Speculative Cabin
The Speculative Cabin starts with the approach to the site. One walks the existing trail through the woods and approaches the structure from the broad side where the vertical lines of the wood ribs create the pitched silhouette of a shelter. It is ambiguous to the visitor if the structure has an interior volume because the in-between of the vertical wood ribs appears to not exist as the mirrored acrylic façade of the cabin reflects the natural context. The visitor gets closer and takes a step up from the forest to the deck where they walk to the entrance and enter the courtyard. The courtyard is meant to continue this idea of making ambiguous interior and exterior, nature and structure.
The courtyard works in a two-fold manner: 1) it is a space created by an enclosed boundary condition that is technically outside and technically within; 2) it is a space that is meant to encourage visitors to create and make their own speculations in the form of art and installations that challenges or accepts the cabin, the woods, and the visitors.
The interior is simple and designed to accommodate sleep and work in a neutral environment. The pitched roof faces south where solar panels are installed for electricity production and these are sunk into the wood ribs as a way of camouflaging them from immediate ground-view. On the interior, this pitched roof allows for window organization on both the north and south walls to encourage crossventilation of the space. The windows on the north facing (courtyard facing) wall are within each sleeping compartment so that while in bed, each visitor has their own view outward and ability to modulate their comfort with air circulation. Each sleeping compartment also has built-in shelving that is accessed from either within the bunk or in the main interior space.
Lastly, the wood ribs of the building are meant to create a continuous vertical outline of the structure but through their construction they also create an open vapor barrier that acts as a rain screen. This works as the infill mirrored acrylic panels are off-set from the exterior wall. When precipitation occurs, water is allowed into this gap so that it is then on the bituminous water-resistant layer. This gap space allows for the water to evaporate as opposed to setting and entering the interior of the wall.
The ordering of spaces from the deck to the courtyard to the interior is meant to take the visitor from the natural to the cultural realm and these spaces are meant to provoke the visitor to wonder about the difference between nature and culture. The Speculative Cabin literally and figuratively reflects the natural environment and the cultural understanding of what it means to live in the woods.
(Competitor's text)
7 scanned / 6 viewable
- Site Plan
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