the bottoms project

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thebottomscommunity.research.design.build

James Edward Baxley III

Portfolio1 farm | 3 professors | 3 years | 4 buildings

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theseedwas planted one fall day of my freshman year, when the desire to farm wouldn’t leave me. I grew up on a farm, and the urge to work until I can’t move overtook me. I needed to get my hands dirty and knew of just the way to do it. Clemson University owns an organic farm on campus – one run by students, at that - and I knew that the professor who ran the farm was a big believer in student-led work through the Creative Inquiry Program. A fellow student and I approached Professor Geoff Zehnder, of the Sustainable Crops Systems department, and asked if we could somehow get involved with the farm. “You are architecture

students, right?” he asked, “we are in desperate need of a storage building, do you think you two could build us one?” As freshmen typically do, we happily volunteered our services, having no idea the scope or commitment the project would bring. Three years later, we finished that storage shed. And, along the way, with the help of Professor Daniel Harding and many other students, we helped to build a community for the farm and create a larger connection to Clemson and beyond. This portfolio follows the

work created along the road that defines the bottoms project.

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Photos | Kaitlyn Pahel and James Baxley

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Haint Bluearchitectural folly

spring 2010 | Haint Blue Wilmington, NC | Design/Build

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Haint Blue | spring 2010 Design/Build | Wilmington, NC

Nestled in the woods on the site of a Civil War battleground was Haint Blue, an architectural folly by Dan Harding of Intrinsik Architecture, which was constructed for the Cameron Museum of Art in Wilmington, NC. After the first semester of the bottoms project, Professor Harding wanted us to get building experience; this was part of his build/design philosophy, in which one has to build something before they can truly know how to design a building. Haint Blue was the perfect “quick and dirty” way to

test this theory in his new academic setting, with four eager students.

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spring 2010 | Haint Blue Wilmington, NC | Design/Build

Haint Blue was an architectural folly constructed for the Cameron Museum of Art in Wilmington, NC. Given the history of the site and the temporary nature of the folly, Professor Harding created a design reminiscent of southern porches. The color of the project was derived from the long-standing Gullah/Gechee tradition of painting shutters and porch ceilings in what they called “Haint Blue.” This color is intended to be reminiscent of the ocean, and represents the water that “Haints,” or evil spirits, cannot cross. The traditional way to make this color was to dig a pit by the house, pour in lye, milk, and indigo pigment and mix until the desired color emerged. In order to create a more significant connection, our team conducted a similar ritual. After digging a hole for the paint bucket, a ratio of white (milk), gray (lye), and naval blue (indigo) paint was poured into the bucket to be mixed into haint blue. Every board in the project received two coats of this ritualistically created paint, each brush stroke enhancing the connection between the historical grounds on which it resided and the rich history that inspired our current day reality of building a structure that told the story of the past.

Our first visit to the site revealed that the lessons taught in the studio environment were nothing compared to the experience of completing a project. It also taught us everything required in order to complete a project in a very condensed timeframe. The folly made the local newspapers but, more importantly, it became a place that the museum staff and people from nearby offices would frequent for lunch breaks and informal meetings. Suddenly, our design-build project had created a community space that people were drawn to, and enjoyed. A simple porch, painted like the sky, and in a historical color to keep the “haints” away,

sat for six months, enduring snow, high winds, and rain as it became a favorite spot for the locals. In fact, at the request of the museum staff, Haint Blue remained on site two months longer than originally intended.

Completed over a four-day period in early February, Haint Blue was the start of revitalizing Clemson University’s Studio South, which had previously become dormant. The materials from this project eventually found their way into a total of four projects for Clemson, and live permanently in two structures on the Clemson University Student Organic Farm. Haint Blue was an important beginning for the bottoms project, and was a turning point for my training to become an architect. Sitting on the half-built floor of Haint Blue, drawing stick framing details with a board and a carpenter’s pencil, is still one of the most important moments I have had in my architectural journey. In both its physicality and its lessons, the folly found its way into every project competed by the bottoms team.

Project | Haint BlueProfessor | Dan HardingNumber of Students | 4

Budget | $1500Duration | 4 days

Award | Cameron Art Museum Architectural Folly

15 ft 30 ft

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“It’s like the coolest secret fort in the woods of all time .”

