Heart of Philadelphia

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re-imagining the athenaeum of philadelphia

The main idea behind our project design here is the maximum and diverse utilization of space. The project is set in the year 2050. We take into account the technological advancements to provide us with solid holographic walls, and the impact of the digital age to render the use of shelves or bookcases obsolete. This will free up a massive amount of space, which will enable you to utilize each floor as you see fit by switching and adjusting the walls themselves, to fit either an exhibition a library or any other purpose. This way the only permanent restricting borders will be the outer walls of the building itself.

Here we present a modern take on the Philadelphia Athenaeum build in 1845. We have depicted the main building as a human heart. Like the human heart, it will be the driving force of the structure, incorporating the main functions like electricity, heating, elevators and so on. The heart will be the core of the structure, hypothetically and literally. Also like a human heart the core will have “veins” stretching up to the top floor each floor Is modelled similarly to a bone structure, they will serve as a transportation method just like the hear circulates the blood in a human body. In a way, we see the whole structure as a living, breathing entity, with emotions, memories and feeling just like a human being.

http://omeka.philaathenaeum.org/LookingForward/items/show/84