Tangible Thinking: Methods in the Work of TAKA Architects

A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Alice Casey

Bsc Arch, Dublin Institute of Technology/Trinity College Dublin

School of Architecture and Design

&ROOHJH'HVLJQDQG6RFLDO&RQWH[W

RMIT University

September 2017


Methods

2.0
3.0
Book 2
Book 2 Methods

2.1 How We Work: Drawing as a Proto-Building

A description of our work and design processes, through an examination
of the artefacts we produce, to help situate the reader in the context of our
practice

2.2 How I Research: Small Things

An examination of the research methods I have developed over the course of
the PhD and how they reflect our work process and design thinking

2.3 How We Practice: Learning by Doing in Venturous Practice

A look at how we make difficult or unusual things; using Concrete as a case
study.

2.4 How We Design: Distilling, Exaggerating and Intensifying

Character
An investigation of a shift in practice focus and identification of fundamental
practice design methods

2.5 Research Conclusion

Identification of the discoveries I have made and their effect on our practice
 How We Work

3.0
3.0 2.1
2.0 1.4
2.1 HOW We Work
Drawing as a Proto-Building

I have included this description of how we work to give insight into

our design and work processes, and to help situate the reader in the
context of our practice. As my research is based in the fundamentals of
our work, practice and design methods, a clear description of how we
actually work is invaluable to contextualising the research.

In this chapter, I will examine how we produce and represent our

buildings through drawings, images and models, and how this relates
to our daily work and design processes. Through a close examination
of the artefacts we produce, I will demonstrate how our work processes
inform and reinforce our thinking process, and vice versa.

Drawing
Introduction
In his essay, ‘through the window’1, Anthony Caro discusses the
1 (Caro, 1991) difference between the Sculptor and Architect. According to Caro,
some Sculptors find difficulty in the move from the directness and
spontaneity of a studio sculpture to large-scale public work. There is a
danger that a small scale maquette is merely ‘blown up’ to urban scale,
without consideration of the difference, in terms of the making of the
object or its spatial implications in relation to the viewer.

He sees the ‘working shorthand’ of the Architect’s drawings as the key

to the Architect’s ability to work at a large scale. The Sculptor tends to
work with the material directly, making changes spontaneously. Due to
the inherent size of the subject and because fabrication is usually not
under his direct control, the Architect makes drawings to test ideas and
2 In his essay visualise the subject, but also to communicate his intentions clearly to
‘Translations from the fabricator.
Drawing to Building’
Evans, R. (Summer
1986). Translations
In Caro’s thinking, the fundamental difference between a Sculptor
from Drawing to and an Architect is their drawings. Robin Evans2 comes to the same
Building. In AA Files, conclusion, but is more ambivalent about the advantages that drawing
No. 12. London: may give the Architect. He observes a disassociation that occurs, as an
Architectural
Association School of
architect never works directly with the object of their thought; always
Architecture. working at it through some intervening medium.
Fig 1 Technical Construction Drawing, Shower Unit, Belvedere Sports Pavilion, 2016

1 How We Work 2
2.1

I think that, with the aid of modern CAD drawing methods, we can
overcome this potential disassociation. I intend to demonstrate how, for
us, the drawing IS the building (that is, until it’s not).

In our practice, drawing is not an artistic endeavour; nor is it solely

a tool to aid the design and construction of the building. It is not an
image or a picture of a building. For a while, in our minds and on a
computer hard drive, the building exists; without a brick being laid or a
foundation excavated.

Drawing Process
Like most architects, drawing is intrinsic to our work process. In the
early stages, we tend to sketch (Cian more than I) over print-outs of
digital maps or survey drawings. I prefer to work on the computer
screen with AutoCAD - but this has its limits in the early period, when
a freer examination of potentials is required. I force myself to sketch
when required.

As we go through the process – from planning, to tender and production

information – the majority of work is done through digital drawing, with
problems being worked through in overlay hand sketches. We tend not
to veer from the traditional forms of orthographic projection drawing
very often – working mainly in plan, section and elevation. When
needed, we use axonometric drawings to visualise in three dimensions.

Fig 2 Overlay hand sketch, Belvedere Sports Grounds

3 How We Work 4
2.1

Early Design
Every project (without exception), for us, starts with drawing a plan.
This gives form and scale to the brief and establishes the spatial
relationships between the required accommodation. In tandem with the
plan, a section or elevation may be developed to understand the physical
manifestation of the building. The plan and section/elevation usually
embody the fundamental ‘idea’ of the building. For a small to medium
sized project (which most of ours are), these drawings are usually at a
scale of 1:100.

3 The proximity of For example, in Merrion Cricket Club, for pragmatic reasons3 the new
a drainage wayleave, pavilion had to replace the existing clubhouse, sitting on virtually the
rights of way, car
same footprint. The new plan developed out of a reaction to the existing
parking restrictions,
playing field entrance experience, which was poor4. In redrawing the existing plan,
requirements, etc. we reconfigured the relationship between site entrance, the bar and the
4 You arrived at the changing rooms, to improve the spatial sequence and resulting views
rear of the existing to the playing field. We set up a view to the cricket pitch from the car-
pavilion and walked park, framed by an entrance portico, which gave a public entrance to the
past changing room
relocated bar on the northern end of the new building. The changing
windows to enter
the bar. rooms were then moved to the more private southern end.

In conjunction with these straight-forward plan moves, we developed

an elevation drawing which helped articulate our attitude to the cricket
pavilion typology. We felt strongly that the new building should be
recognisable as a cricket pavilion. For us, that implied that the form
should be characterised by a pitched roof and a viewing colonnade
facing the pitch.

These 2 or 3 drawings (plan/section/elevation) usually succinctly

capture the idea or concept of the building, which for us, once
established, rarely changes in any significant manner. Although the basic
‘idea’ of the building might be quite direct, as set out above, complexity
usually comes out of applying the simple moves to the site; or out of
thinking about what the character of the building might be. We tend to
develop a 1:500 site plan drawing and a partial 1:20 section drawing at
the same time.

Fig 3 ‘Idead’ in Plan and Elevation, extract from Competition Board, Merrion Cricket Club, 2011

5 How We Work 6
2.1

Detail Section
We make 3D visualisations (or have them made by an external visualiser);
but these tend to be for the client. They are not a design tool. The 1:20
section is where we develop the character of the building; establishing
what the building ‘is’. This is the drawing where we visualise the nature
of the project to ourselves.

5 Although may form The section drawing is always partial5 and realises an important aspect of
part of a key complete
the project. It is generally taken through an external façade and explores
section
aspects of the internal/external relationship. The section tends to have
an idea about the relationship of structure to envelope, the character
of the interior and the external materiality. It is usually inhabited by at
least one person, to give scale and to give an indication of the potential
inhabitation of this fragment of the building.

In Merrion Cricket Club, we drew the section through the viewing

terrace, as much of our initial idea related to improving the viewing
relationship from the site and pavilion to the playing field. Looking back
6 see Fig 4 at this very early section6, it is interesting to see that the fundamental
principles of construction in the finished building remained remarkably
similar to the competition stage section – a lightweight traditional roof
construction on a supporting concrete ring beam and columns, the
interior lining concealing insulation, windows that open away from
stray cricket balls with external seating below, a concrete viewing terrace
with seating at the edge.

The 1:20 partial section is fundamental to our design process. It features

in almost every competition presentation we have made. Even when not
presented to the client, this section is in the background somewhere,
informing all the design decisions we make. By drawing this section at
the early design stage, we ‘fix’ our vision of the project in our mind’s eye.
It enables us to view the potential project as a building, rather than an
idea of a building.

By developing an attitude to the matter of the building at an early stage,

we become connected to and protective of the building – even before
we are actually appointed to design it. In PRS 02 we made an attempt
at explaining the relationship of tender stage drawings to our buildings. Fig 4 1.20 Detail section giving character to the building and indicating new viewing relationship with pitch,
We drew an iconographic diagram showing the tender drawings like extract from Competition Board, Merrion Cricket Club, 2011

7 How We Work 8
2.1

Key
1. House 01, 2009
2. Wynnsward Park, 2010
3. Europan, Competition, 2009
4. Glasnevin Chapel, Competition, 2013
5. Etsy Office Fit-Out, Design Proposal, 2014





 



  

  


 


 
 

 






 
 



  
 


  






  






1 2 3 4 5

Fig 5 Partial Sections

9 How We Work 10
2.1

7 The drawings we an army protecting the project from invaders. By drawing everything
make are in technical in great detail, we prevent unforeseen architectural circumstances
terms, ‘planometric’;
as they are generally changing the design. This early 1:20 partial section is the vanguard
rotated at a 60/30deg in our protective force. It starts to encase our architectural ideas in a
angle and there is tangible armour.
no distortion of the
plan in the X and Y
axes. However, we Axonometric7 Ideas
consistently refer We tend to draw axos in the early stages to communicate ideas8. This
to these types of came about because we don’t like (and aren’t very good at) making 3D
drawings as ‘axos’,
so I have retained the visualisations. We prefer to work in line drawings. A line drawing allows
slightly inaccurate you to edit what you communicate, in a way that a 3D render does not.
terminology here. By it’s nature, a 3D image insists that everything visible in the image is
A true axonometric designed and on show. Only the cropping of the image allows you to
drawing has no
distortion of the assign weight to a particular aspect to which you would like to draw the
plan in the X and Y viewer’s attention.
axes but is rotated
to a 45deg angle. An An axonometric line drawing allows you to draw a project in its entirety
isometric is set up
using a 30/30deg (or only partially) without designing all aspects. Forms can be simplified,
angle and so distorts materials omitted - without losing meaning in the communication. In
the plan form to fact, we find the drawing of simplified, diagrammatic axos helps us to
achieve a ‘lower’ graphically distil the significant aspects of a potential project to a client,
point of view to the
planometric. We tend and to ourselves; they help draw the viewer’s eye to what’s important.
to resist any form
of drawing which We tend to draw the significant poetic ‘moments’ in a project in
strays from the ‘true’ axonometric. These are the parts of the project which we can see clearly
form of plan, section
and elevation. in our mind’s eye and which form the basis of our early design. This has
developed over the past 7 years.
8 and in the late
construction stages
to visualise complex
In the 2011 competition boards for Merrion Cricket Club, an
geometries axonometric is used to communicate the ‘idea’ – of an over-arching roof
with colonnade and relocated accommodation beneath – but in a direct
9 The new entrance and non-poetic manner. The more poetic ‘moments’9 are visualised in
portico framing the rendered 3D images.
cricket pitch, the view
from the bar towards
the playing field, the In the intervening years we have become more adept at using the
new ‘image’ of the axonometric to communicate the poetics of a project. This is in part due
pavilion looking back to the reflective process of the PhD. We have realised that these poetic Fig 6 Axo drawings communicating new spatial strategy for clubhouse , extract from Competition Board, Merrion
from the pitch. Cricket Club. Drawing is direct and ‘non-poetic’

11 How We Work 12
2.1

Key
1. Window Detail, 4House, 2011
2. Exploded spatial and tectonic diagram, 4House, 2011
3. Exploded tectonic diagram, Wynnsward Park, 2010
4. Exploded tectonic diagram, Magennis Square, 2012
5. Screen formats, Waterloo Lane, 2013

4
1

Fig 7 Axonometric Explanations

3

13 How We Work 14
2.1

‘moments’ are the key to the projects and are the scaffold around which
we assemble the building. We have found that the axonometric drawing
is the easiest way to communicate these, sometimes subtle, messages.

It is also significant that these are quick and easy drawings to generate.
Myself or Cian can make them without having to resort to instructing
a member of staff or an external visualiser; when aspects can be ‘lost
in translation’. The act of making these important drawings ourselves
ensures our connection to the design.

In the 2015 competition presentation for a new Sports Pavilion for

10 (TAKA Belvedere College10 in Dublin11, the booklet we submitted was, in part, 7.
Architects, 2017 composed of a series axonometric drawings which summarised the
uncompleted)
main ideas, under a section titled ‘key design moments’.
6.
11 carried out just 8.
before our PRS04 We linked the typological origin of ‘the Belvedere’ as an elevated vantage
presentations in April
2015
point, through the existing school building ‘Belvedere House’ which sits 2.
at the top of a hill in inner city Dublin, to our idea for the new pavilion
as a belvedere, raised above the landscape, offering unobstructed views 5.
of the playing fields. We then drew 3 key ‘moments’ in the proposed 4.
design – the entrance sequence, the relationship of the changing rooms
to the playing field and the vantage point at 1st floor for viewing the
games.
3.
Each important idea was drawn in a simplified axonometric style. The
booklet was to be submitted without a presentation in person, so clarity
1.
of communication was essential. The diagrammatic axo gives us the
ability to distil the ideas for the reader, ensuring misinterpretation was
minimised.

I have come to realise that the separation of ideas into ‘moments’, and
the distillation of those moments through drawing, is not merely a MAIN ENTRANCE - 3D VIEW
communication tool for presentation; it is an intrinsic part of our design
process. Through the process of the PhD, I now understand that, when
designing we distil and enhance aspects of our buildings, to create
intense architectural ‘moments’. I discuss this in greater detail in later
chapters. Fig 8 Axonometric drawing depicting Entrance ‘Key Design Moment’, Belvedere Sports Pavilion.
Drawing is diagramamatic but distils the essence of the design for the viewer.

15 How We Work 16
2.1

An axonometric drawing maintains the dimensional ‘truth’ of the plan,

section or elevation, in a manner that a perspective line drawing would
not. A perspective drawing is more faithful to the ‘truth’ of how the
object is viewed; but it distorts the accuracy of the measured dimensions.
The distortion of the measured form sets the perspective apart from
the other orthographic drawings. We favour the axo over a perspective
because it is part of the same ‘family’, allowing easy comparison with
2-dimensional drawings. It becomes part of the ‘proto-building’, as
discussed in the section below.

Detail Design and Production Information

Once planning permission has been received, we start the detail design
work. As a starting point, the architectonic decisions made in the 1:20
partial section are applied to the relevant part of the plan. This usually
throws up a myriad of problems; which are then resolved in plan, and
redrawn in the section. This cycle continues until we have a partial plan
and section which works. We then apply all the lessons learnt in the
partial plan/section to entirety of the plan and a whole section. We draw
another part of a section; and set the cycle in motion again, until a series
of detailed plans and sections are generated.

The drawings are digitally made in AutoCAD. Problems are sketched

by hand on overlays of 1:10 or 1:20 print-outs; but everything is then
tested and redrawn in the AutoCAD base drawings. These drawings are
not ‘to scale’, as digital drawing is scaleless (or at least simulates drawing
at a 1:1 scale). We can zoom in to the level of a 1:1 detail, zoom out
to a 1:100 general arrangement scale, (or to 1:10,000 if necessary); all
within the same drawing.

The ability to digitally draw at a 1:1 scale, and use that drawing at all
scales, is where we diverge from a purely traditional form of drawing.
The traditional draughtsman made a series of drawings at differing
scales, showing increasing levels of detail. By necessity, the detail was
separated from wider drawings relating to the general arrangement of
the building and the site plan. The plans were separated from sections
and elevations.
Fig 9 Array of technical sections, 2008-2014
We can now draw all aspects of the building – plan, section, elevation,
17 How We Work 18
2.1

detail, site plan, drainage, services – within the same theoretical page. Key
The plans, sections and elevations can be overlaid on each other in 1. AutoCAD drawing space with all architectural drawing information present in overlays (plans, sections,
elevations, internal details, site information). All overlays show construction level of detail and are drawn at
the same drawing, without loss of clarity. We can see the entirety of the 1:1 scale. Drawing space is oriented to true North but the view is rotated to align with the building.
building in one place, through the layering and arranging of the various 2. Overlay of plans – ground floor, reflected ceiling, attic, roof, lighting layouts, setting out, drainage pop-ups,
orthographic ‘slices’ through it. disabled access, fire information etc
3. Elevations aligned to plan geometry
4. Internal elevations separated room by room and aligned with plan
The Drawing is the Building 5. Sections aligned to section cuts
This is perhaps where we overcome Evans concerns about the drawing 6. Site plan with surrounding context, hard/soft landscaping and site services information
producing a disassociation from the ‘building object’. To me, the
Note: consultant information is not present but can be overlaid and aligned with these drawings in the same virtual
drawings are an object; a kind of proto-building. They are not a design space
or representation of a building; they are a building composed of lines
and hatches, which will one day become a building made of bricks and
concrete. 1

12 of Flores and Eva Prats12 recently talked eloquently about learning to draw in the
Prats Architects, office of Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos. In trying to draw the difficult
speaking at her
PRS presentation in
flowing geometry of a spiral staircase, Miralles impressed on Prats the 6
Barcelona, April 2017 care which must paid to the radius of the curves. She must think of the
flowing balustrade not as lines but as curving metal, and to adjust her
drawing accordingly.

13 Alice Nickell In the last 2 years, we have started to employ full-time staff13. The most
2
in 2016, Ronan fundamental lesson we have to teach them about working in our office,
Lonergan in 2017 is to respect the drawings. Not because they are some sort of precious
artefact which must be held at arm’s length, but because the lines and
hatches are the material of the building (or proto-building). To erase,
move or delete a line is to fundamentally affect the building.

A new staff member is made to understand that a rectangle is a brick 5

(and not just an idea of a brick); a double line is glass; solid hatch is
4
a pavement; all of which have fundamental physical properties which
must be respected in the drawing. By stretching the rectangle to longer
or shorter than 215mm, to satisfy some sort of dimensional requirement 3
of the elevation, the brick becomes ‘off-standard’; either a cut brick
or a ‘special’. ‘Specials’ need to be specially ordered and made; cut
bricks require additional effort on the part of the bricklayer. But more
importantly, the inclusion of special or cut bricks has an effect on the Fig 10 Screen-shot of AutoCAD drawing space, Merrion Cricket Club, 2013
overall character of the building.
19 How We Work 20
2.1

Fig 11 Development of a Technical Section, Belvedere College Sports Grounds, 2015

21 How We Work 22
2.1

Evans says that ‘architecture…is brought into existence through drawing.

[Unlike Art] the subject-matter (the building or space) will exist after the It has parallels with the choice between hand-sketching or taking a
14 Evans, R. drawing, not before it.’ 14 I would argue that, for us, the building exists photograph. Arguably the photograph is a much quicker and more
(Summer 1986). accurate means of recording something. But the sketch takes mental
Translations from
during drawing.
effort; forcing you to make judgements about the subject of the drawing.
Drawing to Building.
A 3D virtual model is a more accurate (or more realistic) version of the
In AA Files, No. Orthographic Projection Drawing vs 3D Modelling
12 (pg 7). London: eventual building. But (and I see it all the time with students), it is easy
Architectural
If the drawing is the building, and we employ digital drawing because
to become overwhelmed or distracted. In my opinion, the ability to
Association School of it enables us to see the entirety of the building as an object, why do we
constantly rotate the object and look at all angles, rapidly changing the
Architecture. resist using 3D modelling programs14; which allow the construction of a
view and perspective, confuses the eye. Subtlety can be lost; resulting in
virtual building which far more resembles the actual building?
projects which can be overly form-based in nature.
I think it has something to do with the fact that drawing an orthographic
Due to the drawing process which produces the artefact, in my mental
slice though a building (a plan, section or elevation) restricts your focus
space the building is not a resolved 3 dimensional object; it is a series of
to that particular view. As with 3D rendered images, the 3D virtual
consecutive 2-dimensional slices through it. I think this has an effect on
model insists that the designer consider all aspects at the same time.
how we view and record the final built object. I will explore this in more
There is a danger of being over-whelmed by the design task; but also by
detail in the section relating to photography below.
the pragmatics of the virtual object tectonics.

Although we like to think of the drawing lines as materials, there is a

potentiality in a line which there is not in an object. An object by its
nature has an internal, almost inevitable, logic and weight. The line has
no weight or inherent tectonic logic so it can bend itself to have many
(or no) properties.

The restriction of orthographic projection to a horizontal or vertical

planar view allows the designer to consider only that which is apparent
in that particular drawing, without the distraction of trying to find
resolution in 3 dimensions. Only the problem in front of you needs to
be solved – for now.

To have a conception of the object or problem in 3D, you must switch

between plan, section and elevation, each time readjusting your focus
and mentally stitching together the disparate views. For me, there
is something about this process, taking mental effort to achieve a 3D
assessment, forcing the brain to make connections, which seems to help
the creative process.

