Bordeaux House | Abstract Study 1: "The Part & The Whole"

My first abstract study focuses on my section from part a where I modelled the bookshelf. I have developed a series of drawings which serve to highlight and contrast the ability of the father on his moving platform and the rest of the family via the stairs to use the bookshelf. 

The inclusion of the scaled figures helps to portray the purpose of the architecture to facilitate a special type of family. The colours serve to illustrate the shelves each member of the family can and cannot reach. 

As you can see in the path of the elevator the father is able to access every shelf demonstrating the ability of the architecture to facilitate his condition. This is then compared to the family who use the stairs and are unable to reach the shelves in the path of the elevator demonstrating how it now inhibits access to certain people.

Bordeaux House | Abstract Study 2: "Formal Device - The Moving Platform"

My second abstract study focuses on the formal deice of the moving platform. The series of axonometric construction drawings serve to highlight the complexity of what seems to be a fairly simple structure.

The first image depicts the numerous control panels, wires and engineering aspects that exist in the elevator that allows its seamless movement between levels. Next is conceptual drawing illustrating the elevator in its three main stationary positions. And finally a section which further reinforces how simple the appearance of the elevator is. It is merely a rectangular platform and a circular shaft. It is reflective of the man’s condition in that his life would for many seem to become extremely complicated after the accident however through the formal device of the lift is made extremely simple. Therefore it represents what his life has become and how Koolhaas has captured this through the building. 

 

Bordeaux House | Part A | Drawings

Maison a Bordeaux is located in Bordeaux, France and was created by architect Rem Koolhaas in 1995. The basis to his design was centred around the specific needs of the client, a family that included one member that was handicapped. The main defining element of the house is a moving platform for the handicapped father which ascends through each of the three levels. Next to this is an adjoining staircase for the remaining family members to proceed between each level. After being paralysed from the waist down the father stated that “Contrary to what you would expect, I want a complex house, because the house will define my world” and so to fully understand Koolhaas’s building we must first explore this need of the client.   

 

Ground, 1st and 2nd Story Plans

You can see in my plans that the house appears as three separate levels. The ground floor is carved into the existing land formation and accounts for more intimate activities which the family carry out. The middle floor is the most transparent and is used as a general living space containing both interior and exterior rooms. The second floor is opaque and contains the bedrooms of the family members.

As you can see in my sections and plans I have chosen to model the moving platform, bookshelf and adjoining stairs. 

1:50 Sections A and B

I wanted to represent the way in which the bookshelf is quite strong feature of the house, spanning all three levels from floor to ceiling. Furthermore I wanted to highlight the way in which the handicapped father and the rest of the family interact with this everyday piece of furniture. A task that would almost certainly require an individual to be able to use both their legs to reach and retrieve a book from a shelf is made extremely simple and easy for the handicapped father with help from the architectural form of the platform. He is able to reach most of the shelves from his wheelchair without straining his body however there are some shelves which an abled body individual would struggle to reach. This serves the highlight the ability of Koolhaas through his architecture to create a space to define the client’s world. Koolhaas has, through his building, transformed the fathers life, enabling him partake in everyday life tasks just as easily as an abled body individual.

Bordeaux House | Abstract Study 3: "Public, Private & Geometric Relationships"

My third and final abstract piece is a combination which explores public and private space as well as geometric systems. I have used the area surrounding the lift as an example to contrast both public and private space. You can see in the axonometric drawings as well as my model that all three levels or volumes are connected by the elevator. Its movement transcends the building and the ability for it to move between levels in the house creates a dynamic and every changing space. 

Public spaces are created when the platform is suspended on a specific level. An example is shown below:

Moving Platform is on the middle floor

 

Moving Platform is on the bottom floor

However at any point the father is able to stop it and maintain a position between any two levels as highlighted in the photo below:

Moving Platform is suspended

This creates a space that is entirely his own and although people may still visually see and speak to him, this space is completely unique to him. Apart from his office which exists on the elevator platform his ability to create public and private space is so simple and effective.

The geometric shape of the elevator is extremely similar to its surrounding levels. This is demonstrated in both my model and the drawings where you can see the area is of similar shape. 

I have deliberately chosen to just model this section to once again highlight the ability to create public and private space with the aid of the platform. Suspending it between levels completely changes the overall geometry of each level and serves to create a space for the father to dwell.

Bordeaux House | Part A | 1:50 Section Models

Section Model

Section Model

Section Model