A public pavilion created as a design/build field study through a collaboration of the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department/Goose Island State Park. Sited in the designated youth group camping area, the pavilion program was simply to provide overhead shelter and a communal dining & meeting space for up to 24 youth. Building off the success of the previously constructed fire circle our studio sought to enrich the project by developing a space infused with contextual sensibilities and references to the coastal Live Oak Forest ecology of the site. The entire project occured within a 15 week timeframe from inception to completion and was designed and built by ten UTSoA students. The project budget was ten thousand dollars.
The pavilion was sited to be directly adjacent to the Southern edge of the campground, nestled next to the overhead dripline of three large oaks. The design concept was effectively creating a physical room beneath our pavilion that would extend into the natural canopy of the trees. Poured concrete beams capture the structural steel moment frames and continue towards the treeline to emphasize the secondary 'tree room' through visual means. These beams end in monolithic concrete benches to encourage physical occupation and reflection of both the project and the site ecology. Both the West and North edges are defined by permeable screens crafted by welding sheets of welded wire mesh spaced with various thicknesses of steel rebar. Each screen element is comprised of six mesh layers and has a tangible physical depth. These screens serve to reinforce the sense of space when occupying the pavilion while still allowing natural light and visual connection to the overall site. The West screen is intended to support native vines to block direct views to the adjacent parking lot while providing an educational opportunity for the parks interpreter.
As a studio we decided to add custom picnic tables to our project scope, even at the expense of eating into our already lean budget. However, in designing tables specific to the pavilion we were able to mimic the form and rhythym of the structural steel frames and build the tables to the same module. Each table seats 8 comfortably and in placing them as a continuous element it really does build a communal experience both with the users and the architecture surrounding.
At the West face a continuous counter utilizes the same construction methodology and provides space for staging meals or as a display surface when the parks interpreter is hosting an education class.
The ceiling plane is comprised of 2x2 Cedar planks that have been treated in the tradition of Japanese Shou Sugi Ban. This method requires that the outer layer of the wood is charred and results in a naturally protective layer against both insects and moisture. The charred effect provides an additional educational opportunity to reference the naturally occurring burn cycles that are necessary for Oak forests to thrive and propagate. Currently the area surrounding Goose Island State Park has not been receptive to hosting controlled burns as neighborhoods have encroached so closely to park land. This has resulted in large amounts of underbrush and has effectively created a large fuel potential if a wildfire does ever occur in the area.