23 How We Work 24
2.1

Models

Virtual Models
Although we have reservations about the value of virtual models, we
do sometimes make them. Generally, they are fairly simple and made
15 A 3D modelling in Sketch-up15. Most of the time we use the virtual model to take
program for people
perspective views of a project to form the basis for a montage or render
who don’t like/aren’t
good at modelling – usually for a client presentation. But, again, these aren’t design tools so
are not part of this research. Key
1. Virtual Sketchup model testing building forms for Merrion Cricket Club
2. Testing apex positions and roof geometry to avoid geometrical ‘twisting’ of roof planes
Occasionally we make a Sketchup model to test the external form of a 3. The final form – a regular volume with offset roof apex, cut to fit site constraints
building. In Merrion Cricket Club, the model was invaluable in testing
the geometry of the proposed building and its roof form. For us, this is
where virtual models excel.
1
The plan form of the building is irregular, on top of that we needed
to locate the roof apex off-centre, to accommodate an apartment in the
attic over the changing rooms. The difficulty was in finding a rational
volume, which could cope with the irrational plan form, whilst ensuring 3
no ‘twisting’ of the roof planes.

The sketchup model enabled us to test different options for the 2

potentially complex geometry. The various options could certainly have
been drawn. But the properties of a virtual model, where planes can be
pushed, pulled and cut, make it much easier to intuitively search for
appropriate solutions. Calculating and drawing complex geometry, in
this case for us, is more struggle than necessary.

However, it is interesting to note that we settled on a final form which

was easy to draw. The application of a rational external form to an
irrational plan form gave a complex object; but one which had fairly
simple geometric fundamentals. Even while testing ideas in a 3D
virtual world, we were aware of the necessity of translating this into 2D
drawings.

Fig 12 Sketchup model to test external form and geometry, Merrion Cricket Club, 2011

25 How We Work 26
2.1

Physical Models
We make physical models – usually in card. Sketch models are in grey
card or foam board (as they are cheaper and more robust); presentation
Key
models in brown or white card (as it’s finer). Myself and Cian are fairly 1. Sketch model of building form, Foam-board, 1:50, June 2011
bad at making models, so the physical making tends to be handed over 2. Presentation site model, Balsa wood, 1:200, Oct 2011
to a summer student or a member of staff. As we have full-time staff now, 3. Presentation construction model, Mixed materials, 1:25, Aug 2013
we are making more models than we used to. 4. Presentation model, White card, 1:250, Feb 2017

Note: Only the foam board model (1) was a process model; all others were presentation models for the client (2) and
However, I’m not sure that, historically in our practice, card models are for exhibition (3) & (4)
a design tool, per se. We tend to make a model when we have designed
something and want to see what it looks like in 3 dimensions. We look 1 2
at the model to judge whether what we have drawn is good or bad. But
we tend to go back to the drawing to decide what the changes might be.
The model is a confirmation (or not) of whether the decisions we have
made in the DRAWING are correct or accurate.

I know this is different to how other practices use physical models.

16 dePaor Architects, Working for Tom dePaor16 I observed how models were an effective
an employee from
design tool for him. He liked to have large (1:25/50) foamboard models
2007-2010
made, usually taking a few weeks for a staff member to make. Once
complete, he would immediately start to draw on the model, cut it with
a scalpel or rip faces off (much to the heartbreak of the model-maker).
It generally resulted in lots of change to the design and redrawing; but
perhaps more subtlety to the form and spaces.

17 Andrew Clancy Clancy Moore architects17 speak eloquently about their use of models;
and Colm Moore
how they look at their models closely, allowing even chance defects or
deformations in the making process to inflect the design of the building.
3 4
Their models are usually beautiful things, even the sketch models; as
are their drawings.

I think we sit somewhere between Tom dePaor and Clancy Moore in

relation to model-making. We are not using them purely as a design tool,
like Tom, and I think we are less interested than Clancy Moore in the
drawing or model as an artefact in itself.

To us, the drawings are a ‘proto-building’; with all the pragmatic and
poetic associations of an actual building. They must work on both Fig 13 Models made for Merrion Cricket Club
levels; even to the detriment of the beauty or resolution of the drawing
27 How We Work 28
2.1

as an artefact. The drawing may not be beautiful, but it might make a Key
great ‘proto-building’. The model might be rough or ugly, but it helps 1. Presentation site and proposal model, white card, 1:250, Sep 2015
2. Roof form tests, white card, 1:250, Sep 2015
us refine our thoughts. Both help us communicate with a client or 3. Partial model of entrance sequence, grey card, 1:50, Oct 2015
contractor. 4. Testing of roof structure, painted grey card, 1:100, Oct 2015
5. Partial model of roof overhang to viewing terrace, grey card, 1:25, Nov 2015
I think our attitude to models may be changing however; perhaps as a 6. Sectional model, grey card, 1:50, Nov 2015
7. Presentation model, white card, 1:100, Apr 2016
result of observing during the PRS process how other practices benefit 8. Model of changing room, grey card and balsa, 1:25 Jun 2016
from a close engagement with the models they make. For the Belvedere 9. Model of canteen space and viewing terrace, grey card, 1:50 Aug 2016
Sports Pavilion project, carried out during the PhD, we made many
more models than we usually would. Although this is, at least partly, Note: Models (2)-(6), (8) & (9) were process models. Many of them are partial, relating to important fragments or
moments
due to the building being our largest and most complex to date, I think
the PhD process has allowed us to be freer in our approach to how we
design.

The realisation that we have a spatial agenda; that we design in 7

‘moments’; that tectonic ‘truth’ is perhaps no longer a priority, has
meant that model-making has become more important to testing ideas in 3
3 dimensions. We feel more comfortable with the notion that design can
be at times ‘irrational’. When higher tectonic ‘truth’ falls by the wayside, 1 6
judgement becomes of primary importance. Models lend themselves to 2 5
the ‘up a bit, down a bit’ style of decision making which is required
when trying to make the more subtle spatial decisions. 8

In Belvedere Sports Pavilion, we made partial models of the important

moments in the building design – the entrance, the changing rooms, 4
the roof overhang and viewing terrace. We used these models slightly 9
differently to how we had previously. While they were still testing
tectonic decisions we had made in the drawing, we were also using
them to judge the spatial impact of the decisions. We felt comfortable
in changing the structure because it felt ‘too heavy’ in the model. We
removed or added columns because they were needed aesthetically – to
charge or clarify an entrance sequence.

Our new realisations, enabled by the PhD, are changing the way we
think and carry out our work.

Fig 14 Models made for Belvedere Sports Pavilion

29 How We Work 30
2.1

Photographs

Although photos aren’t necessarily a design tool, I think I can show

below how they are directly related to our design process; that they
enhance and expand our thinking, enabling us to see our work more
clearly and becoming a valuable source of inspiration in themselves.

Process
The photos we publish of our buildings are usually taken by the same
18 Alice Clancy, professional photographer: Alice Clancy18. (A confusingly similar name
a trained architect to my own, which has resulted in many mix-ups in Irish architecture
and sister of Andrew circles).
Clancy of Clancy
Moore. She also
photographs Clancy Alice likes to wait for a sunny day – a difficult past-time in Ireland – as
Moore’s and Steve light is important to the character of her work; as it is to ours. Depending
Larkin’s work. on the size of the project, we might meet at the building for a half or a full
day. Usually myself and Cian meet Alice in the morning to have a look
around the building and discuss any shots which we feel are important.
We also assist with any client interactions and logistics on the day. We
try and make sure the client is absent, if possible.

It’s a fairly loose process, as we trust Alice. We like the way she works
and want to give her enough space to bring her own interpretation to the
building. Although this may sound noble, our reasons are fairly selfish:
we want to see how someone else sees the building. Alice consistently
surprises us with images of our buildings which help us see them in a
different or clearer manner.

We try not to edit the inhabitation of the building out of the photograph;
only moving the inhabitant’s belongings if they jar or distract from the
focus of the photo. This is a fine line though, and sometimes we have to
force ourselves to stop moving things out of shot. For a practice whose
ambition is for architecture to be ‘a frame for life’, we have to make
ourselves comfortable with the fact that sometimes ‘life’ is messy (or
chooses a really awful chair to sit in).

Alice takes a range of photos over the course of the day or half day.
She tries to explain to us the different types of equipment she uses and
Fig 15 4House Front Door, Alice Clancy image, 2012
their effect on the photograph – but most of it goes over our heads. A

31 How We Work 32
2.1

few weeks later she sends us a contact sheet to choose the final images.
Myself and Cian sit at a computer together and argue about which
photos to choose.

We send back our selection, for her to carry out some correction
work on. Her post-production work is generally very subtle; on rare
occasions we ask her to edit something out – a distracting stain on the
ground surface, a slight correction to the perspective of the image. The
photographs are then issued to us in varying sizes (for web publishing,
emailing and other publications). Copyright is shared between Alice 1 2 3 4
Clancy and TAKA.

Character
19 Our PhD 2nd After our PRS 2 presentation, Jo van den Berghe19, asked us about
supervisor, appointed our photos; why they are the way that they are. He pointed out that a
after PRS 2 lot of the images were frontal and partial; cropped and flat. We hadn’t
really noticed this before. We responded that the images were taken by a
photographer and that these were the type of images she liked to make.
5 6 7 8
However, we hadn’t taken into account, as Jo pointed out, that we select
the images from a range of photos which the photographer offers us;
that our selection may say something about how we see our buildings.

In thinking about why we select the images that we do, and therefore
why we like to view our buildings a certain way, I realised that there may
be a direct link to the way we design and draw.
9 10 11

12
Fig 16 Samples of cropped and flat photographs of our work.
Images 1-9 by Alice Clancy, Images 10-12 by TAKA Architects

33 How We Work 34
2.1

Cropped and Partial

During the PhD process, we realised that we like to design in fragments
– physical ‘bits’ or building details which we incorporate into the overall
scheme - and in moments – discrete spatial experiences which we link
together, to form the scaffold around which we construct the building.
We also like to make intense architectural experiences, which I discuss
more in other chapters.

I have come to realise that the framing of some of the photos is

unconsciously reinforcing these latent ideas.

In simple terms, the partial nature of the photographs reflects how we

see and think about buildings; breaking our work down into moments or
fragments. However - it is not necessarily a conscious ambition to frame
the specific moments or fragments incorporated into the particular
piece of work being photographed.

Alice Clancy frames the photograph. I think we then choose the

images which correspond to how we like to see buildings. The framing
of the photograph may not relate directly to a particularly important
or significant (to us) fragment, but it enables us to see other, maybe
incidental, pieces of the building, which in turn shows us something
new about our work.

In Merrion Cricket Club, Alice Clancy made a photo of a part of the

rear elevation showing a very unimportant security gate. It had been
designed as a bit of an afterthought during the construction process, as
the gate as tendered wasn’t secure enough. I think we liked the photo
because of the combination of flatness and depth which it conveyed.
20 It’s also possible
that this screen was But it also showed us that this, perhaps forgotten, gate was something
designed before we of value.
got the photos, but
I’m not sure that
I think we must have looked at it quite closely because we made a similar,
matters, as it works
both ways. Potentially if more refined, version of it in a project which was being designed at
we chose the photo around the same time as we received the photos from Alice Clancy20.
of the gate because The green painted screen in Waterloo Lane bears a striking resemblance
it resonated with the
to the security gate in Merrion Cricket Club.
current project we Fig 17 Galvanised metal security door, Merrion Cricket Club, 2013, Alice Clancy
were designing.

35 How We Work 36
2.1

Alice’s photo had revealed a fragment of our building, which we then

incorporated, in a distilled and refined form, in another project. Key
1. 1 of 19 contact sheets of photographs by photographer, Alice Clancy, for Merrion Cricket Club
2. This was the only photo selected from the sheet. All others were discounted for various reasons.
Through examining the photograph contact sheets which we received
from Alice Clancy for Merrion Cricket Club, I have realised that when
we are given a choice between similar shots, we consistently choose the
more closely cropped images.

I think the close cropping of the photos has 2 purposes: to abstract and
highlight fragments of our buildings in the manner as set out above,
and also to increase the intensity of the experience of the photo. In the
same photo of the security gate, I can see that the, already closely framed
original shot, was cropped even further at our request in the final image.

The framing of the shots, generally without the distraction of a middle

or background, has a sense of immediacy; like standing so close that
your nose touches the building, intently and intensely looking.

My research in later chapters reflects these observations: that we take

‘bits’ of buildings, be they our own work or other references, distil their
essence or meaning to intensify the experience of them, and incorporate
them into current projects.

I had not realised until now that the photography of the buildings is one
of the mechanisms through which we do this. The photographs help us
analyse our own work and to, unconsciously, identify elements which
may be worthy of further development or investigation. The cropping
increases the intensity of the experience; restricting our focus, in pursuit
of the closest possible analysis.

Fig 18 Photograph contact sheet for Merrion Cricket Club, 2013

37 How We Work 38
2.1

6
4

5
2 Wall becomes a
Perfrified Drawing

Post Production
Key
1. The flat and frontal photograph of this very
unimportant metal security door enabled us to view
it as something of value.
2. A distracting stain is removed from the ground
3. The colour contrast is tweaked to emphasise
texture, highlighting flatness and depth
4. The image is more closely cropped to increase
the abstraction and intensity of the experience
5. Extract from construction elevation drawing,
cropped to match photo.
6. Drawing can be cropped to exact photo size by
counting bricks and steps of concrete ring beam.
Drawing is a ‘proto-building’.
7. Abstraction, achieved through frontal view and
cropping of foreground in photo, enables us to view
the building like our drawings; which helps us anal-
yse and identify fragments of future buildings
8. The door was distilled and refined to become a
8 privacy screen to a public window in a private house.
1 Photo as Analysis
Fig 19 Original shot selected from contact sheet
Fig 20 Extract from construction elevation drawing in AutoCAD
Fig 18 Galvanised metal security door, Merrion Cricket Club, 2013, Alice Clancy Fig 21 Painted metal screen, Waterloo Lane, 2014, Alice Clancy

39 How We Work 40
2.1

Frontal and Flat

We like to draw through orthographic projection; as most architects do. We tend to make physical models to confirm the decisions we have
But our resistance to virtual models and our ambivalent relationship already made in the drawings. The photos we select of our buildings are
to physical models may signify a deeper relationship to orthographic part of the same process: the flat and frontal photographs of the building
projection than other architects. are a physical confirmation of the drawings we have made.

21 Evans, R. Evans speaks of ‘the wall [becoming] a petrified drawing’21 through

(Summer 1986).
orthographic projection. The phrasing of this sentence is interesting. It
Translations from
Drawing to Building. seems obvious to me that, because the drawing is made in the service of
In AA Files, No. producing the wall, the drawing should be considered a flattened wall.
12 (pg 8). London:
Architectural
But Evans made me stop and think: the wall is a petrified drawing
Association School of
Architecture. (rather than the other way around). Perhaps sometimes for us like
Evans suggests, the relationship of the drawing to the building is
reversed; maybe the building is, in a sense, produced in the service of
the drawings?

I have said that in our mental space, the digital drawings make a ‘proto-
building’ composed of lines and hatches and that, for me, this isn’t a
resolved 3 dimensional object; instead the building is composed of a
series of flat, horizontal and vertical slices.

We are very protective of our buildings before they are built. We

make constructional sections at a very early stage (even before we are
appointed by the client), to ensure the project is a tangible thing in our
Next Pages
minds. We don’t like things to change – the building design is fixed
as soon as possible. We make many, many detailed drawings to avoid From the outset, we have an image of the building in our heads. After initial design, this image is fixed and rarely
potential unforeseen circumstances having an effect on the building. For changes. For me, the mental image is a flat 2-dimensional drawing, rather than a 3D object. Our flat and frontal
a while, we think of the drawings as a building. photography of our buildings enables us to confirm and reinforce the original mental picture, completing the circle
of realisation.
The construction, and even the actual experience of the building, is
Images
22 Sometimes we often short-lived22 - in comparison to the drawn-out design process. It
may only visit the Fig 19 Competition elevation drawing, 2011
makes sense to me then, that the photos we choose, show our buildings Fig 20 Planning application elevation drawing, 2012
finished artefact
a couple of times, in the way that we are used to seeing them in our minds – frontal and Fig 21 Presentation model, 2012
especially in the case flat – like in a drawing produced through orthographic projection. This Fig 22 Construction elevation drawing, 2013
of private houses is how we have envisaged, and grown connected to the building, for the Fig 23 Photograph of Merrion Cricket Club, 2014
majority of the life of the project.
Fig 19-23 Building as Confirmation of the Drawing, Merrion Cricket Club

41 How We Work 42
2.1

2011

43 How We Work 44
2.1

2012

45 How We Work 46
2.1

2012

47 How We Work 48
2.1

2013

49 How We Work 50
2.1

2014

51 How We Work 52
2.1

Methods
In writing this essay as an explication of our work and design methods, While I am not suggesting that this essay and the later writings are at
I think it is important to make clear that the insights contained within the level of Hockney, I think they are the first step in approaching a level
it were enabled by the reflective process of the PhD. It is written as an of self-awareness of our methods which will allow us to enhance our
introduction to how we work, to help situate the reader in the context intuitive creativity. By becoming aware of how and why we do the small,
of our practice and our methods. However, my research over the past everyday things, we are articulating a type of conscious intuition.
3-4 years has coloured it and allowed me to be explicit about how and
why we do things the way we do; in a way which would not have been The articulation of this to ourselves, enables us to communicate and
possible before this. share these insights with other designers and practitioners.

Prior to this, I think if asked, I would have given fairly mundane answers:
we draw in 2D because that’s the way we’ve always done it; we make
lots of drawings because we like to be organised; we don’t really make
models; and the photographs are the product of the photographer. My
research in later chapters has permitted me to see past the mundane; or,
in fact, to question the mundanity of the mundane. It has enabled me to Chapter References
see that there is method in our particular brand of madness. BBC. (2013-2016). “What Do Artists Do All Day?” [Motion Picture].
Caro, A. (1991, March). www.anthonycaro.org. Retrieved from http://
At the outset of this research, I was floundering around trying to think
www.anthonycaro.org/ysp1-thru-the-window.htm
of what I might do. I happened to watch a documentary on David
Hockney23. I knew very little about Hockney, other than a few of his Evans, R. (Summer 1986). Translations from Drawing to Building. In AA
most famous paintings. But over the course of the film, I was astounded Files, No. 12 (pp. 3-18). London: Architectural Association School of
by his range and depth of work, and at how articulate he was about his Architecture.
work processes.
TAKA Architects. (2014). Merrion Cricket Club. Cricket Pavilion.
Ballsbridge, Dublin, Ireland.
I began watching other similar programmes and could see the same
24

23 David Hockney: qualities in many other artists. The programmes followed artists in their TAKA Architects. (2017 uncompleted). Belvedere Sports Grounds. Sports
A Bigger Picture
(Wollheim, 2009)
daily work lives, performing everyday tasks in the production of their Pavilion. Cabra, Dublin.
artworks. One memorable scene involved an artist meeting the postman
Wollheim, B. (Director). (2009). David Hockney: A Bigger Picture [Motion
at the door of her studio, to receive an envelope of small, flattened,
Picture].
stuffed birds, which she then filed laboriously in labelled drawers in a
24 ‘What Do Artists filing cabinet, for use in sculptures at a later date.
Do All Day?” (BBC, What struck me about these windows into the work-lives of artists, is that
2013-2016)
the beautiful and intensely creative end-product seemed to be produced
by an accretion of small, mundane acts; carried out with a methodical
rigour, in the service of a higher purpose. Hockney’s description of his
‘joiner’ works, carried out by polaroid and later by fax, is particularly
illuminating of the self-awareness and rigour of method required to be
creative.
53 How We Work 54
How I Research

2.2
3.0
2.2 HOW I Research
Small Things

The following essay is an explanation of some research methods I devel-

oped over the course of carrying out the PhD. The methods were devel-
oped to try and find ways of looking closely at our Work. They reflect
our day-to-day work process, and developed out of previous experience
of trying to understand other cultures and practices we encountered. Key
1 Deciphering the conundrum of the black trapezoidal shapes around windows and doors in Tibet gave
us insight into the Tibetan culture and environment
Context
I have said that I am trying to look at our buildings to see them as they 2 In the absence of rhetoric about the work of DeBlacam and Meagher, we had to piece together the
are and, from there, trying to understand how they came to be that way. story of the Practice from an examination of their drawing archive.
In thinking about why I have taken this approach, I have realised that
there are significant precursors in our Practice and in my teaching expe-
rience, which have informed this way of thinking and looking.