John Stanton of the Wilmington Star

Haint Blue | spring 2010 Design/Build | Wilmington, NC

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thesproutof the bottoms project began to emerge following the success of Haint Blue. Armed with a brand new appreciation of construction, and an energy that comes from finishing a project in four days, we wanted to run out to the farm and build a shed on just our passion alone. But, part of Clemson’s architecture program requires students to study abroad and, around this time, the Creative Inquiry team set off for Barcelona, Spain. We agreed that our research would continue, and be informed by the urban fabric of the great cities of Europe. In parallel to our travel and research abroad, a new group of students joined the class and began a proposal for a set of stairs to provide pedestrian access to the farm. Working on a project from over 4,000 miles away posed many challenges, but our involvement did not end. Many late night Skype sessions included discussions among a now multi-continent design team, with Professor Harding at the helm. In Barcelona, our project evolved as the team divided into individual projects that centered on small public gardens enjoyed by the locals. Subsequently, an in-depth relationship with the Barcelona market system developed. With the bottoms project starting to grow, student membership

increasing, and the emergence of projects spanning multiple continents the implications of that year were becoming apparent.


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experiential research Park Güell

fall 2010 | Park Guell Barcelona, Spain | Research

Park Guell Park Güell is one of the most recognized parks in Barcelona. A consistent tourist attraction and voyage destination, the park was originally designed to be a perfect community for local citizens. Research undertaken during the semester was focused on determining the successes and failures of the park in meeting this community-building vision. The park is divided into two sections: the front - the site designed by Gaudi and, consequently, the highest tourist area - and the rear - a section of the park that connects to several local schools and community assets. In comparing the natural community space in the rear of the park with the more rigid design of the front, we reached several conclusions. The formation of the rear of the park mirrored the intent of Gaudi in the front, yet the slow formation created a much greater value to the local population. Park Guell demonstrated that the greatest way to create a community is to do so over long periods of time through small enhancing assets including connections between private and public spaces. The greatest benefit to the community in the rear of the park

was a large plaza overlooking their city of Barcelona; from this site one could quickly reach two schools, two recreation facilities, another park, and many small walking trails. Despite its distance from the metro network, the draw of the public space was enough to garner a religious following from many of the local people. Over a series of weekly visits to the site, I saw many of the same people multiple times.

Students as Researchers Given the enormous amount of information available to a student or researcher about the intent and history of Park Güell, the topics that were available for study seemed as large as the park itself. After initially understanding the intended implications of the park, as well as exploring the rear of the area and coming in contact with the local population, we decided that taking a more involved role in research, through experience, would maximize our ability to evaluate the success or failure of the park as both a contemporary public space and as a community builder among neighbors. Drawing from the American educational theorist, David Kolb, the team created a game that established criteria for the research. Kolb states that in order to gain genuine knowledge from an experience, a

learner must be willing to be actively involved in the experience, able to reflect on the experience, use analytical skills to conceptualize the experience and possess decision-making and problem solving skills in order to use the new ideas gained from their involvement. Using this experiential research model, we recruited several students who had never visited the park to be part of the “game.” We led them to both the front and the rear of the park and gave them two hours to explore. Upon reaching the most visible landmark, the students were given paper and told to draw a map of the park and list important landmarks or assets. Their experience revealed that the rear of the park was a much more inviting space, even for someone who had never visited the site. The front of the park, with its rigidly imposed layout, was confusing and condensed the large park into a singular experience lacking in community. This research method taught us much that traditional papers and study could not. It also became a very valuable learning experience for the future of the

bottoms project.

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experiential research Park Güell

Research | Barcelona, Spain Park Guell | fall 2010

In order to gain genuine knowledge from an experi-

ence, a learner must be willing to be actively involved

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spring 2011 | STEPS Clemson, SC | Design/Build

connectivity and accessibilitySTEPS

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STEPS| spring 2011 Design/Build | Clemson, SC

STEPS: Connectivity and Accessibility was born from a lack of available pedestrian circulation to the farm; specifically, to the farmers market. The concept was simple. Build a set of stairs, or ramp, that would provide pedestrians, cyclists, and the large college running community a safe and obvious connection to the farm. The selection of the site, at the end of a prominent road coming down a hill from central campus and the stadium, was directly across from a crosswalk and along a path which has the heaviest jogging traffic in Clemson. With such a visible site, the project had to be a sign of things to come for the farm: the first built structure that would facilitate community and commercial traffic to the market.

