Making the eyesore, pleasing...

ALPHA


For my initial idea for the SSEF competition I have looked at taking something commonly found within cities that people seem to have a neutral attitude towards. I am talking about transmission or powerline towers.


What interests me about these tall steel structures is the fact that they are found all over our cities, providing power or some sort of service, yet they are seen as an afterthought within our neighbourhoods. While I try to ask myself why this is, it could be because of the nature of its shape, the materials used to create it or even the constant power/cable lines used to connect each tower. Regardless of the reason(s) I can find potential in a redesign and program implementation used for these towers and also create program under its vast spaces. Yes, I can understand the health issues, or claimed hazardous problems it may/has caused individuals in the past.


So this is what I'm currently dealing with:

Notice one is off/parallel to a highway and the second is located adjacent to a nearby neighbourhood.

Contrary to the above observations, windmills serve a similar service to a nearby community. Although they may not be as common as these towers, there are series' of windmills erected in unison that depict a more graceful smooth flowing sensation when looking at them or even driving by. These windmills can be found mostly in Europe off the  coast. Although the photo shows these windmills in the water and not on fields of grass (its much prettier to look at I understand), I believe the transmission towers can still look much more attractive to look at than most designs found around the world.

OR IT CAN BE AN EYESORE AS WELL

Some notables that I see from the design of wind mills that make them appeal more to our eyes are: the color white of the material, design of the structure is curved and no L brackets or thin sheets of metal like the transmission towers above and no connection from windmill to windmill (ie. independent of its own).

BIOMIMICRY

When trying to come up with a structure for these transmission towers, I looked to nature in order to find how tall natural organisms maintain their structure and how it last through bad weather or difficult environmental conditions. I started looking at the tallest living organisms on this planet, and that is the tree. Trees that are as tall as 115m are found in California with enormous trunk sizes of 3m wide. 

I have also looked into other forms of organisms such as the equisetum myriochaetum which is a tall thin tree but capable of tall heights of 5-7 metres with great ease.

I have also looked in to structures within nature that form triangles. After studying structures and transmission towers, the implementation of spanning great heights and wide lengths is in need of triangulation i order to have durable and stable structure needed to support these cables. Even found within a nautilus, you can see triangles in nature.

After further investigation I have found a similar relation to the transmission towers and trees. While the tree gathers much of its structure through the roots found in the ground, it establishes a base for its truck, branches and twigs a structural hierarchy. Where the roots are found within the ground, the trunk is the main connection of the tree to the earth. Similarly, if we were to reverse the photo 180 degrees the transmission tower is the opposite. The structural 'legs' are what holds the tower in place and is the connection to the ground and the actual tower. The structure extends upwards into the sky and has branches the extend outwards in specific directions. Each spread like the arms of a human but connected to a nearby tower via power/cable lines. Take a look at what I mean.

ONCE AGAIN

QUITE SIMILAR (180 degree turn)

That's all for now I think...






2FUTURE