In 2007, we made a 4-month trip to Asia1 – a particularly exotic place

1 Cian extended the when you’re Irish. A lot of that trip was spent trying to understand the
trip to 12 months
vernacular buildings we saw; trying to put our finger on what in the local
and visited many
other places, which he environment or culture had made these strange (to our eyes) buildings.
discusses in detail in
his research One of the most enigmatic was the Tibetan window (Fig 1); a familiar
window, always framed by an unfamiliar black trapezoidal shape. This
shape appears around all traditional Tibetan windows – from temples to
farmhouses. It was obvious that it had some sort of symbolic function,
but we couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to it than pure
symbolism or iconography. We had come to learn, during our travels
in the preceding months, that even the most elaborate of decoration
usually stemmed from a pragmatic source; even if that source had been
forgotten over time.
1 2

We were so curious that we researched the window online, while travel-

2 http://arch- ling. We found an explanation2 which detailed the religious symbolism
inect.com/forum/ – but it still felt wrong or, at least, inappropriate, especially when looking
thread/47463/tibet- at the surrounds on the most rural of farmhouses.
an-windows
After a few weeks in the climate of the Tibetan plateau, we finally under-
stood the practical underpinning of the black surrounds. It was disarm-
ingly simple and obvious, once understood. The black paint around the
windows reduced the harsh glare of the sun on the high altitude plain, Fig 1 Photo of Tibetan Windows, TAKA Architect, 2007
at the same time, absorbing heat to reduce heat loss at the weakest point Fig 2 Me looking through the DeBlacam and Meagher Architects drawing archive in their offices, 2010

57 How I Research 58
2.2

of the thick walls: the window.

This insight was enabled by looking closely and trusting an intuitive Key
1 An ‘outline’ plan, without technical information. The students only draw what can be
understanding of buildings. experienced.

In 2010, we were involved in the curation of the Irish Pavilion for the 2 Photograph of the final model, recreating an existing photo of the actual building. The
2010 Venice Biennale. The exhibition was a re-presentation of the work model is achieved by looking closely at existing drawings and photographs to understand
how the building is the way it is.
of eminent Irish architects, de Blacam and Meagher. As part of the cura-
tion, we had to examine the practice’s drawing archive (Fig 2).

DeBlacam and Meagher dislike rhetoric, so there is very little written

about the buildings by the architects themselves. It is difficult to get
them to talk in detail about their work, other than funny stories about
difficult clients. We had to piece together the story of their Practice from
the drawings they made.

We found some amazing things: a project list of thousands of projects,

ranging from betting shops to churches; drawing after drawing of a
dresser at 1:10 with specific household objects, painstakingly drawn to
scale on the shelves; a beautiful coloured section drawing of soil pipes
and wastes in an apartment building; hand-drawn, free-flowing per-
spectives for competition presentations.
1 2
In both situations, we were looking at artefacts to try and understand
how they came to be the way they are. In both cases, there was little or
no rhetoric or theory to distract us from looking closely. We learnt that
an examination of the small, everyday things of a culture, or a Practice,
enables a deeper understanding of the subject as a whole.

I used to teach in the Master’s course in Queen’s University Belfast3.

3 With Prof Michael At the beginning of every year the students used to have an assignment
McGarry of McGarry in which they must recreate in a model, a particular photo of a part of a
Ni Eanaigh Architects
seminal building (Fig 3) The students carry out their search for under-
and Colm Moore &
Andrew Clancy of standing in a similar manner to us, when travelling or looking through
Clancy Moore DeBlacam and Meagher’s drawing archive.

In the absence of visiting the buildings, they examine and interrogate Fig 3 Page from ‘Stair Rooms’ book, ‘Easton Neston’, Rachel McWhinney, Jennifer Cromie, Emma Wright,
existing drawings or photographs; looking closely. They make beautiful Queen’s University Belfast

59 How I Research 60
2.2

‘outline’ drawings (Fig 3) to help them understand the subtleties of the

spaces they are trying to recreate. They are looking at an artefact and
trying to understand how it came to be that way.
Key
1 By climbing to the top of the steps of the ziggurat, you leave the close and familiar world (the jungle) behind,
Reduced Drawings and are transported to an unexpected and unfamiliar place, with a view of the distant horizon, across the
In the early stages of the PhD, we were making reduced, analytical draw- canopy.
ings to try and represent aspects of our practice (ref. icon drawings – fig
5) and to investigate parts of our buildings (ref. outline sections – fig 7). 2 This icon drawing is a distillation of the meaning of the photo to us. The ziggurat is pushing through the
familiar circle of the jungle (the known world) and enabling another perspective for the intrepid explorer (the
We had also shown examples of our working drawings (ref. technical client or occupant).
sections - fig 6).

It was remarked that our working drawings seem to embody some of

the qualities of the buildings themselves (flatness and richness), in a way
that the reduced drawings did not. We were challenged as to whether
our analytical drawings should always be reduced and simplified.

We made the series of ‘icon’ drawings for PRS 01. They were an at-
tempt, in the early stages of the PhD, to communicate our Practice inter-
ests, by distilling a set of ‘values’ from buildings or things that we liked.
For example, we took an image of the reference, Tikal (Fig 4) - a temple
compound in the jungle of Guatemala that Cian had visited, and exam-
ined it to see what we liked about it. 1 2

The temples rose above the canopy of the surrounding jungle. In this
case, it wasn’t the physical building we were interested in; it was the
fact that the building enabled a shift in perspective. By leaving the close
and familiar surroundings of the jungle and climbing to the top of steps
of the ziggurat, you emerged into another unexpected and unfamiliar
world above the treetops, with a clear view of the distant horizon.

From the reference photo, we made a drawing (Fig 5) of a circle rep-

resenting the jungle (or the familiar world), with a simplified elevation
of the pyramid breaking through the circular boundary. The icon rep-
resented to us the shift in perspective, or change in the way of living,
a building can enable in the occupant; a building helping you see the
familiar world in an unfamiliar way.
Fig 4 Photo of Tikal, Guatemala, TAKA Architects 2008
The drawing of the simplified image or ‘icon’ allowed us to extract and Fig 5 ‘Icon’ drawing, TAKA Architects, PRS 01

61 How I Research 62
2.2
Key
1 The original technical section drawing. Dense and Rich.

2 The reduced and simplified analytical drawing; outlining the profile

communicate this value in a succinct manner. Through drawing, the of technical details to enable comparison of the spatial implications of
the details. Sparse and 1-dimensional
essential meaning of the reference (to us) is distilled and intensified from
the photo to the icon, in order to articulate our relationship to it. The
analytical drawing is reduced and simplified.

In 2.1 How We Work, I discuss how in our day to day work we use simpli-
fied, diagrammatic axos in much the same way – to distil and commu-
nicate ideas.

For PRS 03, I wanted to look at the spatial implications of the technical
details we make. I took a technical section (Fig 6) of each project, and in
the manner of the Queen’s students drawings, I drew an outline around
the profile of the section, removing all technical detail (Fig 7). I was left
with a series of simple outlines of the complex drawings.

In the same way that restricting your view to an orthographic slice

through a building (plan/section/elevation) means that only the prob-
lem in front of you needs to be solved, the drawing of the outlines en-
abled me to restrict my focus to the profile of, and therefore the space 1
created by, the technical junction detail.

The comparison of the reduced and simplified drawings enabled me to

analyse our projects to try and find common spatial threads. The reduc-
tion to a simple outline narrowed my focus and helped me make new
insights into our work.

Additive and Reductive Process

We make very detailed drawings of our buildings. We draw in CAD; all
technical detail is therefore included in the drawing at a scale of 1:1. We
also include some sense of the inhabitation of the building: light fittings,
people, furniture, etc. This makes the drawings, especially the sections,
feel layered, rich and dense. In contrast, our analytical drawings are
sparse and 1-dimensional.
2
Over the course of the PhD, I realised that our design and drawing pro-
cess is both additive and reductive. The drawing of a technical section
is a good example of this. When working on the drawing, we break it Fig 6 Technical Construction Section, House 01, TAKA Architects
down into small decisions or fragments: an eaves detail, the entrance Fig 7 ‘Outline Section’ created for PRS 03 to study spatial impact of technical details

63 How I Research 64
2.2

step, the staircase. We take this fragment, edit it through drawing and
redrawing, and then move on to the next. The drawing is then created
by an accretion or layering of the edited fragments. The arrangement of
the accretion is dictated by the overall idea of the building.

The editing usually consists of reduction - thinking something is too

elaborate, too heavy, too complicated; needing to be more direct, sim-
pler, more effective.

It has parallels with the drawing of the icons. Through reduction, we

are trying to communicate the essence of the detail or idea, as succinctly
as possible. The layering or accretion comes out of an urge to create
densely and intensely inhabited spaces.

I can demonstrate this process through a ‘time-lapse’ series of drawings

for the Belvedere Sports Pavilion (GIF 1 – Technical Drawing – please
open separate GIF file). I recorded each iteration of a key section, from
the initial first CAD ‘sketch’, up to the final construction drawing; a pro-
cess taking place over the course of 2 years.

Cycling through the drawings clearly shows how we concentrate on and

rework small pieces of the drawing - the overhang, the roof form, the
terrace, the shower rooms – designing and editing each in isolation, and
reworking them back into the overall section. At times, like at planning,
all the technical detail is removed and the drawing is reduced to an out-
line, to ensure it is easier to read and communicates what is essential at
that point.

Our technical drawings embody some of the qualities of our buildings

because our drawing process parallels our design process. Our analyti-
cal drawings are the distilled fragments or ideas, which accrete over the
course of designing, drawing or researching.

Small Things Method

For PRS 044, I attempted to explain the relationship of the sparse, flat
4 April 2015 analytical drawings to our layered, rich day-to-day technical drawings;
and in the process, to demonstrate how we design in general. I made a Fig 8 A Window ( forming basis for ‘Small Things’ drawing), Waterloo Lane, Dublin, TAKA Architects 2014
drawing series, called ‘Small Things’ (GIF 2 - Small Things - please
65 How I Research 66
2.2

open separate GIF file), to explain how we think when we design, and Key
when making the dense technical drawings. 1 Reductive
The reduced outline of each element or fragment of the
window composition
I took an image of a window (Fig 8) we designed for the refurbishment 2 Additive
of the house at Waterloo Lane. Through drawing, I broke the window The outlines layer and accrete, with a poetic text beneath, to
down into the separate elements (Fig 9) which make up the overall com- make a nuanced object
position; corresponding to the fragments in our design and drawing
process. The drawing of each is reduced and outline in nature; in reflec-
tion of the reductive editing process which each fragment goes through 1
during design. The reduced drawings are then layered on top of each
other to represent the complex whole which has been created by an
accretion of the edited fragments.

Below the drawing is a text which builds as the drawing layers up. The
text is poetic; describing the impact or use of each of the fragments. By
the end, the text is a narrative of the life which is framed by the window.
By looking closely, what started as ‘A Window’ has now been trans-
formed into a nuanced object.

The ‘Small Things’ drawing is both a metaphor for how we think when
designing and drawing, and also a useful research tool. In the next PRS5,
I used the drawing method to analyse our work. During the PhD pro-
5 PRS 05, November cess, I had discovered a potential shift in our Practice’s thinking; from 2
2015 an interest in tectonics towards a more spatial sensibility. Through the
examination and comparison of the ‘outline sections’ described in the
sections above, I had identified a series of recurring spatial themes in
our Work.

I analysed, under the previously identified spatial themes, some photos

of projects which I thought were related, using the ‘Small Things’ draw-
ing method (Fig 10). The analysis enabled me to chart how our work
has changed in the pursuit of a more spatial agenda. It also allowed me
to identify the physical mechanism though which we develop themes
from project to project. This is described in more detail in 2.4 How We
Design.

I then used the method to analyse a project, Merrion Cricket Club. I Fig 9 Explanation of ‘Small Things’ drawing
wanted to show how our design process works in parallel – how form
67 How I Research 68
2.2

and tectonics are separate but inter-related; both having spatial and
poetic ambitions. I took a section and elevation from the project and
re-drew them in the manner of the ‘Small Things’ drawing (GIF 3 - Par-
allel Design Processes – please open separate GIF file). The drawings
describe the same object, in the same manner, but through the differing
lenses of form and tectonics.

The method, developed as a way of explaining our design thinking, has

enabled me to demonstrate my new insights into our Work.

Research through ‘Small Things’

Not only is the ‘Small Things’ drawing a metaphor for how we design,
and a specific method employed in the analysis of our Work, it is also a
reflection of how I research. I have looked at small, real things - a series
of junction details in section; moments in the construction process of
concrete; how a standard roof joist is stretched and distorted from proj-
ect to project - made a close examination of them to find their meaning,
and recorded my findings. The observations themselves are simple and
modest. But there is power and poetry in the accretion.

In 2.3 How We Practice, I describe, using vignettes of conversations, the

process we went through while making concrete for a project. On the
surface, this could be seen as a prosaic examination of the practical skills
required for an architectural practice to design and make concrete. But
each vignette is a reduced version or distillation of important aspects of
our practice.

Examining the small, tangible moments enables me to articulate some of

the fundamentals of how we practice. In the same way, looking at a series
of profiles of building details, as illustrated in 2.4 How We Design, allowed
me to focus intently and then extrapolate out to how we design.

In the window drawing and its accompanying explanation, I show how

a complex artefact is in fact an accretion or layering of disparate, simple
ideas. The act of gathering together and the arranging of the relation-
ship between the various elements, gives a ‘higher’, coherent meaning
to the object as a whole. This is how we think about and design our
buildings, and this is how I have made my research. Fig 10 ‘Small Things’ method used to analyse and chart practice shift, PRS 05

69 How I Research 70
2.2

Chapter References
de Paor, T., Mayberry, P., Casey, A., & Deegan, C. (2010). ‘Of deBlacam
and Meagher’. Irish Pavilion, Venice Biennale. Venice: Irish Architecture
Foundation.

MArch Students. (2012). Stair Rooms. Belfast: Queens Architectural

Press.

TAKA Architects. (2013). Waterloo Lane. Refurbishment of Mews

House. Ballsbridge, Dublin , Ireland.

TAKA Architects. (2014). Merrion Cricket Club. Cricket Pavilion. Balls-

bridge, Dublin, Ireland.

TAKA Architects. (2017 uncompleted). Belvedere Sports Grounds. Sports

Pavilion. Cabra, Dublin.

71 How I Research 72
 1.4
How We Practice

2.1
2.0
2.3
3.0
 2.3 HOW We Practice
Learning By Doing in Venturous Practice

1 Definition, https:// Venturous: willing to take risks or embark on difficult or unusual courses of Key
en.oxforddictionaries. 1 ‘When is something resolved?’, question posed by Leon Van Schaik
com/definition/ action1
venturous 2 ‘Only resolved when dealing with pragmatic issues in a elegant way’ response
‘The venturous practitioner seeks to shift…the boundary of the discipline and by Cian for PRS 04
2 Blythe, R., 2016. An
Epistemology of Venturous
thereby to extend it in some substantial way’ 2
Practice. In: s.l.:RMIT
University, p. 1. In the RMIT definition, a venturous practice is a practice who has
achieved peer recognition, through awards and publications, and is
seen as contributing to the discipline.

But what does it mean to be a Venturous Practitioner? In this chapter I

will examine how we, TAKA Architects, practice venturously.
1

In the following essay, I look at how we make difficult or unusual things;

using Concrete (the most difficult of materials) as a case study. I will
look in detail at one project, Merrion Cricket Club, to demonstrate the
manner in which we overcame the uncertainty of the final outcome of
concrete.

By looking at how our Practice deals with difficulty and uncertainty,

I can identify fundamental strategies which we have developed while
learning ‘on the job’. These strategies have come to define How We
Practice.
2
Learning By Doing
Introduction
During the PRS process, one of the early criticisms laid at our door
3 Richard Blythe, was that our presentations were ‘too polished’3. Part of the problem
as part of panel was that we were presenting our buildings as fait-accomplis; as if they
comments in
had arrived perfectly formed in our minds and manifested themselves
response to our
PRS01 presentation, without apparent effort on site. We weren’t describing the indecisions,
Barcelona 2013 wrong paths, dead-ends and mistakes which are inherent in Practice in
general, and are especially significant in a practice which is so concerned
with building, and with practicing venturously.

We found it difficult to change our presentation ‘mode’ from the polished Fig 1 Sketch in preparation for PRS 04, Cian Deegan, April 2015
professional, who harbours no doubt about the outcome of the design
75 How We Practice 76
 2.3

process, to the more revealing approach required by the PRS process,

which embraces and acknowledges the uncertainty inherent in Practice.

4 ‘Inflection and In Cian’s presentation for PRS 44, he made an examination of design
Resolution’, PRS 04, decision-making in our work (Fig 1), looking at when we, TAKA
Ghent 2015, Cian Architects, consider things to be ‘resolved’ and how we make that
Deegan
judgement. He looked at instances of when we allow a design to be
1
inflected by external influences – place, budget, client – and still consider 5
5 Waterloo Lane, the projects to be successful5, and situations in which similar inflections 4
2013; Clonskeagh are considered (by us) to be unsuccessful6.
Road, 2013; Merrion
Cricket Club
Cian’s research discovered that, for TAKA architects, resolution seems Key
6 Wynnsward Park, to occur “when pragmatic issues are dealt with in an ‘elegant’ manner” 1-3
2010, Clonsjeagh (Fig 1). But for us to be fully happy, we also require something else - The beam is cast on to the brick,
Road, 2013 which is in turn built on a concrete
a foil to the elegantly pragmatic. Cian describes it as “space for an wall
2
alternative ‘elaborate’ agenda”. We like to make elaborate things; an
aesthetic sensibility which we had not acknowledged until that point. 4
Instead of cutting the bricks to the
slope of the underside of the beam
For example, in the case study below I discuss the making of a concrete (along the dashed red line), the
ring beam in one of our projects (Merrion Cricket Club, 2014). The bricks are left intact and the beam
expressed ring beam was a pragmatic resolution of the structural forces is cast directly onto the stepped
(uncut) brickwork
of the roof; the flush detailing and concealment of gutter made it elegant. 6
But we needed more. 5-6
3 The ziggurat-like junction between
The beam is cast on top of a brick wall which, in turn, is built on a the beam and the brickwork
contrasts pleasingly with the flat
concrete wall (Figs 2 & 3). We decided that instead of cutting the junction between brickwork and
brickwork to follow the slope of the underside of the beam, we would concrete wall below
leave the bricks intact and cast the beam directly onto the stepped
(uncut) brickwork. Our justification (to ourselves) was that the module
of the brick is important and that, as a result, we don’t like to cut bricks.

This is true – and we generally avoid cutting bricks wherever possible.

However, through the reflective process of the PhD, we also realise that
there is something else at play. Our aesthetic sensibility was pushing us
to elaborate and articulate.

Casting the beam directly onto the stepped brickwork seemed to satisfy Fig 2 Elevation drawing of stepped beam and wall, Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

77 How We Practice 78
2.3

our urge for elaboration. The ziggurat-like junction between the beam
and the brickwork contrasts pleasingly with the flat junction between
brickwork and concrete wall below. The stepped underside of the beam
also does something good to the tautness of the building-object.

But decisions made on a computer screen or ideas (like an ideological

aversion to cutting bricks) are abstract. There is a certainty to these ideas.
In a Practice which is concerned with assembly and the expression of
the tectonic, of course bricks shouldn’t be cut; obviously we should cast
the beam flush with the stepped brickwork below. There is a certainty to
drawing as well – we can draw it, so of course we can build it.

Ideas can be abstract and certain. But what happens when the
contingencies of site and construction invite doubt. How does an idea
about construction or a building become an actual building? What
does it take to make the abstract tangible? Finally - How do we, TAKA
architects, practice?

Concrete as a Case Study

Back to our overly polished presentations: ironically, outside of a formal
presentation situation, we freely discussed the mishaps and struggles we
have when designing and making buildings – usually as an exchange of
funny stories or cautionary tales over a pint with colleagues (but really
seeking reassurance that building is hard for everyone). By viewing the
PRS more like these informal exchanges, as an examination of imperfect
or contingent situations, we stood to gain useful insight.

With this in mind, I decided to make an examination of the use of

concrete in our practice. By making a study of the way we design and
make concrete, I hoped to illustrate our wider practice methods in a
venturous context.

But why concrete? Concrete is a homogenous material which is easily

drawn and envisaged. It can appear deceptively simple. However,
concrete is a difficult and deeply contingent material. It requires
extensive practical knowledge to use elegantly and the success of the
Fig 3 Photo of stepped beam and wall, Merrion Cricket Club, 2014
final outcome is far from certain.

