and remove structure.
All in all, the project provides a connection between two landscapes that did not exist before, and follows precedent of industrialization by accommodating change throughout the span of a day through the span of years according to what Braddock’s economy needs.
METAMORPHOSIS_program brief
For the first 50 years, program has been mapped out to hold a museum, restaurant, coffee shop, office spaces, storage spaces, and below grade parking, all flexible program floating in between the permanent core system dedicated to vertical circulation of people and relics, mechanical space, and restrooms. Therefore within 50 years, the program is set to be at a total of 42, 850 sq feet, filling the superstructure 33%. These large voids within the superstructure creates a layer of transparency, allowing the landscape to bleed through the building creating a connection between the river front and industrial landscape. As the program progresses and as the building becomes more involved with the city of Braddock, there might be removal or addition of some program over time depending on what the economy can host. The mapping of time was important to the process of how the superstructure would act, looking to the economy of Braddock, the program would expand and contract through the time span of a day all the way to a time span of centuries. For example, the changes of relics on display within the galleries can be changed consistently, while the museum will stay for as long as it can be sustained within Braddock.
As the building progresses, it will set precedent for the renewal of the river front. Pushing throughout time, a set of cores will be dispersed throughout the landscape, and program like residential, business, and education centers will grow from those cores and blossom into a thriving economy.
