School of Design | Graduate Interior Design
Students: Polina Shchukina
As part of precedent research, the 2011 MoMA PS1 installation entitled “Holding Pattern” was analyzed. The project centered around the concepts of SHARING, ZERO WASTE, and facilitating COMMUNITY TIES, which were achieved through program and form.
As part of precedent research, the 2011 MoMA PS1 installation entitled “Holding Pattern” was analyzed. The project centered around the concepts of SHARING, ZERO WASTE, and facilitating COMMUNITY TIES, which were achieved through program and form.
The spur of the High Line located at 30th street and 10 Avenue was also explored. Two key concepts were distilled:
• the concept of IMPLIED PATHS that trace historic train routes along the walkway and continue up and over multiple planes;
• the concept of SUGGESTED CONTINUITY that relates to the transitional nature of the High Line between nature and the city.
A number of DESIGN STRATEGIES were derived for designing a wearable interior conditions apparatus and an outdoor dining environment.
My wearable apparatus is a TEACHERS FROCK that allows a teacher to take their classroom outdoors. Once outside, it can be removed from the body, hung, and used as a portable classroom. The grid of snaps allows detachable components to be arranged as needed. The components include shelves, pockets, lights, boxes for a whiteboard, or an I-pad. The Frock can also be transformed into a tote that carries all components inside.
The same set of design strategies were applied to constructing the outdoor environment. The choice of the site on Underhill Ave and Sterling Place in Prospect Heights was dictated by the close proximity to two public schools and the fact that Underhill is closed to traffic during school hours so the space of the street is used by schoolchildren during the week. The program of the space is threefold: a classroom from 8 am to 4 pm, an open-to-public area from 4 pm – 6 pm, and a restaurant from 6 pm – 11 pm. The fixed area of the structure is 438 sf with an expected capacity of 15 people. Both the square footage and the occupancy numbers increase when the furniture is moved to the street during classroom hours and restaurant tables are moved to the sidewalk at night. As the High Line transitions a visitor from the park to the urban environment of city streets, so does the proposed outdoor environment. It transitions from (a) the interior condition of the indoor restaurant (b) to the sidewalk covered by shading canopy during the day / lighted ceiling condition at night, (c) to the structure that suggests interior conditions, (d) to the street with furniture that is moved and placed there, (e) and finally to the street itself. Rooms with three floor levels articulate the step-by-step transition from the curb to the structure, to the street. Similar to the straps of the wearable apparatus that hang the classroom components, metal hooks are used to hang “framing windows”, library shelves, and planters. Benches and kids’ desks / eating trays that can also be removed from the beams and used in the street. Sustainable materials were selected: recycled plastic lumber for decking, colored hempcrete for the cast components to add some weight but retain movability, and powder-coated aluminum for framing and window components. Linear lighting built into the aluminum frames is suggested to define the three room volumes at night with a photovoltaic element to charge from the sun during the day.
Flexible components and functionality during classroom and dining hours.
Flexible components and functionality during classroom and dining hours.
