Project Tag: Waterfront

Sligo School of Architecture

The project is a School of Architecture building situated along the river in Sligo, designed to foster an environment of collaboration, connectivity, and community engagement. At the heart of the building is a vast central atrium, serving as the core around which all architectural studios and staff offices are oriented. This central void not only provides a visual and spatial connection between the different levels but also encourages interaction and collaboration among students from various year groups.

The ground floor is designed as a publicly accessible area, creating a connections between the school and the local community. This space is intended to host exhibitions, events, and activities, making the building a lively hub of architectural discourse and community engagement.

Overlooking this public area from the upper levels through the atrium enhances the sense of openness and connectivity within the building. Additionally the project collaborated with a nearby project to create a waterfront walking area for the public to enjoy In addition to the central atrium, the building features roof gardens and terraces, providing students with accessible outdoor spaces to take breaks and engage with the natural environment.

Surface and Depth: Carlisle Pier; Infrastructure as Recreation

This project explores the Material Culture of Carlisle Pier in Dun Laoghaire, and how shadows of the past can inform design. Historically significant as an emigration gateway, a port for people rather than cargo, this project proposes to reuse the now disused pier as a public space which reclaims access to and interaction with the tides. Traces of each layer of development, since the original 1850s granite pier, are excavated and exposed.

Optimising the gaps between the topographical, historical and tidal layers a surface and a depth is created. The surface, a garden and walkway in the supralittoral zone, reveals the ribbed structure of the 1960’s concrete overlay. The old railway cutting is excavated to create an in-between sheltered microclimate. The depth, which occupies the intertidal zone, is a sequence of spaces inhabiting the space between the original granite pier and the 1960’s concrete piles. The changing atmosphere of these tidal chambers is connected to the varying relationships to the sea, views, light and reflectivity of the water. The tidal underworld washes away at high tide.

Pozzolanic concrete is proposed to construct this new layer of recreational infrastructure to Dun Laoghaire’s Victorian seafront. This ancient Roman building material, which strengthens when exposed to salty seawater, is reformulated to reuse local waste by-products. Dredged material from Dublin Port and fly ash from the Poolbeg incinerator are proposed as alternatives to traditional aggregate and volcanic ash.