A Habitable Wall: A Retreat for Frida Kahlo

Introduction
Well, we've finished our last project for IARC 102, and Delilah and I are pooped! So here's the wrap-up on a big and very interesting exercise.

Our final studio project of the year was to design and construct a scale model of a "habitable wall" for a client. My client was Frida Kahlo.


Kahlo (1907-1954) was born in Mexico to a German father and a Mexican mother. Her life was defined by: physical pain from polio and a gruesome accident, her tumultuous marriage to Diego Rivera, her politics (she was a communist and a friend of Leon Trotsky), her deep connection to her Mexican heritage, and her many friendships and affairs with both men and women. For more information about Kahlo, see this site.

My Design
I created a retreat that provided areas for entertaining inside and out, and a private space for rest and work.
My concept was the kiva. This round, often sacred structure, is characterized by its round shape and central firepit constructed from adobe and rock.


Features:
Form: The two semi-circular structures refer to the kiva. I used the rounded shapes punctuated by rectilinear shapes in the windows, seating, bed, and cabinetry. This was partly for practical reasons, but it also reflects the dichotomies in Kahlo's life: feminity and masculinity, European and Aztec roots, independent and deeply dependent on Diego Rivera, spirited and frail.

Materials: The exterior and interior walls are formed from adobe. The firepits are constructed from a combination of adobe and masonry. The masonry is also used in the showcase area that holds ex votos and objects special to Kahlo.


Colors: I used light brown, a deep reddish brown, and blue to evoke memories of Casa Azul, Kahlo's main residence throughout her life. I also included a canopied bed similar to her bed at Casa Azul.
Other: The work table in Kahlo's private area slides over to her bed. She was often bed ridden for months at a time. She continued to work during these times by painting in bed. The fire pits are designed to take the chill off and to create areas for socializing and reflection. The large clerestory windows let in plenty of light, necessary for painting and another feature borrowed from Casa Azul.



Finally, the entire structure is surrounded by gardens. Casa Azul had a large patio and garden area. Kahlo loved the plants of her native Mexico and she made pets of wild birds, deer, and monkeys who wandered freely in her garden and even inside.

The space between the two structures acts as a pass through and a garden space.

Develpment of the Design

Below are the early iterations of my ideas.

In this iteration, and the two below, I am working with the idea of a "wall".

Here are the Merriam Webster definitions of a wall. I've italicized parts of the definition that were especially helpful in my design.

1 a: a high thick masonry structure forming a long rampart or an enclosure chiefly for defense —often used in plural b: a masonry fence around a garden, park, or estate c: a structure that serves to hold back pressure (as of water or sliding earth) 2: one of the sides of a room or building connecting floor and ceiling or foundation and roof 3: the side of a footpath next to buildings... 5: a material layer enclosing space wall of a container> walls 6: something resembling a wall (as in appearance, function, or effect); especially : something that acts as a barrier or defense wall of reserve> wall>

Ah hah! The round shape emerges.

And gets refined.

Creating and maintaining the curve of the model was a challenge. I rigged this foamcore and pushpin system to hold the shape. The initial curve was make by wrapping bristol paper around a wine bottle. Later I formed the curve by sinking the bottom tips of the balsa "studs"
into a foamcore base. This method worked really well to give a nice smooth surface.

The Site
The structure was designed for the Southeast corner of the 3rd floor studio space. The private area would face the window for morning light and good light for painting.

My Board

The board looks better than the photo! My lines were actually straight. But the camera wasn't!

I love my bed

I love my bed, but here are some other types of sleeping arrangements.

Bottlecap Insulation, IARC 102

Product Proposal from the
L2 Design Team
Troy Link and Sarah Ladd

The L2 Design Team proposes using bottle caps to insulate walls in residential and commercial buildings. The product addresses two problems: the need to reduce landfill waste, and the need to conserve energy resources.

BENEFITS
1. Getting bottlecaps out of landfills.
2. Reducing use of fossil fuels and other resources by adding insulation to buildings and by manufacturing an insulating material from the waste stream (rather than from new materials requiring heavy manufacturing processes).
3. Reusing the caps in a way that avoids any further human consumption of hormone disrupters and other harmful chemicals that are in the plastic.

THE PRODUCT
Bottle Cap Insulation (BCI) is a sheet consisting of 3 staggered layers of bottle caps attached to a vapor barrier. It is manufactured in sheets measuring 16" and 24" (the widths between studs in most construction). The vapor barrier is made from recycled plastic. Adhesives are biodegradable, such as Aquabond.

USES
BCI is a substitute for insulation such as cellulose, fiberglass, and expanded polystyrene materials that limit air flow. These materials reduce heat loss, thus decreasing energy use for heating and cooling and increasing comfort by reducing drafts. BCI is best for applications requiring R-values of around R 11 to R 13. (R-values are measures of resistance to heat flow.) These applications include basements, walls, and floors. BCI can be used in conjunction with other insulation materials to achieve higher R-values (19+) for attics.

MANUFACTURE
Terracycle can manufacture BCI directly or, because it is a relatively low-tech process, it may be an excellent project for a small business cooperative to help a local community.

