AMITY SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE & PLANNING

SUMMER ARCHITECTURAL TOUR - II

UNDERSTANDING CONTEXT / CONTEXTUAL STUDIES

Sem- V , Section-A Presented by-

B. Arch 2019-24 Aastha Shrivastava
ASAP, Noida
EERO SAARINEN
INTRODUCTION TO ARCHITECT
 Eero Saarinen was a Finnish American architect and industrial designer of the
20th century.
 He was born on 20th of august, 1910, Finland and passed away on 1st September of
1961, united states.
 He is famous for shaping his neofuturistic style according to the demands of the
project.
 Saarinen never developed a particular "style" for his architecture, insisting that
every problem was different and thus required a unique solution.
 He molded according to the client, requirements, and necessity of the project,
making each structure he designed, unique, yet simple and organized.
 Saarinen and his team of architects designed mostly with steel, glass and concrete.
He enjoyed the concept of exposing the structure of the building with steel
 He first gained recognition when he alongside Charles Eames designed The Tulip
chair for the Organic Design in Home Furnishings competition held in 1940.
 Saarinen is best known for designing the Washington Dulles International Airport
outside Washington, D.C., the TWA Flight Center in New York City, and the 1931

Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.

1934

1929

EDUCATION TIMELINE
3
AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

 Eero Saarinen was elected a Fellow of the American Institute

of Architects in 1952.
 He was elected a member of the National Institute of Arts
and Letters in 1954. In 1962, he was posthumously awarded a
gold medal by the American Institute of Architects.
 In 1940, he received two first prizes together with Charles
Eames in furniture design competition of MoMA.
 In 1948, he won the first prize in Jefferson national
monument competition. Boston Arts festival in 1953 gave him
Grand architectural award.
 He received the First Honor award of the American Institute
of Architects twice, in 1955 and 1956, and their gold medal in
1962.
 Eero Saarinen receives the Arts Award in December 1959. ARTS AWARD IN DECEMBER 1959
 In 1965 he got the first prize in US Embassy competition in
London.

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TWA TERMINAL

5
INTRODUCTION

 Architect: Eero Saarinen, along with Kevin Roche, Cesar

Pelli, Edward Saad, & Norman Pettula
 Year of design: 1956
 Completion: 28 May 1962
 Client: Ralph Dawson, Trans World Airlines at JFK
International Airport.
 Became an official landmark: 1994, voted on by the
Landmarks Preservation Commission
 Shut down in the year: 2001
 Architectural style: Modern , Futurist, Neo-futurist
 Area - 7 hectares

[Link] 6
[Link]
LOCATION MAP

The TWA air terminal building is built on a prominent, flat site located in Queens, fifteen miles east from midtown
Manhattan. The terminal is located on a curve of the JFK airport access road.
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[Link]
 SITE HISTORY
 New York city first major airport was opened in 1939 which
was too small
 After which people started working on city biggest airport .
 The best location for the project was Jamaica bay in queens
as it offers endless space for growth.
 The site was once symbol of genteel new York , the
marshlands of Jamaica Bay had become a sanctuary for
swans, geese, and unfortunately squatters, as well as a
dumping ground for city trash and sewage.
 The site was a marshes land which was converted to a
concrete surface.
Marshlands of Jamaica bay

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[Link]
[Link]
 SITE PLAN
 In 1955 , the TERMINAL CITY concept was
announced in which Airlines were allowed to design CARGO AREA

their own terminals, and while they were supposed to CARGO AREA

do so within an overall design scheme, each enlisted

their own architects and designed with their own
needs in mind.
 Terminal City `became an eclectic collection of TWA
architecture. Each terminal represented not only a
different architectural style, but a unique approach to
the logistics of airport operations as well.