With a short time frame and a even tighter budget, alternative sources of materials and funding needed to be found. Coinciding with the design development of STEPS, Haint Blue was being torn down, as its life span at the Cameron Museum had ended. The design team from Clemson’s Charleston campus retrieved the materials and re-purposed the wood into 2x2 wooden slats for their Blue Sphere project. Eventually, however, the wood would come back to the Clemson team, completing its cycle from initial purchase to final destination. The steel for STEPS’ handrails was also from previous projects: half from a building that was torn down on the site of a new School of Architecture, and the other half from a studio design/build completed by Professor Harding in the previous year.

With the reclaimed steel and wood slats comprising 50% of the materials, the team had enough means to build the project.We broke ground in mid December, in heavy work coats and freezing temperatures. Without the facilities of a fabrication studio, the manufacturing of the frame was done in the parking lot behind the architecture building, with no power existing on site. After a week of intensive work on construction, the team had to leave for winter break with the stairs only half completed.

The following semester, a smaller team started with a partial redesign, including the creation of a truss with the handrails, in order to stiffen the structure. The stairs were finally completed and passed code inspection, fully ready for pedestrian traffic and the upcoming market opening. During this timeframe, SEED (Social Economic Environmental Design) hosted the 2011 Structures for Inclusion competition. Though unfinished at the time of entry, STEPS still won honorable mention among a field of much more established and resourced design/build programs.

Project | Steps: Connection and AccessibilityProfessor | Dan Harding

Lead | James BaxleyNumber of Students | 9

Budget | $2000Duration | 8 months

Award | Honorable Mention at Structures for Inclusion 2011

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spring 2011 | STEPS Clemson, SC | Design/Build

With such a visible site, the project had to be a sign of things to come for the farm;

With the addition of the reclaimed steel and wood slats, comprising 50% of the material needs, the team had enough means to

build the project.

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STEPS | spring 2011 Design/Build | Clemson, SC

With such a visible site, the project had to be a sign of things to come for the farm;

With the addition of the reclaimed steel and wood slats, comprising 50% of the material needs, the team had enough means to

build the project.

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thefruitsof our labor had begun to really pay off. After the STEPS project won the nod from SEED, the University as a whole began to take notice of the work being done, and the community started to respond. The following

year, the market doubled in customers and its profits. The number of classes working with the small farm also increased expo-nentially. The Organic Farm was finally on the map of both the college and the community, and Clemson’s design/build program - under its new eponym of “Community 1:1” - began to spread far beyond the projects of the bottoms. By summer the numbers swelled to over thirty students and four distinct projects. About that same time, the new farm manager expressed concerns over keeping his harvest at top condition for market because the summer sun was accelerating the wilting process of the food.

In the hot summer South Carolina sun, as soon as fruits, vegetables, and herbs are harvested they immediately begin to break down. Even with a cooler sitting next to the market stand, it was still in the open sun with no overhead protection. The farm was losing money as the crops broke down and the cooler churned in the sun to keep what they had harvested cool.

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summer 2011 | Master Planning Clemson, SC | Research

framework for expansion

Master PlanningAfter the farm became the official occupants of the bottoms, they sought a long term plan to help them expand. Over the course of the three year project, we worked to give them a plan that would act as a compass, a clear marking of where they were headed and how the partnership we had formed could grow. The master plan solidified the relationship between architecture and agriculture, creating a long term plan for the cultivation of both programs. Although still in constant development, the presence and legitimacy that the plan granted the farm from the Universities eyes allowed us to continue our work uninterrupted.

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Master Planning | summer 2011 Research | Clemson, SC

We worked to give them a

plan that would act as a compass, a clear marking of where they were headed.

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existing market

future barn

future greenhouses

proposed trellisand courtyard

FIELDstation

proposed boardwalk

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summer 2011 | Processing Center Clemson, SC | Design/Build

post-harvest

Processing Center

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The Post Harvest Processing Center came from a simple need: shade. Sev-eral site visits and sun studies led us to conclude that, because of its location in relation to the pattern of the sun, two main walls would be the best solution: one that would shade the post harvest area, and one that would shade the mar-ket itself. But, it was going through a market day, from harvest to market close, that allowed us to see how architecture could best be applied. From this, we con-cluded that a processing center that shaded the cooler, the rainwater collec-tion tank, the post harvest sorting area, and the market itself, would be the best. The timeframe of the project was very tight, only four weeks, and with three out of four students having no prior construc-tion experience, the design had to be simple enough to be completed, yet suffi-cient to meet the needs of the farm. Pro-fessor Harding, challenged by the growth of so many projects, gave me the reins, with a team of four other students, and told me to “get the job done.”

