Architecture Building Project

  • Fei Yen Waller
Building Project, Year III
Lazy Swamp Theatre
Honey Island Swamp, New Orleans
Rich in it’s musical culture, the city of New Orleans inspired me to design a building for a jazz musician living in the swamps. Altogether, I designed a performance space, a musical archive and a living area for the musician. Desiring to live in isolation, the musician only opens his home and plays to the public in the evening. From his house in the swamp he performs his entire musical repertoire. This is intended to be an intimate recital, with the maximum number of guests not exceeding twenty. Airboats holding a maximum of two people each will be provided to allow the guests to travel from the pick-up point on the island to the house at the end of the swamps. They will remain in the boats during the performance so as to enhance the experience.

Concept:
After primarily researching jazz music and it’s origins in New Orleans, my design concept was heavily based on musical notation and the physical layout of the piano. Examining the spatiality and formations of this instrument led me to form my overall building design.
Ground Floor Plan
Plan showing the performance space, the musical archive (at both sides of the building) and the recording studio
1st Floor Plan
Plan showing the bar/restaurant for the guests, as well as the musicians private living spaces
Roof Plan
Long Section
Section primarily showing the guests entrance into the building, the performance space, and the musician's private living spaces
The Musical Archive
A hand drawn view showing the musician's archive, where he stores vinyl's, musical scores and books about jazz music
Boat Entry
A hand drawn view showing guests in the swamp boats being taken into the building to watch the performance
The Performance Space
A hand drawn view showing the jazz musician's evening performances with his guests watching from the swamp boats