My Interior Architecture studio class with Travis Hicks began on January 14th and we have a few different options on what we can work on. I have chosen two and am excited to make this a really autonomous project.
My first focus will be on the Canopy House that Team Tidewater along with UNCG has been working on for this years Solar Decathlon in Irvine, California. Last semester, this project began with third year students working on the interior, but there were a few areas of the interior that were left unresolved and that is what I am researching.
The concept for the Canopy House and it’s design can be seen here.
To make this house one where you can live in during a variety of stages of your life, we are not only considering accessibility, but also the need for a possible caregiver for an elderly resident. What has been unresolved, for the most part, is where that caregiver would sleep. There are also, in my opinion, some design flaws in the bedroom and “office” area and my focus will be here. I have a bunch of ideas already and have bookmarked research articles and may pair with a fellow student to build a prototype of something. I’m a bit surprised by my overwhelming desire to tackle this, as furniture and/or product design is not generally my interest, so I’m going to tread on new territory without any idea how it’s going to end and I’m really excited about it!!! Sketches and research findings to follow. My presentation on this will be done on February 1st, so look out for it then.
My second focus will be the Tectonic house – see previous posting here.
This house was designed by my third year fall studio and I am taking it a few steps in a different direction. The house I am envisioning will be more in line with sustainability as a whole. What does it mean to be sustainable and does it require new materials and a new build using resources that are brought to the site? This Tectonic house was thought to be built in the Glenwood section of Greensboro and I don’t feel that the house design, as is, would work. More on this later. 🙂
audra volpi 