DESKTOP REVIEWS AUGMENTED ARCHITECTURE

Tutor’s Comments The 1:5 model was commended for the amount of work put into it and the details emerging from the sliding curtain walls. The next step was to investigate practiced methodology and structures about the materials I am using, in order to correctly portray the use of my primary material; cardboard.

RESEARCH ON CARDBOARD ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN

The use of cardboard in architecture in fact was not the most popularly published and I had difficulties finding neither articles nor books on cardboard structures. I have looked into a couple of books that have reference to Shigeru Ban who I have looked at before.

Matilda McQuaid, 2003, Shigeru Ban, discusses Ban’s use of wide variety of materials and the architect’s design ideas.

Shigeru Ban refers to paper as “evolved wood”. He was attracted to paper tubes because they are inexpensive, easily replaceable, low-tech, retain their natural color, and produce virtually no waste. After his permanent paper tube structure, Library of a Poet, the use of paper tubes was authorized in Japan under the Building Standard law. (Aalto, 2007)

He is well known for his paper tube architecture where he uses wood joints and aluminum joints to link them. In an interview he shows his admiration in materials:

“Materials are my great interest…the selection of building materials are very practical: accessibility, cost and technical efficiency. The visual articulation of the chosen materials is not my primary objective…I am responding to practical needs” (McQuaid, 2003)

Some of the points he made corresponds to some of my thoughts. As a temporary toilet which could possibly be built up on any pedestrian island on site, it was more about thinking the accessibility in terms of how the island is positioned on the road.

Paper Log Houses - Kobe, Japan, 1995 The unit are easy to dismantle, and the materials easily disposed or recycled.

He has also done several disaster relief projects leading to his latest one in Christchurch. These structures are easy to dismantle, and the materials could easily be thrown away or get recycled. After a disaster, material prices are prone to rise very high, making it difficult for timber and masonry for rapid construction of temporary shelters. Ban argues that paper, as a conventional material, would be the cheapest way to successfully comply with the demands after such event.

Paper Emergency Shelters for UNCHR - Byumba Refugee Camp Rwanda

Sean Ki Beom Park

PAPER IN ARCHITECTURE CARDBOARD PAVILLION

Pavillion Delft University of Technology In 2005, from the University’s faculty of Architecture, their students built a temporary cardboard pavilion as for an exhibition and conference about cardboard.

Its walls were built from a few layers of honey cell glued together, creating an extraordinary texture. The honey cell walls were strong enough to provide a large part of the whole structure’s stability.

Rather than honeycomb which is specifically manufactured and sold, it could be worth using local materials (package boxes perhaps) by recycling

Another wall within the pavilion was stacked up with cardboard boxes. It had flaps that would slide into the boxes underneath and due to its similarity; it was called the ‘cardboard masonry’.

There was an interesting fact about the honeycomb construction using cardboard that they had investigated. ‘Measurements on a layered honeycomb construction, i.e. the floor, show the possibility of large bending before final failure. Because of this large unexpected bending effect, the floor could not be connected properly to any walls. As a consequence of this, every wall had to be stable by itself or stabilized using additional elements.’

There were different stacking systems possible with the cardboard structures 1. Honeycomb system 2. Hollow wall system 3. Stacking System 4. Panel System They all had different properties and mechanisms

Cardboard box stacking system

Sean Ki Beom Park

FAST FORWARD 2011 LECTURE ARCHITECTURE FOR HUMANITY CAMERON SINCLAIR

While thinking about disaster relief and temporary projects I just remembered about Cameron Sinclair’s Fast Forward Lecture two weeks ago. His ideas and thoughts about the impact of his network on millions of people were inspirational.

“Architecture for Humanity is a nonprofit design

services firm founded in 1999. We are building a more sustainable future through the power of professional

design.”

Recent projects and Chapters have risen for Sendai, Japan after the earthquake that happened earlier this year

"The land we bought was literally ‘the site from hell,’ Architecture for Humanity's design fellow managed to design classrooms that we will be able to replicate on any site. I really think it could be the best built school in rural Uganda." – Carol Auld, Kutamba AIDS Orphans School, Uganda His idea of an architect was to take innovative solutions and build it. For him, he wanted to build for the humanity, and Architecture for Humanity is a group of dedicated Architects sparing 6 months or more to help and build areas that may not get an access to architects. Architects would not only design, but live in the area for 4-6 months until they actually build the project on site.

By doing this, Architecture for Humanity creates sustainable architecture to help the society to become an economical engine in order to develop social values. They integrate the participation of local communities and building communities to engage them as the active member of the design process.

Pakistan Flood Reconstruction - Heritage Foundation Bamboo Housing Program

They cover the range of post-war, post-disaster, post-conflicts. Projects could last up to 4-5 years and this includes places like Sendai, Haiti and areas that were affected by the hurricane Katrina. They have a decentralized physical network system. It is an open architecture network where they have many groups called ‘Chapters’ around the world. Local architects who are better aware about the local context are grouped in regions to work for certain parts of the world.

They seek innovation and consider it as a spark and also think that creativity is a journey. They catch several layers of goals in a project exampled by the New York City one, where one project looks to make changes on millennial atrophy (obesity), connect generation (digitalized world) and discussed area (Manhattan in particular).

‘Follow your heart, break the rules, and make it happen’

Sean Ki Beom Park

THE BROWN CORPORATION ECO-FRIENDLY TOILET: SHITBOX

What is it? Shit Box is a lightweight portable cardboard toilet, made specifically for outdoor use. The box pops up from a convenient 14 inch flat pack to a rigid, reusable, comfortable toilet. Each box comes with ten degradable waste bags.

How does it work?

1. Pop Box 2. Unfold Box 3. Fold and insert tabs 4. Fold over seat and lid 5. Turn box over and insert stabilizers 6. Press down bag handle locaters 7. Insert pooh bag, relief! 8. Stool

From left, Shit Box Pack, Ploo Pack, Shit Camo Pack, Little Jack Girls Pack

COMPOST TOILETS

A composting toilet is a predominantly aerobic processing system that treats excreta, typically with no water or small volumes of flush water, via composting or managed aerobic decomposition.

[1] This is usually a faster process than the

anaerobic decomposition at work in most wastewater systems, such as septic systems. Composting toilets are often used as an alternative to central wastewater treatment plants (sewers) or septic systems. Typically they are chosen (1) to alleviate the need for water to flush toilets, (2) to avoid discharging nutrients and/or potential pathogens into environmentally sensitive areas, or (3) to capture nutrients in human excreta. Several manufactured composting toilet models are on the market, and construct-it-yourself systems are also popular.

[2]

Diagram of a typical composting toilet

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composting_toilet http://www.thebrowncorporation.com/

Sean Ki Beom Park

DESIGN PROCESS BUILDING 1:1 MODEL

Cardboard collected from recycle boxes outside MITRE10 Mega in Albany

Using wood glue and weights to hold each panel down (cut into 500x150). Panels were alternatively faced to prevent curving

About 4 carriage boxes were used to get a width of 400mm floor

The floor board after sanding

Nails and small wood pallets used for the sliders

Curtain wall and sliders

1:1 MODEL MAKING ATTENTION TO DETAIL ASSEMBLING

Sliders and the pallets

Wall

Assembling

Finished Model

Sean Ki Beom Park