 We welcome you to our 187th Think Tech Hawaii Humane-Humane Architecture Show. And this is our 2021 Spring Break edition. And if we can get the first slide up, we're going to use this for a virtual transcontinental road trip. And we, as Yudhisoto, back in Honolulu. Hi. Hello, everybody. I haven't been on Think Tech for a while now, but I went back. Yeah. And that's thanks to Larry, who keeps telling us his exciting stories about how to build in a more light and tensile way. And actually the climax of the show is somewhat relating to it. So it has to do with that subject matter. Yes. And I'm still back in Germany here back in Würzburg, but we're actually going to travel back to the very southern part of Germany to Bavaria and its capital city of Munich. And this is going to be a not just a fun leisure trip, but it's going to be an R&D research and development trip. And R&D is, for the longest time, we've been using automobiles as vehicles for thought. And we're actually almost having a pretty much a show ready to do with our friend Ron Lindgren, sometimes in the near future. And so today we're going to take this new little pying research mobile. And what is that one? You've been curious because you have never seen one of these in real. This is true. This is true. This is an innovative machine that was made by Audi. It's no longer in production, but it was in production in the early 2000s. And it unfortunately was so expensive to develop and it was so expensive to manufacture that it was not financially successful, but it was made to be very high gas mileage because it's a combination of diesel, as well as being a very light aerodynamic body. And this is the, this is your family vehicle in Germany now and it's what he's taking you around all these different places, which is what's going to drive us around on this campus right now as we go through our first slides. Exactly. And this is the appropriate car because similar the campus is as you can see on the side behind the basic is this university and research campus in Garching. And it has the abbreviation of the Technical University of Munich up there. And it just reminds us that the top right are University of Hawaii Manoa is a tier one research institution and therefore campus one as well, just to keep that in mind when we drive through. So let's get on the road and get the next slide and look at some of the architecture on the campus and this looks somehow familiar right. Yes, because what we see here are elements of brutalism and we talk about brutalism a lot. What we like about this particular example is that it's the concrete has been left plain. It is unpainted and it is gathering its own natural fatina as it ages, and we wish that more of the brutalist buildings in Honolulu were allowed to remain like that but instead we often see that they are painted after they were originally concrete. This you pointed out to me is kind of a campus center. It uses a German word which normally should be spelled with a K, but it's got to see at the beginning so that it's alliterative and goes with the word campus, and I'll let you pronounce it because I thought it was just a group I thought it was an abbreviation I didn't think it was a real word but it in fact is a German word. Well, Knaipa means basically tavern or dive. This is also an indication that's a wet campus right. Yeah. And talking about my before the pandemic and even more now post pandemic my favorite classroom is actually in or underneath one of the prime brutalist buildings on campus by the architect of your childhoods of the house you grew up in and you're actually broadcasting from my Vladimir Asipov. And Saunders is the case where we've been voicing ourselves and cautioning when they basically started to paint it which we think is a pain to paint a brutalist building so please don't. Yes. Okay, let's keep shopping around and let's keep on moving and driving here, what do we see here how did that feel for you that this is a building to me it is basically, I assume underneath that is a large largely a glass box I don't really I can't tell what the, what the walls of the but around it it's enveloped in what looks like a metal mesh fabric and that's what you see at the very top of the image. It's got these two contrasting elements of metal there's the horizontal one which is a wavy piece, the vertical ones are actually woven metal, almost wire. And so that is what is going around the entire building, which not only gives it an interesting look, but it provides privacy it also provides sun shading. It's something that's very innovative, which we would not see being used in the United States, which is we're going to see that more as we go through and it's something that I think is unfortunate that we are not leading as we could be in the use of building materials. Well, particularly on on campus because it reminds us a lot in the kind of the volumetric appearance and dominance of the ocean science building on campus that we've been visiting when we did our sort of inventory shows about UH Manoa campus buildings, which again, it's sort of bluish watery kind of color is ironic, because it has little to nothing to do with a beautiful, you know, self regulating by a climatic aspect of the ocean that's basically a microwave over there so how you just describe this building this building actually would make more sense, not in Munich where now we're we're back to frost and snow where you know you wouldn't need wouldn't want that mesh because if there's glass behind as you were, you know guessing, then you could guess passive solar gain. But this building would be perfect basically for the endless summer conditions back in Honolulu. And there are buildings as we've been reporting we actually did a show about screens or buildings where mid century there's some masterful examples where it's just through