Interior Render

The main Administrative lobby, this is not the reception desk for the complex just the office area. Notice the exterior wood slat ceiling, and the inner curtain wall surface as the ceiling on the upper left accents this exterior skin.

South East Exterior and Roof

CLICK to see the full image, this is a picture of the South East exterior and view of the slopping hill and 5 atrium spaces throughout the complex. Where the public is able to walk up and enjoy the sprawling green roof.

The Research Library: The dark wood floors an wood accented ceiling, mixed with the horizontal exterior slatted-skin is complemented here again by a modern selection of furniture and sleek bookshelves. The slats are 5" apart, so from a distance they create a wall while up close they are very transparent.

Interior Renders

Conference room in the community education wing, East side of the building. The entire building is a mix of wood slats, and wood floor, with a bold interior or modern wall colors and sleek furniture.

Interior Renders

South East; private office space in the administrative area.

Lights On!

Below is a rather lengthy series of photos, but I kind of wanted to include a tiny bit of what I do when I am not at studio. I am the Technical Director or Fargo's First Assembly Church, where I oversee all the lighting, audio recording, video production and media functions of this huge facility. Aka.. it is a giant toy box for me! These are pictures of our sanctuary/stage and worship band during one of our worship nights where I spend hours designing the lights and cues for these high energy concerts! For all of us architecture kids, here are some facts: the sanctuary seats 2,700 people, and the main sanctuary itself is 28,000 square feet with a 3,850 square foot stage, its awesome to see when all the lights and media get rolling for a service or concert. The whole building totals about 43 thousand square feet. Thats just a bit about my life when I am not at my desk in studio. 

 

Cotton, Cotton and Cotton

Hi Everyone!

I don't know if there has been cotton coming out of our ears or details! This project has become more of a detail oriented project than we had expected, but I would rather have it that way any day. We kind of bulldozed through the space planning and structural planning phases, but absolutely did not forsake function and good use of space during it. The floor plan really did just naturally develop from a few first sketches and loose outline ideas. I used those two dozen plan sketches, and three dozen other sketches of sections, elevations and perspectives and complied a design into Revit about 4 weeks ago. Once I had the entire building done along with Cassie's help she was then given the file to start adding the architectural detailing such as the cedar wood slat skin, finalizing the curtain walls and the bold-curved-mullions of the atrium spaces.

Recently, I have been working at putting lighting and finished floors and ceilings into the digital model as Cassie has been doing the detail work on the curved mullions in the 6 atrium spaces. Before friday we hope to have all the lights, mullions and furniture in the model. To date we have probably created about 30 renderings that mark our progress and material choices along the way.

Thanks for being interested and reading this as Cassie and I continue to have fun and design the Cotton Research and Community Engagement center.

Matt and Cassie

Another view of the North East corner showing the library and lab space behind, and the side door on the right which leads to the administrative area and break room. This door is for the employees to access their patio off of the break room. 

This is a night rendering of the North East side, showing the library on the left and one of the offices illuminated on the right. Also in this view is the in progress atrium space which leads to the educational wing.

One of the original renderings of the north facade of the building. Note the horizontal wood slats that surround the building. These are a outer layer and skin that is mounted to the exterior curtain wall which sits behind this shielded wall. There have been several great night renderings which we will post soon, where the interior night light glows through the slats and creates this luminescent soft glow.

Main floor (ground) floor plan or the Cotton Research Facility, this is a sprawling single story complex which is divided into three main areas; (clockwise) on the left is the main harvesting and storing areas, note the large store rooms, docks, locker rooms and southern green house. Then in the middle, there is the laboratory space with easy access to the store rooms, locker rooms and public viewing offered from the main lobby and gallery space. Above that, is the main gallery space where the marketing offices are located on the left side, and on the upper right side the administrative offices, additional restrooms, employee break room, and the research library. Lastly, on the bottom right is the educational wing, with three classrooms and conference rooms and a meeting room complete with storage space and prep kitchen.

North side main entrance to the Cotton Research building. This material will be steal however in this rendering it has been done out of another material to capture the aesthetic of it.

This is an interior night rendering of our administrative offices area. This area can be seen on the floor plan in the upper North West corner.

The above image is the small city of Stoneville, Mississippi. The large green section on the upper right side is the site for the Cotton Research and Community Engagement Center.

This is a window detail of the Cotton Research and Community engagement Center, a designed for Stoneville, Mississippi.  This detail is to be constructed out of steel and filled in with glass, used for all the main atriums and gathering spaces in the building. The rest of the facade is a simple, organic wood slat siding. The scale of this actual detail is 30' tall and 12' wide. This template was designed using AutoCad and ready to be laser cut.

