We designed and built the Bunglegym, a playscape constructed primarily of galvanized steel pipe and bungee cords, for the Playscape Project to raise money for rebuilding paly areas in Bastrop, TX destroyed by the recent fires. We had a ball creating a labyrinthine tangle of elastic cords for kids to navigate through and wedge themselves within. It was a big hit with the “clients!” Watch the video link below to see how it was put to use.

Tribeza did a nice article on the Balcones House in its annual architecture issue. Click on the image and jump to page 46 to read the article.

Pollen is thrilled that the Balcones House will be part of this tour featuring some of the best modern design in Austin. Come out February 4th, 2012 to say “hi” and see some terrific houses. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.

Pollen has won a competition for a major commission at St. Edward’s University. The project is for a remodel of the university’s Chapel, a new building for campus ministry offices, and a meditative garden. Pollen built a fantastic team, featuring Ten Eyck Landscape Architects, Architectural Engineers Collaborative, EEA Consulting Engineers, Lumen Architecture, Macek Furniture Company, and Structura in proposing a design which integrates the three program elements into a feature that will define the gateway to campus.

This project is one of three currently on the boards at St. Edward’s, and part of a larger push the university has made over the past several years to bring a new wave of design excellence to its beautiful and historic  campus. Other projects currently underway at St. Edwards include a natural sciences center designed by Moore Ruble Yudell and a library expansion by Sasaki and Associates. With work also completed in recent years by Alejandro Aravena, Andersson-Wise and Specht Harpman, the University has demonstrated a tremendous commitment to design.

Read more in the Austin Business Journal.

We were invited to submit a design proposal for a remodel of the chapel, new ministry offices and a contemplative garden at St. Edward’s University in Austin, TX. St. Edward’s has a wonderful campus with beautiful old trees and great buildings, so this was an exciting project for us. We partnered with an excellent team including Ten Eyck Landscape Architects, Architectural Engineers Collaborative, EEA Consulting Engineers, Lumen Architecture, Macek Furniture Company, and Structura in an integrated design process.

This house is a recreation of a modest mid-century house plus an addition. The intent was to maintain the spirit of the original design while expanding, repairing and solving the functional problems of the original house. Most of the original structure was too badly damaged to retain, but the new house retains the essence of the original house reinterpreted, upgraded, and preserved for the future.

The house sits on the Balcones fault, which is actually a series of small fractures called an eschelon. It is entered from below through an open-air, covered stone stair tower that draws cool air into the house. One side of the house looks uphill, creating spaces between house and cliff; the other side projects off the hill, looking into trees in the ravine below. The volume of the original house is rebuilt with new materials and different openings. The ‘addition’ is separated from the original volume by clerestory windows, which give southern light and a view of the treetops. This roof kinks in two dimensions; in plan to respond to the existing cliff, and in section to make a butterfly roof which directs the eye uphill and collects rainwater.

The house is designed from an integrated perspective, employing passive solar principles and many green features. These include window placement to optimize daylight and solar heat gain in the winter while avoiding summer heat, a roof that reflects most of the sun’s heat, extra insulation, low-embodied energy local materials such as new-growth cypress and pine, photovoltaic panels, and rainwater catchment. Pollen developed several custom materials used in the project including an exposed aggregate concrete slab topping with a terrazzo-like effect and concrete tiles with a texture pattern that creates unique light and shadow patterns on the wall.

Elizabeth Alford taught a vertical design studio at UT in Fall 2010 entitled ‘Studio Ex-Situ’.  Students were asked  to explore physical representations of surface, to test model-making techniques, systematic sectioning and manipulation of landform as the starting point of design.

Working from a selection chosen from the U.S.G.S maps of Austin topography, students were asked to purposely manipulate the contour through mirroring and build two types of contour models – one ‘pancake’ & one with vertical sections. They were asked to plan for specific modeling materials, and to develop the construction of the model as a thing itself.

In the second project, students were asked to inscribe or embed a linear boundary in a portion of the contour, from terms assigned more or less randomly: terrace, dam, fence, haha, revetement, retaining wall, swale, bunker, berm, palisade, gabion.

The work was then exhibited in the UTSOA Materials Lab under the title ‘LandLab’.  The exhibit was organized and curated by Sydney Mainster, the Materials Lab Curator, with Elizabeth Alford, and photographed by June Jung, School of Architecture Visual Resources Collection Photography TA.

The finishing touches are continuing apace to get the Balcones House ready for the AIA Homes Tour next weekend.  The board-formed concrete around the existing outdoor fireplace was a feat of engineering accomplished by many hands and much patience.  The steel planters are in – and planted.  And we are very happy with our beautifully fabricated custom grille and lock details inside the house.

We at Pollen are excited to present a talk entitled “Ex Situ” at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden on 10/6/11. Thanks to Carla, Scott and Benjamin for hosting! Hope to see you there.

RSVP at umlaufsculpture.org.