The materials used in the house are really interesting. Gehry built the home in the 70s, when in Santa Monica there was this left-wing political movement known as progressivism, which encouraged self expression. So the location was ideal for Gehry to experiment with material and form.
The most interesting materials include chain-link fence wire, corrugated iron and exposed studwork.
Gehry said that "a structure in progress is always more poetic than the finished product", and so these material choices and forms are supposed to reflect this.
Fencing wire and corrugated iron are materials used usually in commercial or public places.
Although it appears aggressive on the home, the fact that these materials are so open to public use [i.e fence wire on bball courts and parks], and indicates that perhaps Gehry wanted to create an image which could connect with society.
-public areas. The new addition has asphalt flooring; all these materials used the public ‘domain’ support this suggestion by Gehry that the structural process is so poetic. It appears in many senses incomplete; such industrial appearances are not the definition of the traditional home, which is part of the success of the architecture.
-private areas are far more refined, however maintain raw textures. All materials in these areas allow a sense of comfort within the spaces. It is so difficult to define how a space is used. On the exterior of the upper level chain link wire is used to create a transparent outdoor area where the person feels entirely protected.
Public vs. Private
I've got two main parts on the poster, and a model. I'm looking at how I would classify each section of the house, how you move between each area and how each set of areas is set out. What i found was an extremely clear result; as you move left the house becomes more private and more compartmented.
The four major parts are:
Yellow represents the addition; it is one fluid space which is entirely public. Despite its abstract physicality, its plan is modern and open-plan.
Orange represents the semi public/private area, which consists mainly of the lounge room, sitting rooms and veranda. All these are single spaces as well, usually boasting a larger area.
Blue represents the buffer between public/private. This principally involves passageways. They are very important spaces however in this design have inconsistent patterns.
Green represents the private sections of the home. They are the most compartmented areas. It is not open plan. The most significant sense of openness provided in these areas is the ‘open’ ceiling...private yet open feeling.
With the model im looking at this visual connection between different areas, which is most present on the ground floor. There is this extremely strong connection between street-kitchen, and then kitchen-loungeroom. The spaces only flow visually though; there is no easy physical flow between the areas. This adds to the privacy of areas such as the loungeroom, which i categorise as semi-public. It also really sums up this idea that as you move inward the house becomes more private.
In terms of psychology, ive really focussed on how light and the size of spaces in the home influence how the person experiences a room. The results i found was the the psychology of the home was closely related to the previous studies...different materials influence how you are going to use the home...
The privacy study i concluded that spaces became gradually compartmented with their levels of privacy, and this is highly significant to the manner which a room is going to connect with you.
The model ive made is to represent this idea...this shows four major sections...the kitchen, the loungeroom, the bedroom, the veranda. Each is colour coded according to light, and has appropriate openings.
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