public architecture + communication: 2030 challenge architectural competition vancouver

dreams of vertical topographies by public architecture + communication image courtesy public architecture + communication

the architectural insitute of british columbia together with the city of vancouver recently held a competition to develop and improve the city’s livability through greener, denser development known as the 2030 challenge.

for the competition public architecture + communication developed a point tower typologythat is closely associated with the city. the proposal explores four distinct building programs intergrated into a vertical topography – media tech, library, community broadcasting studio, gallery and theatres using the following framework:

reef – individuals using a shared infrastructure like a coral reef, the core building provides weather stabilized vertical topographies that create a variety of spatial experiences and inhabitable spaces. variation in cross section creates an array of spatial characteristics from large scale public performance spaces, to small, intimate and private spaces.

jellyfish – individual as collective some jellyfish, such as bluebottles, are actually a colony of four different types of organisms that work together to survive and, as a result, express themselves as a single entity. like a jellyfish, this building consists of four distinct buildings terrains that can be understood as a single entity. these terrains inhabit different sides of the cross section and overlook each other in longitudinal section. these terrains consist of a performance and events center, a media center, a research library and an interdisciplinary educational center. each individual terrain further breaks down into three distinct zones: individual cells expressed on the facades, enclosed areas in the core for group work, and exterior covered spaces for meeting and activities beyond the scale of the enclosed spaces. individual primary circulation cores give each terrain autonomy, while secondary circulation provides interconnection between and within terrains.

leaf bug – mimetic amongst the corporate towers surrounded by corporate towers proclaiming singular entities, this building absorbs the built language that surrounds it. the scale is that of a corporate tower and the building expression references existing constructed languages of the broadway corridor, including advertising billboards, hotels, gas stations, and car dealerships.

dance steps – adaptability, movement, change as constant core building programs are arranged when possible as open floor plans, creating large tiers of adaptable space with furniture providing definition to changing programmatic needs. these tiers spill into exterior covered spaces that are immediately adjacent. from the core spaces, bridges span to individual cells that express to the facade and can be expanded into a vertical favela.

transparency the building is completely open air and spatially permeable at grade. facade screens shade and protect from weather, as well as generate electricity. double glass facades enclose interior spaces but allow for air movement. sustainability is demonstrated by living within climatic extremes and eliminating hvac systems, except in localized zones requiring conditioning, such as computer labs.

dreams of vertical topographies by public architecture + communication image courtesy public architecture + communication

dreams of vertical topographies image courtesy public architecture + communication

dreams of vertical topographies – drawing image courtesy public architecture + communication

dreams of vertical topographies – drawing image courtesy public architecture + communication

dreams of vertical topographies – model image courtesy public architecture + communication

dreams of vertical topographies – drawing image courtesy public architecture + communication