The Saint-Jean de Luz aquarium is a public aquarium located in the community in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department located in south-western France. This community has a bay situated to the east of the Bay of Biscay, which is the only sheltered bay between Arcachon and Spain. The aquarium houses tens of thousands of fish and other sea animals, representing several hundred species native to Spain and France. The experience not only consists on visiting several sea animals and learning about them, but also, the height of the building allows the guests to experience the bay, the river, and the beach on a whole new level. The building’s location and placement truly causes the people to appreciate what is around them. The circula¬tion from the base level to the top one is based on a glass elevator, which provides a sublime and exciting experience that pushes the viewers to contemplate the whole city. Most of the aquarium animals come from Biarritz (France), San Sebastian (Spain) and Saint-Jean de Luz (France). The building is made of a combination of glass, steel and wood, that sits on stone. Natural light is present through the whole building due to the glass. The interior has 8 sections, 6 in the main tower and two other sections in the back of the building. One of the back sections houses whale sharks, beluga whales, bottlenose dolphins and manta rays, and the other section is dedicated to maritime and marine heritage of South-western France. It also has a underground level where visitors can experience the animals up close.

1. ARCHITECTURAL
FUNDAMENTALS I
PROF. WACTA
ANA LUISA RUMBOS
FALL 2015
The Saint-Jean de Luz aquarium

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONCEPT STATEMENT
EXERCISE 1 ANALYSIS AND TRANSFORMTAION OF BUILDINGS
EXERCISE 2 SPACE: OPEN AND CLOSE
EXERCISE 3 SERIAL SPACES
EXERCISE 4 SPACE FROM PLAN TO SECTION
EXERCISE 5 ENTRY MAKING
EXERCISE 6 TOWER MAKING
EXERCISE 7 BASE PLANE MAKING
FINAL MODEL
SELF EVALUATION
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STRUCTURAL CASE STUDIES

3. CONCEPT STATEMENT
The Saint-Jean de Luz aquarium is a public aquarium located in the community in the Pyrones-Atlan-
tiques department located in south-western France. This community has a bay situated to the east of
the Bay of Biscay, which is the only sheltered bay between Arcachon and Spain. The aquarium houses
tens of thousands of fish and other sea animals, representing several hundred species native to Spain
and France. The experience not only consists on visiting several sea animals and learning about them,
but also, the height of the building allows the guests to experience the bay, the river, and the beach
on a whole new level. The buildings location and placement truly causes the people to appreciate
what is around them. The circulation from the base level to the top one is based on a glass elevator,
which provides a sublime and exciting experience that pushes the viewers to contemplate the whole
city. Most of the aquarium animals come from Biarritz (France), San Sebastian (Spain) and Saint-Jean de
Luz (France). The building is made of a combination of glass, steel and wood, that sits on stone. Natu-
ral light is present through the whole building due to the glass. The interior has 8 sections, 6 in the
main tower and two other sections in the back of the building. One of the back sections houses whale
sharks, beluga whales, bottlenose dolphins and manta rays, and the other section is dedicated to mari-
time and marine heritage of South-western France. It also has a underground level where visitors can
experience the animals up close.

4. EXERCISE 1
ANALYSIS AND
TRANSFORMATION OF
BUILDNGS
In a complete and successful work there are
hidden mass-es of implications, a veritable
world which reveals itself to those whom it
may concern - which means: to those who de-
serve it.
-Le Corbusier
Objective: to understand fundamental rela-
tionships in buildings. Unearthing fundamen-
tal relationships develops your fluency in
the language of Architecture. As you begin
to read Architecture more clearly your
ability to speak Architecture will increase.
second, to introduce me your individual ways
of working, including how you define prob-
lems and how you structure a coherent
approach for achieving them.
Operational characteristics:
1. Removing
2. Adding
3. Shifting
4. Enlarging
5. Swooshing
6. Fixing
7. Switching
8. Twisting
9. Rising
10. Filling
11. Fading
12.Dismembering
13. Flattening
14. Rotating
15. Moving
16. Lifting
17. Angling
18. Repeting
19. Spacing
20. Creating
21. Extruding
22. Chamfering
23. Sweeping
24. Mirroring
25. Bending

5. EXERCISE 1
ANALYSIS AND
TRANSFORMATION OF
BUILDNGS
Andrea Palladio
La Rotonda (Villa Capra or Al-
merico)
Vicenza, Italy
1566-1571

6. AXIS: A line established by two points in space, about which
forms and spaces can be arranged in a symmetrical or bal-
anced manner.
SYMMETRY/BALANCE: The balanced distribution and arrangement
of equivalent forms and spaces on opposite sides of a dividing
line or plane, or about a center or axis
EXERCISE 1
ANALYSIS AND
TRANSFORMATION OF
BUILDNGS
GEOMETRY/PROPORTION: The comparative, proper, or
harmonious relation of one part to another or to
the whole with respect with magnitude, quantity,
or degree.
PARTI: The design idea or sketch which an architec-
tural project will be developed.
HIERARCHY of SPACES: The articulation of the importance or
significance of a form or space by its size, shape, or place-
ment relative to the other forms and spaces of the organi-
zation.
RHYTHM/REPETITION: A unifying movement characterized by a
patterned repetition or alternation of formal elements or
motifs in the same or a modified form.

