POTRERO HILL LIBRARY

arch 100a: fundamentals of architectural design 2013

exhibited at berkeley circus 2014. Accepted to berkeley circus soireé 2014.

This project explores the relationship between the human perception and architectural representation of space. While architectural drawings (plans and sections) rely on orthogonal projections, the human eye perceives space through perspective. The perspectival distortion of space provides us with information about depth and volume that would otherwise become ambiguous. The Potrero Hill Library pushes perspectival distortion one step further—instead of affecting only 2D representation, perspectival distortion transforms volumes in three dimensions, creating unexpected and dynamic spaces.

The library’s form emerges from four distorted rectangular volumes twisting around a central core. The intersecting volumes create a variety of social areas and private study spaces. The facade, following the geometric aesthetic of the interior, is generated from a field of converging perforations to emphasize the effect of perspectival distortion on the street level.