URBAN CANOPY
SOMAs Mixed Media Library & Open-Air Reading Space
University of California, Berkeley | Professor Renee Chow | Fall 2017
Urban Canopy is animated by the SoMa District’s pedestrian activity and water patterns. Previously a wetland before its infill in the mid-1800s, the site is vulnerable to San Franscisco’s sewer system overflows; bioretention is incorporated to manage stormwater. Formally, the expressive roof of Urban Canopy controls water flow, folds upward at structural connections, permits city peek-out points, and provides diffuse light through its translucent materiality, ideal for reading. Public use continues underground to connect people to the historic layering of SoMa.
Additionally, the rigid 25’ division of SOMA is integrated in the library’s design through the layout of primary spaces. A gradient of enclosure systems blurs this division and adapts to San Francisco’s seasons. Water activates the project; rain can drum on the project roof, cascade over the screening system, flow down the green belt along Fifth St and downhill to Mission Creek.
URBAN CANOPY
SOMAs Mixed Media Library & Open-Air Reading Space
University of California, Berkeley | Professor Renee Chow | Fall 2017
Urban Canopy is animated by the SoMa District’s pedestrian activity and water patterns. Previously a wetland before its infill in the mid-1800s, the site is vulnerable to San Franscisco’s sewer system overflows; bioretention is incorporated to manage stormwater. Formally, the expressive roof of Urban Canopy controls water flow, folds upward at structural connections, permits city peek-out points, and provides diffuse light through its translucent materiality, ideal for reading. Public use continues underground to connect people to the historic layering of SoMa.
Additionally, the rigid 25’ division of SOMA is integrated in the library’s design through the layout of primary spaces. A gradient of enclosure systems blurs this division and adapts to San Francisco’s seasons. Water activates the project; rain can drum on the project roof, cascade over the screening system, flow down the green belt along Fifth St and downhill to Mission Creek.
NEXUS
Monterey Bay's Gateway for Physical Education
University of California, Berkeley | Professor Susan Ubbelohde | Fall 2018
Team Members: Matt Turlock
Nexus provides an intersection between human motion and the uncultivated natural environment on Monterey California State University’s campus. Two buildings, a Kinesiology Center and Sports Center, promote comfort, recreation, and environmental education. The Kinesiology Center invites students from Divarty promenade to climb over a continuous earthen ramp towards the campus’ forested Green Crescent, where students can engage in Monterey’s forest ecology or an outdoor challenge course. The Sports Center invites pedestrians to ascend skywards to a rooftop view of the Pacific Ocean. Both structures encourage students to enter the central courtyard, where outdoor seating and par course extend campus recreation.
Materials of wood, concrete, translucent glass, and steel are layered in response to Monterey’s ecological, topographic, and atmospheric characteristics. In the Sports Center, two steel and glass gymnasiums emulate Monterey’s veiling fog during daytime and act as glowing beacons on Divarty promenade at night. Metal roofs collect condensated fog and rainwater. Additionally, a secondary concrete structure transverse these two volumes, providing smaller-scaled spaces for classrooms and offices.
Interior Lobby + Lightwells
Gymnasium Interior
Team Contributions:
Matt Turlock - design of the Kinesiology Center on the Southeast of project site and design collaboration on our shared site scheme. More drawings here.
Megan Stenftenagel - design of the Sports Center on the Northwest of project site and corresponding drawings pictured on this page.