The plan is arranged in a style similar to that of a sub urban office

park, set around a central landscaped area of, fountains, and parking 9
lots.
 SITE SELECTION
 Keeping the aeronautical
viewpoint the site was selected
in the town of the queens as it
has large flat area and is away
from obstructions like mountains
and tall buildings.
 The area selected is also far from
residential areas so that CA
RG
OA
population is not affected from REA

noise also there is a layer of PARKING

flora and fauna for protecting

areas from aircraft noises

REA
CARGO A

RESEDENTIAL AREA

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[Link]
INTRODUCTION
 TWA Flight Center, also known as the Trans World Flight
Center, was an airport terminal at New York City's John F.
Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
 The center was designed for Trans World Airlines by Eero
Saarinen and Associates.
 The terminal closed in 2001 along with Trans World Airlines
 Circumstances/reasons for change:
I.  In 2001, the TWA Terminal was closed because the
airline went out of business.
II. It could no longer support the size of modern
airplanes.
After sitting vacant, Port Authority of New York and New
Jersey proposed to restore and adapt the TWA Terminal in
the expansion of the airport.
 The terminal is now repurposed as TWA hotel and
replacement terminal collectively make up JetBlue's JFK
operations and are known as Terminal 5 or T5.
 Saarinen and his firm won the competition in 1956 to design [Link]
a terminal that captured “the spirit of flight” [Link] 11
CONCEPT

 The design concept was carried throughout the entire

building with a “family of forms”
 The client wanted this building to capture the "spirit of
flight”.
 In order to capture the concept of flight, Saarinen used
curves to create spaces that flowed into one another.
 The exterior's concrete roof imitates a bird in flight
with two massive "wings.
 Saarinen intended for the design to "express the
excitement of travel" and craft a building that would Saarinen first sketches for the form of the
building
"reveal the terminal as a place of movement and
transition.“

Front façade of the building showing a bird

about to fly

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[Link]
 TIMELINE OF THE PROJECT
 1956 – Eero Saarinen and firm commissioned to design TWA Flight Center
 1962 – Terminal is dedicated on May 8.
Saarinen died September 1, 1961.
 1967 – Terminal received a new departure-arrival concourse and lounge
designed by Roche Dinkeloo
 1994 – Designated New York City Landmark
 2001 – Terminal ends operations after TWA is purchased by American Airlines
 2005 – Construction began on new terminal for JetBlue Airways, which
encircled part of Saarinen’s original terminal
 2008 – T5, the name for the terminal with the new structure designed by
Gensler along with Saarinen’s terminal, opens on October 22.

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FORM

 The TWA airline was assigned with

a wedge-shaped terminal site that was
the deepest into the airport.
 The form of the building was derived
from the shape of site.
 The building was aligned with the
access road to bring maximum
impact.
 The building was formed in a way that
it captured the spirit of flight so a bird
like structure was formed.
 The curve like form was realigned in
response to the flow of airplanes and
human traffic.

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FORM

Car parking is placed in

front of terminal so that
its easily accessible

 TWA terminal stands out

from all the terminals
nearby.
 It is the only terminal in
JFK which shows
excitement of travel and
spirit of flight.
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CLIMATE

 At John F. Kennedy International Airport, the

summers are warm and humid, the winters are very
cold and windy, and it is wet and partly cloudy year
round.
 Curve like form was given to the building for
keeping it ventilated.

AVERAGE MIN AND MAX TEMPERATURE

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 FLOOR PLAN

Louvers were provide

throughout the façade to
minimize heat gain and to
increase the amount of
natural light.

• Saarinen wing and Hughes wing has big

large glass windows and louvers in façade.
• Big glass windows were provided so that
building can be ventilated .
• Sound proof glass was used.
Views from hotel room towards runways 17
Views from hotel room towards the TWA centre
ELEVATIONS

The roof extended towards south façade acts as

a sunshade and helps in blocking heat.

SOUTH ELEVATION
In south and north façade purple tinted glass is used
which saves energy and reduces heat penetration into
buildings and gives a striking visual effect.