Nature and Tools as Teachers

The purpose of this project was to look at design as a process. I saw it as a great approach to almost any project, and an excellent way to get "unstuck" when the ideas just won't flow.
Our end product was a 3-D architectural statement (although we didn't know this was our destination until the very end!). We started by making naturalist drawings of produce, and then abstracted patterns from them. Next we imagined the effects of using a tool on our patterns, dragging, squeezing, slicing, or pulling them. We then began creating a series of 3D expressions from the tool action drawings. In the final step, we used the 3D iterations to make an architectural statement.

By the end of the project our architectural statement was a long way from a piece of fruit or a vegetable. However, it's clear from that without going through the entire process we would not have come up with the very interesting range of creative, innovative architectural statements in the class.

I really enjoyed the process and will add it to my "bag of tricks" for jump starting projects in the future.

Here are my drawings, 3Ds, and architectural statements, and the presentation board of our lovely and talented group, Ingenue.

1. Naturalistic drawings of a red pepper. All of our drawings were 6" x 6" in grayscale. I did 3 drawings of the whole pepper and then a series of interiors (of course!).


































2. Abstract drawings. I liked the seeds of the pepper and the sensual, sweeping curve at the bottom. These inspired my abstract patterns.







3. Tool action. I ran the abstract patterns through a pasta (vermicelli) maker, and came up with these drawings.








3. A side trip for Haiku.
We added poetry and collage to the process. Much fun! The collage expresses a memory of vibrancy and warmth amid the cold, gray sameness of winter (all 3 days of it this year!).

Sleet ices windows.
On the counter, sweet peppers
Hold last summer's heat.

4. 3D expressions. We were limited to grayscale paper for these models. My model got rained on so no pics. :(

5. Architectural statements. For these we could use grayscale with one color. I used the same gray and red that I used in my Haiku/collage. My first iteration was the "Fortress of Gloom" and looked like a group of unfriendly skyscrapers. For the final iteration, I deconstructed it, using cut out rectangles. I reduced the amount of red, and used a translucent vellum to allow light to pass through. I used a variety of line weights and 3 levels of scale. The result was a space that lets users interact with inside/outside and with a sense of being larger/smaller within a space. I imagine it as an outside structure for contemplation. (Same pics problem as above. :(

6. The Ingenue boards. Ingenue is Liz Browne, Jessica Crews, Tiffany Graber, and moi. Details of our Boards: Structure: 4 triptychs. Color: Light blue, chocolate brown, ivory. Font: Olive oil. Shelves: balsa.

2 X 4 (More or Less)

The Project: Our first project in Design Studio and we got to play in the wood shop! Very cool.
We each took an 18" length of 2 X 4 (actually 1 1/2" X 3 1/2") made of construction grade pine and designed and made a self-supporting system from it. We were challenged to use all the lumber leaving only a bit of sawdust as waste. Further, all joinery had to be done without use of screws, nails, or adhesives.

My approach: I started by making a bunch of sketches. Then I googled key words and phrases such as "system", "2 X 4 furniture", "2 X 4 sculpture", "arches" and several others to fuel my brainstorming. I knew pretty quickly that I wanted to take this rectangular prism chunk of wood and turn it into curves.

One early thought was to cut small pieces, about 3 to 4 inches by 2 inches by 1/8 inch and curl them up on the ends and stack them like a Christmas tree. (See sketch below.) But the wood is pretty brittle and shredded along the grain and broke against the grain so on to the next idea. (I still like this idea and I may get some fir or oak and give it a try.)

I sketched a lot of ideas, but it wasn't until I started playing with the wood and table saw that I decided on the final plan. Below are sketches of most of my discarded ideas.






I told my better, sweeter half about wanting curves and he told me about curfing--cutting small notches in the wood at intervals which effectively gives a thinner, more bendable piece while maintaining a fair amount of strength.




Gary made a piece for me with lovely, even notches, and then I had a go at it. Using a miter jig and the table saw I created one very snaggle-toothed piece. I finally got a respectable looking curf after about 4 tries. Then came the bending. About 16+ tries later only one piece survived the double processes of curfing and bending. (I think I used up an entire tree's worth of lumber during this project! So much for my commitment to sustainability!)
At any rate due to the time I spent perfecting the curf, the design of the project got short shrift and it's pretty clear I plopped an arch on top of a piece of 2 X 4. So for me this was more an exercise in working on a particular woodworking skill, rather than composing a harmonious, composed design.

Steps in construction: I cut a 1/4" piece from the long side of the 2x4 for the curfed arch. Then I cut 3" off the length. About 1/2' from each end a cut a dado sized to hold a 1 1/2" piece (made from the 3" piece). I used a band saw to cut notches in the 1 1/2" pieces to secure the ends of the arch.


Thoughts on the project: Surprisingly challenging to use a 2x4 completely! My favorite projects were the ones that obliterated any notion that the designed object started as a humble chunk of pine. (Kurt's and Ben's and Liz' come to mind.) It was great fun playing with power tools. The project helped me develop a bit more confidence in woodworking--I plan to do a lot more!