A pavilion for the public at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
Situation
The Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD) initiated its first pavilion-scaled student-based design competition in the fall of 2012. OFF LINE/ON POINT asked students to design space in front of Gund Hall, the home of the GSD, where the exchange of ideas and communication could take place, "a temporary space for negotiation in the physical world that navigates the public/private divide." They also asked that the pavilion be able to seat 20-30 people and accommodate open-air film screening.
Response
Despite its prime location at the busy intersection of Cambridge and Kirkland, we realized the site felt like an afterthought and lacked a sense of place. Our proposal, VOX, which means "voice" in Latin, sought to amplify the GSD's presence within the greater Harvard community through (1) integrating it within the campus' existing network of common spaces and (2) creating an iconic space that would give the site a distinct identity.
Common Spaces
Part of VOX's design proposal was to partner with Harvard's Common Spaces program whose mission was to foster greater community interaction through activating underutilized sites with social events and programming. By extending the university's growing spine of common spaces to Gund Hall's doorstep, VOX initiates a dialogue between the often insular world of the GSD and the greater community.
Connecting the Graduate School of Design to the existing campus network of Common Spaces
The Chair
Introduced as part of the Common Spaces program, the colorful Luxembourg Chairs have become a highly identifiable part of the campus and have become synonymous with the Harvard Yard during warmer weather. Locating these chairs within VOX serves as a visual cue to the passerby that it is part of the greater campus network and a place where one can "gather, relax, reflect, and socialize."
View of Harvard Yard and the brightly colored Luxembourg chairs
Canopy
The ethereal, sweeping form of VOX provides a counterpoint to the beton brut of Gund Hall and becomes an icon for the GSD, supplanting the need for literal signage. Anchored by a structural ring, a projection of the existing grate below, VOX dissipates outward from a solid central core to the perimeter of columns and seems to almost float within the space.
Structure
VOX spans the entire site and is contingent upon it. A composite ring made of plywood and steel is suspended by seven steel cables from the structure of Gund Hall and secured laterally against the west wall of Piper Auditorium, providing a central point of attachment for two hundred strands of half-inch-diameter nylon rope. Each catenary strand is then attached to a light and efficient cable arch system which spans between and is affixed by aluminum collars to the existing columns. The thin profile of the cable system virtually disappears to allow the figure to read unobstructed and appear as if floating. Half pipes distributed across the threads allow the entire system to behave as one surface against wind and uplift while also providing housing for LED lights.
Seating + Stage
Informal clusters of the Luxembourg chairs serve as a direct prompt for conversation and dialogue to occur IRL. Left in a loose configuration determined by users on a day-to-day basis, the clusters can be arranged to respond to specific events within the space.
The multifunctional stage capitalizes on the existing ten-foot-diameter exhaust grate by building around what would otherwise be an unusable eyesore. Providing directionality within the space, the stage anchors the vital corner of Cambridge and Quincy and creates a focal point for different types of events. The stage is able to transform from soapbox to screen and also provides another mode of seating in addition to the chairs.
Projection
A screen in the round removes the hard edges and unidirectionality of a typical viewing plane. A transient element within the space, the screen emerges through a simple assembly of Tyvek and PVC pipes that key into predrilled holes around the inner circumference of the stage. Three projectors located along the site edge allow for the possibility of simultaneous projections and a continual blurring of orientation inwards and out. The canopy itself functions as an alternate projection surface, which extends VOX's presence from day to night, creating an illuminated beacon visible from afar and an immersive, shifting sky for nighttime events.
Three projectors located along the site edge allow for the possibility of simultaneous projections and a continual blurring of orientation inwards and out.
Three projectors located along the site edge allow for the possibility of simultaneous projections and a continual blurring of orientation inwards and out. The canopy itself functions as an alternate projection surface, which extends VOX's presence from day to night, creating an illuminated beacon visible from afar and an immersive, shifting sky for nighttime events.
