Interior Perspective of Boat House

Diagrams – Form Finding

Angle defined by slope of Storrow drive exit
The bridge that connects the Back Bay grid to the Esplanade must have a maximum slope of 6%. This informed the angle of the bridge in order to clear the Storrow drive off-ramp

Finding the bridge edge condition
In order to find the edge condition of the bridge – Continually halving the grid between each new node until a connection is made between the Esplanade and the Back Bay

Cone of Vision Diagram
A 60 degree cone of vision from the Halfway point of a single block from the Back Bay grid and its tangent on the edge of the newly defined curve of the bridge.

Congestion Diagram
The Boston Esplanades access is pushed away from the city grid, which makes the access to the site more dangerous – having to pass a highway exit before being able to enter a park, made for relaxation and allowing one to engage the waterfront.

Esplanade entry from the bridge
This section shows the entry from the Harvard bridge (Mass ave) – Access to the Esplanade is limited – The diagram on the right shows desired solution.

Diagrams – Site Analysis

Park Relationship to Urban Fabric
This diagram illustrates the relationships that the form has to the Back Bay. Gloucester street intersects with a monument to the Storrows and a very popular rectangular dock. Fairfield and Exeter streets define the shape of the lagoon by using two circles with the intersection in the middle of the circumference. These relationships occur in varying manners all along the Esplanade.

Section through the Back Bay to the waterfront

Massing Proposal
The allotment of green space to road is significantly reduced the more East one travels on the Esplanade – nearing the Harvard bridge.

Wind Analysis

Circulation

Aalto’s enthusiasm for the design, Schildt tells us, that he tried to persuade the Gullichsens to build their home over a stream on Ahlström land a few miles out of Noormarkku. The influence of Fallingwater is evident in several sheets of studies, which show boldly cantilevered balconies and an undulating basement storey intended as a substitution for the natural forms of the stream and rocks.