this sort of shading screen over glass boxes and made them work fairly well, you know. Yes, so keep on rolling. Next slide. This is a, the campus is basically like a P3 a public private partnerships so there's private enterprises here private industries basically teaming up with a university and this is I think for the trades of metal contractors something like that and that reminded us of what the so do have we have we seen this building before somewhere. We've seen that we've seen a similar building on the west of college campus that has the corner taken out of it you can see that building in the upper right corner of this screen that we're looking at right now. And while that doesn't necessarily do anything for the utility of building necessarily it is perhaps more a trendy or international style that people are going with right now. I also noticed that this building is rusty on the exterior. You said it's a metal workers building so that is appropriate. We've seen the use of rusty surfaces and the aloha stadium. That was supposed to be something that the metal would do and it would just stay stable. It did not do so. And that's been one of the problems there so I hope that this particular building is not going to have the same problems that the aloha stadium had in rusting. Perfect point. Go the next slide. This is building P3. This is one of the major sort of private research or semi private research organizations the Max Planck Institute we actually once did a competition for one of their main buildings in in Munich way way back. And again this building reminded us a little bit of the new life signs building on the campus and it's sort of rather unarticulated facade with doesn't seem to recognize orientation. It's a very biochlametic fenestration seems again more formally designed and sculptured which again talking unfortunate is a little unfortunate for such a innovative institution you would wish you would get an equally innovative building which again we let ourselves be because this isn't really completed by the time was driving by a couple of months ago but the top left is a rendering from the construction side and it doesn't get us too excited. The next slide is the other main private some a semi public semi private research organization the the Fraunhofer Institute. That one when we were helping out the German American Chamber of Commerce, over the years when they were visiting at the very first time they did this there was a gentleman from the Fraunhofer Institute that we did a show with featured at the very top right. So they have this brand new Institute building here under construction which is by we in Germany we don't have the nature of corporate architectural firms, nearly anywhere close as in the United States. But this is this firm is one of the exceptions to this rule and their name is featured at the very top left their logo and it's him named after the founding principle of the firm. And this is an an Institute building again that on the right side with a big glasses is basically north. And we were saying well, both in Hawaii, and in Germany, you know, you won't get too much overheating from that side. That is good. But here you get that very cold wind and the winter blowing. And so usually if you're doing a pacifist building you say glass on the north is kind of a no go because you're losing too much heat from that side. And then what they just start to finish the cladding on in the front the black stuff is basically then obviously the the East facade where the sun is low and potentially already starting to get hot so they keep their clothes is familiar to us in Hawaii and you know, make sense here in Germany to so this building seems to be a little bit more on the innovative side, maybe not, you know, again, ultimately how you would expect it to be extremely cutting edge for a campus of that scope but certainly an okay building as one would think, you know, feel about it. Next one. I think we kind of puzzled you a little bit right. Well you pointed you told me that this is an auditorium and so that's why it's a completely darkened box that doesn't have any openings to the exterior for light. This is this is interesting I assume the interior of this box is actually concrete, and it's got a wood facade or facing on it. One, it's obviously being allowed to weather naturally. And we discussed beforehand is this going to be successful in the long term. We don't know we're going to have to see that you can certainly clearly see the water staining on the exterior. The other thing is it's got a wavy exterior. And that's actually something like the way trees really grow we turn wood we cut down trees, and we turn wood into big long rectangular pieces. They don't actually grow that way. I mean trees do have straight trunks but they do bent and this kind of harkens to that. The other thing to however is the trees are exposed to weather all the time, but they've got an exterior of bark that protects the interior. This building does not have any part on the outside so how long it will last like this. I'll be curious to know and so that's your responsibility Martin at some point to go back and photograph again in 10 years from now so we can see what it looks like. We'll do that's what I'm doing in Germany with our own work we call this evidence based design post occupancy evaluation life cycle assessment right. And so while it reminds me a little bit of Joey Valenti's little pavilion in front of the architecture school building which is a built doctoral thesis project so it's you know it's supposed to be, you know testing the waters and and basically you know pushing things to the limit. I'm not sure we don't know the story behind this building but it seems here a more formalist approach and as you said we will see how it holds up over the years. So, you know, not kind of a summary