Project 3: Art Gallery Design Rationale

- Site 3 was chosen because it is close to train station, has a good facade frontage and also I was interested in its strong street angle.
- This angle will be echoed but changed slightly in the interior floor plans and windows, fusing the inside with its urban planning. The overlapping of angled floor plans is intended to create picturesque effect, different view from every angles, and it allows more interesting and unusual space for installation art because this type of art depends a lot on its site.
-This site is sandwiched by a two and three stories buildings so I designed a front facade which is continuing the skyline.
- Because this gallery was intended for commercial, I decided to have an open plan so customers could see everything just like a window display.
-But there's also an enclosed room on ground floor for arts that need dramatic lighting. Its unusual wall shape creates sets of rooms in a big room with its own circulation. It also allows more interesting and unusual space for installation arts.
- The facade entrance is set back a little bit to create picturesque effect. When people walking along the street to direction to city, they will see its entrance facing to their direction and some art objects displayed on a space I call 'transitional space'. The idea was similar to a store's window display in putting their most attractive items to attract customers.
- From this 'transitional space', to enter further inside people need to go up to the stair. Access view to the space behind is blocked a little bit by the railings.
- Walking up the stair, they will enter the gallery's atrium and soon they will see a massive structure floating on upper level. That is the courtyard surrounded with opaque glass in steel frames. This courtyard is the main attraction point for this art gallery and for a light tunnel. At the bottom of the opaque glass there's a small clear glassed window running along. This would increase people curiosity by having a blurred view to the courtyard but a small cleared view is also available.
- People attracted to the courtyard will go up to the main stair. They can observe the courtyard and atrium on some stair landings available.
- The open gallery on upper floor is flexible for painting, sculpture and installation art objects.
- At the end of main circulation, two multi-function rooms are available for special events (eg. artist lectures). When walking along the passage people can see the vast view to the atrium and courtyard.