AS ABOVE, SO BELOW
NATATORIUM - PENN STATE UNIVERSITY (In Progress)
3rd Year Studio
University Park (Penn State Campus), Pennsylvania
As part of Penn State's athletic Master Plan, sweeping changes will be made to the athletic sector of campus in the next 20 years; it has become the outdated Natatorium's turn to be replaced. University officials are irked by the blandness of the exterior and interior, lack of compliance to Olympic and competitive standards, and confusing layout of the interior, and are expecting that the replacement rectify these issues. The facility must reflect the athletic prestige of Penn State and be accessible to both students and the public, with both an Olympic-sized competitive pool and recreational pool.
In accordance to their wishes, the Natatorium will reflect the re-branding of the University's athletics through the Campus Master Plan by becoming an iconic and redefining piece of Penn State's campus and athletics program. Not only will it become a state-of-the-art facility capable of hosting prime-time swimming events, the green roof park boasts an ability to host outdoor events for the University, such as concerts and festivals.
The aim of this project is to create a Natatorium to be used all days a week and break from the norm of athletic facilities going unused a majority of the week.
Fall Semester: Final Review
(Review: December 3, 2018)
Water is a powerful sculptor, stone is a patient matter
Water can transform even the hardest of materials
Into soft and gentle
Topography is a long story between…
Two opposite elements that together shaped our world
-Kengo Kuma, Stonescape (2012)
Central Pennsylvania, and more generally the Appalachian Mountain Range, is a geographic zone whose form is heavily influenced by geologic processes—for instance, the local hiking sensation, Mount Nittany, which can be viewed from campus is one of these very peaks carved from erosion and tectonics.
With these cases of geologic creation, I took inspiration in the natural elements ability to create the landscape of today: precipitation and running water, if given sufficient time, are capable of carving and subtracting from existing earthen materials to create awe-inspiring spaces: the worlds of the above and the below.
Undisturbed Nature Above Subterranean Spring/Grotto
(Competitive Pools during Swim Meet)
In a metaphorical way, the earthen mass that is the roof is lifted and up and peeled away from the rest of the site, creating a space nestled below with a dialogue to the world outside and above. The idea of a carpet being rolled back to reveal the floor beneath was mentioned several times through out the process of the project.
(Entry Stairs and Northwest Facade Ramping From Curtin Road)
The existing McCoy Natatorium is, for all intents and purpose, a brick cube alienated from the site it rests on, leading to the structure being hidden behind lines of foliage. Forging a symbiosis between landscape and building was an important driving factor during this project. The facade bordering one of the most trafficked campus roads, Curtin Road, isn't much of a facade at all, but rather it is a merger of the landscape from the sidewalk into the roof. This is a welcoming gesture to students and passer-byers of East Halls and Parking Deck, the University's largest dormitory complex and parking garage.
(Ramps and Stairs Ascending Northwest Facade to Green Roof)
Dirt paths meander up the slope in a slow, roundabout manner meant to evoke the sense of switchback hiking trails of the Appalachians and Mount Nittany. The park on the roof offers a vista above the roof and tree-tops beneath, creating a sense of reprieve from the hectic campus below. This invokes the same sense that Nittany Mountain in the distance does. A panoramic vista is created as students and viewers ascend above of campus into a peaceful moment secluded from its surroundings.
(Open Lawn on Roof)
In part, the accessible-to-all green roof is a response to the norm of athletic facilities, despite their sheer size, hardly being used during most days of the week. Not only is the Natatorium open 7 days a week for public swim at select hours, the roof is always open to students, professors, and the rest of the public, giving all a space to relax outside and take a break from campus life.
Square footage and use should have a positive correlation, which I have accomplished with this facility. This is a necessary solution for an incredibly large University campus in which available land is rare and comes at a premium. With open hours at all times of the day, whether it is the pools, rock climbing, physical activity classes. or the roof, the large complex is used efficiently.
(Student Concert Hosted on Roof Lawn)
Not only is the complex capable of serving the public by day, the building also comes to life at night: swim meets can be watched from above or the lawn can be used to host University-planned events like concerts (usually held on other lawns across campus or at the Bryce Jordan Center basketball arena). Structural depth of ceiling is quite considerable, allowing large crowds to be supported in addition to soil and foliage.
(Student Watching Swim Meet Below from Skylight)
South Curtain Wall Section + Roof Section Detail
Continuity from Exisiting Green Spaces to Natatorium Roof
Proximity to Public Sporting Areas
Clusters of Student Living - Population Centers
(Roof Plan and Immediate Site Context)
(Site Plan)
The Ground floor primarily serves the public, whether they are recreational swimmers, rock climbers, or spectators for a collegiate swim meet. Entering from the street corner at the intersection of two major campus streets, the public passes through a vestibule and ticketing area, before making a choice: recreational swimmers and climbers descend to the lower floor while spectators continue straight through the concourse and concessions to their seats.
(Ground Floor Plan)
(Concessions and Concourse)
The Lower Level serves the recreational public and the team athletes. The team members enter from the top-right of the building, from a low-key entrance tucked beneath the profile of the roof and descend a promenade into a private corridor with direct access to all team locker rooms. Recreational swimmers proceed from their corridor or respective locker rooms to either the public indoor pool or the outdoor pool from the stairs at the south of the building.
(Basement Floor Plan: Pool and Locker Room Level)
(Locker Room Corridor and Competitive Pools)
During their descent from street level to locker rooms through the promenade, the team athletes pass by the split-level housing the team's administration offices.
