Resting in Myths | Isle of Portland, UK | Unit 21 | 2022

ina.ioan.20@ucl.ac.uk

The project aims to bring together mythology and leisure in a storytelling environment buried deep into a hill whilst also being lightly cantilevered off the ground, overlooking the pristine natural surroundings. Its ambition is to create a dialogue on both sides of an existing hikers’ path that leads to the ruins of the Rufus Castle and to nestle Portland’s culture by strategically presenting some of its long-lived legends in a mythology museum and a resting area. These legends are represented through an image encryption algorithm that dictates the design when linked to the site’s topography curves. The design language borrows stories illustrated through images related to the surrounding area in order to ‘fuel’ the script with data, therefore further contextualising the design.

Using the topography lines is at the core of spatial arrangement and the surrounding steep landscape is the dictator of the interior conditions. Therefore, the bespoke design that stumbles across no similarities in regards to shape is entirely supported by the topography curves, the main driver of this project.

Site Map

Traceable Image Encryption

Curating a myth gallery that is tightly related to the surrounding area in order to generate heightfield surfaces and to later-on integrate them in the design.

Untraceable Image Encryption

The second encryption method involves the myth gallery and an image encryption script, thus ‘hiding’ stories in the design language by analysing the pictures’ pixel brightness. The script allows for the manipulation of the topography curves which dictate the design.

Manipulating the topography curves using the image encryption script in order to determine the plan shape of the building, as well as its spatial boundaries.

Untraceable Image Encryption- Early Experiments (P1)

This video shows the initial image encryption experiments, whilst also demonstrating the encoding process. The P1 design depicts a gate which buries the story of ‘Oedipus’ by Sophocles.

Building Plans

Building Sections

Exterior Renders

Interior Renders- Resting Area

Interior Renders – Underground Museum