Processing Center | summer 2011 Design/Build | Clemson, SC

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Providing a simple function, shading the post harvest area

improved the life of the farmers, the quality of the food, and the comfort of the shoppers.

summer 2011 | Processing Center Clemson, SC | Design/Build

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Keeping the aesthetic of the STEPS project in mind, the team designed a simple building - literally four walls - which met with excitement by the farm staff. We were off and running… Through the use of 40% reclaimed materials, including a three-stud ode to Haint Blue, the design/build project for the organic farm continued in the spirit of renewable design. A simple parti, two walls of shade, formed into the building shown. The shading device became 2x6 decking boards installed at alternate spacing - a configuration that would allow the cool winds of the nearby lake to breathe through the walls, ventilating the workspace while providing shade to the majority of the area. This helped to lower the cost of cooling the farm’s yield, and controlled the temperature of the harvested water for better purity. The interior wall of the new building became a place for hanging shelves and signs, and the exterior wall provided a growth structure for local organic grapes. With this very natural intervention, the post-harvest processing center quickly became a point of excitement for the farm staff and the growing market community.

We completed the center in seven days. During that time the relationship with the farm grew strong. Our team would arrive at the same time as the agriculture students working on the farm, and many days remain there after the farm’s work was done. This level of commitment from our team demonstrated to the farm staff that we, too, really cared for the farm and the community that it served. As the large walls began to rise, it was clear that the feeling of the space was dramatically changing. During one market session following completion of the center, the buzz among locals visiting the farm was about how the space had improved, and had created a more enjoyable

experience of shopping for them. The vernacular “farming” architecture took on a whole new life as the bottoms project continued to grow.

Over the summer session’s six week period, in addition to building the post-harvesting processing center, we created a social web presence for the organic farm, finished the STEPS project, and participated in the farm’s weekly harvest and market. The team worked closely with the farm workers, in order to gain a true understanding of what the clients needed. It was an intense and rigorous project, but one that made a huge difference in the day-to-day operations of the farm.

Project | Post Harvest Processing CenterProfessor | Dan Harding

Lead | James BaxleyNumber of Students | 4

Budget | $2000Duration | 4 weeks

Processing Center | summer 2011 Design/Build | Clemson, SC

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theharvest


of the bottoms project was anticipated to occur at the end of the three-year course. As the final semester approached, the university provided money to the farm for storage sheds, as the on campus storage they were currently using was being reallocated. Based on the quality of the projects we had completed, their recognition of our work ethic and the partnership we had demonstrated, and our commitment to the goals, purpose and needs of the organic farm, they asked “Community 1:1” to design and build the farm’s storage sheds. With the arrival of an architecture graduate student focusing on community design, it seemed the project was on course to

complete its final stages perfectly. Nearly halfway through the semester, however, we discovered tensions to be rising between the farm manager and our team. By the middle of the term, the project was on the verge of being canceled. Solutions to an architectural dilemma were at the root of the differences of opinion on each side, and our team relied on the leadership of Professor Harding to guide us

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through this negotiation, based on his own experience. With relationships restored, the team began de novo on a new design, from which emerged

a master plan that would guide the growth of the farm and community for many years to come. The final semester became both the end of the bottoms project, and the beginning of the first design/build studio for Clemson University. The Field Station is still under construction and new students in the program are getting their own Haint Blue experience. This was able to occur, in large part, thanks to the inspiring teaching and mentoring from Professor Harding; a core team of students and their client; the commitment of the farm staff to building a sustainable community that brings people together. Much like the vision and story of Park Guell,

this is the work of the bottoms project – Growing a community, one tied to its roots and its vision, at a historical period of our lives where few things are needed more than reconnection to each other.

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thebottomscommunity.research.design.build

James Edward Baxley III

[email protected] | 803.348.3822

the bottoms project

Documents

Transcript of the bottoms project