The roof is made up of concrete which absorbs

water droplet and decreases the amount of humidity

WEST ELEVATION
The roof is slightly bend extended towards the
west which helps in blocking heat

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SECTIONS

Service and maintenance wing

SECTION THROUGH MAIN LOBBY

Service and maintenance wing

SECTION THROUGH OFFICE WING

Roof extended towards front help in blocking heat

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[Link]
 Most of the
Terminal was made
with concrete and
painted white

The front access road is

divided through
landscape in pedestrian
and vehicular ways

3D VIEW OF TWA HOTEL AND TERMINAL 5 The landscaping was done

in a manner to preserve
unobstructed views of the
building

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LANDSCAPING WAS DONE ON BOTH SIDES TO MAKE LEADING PATHWAYS TOWARDS HOTEL WING

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ROOF
The roof is composed of four concrete
shells: two upward-slanting shells at
the edges, which resemble wings, and  Roof is placed in east
two smaller shells slanting downward west axis and skylight
toward the front and back of the helps in winter as it
structure. captures heat.
 Since the summers
are hot and humid
Roof is made of
concrete and then
painted with white
which helps in re
radiating heat.
 Roof was extended up
to 8 feet and it helps
in blocking heat from
south and west.
The roof structure of the terminal is
composed of four segmental vaults
with bands of skylights at their
junctures.
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GATEWAY ARCH

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INTRODUCTION

 Site: St. Louis' founding on the west bank of the

Mississippi River
 Height: 630 feet (192 m)
 Depth of Foundation: 60 feet
 Year of design: 1947
 Date of beginning of construction: February 12, 1963
 Date of completion: October 28, 1965
 Total budget: $13 million (equivalent to $190 million in
2015)
 Building type – memorial arch Observation tower
 Construction system -stainless steel
 Style - structural expressionist Modern

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LOCATION PLAN

It is located on the west bank of the Mississippi River in the St. Louis, Missouri, United States
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INTRODUCTION

 Gateway arch is the 2nd tallest monument in the world.

 It stands 630 feet (192 m) tall, and is 630 feet (192 m) at its
widest point
 The cross-sections of its legs are equilateral triangles, narrowing
from 54 feet 16.5 m per side at the base to 17 feet (5.2 m) at the
top.
 The St. Louis Gateway Arch is in the form of an inverted
catenary, which is a very stable structure that is often used in
bridges, domes, and arches.

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 HISTORY OF GATEWAY ARCH

 The gateway arch , was established in respect of

president Thomas Jefferson's Louisiana purchase in
1803 and to celebrate St louis central role in the rapid
westward expansion that followed .
 The monument we know today began in 1935, when
President Franklin D. Roosevelt designated property
along the St. Louis riverfront to be developed as the
Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (now known
as Gateway Arch National Park).
 In 1947-48, Saarinen won a nationwide competition
to design a monument honoring the spirit of the
western pioneers.
 Completed in 1965, the Gateway Arch stands as a
symbol of national identity and an iconic example of
mid-century modern design.

AREA OF GATEWAY ARCH NATIONAL PARK

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 SYMBOLISM AND CULTURE

 The Gateway Arch celebrates the diverse people who shaped the
region and the country.
 The strong, elegant shape of the arch represents a door to the
western part of the country.
 The arch represents "the pioneer spirit of the men and women
who won the West, and those of a latter day to strive on other
frontiers."
 The arch has become the iconic image of St. Louis, appearing in
many parts of city culture.
 The arch has also appeared as a symbol of the State of Missouri.

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[Link]
SITE PLAN
 An area of some 40 city blocks
was purchased and all buildings
were cleared for gateway garden.
 The design of gateway arch is
compatible with the historic old
courthouse and is also in the
same axis of the building.
 There is Mississippi river
RETENTION TANK
towards the west of site because
of which there is a 3 feet rise to
mitigate flooding.
 The waste water and storm water
is contained in a 37000 gal
retention tank

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SITE PLAN

 The project team transformed the

space by adding a pedestrian bridge
connecting the park space and city
downtown
 Demolishing a parking garage that
blocked views on the park's
northern end cleared the way for an
amphitheater and children's play
areas.
 A underground parking was also
created.

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CONCEPT
 Saarinen gained inspiration by looking to the nation’s capital.
He surmised that timelessness arose from geometric forms—the
Washington Monument is an obelisk; the Lincoln Memorial is a
rectangle; and the Jefferson Memorial is a circle in a square.
 So, Saarinen selected an a catenary arch, a special geometric
form that is made when a chain hangs freely from two supported
ends.
GATEWAY ARCH HAS SHAPE OF CATENARY ARCH
 The concept of gateway arch is also inspired by its surrounding
historic bridges on north ad south.
 To the north there is Eads Bridge which is the first tubular steel
arch structure of its kind.
 At the southern end of Poplar Street Bridge which is a steel plate
girder bridge the first U.S. Bridge of this size to employ
orthotropic design.
 The Gateway Arch borrows the arch concept from Captain Eads EADS BRIDGE POPLAR STREET BRIDGE
and makes use of the new concept of stress analysis and
structural design from Poplar Street Bridge.

