Museum of Plant-Based Nutrition

Presenter(s)

Mikala Liley

Abstract or Description

In urban environments nationwide, access to produce and exposure to all levels of food production are uncommon. My intention in this design project is to display the possibilities of a diet focused on plants and encourage others to place a greater emphasis on produce in their life. I chose downtown Dallas, Texas as my site to highlight the possibilities of growing in an urban environment. The museum features greenhouse galleries to tend and harvest what is growing; demonstration kitchens and classrooms to prepare what is harvested; and a farmer’s market to buy, sell, and taste the produce. Sun studies determined the form of the building and the adoption of heliostat technology to take advantage and control what light hits the site. I created a field of these heliostats to redirect light toward the gallery greenhouses and also shade the farmer’s market space. To address the variety of plant growth conditions, I designed nine different greenhouses by breaking up the variations of sun duration and intensities that plant typically like. Each greenhouses use a double skin façade to allow warm air to escape, and also contains louvers that absorb the solar energy while shading the plants. In order to travel to the different greenhouses, I created diagonally run elevators on the outside of the building, meant to separate private and public circulation in the museum. The structure includes a central core with two concrete shear walls extruding out of the core to allow mechanical and plumbing systems to run through.

Mentor

Kapila Silva