79 How We Practice 80
 2.3

An Apprenticeship in (Beautiful) Concrete

Introduction
7 In this essay, when Concrete7, unlike many other construction practices, is a dark art. Key
I refer to concrete, 1 1 House 01, 2009 - Concrete used
Technical literature tends to be dense and difficult to penetrate. More as a product pre-cast on site.
I am generally
talking about in-situ
than any other building material, the quality of the final product is 1A = problematic flue gather
reinforced concrete, dependent on site specific or temporal factors. 2
cast on site by a 2 House 02, 2009 – In-situ mass
contractor. Unlike other building materials, the qualities to which an Architect pays 1A concrete cast around steel beams

attention – colour, texture, form, finish, detail – are almost impossible to 3 4House, 2011 – Concrete as
establish prior to making. In a process in which off-site standardisation a landscape, and concrete as a
does not really exist, control of on-site making is the only mechanism to product
achieve a desired result. 4 Sandford Ave, 2012 – Concrete
3 4
as a retaining wall
By their nature each site is different – contractors have varying skills and
knowledge, suppliers change, weather and temperature are unreliable, 5 Merrion Cricket Club, 2014
– Complex concrete as walls,
forms vary between projects. To add further pressure, the making of landscape and structure
concrete is unwieldy, time-consuming and expensive. Concrete must be
right first time. 6 6 Sandford Mews, 2012 –
Concrete as a protective wall
The Architect’s drawings and specification don’t reflect the difficulty 5 7 Waterloo Lane, 2014 – Concrete
and uncertainty which are inherent in the making of concrete. Drawings as a landscape
and specification are abstract. To make concrete you must ‘do’ rather
than ‘think’. 8 St. Patricks Park, 2015–
Concrete as ornament and
8 furniture
The title of this study is ‘An Apprenticeship in (Beautiful) Concrete’. I am 7
making the distinction, ‘beautiful’, for a reason. Anyone can make crap 9 Clonskeagh Rd, 2012 –
concrete. ‘Beautiful’ implies doing something well and offering it for Concrete as a staircase and base
judgement; as does ’venturous’ when applied to practice.

A Catalogue of Trial and Error

In order to understand how we learned to use concrete, I decided
to make a catalogue of its use in our Practice; hoping to show the 9
progression of our ‘doing’ with each project.

I set the projects (which contained concrete in some form) against a

timeline. I redrew the concrete elements within the project (Fig 5) and
listed the skills and lessons we learned over the course of construction.
I then graded the learning experience, giving a value between 1 and 10.
Some lessons appear a couple of times in different projects – sometimes Fig 5 Axonometric drawings of concrete elements within TAKA projects from 2009-2015

81 How We Practice 82
2.3

we need to learn things more than once…

In our 1st project (2009), we were using concrete like a product, where 1A
building or furniture elements (Figs 6 & 7) were cast off-site in a factory
by a specialist subcontractor and then built into the works - like you
would a kitchen or window. Our first breakthrough with the material
came when we were trying to design the fireplace. We didn’t know how,
and were struggling to figure out how to make the flue gather (the part
1
of the fireplace, above the fire opening, to which the flue attaches - 1A).

The contractor suggested casting it on site out of concrete. We realised

that this great material fulfilled all our requirements – it was relatively 6 7
cheap, fire-proof, could be designed to be load-bearing, could make the
required custom shape and was self-finishing, i.e. the material could be
exposed to the room. We drew the form, specified a fair-faced finish and
let the contractor proceed with the casting, with little or no input from
us. The result was faultless - not necessarily an accurate indication of
the normal result for concrete. 2

It’s also worth noting that we still weren’t casting ‘in-situ’; although
the flue gather was cast on site by the contractor, it was poured into
formwork on the ground, cured, struck and then lifted into position
above the fireplace.
8 9

In House 02 (TAKA Architects, 2009), built concurrently with House

01, we demonstrate our lack of knowledge of ‘in-situ’ reinforced concrete
to an even greater degree. To my shame, what appears to be a reinforced
concrete structure, replacing removed ground floor walls, is actually a 3
steel structure which is clad in mass concrete (Figs 8 & 9). We needed
fire protection to the steel beams and columns and had decided that
plasterboard would be unsatisfactory (we didn’t like the thinness of it).
10 11
The pouring of the concrete fire-proof ‘cladding’ was actually very
complex and difficult (not that we realised it at the time). We specified
a board-marked finish for the columns - but the contractor had no Fig 6 Pre-cast Island Unit in Production, House 01, 2007
experience of how to achieve the finish. One of the columns had to be Fig 7 Pre-cast island unit, hearth and cast-on-site flue gather in place, House 01, 2008
cast 3 times before the finish was acceptable. We were lucky though; Fig 8-9 Mass concrete being cast around steel structure, House 02, 2007 (before and after)
the contractor freely admitted his inexperience (we were less free in Fig 10-11 The external concrete landscape, 4House, 2010 (before and after)

83 How We Practice 84
2.3

admitting ours) and was willing to keep recasting until the finish to the
columns was right.

In the next new-build house (4House, 2011) our confidence grew. We

were still using concrete like a product (ref. windows sills) but now we
started using it as landscape (Figs 10 & 11); to make stepped floors and
4
a terrace with a bench and wood store.

Included in the timeline is a project, I was involved with which isn’t by

TAKA architects. While we were building our first three projects, I was
working for another Practice at the same time. I was project architect for
a large house (Garryhill, 2011) whose complex ground floor structure 12 13
was exposed reinforced concrete. We worked closely with the contractor
and specialist concrete subcontractor to ensure the correct procedures
were adhered to – formwork setting out drawings, sequencing, on-site
testing, samples, etc. I learned that concrete is all about preparation. 5

However, despite the thorough preparation, the concrete in places was

far from successful and required extensive remedial and repair work.
The specialist subcontractor was less experienced with high quality
concrete than he implied at the start of the contract. Repair work in 15
concrete is never satisfactory and, if the subcontractor lacks skill or
experience, no amount of preparation will compensate.
14
We went to a lot of trouble to expose the concrete finish in internal
rooms and to ensure it was of high enough quality to withstand daily
scrutiny. However, we hadn’t really made the client aware of the internal
finish and they didn’t like it. Plasterboard was applied over all internal 6
concrete surfaces. A hard lesson to learn about communication with
your client.

Despite the failures, I learnt a lot from this project and carried that
experience forward to the next few projects in TAKA. We continued to
expand our use of concrete. We were becoming more comfortable with 16 17
trial and error and made sure to include in the specification document
for multiple samples to test finishes and details. We also made sure to Fig 12-13 The retaining wall holding back the garden, Sandford Ave, 2012 (before and after)
include for time to make these samples. Fig 14-15 Complex concrete structure and walls, Merrion Cricket Club, 2013 (before and after)
Fig 16-17 Concrete wall protecting timber structure, Sandford Mews, 2013 (before and after)

85 How We Practice 86
2.3

We refined our specification to clearly identify what ‘defects’ were

acceptable or unacceptable, giving a clear standard of finish which
allowed us to condemn work which had too many faults. Part of the
learning process of working with concrete (and perhaps construction
in general) is that there is no such thing as ‘perfect’ – just an acceptable
level of imperfect.

18 19

20 21

23

22

Fig 18-19 Concrete landscape in rear garden, Waterloo Lane, 2013 (before and after)
Fig 20-21 Concrete table and ornamental paving, St. Patrick’s Park, 2014 (before and after)
Fig 22-23 Concrete base and stairs, Clonskeagh Road, 2013 (before and after)

87 How We Practice 88
 2.3

Merrion Cricket Club

A Case Study of Trial and Error
We designed the most complex concrete work to date in a new sports
pavilion at Merrion Cricket Club in Ballsbridge, Dublin (2014). I
had recently learnt that my research is most effective when it looks
8 The transcription at something specific or particular8 – so I decided to focus on some
for PRS02 (2013) particular ‘moments’ in the construction of the pavilion.
of an actual design
conversation between
myself and Cian for a It is impossible to describe a whole process in full so I hoped that
competition project the focus on these ‘moments’ would provide effective insight into the
was for me, by far, the contingent realm of Construction in general, and our venturous practice
most useful piece of
in particular.
our research at that
time. It showed that
insight can come Advice
from the simple
But before I delved into the nitty gritty of site, I needed to look at one
observation of an
actual process. more important element – Advice. When thinking about ‘trial and error’
as a working method, I realised that advice forms an integral part of the
process; by asking other people you take advantage of their experiences
in similar situations. I decided to look at the advice we took in relation
to the concrete for the Cricket Club – both at design/specification stage
and during construction.

The idea of looking at advice in Practice (in fact, the whole idea of
focussing on concrete as a case study of trial and error) came from an
email (Fig 24) we received from a small, recently-formed practice in
London. They were asking advice about the specification of the water-
proof concrete in the Cricket Club.

I sent a short enough reply (Fig 24) and attached a general concrete
9 ‘A Guide to specification document9; which, rather appropriately, we had been
Specifying Visual given by another Practice. But after sending the email, I recognised the
Concrete’ from
‘Innovations in
insufficiency of the reply (of any reply which wasn’t 20 pages long) and
Concrete’ by David felt a sense of dread for the practice and for the ‘trials’ and ‘errors’ they
Bennett, given to us were about to go through.
by Clancy Moore
Architects
The email exchange encouraged me to look at the advice we ourselves
took for the concrete in the Cricket Club. By looking at the advice for
this particular project, I could then extrapolate to how we as a Practice
Fig 24 Email exchange which inspired me to carry out a study of how we learned to make concrete, Feb 2015
use advice in our practice (and perhaps even to how architects use

89 How We Practice 90
2.3

advice in Practice in general).

Over the course of the study, I realised that I could categorise the advice
we took under 4 headings (Fig 25):

Advice from Within our own experience of concrete

in previous projects, detailed
above
Advice from the Profession asking other architects and
colleagues
Advice from the Industry asking other professions and
professional bodies
Advice from the Maker asking the people who are
making the concrete

General advice from the Industry tends to be, by its nature, unspecific.
Advice (like my research) is most helpful when it is particular. But being
particular carries risk (especially in the litigious construction industry),
which is why Industry advice is usually either vague and generalised or
incredibly technical and difficult to access.

A more useful port of call may be your professional colleagues – as they

are usually less concerned about you suing them for misinformation.
As a practice TAKA are very lucky. As described in previous chapters,
we work within a close-knit group of architects, based in Dublin, who
exchange information freely. I asked Andrew Clancy of Clancy Moore
Architects for his advice on casting the columns in the Cricket Club (fig
26), as I knew Clancy Moore had completed a project (Extension to the
Lake House, 2009) with similar concrete elements (fig 27).

Andrew very kindly gave me lots of detailed technical advice about

testing of formwork and clamps and the value of specialist input at
design stage. The information was very interesting but (and this may be
a characteristic which differentiates our practice from theirs and is, in no
way, a commentary on the information itself or their practice) we chose Fig 25 An analysis of Advice sought for Merrion Cricket Club, PRS 04, Ghent, Apr 2015
to ignore his advice; we tend not to want to engage with construction at
91 How We Practice 92
2.3

that kind of level. We prefer to be wilfully naïve.

A NOTE ABOUT KNOWLEDGE IN PRACTICE

“The key is knowing enough to make intelligent decisions but not so
much that you’re inhibited by how difficult something is to do.
or
Be wilfully naïve”
Extract from presentation for PRS04, Alice Casey, Ghent, April 2015

We later asked the advice of another colleague, Ryan Kennihan with

similar useful/useless results. (See construction case study on later pages.)

Advice from Makers is more difficult to assess. It rarely comes without a

subtext, i.e., the advice is more often than not coloured by the implications
of decisions on cost, time or difficulty. But rather than try to describe
this here, I think the construction case studies, on the following pages,
illustrate it more effectively.

26 27

Fig 26 Concrete colonnade in Merrion Cricket Club, 2014, TAKA Architects

Fig 27 Concrete colonnade in Extension to the Lake House, 2009, Clancy Moore Architects

93 How We Practice 94
2.3

Introduction
CONSTRUCTION CASE STUDIES Contract drawings and specification establish the form and technical
A look at difficult moments in the construction of Merrion Cricket Club aspects of concrete elements and set the parameters for the finish.
However, the CHARACTER of the concrete is established on site
through the negotiation of the particular qualities below:
 
FORM
Detailed setting out, Complex geometry

FINISH
Colour, What do we mean by fair-faced, ground finish, etc?

MAKING
Control of the impact of the making process on the final product – tie-
holes, formwork joints, day work and expansion joints, etc.

REPAIR
Which defects are acceptable and which are not?, How/When do we
repair?
 
How are these difficult and uncertain qualities communicated/
negotiated between the Architect and the Contractor (Maker)?

Fig 1 Merrion Cricket Club under construction with concrete batching plant (in blue) on the left, TAKA, 2014

95 How We Practice 96
2.3

DRAWINGS AND SPECIFICATION

The ‘contract’ drawings and specification (the information the
Contractor receives to enable him to build the building) establish the
form (the concrete’s general shape) and technical aspects (how it stands
up, holds back water, etc) of the concrete.
 
For tender and construction, we make a very detailed series of drawings
and accompany them with a detailed specification document. The
contractor has all this information at tender stage.
 
On the left are some samples of the types of drawings we make (the
concrete is highlighted in yellow for this document). The concrete is
drawn as an outline; a simple shape without reference to reinforcement
or formwork.

Our specification document details the mix (with reference to colour,

etc), the different types of finishes we require and what is, and is not,
acceptable in terms of visible defects.
 
Despite all this detailed information, considerable on site testing and
negotiations take place in order to establish the character and detail of
the concrete.

The following case studies illustrate some of the processes involved

in the making of (beautiful) concrete for Merrion Cricket Club.

Fig 2 Construction drawings detailing the form of concrete beams and columns, TAKA, 2012

97 How We Practice 98
2.3

CASE STUDY 1
Understanding Limitations (or failing at being wilfully naïve)

THE PROBLEM
There was a problem with the setting out of the building form. We
didn’t know how to set out the complex geometry we had designed and
we kept ignoring the foreman when he told us it was a problem.

4 The complex geometry of the built form was derived from the simple
geometry of an abstract form. We thought the contractor could use these
theoretical points to imply the geometry of the building.

We thought that locating the main setting out points in 3 dimensions

was sufficient and that all other setting out issues were the contractors
1 2 3
problem. We didn’t want to become responsible for mistakes which
weren’t under our direct control.

(Contractually we were correct but, in practice, he needed more

information and we were best placed to provide it)

Key
1 The simple geometry of the theoretical form
2 How the irregular plan form relates to the
theoretical setting out form
3 Setting out points of building form, located in 3
dimensions using grid
references
4 The building set out in plan on the site

Fig 3 Extract from setting out drawing, 2012

99 How We Practice 100

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – Those points are fine for setting out in plan, but

I’m not sure we can set out the volume using points
only

T – Why not?

C – How do we mark a point in space and keep that

DISTILLED CONVERSATIONS point marked during construction?
For the purposes of this study, I used a technique of remembered
conversations as a research tool. They are an effective means of T – The setting out methodology is the Contractor’s
communicating both the tone and content of the exchanges on site. responsibility but…
However, they are not direct transcriptions of actual conversations. can you use poles and string? 1

C – No. The poles and string would get in the way of

formwork.

T – The setting out methodology is the Contractor’s

responsibility…
can you use a Total Station? 2

C – No
C – There’s another problem anyway...
Key
1 It’s never any harm to ask a stupid question
2 We didn’t really know how a total station works

Fig 4 Construction Conversation 01

101 How We Practice 102

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – One of your setting out points is inaccessible.

1
T – But can you not set out all other points, and
imply the inaccessible one?

C – No

(We trusted the foreman and so had to believe him

when he said it wasn’t possible)

T – Maybe a model will help you understand the

geometry?

Key
1 One of the setting out points was located on
neighbouring land and could not be accessed by the
Contractor

Fig 5 Extract from setting out drawing indicating problematic setting out point, 2013 Fig 6 Construction conversation 02

103 How We Practice 104

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – That doesn’t help.

C – Maybe if you told me the slopes of each roof
1 plane?

T – OK. But the setting out is still your

responsibility

Key
1 Maybe this might help? We can make a model of
it so why can’t you make the building?

Fig 7 Foam-board model of building form, TAKA, 2012 Fig 8 Construction Conversation 03

105 How We Practice 106

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – That helps a bit more but what I really need to

know is the form of each beam.

T – But can you not use the building form geometry

and roof slopes to work out the form of each beam?

C – The form of the beams changes as you move

along the slope

T – ??????
1

Key
1 We (grudgingly) gave the contractor the pitches
of the roof slopes. However, we still wanted the
contractor to infer the building form from the
abstract form, as we felt this was the only way to
ensure accuracy of the geometry. We still didn’t
really understand what the problem was though.

Fig 9 Construction Sketch, TAKA, 2014 Fig 10 Construction Conversation 04

107 How We Practice 108

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

3A

2 3 3C

3B

Key Notes
1 We drew a series of outline sections through the building form to try and - We felt like idiots
understand what the Contractor was talking about.
2 The problem immediately became obvious. As you moved along the
length of the beam (which wasn’t perpendicular to the roof pitch) the slope
of the top surface of the beam changed.
3 When we drew sections through the beams themselves we realised
that with the changing top slope (3A), stepping bottom surface (3B) and
recessed gutter detail (3C), the beams were extremely difficult objects to
set out.

Fig 11 Series of outline sections through building form, TAKA, 2014 Fig 12 Series of sections through concrete beam, TAKA, 2014

109 How We Practice 110

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

Key
1 The beams were VERY complicated

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – I need sections through the highest and lowest

point of every beam type.

T – But that means you’re reliant on the accuracy of

1
OUR drawings, in terms of ensuring the geometry
will be correct.

C – I can’t think of any other way to do it

2 3 1
T – OK … but it’s still your problem if anything
goes wrong

Key
1 Our drawings don’t take into account any potential
misalignments or changes due to site issues or features. We
were worried. There was potential for the drawings to be correct
in relation to themselves but not in relation to the object as
constructed on site.
2 We decided, in the interests of the project, to take the risk and
to set out each beam.
3 But we still told the Contractor that it was his responsibility
(this was an obfuscation of the actual contractual liability –
which was ours; as we were the ones who would be issuing the
information)

Fig 13 Construction Conversation 05 Fig 14 Setting out of each beam in section, TAKA, 2014

111 How We Practice 112

2.3

CASE STUDY 1

Key
1 A correct, smooth transition of beams
2 Cian looking worried
3 In places the beams were misaligned. We’re still not sure why.
The mistakes weren’t repaired though as they weren’t visible at
ground level
CASE STUDY 1
Conclusion
It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that just because you can draw
(or model) something, then it can be easily built.

1 We tried to close our eyes and ears to the problems the Contractor
was having, only engaging enough to state his responsibilities and give
minimal information. (It was the beginning of the contract and we didn’t
want to set a precedent for having to solve every little problem on site.)
We were trying, and failing, to be ‘wilfully naïve’.
2
3
I think the strategy failed because we didn’t fully understand the
problem. It is significant that we only began to understand the issue
when we started to search for the answer through drawing. Drawing was
both the problem AND the solution.

The next Case Study will show how ‘being wilfully naïve’ can be a
successful strategy.
Notes
- We spent a lot of time and effort in the Cricket Club trying to
communicate how the beams should be made/set out.
- In the end, only a few are actually visible from ground
level. Those that ARE visible are generally the ones where the
geometry wasn’t really a concern.

Fig 15 A correct alignment of beams

Fig 16 A misaligned junction of 2 beams

113 How We Practice 114

2.3

CASE STUDY 2
Being Determined (or succeeding at being wilfully naïve)

THE PROBLEM
On the rear elevations of the cricket pavilion, we wanted to cast the
1
structural ring beam directly on top of the stepped brickwork wall
below. We wanted the outer face of the beam to be flush with the outer
face of the supporting wall underneath. The combination of tautness
2 and elaboration was important to us.

For tender, we drew the wall as we wanted; annotating the unusual

arrangement but without giving any direction as to how it might be
achieved. (see following page)

We hadn’t realised what a difficult detail it was; especially having the

concrete beam flush with the outer face of the brickwork. The main
problem was in ensuring the formwork was watertight (and didn’t leak
concrete on to the brickwork) while maintaining the flush junction with
the brick and seamless face of the beam.

Key
1 The concrete ring beam
2 The stepped brickwork

Fig 1 Card model showing rear wall of Merrion Cricket Club, TAKA, 2014

115 How We Practice 116

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

Key
1 Annotation indicating unusual arrangement of
concrete beam cast directly on to stepped brickwork
2 Section drawing showing outer face of concrete
beam flush with outer face of brickwork below

Fig 2 Extract from General Arrangement elevation construction drawing, TAKA, 2013 Fig 3 Extract from Detail Section construction drawing, TAKA, 2013

117 How We Practice 118

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

TAKA and CONTRACTOR

C – We know you don’t like tie-holes and repairs. We

can’t think of a way to cast the beam on top of the
sloped masonry without visible tie-holes.

