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A5 Technology Proposal :

Aaron Gladney 20035393

I'm doing my thesis on rain in architecture, so far my question is, ' How can rain be an integral

part of architectural design?

I have been researching cultures situated in rainy climates i.e.( Japan, Singapore) and also historical examples of rain water use in Architecture like the impluvium ( a rain collecting pool under the compluvium that created a spectacle with up to 30 spouts shooting streams during rain whilst also cooling the space) and inubashiri ( area under long Japanese over hangs that the public used to walk under during rain while helping water run off travel away). My aim is to carry out these studies about how the rain impacted the design form and how the run off was dealt with and compare these findings to the use of rain water in modern architecture. By doing this I hope to show how rain water is an integral part of generating design ideas that can add greatly to the character of a building. The problem seems to be that most buildings nowadays address rain in terms of harvesting the rainwater, for grey water recycling which is unavoidable especially with the introduction of water charges this can save money and in Ireland it is feasible to do so. However it appears that rain does not receive the same respect as the sun in considering architecture. By doing this technology dissertation on rain based technologies I would hope to use it to strengthen and inform my thesis. Ive chosen to do look at constructed wetland, based on the lecture you gave to us. Green roofs, re- use of rain water and the use of berms to cultivate land can lead to individual design features that comply with making a building environmentally friendly ,but, in my opinion these elements never meaningfully relate to the architecture. By researching this field I would hope to understand these technologies comprehensively and in doing so abstract these ideas to apply in architectural design convincingly. My approach to this will be mostly through case studies, firstly in technically successful use of these technologies to learn how effective they can be when used applied correctly. Studying sections, details and reports of selected case studies will provide this information. I would then like select some case studies of buildings which I feel have successfully integrated rain water meaningfully, if there is any; and investigate it more on a quality of space rather than performance. Finally an analytical comparison to see if there can be guide lines achieved that can help provide a building that can both satisfy an environmental and architectural brief.

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