Project 3 : Art Galley, Shop/ House

Project Brief:

Displaying contemporary, experimental objects and images, and efficiently running a gallery requires that a number of practical, yet important, architectural problems to be dealt with (especially, light quality, gallery image, suitability of the display areas, safety of the art works, and commercial viability). At the same time, questions of a more theoretical kind concerning the nature and relation of art and architecture need to be addressed.

In this project, the following should receive your main attention:

. the question of whether the architecture should provide a neutral and autonomous framework within which the art is displayed, or whether the architecture should in itself be seen and expressed as work of art;
. the manner in which a variety of relatively autonomous spaces, each perhaps with its own character, can through circulation and other means be linked to develop a strong spatial sequence; to create a sense by the viewer that she/he is engaging with the artworks; to produce a quality of celebration;
. to design plans and sections that are clear, rich and appropriate in terms of the architectural orders and architectonic elements used to distinguish the gallery;
. to develop an interweaving of the plan and the section, where one ‘dialogues’ with the other;
. to produce a strong sense of materiality and a consciously designed and refined quality of light in interior spaces; and
. to treat the outdoor courtyard as a room, and its form and architectonic element are integral to the overall concept, composition and experience of the gallery.


Programme:
. A large room capable of displaying paintings and sculptures up to 5 square meters and for relatively large installations.
. Smaller room(s) for displaying items such photographs, watercolours, prints and small sculptures.
. An office, minimum of 10 square meters.
. Workshop, minimum 20 squares meters.
. Stockroom, minimum 20 square meters.
. A small bed-sit apartment with bathroom, minimum 40 square meters.
. A living area adjacent to the apartment which has kitchen facilities for gallery functions, 20 square meters.

There are three sites to choose from. I picked site 3.