T – Can you clamp the formwork above and below

the beam?

C – Clamped formwork isn’t really water-tight. We’re 1

concerned you’ll get overspill on to the brickwork
below.

T – We’ve definitely seen beams cast onto masonry

without tie-holes before.

C – Where?

T – A friend of ours has done them like this…

Key
T – I’ll ask him how he did it 1 Concrete ring beam cast flush with wall below, in
project designed by our friend and colleague, Ryan
Kennihan

Fig 4 Construction Conversation 06 Fig 5 Vita House Family Centre, Roscommon by Ryan Kennihan Architects

119 How We Practice 120

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

TAKA and COLLEAGUE (Ryan Kennihan)

T – You’ve cast beams without tie-holes on to

masonry walls before. How did you do it?

R – I don’t know actually. The Contractor just did it. 1 2

T – Do you think he clamped the formwork?

3
R – Yeah probably

T – Clamped formwork isn’t as tight as tied

formwork. How did you get over the problem of
overspill onto the wall below?

R – We didn’t really. In any project where we’ve done

it, the beam was over-cast so that the wall could be
rendered below. The render then covered up the
overspill from the formwork.

T – Ah…that doesn’t help us at all. Thanks.

Key
1 Ryan obviously had succeeded with ‘Being Wilfully
Naïve’
2 Concrete ring beam without tie-holes by Ryan
Kennihan
3 Beam overhangs wall by c.30mm to enable wall to
be rendered below, concealing any leakage or overspill
from the pouring of the concrete beam.

Fig 6 Construction Conversation 06 Fig 7 Leagaun House, Galway by Ryan Kennihan Architects

121 How We Practice 122

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

TRIAL AND ERROR

Our strategy at this stage became one of trial and error. ‘You cast us a
sample and we’ll see if we like it’.
TAKA and CONTRACTOR
We had included for multiple samples in our tender documentation, so
C – Also because of the problem of overspill, we need
the cost of this was not an issue to the contractor. However time WAS
to cast a chamfer into the bottom of the beam to make
becoming an issue.
a proper seal between the formwork and the wall.
We (and the contractor) needed to find a solution quickly in order to
T – Can you cast us a sample on to brickwork,
avoid delaying the progress of the works.
making the formwork the way you think it has to be?
Allowing the contractor to choose how he cast the beam sample also
made him take ownership of the result.

Fig 8 Construction Conversation 08

123 How We Practice 124

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

3
2

1 TAKA and CONTRACTOR

T – That’s pretty ugly…

C – Yeah it’s not great…but we think we may have

found a way to seal the formwork against the wall
without the chamfer. Look at the back of the sample.

Key
1 The chamfer cast into the bottom of the beam, to
ensure water-tight seal against formwork
2 Tie-holes at each step in the beam. These were
to ensure the formwork was firmly attached to the
wall.
3 Cian and John (the structural engineer) looking
at the back of the sample

Fig 9 Site photo of stepped beam sample, TAKA, 2014 Fig 10 Construction Conversation 09

125 How We Practice 126

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

MAKING PROGRESS
The concrete subcontractor had tried, on the rear of the sample, an
1 alternative method of sealing the formwork to the brickwork. Instead of
the chamfer, he was proposing to use silicone to seal the formwork. We
still had tie-holes though.

It was much better... but we still had concerns

Key
1 The junction between the concrete formwork and
the brickwork was sealed with silicone or mastic
instead of a chamfer bead. This allowed for a ‘flush’
junction with the brickwork.

Fig 11 Site photo of rear of stepped beam sample, TAKA, 2014

127 How We Practice 128

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

TAKA and CONTRACTOR Extract from Site Meeting Minutes

T – That’s much better. Are you confident that the - Beam sample showing junction
silicone won’t leak at all? between brick and concrete inspected. Rear
face shows mastic joint, front face shows
C – Not as confident as with the chamfer detail. chamfered joint (chamfer had not been filled
with mortar). Tie-holes noted at each step in
T – The chamfer will have a big effect on the brickwork.
Architecture of the beam. - Either junction detail is acceptable. 2
M&P to confirm which will be installed. New
T – But we still don’t want overspill on to the tie-hole detail to be confirmed.
brickwork. I don’t want to instruct the silicone detail
then have them (the concrete subcontractor) tell me
its not their fault if the formwork leaks.

C – Why not give them the choice between the 2

details, then they’ll have to take responsibility for
whichever one they choose? 1

T – What if they choose the horrible one? Key

1 We had a good relationship with the contractor
C - To be honest, I think it’s much easier for the but hadn’t had time to develop the same sort of
relationship with the concrete subcontractor.
Concrete subcontractor to do, so I think they’ll
2 Giving the subcontractor the choice between the
prefer the silicone detail. sealing details (even though we really only wanted
one) was a calculated risk. We needed them to take
T – OK – good plan. responsibility both technically AND aesthetically
for the detail

Fig 12 Construction Conversation 10

129 How We Practice 130

2.3

CASE STUDY 2
Key
1 New tie-hole detail (barely visible)
2 Junction of beam and brickwork without chamfer
(and no overspill)
3 Cast lettering which we never got to work
correctly
TAKA and SUBCONTRACTOR

T – The tie-holes in the 1st sample are a real

problem, visually.

S – But we can just repair them afterward…

Notes
T – You and I both know that repairs in Concrete are Our strategy seemed to work. The
subcontractor came up with creative
always visible. It would only look slightly better after solutions for both the sealing detail
repair. and the tie-hole problem.
3
T – You have loads of experience. Surely there’s We contributed no technical
knowledge to this discussion, other
another way? 1 than asking the subcontractor to
think harder about the detail and
C – Well….we could try using a wire, run through 1 enabling an environment which
the brickwork mortar bed and the bottom of the allowed him to test potential
solutions.
beam to tie the formwork to the wall, instead of 2
standard ties.

T – Will that still leave a hole in the beam?

C – Yes but it will be much smaller.

T – OK – lets see it in a sample

Key
1 Being wilfully naïve. We don’t really want to
know how they do it, just that they can.

Fig 13 Construction Conversation 11 Fig 14 Site photo of the final successful sample, TAKA, 2014

131 How We Practice 132

2.3

CASE STUDY 2

CASE STUDY 2
Conclusion
Our abstract decision to leave the bricks uncut and to make the concrete
ring beam flush with the wall below, was made on the computer screen.
We made the decision for ideological (we don’t like cut bricks) and
aesthetic (we like elaborate things, the building form should be taut)
2 reasons.
3
We could have succumbed to the pressure to simplify the detail for ease
of construction. But part of being venturous is being determined; not
1 letting pragmatic difficulties overwhelm the poetic ambition.

Of course, there are instances where the difficulty outweighs the

ambition – the recessed concrete lettering was one. But we weigh the
loss to the project as an idea or object, against the loss to the project as a
prosaic entity – in terms of budget, time, client expectations, etc.

We pick our battles.

Part of being ‘Being Wilfully Naïve’ means only engaging with the
technicalities of the process enough to facilitate others finding a solution
to a problem. (This also decreases the professional risk of being wrong)

We learnt enough through the ‘trial and error’ of making samples, and
through seeking advice from our colleagues, to be able to guide the
process; but not so much that we felt obliged to solve the problem
ourselves.
Key
1 The stepped beam flush with the brickwork
2 A smooth transition at the corner
3 A seamless face, without chamfer or tie-holes

Fig 15 Rear corner of clubhouse, Alice Clancy, 2014

133 How We Practice 134

 2.3

How We Practice - Conclusion

Heuristic10 Strategies
10 An approach to But my investigation also shows how our buildings themselves are a
problem solving, I have come to realise that the concrete study (preceding pages) is a
form of trial and error. We learn from project to project, hopefully getting
learning, or discovery distillation of our practice methods; it is a microcosm of the Practice
more skilful each time. In the chapter 1.6 Compound Living, I describe
that employs a in general. The skills (inter-personal, practical, professional) employed
practical method how our first projects established this way of operating in our Practice.
in the service of learning to design and make (beautiful) concrete, are
not guaranteed to be
optimal or perfect, the same skills we employ every day, in other aspects of our practice.
We were designing and building for friends and family, who allowed
but sufficient for the Our apprenticeship in (beautiful) concrete is a metaphor for our
us more leeway with experimental designs and details than a formal
immediate goals. apprenticeship in (venturous) practice11.
client. But we were more tied to the projects; we had to deal with the
11 In the same consequences of any failures. As a result, we aren’t intimidated by the
manner as the ‘Small Creativity is inherently full of failure and being venturous is full of risk.
uncertainty of building. Success isn’t necessarily tied to how perfect the
Things’ drawing is a Both are difficult and uncertain.
metaphor for how we final building is or how perfect the process was.
design and research
But, on a day-to-day basis, TAKA Architects is careful; careful not to
Trial and Error also inflects how we view our projects. In the next
be sued, careful not to take on more work than we can resource, careful
chapter, I show how we test physical aspects of our buildings; stretching
with our clients, careful to do everything well. However, as a practice,
and distorting physical qualities from project to project. In the same
we have completed a relatively high number of buildings for our age;
manner as casting samples on site, when we make something, we look
we are also risk-takers. Building anything is a risk. But we would rather
at it; usually a part or fragment of a building, and sometimes through
build and risk being wrong, than not build at all.
the examination of the professional photographs we commission. We
then go on to try and make a better/different version in the next project.
So how do we reconcile our careful nature with our risky ambitions?
I show how this process can proceed until the original element being
13 The roof joists in tested or examined is almost unrecognisable13. Trial and error is a
The first step in dealing with risk and uncertainty is preparation; House 02 becoming design method which allows us to develop our design thinking from
something which all practices must carry out, to one degree or another. the cloud-like roof
project to project.
We tend to prepare a lot, drawing and specifying as much as we can in structure in the
advance; but this is not (except in a lateral way) the focus of my research. competition entry for
Glasnevin Chapel. Strategy 2 – Advice
My investigation into the use of Concrete in our practice has enabled me When thinking about advice, I see that it can be viewed in both narrow
12 In the interests
to identify some heuristic methods we use to deal with risk12, uncertainty and broad terms.
of clarity, when I talk
about risk, I mean all and difficulty. These have developed over time into strategies which we
types of risk; be they now consciously employ in our daily work. The concrete study describes the different types of technical and
creative, professional, professional advice we seek in our day to day practice. In simple terms,
risk to reputation or
we talk to people who have done similar things to what we’re hoping to
technical. All carry Strategy 1 – Trial and Error
real consequences for do. But this can come with difficulties, so we also filter that advice (see
On site, we use the literal ‘trial and error’ of casting and recasting
failure. ‘being wilfully naïve’ below), and tailor it to suit our needs or ambitions.
samples, to establish the desired character of concrete – something
which no amount of pre-site preparation can accommodate. We ensure
Asking for advice on a construction site is a double-edged sword. To
our documentation specifies that enough time is assigned by the
seem too naïve is detrimental. We seek advice without actually asking
Contractor in the building programme for this process. Overcoming
for it – involving the subcontractor in fabrication decisions, without
failure takes time and patience.
acceding control of the final product to him (see ‘strategic minutes’ in
135 How We Practice 136
2.3

construction case study). Rather than making a complete study of what we mean to do and then
choosing the best option, we jump in and choose the most expedient
On a broader spectrum, our urge to visit buildings can be seen as a course which achieves our ambitions. We make mistakes and we learn
form of advice-seeking. We are asking the buildings which have gone from them. We don’t pretend that we’re experts.
before us, how they managed to do something well (or badly). For
Merrion Cricket Club, we asked Siza in the Boa Nova teahouse about We have developed our heuristic methods while learning on the job.
how to make a beautiful roof overhang. For House 01 and 02, we asked While they are conscious methods we use, up to this point, we have
Lewerentz in Klippan about brickwork. We continually ask Kahn about not articulated them in any clear way. They began as a series of ad hoc
windows and form-making. responses to situations we found ourselves in, and have since matured
into a sort of ‘professional wisdom’. They have been established over
Paradoxically, a lot of our advice-seeking comes out of bloody- time in our practice, through an experiential learning process. The PhD
mindedness; of being told that something is not possible or too difficult. has enabled me to articulate them as strategies; learning by (reflection
We don’t seek out difficulty (we appreciate an easy life) but if something on) doing.
is important, we ask and ask until we find an answer we can work with.

Strategy 3 – Being Wilfully Naive

The third strategy ‘Being Wilfully Naïve’ is both complementary
and contradictory to the preceding strategies, ‘Advice’ and ‘Trial and
Error’. We want to know, but we don’t want to know too much. We ask
advice but are careful not to be over-whelmed by information. Naivete
is an inherent component of the trial and error method; not knowing
something is as important as knowing. ‘Not knowing’ leaves space to
find out new ways of doing things; a vital aspect of venturous practice.

I define ‘Being Wilfully Naïve’ as knowing enough to make intelligent

decisions, but not so much that you’re inhibited by how difficult
something is to do; or ‘too much knowledge can be a bad thing’. It is a
way of being aware of the risks and difficulty, but not being intimidated
by them. Rather than turning a blind eye, it is like wearing an eye patch,
which can be lifted when you choose.

Heuristics
A heuristic method is any approach to problem solving, learning, or
discovery that employs a practical method not guaranteed to be optimal
or perfect, but sufficient for the immediate goals. For me, this is the
definition of what it means to be working in Practice.

137 How We Practice 138

2.3

Chapter References
Bennett, D., 2002. A Guide to Specifying Visual Concrete. s.l.: Thomas
Telford Ltd .
Blythe, R., 2013. The Ticklish Subject of Architecture. IAAC, Barcelona, s.n.
Blythe, R., 2016. An Epistemology of Venturous Practice. In: s.l.:RMIT
University, p. 1.
Clancy Moore Architects, 2009. Extension to the Lake House. s.l.:s.n.
de Paor Architects, 2011. Garryhill. Howth, Co. Dublin: s.n.
Deegan, C., 2015. Inflection and Resolution. Ghent, s.n.
Leon van Schaik, S. W. C. F. a. G. L., 2012. The Practice of Spatial Thinking:
Differentiation Processes. Melbourne: onepointsixone.
Ryan W Kennihan Architects, 2013. Leagaun House. s.l.:s.n.
Ryan W Kennihan Architects, 2013. Vita House Family Centre. s.l.:s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2009. House 01. Donnybrook, Dublin: s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2009. House 02. Donnybrook, Dublin: s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2010. Wynnsward Park. Clonskeagh, Dublin: s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2011. 4House. Firhouse, Dublin: s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2013. Clonskeagh Road. Clonskeagh, Dublin: s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2013. Waterloo Lane. Ballsbridge, Dublin : s.n.
TAKA Architects, 2014. Merrion Cricket Club. Ballsbridge, Dublin: s.n.

139 How We Practice 140

 How We Design

3.0 2.1
2.0
2.4 1.4
 2.4 How We Design
Distilling, Exaggerating and Intensifying Character

Introduction
Over the course of my research, I carried out a series of enquiries into
the character of our work, and how it came to be the way that it is. In the
following essay, I will summarise the sequence of the investigation and
the insights which arose.

These findings form the main body of my research and were carried
out during the period from PRS 03 to PRS 06 in which I was working
1 as opposed to the separately from Cian1. They have inflected and influenced all other parts
period (pre-PRS, PRS
of my research2, and have begun to influence our practice thinking.
01, PRS 02) when
I was researching
jointly with Cian The focus of this chapter is the character (or the tangible presence) of
our work. The physical experience of the building is the driving force
2 Described in earlier
chapters behind much of our design decisions. What follows is an examination of
the development of our attitude towards this tangible presence and, as
a result, the identification of some of our Practice’s fundamental design
methods and aims.

Rejecting the typological view

In the early stages of the PhD, to dissect or analyse the work, usually the
first instinct is to try and find connections or common threads between
different projects within the practice. Some have called this ‘playing
Happy Families’ i.e. trying to find families of projects. This can lead to
categorisation of projects under certain typologies.

However, I found it difficult to classify our projects in this way. Initially,

I found the idea of grouping of our projects under types to be too
simplistic. I felt I would be forcing a typological connection where there
3 This view is from may have been none.
the beginning of
my research. It is
reflective of how we
We like to think of our buildings as assemblies3 (Fig 1) and are interested
thought before we in the tectonic expression of those assemblies (Fig 2-3). A key factor in
entered the PRS the physical experience (or character) of our buildings is the tectonic;
process. The research the physical expression of how a building is made.
contained in the rest
of this essay has been
the driving force So, instead of making families of buildings, I had an idea that it might be
behind my realisation more productive to make families of building details. I felt the ‘common
that our work has a ground’ between projects was in tectonic, rather than typological, terms. Fig 1 buildings as assembly, exploded aco, 4House, TAKA Architects
spatial intent.

143 How We Design 144

 2.4

Key
1. Sketched section fragment of eaves detail in House 01
2. Note the ‘ghostly’ fragment of the Ise Shrine in Japan, which is
re-imagined in the House 01 detail. We were visiting Ise when we drew
these sketches.
3. A developed sketch of the eaves detail in axonometric. The form of
the detail has developed primarily to express the layered nature of the
roof and wall construction, as a response to what we saw in Ise.

3
2

2 3 4 5

Fig 2 the development of tectonic expression in a building detail, House 01, initial sketch, 2006 Fig 4 the developed technical section fragment, House 01, 2007
Fig 3 the development of tectonic expression in a building detail,, House 01, developed sketch, 2006 Fig 5 the profiled outline of the technical section, 2014

145 How We Design 146

2.4

The Expression of the Tectonic in a Building Detail In reflecting on tectonic expression, I came to realise that there is a
When we talk about detail we are often really talking about profile. We spatial agenda at play in our work. In basic terms, I began to think that
are looking to create shadow (profile) or not (flatness). Shadow is the the expression of the junctions was making particular types of spaces.
physical means by which the eye distinguishes between elements. A This was a new realisation for us, as a Practice, and required further
Practice which is concerned with the expression of a Tectonic seeks to exploration.
create shadow, to clearly express a distinction between constructional
elements. Profile in Section
As discussed above, weight and thickness are important to us. They
We create profile (shadow) by ‘pushing and pulling’ the surface of the are communicated through the expression of the tectonic and by
detail (Figs 4-5), by carving out space between elements, by creating gaps creating profile (Fig 5) in a detail. Profile is best expressed in Section.
between things. All to create a visual differentiation between building Of all the drawings we make, the technical construction drawings best
components. But why do we want to create this visual differentiation demonstrate our interest in tectonic expression; and the technical section
between parts? drawings best demonstrate our interest in profile.

Initially the desire for our buildings to have a clear tectonic expression So I thought that, in trying to find connections between projects and
was a reaction to the almost paper-thin quality of some contemporary to explore my new realisation regarding spatiality, perhaps it may be
Architecture. It felt unsatisfying to work on projects where the primary more useful to compare projects using the technical section drawings.
focus was on making beautiful Surfaces. The experience of some of Perhaps the sections would tell the story more clearly of how our interest
these paper-like spaces was like floating in a void – with no edges to in assembly leads to repeated architectural and spatial themes or motifs?
enclose you or projections to grasp on to. The spaces feel like you can
easily slip from one to the other without much sense of passing through Taking a technical section of each of our significant (to us) projects,
anything. I examined the junction details in terms of their spatial rather than
tectonic qualities. The idea was to challenge our notion that the tangible
We were interested in making buildings which had thickness and presence of the buildings was solely a result of our interest in assembly.
weight. Tectonic expression is really the expression of the passage of I wanted to explore what Simon Pendal refers to as the ‘Material Space’4
Gravity. By expressing something’s weight and how that weight is borne 4 From Pendal’s
of the buildings.
presentation for
by other elements, we communicate the intrinsic nature of the Building. PRS 01, ‘Unfurling
worlds and lingering In order to explore the idea of junctions making space further, I needed a
So, in showing how one element bears on another, we make gaps impressions’, Practice fresh way of looking at our technical drawings. In one of the universities
between elements by creating profile in a detail. Gaps then express Research Symposium
(Queen’s University Belfast) in which I taught, the students have an
(Australia), 2013
thickness, which results in particular spatial qualities. assignment in which they, as a cohort, create a taxonomy of a particular
building element – window, floor stair – drawing and modelling
For example, by placing a gap between building elements or components, archetypal examples.
we make a space or void between them. This void can be at the scale of 5 ‘Stair Rooms’ 2012,
an eaves detail (House 01) (Fig 4); or at the scale of a large threshold ‘The Elaborated
The drawings (Fig 6) they make are standardised and are usually
Window’ 2013,
space like the viewing terrace in Merrion Cricket Club. Both instances ‘The Constructed beautifully descriptive. They omit all technical detail (usually due to
occur because of the desire to make a visual differentiation between Floor’ 2014, Queen’s lack of available information) and focus on the tangible presence of
parts, and are founded in our interest in tectonic expression. Architectural Press whatever precedent is being studied. A book5 is made at the end of the
147 How We Design 148
2.4

Key Key
1. Section through ‘The Casino at Marino’, Dublin 1. The original technical construction section, illustrating the building
2. All technical detail is omitted. The drawings focus on the as an assembly
tangible presence or physical experience of the building 2. The profiled outline section which helped me examine the spaces
created by the technical details

2 7

8
6

Fig 6 Extract from ‘The Elaborated Window’, Queens Architectural Press Fig 7 a technical construction section, House 01, 2007
Fig 8 a profiled outline section, House 01, 2014

149 How We Design 150

 2.4 Key
1. Spatial Intentions
2. Spatial devices marked by colour coded circles on the Profile Sections

semester with these standardised drawings and sometimes more poetic

models and impressions. The comparison of the standard drawings (at
the same scale) can be revelatory.