7. EXERCISE 2
SPACE: OPEN AND
CLOSED
Space is the medium of architecture.
Working in this medium gives the architect
an advantage in visualizing the effect of a
design.
- J. Friedman
OPEN SPACE - CLOSED SPACE
Almost Invisible / Almost Visible
Less Formed / Formed
Continuous / Discontinuous
Dynamic / Static
Objective: to introduce the degrees of
enclosure of architectural space And
to explore both open and closed space
through 2D and 3D modeling.
Trial 1

8. Trial 3
EXERCISE 2
SPACE: OPEN AND
CLOSED
Trial 2

9. EXERCISE 3
SERIAL SPACES
There is an art to making what is oin be-
tweend things become foremost in our
consciousness.
Objective: to continue to explore space
making by generating a system of spac-
es from a space(s). This process has
two purposes. One, to create a space(s)
which has a regulating geometry that
allows extension and growth into a
system (pattern) of spaces. And two, to
demonstrate the common architectur-
al design strategy of part to whole or
room to building.
- Centralized: a central, dominant space about which a number of secondary spaces are grouped.
The Spatial/Formal Organizations:
- Radial: a central space from which linear organizations of space extend in a radial manner.
- Linear: a linear sequence of repetitive spaces.

10. EXERCISE 3
SERIAL SPACES
- Grid: spaces organized within the field of a structural grid or other 3D framework.
- Clustered: spaces grouped by proximity or the sharing of a common visual trait or relationship.

11. EXERCISE 4
SPACE: FROM PLAN TO
SECTION
Plan, section, and elevation are conventions common
to the horizontal and vertical configurations of all
buildings. Decisions made in one of these arenas can
determine or influence the form of the other.
- Roger H. Clark
Objective: to continue the study and creation of
space by exploring the spatial relationships be-
tween plan and section. This process has two pur-
poses. One, to continue the simultaneous develop-
ment of your path plan and space toward spatial
and planemetric clarity. And two, to create a path
with a spatial sequence that is
TRIAL 1 TRIAL 2
TRIAL 3
TRIAL 4

12. EXERCISE 4
SPACE: FROM PLAN TO SECTION
TRIAL 5
TRIAL 6
TRIAL 7

13. EXERCISE 5
ENTRY MAKING
One must try to design a thing in
order to find out what the thing is.
- T. Woods
Objective: to design the main entry
for your path. The entry condition
will be generated from a transfor-
mation of your repetitive structural
path system and an appropriate entry
image of your choosing.

14. EXERCISE 6
TOWER MAKING
The rich history of images associated
with the idea of tower is matched by
its specific formal presence. A tower
presents a strong vertical against
our ordinarily horizontal movement;
its base and crest interact with
ground and sky, while the connecting
shaft mediates between them.
J. Friedman
Objective: to design and make a tower that grows
out of your repetitive structural path system.
The issues you will be exploring are form, scale
and proportion.

15. EXERCISE 7
BASE PLANE MAKING
The articulation of the surface of the ground or
floor plane is often used in architecture to de-
fine a zone of space within a larger spatial con-
text.
-F. Ching
Objective :to design and make a new base/ground
plane for your path, entrance and tower. Your
new base plane should clarify, strengthen and
reinforce the unity between your path, entrance
and tower, not destroy it. This exercise is de-
signed to help you explore the space defining
ability of the base/ground plane.

16. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS- FLOOR PLANS site plan

17. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS- FLOOR PLANS First level

18. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS- FLOOR PLANS Second level

19. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS- FLOOR PLANS third level

20. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - ELEVATIONS NORTH

21. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - ELEVATIONS south

22. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - ELEVATIONS west

23. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - ELEVATIONS east

24. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - SECTIONS

25. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - SECTIONS

26. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - SECTIONS

27. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - SECTIONS

28. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - SECTIONS

29. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS - EXPLODED SECTION

30. 3D VIEW

31. 3D VIEW

32. MORNING

33. NOON

34. AFTERNOON

35. OVERALL
SHOTS

36. OVERALL
SHOTS

37. OVERALL
SHOTS

38. OVERALL
SHOTS

39. ZOOM AND
DETAILED SHOTS

40. ZOOM AND
DETAILED SHOTS

41. EXPERIMENTAL
SHOTS

42. EXPERIMENTAL
SHOTS

43. EXPERIMENTAL
SHOTS

44. renderings

45. RENDERINGS

46. renderings

48. renderings

49. SELF EVALUATION
Fundamentals I is a very challenging class that teaches a lot in a short period of
time. This is a demanding course that needs dedication and inspiration from students
who take it. At the beginning of the course, I felt kind of lost and did not know what
my professor expected forom me and from my assignments; however, I had my TA's
that helped me through it. I felt frustrated a couple of times because I felt that
nothing that I created was enough, but then I slowly understood what Prof. Wac-
ta wanted from every single student of hers: to push them to do better. I used my
imagination and creativeness a lot in this class and developed so many abilities and
skills. You will only understand the complexity of this class if you take it. I am
proud of what I had accomplished and could not be happier of what I have learned
in this class. Hard work pays off.