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Site Plan

The site plan above shows a roof plan of the initial concept.  Located at the north end of the site near Depoe Bay.  The tasting room is located on the Southwest side of the building allowing for natural daylight.

Sectional Study

Looking at how the site will allow for a gravity fed system as well as using some of the sites natural features to create form.  Units are in meters for drawings above.

Initial Approach

As an initial approach to the design of the winery, I looked at how this winery will operate under the same wine making principles as the Flying Dutchmen (Open Air Fermenting), but will process four times more wine than the Flying Dutchmen, and will allow for a larger export of their product.  The feel and look of this winery will not take away any off the charm or history that the current boutique winery has created.  It will be an extension to the Flying Dutchmen’s already established business.

This first approach to creating a design solution includes a three-story building that interlock with one another.   The main level contains the tasting room and office as well as the receiving and crush pad for the wine making process.  The crush pad will also be used as a patio space for guest during a majority of the year, as well as when it is in use as a crush pad in the early fall.  To make this system a gravity fed system, there will be a lower level where all of the juices will be drained from their fermentation barrels into a series of tanks which will strain any of the larger particles of sediment or grape solids that settled during the fermentation process.  The lower level is where the wine is then placed into oak barrels and stored in a controlled environment.  In the  plan below the barrel storage is directly below the crush pad/patio.

Sketch Book

 

 

 

 

 

Flying Dutchmen Vineyards

The Flying Dutchmen, being located on the cliffs of the Oregon coast, does not have the space or the proper conditions to grow grapes adjacent to the winery like many traditional wineries.  Richard Cutler, owner and wine maker, gets his grapes from four local vineyards located in the western portion of the state.  Below is a graphic showing the four vineyards and their proximity to the flying Dutchmen.

Project 2: Site

The site that I have chosen for project 2 is located on Oregon’s West central coast, in a town called Depoe Bay, home to 1,350 residence. The site is approximately 12,700 m² and is located on the east side of Oregon Coast Hwy 101.  The site is approximately 8.85km from a small boutique winery called the Flying Dutchman.   The proposal for a new winery includes a partner ship with the Flying Dutchman and its unique wine making process.  It will also include a gravity flow facility which will accommodate a much larger production volume, to create new business opportunities for the Fly Dutchman and the new winery.

Ru(M)inations: The Haunts of Contemporary Architecture

As we continue to anticipate the future of architecture, there are many people who are analyzing what we are doing in the present day and its relativity to previous periods in architecture. John McMorrough, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan Taubman College, has written a piece on the current thought process found in today’s architecture and makes a humorous comparison to the life of a Zombie.

Zombies as you may know are portrayed in many movies such as the “Dawn of the Dead.”  The zombie is describe as the living dead, who knows and lives through their past experiences and memories.  McMorrough uses the zombie as a way to describe how architects have latched onto what has been done in the past especially, precedents such as the modernism.  Although Modernism in theory ended somewhere around the mid 1960’s, ideas from that time are still being played out in today’s architecture.  Is this a bad thing?  What is preventing architects from moving on into a new period in architecture? Can we categorize the period that we are in right now?  Many of these questions are tough to answer.  

Modernism in architecture was a response to society at the time from earlier 1900’s to about mid 1960’s.  It utilized underlying principles of design with the rapid advancement of technology. In many ways these ideas are being played out today.  With advancements in computer software and fabrication techniques, designers have a new palette of tools at their fingertips.  So why does so much of the architecture today look the same as it did from the early 20^th century? Or does it?

Looking back at the previous article written by Karl Chu, a new idea of architecture may be around the corner.  I believe that in order for this to happen, architects need to look at the possibilities that are available, possibilities that can only happen through a new agenda and systematic process.  This process must first reflect upon the current situation in architecture in order to create its own perspective of what it should be.

What can we call the time that we are in?  Is it even possible to name the time while present in the time?  As we know, those who practiced architecture during renaissance period, named the time period as such.  They knew what they wanted to be known for and even named the previous period gothic architecture to make them appear as an innovation.  With this in mind can we possibly do the same? Can we get away from the past? Can we as architects develop a new approach to design and cut ties from the past? I believe the answer is yes, but we must not completely start fresh without an evaluation of the past.  There needs to be something in common with or something that is being evaluated from the past as a transition into the future.

As a student in Architecture, with a few years of field experience I have a few concerns.  Many of those concerns deal with the reputation and role of architects.  Although my experience was confined to one practicing firm, I find that it is hard to make such radical moves, and prove their value to a society whose first concern is the financial burden associated with them.  As we continue to approach a new architecture, we must not only think about architects, architecture and the past, but about the place and time in society.  How do we sell our new ideas, and who will buy it?

Selling our ideas and the value of our services comes with a lot of responsibilities.  We must not forget our past, but embrace the foundation that has been set up for us.  What I mean by this is that we cannot forget or ignore the time that we are currently in.  Any radical shifts in architecture must take into consideration the current social and economic values before it can begin to impose its own influence of these issues. 

Referenced text:

John McMorrough, Ru(m)inations: The Haunts of Contemporary Architecture, Perspecta 40 (Sept. 2008), 164-69

Levels of Integration vs. Ambivalence

In order to fully understand the concept of integrated vs. ambivalence; we must look at each of them from various levels of analysis.  These levels can range in degree of information, but for the purpose of this project we will look at each in terms of wineries.  Wineries range from big to small and anywhere in between.

Level 01 – Business Size

At this level of analysis, I found that the size of a winery can determine a degree of I and A.  The larger and more commercial wineries show more ambivalent features.  These can range from a disconnection with the consumer, as well as a disconnection with the landscape.  While larger wineries focus more on production, smaller boutique wineries show more integrated characteristics.   Site placement and scale, as well as a close consumer interaction show a level of enthusiasm towards the wine making process.

Level 02 – Location

For level two I looked at where several wineries are located.  Some wineries are built on sites that allow for vineyards to be adjacent to the process while others are located on much smaller sites and require vineyards off site.  Boutique wineries, such as the Flying Dutchmen, are located in areas around the world in which the climate or space is inadequate to grow their own grapes. At this level the smaller boutique wineries show more ambivalent characteristics and the larger sites with on site vineyards are more integrated.

We can also look at site features and their role in the wine making process.  We can analyze passive solar and cooling strategies and how they apply to the wine making process and what this means in terms of ambivalence vs. integrated.  For example the Flying Dutchmen is located on the coast of western Oregon, and uses its location to aid in the wine making process.   The cool ocean air provides a longer fermenting time, without requiring a climatic controlled space.  This relationship with the landscape is a characteristic of integration.  On the contrary larger facilities create structures to control and house the wine process.  Many of these types of facilities have no relationship to their site.

Level 03 – Program

Each piece of a program can be classified as integrated or ambivalence.  Some more than others, may be determined by adjacencies rather than individual characteristics.  Placement of a single piece of program has many effects of the adjacent pieces.  Do they share common piece of program or do they operate separately?   I also see a pattern of flexibility.  For instance, an integrated concept can accommodate an ambivalent piece of program easier than an ambivalent concept trying to accept an integrated component.

As you can see at each level one specific winery may fall on both the integrated and ambivalent sides of the spectrum.  But what is important is which of the two is the dominant.

Levels of Evaluation

During my meeting with professor Walters, we discussed the “in-between” space and began looking at where this space is located.  Using integrated and ambivalence, I will begin to evaluate different levels of wineries, everything from large to small.  I have created levels at which I will evaluate them and look to see how one specific winery, such as the Flying Dutchmen, changes between levels or scales.  This process can then be used again to look at different pieces of the site as well as the program, in order to see with which term pieces are associated with.