Studio V had round two this morning with the Charleston Design Review Committee. However, instead of the comfort of having Professor Pastre present in front of the board – today was a student lead presentation. So, a tip of the hat goes to two of our undergraduate students for doing a superb job in this morning’s review.
Landscape architecture undergrad, Ben Miskelly, focused on the overall site plan of Cannon Park, and tackled the reasoning behind our placement of the structure, tents, courtesy trailer (first class porta potty) BBQ pre-event, and the event parking that we are renting from MUSC on Rutledge Avenue for the evening. The placement of these temporary site details revolved around the study of pedestrian traffic, and the placement of our temporary power source. For the structure’s current placement, a work order will be needed to clear out the unwanted existing vegetation in the area (this vegetation was already in the works to be removed in front of the columns, luckily for us.) Fortunately, our good friend Matt Compton, the Deputy Director of Parks Operation for the City of Charleston, should help us have the grounds ready for the big event, thanks Matt!
The image above is of Miskelly presenting the trailer scheme to the board members. The current design involves a single-wheel trailer that doubles as a projection system for the film. Most of the members have never seen a single-wheel trailer and were very interested in the design process. The presentation board also includes the model for a double-wheel trailer, if the structure proves to weigh too much or balance incorrectly because of the length of the trailer, but we hope to use the single-wheel.
Architecture undergrad, Rebecca Cook, presented the structure the the committee. She used the boards to show inspiration, such as the hammock stand and the mechanisms of a pocket knife. The boards also had joint details and on-site renderings. Becca used the model to show the members the hinges of the structure, unfolding it from its set position, and lifting it to where the screen would stretch in tension. Graduate students in the class are currently in the process of testing different screen materials in tension, so we can perfect the film screen and achieve the highest resolution possible for an outdoor film.
Every student dreams of hearing approval and praise over their project after just presenting to a jury… and this morning was no different. We walked out of the DRC extremely satisfied with our presentation, because as we were closing up the review, one of the board members gave us his honest opinion. So I end today’s blog with the following words that most students can only dream of, “Since it’s a temporary structure that will only be installed in Cannon Park for one night… as long as it can stand up… you’re approved.”