GBN
—
—
Ministry of Parks
Gabon Natural Ecosystems

Ministry of Parks

Map of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the countryMap of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the countryMap of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the countryMap of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the country
Map of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the country

The identity of ‘Ministry’ reinterpreted as an entity that mediates the public and the government while presenting an optimistic future. Buildings do not last long in the rainforest. Regardless, as a series of pedestrian bridges and a gateway to Libreville, the building serves as the link between park systems and established neighborhoods and will remain a useful part of the built fabric instead of a privatized workplace. Dedicated in 2002, Gabon’s 13 national parks cover 10% of the country. As 'Africa's Eden', Gabon is trying to modernize while simultaneously preserving some of the most unique and last remaining rainforest habitats on the planet.

Map of Gabon illustrating the 13 national parks that cover 10% of the country

Diagrams

Plans

Landscape

Institutional

RELATED RESEARCH IMAGES

RELATED PROJECT IMAGES

Unrolled section perspective drawing of the triangulated massing of the GBN Ministry of Parks showing the continuous usesUnrolled section perspective drawing of the triangulated massing of the GBN Ministry of Parks showing the continuous usesUnrolled section perspective drawing of the triangulated massing of the GBN Ministry of Parks showing the continuous usesUnrolled section perspective drawing of the triangulated massing of the GBN Ministry of Parks showing the continuous uses
Aerial of the corner of the GBN model showing the layers of gardens and public spaces and the stacked ecotourism helipadsAerial of the corner of the GBN model showing the layers of gardens and public spaces and the stacked ecotourism helipadsAerial of the corner of the GBN model showing the layers of gardens and public spaces and the stacked ecotourism helipadsAerial of the corner of the GBN model showing the layers of gardens and public spaces and the stacked ecotourism helipads
Back reveal of the vertical circulation that ends the public museum trail of the GBN before descending back to the plazaBack reveal of the vertical circulation that ends the public museum trail of the GBN before descending back to the plazaBack reveal of the vertical circulation that ends the public museum trail of the GBN before descending back to the plazaBack reveal of the vertical circulation that ends the public museum trail of the GBN before descending back to the plaza

OTHER PROJECTS

The CART live/work housing prototype adds a vertical profile to downtown while converting an underutilized public path into an urban gesture by introducing of a specialized food cart zone in New Haven. The CART residents would rent and appropriate the moving space as a means of expanding their zone.
Utilizing built form as a strategic carrier of culture in opposition of the status quo, the Hellinikon project links the disconnected suburban mountain communities to the east with the sea to the west while splitting the Hellinikon International Airport and Olympic Park into distinct zones.
In Tempe there are two pedestrian axes: Mill Avenue and Palm Walk. Mill Avenue is successful and Palm Walk is not. Is there a way to make the palm trees useful to the students? The PEP structure is powered by buried hydraulic pressure systems giving vertical movement to the layer/palm interface.
The YELE music studio competition, underway before the earthquake, must respond now, but plan for the future of the community. Music is relief in a time of tragedy. The goal is to meet the most basic survival needs now while leaving spaces for future growth through self sustaining phases.
QTCT is tasked to blend these two identities onto one site—a give and take relationship between beach ambitions and urban necessities. QTCT is a sampling of two worlds: on one hand it is the embodiment of the language of the beach and on the other it is a detailed and exacting built urban space.
Space has become redundant again. Popular culture is uninterested in the goings-on in space. Once achieved, mans absurd relation with space becomes yesterdays news. To become relevant to the public, CASIS must be an amenity and not a mission. Instead of promoting an HQ, make it a public interface.
The challenge of creating a pair of studio apartments that can fill a lifted 16'x16' void necessitates the creation of a quick, mobile, and opportunistic building system that can react to the found conditions of the site. Access to the site is limited and the ground must be free.
The GBN project sites itself as this link connecting the busiest night life district and revitalized neighborhood park in the north, the largest beach front in the city to the south, and establishes the cities first large public plaza and recreation fields adjacent to the new building.

OTHER RESEARCH