PROJECT Lightbox

LOCATION University of Maryland, College Park 

PROJECT COMPLETION DATE  5/1/2020

PROJECT CATEGORY  Graduate / Beginning Design

PROJECT TYPE  Studio

ENTRANT  Melonee Quintanilla
TEAM MEMBERS  

SCHOOL  University of Maryland

FACULTY SPONSOR  Peter Noonan, Professor / Architecture

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT

Our ARCH601 studio was tasked with renovating the existing Architecture Building at the University of Maryland, College Park in preparation for its transition to a School of the Built Environment.
Built with the late-60s echoes of Louis Kahn, this intimidating fortress of concrete-and-brick guards against the outside world with only minor window slits to give clues of its inner workings. The existing Architecture Building was given the least desirable plot - it sits within a gully plagued by drainage issues. The eastern setback was also established before the creation of the Meyer Mall, placing a rift between the campus’ public green and the existing Architecture building. To the north and south are the Art School and Business School respectively, whose over five-story scales dwarf the existing two-story School of Architecture.

With these existing conditions in mind, the “Lightbox” renovation for the University of Maryland’s future School of the Built Environment began with three main goals:

1. Counter the existing inwards facing building
2. Signal our activity to the UMD community
3. Increase the transparency of our field

The simple addition of a trussed ‘glass box’ of studio space to the top of the existing heavy brick and concrete accomplishes these goals by prioritizing a program of visible, open, and collaborative space that reaches out towards Meyer Mall. The “Lightbox” is a framework for discourse between the diverse fields and inhabitants that will come together at our school. The glowing addition is also an opportunity to showcase the inner workings of our school to the surrounding community - a step that I hope will ultimately increase the transparency of our historically exclusive field.

STUDENT'S STATEMENT

I began this renovation with three main goals:
1. Counter the existing inwards facing building
2. Signal our activity to the university community
3. Increase the transparency of our field

When approaching the existing Architecture Building, visitors confront sharp shed roofs and a fortress-like brick exterior. The neighboring schools dwarf the building, which sits in a poorly drained gully. To counter these conditions, adding height and openness became design priorities solved by a glu-lam truss “glass box” placed above the existing base of brick and concrete.

There were two additional tactics to reach my first goal: respond actively to site conditions and define the three entrances. A newly expanded glass walkway known as the “link” is the main entrance of the ground floor. From the Mall, visitors approach a gathering spot and reflecting pool that directs water from the roof. From the western side, visitors pass the maker plaza - an area to build and display solar decathlon projects. The second entry is the bridge on the first floor. Convenient to the bus stop, the bridge now goes over a bioswale. The loading entry includes a pedestrian bridge over the bioswale - an upgrade to the existing gravel drainage ditch made possible by reducing the parking lot into a drop-off zone.

To reach my second goal, studio space was moved from the bottom floor to the visible upper levels. This would increase the studio capacity to double the current number of affiliated students. Office/meeting pods nestled in the trusses are places for professors to support their students nearby, while structural amenity cores double as kitchenettes and supply shops.

The “Lightbox” addition will showcase architectural education to the surrounding community - a step that I hope will ultimately reach my third goal of increasing the transparency of our historically exclusive field.

IMAGE CAPTIONS & CREDITS 

IMAGE 1:  As students approach the "Lightbox" from Meyer Mall, they can see the activity bustling within. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 2:  The original two-story Great Space has been launched upwards. Bridges and meeting pods nestled between the trusses paint a dynamic picture within the new School of the Built Environment. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 3:  Visitors walking to the "link" entrance pass by the Gathering Spot underneath the cantilever. Stepped seating rests under the shade of the sugar maple's fall foliage, and a reflecting pool helps divert water from the roof to the bioswale on site. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 4:  A wise man once said that the most sustainable building is the one that's already built. The Lightbox renovation seeks to enhance both the existing building and the environment around it. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 5:  From the first diagram in the top left to the last in the bottom right, the Lightbox began with a simple premise: height and transparency. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 6:  The transition from diagram to building is most evident in the elevations. A luminous crown of glass, polycarbonate panels, and glu-lam trusses bring the building up to the same scale as its neighbors. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

IMAGE 7:  By raising our school up instead of out, the architecture building stands proudly against its taller neighbors in the process massing models. From there, computer modeling was a tool to further specify dimensions and exact relation to context. Credit: Melonee Quintanilla

MEDIA FOR DOWNLOAD

Project PDF