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Thermal Baths +
Marine Center
*** conceptual project
Reimagining Seattle's Waterfront with a proposal that blurs the boundaries between Seattle's built and natural environment
Role
We collaboratively designed and developed the project, but I took the lead in creating visuals for the project and presentations.
Duration
Jan 2018 - April 2018 // 3 months
Team
Aditi Saldanha & Praveen Bhardwaj
Overview
This was a conceptual architectural project in which we were challenged to blur the boundaries between a thermal bath facility and an antithetical program of our choice for Seattle's waterfront renovation - we chose a marine research center.
Tools
Rhino 3D, V-Ray Render, Photoshop, Illustrator, 3D Printer
Client
Waterfront Seattle (hypothetical)
DESIGN PROMPT
Blur the boundaries between a thermal bath facility and an antithetical program of our choice.
Our first step was to understand our site - Seattle.
With any architectural project (similar to UX), the first step is to perform a site analysis in order to understand the site. It's vital to understand the site context, opportunities and limitations of the site, and overall vibe of the surrounding area. We had a few research goals in mind that concerned aspects we wanted to learn more about;
1
Seattle's overall vibe
2
Urban context
3
General use of site and surrounding area
Walking distance
Circulation
Seattle grid
Green areas
RESEARCH INSIGHTS
1
There is a growing divide between man and nature.
We immediately fell in love with Seattle's efforts to integrate the natural environment into the city as much as possible. However, as the city grows into a large metropolis, the divide between the natural and built environment will continue to widen.
2
Reconnecting the waterfront to the city is a top priority.
Seattle was first founded upon the waterfront and it has since been its defining feature. However, this connection was impeded when a main highway went up in 1953 separating the city from the waterfront. There is now a need to reconnect residents and visitors back to the waterfront - the feature it was founded upon.
DESIGN GOALS
In addition to the design prompt, we decided to add two more design goals to address findings from our site analysis.
DESIGN CONCEPT
A coexistence of the built and natural environment.
We were very inspired by the growing divide of Seattle's built and natural environment. We were intrigued by the idea of extending the grid lines of Seattle out into the water and how they might intersect with the natural environment. We thought it might be interesting to have the grids wrap around the pockets of nature (thermal baths) as they intersect. This conceptual idea directly informed the architecture.
Conceptual image
Program diagram a.k.a. the information architecture.
In order to determine the different types of program required for both the thermal baths and marine center, how to prioritize them, and the desired adjacencies between them, I created a program diagram to help me think through these logistics.
Floor plans and construction logistics.
Once we determined program requirements, we brainstormed ways to incorporate everything into the space in a way that was both innovative but feasible. We decided to separate the thermal baths and marine center by placing them on different levels, in a way that looks like the second level is floating above the first.
To support the entire level above, we designed three cylindrical glass towers that would house the all the primary amenities and facilities for the thermal bath, which doubled as structural supports. The levels are also bridged by three "floating" aquariums that are suspended from the level above that float above the thermal baths.
** Created by my teammate, Praveen Bhardwaj.
GALLERY
Good visuals are paramount to effectively presenting an idea, particularly one that is more conceptual in nature. I love creating visuals, so I took the initiative to create the majority of the visuals for this project.
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