Drawings!

Since I've chosen my site already, I've decided that I might as well start making a few drawings. Initially, my intention was to go inside the building and use the existing infrastructure to support my own replacement infrastructure until I could move completely off the grid and live in there without relying on anything but what the building provided. I think this was spurred on by my desire to use sterling engines place on hot water pipes as an initial source of free power. After speaking with Patrick, we decided that this wasn't the best way to go about attacking my problem, and that creating a building using only the outside layer of another building was more interesting.

Since I decided to move in a new direction, I had to start mapping out the exterior of the building, using the previous drawing.



Here, I've started to dimension the building so that I can draft it and get it laser cut. I initially only intended on only modeling three floors and working on them by connecting floors together using the infrastructure I created. Using this method, I would decide where I was going to place the floors on a smaller scale reproduction of the building, but since I changed my approach, I had to change my method of modeling.

What I'm doing now is modeling the entire Facade, as well as the roof of the building in order to be able to latch on to it and start spreading across the building.

In order to latch on, though, I had to think about connecting to the building, and this is where I set a constraint for myself. I don't want to puncture the building with a drill or do anything that will harm the goings on inside the building. Rather than being a parasite on the building, I'd like to be in a symbiotic relationship with it. If, by latching on to the building I can also help it in some way operate better, then I'll do it. If that connection will adversely affect the occupants in some way, then I can't do it and I'll have to find another way. I just think this will make it more interesting, and will force me to consider the rammifications of what I'm doing to the building in a deeper way.
This is the first connection I drew up, and it's kind of interesting. Basically, it's a wrap around on the lintels of the building. if I can latch on to the lintels, I can create a plank to walk on or stick out poles or other surfaces to attach to. It wouldn't hurt the building, either, so it would be OK to do, in my book.

This is my favourite connection, due to its craziness. Basically, it's for sticking in between the channels that run down either side of the front facade. The idea is that you would take a steel pipe, insert a metal plug, a nail, and something to hold the nail straight. Then, on the other side, you'd pour water in, then add another plug, nail, and stabilizer on top of the water. You could then stick the pipe in the channel and let the water inside freeze. When water freezes, it expands, and since it can only expand in two directions, it'll force the nails into the brick, making a solid connection that you could hook around.

Patrick said it was strange... and if by strange he meant awesome, then I agree.