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CLIMATE
 Missouri generally has a variety of seasonal humid
subtropical climate with cool winters and long, hot summers.
 The average temperature for the year in St. Louis - Gateway
Arch is 57.1°F (13.9°C).
 The warmest month, on average, is July with an average
temperature of 80.1°F (26.7°C).
 The coolest month on average is January, with an average
temperature of 30.9°F (-0.6°C).
 The average amount of precipitation for the year in St. Louis
- Gateway Arch is 40.3" (1023.6 mm)
 In St. Louis - Gateway Arch, there's an average of 7.8" of
snow (0 cm). The month with the most snow is January, with
2.7" of snow (6.9 cm).

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 LANDSCAPING

 The landscape around the Arch reflects the curvilinear nature of

the structure.
 The arch and grounds show a combination of landscape and
structure
 The physical components about the importance of the landscape
are:
 The spatial organization, which includes the axial relationship
between the Arch and the Old Courthouse; the contrast between
the open space beneath the Arch and the enclosed canopy of
trees along the north-south walkways; and the scattering of
canopy trees over the open lawn around the ponds.

 The topography, which is level under the arch, and slopes down
in undulating waves to the ponds, and then ramps back up to the
berm along the edge of Memorial Drive. Saarinen’s design
recessed the expressway to minimize the noise and the physical
and visual intrusion that would be imposed by grade highway.
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 LANDSCAPING

 Vegetation around the gateway arch-

o Rosehill ash monoculture which defines the path leading
towards the arch
o Bald cypress in circles in the site
o Plantings around the north and south ponds
o Different trees around service areas.

 Circulation
o Sidewalks leading to arch and connecting arch to the city
o Grand staircase

 Water features—the north and south ponds.

 Site furnishings—the benches and light standards.

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MATERIAL

 The arch is constructed of carbon steel and concrete for

strength and covered with stainless steel skin below.
 The outer surface is made from 900 tons of polished stainless
steel panels 0.62cm thick, which vary in size from 1.83 x
5.49ma 1.83x165cm.
 The foundation of arch was sunk 60 feet into the ground, its
frame of stressed stainless steel is built to withstand both
earthquakes and high winds.

EXTERIOR MADE OF STAINLESS STEEL

[Link]
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[Link]
 TRANSPORTATION
 The interior of the arch is hollow and contains a unique transport system leading to an observation deck at the top.
 Underneath the arch is a visitor center, entered from a descending outdoor for which ramps are starting from both sides of
arch.
 Entrance to the arch is from the underground visitor center which is Located directly beneath it.
 For reaching the platform at the top of the arch is done by a 40-passenger train made up of eight five-passenger capsules in
each leg.
 The observation platform is 65 feet by 7 feet, with plate-glass windows

VIEW TO EASTERN SIDE

VIEW TO WESTERN SIDE

VIEW FROM TOP OF ARCH TO THE EASTERN SIDE. VIEW FROM TOP OF ARCH TO THE WESTERN SIDE.
SECTION SHOWING MOVEMENT
INSIDE THE ARCH
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MIT CHAPEL

37
INTRODUCTION

 Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

 Height: 30 feet (9.1m)
 Diameter: 50 feet (15 m)
 Year of design: 1950
 Year of completion: 1955
 Building type: chapel
 Construction system: brick
 Style: modern

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LOCATION PLAN

48 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, United States

39
INTRODUCTION

 MIT chapel is 50 feet (15 m) in diameter and

30 feet (9.1 m) high.
 The MIT Chapel is a simple cylindrical
volume.
 From the outside, the chapel is a simple,
windowless brick cylinder set inside a very
shallow concrete moat.
 The brick is supported by a series of low
arches
 The chapel has the seating for only 128 people,
and stands in a small pool also of circular
form.