none of the buildings here didn't seem to really blow us away and get us hyper excited right but there's one and that's for the next slide. Well, not yet, not yet this is kind of topping or concluding our, you know, are missing excitement. This one is a is kind of a condo tell building where they're hoping people traveling researchers will stay there for a short amount of time and live in there. And this kind of pattern of fenestration was also familiar to us in a not so cheerful way right. All right, well it reminds us of the Holly Mahana student housing which is that University Avenue and King Street slash Baratani Street. And it's still got that same kind of checkerboard different colored exterior the problem there are however problems with Holly Mahana such as mold. And there really isn't any function to this design is just what happens to be trendy right at the moment. The thing that struck me about the photo in Germany, however, is there's this odd sort of grass covered freeway on ramp that appears to be right in front of it and I wondered what it was it looks like a partly collapsed elevated freeway and you pointed to explain to me that this is actually a subway station. So this is a very grand exterior, very eye catching exterior for a subway station for people to be able to get to and from the campus. It does the grassy part on the top looks interesting but it also is that that's a way of capturing solar energy that's a passive I mean this is all a very green approach to things a green roof you might say to the subway station. Yeah, and that kind of checkerboard for saw reminds me of a kind of allergic reaction to or is that of our tropical tutor bill Chapman who was always, you know, skeptical when students basically through this on buildings and he was saying well what's the function behind. Does that represent what's behind and it's mostly not right it's the same rooms it's just decorated in a supposedly more interesting way that's a very kind of a surfacial less substantial approach but besides the design of the train station that says everything is arguable, but typologically this is great and what we're missing at you age that you have public transportation, other than diesel or in best case hybrid buses going to the university, you want a rail of some sort right either the, the heavy rail continuing or some light rail or gondolas going up there is, you know, think the kawaii's board member. You know Nicole Horry was suggesting something like that so that's something that you know you age can in the know on particularly learn from obvious you age West is getting a rail it's kind of a transit oriented development. And built around the rail, the heavy rail. So, that being said, again, none of these really got us super enthused but let's go the next slide, because there is something rather humble, and not wanting to show off, but maybe because of that of some more substance and what did we talk about what are we looking at a preschool and this is just a small one story building it's made from a combination of concrete walls as well as a wooden structure for the roof you said their prefab panels will see those in the next shop. And this is again modest, but to me it looks extremely appealing just visually, it's something I would want to go into. And it is obviously for a specific type of clientele is, if you would, is because it's for preschool age children. This is also a form that you have worked with as an architect yourself. And so something you're familiar with. Yeah, and it's great just like the University of gutting and that asked us to say well successful campus needs to take care of that researchers students educators scholars should have families and someone, meaning them as an institution should take care of that and their children and that's what they're doing so typologically this is really really innovative talking research and development. And how this building does it again let's go the next slide, you already touched upon it. I did not had or should say took and shame on me I will do next time the time to go into the building so I had to pull this from the architect's website. But you see this concrete wall in the distance there. And you can see at the top left pictures these are construction photographs and it's basically besides the few concrete walls. It's a solid timber prefabricated construction system. And I pulled out the plan and the plan basically gives us a clue about the orientation that some doing something provocative because it's not positioning the room stores the south with an overhang but to the east and the west and therefore reminded us of my very very first kindergarten that we design we're trying to do the same. And again this picture must have been taken at mid days you can see that basically the southern sun is blocked off. And then you know when the sun comes around. It's probably a little bit more challenging but seems to work in that project next slide. There's another theme that we are familiar with right. That's courtyards and we have seen that many of the buildings in the U. H. campus contain courtyards. This is a courtyard that you actually enter the preschool through. And I would say also probably this being preschool their kids get to play there as well. The entrance that we're looking in. We're coming in from behind where you took this picture. And again you can see the combination of concrete bear concrete as well as the wooden walls and the wooden ceilings that we saw in the previous photographs. Next slide let's continue to walk around the building this is giving you the name of the building it's named after this woman here. This is the first floor the architect of the building and I'm on Kauffman up there and there's a picture of him. And what surprised us about his occupation and the location of the project. Yes that's right and he is