In the spirit of the students’ drawings, I took the primary technical

section (Fig 7) of each ‘significant’ project and removed the technical
information, leaving the profiled outline of the section only (Fig 8). The
goal was to step back from viewing the section as purely an expression
of the tectonic assembly. Somewhat paradoxically, removing the idea of
construction helped me examine the ‘material space’.

I made a chronological array (Fig 9) of the ‘profile sections’ to enable me

to compare projects and looked closely to find similarities in the form
or intention of the building junctions. I marked and colour-coded the
similar building details on the array (Fig 10) and found I could group
9
them together into families (which I call ‘Spatial Devices’), and then the
families together under themes (which I call ‘Spatial Intentions’). 1

It is worth noting that while the Spatial Devices (although unnamed

until the PhD) ARE conscious physical mechanisms which we use
while designing, the Spatial Intentions were not - but are nevertheless
apparent throughout our projects from 2007-2014.

Spatial Devices and Intentions 2

A Spatial Device is a physical arrangement with a particular spatial
intention. A Spatial Intention is the purposeful production of a particular
type of spatial experience. The Spatial Devices are the mechanism
6 These are my own
definitions of these
through which the Spatial Intentions are realised6.
terms, and are used
here in a technical A simple example of how this works can be demonstrated in the Bar
sense in relation to my room in Merrion Cricket Club (TAKA Architects, 2014). The internal
own research. See 1.2
Document Terminology
cladding forms a distinct line around the edge of the room, connecting
the top of the bar servery, window sills and alcoves for the WC’s and
entrance (Fig 11 – in blue). This device I, rather obviously, call ‘Datum’.
The spatial intention of the device is ‘Scale’; the datum ties together a 10
large room and provides scale.
Fig 9 Array of Profile Sections, PRS 03, 2014
I have included below a short summary of the spatial intentions and Fig 10 Array of Profile Sections colour-coded to mark Spatial Devices and Spatial Aims

151 How We Design 152

2.4

devices I encountered during my examination of the Profile Sections.

As they are not conscious goals during our design process, I think the
spatial intentions themselves are of limited relevance to my research –
further study could probably unearth a lot more. But I have included
them here as they give insight into how we consciously use the Spatial
Key
Devices. See following pages 1. The internal timber cladding connects the window sills, bar counter and alcoves forming a
datum (Spatial Device) in the room. The datum ties together the large room and provides scale
(Spatial Intention)

Fig 11 the spatial device ‘Datum’ produces the spatial intention of ‘Scale’, Bar room, Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

153 How We Design 154

2.4

Titles in bold are Devices and in italics are Intentions

Key
1 The tectonic expression
(assembly) of the eaves and
brickwork gives a domestic
scale in House 01
1 2 The filigree expression
of the green timber
benches contrasts in scale
Datum and Assembly producing Scale with the heavy concrete
structure of the Cricket
It is significant that each of the profile sections in the array (Figs 9, 10) Club
was drawn with the outline of a person. The person is a shorthand for
showing how specific junctions relate to the scale of the body and for
comparing relative scale between projects.

Tectonic expression (or assembly) inherently scales a form or space.

For example, the projecting bricks and eaves detail in House 01 (TAKA
Architects, 2009) (Fig 12) gives an easily understandable domestic 12
scale – the bricks through repetition of a hand sized object and the eaves
through creating a heavy cornice to top off the elevation.

In Merrion Cricket Club (TAKA Architects, 2014) (Fig 13), we added

benches with a filigree support structure as a counterpoint to the
massiveness of the concrete. The intricacy of the benches gives scale to
the heavy form of the building.

13

Fig 12 front elevation, House 01, 2009

Fig 13 viewing terrace, Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

155 How We Design 156

 2.4

Titles in bold are Devices and in italics are Intentions

Key
1 Light/Shadow at junctions or dimness
2 is a constituent of immersion
1 2 as is (Structure as) Pattern
Structure as Pattern, Thick Edge, Light or Shadow at 3 Both spaces contain a ‘Thick Edge’
which imply a space (or gap) between the
Junctions and Reflection producing Immersion inside and outside
4 Mirrors (reflection) can distract the eye
3 from the edges of the space, increasing
When I try to envisage an immersive space, I see a room in the Topkapi
the sense of being enfolded
Palace (Sinan, 16th Century) (Fig 14) in Istanbul. The interior is richly
patterned on all surfaces. The lower windows are recessed in a thick
wall, with hand basins set in the reveals. Upper windows are flush with
the internal wall surface and filled with blue, patterned stained glass.
The couch is low and the ceiling is high.
7 Niall McLaughlin’s
essay ‘A Royal
Gittern at the To me, immersive space is an interior which enfolds you. It doesn’t 14
British Museum’ necessarily detach you from the outside but views to other places are
(McLaughlin, 2007) controlled and framed. I think by controlling the view you are dislocated 2
gives a wonderful
description, if slightly
from the outside world. This enables you to be both ‘present’ in the
different to mine, of room but aware of a distant ‘out there’7. 1
immersive or ‘thicket’
space Dimness seems to be a constituent part of immersion. Shadow is
8 By coincidence,
important. Either shadow to create dimness or to create pattern (Light/
3
the ground floor Shadow at Junctions, Structure as Pattern). Both of which seem
of 4House bears a to distract the eye from the edges of the space. A thick edge, like the 4
striking resemblance window reveals in the Topkapi Palace or the lining of the ground floor
to the room in the
Topkapi Palace, even
in 4house8, (TAKA Architects, 2011) (Fig 15), seems to imply a space
down to the sink in (or gap) between the inside and outside – making the interior feel like
the window reveals. a place apart.

15 16

Fig 14 prince’s room, harem, Topkapi Palace, 2012

Fig 15 ground floor, 4House, 2011
Fig 16 mirrored 1st floor landing, 4House, 2011

157 How We Design 158

2.4

Key
1. The eaves of the object is suppressed to give Tautness to the form
Titles in bold are Devices and in italics are Intentions 2. The window is pulled tautly, like wallpaper, across the external façade
3. In 4House, the window was applied to the inner face of the wall to allow the skin of
pebbledash render to fold into the window reveals

Suppressed Eaves, Window as Wallpaper producing 1 1

Tautness

Tautness is generally found on the exterior of the building. Tautness can

relate to a façade or a form.

We tend to make taut forms when the building is an object; when it

can be seen from all sides. In these cases, the interior spaces are usually
‘pulled away’ from the external skin and are independent from the
external form [ref (Merrion Cricket Club, 2014); (4House, 2011),
(Venice Biennale, 2008)].
17 18
The exterior is a tent assembled around the internal rooms. The tent
usually relates to the site and its context. We seem to use the ‘tent’ as a
sort of public or civic gesture. The rooms are then free to be interiors, 1
relating to the person or the function inside.

In a taut façade we tend to supress the eaves detail so that the wall or
screen is expressed in favour of the roof (Figs 17-18) [ref (Magennis 2 3
Square, 2012); (Merrion Cricket Club, 2014)] We also play with the
depth of the façade by applying the window to either the inside or
outside face of the wall (Figs 19-20). We either emphasize the thinness
or thickness of the wall or screen.

19 20
Fig 17 Armature for 2008 Venice Biennale, TAKA Architects
Fig 18 Merrion Cricket Club, 2014
Fig 19 Magennis Square, 2012
Fig 20 4House, 2011

159 How We Design 160

2.4

Titles in bold are Devices and in italics are Intentions

Overhang, Compression and Sky producing Projection 2

Projection is about pushing you out into a landscape or bringing the

landscape into the interior. An overhang creates a dark space between
inside and out – highlighting the bright landscape beyond the interior.
[ref (Merrion Cricket Club, 2014), (Tearooms at St. Patrick’s Park,
2015) (Fig 22) (Sandford Ave, 2012)]

‘Compression’ and ‘Sky’ are opposites but work in a similar way.

They both cut off the middle ground – ‘Compression’ focussing you
on the space immediately in front of the opening [Ref. (Purple, 2012),
(Sandford Ave, 2012) (Fig 23)] and ‘Sky’ projects you beyond your
immediate context [ref (Magennis Square, 2012)(Fig 21); (Waterloo
Lane, 2013)].
21 22
Key
‘Compression’ allows the interior space to take ownership of the 1 The middle ground is cut-off,
immediately adjacent area – extending the interior space outside. projecting the view through the high
‘Sky’ connects you to the wider world beyond – but it is a disjointed window towards the Sky
3 2 The window façade is recessed from
connection, not reachable from the interior.
the arch, forming an overhang which
creates shadow and highlights the
bright park beyond
3. The deep beam compresses the
view and cuts off the middle and
background

23

Fig 21 Kitchen window, Magennis Square, 2012

Fig 22 Café window, St Patricks Park, 2015
Fig 23 Kitchen façade, Sandford Ave, 2012

161 How We Design 162

 2.4

Key
The Development of the Spatial Devices 1 We liked the way the overhang in the boa nova teahouse created dimly lit
The spatial devices (described on previous pages) have developed from internal spaces which relate to the brightly lit landscape.
our observation of things we like in buildings – both in reference projects 2 We have used this device (and continue to do so) in many projects, most
and our own work. They relate directly to buildings or places we have notably in the Merrion Cricket Club
experienced and are fragments of our enjoyment of other buildings.
1
9 ‘On Fascinations’,
Cian Deegan, 2016
Cian’s research9 eloquently discusses the role of ‘fascinations’ - buildings
or things we have visited or enjoy – in our work. I think I can show, on
the following pages, how these fascinations are directly incorporated
into our buildings and are related to the development of the repeated
use of spatial devices.

For example, we often use overhangs above windows to either project

the view out into the landscape or conversely to bring the landscape
into the room. This spatial device is directly related to our experience of
looking at the sea from beneath the overhang in the Boa Nova Teahouse
(Siza Viera, 1963) (Fig 24) in Porto. Or the idea of using ‘stuck-on’
windows (window as wallpaper) to emphasise the flatness or depth of 24
a wall (and hence the tautness), comes from visiting St. Petri Church
(Lewerentz, 1963-66) (Fig 26) in Klippan.
2
On the other hand, there are devices which developed as a result of our
primary interest in assembly or tectonic expression. They are generally
as a result of ‘unforeseen’ characteristics which we observed and liked
in our first two projects.

The use of datum in rooms can be observed developing chronologically

over the projects - although in the first instance it was merely a by-
product of expressing how a roof structure bears on a beam or wall
(House 02, 2009) (Fig 28). The expressed beam and top of wall gives
a natural datum within a room. In a more recent project, the Datum is
separated from being characterised by an expression of structure and
develops into a device to make sense of a larger more complex room (see 25
the Bar in Merrion Cricket Club – Fig 29).

In the Dining Room in House 02 (Fig 30) there is an expressed roof

structure with a large rooflight above. Instead of cutting and trimming Fig 24 roof overhang, Boa Nova Teahouse, Leca da Palmeira, Portugal
Fig 25 roof overhang, Merrion cricket Club, 2014

163 How We Design 164

2.4

Key
1 In the dining room in House
01, the datum appears purely as
an expression of structure.
Key 2 In Merrion Cricket Club
1 The application of the window to the surface of the external the datum is separated from
facade emphasises both the flatness and depth of the wall structural expression and is used
2 Something we were interested in examining in a small kitchen as a spatial device to tie a large
extension project in Wynnsward Park, Dublin room together.

28

26 27

29

Fig 26 ‘Stuck On’ window, St. Petri Church, Klippan Fig 28 Structural Datum - Dining Room, House 02, 2009
Fig 27 ‘Stuck On’ window, Wynnsward Park, 2010 Fig 29 Spatial Datum - Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

165 How We Design 166

 2.4

the roof structure around the rooflight, we ran the roof joists through
underneath it. We wanted to express the primacy of the Structure. Key
However, once the room was built we were surprised by the beauty of 1. The unanticipated
1
the light falling through the structure and how it was reflected off the beauty of light reflecting
joists. The devices ‘structure as pattern’ and ‘light/shadow at junctions’ off structure in our first
10 I discuss this project (House 01) can
developed as a direct result of this ‘unforeseen’ consequence (Figs 31- be seen developing
development in
greater detail later
32). 10 into a number of spatial
devices (Structure as
Although the devices themselves are generated by an attitude to the Pattern and Light/
Shadow at Junctions) in
expression of Construction, their purpose is actually spatial. The ability later projects
to group the devices together as Spatial Intentions reinforces this idea.

In examining the junctions in our technical sections, we realised that

the primary focus of tectonic expression has developed beyond a pure 30
expression of the gravitational path and material qualities.

While I found the idea of grouping projects into typologies to be

reductive at first, the process of rejecting the typological view helped me
develop methods for discovering previously unexpressed characteristics
of our practice.
1 1
I did find a common tectonic sensibility - but I realised that we weren’t
just making technical details out of a desire to communicate the way a
building is made. We were making details which generated certain types
of spaces and that (especially in the later work) the spatial consequences
of a detail were becoming the driving factor in the design. The discovery
of this latent spatial sensibility has charged my research, and changed
our practice.

31 32

Fig 30 Dining Room, House 02, 2009

Fig 31 Light at Junctions - Wynnsward Park, 2010
Fig 32 Structure as Pattern - Glasnevin Remembrance Chapel, 2013

167 How We Design 168

 Dining Room, House 02, 2009
2.4 A construction which is concerned with tectonic expression

Spatial implications of tectonic decisions are unconscious or secondary

Towards a spatial sensibility – charting the shift in thinking

To document and analyse the perceived shift in focus of the Practice
(from tectonic expression towards a conscious spatiality), I thought
it might be useful to look at some intervening projects between our Breakfast Room, Wynnsward Park, 2010
first project, the Dining Room in House 02 (2009), and the Glasnevin The tectonics of the roof in the 1st project are stretched to explore the interplay of light
Chapel competition entry (2013) (Fig 33- top and bottom), completed and structure, observed in House 02.
during the PhD process and at the beginning of our awareness of a
The external wall is internally ‘lined’ with windows and doors
spatial ambition in our work.

I looked at three intervening projects which I thought could show the

ideas developing. They were: a breakfast room extension to a house
(Wynnsward Park, 2010), a new-build house in Firhouse (4House,
2011) and a model of a theoretical space/form for an exhibition in the 4House, 2011
A transitional project; moving away from pure tectonic expression.
Royal Hibernian Academy (RHA Exhibition, 2012). (Fig 33)
A structural outer leaf is concealed internally by an insulated layer. The internal lining is
Wynnsward Park developed directly out of The Dining Room in House now free from being an expression of structure and must ‘become’ something else
02. The roof structure and large ‘stuck on’ window are developments
of similar elements in House 02. However, there was the beginning
of a tectonic ‘problem’; how does a Practice concerned with ‘honest’
tectonic/structural expression cope with the need to line (i.e. conceal)
certain types of construction? Made, RHA, 2012
Consciously composing a theoretical space
In a new house in Firhouse, Dublin (4House, 2011), this ‘problem’
Composed from tectonic elements of Wynnsward Park (roof fins) and 4House (plan
resulted in the first significant instance, that I can document, of our form and structure). Pushing the capacity of the tectonic elements to examine the space
interest shifting away from pure tectonic expression towards something they make
new.

The constricted dimensions of the site meant that we had to use the
thinnest construction method possible. In this case, it was a structural
masonry outer leaf with an insulated internal lining. The lining, which Competition Entry, Glasnevin Chapel, 2013
Becoming conscious that tectonic expression is no longer a driving factor
concealed the wall insulation, was now free from structural expression
and had to ‘become’ something else. (Fig 34) The interplay of light and structure is pushed beyond our previous tectonic vocabulary
and becomes primarily spatial/experiential
It ‘became’ an expression of the inside, defining the character of the
Lining and datum devices are completely free of constructional associations
internal spaces. The lining was expressed differently at ground and first
floor, to differentiate the character of the two floors. At ground floor, it
wrapped the space, expanding and contracting to contain kitchen units,
storage and to define seating areas. At first floor, the ceiling was pulled Fig 33 chronological comparison of projects – towards a spatial sensibility, PRS 05, Nov 2015
away from the underside of the roof joists to make plasterboard ‘tents’ of
169 How We Design 170
2.4

each room – individual retreats from the outside world. At ground floor Key
the lining was birch-ply – warm and enveloping. At first floor, it was 1 The external wall is composed of a structural block wall
which is drylined internally, concealing the materiality and
painted plasterboard – calm and soothing. We were starting to try and structure (tectonic expression)
make characterful space. 2 Ground floor plywood lining concealing insulation. The
lining expands and contracts to make kitchen units and
In the model for the RHA exhibition, we consciously combined the storage
3 The ceiling ‘pulls away’ from the roof structure at 1st
tectonic elements of the two previous projects (Wynnsward Park and floor, to make ‘tented’ rooms
4house) to make an examination of the potential of the space they could
create. We exaggerated or distorted tectonic characteristics of both – the
deep roof joists of Wynnsward, the awkward plan form and structure
of 4house – to try and examine their spatial potential, without the
constraints of brief and site.

The 2013 Glasnevin Chapel competition entry was designed after we 3

had begun the PhD process. We were becoming conscious of an ‘other’
in our work. Although it still fulfilled the function of holding up the roof,
the primary purpose of the roof structure became experiential rather
than structural; the capturing of the changing nature of the Dublin sky
in a cloud of structure. The lining and datum are divorced from an
expression of the wall construction and are spatial – a means of reducing
the scale and increasing tactility at eye level, to increase the effect of the
abstract, cloud-like roof above. 1

My examination of the intervening projects, between House 02 and the

Glasnevin Chapel, has shown how the process of the shift towards a
spatial sensibility is incremental. Although the shift feels conscious in 2
retrospect, I’m not sure it was at the time. We certainly hadn’t articulated
it in any way to ourselves – up until the Chapel design.

However, I have also realised that the shift is not necessarily ‘away’ from
an interest in tectonic expression. In 4House, the ‘problem’ of the lining
was a tectonic one (Fig 34) and was ‘solved’ with a more developed
attitude to its tectonic expression - rather than a rejection of it. The
space of the RHA model was tested through the exploration of the tectonic
elements of previous projects. Our more conscious spatiality has been
developed through the lens of tectonic expression. The refinement
of our attitude to tectonics has allowed us to develop a new spatial Fig 34 Technical Section, 4House, 2010
awareness.
171 How We Design 172
2.4 1 2

Charting the shift – can I draw it?

So, I have identified a shift in thinking, described it in relation to some
of our projects and have related it to our initial practice urge towards
tectonic expression. But can I identify the physical mechanisms through Key
which we developed our thinking? And, in the process, demonstrate 3 1
some fundamental design methods of our practice? ‘Structure as Pattern’
drawing layer
We design through drawing; so, I thought I would go back to this to try 2
and demonstrate HOW we design. ‘Light/Shadow at Junctions’
drawing layer
Taking images of the five projects described above, I made a series of
3-6
layered, reduced, spatial drawings – using the ‘Small Things’ drawing The physical properties of
method. The images were laid out vertically in chronological order and the building elements are
analysed horizontally under the title of four of the Spatial Devices I had 4 stretched and distorted
identified in my earlier research – ‘datum’, ‘structure as pattern’, ‘light/ from project to project, in
pursuit of the exaggeration
shadow at junctions’ and ‘window as wallpaper’. of their spatial effect

When I compared the layered, additive drawings of the first (Dining

Room, House 02) and last (Glasnevin Chapel) projects, the shift towards
a conscious spatiality is evident. However, I think the intervening
projects demonstrate the gradual process of the change and, perhaps,
how nascent the conscious focus on space is.
5
Learning about HOW we design
In addition to evidencing the tectonic/spatial shift, the drawing series
helped clarify something about the way in which we design; something
we knew intrinsically but had found difficult to express (until now).

