Arabesque Carnival | Spring 2016 | University of Pennsylvania | Performing Arts Center | Philadelphia, PA |
Pressing Matters Vol. V
Critic: Andrew Saunders
Using the framework of mapping and masking, this proposal draws its character from the notion of the marketplace in Philadelphia. For Philadelphia, the marketplace is an important aspect of the city’s history and future development, being home to some of the oldest, most notable markets in the United States. By examining and implementing the spatiality of the ‘Philadelphia marketplace’, this proposal is able to seamlessly integrate itself into the urban fabric of Philadelphia; it curates a space for Philadelphians to gather and engage in their rich tradition of marketplace.
Additionally, this proposal is realized within the framework of a rigorous geometry, ranging from figural to normative. Formally, it focuses on material contrast; it negotiates the relationship between hard, shiny, normative areas and edges, with soft, matte, concave geometries by allowing them to erode away the normative. At other moments, this geometry is able to turn itself inside out, creating a field of bulbous columns on the ground level. With the geometry originally derived from the traditional Batula Mask worn by Bedouin women in the Arabian Peninsula, often worn in accompaniment of a headscarf (Hijab), this proposal is able to enrich the Northern Liberties community, yet adapt and perhaps shape what we define as a ‘Philadelphia marketplace’
Design Research
Building Plan and Section
View of Concert Hall and Aerial View