On this project we implemented a smaller-on-bottom, larger-on-top concept that allows for passive self-shading of the building during summer hours and for passive solar gain in the winter. We also addressed the project as a sum of its structural, material, and circulation systems to address the design considerations from a holistic perspective.
Advanced solar shading is one of the central organizational techniques of this project. The most noticeable characteristic of the Lee Center is the larger-on-top, smaller-on-bottom composition. One reason (among many) for this intriguing shape is its response to the sun: the wider upper levels help shade the lower levels.
The forward projecting volume shades an outdoor plaza and prevents sunlight from directly hitting the first floor lobby. The larger footprint of the third floor shades the floors below, and a horizontal sunshade with integrated photovoltaics overhangs the third floor. During winter, the Lee Center’s south facade welcomes the rays of the lower and tamer sun to help warm the building.
The structure of an oak leaf, also the college’s logo, inspired design of the trusses. The veins in an oak leaf help to stabilize it and resist the wind’s currents and eddies, a purpose that the structural system in buildings fulfills. A structural truss in particular resists structural forces from any direction, much like a leaf resisting the wind.
