Samantha Kanagaraj
Redwood City, CA
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The Agave Birdwatching Hotel - A hotel for birdwatchers on Alcatraz Island; 30 rooms, space-frame and tensile structure, inspired by the branching of the Agave Americana plant which grows abundant on the island. The three main nodes of the hotel are situated towards the best views of the Brandt's Cormorant nesting areas on the island.
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The Agave Birdwatching Hotel - A hotel for birdwatchers on Alcatraz Island; organization, unit plan, lobby and room sections.
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The Agave Birdwatching Hotel - The hotel as viewed from the San Francisco Bay facing east.
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The Agave Birdwatching Hotel - A view of the hotel from the bay, facing north.
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The Agave Birdwatching Hotel - View towards San Francisco from the hotel.
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Evolution of Form I - The Agave Birdwatching Hotel was inspired by the fractal nature of the Agave Americana plant, which grows abundantly on Alcatraz Island. A fractal structure was created, beginning with the basic module of the pentagonal bipyramid.
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Evolution of Form II - The fractal structure was traced and remade as a wire form, and nodes of branching were noted at each of the vertices, similar to the branching of the the Agave Americana flowering stalk. The wire form took on the properties of a space-frame structure.
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Evolution of Form III - A substructure of fabric was stretched over the wire structure, connecting to the space-frame at the branching nodes. The beige fabric indicates potential roofing and shelter, the black fabric indicates potential floor plane and includes transportation to different levels within the structure.
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Evolution of Form IV - A plan for single hotel room units was developed with respect to the space-frame structure and fabric substructure, considering scale as well as enclosure and exposure. In areas without fabric substructure, glass was to provide cover and shelter from the elements while still retaining transparency for birdwatching.The units are suspended within the larger space-frame, creating a reverse birdcage effect wherein the birdwatchers themselves were viewing the birds outside from inside the "cage."
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