I recently entered the HB:BX Cultural Infrastructure Competition.   The competition called for designing a cultural center that integrated or was designed near, on or around the historic High Bridge that connects Manhattan to the Bronx.  Rather than simply designing a structure on top of the bridge, I decided to work the building into a small footprint on the Bronx side of the bridge.  The building rises up and creates a sky gallery that is cantilevered above the bridge.  Also, the structure creates another entry point on top of the bridge.  The site was appropriate because there was highway access and it stood in front of the bridge and didn’t touch the historic structure.

The design itself is very graphic.  I have been developing conceptual projects on graffiti and architecture and this project is heading in that direction.  The concept is that graffiti has influenced every aspect of art in today’s art world.  There is no denying it.  Since NYC is the place where the graffiti explosion happened in the 80′s, this project could be the first physical representation of this in the form of a building.  While the building doesn’t literally look like graffiti, there are several concepts for the design that are inspired by graffiti.  I won’t go into that because, like I said before, I am working on an on-going project and I will be putting them all together in a conceptual project/experimentation.

The organization of the building is pretty straightforward.  The entrance is on the ground level, below the highway overpass.  There is a multimedia display space on the ground level as well.  The second floor houses an auditorium that could be used for film, music, video, theatre or performance art.  The third level is small and only houses the meeting rooms and back of house spaces for the auditorium.  There is a large terrace that is an overflow space for the exhibition spaces at the top of the building.  Also, there are artist studio spaces, a lounge and administrative offices in the tower that can access the terrace.  The top two floors of the tower are exhibition spaces.  The cantilevered “Sky Bridge Gallery” creates a linear gallery space with a terrace at its end which represents the Harlem River back to the guests.

HB:BX Competition from 21Ronin on Vimeo.

HB:BX Competition Entry from 21Ronin on Vimeo.