With our studio final only two weeks away, us 2Gs are starting to feel the pressure of deadlines hanging over our heads.

Mark Cunningham reviewed by Grant Gibson. Photograph courtesy of Matthew Messner.

Our midterm was a little over a month ago, but the critiques we were given proved to be very beneficial — especially considering that our reviewers were well aware of what our next steps would be and we weren’t. Some of the comments that I found most interesting dealt with the lifestyles and experiences that our prototypes would offer. We were asked to question relationships between private and public spaces. How do residents access their units? Where do they interact with each other? Afterwards, Xavier and Lluis gathered us in our respective sections and revealed the site of our project. We were all happy to find out that it would be located in the Wicker Park area, a block away from the intersection of Milwaukee, Ashland and Division, a bustling location with many amenities around.

To fully understand the implications of this location, we split up into a couple of groups, some in charge of analyzing the neighborhood, others assigned to produce drawings and models. After two weeks of research and site visits, we had a document set that included building codes, demographic information, sun studies, public transportation logs, plans, sections, a series of panoramic images of the site, a 3D model, and two 1/16” site models (one per section). Although this thorough study was beneficial, it also added restrictions we had to deal with. For example, we realized we there were setbacks to consider, maximum square footage and volume allowances that could’t be surpassed, and we needed between 34 to 37 units. This meant that we needed to test our housing prototypes to see how well they fit into the site, and it they didn’t … adjustments had to be made. This past week was dedicated to finalizing unit aggregations and overall massing.

Site models at 1/16" scale

Now, with the final coming up, we’re hard at work producing and refining drawings, putting together a 1/16” model to go into the site model, and also a detail model of a larger scale that would show special moments within our buildings. Our final review is scheduled for May 1st, so come and see how it all turns out!