actually a professor at this university so he designed this building for the use of the of the university. He's a professor he's actually working architect and maybe you should do something like that hint hint but no I'm not. I'm not looking at anybody particular when I say that. So you're saying the university is taking advantage in a logic way of its own resources. That's exactly right. Let's go to the next slide and check out this interesting feature of that concrete wall. Then all of a sudden is getting sliced and diced towards its end of it. And let's go to the next slide which shows this even more and you found this interesting right. Yeah and I like this particular this this method of not only providing shading if it's necessary, but this is also like a privacy fence. So there's some there's some visual interplay between the outside and the inside, but also it does block a number of passage by for example, can't just look in through the glass wall. And this is something again that we have seen before in other buildings visually I like the way it looks but it also has a function it's got two functions of shading as well as privacy. And you're referring to the quoted the top right or approach for that school diner. So again there's obviously familiarity between these sort of, you know, similar schools of thoughts that make us you know being sympathetic with the building. And again seems very humble building, but a building that has a lot of substance and seems to be innovative typologically and architecturally and technologically and ecologically so sort of on all levels so it fits very well in to a research and development campus. So let's go to the next slide, which is getting us to another very existential typology for campuses, which is what Well we've got a lot going on in all these different pictures. What's on the campus and what's off the campus. What we are seeing is redevelopment for example of what was formerly the YMCA building. We're not particularly enthusiastic about what's going to be happening with that. We also see some outstanding examples of things that might get changed as well as things which we're not particularly enthusiastic about. And there's, but we may not have time to talk about all of those actually because Well there's there's two there's the one development that you say which is just across the architecture hall you know that's going to be redeveloped by this sort of monstrous megalomaniac, you know student housing and then there's one on on on Dole Street, which is right next to the creek and opposite of John Harris Burns school building. And, and these two again what we see so far they don't seem to really trying to live up to paste to a perfect you know ancestor of that typology, a prime piece, which we see on the next slide. And that is Holland and Noah by I am paid, which I had the privilege to live in for my very first week on the island and I'll never forget this is the most tropical exotic experience you can get as a scholar. You having these extravagant communal kitchens up there in the sky they're open they're easy breezy I mean everything we're talking about that you should do in the tropics they're basically doing. They're really really exquisite. So we're saying this is the raw model so everyone who should design anything similar type of logic me look should look at that one, and trying to go from there, and you know, make this the basis and then make it obviously that was then and now is now and research of development basically means, you know things evolve as we keep saying and they get even better and this one was very, very good already so getting better is certainly ambitious but the way to go right. Exactly right. So, next slide and probably the final slide because we're kind of phasing out but this is getting us to that same typology that we're going to expand more in the volume to have this show here next week. But this is giving you a little bit of a pre appetizer taste of how they dealt with that in in Munich on that campus. And what was your impression. Okay, well this again is innovation I see things that are being remarkably innovative that we do not see very much in the United States the these are two lawn eyes of what these are student housing. They've got these folding vertical shutters there's an exterior girder system that's been installed that holds these in place, and then you can either keep them completely open partly open completely shut. They will close up and go to the side and leave you completely open if that's what you want now, as you pointed out there could very well be maintenance issues with these. So keeping them going is not necessarily something that's going to be easy to do. I also pointed out that the railings in these particular lawn eyes and yes they've got lawn eyes even though they're in Germany are made of sort of this metal, metal wire, but they've got these cloth panels that have installed to give them presumably more privacy so people chose to cover up what was completely open, presumably so that they had more privacy, we don't know exactly so, regardless of that. Again I'm very, I'm very impressed with this system of shutters, which with never see in any place in the United States probably. There's a theory of relativity by Einstein that if you're excited about that one I'm saying you know then it proves us how much we are behind in the United States and Hawaii as well because what we have to share. Next week, you know got us way more excited. And we even went so far to say this is the coolest Hawaii building that however isn't in Honolulu, but in a journey so that should have gotten you excited enough to watch our next week show the volume two of this tropical exotic Munich sequence here. And until then, you guys all stay tropical exotic. Thank you to sodo and everyone watching us. See you next week.