PUAD 3010 Design Studio 3 (Fall 2021)
Led by Professor Martina Kohler
Led by Professor Martina Kohler
North Elevation
Fogo Island is the largest of the offshore islands of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It is located off of the northeast coast of Newfoundland. The island has a harsh climate--strong storms, heavy precipitation, and sub-zero temperatures. The site on Fogo Island has strong winds coming from the West, so a primary concern of the structure is to protects against the unrelenting wind. The design of the center strives to respond to the harsh cold climatic conditions of Fogo Island with bioclimatic strategies and energy-efficient mechanical heating systems in order to minimize its carbon footprint and optimize energy efficiency during the long, cold winter months.
The building will function as a research outpost for a public research university where researchers and students can study the climatic conditions, marine biology, and 400-million-year-old geology of Fogo Island, while simultaneously establishing new opportunities for the local community, sustaining local priorities, culture, and traditions. Hence, the program includes not only research, but also community gathering spaces to engage the Fogo Island community through lecture series, outdoor activities, traditional arts and crafts programs, and a Citizen Scientist Program.
Programmatic Collage
East Elevation
South Elevation
West Elevation
The buildings sit gently on the landscape. As the dwellers move between the residences, they experience the sudden cold to the welcoming warmth of the interior. They must step off the platform of the residences and walk across the rocky and snowy terrain, coming in contact with the landscape of Fogo Island.
The design emphasizes vernacular motifs and echoes the symbolic importance of the ocean to the once-thriving fishing community on Fogo Island.
Site Plan
Exploded Axonometric
Floor Plans
In the research center, there is a community kitchen, large storage spaces for supplies and equipment, open works spaces, a lab, and a multifunctional community space. Each dwelling unit has a shared kitchen and living space and features a unique bedroom for each resident. Between the buildings, there is an outdoor platform that can be used as an outdoor activity space or craft space.
The first residential cluster is dwellings for the researchers, and the second is dwellings for the students. The Dwellers will engage in communal cooking, eat and work in a shared space, and spend most of their time, when they are not out in the field, in the Hearth of the center.
Research Center Workspace
Researchers' Dwelling
The rhythm of the waves is echoed in the rooflines to create a strong gesture of reaching toward the ocean.
Design Strategy #1 –
Sheltering from Strong Western Wind
Sheltering from Strong Western Wind
The structure is designed to envelop the individual to shield the strong coastal winds from them. The volume of the building also serves as a shield that protects the outdoor space, breaking the wind. So, outdoor activities or walking between buildings are protected.
Design Strategy #2 –
Maximizing Southern Exposure
Maximizing Southern Exposure
Even though Fogo Island’s weather is overcast and cloudy, I still aimed to maximize Southern sunlight exposure as a way to passively heat the interior and also introduce natural light in the interior spaces.
