*매트릭스 디자인, 세컨드 하우스 [ William O’Brien Jr. ] Twins: Houses in Five Parts

5개의 조각은 공간을 만드는 중요한 요소로써 사용되며
그 조각들의 퍼즐은 하나의 하우스로 결합된다.
뉴욕의 북쪽에 위치한 트윈스 하우스는 두개의 별장으로
두명의 형제와 그들의 가족들을 위한 세컨드 하우스로 계획되었다.
트윈스 하우스의 재미 있는 것은 이 드라마틱한 형상이
건축가의 자의적인 해석에서 나온 심미적 탐구를 위한
형상이 아니라 주변 자연환경을 고려한 5개의 조각에서 시작한다는
점이다. 5개의 조각은 각각 가장 미니멀한 공간의 형태를 규정 짓는다.
5개의 폴리곤은 한개의 삼각형과 네개의 부등면 사면체로 구성되며
각기 다른 조합으로 새로운 형태의 공간을 창출해 낸다.
정해진 폴리곤의 형태는 정해진 공간의 프로그램을 담고
있지만 주변의 환경을 고려한 조각퍼즐의 맞춤은 각기 다른
2개의 트윈스 하우스를 만들어 내었다.
예를 들어 공간을 덜어내는 삼각형의 퍼즐은 다른 하우스에서는
외부로 열린 발코니 겸 앞마당이 되고 다른 하우스에서는
중정 겸 에어 아뜨리움이 되는 것처럼 말이다.
수학적 공식에서 만들어지는 메트릭스 디자인은 수학적 합리성으로 인하여
기능적 스페이스와 플렉시블한 디자인을 할 수 있는 배경이 된다.
또한 디자인에 대한 미래의 한 방향이 될지도 모르겠다.
하지만 자칫 일반화 오류를 통하여 잘못 번역된 매트릭스의 사용으로
근거 없는 형태의 조합과 근거 없는 치수및 스케일의 조정으로
적당한 비례감을 찾는 무수한 알까기의 산실이 되지 않았으면 좋겠다.
입에 답기도 그렇치만 이와 같은 사람이 우리 주위에 존재한다.
나는 감사하게 생각하게 생각한다. 내가 그렇게 살지 않도록 먼저 살아주어서...
무튼, 이와같은 오류를 범하지 않으며 깊이 있는 미니멀한 요소의 정의와
이것을 조합하는 분석적인 다이어그램으로 디자인 되는 매트릭스 디자인은
우리 디자인의 앞날의 일부분을 보여주지 않을까 기대해 본다.

 reviewed by SJ

William O’ Brien Junior is no stranger to the architecture world. Amongst all of his qualifications, he is also an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the MIT School of Architecture and Planning, and a principal of an independent design practice in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His practice was recently awarded with the 2011 Architectural League Prize for Young Architects and Designers. Last year, he was a finalist for the MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program, and was recognized as an inaugural winner of the Design Biennial Boston Award. William O’ Brien Jr. is one of those young architects that influence the field with progression and a deeper motivation to computation.  His awards, publications and contributions are endless. Some of these include teaching at the University of California Berkeley as a Bernard Maybeck Fellow, Assistant Professor at the University of Austin Texas, teaching at MIT design studios in both the graduate and undergraduate programs, the 2010 Rotch Traveling Studio Scholarship and he has also published a collection of essays such as ‘Approaching Irreducible Formations’ & ‘Experts in Expediency’. William O’ Brien Jr. was destined for the world of architecture and we wanted to share one of his destinies, with you.

---

Twins: Houses in Five Parts
Location: Upstate New York, 2009-2011
Principal: William O’Brien Jr.
Team: Bhujon Kang
Images: Peter Guthrie

Twins is a project located in upstate New York that commenced in 2009 and was completed in 2011. It consists of two vacation houses on one plot of land constructed in five parts for two brothers and their families. The conceptual thinking behind these structures is truly impressive. Great detail has been given to the forms in relation to the landscape. Each house is made out of five shapes, which have been minimally dissected and rotated to fit within the plot. The mathematical principle of “dissection” states that any two regular polygons with equal areas can be divided into sets of similar shapes; “minimal dissection” is the pursuit of the fewest number of subdivisions in each polygon. A regular six-sided polygon and a regular four-sided polygon contain the same five shapes—each are made up of the same four trapezoids and one triangle. The adjacencies between the five shapes are different within each of the regular polygons, as are their orientations relative to the outer perimeters of the polygons. Translated into spatial divisions in an architectural plan, these fixed arrangements prompt sectional-flexibility.

The prime relevance between these two structures is what makes the whole volume balanced and completely in line with the landscape. Their abstract forms are part of these structures which, through this mathematical key connection,  hey harmonies one another. Programmatically, the pairs of parts are used similarly between the two houses, although each programmatic piece utilizes its unique adjacencies. For example, the triangular space is used as a vertically-oriented, sun room in the center of the square house, and as a landscape-oriented, screened-in porch in the hexagonal house.

Moving away from the structures and looking at the surroundings, you instantly notice how these two houses have been designed accordingly retaining the relation between architecture & the environment. Water collection is achieved through the angled roofs directed to a subterranean piping system between the residences. The agricultural development of the land varies according to the season. With this variation the relation between the two houses also alters according to the height of the plantation, the colour of the landscape and the thickness or bareness of the trees. Everything has been planted, created and designed in order to enforce the communication (direct or none) between the residences according to the particular time of the month. Nature takes a prime role in deciding how much you see of your loving neighbor and when. 

On the inside of these houses the same rules apply. They follow the forms and connections to the outside. Large glazing systems invite you to look onto the landscape and through the glazed reflections, you never fail to harmonise yourself with nature. Pure whiteness, exposed concrete and wood are the prime finishes and materials used everywhere thus keeping the natural balance apparent. Simple and elite balustrades that almost hide their existence indicate the prime importance given to the structure and all that surrounds them. In this way, the residents are continuously reminded of the serenity of the trees and the sound of water. It’s about the simple things in life which can be as easily achieved sometimes by placing a Vitra Jean Prouve arm chair facing the window. Dynamism is apparent through the angular partitions creating enough of a contrast to be appreciated. There is so much meaning in the surrounding factors that it is almost as if the project’s interiors have been left to take everything in. The sloped ramps creating different levels are reminiscent of the plot of land just outside.

from  contemporist