LLGC Calendar CC AlisonW at English Wikipedia
Thesis: Due to lack of funding across the UK toward the end of the 20th and start of the 21st century, Queer spaces have been disappearing. Fading out due to lack of support to keep them open and running. A good example of this is the ‘Gay and Lesbian Centre’ that was once a thriving hub to community in London. Seen as a milestone in the LGB community at the time due to it being helped by the Greater London Council’s Charter for Lesbian and Gay Rights launched in 1986. This centre was a new start to help support for the community as well as providing them with several utilities such as specialised bookstores, offices for queer organisations and many more social engagement activities. I drew a lot of inspiration from the idea of this space which unfortunately closed pre-maturely in the 90s after just 6 years of running. Partly due to a fault of a new government that stripped LGBT funding and part due to infighting between the different spectrums of ‘Queer’ at the time. While this space was good for the community, it had fundamental flaws socially which I think was partly due to the era it started. However, I believe a space like this would be much more functional in today’s climate due to what some consider a second wave of feminism and queer liberation.
Map of Queer Spaces throughout Glasgow
Upon looking further into this, I realised that there is not only in fact a distinct loss of spaces across the country, but a clear gap in non-profit spaces for Queer people that are solely for the community. A fact that is quite shocking due to how integral the Queer community has been in British history. This becomes even more apparent when you look at Glasgow as a city. A major city in Scotland that has been considered by many to be one of the most LGBTQ+ friendly countries in Europe and the world. The vast majority of the Queer spaces in Glasgow are bars, clubs and spaces that are there to profit off of the community. There is no denying that these are key for the Queer community but shows a concerning trend that the only way to access the community is thought financial means. Further research showed me that since the shutting down of the London Gay and Lesbian centre there has not been a non-profit solely Queer venue open in the UK. Showing that the need for such a space was in demand.
Site within Glasgow City centre
Site Massing
Due to the site's large footprint I decided to split the building up in order to create a typography of different uses throughout the site. Designing spaces for the art to be more of a show case and letting in a more public side of the greater community, while keeping the more central area of the site to the more private areas. Creating a ‘sanctuary’ of some sort.
Building Typography
Once the massing was decided I had to figure out what characteristics of the building typography were required. I came to the following ideals in terms of design:
Environmental Factors
Certain environmental aspects were also taken into consideration before developing the interior of the building. Criteria I wanted to stick by during the whole design process.
Schedule of spaces and Circulation
Defining the areas that were more public and private as well as how they are circulated throughout the building was also key to figuring out the best way to organise each of them.
Ground Floor Plan
First Floor Plan
Second Floor Plan
Third Floor Plan
Fourth Floor Plan
Stages of Construction
I was also keen to bear in mind the environmental impact of the building. Looking into using CLT for as much as possible withing the construction. This led me to prefabricated CLT panels that could be brought onto sight and built in stages. Main components being the CLT walls with cladded exteriors, CLT floor providing horizontal rigidity throughout the building allowing for the uninterrupted voids and finally glulam beam within the roof to hold up a green terrain as well as further horizontal loading. The gallery building has been used as an example as each building will follow the same construction techniques.
Various Construction Types
I made the decision to use different forms of CLT throughout the building to give different environments in each area. CLT walls differ from the voided spaces to the rooms that house the activities. The void spaces would be ribbed CLT to emphasize the feeling of a reclaimed space, showing the raw exposed structure with the circulation taking place in these spaces, increasing the feel of the void spaces as an area you can pass through. Then the roomed areas were to be solid CLT, adding a bit of security to them and a feeling of them being built into the current structure. Enclosing them a bit more when leaving the large voided areas. As for the wall build up this again looked at using materials that would be less harmful on the environment in the long run as well as very low maintenance. Brick for the cladding that would be recalled where possible, while providing the benefit of very little maintenance in the future of the building. Cork for the insulation as it is effective at this purpose, natural and comes with various benefits of resilience, making it a grate long term solution.
Gallery Long Section
The building follows the designs aesthetics described above in, playing with voids throughout the space to create a different areas of interest withing the building. Seen in the cross section and various visualisations. The variety giving different environmental feels to each floor having a focus every time you travel up to another level. The open plan design giving the opportunity for the artwork to be seen at almost every view, thus showcasing the Queer artists as much as possible within the building. The simplistic material textures are also used to make the art stand out and The Gallery: pop, while also giving the raw feel of a reclaimed space that comes with many Queer enviroments.
