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Habitation of interacting blocks behind the castle wall

Part 1 Project 2013
Aurelija Virsilaite
Ulster University | UK
Fitzwilliam Lane site located in south side of Dublin is surrounded by Georgian terraces, which function as the castle wall providing some privacy and safety to occupants of the site. Mews dwellings and multi-storey car park are hidden behind the grand houses. Most of the mews dwellings are small two-storey cottages, while some of them have different heights depending on the people’s needs. The push and pull method of topography dominates within the site representing various lifestyles. People push the ground level up in to the height they need for a convenient living.

The actual site can be approached from two opposite ends. The closer one-arch way doesn’t reveal the whole site, but just a small part of it by thus maintaining the intimacy. The ground floor is pushed back a few meters in order to support the same idea and protect the building from too public representation at the very first point of entry.

Conceptual idea of the building is very tightly intertwined with arrangement of Fitzwilliam Lane site. Spaces have been moved along the horizontal and vertical axis. All parts/blocks of the building are projected in a way to provide the best performance and quality of the spaces in consideration of many various factors such as natural light, external views or transposability of installations/sculptures. Employment of only two main materials (burnt oak and concrete) emphasizes integrity of the building as well as gives freedom to sculptor/installation artist Philip Napier to fully experiment inside the workshop.

The private and public spaces are clearly defined within the house, so there are no issues to use one of the blocks (work or living) at the time. Comparatively small openings provide only necessary amount of natural light preventing from absolute brightness leading to the death of the space.

The building contains functional and emotionally stimulating spaces, which curves a human being inside of them, protects or even encourages him to be united with the space- to become it...

Aurelija Virsilaite

Tutor(s)

2013
• Page Hits: 3454         • Entry Date: 20 September 2013         • Last Update: 20 September 2013