By omitting the layering sequence, it became easier to see the physical

development of the devices over time (Fig 35). Drawing them in
chronological order over the five projects, it became obvious that we 6
tend to stretch or distort qualities from project to project. We like to
exaggerate; both the qualities of the physical elements and the qualities
inherent in the devices.

For example, in the ‘unlayered’ drawings (Fig 35), you can observe the
development of the ‘structure as pattern’ device. The roof joists are
Fig 35 extract from drawing anaylsis charting the shift towards a conscious spatiality, PRS 05, Nov 2015
stretched and distorted from project to project. So much so that in the

173 How We Design 174

2.4

Intensification through Distillation/Exaggeration

Enhancing the character of the thing
final project (Glasnevin Chapel), the joists are almost unrecognisable in 12 My 1st Supervisor In a visit to our office our PhD supervisor, Richard Blythe12, asked us
the cloud-like structure. up until PRS 06, and a question:
my 2nd supervisor for
completion
There is also an act of distillation – in that we select the quality or aspect “Why do you (TAKA) paint steel but not plywood?”
we want to stretch or distort (exaggerate). I think we use these twin tools
of distillation and stretching/distortion (exaggeration), as a method A fairly mundane query on the surface, but one which went to the heart
for developing ideas across projects. In the case of the roof joists, the of our practice and confused us for a few months.
physical properties of the building elements are stretched and distorted
from project to project, in pursuit of the exaggeration of their spatial We had convinced ourselves that we paint steel because it is an ‘artificial’
effect. material but not plywood because it is ‘natural’. Both products are
highly engineered and manmade. But we had allowed ourselves to think
of plywood as natural - probably for no better reason than it was a bit
like timber. In struggling to answer Richard’s question we realised that
the reason we paint steel (and not plywood) is because steel looks better
painted (gloss, if possible) and plywood looks better with a transparent
finish (oil, if possible).

We realised that, perhaps, rather than being true to the nature of the
material, we wanted to instead intensify its character.

But intensification of character also applies to spaces, as I discovered in

the drawing exercise of the five chronological projects. Just like when the
flatness and accuracy of steel is enhanced by a glossy finish, perhaps the
refinement of the roof joists has nothing to do with making something
more structurally efficient, and everything to do with enhancing their
spatial character. By making a gap between inside and outside in
4House we make the interior feel more internal and the exterior more
external. By doubling the width of the steep stairs in House 02, the
stairs becomes a stepped landscape; a stairs on steroids.

I would like to expand further on this; to demonstrate that not only

does the idea of intensification apply to materials and spaces but also
to forms, typologies, moments…in fact, it is a fundamental design
principle of our practice. It is the ‘how’ of how we design.

It is both working method (distillation/exaggeration) and design goal

(intensification).

175 How We Design 176

2.4

Distillation/Exaggeration as a working method

Key I use the term distillation here to denote the extraction or selection
1 The character of steel is of a quality which we like or are interested in. In my mind, the act of
intensified by a glossy opaque distillation implies intensification. I could also use the term ‘reduction’
finish. Steel is more steel-y
2 The character of plywood is
- but not in the sense of simplification. I would use reduction more like
intensified by a matt transparent a chef might. In reducing a sauce, the flavours are distilled and made
finish. Plywood is more more intense.
plywood-y
Exaggeration was identified as a characteristic of our work in the early
1
13 Comments by stages the PhD process13. The observation was insightful and correct -
Paul Minifie, Pre-PRS
but perhaps the term requires more thought;
presentation, Ghent,
2013
Exaggerate to magnify beyond the limits of truth; overstate;
represent disproportionately
to increase or enlarge abnormally

38 There are negative connotations with the term, exaggeration. It suggests

something pushed, perhaps, TOO far. So I thought it was worthwhile
looking at other similar terms.

Augment to make larger; enlarge in size, number, strength, or

extent; increase
(In music) to raise by a half step.
2
This feels too timid and a bit passive for what we do.

Amplify to make larger, greater, or stronger; enlarge; extend.

to expand in stating or describing, as by details or
illustrations; clarify by expanding.

A better term – I like the thought that something is clarified by expanding

(or reducing and adding in our case). So there is definitely an aspect of
39 amplification in our work. However, the term lacks the act of stretching
and distortion which is inherent in our working method.

And so back to Exaggerate…

Fig 38 steel screen, waterloo lane, 2014 When I look at the alternatives, I realise that Exaggerate may, in fact, be
Fog 39 plywood interior, 4House, 2010
appropriate. Even if I have reservations about the term, it is still the
177 How We Design 178
2.4

Examples of Intensification in the work of TAKA Architects

closest I can get to what it is we are doing. We like to make intense situations within in our buildings. We do this
through the twin tools of distillation and exaggeration. Not only do
Exaggerate to magnify beyond the limits of truth; overstate; we distil/exaggerate the qualities of materials and spaces, but also
represent disproportionately the qualities of forms, typologies and moments. We tend to intensify
to increase or enlarge abnormally within the project itself, and chronologically from project to project.

Looking at the definitions for exaggerate above, the descriptors The following pages are intended to illustrate some of the different
‘disproportionate’ or ‘abnormal’ also seem appropriate when I realise types of intensification present in our work.
that to enhance something is to highlight a particular aspect of it -
perhaps abnormally or out of proportion to the thing itself.

For instance, if I take the previously described example of why we

paint steel rather than plywood – we coat steel with gloss paint because
the shine of the gloss finish exaggerates the flatness and hardness of
the material. The qualities of hardness and flatness are abnormally or
disproportionately emphasised, to communicate something about the
character of steel (i.e. it is harder and flatter than other materials).

So, we choose to distil the essence of something (in this case – steel)
by exaggerating an aspect (in this case – the qualities of hardness and
flatness) to intensify the experience of the thing.

We want to make steel more steel-y, plywood more plywood-y. We

also want to make stairs more stairs-y, faceted forms more taut and
remembered spaces more vivid.

I think it goes to the heart of what we are trying to do in our Practice.

We take qualities we like – be they spatial, experiential, tectonic – and

exaggerate them to enhance or intensify their character.

179 How We Design 180

2.4

Structural/Spatial Intensification
On the facing page is an isometric drawing demonstrating the
chronological development of the spatial character of a roof structure,
through the stretching and distortion of its physical characteristics from
Key
project to project. 1
1. Standard 44 x 150mm
timber joist
The roof joists in the original project (House 02, 2009) are themselves 2. House 02, twinned
an intensified version of a standard joist. We used twinned sections of engineered timber joist
3. Wynnsward Park,
engineered timber, with a gap between, to achieve a sense of refinement 2
‘reverse’ twinned plywood
within the 44mm width of a standard joist. Light comes from above and joist
shines through the twinned structure. 4. RHA model, deep
plywood fins
5. Glasnevin Chapel, steel
In the next project (Wynnsward Park, 2010), the joists are distorted and
lattice trusses
stretched to become deeper, thinner and much longer. The structure
spans the ‘wrong’ long way in the north-facing space, to allow east/
3
west light to enter from the sides. The twinning becomes a structural
solution at mid-span, to allow the plywood joists to span further than
their standard 4.8m sheet length. The joint detail was designed to
emphasise the thinness of the joist over the length of the roof. Light and
shadows are subtle and calming.

The model for the ‘Made’ exhibition in the Royal Hibernian Academy
4
(2012) was a conscious exploration of the spatial capacity of some of
the tectonic elements of Wynnsward Park and the later project, 4House
(2011). In terms of the roof, the joists are deeper again, making space
within the roof itself. Light now comes both from above and the sides.
The resultant shadows are deeper and more intense.

In the final project in the sequence, Glasnevin Chapel (2013), the joists
disappear into a cloud of structure. With light being admitted from all
sides, the 2-way spanning net of thin structural elements captures space
and light to imitate the changing nature of a cloudy Dublin sky. Shadows
are fleeting and dispersed. 5

In the first project (House 02), the effect of sunlight falling through
structure was almost accidental. However, we consciously recreated
this situation in subsequent projects – exploring its tectonic and spatial
potential. The physical characteristics of the structure are stretched
and distorted from project to project, to achieve an intensification of Fig 40 structural/spatial intensification, isometric drawing of spatial development of roof structure from 2009-
the spatial experience which we observed in our first project. 2013

181 How We Design 182

2.4

Key
1 Flush detailing between
concrete and brickwork and
2 the stepped underside of the
beam makes the wall feel like
1 its been ‘sliced’ or pulled taut
2 Projections such as gutters
are concealed within the
concrete beam
Formal Intensification 3 The final column in the
We like to make taut forms. There are a number of projects [ref (Venice colonnade folds away from the
Biennale, 2008); (Merrion Cricket Club, 2014); (4House, 2011)] gable wall creating a surface
in which we paid close attention to the physical detailing, in order to tension
exaggerate the quality of tautness in the external form.

In Merrion Cricket Club, the final ‘irrational’ form of the building is

generated by ‘cutting’ a theoretical rational form. We emphasised the 41
tautness of the ‘cuts’ through the physical detailing. Junctions between
materials are flush. Projections, such as gutters, are concealed within the
structure. The underside of the ring beam stepping with the brickwork,
3
makes the wall feel like it’s been ‘sliced’. At the end of the colonnade, the
final column folds away from the side elevation, creating a sort of surface
tension. (Figs 41,42)

The faceted, taut form of the pavilion building is enhanced and

intensified by the careful design of its physical characteristics. As a
result, the faceted geometry feels sharper and more taut.

42

Figs 41, 42 intensification of taut building form, Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

183 How We Design 184

2.4

Key
1 The character of the typical suburban
material (pebbledash) is intensified through it’s
extensive application to the façade; running into
window reveals
2 The stones used in the pebbedash are larger,
giving an exaggerated roughness to the finish
Typological Intensification 3 Custom-made window sills are concealed to
allow the pebbledash to throughout the facade.
In Cian’s research, he discusses how the spatial history of Dublin
inflects our projects; how Dublin is a largely consistent context, made 2
up of small differences between buildings within the same type.

In the project for a new house in a suburb in Dublin (4House, 2011),

we took the surrounding 1970’s suburban house typology and tuned it,
to make the new house not only ‘of ’ its context but also of its time. We
used small differences in the treatment of materials and form to make
a distilled and exaggerated version of the typical neighbouring house. 1

We maintained the front and rear building lines and roof profile of
the surrounding houses but allowed a subtle distortion in the overall
building form. The form was intensified by the suppression of
projections; gutters are flush and window sills concealed. The typical
suburban wall material (pebbledash) was exaggerated by applying it
extensively, running into window reveals and openings. Its finish was
rougher, and stones larger, than its neighbour. (Figs 43, 44) 3

The resulting house is materially similar, but experientially vastly

different, to its neighbours. The exaggerating of certain fundamental
aspects of the typical has made an intensified type within type.

43 44

Figs 43 axo drawing of window detail, 4house, 2011

Fig 44 the intensified surburban typology, 4house 2011

185 How We Design 186

2.4

Spatial Intensification – Outside/Inside

The Irish climate instils in us an innate difference between inside and Key
1 The external form is
outside. Outside is potentially cold, wet and uninviting; inside should white faceted and explicit
be warm, hospitable and enveloping. Irish buildings must mitigate 1 2 2 The internal space is
between these situations, making a distinct threshold between outside reflective and enfolding
and in. 3 The outside is taut and
uncompromising
4 The inside has depth
Before we built our first projects (House 01 and House 02), we made and shadow
an exhibition piece for the Venice Biennale in 2008, entitled Tectonic
Mnemonic. In looking at this piece again I see that, despite the fact
that it’s not a building, it is still conceived with the Irish (or maybe just
northern European) sensibility of distinguishing inside from outside.

The intense difference between the external form and internal space was
emphasised by pulling the internal ‘room’ away from the inner surface of 45 46
the external form. The external surface was faceted, white and explicit;
the internal surfaces were reflective, designed to ‘confuse the eye’ from
the edges of the space. 3 4

We (unconsciously) used very similar strategies in the house in Firhouse

(4house, 2010) described above. We differentiated internal and external
materials in a similar manner. We created thresholds or gaps between
the internal space and external form by pulling the internal linings
away from the inside of the external shell. The outside is taut and
uncompromising, inside surfaces have depth and shadow.

We intensify the experience of crossing the threshold; of moving

from the outside in. Outside feels more ‘outside’, inside feels more
‘inside’.

47 48

Figs 45,46 external and internal views of armature for Venice Biennale, 2008
Fig 47,48 external and internal views, 4house 2011

187 How We Design 188

2.4

Experiential Intensification – Exaggerated Moments

When I say that we tend to intensify chronologically from project to Key
project, sometimes we do it very directly. We take physical experiences 1 &2 The view from the bar in Merrion Cricket Club is distilled and
or moments from a previous project and re-imagine them in the new intensified in the viewing experience from the social areas in Belvedere
Sports Pavilion
project. I have already partially demonstrated this when discussing
3&4 The physical elements of the entrance portico (the column, the
the intensification of the experience of light and structure (Structural/ ramp, the overhang) in the Cricket Club are stretch and distorted to form
Spatial Intensification). the stepped and covered entrance to the new Sports Pavilion

In a recent project, Belvedere Sports Grounds (2017 uncompleted), we 1 3

directly referenced some characteristics or moments from a previous
project, Merrion Cricket Club (2014). We took aspects of this building
and intensified them for the design of the new, larger project.

Both buildings have a viewing function. In Belvedere, we omitted the

colonnade along the viewing terrace (a key feature of the cricket club) to
intensify the experience of the wider, higher view in the Sports Pavilion.
The unsupported roof edge overhangs the terrace, with the roof running
49 50
inside to outside; pushing the viewer further out into the landscape.
2 4
The physical elements of the entrance portico in Merrion (the ramp,
the column and beam, the overhang) have been stretched and distorted.
The roof overhang feels more precarious; appearing to be unsupported
at either edge. The ramp has become steep steps. The column is off-
centre.

We have pushed the physical characteristics of the spatial moments

to create an intensified experience in the new project. 51 52

Figs 49, 50 spatial moments in Merrion Cricket Club, 2014

Figs 51,52 intensified spatial moments in Belvedere Sports Pavilion, 2017

189 How We Design 190

 2.4

Conclusion
The basis for our practice was an interest in tectonic assembly. Our first
projects (House 01 and House 02) were a reaction to the suppression of
constructional detail. We were looking at Kahn and thinking about the
qualities of materials and how to express the construction of a building.
We were interested in buildings that communicate. We still are.

Although the urge to intensify seems to be focussed towards an

experiential goal - which has little to do with ‘honesty’ - it does come
out of the fundamental interest in ‘honest’ tectonic expression. For us,
14 Actually the quote
is ‘What do you want,
it started with Kahn’s ‘what does a brick want to be?’ 14 (The starting
brick?’ Louis Kahn, point for a lot of naïve, young architects). But is now moving towards the
Masterclass at Penn more compromised, but perhaps richer, ‘faithfulness to effect’ of Loos.
1971
‘In the principle of cladding, Loos manages to make painting a surface an issue of
15 ‘In Colour’, honesty and ethics. But his honesty is of a complex kind. A faithfulness to effect is as 53
Charles Holland, important as a faithfulness to material or to structural logic’ 15
saturatedspace.org,
2014
We are interested in enhancing the physical character of the material
(or constructional element, or space, or form, etc.), rather than
communicating a constructional truth. We select qualities that interest
us, to distil the physical essence of it.

This is why we stretch or distort physical aspects of building elements

from project to project. We are testing the physical qualities of the
material or element16; distilling essences and enhancing the intrinsic
16 Or space, or form,
etc. character, in the service of intensifying the physical experience.

Distillation selects the essential aspect; exaggeration turns up the

dial on that particular quality; which results in an intensification of
the experience of the whole thing. Stretching and distortion are the
physical means by which we achieve this.

In my essay at the start of this document, ‘Compound Living’, I describe 54

my spatial history; of how I lived and re-lived in our family homes,
which TAKA then re-imagined in refurbishments, extensions and new
houses. In our pre-PRS presentations we showed a series of images (Fig Figs 53 Stairs as Room, Original Family Home, Burlington Road, Dublin
53,54) which demonstrated how moments in my original family home Figs 54 Stairs as Room, House 01, TAKA Architects, 2009
(the stairs, the dining room, the living areas) had been incorporated into as presented in PRS 01

191 How We Design 192

2.4

2 new homes. We took personal remembrances and distilled them to Siza Viera, A. (1963). Boa Nova Tea house. Leca de Palmeira, Portugal.
create new intensified experiences.
MArch Students (2013). The Elaborated Window. Belfast: Queen’s
Architectural Press.
When I look at the images on previous pages, I see that we are continuing
to do this – at all scales. From the lowly timber joist to the suburban TAKA Architects. (2008). Venice Biennale. Tectonic Mnemonic, The Lives
typology, our design method can be said to be a process of distillation, of Spaces. Venice, Italy.
exaggeration and intensification.
TAKA Architects. (2009). House 01. New Build Mews House.
Donnybrook, Dublin, Ireland.
The images of my old and new family homes had been put together
instinctively. We were aware that the spaces were related; but not TAKA Architects. (2009). House 02. Refurbishment and Extension to
necessarily aware of the design methods we had used to produce them. Victorian Terraced House. Donnybrook, Dublin, Ireland.
We intrinsically knew that they were distillations; but not that their
TAKA Architects. (2010). Wynnsward Park. Breakfast Room Extension
purpose was to create an intensified experience.
to 1950’s House. Clonskeagh, Dublin, Ireland.
Those images of my family homes were some of the first things we TAKA Architects. (2011). 4House. New Build House in Suburbia.
showed in the PRS/PhD process. It has taken 4 years of research to Firhouse, Dublin, Ireland.
understand something which we instinctively felt. But I can see (and
TAKA Architects. (2012). Magennis Square. Refurbishment and
have shown) that the growing consciousness of our methods is affecting
Extension to End-of-terrace House. City Centre, Dublin, Ireland.
how we design new projects. The crystallisation of the knowledge of our
methods is refining our practice and making us better Architects. TAKA Architects. (2012). Purple. Set Design for ‘Purple’ by Jon Fosse.
The Project Arts Theatre, Dublin, Ireland.
TAKA Architects. (2012). RHA Exhibition. ‘Made’, Royal Hibernian
Academy Exhibition. Dublin, Ireland.
TAKA Architects. (2012). Sandford Ave. Refurbishment and Garden
Chapter References Extension to House. Donnybrook, Dublin, Ireland.
Holland, C. (2014). In Colour. Saturatedspace.org. TAKA Architects. (2013). Clonskeagh Road. Stairs Extension and House
Lewerentz, S. (1963-66). St. Petri Church. Klippan, Sweden. Refurbishment. Clonskeagh, Dublin, Ireland.

McLaughlin, N. (2007). A Royal Gittern at the British Museum. In Material TAKA Architects. (2013). Glasnevin Chapel. Competition Entry for
Matters: Architecture and Material Practice . Routledge. Glasnevin 1916 Centenary Chapel. Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland.

Pendal, S. (2013). Unfurling worlds and lingering impressions - PRS 01. TAKA Architects. (2013). Waterloo Lane. Refurbishment of Mews
House. Ballsbridge, Dublin , Ireland.
Melbourne.
TAKA Architects. (2014). Merrion Cricket Club. Cricket Pavilion.
Sinan, M. (16th Century). Prince’s Chamber, Harem, Topkapi Palace. Ballsbridge, Dublin, Ireland.
Istanbul, Turkey.
TAKA Architects. (2015). Tearooms at St. Patrick’s Park. Dublin.

193 How We Design 194

 Conclusion

3.0 2.1
2.0
2.5 1.4
 2.5 Research Conclusion

The nature of this research is introspective (being an analysis of my own body of knowledge; that my description of our practice methods, which
practice’s methods), empirical (based on observation and experience of arose from looking closely at the artefacts we produce, will inflect the
our work) and personal. way others see buildings and architectural practice.