(Longitudinal Section: Facing Northwest)
(Transverse Section Through Pools: Facing West)
(Northwest Elevation: Along Curtin Road)
(Southwest Elevation: Along Bigler Road)
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
(Review: November 7, 2018)
(Entry - View from Intersection of Bigler and Curtin Road)
(View of Ramped Facade along Curtin Road)
(View of Roof Profile along Bigler Road)
Along Curtin Road, the green facade ramps up through the foliage to the peak of the building, the roof. Dirt paths meander up the slope in a slow, roundabout manner meant to evoke the sense of switchback hiking trails of the Appalachians and Mount Nittany. Dense plantings populating the slope resemble foliage that occupy the hillsides of local mountains, emphasizing the journey taken to reach the peak.
(View of Roof Plaza)
The roof of the Natatorium rises above its surroundings, offering unobstructed views into the State College and the valley ahead. Situated along the right (West) side of the plaza is the climbing tower protruding out from within the building, a concession and bathroom shack, and an observation deck at the edge for views outwards. Along the left (East) side is a grassy knoll, bordered by foliage to protect from wind chills, dedicated to students to engage in outdoor activity. On either side of the knoll rests skylights, creating a dialogue between the park and competitive pools below.
(View of Roof Plaza)
Lighting into the pool deck arrives from above—from skylights and clerestories—giving the area a sense of being subterranean when coupled with the masonry construction. One critique received during presentations was to make the profile of the ceiling one continuous, sweeping curve instead of getting pinched above the stands.
(Longitudinal Section - Facing Southeast)
(Longitudinal Section - Facing Northwest)
(Ground Floor Plan)
(Basement and Pool Floor Plan)
(Team Admin. and Athlete Entrance Floor Plan)
Viewing Deck Floor Plan(Left), Site Plan (Right)
As per the critiques received during the Conceptual Review, I began to redesign and channel more focus towards the facade facing Bigler Road and the organization of the green roof respectively. One of the hard decisions that had to made was whether to design the Bigler Road facade to match the mountainous/cavernous feel of the exterior or to give it the sense of a more traditional facade.
(Design Sketches for Bigler Road-facing Facade)
SCHEMATIC DEVELOPMENT
Review: October 8th, 2018
(Intersection of Curtin and Bigler Roads)
A lack of multipurpose design is a problem that plagues many athletic facilities in America; for structures that large, it is unfortunate and impractical that they are used for only short periods of times for a day or two per week. That problem is rectified with this new Natatorium design, whose pools are open to athletes or recreational swimmers all week long, and accessible green roof space are open at all times. For a Penn State campus that buildable space is very limited, it is essential that the size of the facility reflects the amount of activity.
The existing McCoy Natatorium is, for all intents and purpose, a brick cube alienated from the site it rests on, leading to the structure being hidden behind lines of foliage. Forging a symbiosis between landscape and building was an important driving factor during this project. The facade bordering one of the most trafficked campus roads, Curtin Road, isn't much of a facade at all, but rather it is a merger of the landscape from the sidewalk into the roof. This is a welcoming gesture to students and passerbyers of East Halls and Parking Deck, the University's largest dormitory complex and parking garage.
The park on the roof offers a vista above the roof and tree-tops beneath, creating a sense of reprieve from the hectic campus below. This invokes the same sense that Nittany Mountain in the distance does.
(View above Trees and Campus - From East Parking Deck Diagonal of and Behind Natatorium Site)
From above the treetops, the buildings and hectic scene of Penn State's campus disappears, making way for a peaceful moment above all else. The Appalachian scene sprawls out ahead in a panoramic way—one seems to be elevated to the same level as Mount Nittany and other peaks in the distance. This view is from the East Parking Deck behind the existing Natatorium and this heightened perspective will be replicated on my building's communal roof.
Students can disappear into the foliage and reappear at the base of a mountain-of-sorts, mirroring the actual peaks of the region, and ascend to a vista that is detached from the campus life below.
(View from Accessible Balcony into Competitive Pools)
Inspired by water's ability to carve and burrow under the Earth to create cavernous spaces such as grottoes that are not reflective of the unchanged ground above, I created a space that evokes the sense being nestled under the mass of earthen material overhead. Like subterranean caves, visitors will enter by descending from the highly trafficked ground level into the Natatorium.
Indoor Tennis
ROTC
Training
East
Halls
Creamery/Food Science
East
Parking
Intramural
Building
Comp.
Bdlg.
Career Bdlg.
Tennis Center
Pegula
Ice Arena
Millennium Science
Nittany
Apartments
Curtin Road
Bigler Road
(Site Plan)
(Ground Floor Plan)
(Basement Plan)
(Transverse Section - Parallel to Bigler Road)
(Longitudinal Section - Parallel to Curtin Road)
CONCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT
Review: September 10th, 2018
Central Pennsylvania, and more generally the Appalachian Mountain Range, is a geographic zone whose form is heavily influenced by geologic processes—for instance, the local hiking sensation, Mount Nittany, which can be viewed from campus is one of these very peaks carved from erosion and tectonics.
With these cases of geologic creation, I took inspiration in the natural elements' ability to create the landscape of today: precipitation and running water, if given sufficient time, are capable of carving and subtracting from existing earthen materials to create awe-inspiring spaces.
Water is a patient creator and unstoppable force that burrows through earth, creating cavernous spaces that are hidden from and differing drastically from the landscape above. A dichotomy of spaces are created: the worlds of the above and the below.
(Sequential Hollowing of a Medium)
(Vertical Erosion)