The visitor first passes by this building before exiting the highway in a sweeping counterclockwise motion to descend to the parking area below ground . The parking area is underground to allow a more unimpeded view of the building from the eastbound lanes. When the visitors become pedestrians, they enter the complex on the north side of the highway through a tunnel and their movement at that point becomes predominantly clockwise. Rising back to grade level from the tunnel, visitors encounter a wall that bisects the path ahead. To the left the floor ramps up into the more private over-night area, and to the right, the public restrooms are within sight. The wall that distinguishes the two paths splits then tapers to create a pocket of space for the café and branches off again to create the dividing wall between restrooms. These two branches become exterior walls that glide into the landscape and encourage the pedestrian to experience the vast openness and isolation of the desert.

E X P E R I E N T I A L N A R R A T I V E

D I V E R G I N G C U R V A T U R E

[SHIELDING THE EXPERIENCE TO INCLUDE ONLY THE LIMITLESS]

VIEW FROM NORTHEAST EXPERIENCE SPACE TO INTERIOR SECOND FLOOR CORRIDOR TO VAST EXPERIENCE SPACE

T H E W A L L

This design offers an alternative experience to the disorienting immensity of the desert by juxtaposing the intimacy of the human scale to the Salt Flats vastness. Visitors emerge from the confines of the access tunnel beneath the highway directly into building as a way to control the abruptness of the transition to the space of the Salt Flats. At the moment of entry, visitors must interpret various architectural clues in order to understand where they stand. Their vision is directed toward the Salt Flats but they are reassured by the shelter the building provides. Overnight guests reach their rooms through a corridor that allows different fragmentary views to the Salt Flats and the mountains beyond them. The entire scene unfolds once they unlock the door and enter their room. A wall running continuously throughout the scheme greets visitors as they enter the building from the underground ramp. This wall divides the experiences of the overnight guests from the day visitors. As it continues, the wall bifurcates to define the café and restrooms. When the wall divides, it is still permeable by light, air, and sometimes sound. Between the steel piers that support the wall are panels or irregularly shaped stones with slight gaps between them making a porous separation between the various program components. It emerges from the building interior and curves gently back toward the highway to capture a fragment of the salt Flats. As it gradually tapers toward the earth, it enhances the flatness of the desert, reveals the line of columns of the earth curvature installation, and begins to open to the immensity of the Salt Flats and distant mountains.

D E S I G N S O L U T I O N S U M M A R Y

MO

UN

TA

I NS

VA

ST

ALLOWED VISUAL RANGES CIRCULATION CAR|PEDESTRIAN

L O N G T

E R M

S H O R T - T E R M

���’ = �”

20’=1”

GRADE LEVEL

+1 LEVEL

TYPICAL ROOM

1mi 34mi

L I N E O F I N S T A L L A T I O N

SITE LOCATION PROGRAM DIAGRAM

��’=�”

VIEW FROM EASTBOUND HIGHWAY

VIEW FROM WESTBOUND HIGHWAYVIEW UPON ENTERING THE BUILDING

��’=�”

��’ = �”SOUTH

EAST

NORTH

WEST

SOUND PERMEABLE WALLSOUND RESISTANT ADOBE

SHADING EFFECTS OF WALL SYSTEMS ACOUSTIC PROPERTIES OF INTERIOR WALLS

VIEW FROM OVERNIGHT ROOM

AERIAL FROM NORTH

DIAGRAMMATIC CONSTRUCTION SECTION

DETAIL OF “THE WALL” AS AN ENCLOSURE

DIAGRAMMATIC CONSTRUCTION SECTION

A D O B E S A L T C O P P E R W E T S A L T S T O N E S T R A T I F I C A T I O N

[LOCAL, LESS EMBODIED ENERGY, LOW COST, THERMALLY SOUND] [REFLECTIVE, LIGHT] [LOCAL, VENTILLATION]

SANDSTONE + LIMESTONE DRYSTACKEDGLASS ENCLOSURE

DRAINAGE TO AVOID FLOODING