Human Rights Museum

In order to clarify my strategies in dealing with different layers of dark history, I was recommended by Vince to investigate the Canadian Human Rights Museum in Winnipeg designed by Antoine Predock and analyze his strategies in showcasing the human rights. The building exudes metaphor from the very beginning. The entry is called "Roots" which is symbolically the starting point of everything, the earth.

The first impression of visitors is entering to the darkness. The use of dark stone and narrow and sharp corners with slanted walls also adds to this feeling of surrounded by darkness. 

The visit starts by descending into the earth going into the darkness and going up gradually. Arriving at the heart of the building carved form the earth, the Great Hall is a vast exhibition place for ceremonies and gatherings. Then the visit continues by ascending the ramps. Galleries which have a sequence are connected through several ramps. These ramps have created transitional points, like a pause or threshold before entering the next galley, allowing the visitor to absorb for a brief moment what they have seen. As you go up through the ramps which are called "the Journey", the space gets brighter, representing the life journey metaphorically.The use of unfinished and raw materials which are in contrast with the glass facade has contributed to the play of darkness and light. 

And finally you would reach the last stop of the journey, the "Garden of Contemplation" where you can reflect and think about your journey. 

The "Tower of Hope" is representing the highest goals and achievements in terms of respecting the human rights. 

As you ascend the building up to the Tower of Hope, symbolic changes in material and form affirms hope for positive changes in humanity.
Like what the architect says, it does not matter that you know about the human rights metaphor or not, it is the human experience in the space that is important. He says: "take it on! you know..." 

So coming back to designing a library, illustrating some moments of history related to the immigrants to Canada, metaphors and symbolic elements can be used in the building. Materials, darkness and lightness, the contrast between architectural elements....all these kinds of things can respond to the goal of remembrance with the notion of looking into the future. 

More thoughts coming soon...

Thoughts on Investigation Strands

This article might offer some direction to students interested in sustainability, performance, and occupant behavior posted earlier online. It is not in-depth but presents an interesting reflection on the impacts of LEED on not only environmental and economic measures but also the social dimensions of behavior.

To those interested in dealing with memory and architecture, it may be worthwhile to take a look at a few precedents most notably David Adjaye's Stephen Lawrence Centre. The building itself is an interesting response to the some of the UK's racist past and the death of an architecture student.

Some of you are also looking at the nature of iconography and symbolism in architecture which is rather serendipitous given the Harvard GSD exhibit "Icons of Knowledge: Architecture and Symbolism in National Libraries". A better article here speaks a bit more about the content and curation.

For those of you exploring multiple sensory effects, it might be worthwhile to look at the recent "Soundscape" exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York. It is an interesting showcase of interpretations of distinct audio environments in notable New York buildings.

While some of you are looking at Adaptive Reuse and integration into infrastructure, have any of you come across the Reinventer Paris ideas competition? It is a competition pushed forward by several levels of government for "innovative urban projects"; a huge swath of opportunities lie in the architecture. Some interesting proposals have already started to come out including this one from Korean architects in the Gangam region (...block out that dance and song out of your head). Though it begs the question whether or not these are actually simply industrial designed products or distinct and unique architectural projects, the proposal for these "pods" is both provocative and clearly outline a position the artists have on the Parisian design challenge.

And finally, some of you have opted to go for a library despite picking sites that are fairly close to existing libraries (e.g. Bayview Village library is close to the Burbank site and the Ryerson SLC and Library are across the street from the Gould Street site). That said, those wishing to separate their functional program from the clearly "conventional" libraries nearby may consider this article "11 Things You Can Borrow from Libraries Besides Books". Borrowing musical instruments and tools is not uncommon however more unconventional things on the list included seeds and humans... yes, that's what the article states...