Family Forum

Tasked with combining a courthouse and a children’s center, I examined how institutions might be understood within the urban context, with intent to un-institutionalize the courthouse. I focused on marriages and divorces within the courthouse in combination with a daycare to explore all major stages of a family’s life. 

 

Formal studies of separation, union, and whole were experimented with using 3D printed pieces which ultimately led to a combination of these.

 

The building is designed for visitors to enter the 2nd floor from the Gay St. bridge where you emerge into a three-story atrium space. To the left you see children in the daycare, above on the 3rd floor, are people being married, and below on the 1st floor, are those who are getting divorced. The building is designed for visitors to contemplate their actions and assure themselves that they are making the right choice for not only them, but for their families.