My comments regarding the First Semester

First and foremost, I have to say that I am pleased with how this semester went. There were a lot of questions going into it and a lot of concern as to how this would all work. I think that it worked out well.

Because this is the first semester I am sure that feedback from the students is desired, and this is my attempt to offer up suggestions to help further refine the progam.

1. The blog is a fantastic way to post/review work and conduct a dialogue. It is flexible, and enables us all to communicate without having dozens of emails to keep track of every week.
2. Instructor’s blogs were very helpful. This is where we could go to find the latest assignment and perhaps comment on issues raised by the instructor.
3. The blackboard was marginally helpful, in particular for sending emails to the class and for accessing posted reading material. There was the potential for things to get confusing there in the beginning with information being posted in so many places. I think that once things smoothed out, the format was pretty simple;
-Maintain your own blog
-Check each instructors blog for assignments for their respective courses
-Access the blackboard to send emails or to download information posted by the instructors.

If there was anyplace else to go to access information it might have gotten quite confusing and frustrating. I would try to simplify it further if possible, but definitely would not let it get any more in depth than the above. The fewer websites we have to worry about checking every day, the better.
The Intensive was great. We were forced to get to know each other so well in that week that it created a fantastic group dynamic. Exhausting, but great!
Affinity groups are a very good idea. Having to maintain dialogues with the entire group at a distance is kind of cumbersome. Breaking it down into more manageable pieces worked out great.

All of that being said, my biggest suggestion would be finding a way to use “Skype” or a similar program on a regular basis. I just found out about this program within the past few weeks in preparation for this mornings final review. The ability to be conferencing with the instructor as well as other members of the class is amazing. In my opinion, it should be the preferred way to maintain a dialogue. Once per week, the affinity group and the instructor should block out 30 minutes to an hour to go over their posts for that week and talk about the next assignment. They could migrate from blog to blog with everyone having the ability to offer their input and the instructor directing the discussion. Comments and discussions on the individual blogs should continue, but the conference call should be the primary forum. I think that this would make the experience that much better and provide more regular contact with the instructor. It gets difficult to post your work and wait for days before getting the kind of feedback you are looking for, meanwhile you may have been taking your project in the wrong direction. This could almost simulate a formal class meeting atmosphere. I post my work by Monday, and on Tuesday night my affinity group and the instructor meet online to talk about it briefly and get ready for the next weeks assignment. I truly believe that this, in conjunction with the blogs, the blackboard, and the intensive, could be the foundation for an excellent way to deliver this new program!!!

Last but not least, I think that I probably speak for the entire class when I say this, I can’t imagine two better people to have picked to instruct this first semester. Both Herb and Chris have been excellent to work with and I am privileged to have had them as Instructors.

I am proud to be a part of this first class and look forward to next semester!!!

Portfolio: Concept #2

I thought that this was a good image to follow with... The assignment was to start thinking in terms of individual spaces that could achieve our concept... in that respect, these sketches failed, simply because they were not focused on individual spaces but instead more of a "whole" building feel.... so, for the most part these images were not successful.... that being said, when I revisited these images after further developing my design, I saw some considerable relationships from this initial sketch to my final drawings which gave this first attempt some renewed merit.... in particular, elements such as the water feature/seating plaza which bridges the interior and exterior...... the vertical space open to the different floors which later developed into the terraced gardens.... the recessed lower level that anchors the building into the earth... and the thin plane of glazing which serves as a subtle break between inside and out... while this image may not have worked in the context of that initial problem, I am happy that some of its key elements were able to be translated into my later design and reinforce my concept....

Portfolio: Street Level Plan

This is the street level floor plan... with entrances from Boylston and Dartmouth streets.. both entrances are on axes which join at a central cashier/information area which is located partially beneath the 2nd level product floor and partially within the double height main entry space. In terms of concept I am most pleased by the seating plaza/water feature and the way that it exists both within the building and outside of it separated only by a transparent glass curtain wall... this water/seating area was a strong element in my initial sketches in an attempt to provide pedestrians and shoppers with a gathering place with both views of Copley square and/or apple product displays.... I think that it has the potential to be a very desireable destination point...

Portfolio: Section A-A

This building section starts to tell the story of the spaces I have throughout the building. A ground level product floor and seating area, a product level/genius bar mezzanine, the main product level which is open to the Boylston st. entry below, and the media labs/green roof/courtyard areas on the top three levels.... the green roof at the main product level which cantilevers out over the the water feature offers a unique area to experience Copley square from an elevated garden atmosphere...

Portfolio: Exterior View 1

This image starts to bring the building to life..... first, I am pleased with the juxtaposition of the new (apple) and the old (tradional Boston streetscape).... apples claim to fame is not sticking with the norm.... it is modern and minimalist and respected as such..... that being said, I feel that this building form, while it injects a less traditional feel into the local fabric, is not disrespectful to the area and fits comfortably on the site... some other key elements are the cantilever of the main product floor which begins to define a space below it as neither/both interior and/or exterior, as well as the ability for the pedestrians to view the cascading greenroofs from the street level which begins to build interest from afar extending the architectural experience well beyond the exterior walls....

