From ground to sky : an exploration in urban continuities

Abstract

Urban skyscapes have been altered dramatically in this century with heretofore unprecedented powerful vertical surges. Yet it seems in most vertical buildings, the access and spatial sequence consists mainly of an articulated lobby or atrium and a high-speed elevator ride to one's destination. Little attention has been paid to the inherent possibilities of experience in the transition from ground to sky; of moving from one formal organization, (the city grid), to another, (a tall building) The current predilection for maximizing allowable floor area has produced the so-called "pancake" type stacking of floors which generally gives no clues to the user as to where in the vertical organization they may be at any given moment. This minimization process has denied to tall buildings the spatial experience and continuity of access helpful to more successfully integrate these forms into a existing city fabric of dissimilar size and nature of use. In order to assist in the expression of a vertical continuity, the form and material of structure and other architectural treatment could invoke associations of a ground-rooted existence, sensations of feeling "under" or "within" a form of containment. A middle territory could also be sought for where one no longer feels a part of the ground but not yet quite within the realm of the sky, in effect, a zone of exchange between the two territories. Finally, the uppermost portions of a building could become celebratory of their position nearest that of the sky. It is with an emphasis on ground to air continuity and experience that this thesis will explore a design for a vertical commercial /residential project in San Francisco, California.