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HISTORY

 In 1949, leading into the Cold War, MIT dean of students and
Unitarian minister Everett Moore Baker called on the school
to construct a small chapel on campus.
 It was part of an effort to rebrand the college and integrate
the social sciences and humanities into a very technically-
minded campus.
 In 1953, Eero Saarinen was commissioned to design two
buildings as part of a new extension of the MIT Campus to
house the non-denominational MIT
 The cylindrical building’s unique and graceful design was
intended to meet the needs of all faiths and continues to serve
as a place of worship for a diverse MIT community.
 The plan would eventually expand to encompass an
auditorium as well for discussions, conferences, and
performances.

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CONCEPT

 The non-denominational chapel is intended to

be more than just a religious building, rather it’s
meant to be a place of solitude and escape that
induces a process of reflections.
 In designing the MIT Chapel, Eero Saarinen
aimed to capture an environment "which was
not derived from a particular religion but from
basic spiritual feelings.“
 The chapel was made windowless and
cylindrical because it helped Eero to create a
spiritual, self contained , inward feeling.

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 CULTURE

the three vertical thrusts of his

sculpture on the top of the MIT
chapel are the symbolic
expression of major religious
persuations Judaism catholism
and Protestantism

Brick is the local material and is

used in many buildings in
campus.

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REGION
 MIT chapel is located
in the heart of
campus.
 It is situated in non
academical zone to
create a excluded
zone for chapel.
 It is situated in a
forested area in MIT.
 It is situated in
western part of
campus where there
are housing and
recreational areas
 It contextually aligns
with the dormitories
and the older
buildings on campus.
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FORM

 The MIT Chapel was conceptualized in

many forms including a rectangle, a
triangle and a pyramid, though Saarinen
ultimately chose the cylinder for his
design. 
 The chapel’s cylindrical form breaks the
rigidity of the campus’s orthogonal grid.
 Early buildings of the campus reflect
classical architectural styles whereas the
MIT chapel shows modern approach.

[Link] 45
CLIMATE

 The climate of Massachusetts is mainly

a humid continental climate, with hot,
humid summers and cold, snowy
winters and abundant precipitation.
 The state does have extreme
temperatures from time to time with
32.2 °C in the summer and
temperatures below -17.8 °C in the
winter not being unusual.
 Humidity varies between 40 – 90%
 It is widely prone to thunderstorms,
tropical cyclones and winter storms.
 Plants and trees are planted all over the
university which absorb water and
reduce humidity.

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 CLIMATE

The light coming from

outside helping in keeping
 The water in pool helps in the interiors bright.
keeping place ventilated
As proposed in the architect’s plans for the as cool breeze of air
chapel, the building consists of a rectangular comes from arch like
structures  The trees around the
plan for offices, an entrance corridor and the
main worship space: a tall brick cylinder  The pool in water also chapel reduces the
surrounded by a pool of water. reflects light which help in amount of humidity.
keeping interiors bright.
[Link] 47
%2005_2017_art_2.pdf?sequence=3
FLOOR PLAN

The entrance foyer is constructed of

panes of cast glass of varying size, color,
and transparency. This helps in keeping
interiors bright.

The double brick wall construction was done in order to promote the effect
of music on the inside of chapel , in this way the air between two brick wall
works for both acoustic and thermal break properties 48
ELEVATION

Bricks in outer space helps in absorbing

the sound.
Bricks are the local material of the place

Along the lower part of the wall are a

periodic series of brick grilles that are
designed to reduce echoes and improve
speech acoustics.

the brick is supported by a series of low arches.

Saarinen chose bricks that were rough and imperfect to
create a textured effect.
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SECTION

50
LANDSCAPE

The wall for

entrance of chapel
was created thick
to keep the place
soundproof and to
avoid noises from
academicals area.

The entrance
pathway of MIT Trees are planted all
chapel was created Grand stairs for
approaching kresege around the chapel to
by planting tress in reduce humidity
the boundaries of oval
pathways.
The pathways are
created in whole space

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A skylight is
created on east
for natural
lighting

The wall and

trees provide a
uniform
background for
the chapel, and
isolate the site
from the noise
and bustle of
adjacent
buildings.

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THANKYOU

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