Portfolio: Section Perspective

I think that this section is extremely important because it tells so much about the design intent with one drawing..... I like the play of the blue water and the green roofs with the rather sterile white floors and glass walls.... I think that it says something about my initial "Green Apple" concept which aims to meld the natural elements, such as water and grass, with the man made, such as glass and steel..... I never sought to have one overtake the other, but instead to have them compliment each other..... another point of interest is the brick party wall to match the adjacent building..... it is key in getting this building to pay homage to its traditional neighboring architecture..... furthermore, the brick injects a terra-cotta/earthly feeling to further enforce the the concept......

Portfolio: Perspective 1

This is an image from a media lab looking out into the courtyard, with the cascading grass/ivy from the greenroof above draping down..... this image is valuable in that it generally demonstrates my initial concept of blurring the interior exterior transition.... I feel that the exchange between the computers/technology and the natural elements just beyond the glass is effective...

Portfolio: Perspective 2

The most successful of the interior views, this is a view from the courtyard looking back at the media labs/gardens...... with the sunlight streaming down, and plant life wildly "dripping" over each cascading level, it creates a very pleasant "exterior" experience within the "interior" of the building.... a space like this could have the benefit of becoming a popular destination point, good for apples image and business.....

Portfolio: Signature Element Detail

The most detailed portion of the project involved further developing a signature element to reinforce my concept..... I chose to focus on the "threshold" that exists between the media labs and the green roofs and how those two spaces could interact to enhance the feeling of bringing the outside in..... I finally decided on blending the two together, similar to the "yin-yang" principle..... by angling the glass curtain wall that separates the two, I can bring the interior out over the exterior, and the exterior in under the interior..... I considered using some type of monitor or signage in the angled space to relate to the users of the labs in an attempt to engage them in space that exists out over the garden... I also played with the idea of placing seating areas intermittently within the curtainwall frame to bring users "out" into the gardens with wild plantlife growing beneath their feet... The angle of this wall could be increased to further enhance the "overlap"

Portfolio: Section C-C

Portfolio: Section B-B

Portfolio: Elevations

It was important to me that the building's materials were in keeping with Apple's modern and minimalistic persona. As much of the building is glazed, in an attempt to make the exterior visually accessible from the interior, and vice versa, there are portions which are more opaque, similar to semi-translucent insulated panels which exist at the rear of the building, to keep focus off of the less than desireble alley to the north, and at the main product floor, in an attempt to bring the focus back to the product. As can be seen in the models, this also serves to provide some scale to the building and accentuates the cantilever which reaches out to grasp Copley square.

From Greenroof to Greenwall

These photos are from the latest Architectural Record.....I love this stuff.... these guys are my new heroes.......

Portfolio: Level Five Plan

Portfolio: Site and Roof Plan

Studio-Signature Element Final Detail

Below is my proposed typical detail for the transition between interior and exterior at the roof gardens.... I took an approach where the glazing slopes out and over the garden..... intermittently, I see the opportunity for seating built into the curtainwall "floating" out over the garden... this creates a condition where the garden is beneath the sitter... also, I have placed electronic signage/monitors up in the corner, well over the garden.... a person standing in the room watching the monitor as it floats out over the garden becomes engaged with space that exists out in the interim between the inside and outside....a place where the interior and exterior overlap each other and start to blend.... while continuing to be fully separated.... I also plan to hold the guardrail out from the edge approximately 3 inches to allow the plant life to grow over each level and hang down below..... this fully frames the view with plant life........

Portfolio: Signature Element Sketch

Below is an early sketch detailing where the lab and the garden meet and how I had intended to blur that transition to reinforce my concept....."bringing the outside in"....

Studio-Signature Element Sketch 2

So, how better to bring the outside in, then to have the outside actually inside?? Rather than separating my terraced greenroofs from the adjacent media labs, which was inherently in conflict with my concept, I leaned toward a solution where the interior was a blend of inside and outside by transforming my courtyard into an atrium. A southern facing skylight could flood the space with the necessary light to maintain the outside atmosphere... This way my separation doesn't happen at the balconies, but at the building envelope. I also took advantage of this opportunity to locate a glass elevator tower which bridges the green spaces and the labs to reinforce the connection between the inside and outside..... Even though shoppers are clearly inside of a building, it can maintain the feeling of nature throughout.... The image below shows a rough approximation of the anticipated sunlight in Boston on December 21st at 2pm....

Any input whatsoever is welcome!!!!!

Studio-Signature Element Progress Sketch 1

Chris' posts redirected me to focus less on the "technical" aspects of the greenroof details, and more on how the green roof could be further developed to communicate my concept.... namely, focusing on the transition between the interior and exterior and how the greenroof will transition into the adjacent spaces..... rather than doing something as overt as having grass actually inside, I am leaning toward using some type of transition material between the two.... in this case, I am experimenting with landscaping pavers which can soften the transition between the media labs and greenroof.... You will also notice the addition of a a vertical glass (everything here is glass) tower in the center of the pavers.... This is potentially some type of elevator, perhaps similar to the one used at the new ICA in Boston, which can also help reinforce the transition by bridging the interior and exterior.....I see the potential for an exciting elevator ride when you are simultaneously inside and outside on the way up.... I am definitely looking for input......