Stocking The Bank

Structure Forming Structure

Will It Become Mass?

As this year starts and this new semester is underway, there is this discombobulated foundation being laid where all of our heavily loaded classes don't have very solid deadlines. I am eager and excited for all of my classes and projects, many of them seem intriguingly haptic. Some seem innovative, and others educational, which are still vital to our learning, and equally exciting. The instructors seem really involved this year as well. I have this goal this year to be really on top of all my projects and deadlines... which is not starting well because the hazy deadlines that are more void than mass. 

For They Become...

Watch your thoughts, for they become words. 

Watch your words, for they become actions.

Watch your actions, for they become your character.

And Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."

-Margaret Thatcher

Not Religion

What if I told you Jesus came to abolish religion, what if I told you voting Republican was not His mission. What if I told you republican does not automatically mean your a Christian. Just because you call others bind does not automatically give you vision. If religion is so great  then why has it started so many wars. Why does it build huge churches but fails to feed the poor, tell single moms that God does not love them if they have had a divorce. But in the old testament calls religious people hores. Religion might preach grace, but its another thing they practice. To ridicule God's people but they did it to John the Baptist. They cant fix their propbles so they just mask it, not realizing religion is like spraying perfume on a casket. See the promblem with religion is that it never gets to the core. Its just behavior modification like a long list of chores. lets dress up the outside and make it look nice and neat, it's funny thats what they did with mummies while the corps rots underneath. Quit putting on a fakebook because there is a propblem if people only know your a christian by your Facebook. Because in every other aspect of life you know that logic is unworthy. Its like saying you play for the Lakers just beacuse you bought a jersey. Because this was me too. But no one seemed to be on to me, acting like a church kid while being addicted to pornography. On Sunday go to church but saturday getting faded. Spend my whole life building this facade of neatness, but now that I know Jesus I boast in my weakness. Because if grace is water then the church should be an ocean. It is not a museum for good people it is a hospital for the broken. Which means I don't have to hide my failure and hide my sin. Because it does not depend on me, it depends on Him. Because when I was Gods enemy and certainly not a fan, He looked down and said 'I want that man'. Which is why Jesus hated religion, and for it He called them fools. Don't you see its so much better than following rules. Now let me clarify, I love the Church, love the Bible and yes I believe in sin. But if Jesus came to your church would they actually let Him in? Remember He was called a glutton and drunkard bu religion men but the Son of God never supports self-righteous, now now, not then. One thing is vital to mention, how Jesus and religion are on opposite spectrums. One is the work of God and one is a man made invention. See one is the cure and the other is the infection. Becasue religion says do, Jesus says Done. Religion says slave, Jesus says son. Religion puts you in bondage and Jesus sets you free. Religion makes you blind, but Jesus makes you see. Thats why Jesus and religion are two different clans. Religion is man searching for God, Christianity is God searching for man. Thats why salvation is freely mine and forgiveness is my own. Not based on my merits but Jesus's obediance alone. Because He took the crown of thorns and the blood dripped down His face, He took what we all deserve. I guess thats why they call it grace. And while being murderer He yelled 'Father forgive them they know not what they do'.  Because when Jesus was dangling on that cross He was thinking of you. And Jesus absorbed all your sin and berried it in the tomb, which is why kneeling at the cross saying come on there's room.  So for religion I dislike it, because when Jesus says 'it is finished' I believe He meant it.- Poem by Jefferson Bethke

It's All New

It is that time of year again, a new semester, New Year's resolutions that may not last, new assignments that take all night, new great books to read..etc. It seems to be that annual cycle that happened this time each year where some will win and others loose, why is this? What's with new semesters and calendar dates that make us set new goals for ourselves? Could it be to improve on old ways? Maybe try harder, or work less and live more? To travel and see more? Or learn to play the guitar?  Its kind of like a race, we as humans like starting lines and finishing lines. Otherwise we would be running around aimlessly like chickens.

One New Year's resolution I set was cut down on coffee, and by that I mean completely-unrestrained stop drinking it. With two to three cups of purchased brand-name coffee bought each day last year.. its about time I break the addiction and put the money elsewhere. After all a grande hazelnut latte with whip is almost five dollars. With each new year and new semester I try and challenge myself with setting goals. I have a passion in seeing and being apart of change, and change happens when new things are introduced into our bubbles. It's a good thing! Not easy but often exciting and always an adventure. I believe goals are things that one can reach... but not without work and perseverance, if it's too easy; it's a 'to do list' not a list of goals.

Hopefully this year is a race that I am well prepared to run, both academically, socially and with new beverages to try... Good luck running the race!! Enjoy the moments along the way, because after all is said and done, battles won and lost, those moments are the ones that matter the most, not just finish line.