PARTS OF A WHOLE

PARTS OF A WHOLE was a submission to the COTE Top 10 competition and focuses on the 10 COTE Principals

Integration
The circulation of the building promotes integration
between separate disciplines within the building. The
minimal options when circulating between floors makes
it nearly impossible not to run into/interact with people
outside ones discipline, hopefully overcoming the separation
of majors seen in so many university buildings

Ecosystems
The central atrium space serves as a bioswale and
rainwater collection system while also providing a location
for native trees, flowers, and other flora to grow. The roof
has been dedicated to green space, serving as a garden and
research area for the biological disciplines that occupy the
building.

Economy
The effective and adjustable façade provides effective
daylighting for interior spaces which lowers the reliance
on artificial lighting and therefore electricity. With an open
central space the building has a large amount of exposed
surface area allowing it to retain solar heat during the
colder season which in turn lowers the use of heating for the
structure.

Well-Being
In new York the feeling of suffocation can be common
in such large structures, especially without a feeling of
connection with the outdoors. The interior spaces in this
building were designed to always have a direct sight line
to the outside, this allows for the spaces to feel open
and connected to the outside context and surrounding
community.

Change
The interior spaces throughout the building are kept
open which ensures that they can be rearranged and
repurposed for any future occupants of the building. This is
especially apparent on the first floor, comprised of several
open flex-spaces, which were designed to be changed and
organized regularly based on day to day needs. The panels of
the façade can also be rotated allowing for more or less light
in any given space depending on its use and requirements.

Equitable Communities
The buildings translucent façade invites people in to
explore and the first floor backs that up by welcoming them
into a space made for both the public and those who occupy
the building. The flexible nature of the space ensures that it
has the ability to be reworked and used for the needs of any
future occupants the building may have.

Water
The building collects rainwater through the roof as well
as the central atrium space, the water is then redirected into
an underground cistern to be used for greywater tasks such
as irrigation. This collection system ensures that the building
relies less on fresh water from the city, and also slows down
the transmission of rainwater into the city’s drainage and
sewer systems.

Energy
The daylighting and solar exposure of the building
allow it to rely less on artificial lighting and heating which
in turn lower its electricity consumption. This is also
supplemented by the roof-mounted solar panels which draw
renewable energy from the sun and don’t rely on the city’s
power grid.

Resources
Sustainably sourced mass timber makes up the
floor plates and majority of the structure in the building.
This material has a much lower carbon impact than the
alternatives of steel or concrete. The materiality ensures that
the initial impact is kept low which is compounded by the
solar and water systems of the building that ensures that the
project continues to have a positive impact on the climate
throughout its life-span.

Discovery
The building is equipped with several innovative
systems that allow for discovery and efficiency throughout
the structure. The adjustable façade system allows for
variable lighting in any given space depending on its needs.
The integrated cistern system provides an effective combat
against flooding and overloading the local drainage systems.

PROCESS WORK:

WALDEN BLANKENSHIP

MIXED-MEDIA ARCHITECTURE FURNITURE

WALDEN
BLANKENSHIP

MIXED-MEDIA
ARCHITECTURE
FURNITURE