The Alcove
Undergraduate Work : January 15, 2011
| Iowa State University Semester: Spring 2010 Course: Independent Study Instructor: Pete Goche; Ulrike Passe; Jamie Horwitz |
The Alcove is a two-person independent study that sought to design a multi-generational student housing complex for Iowa State University. The original idea behind the Alcove was to design a complex that would cater to a variety of students, not just the majority, creating a more mixed community where people from different walks of life could interact (seniors, married students, freshman, different ethnic minorities, etc.). | Upon reading “How Buildings Learn” by Stewart Brand, we decided to try and design a building that would outlast us. A building that would be capable of not only withstanding the elements and time, but also be able to easily adapt and change as the university needed. We decided that the Alcove, for now, would be student housing, but accommodations would be made in the design that would allow the building to be effortlessly renovated into a library, office, or even classrooms in the future. |
A small screenshot of one of the presentation boards for the Alcove.
The Alcove from Stange Street. It was designed to be ambiguous in form to allow it to serve any number of functions (library, offices, apartments).
A pond located within the community courtyard. The building is essentially a doughnut with a private interior park.
A little nook that could serve as a game area for chess or checkers… or just a place to hang out and read a book.
The Alcove re-purposed as offices.
Part of the Alcove as a cafe.
Single loaded corridor that leads to the different units.
A small studio apartment in the Alcove.
A shared terrace for community activities.
The overall site model showing the Alcove in its extended context.
The massing model for the Alcove in its context.
The massing model for the Alcove.
The Alcove by night.
Close up view of the model, showing the Alcove in the distance and a train overpass.
View of the Alcove from Stange Street.
Hallway to the apartment, showing a bench where people can sit or unload their groceries.
Hallway section through plenum floor.
View of pull-out storage in plenum floor system, and overall layout of the apartment.
Shows adjustable accessible kitchen.
View of the apartment with the nano walls completely open.
View of the apartment with the nano walls closed.