FF&E

Throughout the semester I have been compiling all my furnishings, fixtures, and equipment for my senior project.  This week I have organized and assembled material boards that contains the ff&e of 10 different spaces in my design.  

WAITING AREA

LIBRARY

LARGE CONFERENCE

SMALL CONFERENCE

SECRETARY WORKSTATION

WAITING AREA

LAW ENFORCEMENT WORKROOM

INTERVIEW/INTERROGATION ROOM

THERAPY ROOM OPTION 1

THERAPY ROOM OPTION 2

BREAK/LOUNGE

After presenting these boards, I have discovered that there are minor changes that I need to make such as including more patterns into the materials and adding softer furnishings.

Double Height Space

Recently, I have been thinking about my double height space. It is located on the second and third level of the facility, where the third level overlooks the second.  I found space layout challenges concerning what the third level will look down on, and what activities can be placed out in the open.  

Below is my ideation sketch of this space on the third level. The pathway will be used as circulation and a lounge area where the employees will have a place to work outside of the office or take a break.  The ceiling will be suspended, but open in the double height space.  Hanging from the ceiling is a large scale sculptural element from Studio Lilica that reaches into the second level.  

IDEATION SKETCH

Here are photos of the Studio Lilica sculpture and the table and chairs that will be in this space. 

STUDIO LILICA SCULPTURE

COALESSE CAPA CHAIR

COALESSE EMU SQUARE TABLE

Back to the Drawing Board...

Believe it or not, I have decided to revise my floor plans after corresponding with my mentors. In order to successfully portray the concept of freedom, the layout and spaces needed to be opened up and less structured.  The problem I was having with the original set of plans was that the spaces were confined and crammed together.  As a result I decided to utilize not just the first and second level of the facility, but the third level as well.  Shown below are the new layouts.

FIRST LEVEL

SECOND LEVEL

THIRD LEVEL

Arrival

This week I have been contemplating the arrival space of my facility.  The entrance contains a lot of daylight due to the curtain wall in the front of building.  However, the rest of the facility does not allow as much light as the entrance does.  Therefore, I wanted to incorporate interior windows between the entrance and the rest of the facility. This way natural daylight can easily filter throughout the interior spaces. 

Arrival Space Sketch

The ceiling height in the arrival space is around 11 feet high.  In order to create a more intimate space for visitors and employees who enter the facility I included suspended ceiling elements.  This will bring the ceiling height down to around 8 fee allowing the area to become more personal.

Planning

As I was planning out the individual spaces of this facility I decided to place the more public areas on the first level and the private areas on the second level.  The first level will allow the public to access the facility for classes, training sessions, and research.   The second level contains spaces designated for therapy, medical examinations, and evaluations.   Patients will enter through the back entrance near the elevators so that they do not have to travel throughout the first level.

I have posted images of the two floor plans below to show a possible layout of these spaces.

FIRST LEVEL

SECOND LEVEL

Structured

As I am working on the floor plans for my project, I am discovering that the building is very structured.  There are load bearing walls stretching across the interior spaces of the facility.  Therefore, it is a challenge when I am space planning because there are limitations for the location of specific rooms and areas.  In addition, the center space of the first floor contains structural grid columns.  As a result, it is going to be difficult to have large open spaces, and create direct navigation throughout the space. These structural challenges are shown in the images below.

First Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan

Senior Project: Concept

The project I am designing for senior year is a comprehensive center for the prevention, evaluation, and treatment of abused children and youth.  The center is a one stop shop for all the agencies that aid in the process of dealing with child abuse.  The services provided include law enforcement, mental health services, medical services, child protective services, parenting classes, preventative services, counseling and therapy, social work, training practitioners, and child protective services.  By co-locating all these agencies, it will ultimately create a less traumatic experience for the victims instead of them travelling from one building to the next throughout the city.

Concept Model

The concept of this design is based on freedom.  Children who have been abused need to be set free.  They are often held captive by their traumatic memories and the ongoing effects of guilt, shame, and mistrust.  Prevention, education, and treatment efforts provide a path to freedom; however, that path is also lined with places, people, and experiences that can be strange and intimidating to children.  Their journey to freedom can be facilitated through design elements in a comprehensive center for the prevention and treatment of child abuse.  These elements include flexibility, safety, privacy, ease of navigation, and control.  Flexibility provides a sense of freedom for the occupants of the building through the design of the interior spaces.  Children of different ages can be accommodated by providing interesting spaces of different sizes.  Freedom is also experienced in design by creating a sense of safety for the patients.  Feelings of safety are promoted by creating small, enclosed spaces for children.  Access to corners and walls can give children a sense of protection.  Privacy as a design element advances freedom through enhancing children’s feelings of safety and control.  This can be accomplished through the design of unclaimed areas and peripheral spaces.  Freedom is translated throughout the design by easy and helpful navigation.  Color and lighting can be used to enhance wayfinding and highlight important spaces in the facility.  Incorporating the elements of flexibility, safety, privacy, ease of navigation, and control into the design of a comprehensive center will expedite the journey to freedom for children who have been abused.

Inspirational Image: Letting Go

Inspirational Image

Inspirational Image: No Constraints, Liberation

Inspirational Image

Inspirational Image: New Paths

Inspirational Image: Redemption, Restoration