For me, Architecture is a pragmatic discipline. It is an applied Art in I have tried to write, in an accessible manner, of genuine discoveries I
which the experience of the artefact is of primary importance. I dislike have made over the course of my research. I have split my findings into
the over-intellectualisation of Architecture. What a building is like (to two categories: Misconceptions and Discoveries.
visit, to use, to look at), is much more important to me than how well it
illustrates some sort of intellectual goal. Misconceptions
These are misconceptions we had about our Practice, before enrolling
In thinking of how my research could be of use to other architects and in the PhD, which the PhD and PRS process helped clarify for us.
practitioners, I thought about the architectural texts which have been
of use to me, as an architect and practitioner. Books like: ‘Experiencing Misconception 1
Architecture’ (Rasmussen, 1959), ‘Townscape’ (Cullen, 1961), ‘Strange
Details’ (Cadwell, 2007). The Vernacular
When introducing our work, we described vernacular buildings we
They are texts about looking closely at buildings, which have inspired me have visited as a means of situating our architectural interests. This sat
to see the built environment differently or more clearly. They are books uncomfortably with a succession of PRS panels, who felt that it was
which examine the fundamental matter of buildings, but which are told perhaps an obfuscation.
from a profoundly personal standpoint.
For us, the potential disconnection of our work from the pursuit of a
I am a practitioner, not an academic. I find the density of some academic vernacular sensibility was discomfiting. But the criticism enabled us
texts alienating. I prefer ‘Experiencing Architecture’ to ‘The Eyes of the to define what it was about the Vernacular we found so appealing. At
1 Pallasmaa, J., 1996. the time, we clarified that when we talk about the Vernacular, we are
The Eyes of the Skin: Skin’1. Both books are about seeing and experience; both books are
Architecture and the told from a personal standpoint. But Rasmussen’s text is accessible and referring to the work’s connection to place and local construction
Senses. s.l.:Wiley. direct; speaking simply, but persuasively, about the phenomenological methods, rather than a reimagining of traditional forms or types.
experience of Buildings and Cities.
Since then, I think we have further refined our attitude. The vernacular
In some respect, ‘Experiencing Architecture’ changed the way I thought building is a physical embodiment of the culture that built it. This is
about Architecture; de-mystifying and de-intellectualising; allowing me what we seek in our buildings. The building should communicate
to give value to my own experiences and preferences; to give credence to something of its locality, place and environment; but also something of
my spatial instinct, as well as my more intellectually-driven architectural the culture of the people who commissioned, conceived and use it. Our
training. buildings should be the opposite of a generic, ‘international’ style.

The description of how Rasmussen (or Cullen or Cadwell) looks, The clarification of our attitude to the vernacular has resulted in a
changed the way I thought about buildings and Architecture. broader definition of our interests. It has given us license to pursue
other conscious but under-articulated themes. It allows us to be freer in
By describing my own ‘way of looking’, I am hoping to contribute to this our references and to be clear about our modernist architectural lineage.

197 Conclusion 198

 2.5

Misconception 2 Misconception 3
‘Honest’ Tectonic Expression Our Buildings are just Assemblies
2 House 01 Our first projects2 were a polemic against what we saw as ‘paper-thin’ This is related to our interest in tectonic expression. In the beginning,
and House 02,
Morehampton Rd, contemporary architecture; buildings covered in plasterboard and we conceived of our projects as assemblies of building components.
TAKA Architects external cladding systems, which photographed well but aged horribly. Once we had adequately accommodated the requirements of the brief,
2009 We preferred buildings which had physical weight and thickness; a our focus turned to the poetic expression of construction and tectonics.
robustness. In our minds, the resultant spaces were almost just a by-product; voids
between the characterful construction.
So we designed those first two houses as tectonic assemblies, with the
construction and materials ‘on show’. We wanted the building to tell But the PRS critics could see what we couldn’t. Although we may have
the story of its construction. Details were conceived to demonstrate the started with this attitude, it seemed to be obvious to others (but not to
layered nature of modern construction, giving physical expression to us at the time) that there was a spatial sensibility driving aspects of the
even the ‘hidden’ elements. We refused to use steel in House 01, as we work.
felt it was ‘dishonest’ in a modest domestic project. As first projects, we
wanted to set our stall out; to plant our flag firmly in a big pile of highly Like our desire to encapsulate a culture, the spatial ambitions
articulated bricks. are achieved through the medium of tectonic expression. Spatial
characteristics come directly out of the expression of physical details.
From my research from PRS 03 to PRS 06, I can see that we moved The interest in tectonic thickness has generated projects with lots of in-
quite quickly away from our opening polemic. The architectural lessons between spaces – overhangs, terraces, alcoves, porches. Constructional
we took to our next project weren’t necessarily about the tectonic, or expression creates spatial datums. Material expression makes shadows
‘honesty’. We were interested in the way light fell through structure and light. The separation of lining from structure produces rooms.
and the spatial effects the tectonic expression generated. However, we
continued to talk about our work with reference to ‘honest’ tectonic Over the course of the PhD, I have come to realise that the character of
expression. We had intuitively progressed; but our thinking hadn’t yet the space has become a primary driver in our projects. This can be seen
caught up with our doing. in early projects (4House) and more directly in later projects (Glasnevin
Chapel, Merrion Cricket Club, Belvedere Sports Grounds).
I see now that, while we may have moved beyond ‘honesty’, we are still
interested in tectonic expression as a means of communication. But Our Misconceptions were deeply held. It has been difficult to change
rather than just communicating the matter of the building, it is more them. They came out of our first polemical projects, in which we wanted
connected to cultural or contextual expression; to the story of the to establish our Practice’s architectural stance. In the intervening years
people or the site or the locality. between these projects and starting the PhD we intuitively developed
our interests, but hadn’t taken the time or space to develop our thinking.

The reflection required by the PRS process and the carrying out of the
PhD has given us the opportunity to allow our thinking to catch up with
our doing.

199 Conclusion 200

 2.5

Discoveries
These are new insights into our work and practice which my research at play in our work; something we had not acknowledged until the PhD.
uncovered. The six main discoveries are listed so that they loosely
connect from one discovery to another, but not in the chronological I identified a series of Spatial Devices and Intentions which are a direct
order of their uncovering. My research was not a linear process; result of the physical tectonic decisions we make. I could show that we
requiring much back-tracking and re-thinking to finally coalesce into a were making details which generated certain types of spaces and that
coherent series of insights. (especially in the later work, and as a result of the PhD process) the
spatial consequences of a detail were becoming the driving factor in the
Discovery 1 design.
Spatial History
My personal spatial history has profoundly influenced how we practice Discovery 3
and design. The articulation of the layered nature of my spatial history Intensification of Character
gave insight into how our methods and motivations developed. I learned In relation to our interest in tectonic ‘truth’ (See Misconception 2),
that, from working for friends and family, and within the physical I realised that, perhaps, rather than being true to the nature of the
spaces of our childhoods, we came to want our work to be both poetic material, we wanted to instead intensify its character. We take qualities
and pragmatic. We feel a design is only resolved when both urges are we like – be they spatial, experiential, tectonic – and exaggerate them to
satisfied. enhance or intensify their character.

We distilled and intensified essences of my spatial history to create poetic In the process of trying to document the shift of practice thinking
connections in our first two projects. We went through a similar process towards spatiality, I discovered that we stretch and distort the physical
for Cian in a later project3. The process of distilling and intensifying qualities of building elements, from project to project, as a means of
3 4House, Firhouse, became a fundamental design method of our practice (See Discovery testing their spatial effect. I identified this as a fundamental design
TAKA Architects, 3). The informal or ad-hoc working processes, making these projects, method in our practice, the motivation of which was to create intensified
2011 physical experiences.
crystallised into fundamental working methods for our practice (See
Discovery 6).
The method consists of a number of steps: Distillation selects the
Discovery 2 essential aspect; exaggeration turns up the dial on that particular quality;
which results in an intensification of the experience of the whole thing.
Tectonic Expression towards Spatiality Stretching and distortion are the physical means by which we achieve
We have an aesthetic sensibility which pushes us to elaborate and
this.
articulate. This is based in our fundamental belief that Architecture
should communicate; should create a poetic connection between the
I discovered that not only does the idea of intensification apply to
user or visitor and the building. Tectonic expression is the means
materials and spaces but also to forms, typologies, moments. It is the
through which we communicate and create the connection.
‘how’ of how we design.
I realised that in expressing the tectonics of a building, in showing
how one element bears on another, we make gaps between elements by
creating profile in a detail. Gaps then express thickness, which results in
particular spatial qualities. I came to realise that there is a spatial agenda
201 Conclusion 202
 2.5

Discovery 4 thinking and looking. I have realised that the way we make our drawings
Drawing/Design/Research Process: ‘Way of Looking’ profoundly influences how we think and look at our buildings.
During the PhD, I realised that our design and drawing process is both
additive and reductive. In Cian’s research, he discovered that we think Our establishing of the tectonic character of our buildings early in the
4 See 1.2 Document about and design our buildings in ‘Fragments’ and ‘Moments’4; which design process, through drawing, enables us to view the potential project
Terminology are the scaffold around which we assemble the building. The separating as a building, rather than an idea of a building. Drawing establishes the
of an artefact into reduced or edited pieces, and the layering and project as an autonomous and characterful artefact within our mental
arranging of those pieces to form a complex artefact, is how we draw, space.
and therefore, how we see buildings.
Our use of digital drawing enables us to view our drawings as a ‘proto-
Through reduction, we are trying to communicate the essence of the
6 The characterful, building’5. For us, the drawing IS the building. Drawings are not a
autonomous artefact design or representation of a building; they are a building composed of
detail or idea, as succinctly as possible. The layering or addition comes
out of an urge to create densely and intensely inhabited drawings or lines and hatches, which will one day become a building made of bricks
spaces (which is, in turn, influenced by our spatial history, living and concrete.
and reliving in the spaces of our childhood). Our analytical research
drawings are reduced and simple, as they are communicating a singular Orthographic projection drawing is fundamental to our work and
idea. Our technical drawings are layered and dense, as they are a product design process. We tend to resist any form of drawing which strays from
of the complex artefact. the ‘true’ (orthographic) form of plan, section and elevation. Due to the
orthographic drawing process which produces the artefact, the proto-
Our technical drawings embody some of the qualities of our buildings building of my mental space is composed of a series of flat, consecutive
because our drawing process parallels our design process. Our slices (plan/section/elevation).
analytical (research) drawings are like the reduced and distilled physical
fragments or ideas, which accrete over the course of designing, drawing In thinking about this, I realised that the photographs of our buildings
or researching; overlaying each other to become a nuanced, complex are a reflection of how we think about and view Buildings. The flat
artefact. and frontal images are a tangible confirmation of the flat, orthographic
‘proto-building’ of my mental space. The cropped and partial framing
This realisation enabled me to formulate the ‘Small Things’ drawing of the photographs reflects how we think and design, by separating the
method as a descriptor of how we think and look when designing; and object into pieces (or fragments) – (see Discovery 4 - ‘Way of Looking’).
to apply it as a research tool, making further discoveries about our
practice. I realised that we use the photographs as a form of analysis of our work;
to enable us to look closely at what we have made, providing ‘food for
thought’ for subsequent projects.
Discovery 5
Drawing and Photography as a reflection of Thinking/Looking
Before the PhD we knew that drawing was very important to how we
work; but we hadn’t articulated or thought about how it influences the
way think about and look at our buildings. We often say in our practice
that we don’t know something until we draw it. For us, drawing is both

203 Conclusion 204

 2.5

Discovery 6 and, to me, the definition of what it means to ‘practise’. These working
Heuristic Methods methods were established in our practice over time, through an
My investigation into the use of Concrete in our practice enabled me to experiential learning process. The PhD has enabled me to articulate
identify some heuristic methods we use to deal with risk, uncertainty them as strategies; which is itself learning by (reflection on) doing.
and difficulty. These have developed over time into strategies which we
now consciously employ in our daily work. I identified three conscious
strategies which developed out of a series of informal and ad hoc
processes in our 1st projects: ‘Trial and Error’, ‘Advice’, ‘Being Wilfully
Naïve’.

We use ‘trial and error’ in a direct way when trying to understand how
to make something which is difficult to do, or which has an uncertain
outcome. But I realised that our entire practice could be seen as a form
of trial and error. Because of our empirical approach, we (TAKA) aren’t
6 Professional, intimidated by the uncertainty of building. The fear of making mistakes6
creative, technical,
reputational, etc can restrict the progress of an architectural practice. I realised that we
would rather build and risk being wrong, than not build at all. Trial and
error is a method which allows us to develop our thinking from project
to project.

Asking advice is a complementary strategy to ‘Trial and Error’. By

seeking out people who have done something similar, a few wrong
turns may be removed from the trial and error process. My research
identified 4 types of technical advice which a practice might seek. But
I also realised that our urge to visit buildings can be seen as a form of
advice-seeking. We are asking the buildings which have gone before us,
how they managed to do something well (or badly).

But seeking knowledge can have disadvantages, so we also employ the

strategy of ‘Being Wilfully Naïve; we want to know, but we don’t want
to know too much. ‘Not knowing’ leaves space to find out new ways of
doing things; a vital aspect of venturous practice.

I have realised that rather than making a complete study of what we

mean to do and then choosing the best option, we jump in and choose
the most expedient course which achieves our ambitions. We make
mistakes and we learn from them. This is the definition of ‘heuristic’

205 Conclusion 206

 2.5

The Potential for Change This was as a direct result of watching each other present at the PRS.
We started attending the PRS, and enrolled in the PhD, in the hope The insight the PRS gave us into each other’s practice, enabled us to
that it would change our practice. We were concerned about stagnation; design and work together; collaborating to produce a jointly designed
of our practice, of our thinking and of our designing. We wanted to be object.
better at what we do and, in the process, become better Architects. 10 A group of
Irish Architects Since this exhibition, we have discussed collaborating on other, perhaps
The process has been a revelation for us; shattering our own who successfully urban or civic, projects in the vein of Group 9110, and are currently
misconceptions about our practice, and enabling new discoveries about collaborated in the jointly designing a competition entry for a Concert Hall complex in
redevelopment of the Lithuania.
how we think, work and design. Temple Bar area of
Dublin
But none of this is useful unless it changes how we work; making us Change 2
better at what we do. It is difficult to quantify the extent of change in In 2015, we were commissioned to design our largest project to date – a
our practice at this early stage, having only just completed the process. 11 Belvedere new sports pavilion for Belvedere College, a private school in Dublin11.
Sports Grounds As part of the shortlist process, we were asked to submit a document
Although we may not feel the true extent of the change yet, I can identify (uncompleted). This
which outlined our vision for the new building. The document was not
project proceeded up
some small, but important, ways in which our ways of working have to the appointment to be presented in person, and so, needed to be clear and engaging, in
altered. of a Contractor the absence of a verbal presentation to the commissioning committee.
after tender, but
unfortunately, has
Change 1 It was a large building and we couldn’t design all aspects within the
7 Clancy Moore, recently been stopped
Steve Larkin I have referred to the ‘micro-community’ of architects we work within.
7
and is unlikely to allotted time period. We had recently realised that we design in
(attending the PRS), TAKA, Clancy Moore and Steve Larkin all began their PhD’s, and recommence. ‘Moments’ so we decided to design and present 3 ‘key moments’ of the
Damien Culligan, started attending the PRS, at roughly the same time in 2013. Prior to building in detail, leaving the general arrangement of the building as
Noreile Breen (based little more than a developed sketch design.
the PRS, the individual practices worked side-by-side, teaching and
in our office building)
and Ryan Kennihan exchanging information together, but not collaborating in any significant
way. We were aware of, and admired, each other’s work but had never We had also become aware that we take pieces (or Moments) that we
really considered working together. like from our previous projects, and re-imagine them in later projects.
We knew that the committee liked a cricket pavilion12 we had designed
12 Merrion Cricket
Every six months during the PRS, we watched each other’s presentations, (as this is why we had been included on the original long-list for the
Club, Ballsbridge,
learning about how and why we all did things. The experience made TAKA Architects, project), so we took pieces of this project and re-made them at a larger,
us more comfortable and familiar with each other’s work practices and 2014 more complex scale in the new design proposal.
made us consider working together, for the first time.
8 New Horizon_ These were conscious methods we employed as a direct result of our
Architecture from joint research for the PhD. The new insights into our design thinking,
Ireland
In January 2015, Clancy Moore, Steve Larkin and TAKA (along with
another Irish practice – Hall McKnight) were asked to make individual which the PRS process helped produce, meant that we could almost
contributions to an exhibition8 in The London Festival of Architecture. short-cut some of the usual meandering design process, to produce a
9 ‘Big Red’, (TAKA, characterful artefact within a restricted period of time. Being conscious
We decided that, rather than make singular exhibition pieces, the
Clancy Moore, Steve
Larkin, 2015) practices should collaborate to design one large pavilion9 structure. of why and how we were doing things, meant that we could clearly
and concisely communicate our ideas to our potential client. We had
207 Conclusion 208
 2.5

become faster and clearer than we were before. A PhD must contricute to knowledge. Below are the specific
‘contributions to knowledge’ which my research makes:
I think that the clarity and pragmatism of our approach to the sports
pavilion project, was the main factor in the College’s decision in 2016 Specific Contributions to Knowledge
to appoint TAKA to develop a Masterplan for the entire school campus. - The description and articulation of my ‘Way of Looking’
The complexity of the historic site located in the heart of Georgian
Dublin is daunting; especially for a practice which has, to date, mainly - The ‘Small Things’ drawing method as a research tool and
completed houses and kitchen extensions. But the PhD process has descriptor of how we think and look when designing.
given us the confidence and clarity to know that our work and design - The identification and explication of the method of
processes can be applied at all scales. Distillation, Exaggeration and Intensification in our design
process.
Change 3 - The Drawing as a Proto-Building, with reference to Robin
The realisation that we have a spatial agenda; that we design in
Evans ‘Translations from Drawing to Building’
‘moments’; that tectonic ‘truth’ is perhaps no longer a priority; has
allowed us a freedom from our self-imposed restrictions. We feel more - The relationship of architectural photography to the how we
comfortable with the notion that design can be at times ‘irrational’; that see and design.
our instinct for producing desired spatial effects is a valid means of
- The identification of heuristic strategies for managing
designing. We have always designed and worked instinctively, but we
difficulty and uncertainty in venturous practice,
did so within a framework of tectonic, constructional and vernacular
and evidencing of those strategies through a case study of the
‘truth’ which we had set ourselves.
use of Concrete.
Before the PhD we were concerned that, by analysing and becoming
more aware of our methods and motivations, we would somehow inhibit Specific Contributions to Teaching
our instinctive design reactions; that the examination would change, - The ‘Small Things’ drawing method as a visual illustration of
for the worse, the very thing that made us good designers. Happily, we design thinking; that a complex artefact is an accretion of
found the opposite to be true. Our research has identified the reasons small, edited decisions. How the task of designing an entire
for the instincts, rather than analysing them out of existence. It has made object can be broken down more easily digested parts,
us trust our initial ‘gut reactions’, as we can now see that they are based without loss of coherency of the over-arching architectural
13 Van Schaik,
L. & Johnson, A., in tangible motives. idea.
2011. Research Case
Study: John Wardle. - Parallel design processes as illustrated by Form and Tectonic
In: Architecture & The PhD process has given us the freedom to be more expansive in our ‘small things’ GIFS. How design thinking can be composed
Design By Practice, interests and aims, and the awareness of our methods and motivations of separate, but parallel, processes.
By Invitation, to guide us through the newly opened territories.
Design Practice - The articulation of the reasons for the efficacy of digital
Research at RMIT orthographic projection drawing over 3D computer
(The Pink Book).
modelling in architectural practice and design.
RMIT University:
onepointsixone, pp.
68-72.

209 Conclusion 210

2.5

Conclusion References
I would like to end this research with a quote from John Wardle in the Cadwell, M., 2007. Strange Details. s.l.:MIT Press.
Pink Book13. Wardle completed his PhD in 2001 and so has had much
time to reflect on how the PRS/PhD has affected him. Even at this early Cullen, G., 1961. Townscape. London: The Architectural Press.
stage, I can identify with what he says: Pallasmaa, J., 1996. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses. s.l.:Wiley.
Rasmussen, S. E., 1959. Experiencing Architecture. s.l.:MIT.
‘For me this research was about confidence, about deeply personal things…
It provided me with an important understanding that there is logic to TAKA Architects, 2011. 4House. Firhouse, Dublin: s.n.
what is otherwise my very intuitive process. It invited me to examine that TAKA Architects, 2014. Merrion Cricket Club. Ballsbridge, Dublin: s.n.
and feel strongly about it, and to improve my descriptive processes about the
methodologies we employ. It gave me greater confidence in finding that what TAKA Architects, 2017 uncompleted. Belvedere Sports Grounds. Cabra,
Dublin: s.n.
we do is actually really valid.’
TAKA, Clancy Moore, Steve Larkin, 2015. The Red Pavilion. London
Festival of Architecture(London): Irish Design 2015.
Van Schaik, L. & Johnson, A., 2011. Research Case Study: John Wardle.
In: Architecture & Design By Practice, By Invitation, Design Practice Research
at RMIT (The Pink Book). RMIT University: onepointsixone, pp. 68-72.

211 Conclusion 212