Special Mention
2008 Skyscraper Competition
Natalie Ghatan
United Kingdom
The premise behind Urban Mountain is a high-rise geometry that can simultaneously accommodate a vertically-arrayed subsidiary ski community program, along with indoor and outdoor skiing amenities. The project was informed by examination of the modern city and the phenomena of urban densification, as well as analysis of varied sets of parameters and emergent behaviors. Indeed, the evolving condition of the urban quality of life and what measures can be taken to enhance it, are relevant to the Urban Ski Mountain. Taking into account the scenario of an intensified cityscape, with increasing stresses on air quality, open space for leisure, and general feelings of well-being, the importance of these commodities are no longer being taken for granted.
With aim to develop a structured and controlled technical process, reactive to the evolutionary growth of various city conditions, the examination of biological constructs has provided a certain amount of technical influence for the scheme. Using the premise of performance, and through the study of a biological construct – the Heliconia plant form – a stacking system was derived and evolved in such a way as to react to varied parameters of densification, as well as various typological constraints and requirements.
The collaboration of physical efficiency with the typological requirements of a structure for skiing gave a resultant set of optimum parameters. The gradual change in gradient as the structure becomes more vertical was greatly influenced and pre-determined through the investigation of skill level within the sport, as well as other factors of speed, route enjoyment and maximum lengths of runs.
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