Life is Much Better Under the Sea?

Well, it only is for the incredibly rich and probably only for a few weeks. Currently under construction in Dubai is Hydropolis, one of the world's few luxury underwater hotel. The new underwater wonder contains the land tunnel, connecting station and finally the submarine leisure complex. Architect Joachim Hauser is leading the project located 20m below the surface of the Arabian Gulf.  He takes the building of Hydropolis further than just a project, but a passion. His general plan is to create a living space in the sea and also believes the future of architecture and city planning lies within it. By creating this 260 hectare hotel underwater, Hauser believes this will bring attention to the problems marine ecosystems face such as the destruction of coral reef's. 

I'm not exactly sure how sustainable the practice of building and maintaining an underwater hotel is, but it would be an interesting alternative to our land use practices. Underwater architecture could be a possibility for coast settlements to adapt to rising sea levels. A positive aspect I foresee in being completely submerged in water is that we wouldn't have to worry about flooding anymore.

 The subject of underwater architecture is one with little known about it and there are even more aspects about the ocean that are unknown. I definitely have some reservations about the idea of building in marine ecosystems: whether if humans can adapt to being underwater for long periods of time or if expanding our cities into the ocean will only cause more damage to Earth's ecosystems. There has definitely been in a trend for human settlements to wreck havoc on nearby ecosystems. Perhaps Hauser could have chosen a more appropriate gesture to save the coral reefs, I feel that a 260 hectare underwater hotel would do more damage than good to marine life. 

Biomimicry: Oyster Shell Seawalls

When I think about water and architecture paired together, a part of me thinks about cool houseboats or living cities on the water, marrying water with the design as a cohesive unit. The other part of me thinks of protection from water, disaster relief, working with nature, not working to combat it, but to preserve and protect it and us from ever harming one another. Coastal erosion caused by hurricanes and sea storms can cause serious damage to shorelines supported by man made structures such as bulkheads, beams or sea walls. As a new way to contain the erosion, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Dauphin Island Sea lab have turned to nature for inspiration rather than resorting to the conventional barrier technique. Oyster shells are dumped all along the shoreline to create a sort of barrier reef that functions further as a thriving habitat for sea life, standing against strong storms, even hurricanes. The project encompasses the direction of thought that should be taken when confronted with any sort of environmental issue. This is yet another example where the processes inherent in the natural world can lead us in a right direction for much more sustainable change.
http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/11/19/protecting-eroded-coastlines-with-oyster-seawalls/#more-16506

Sink or Schwimm!

Both the last studio project, where my group built a water metropolis, and Eduard Epp's lecture last week have led me to consider alternative dwellings to cope with floods. The Schwimmhaus by Confused Direction is one possibility of after-flood architecture. This modern, sustainable houseboat is constructed from reclaimed wood and it has a green roof!
As Epp mentioned last class we need to consider new ways of living for the future, and a future with water seems likely. These houseboats help me envision exciting new inhabitations. Like in Amsterdam and Venice, perhaps most of the world's city streets will one day become water and people will reside along canals, sipping lattes on the patios of these cool little structures.

Class Refection, November 20th, 2008

Professor Shauna Mallory-Hill joined us once again, this time to speak about sound and its involvement of sound in architecture. I found listening to Daniel Levitin’s insights on music and the human psyche especially valuable. He expressed that humans are innately musical creatures and that so many aspects of our cultural development have been shaped by music. It is evident that not a single culture lacks it; even animals use vocalizations and songs etc… all of which are antecedents of music. We were encouraged to think of the emotional centers triggered when sound enters a space and how it can be used to enhance or influence a structure’s design. The surrounding geometry of a space affects the quality of sound within it, as represented in early religious architecture to modern day concert halls, all spaces built to house and shape voices and instruments.
I thought it would be quite compelling if architecture could create sound, not simply support the sounds created by those who use the space. There are already so many sounds that one associates with their homes, like how it settles at night or the creeks from wooden floor boards. These sounds can also provoke certain feelings of comfort or discomfort. However, I have yet to discover a piece of architecture that demonstrates this in its original design.

The second portion of the class focused on flood architecture, though not entirely relevant to the first presentation, it had much relevance to some people as relating to their studio projects. I found this lecture especially moving, specifically because of Edward Epp’s more humanistic focus concerning water and floods. I appreciated him showing the different ways people identify and deal with the water around them, whether it is in a positive way or not. Different societies and cultures react to water in various ways and this was so apparent in his examples of The Ganges River in India and the towering, water dams and cement walls in China. The way structures are built can reflect so much human emotion, for example, the desperation with which the cement support walls were constructed is blatant. This is so interesting to me and a part of me feels that I cannot blame anyone for bad design or planning or anything. I feel more so a sense of compassion for the people who are experiencing these difficulties in the face of the forces of water.

Reflections for November 20 Class

Dr. Mallory Hill was back this week to continue about architecture and our senses. Hearing was the major sense she focused on, giving a very interactive lecture by incorporating music, interviews and other types of sounds. It has been hypothesized that humans are musical creatures. Since the beginning of human culture, we have had some form of music. It is a stimulus which can activate different pleasure centers in our brain and often has an emotional affecst on us. Similar to how we like diversity in our urban landscapes, our brain also seeks for diversity when it comes to sound. We tend to want to dance more to more syncopated beats versus steady beats. Our brains our constantly seeking challenges in the sounds and sights we experience. "Architecture is Frozen Sound" was a quote that really resonated with me. I realized we often use musical terms to speak about architecture. For example, we can say the row of windows creates a sense of rhythm or all the visual elements work to form a composition. All the examples shown of Architecture and Sound were built with not only with aesthetics in mind, but also the function. Music Halls took into account, what type of sound they wanted to achieve, and even factored in the audience as sound absorbers. Architecture also influenced types of music like the Gregorian Chant because the Cathedrals were built so large and reverberant, people had to sing a specific way. 

The second half of the class dealt with Flood Architecture taught by our program head, Ed Epp. Living in Winnipeg makes this lecture one with important context. Flooding is an issue our city desperately struggles with. All the information and examples were provided on the website International Centre for Flood Architecture. Once again Scandinavian Countries such as the Netherlands were far ahead the rest of North America in their innovations in dealing with flooding. Many of the examples shown in the Netherlands had human settlements work with and co exist with nature. They City of Delft brought the water in to became part of the cityscape and the community of Grindgaten X used the floating properties of concrete to keep the community afloat. Although the Centre for Flood Architecture is quite new, I predict this centre and the research it's doing will gain momentum in the years to come, where flooding will be a problem many cities will need to face with climate change.