This was my thesis project completed with Assistant. Prof. Tom Emerson at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) / Zurich, Switzerland.

Several unique buildings, balancing between public and private, provisional and permanent, lie on one of Zürich’s main tram lines. These buildings add a specific sense of character to each node along this thoroughfare. Escher-Wyss-Platz is a part of this circuit, and would very much benefit from such a structure. This proposal for a food hall is intended to provide just such experiential qualities, and contribute to a greater sense of place at Escher-Wyss-Platz.

The proposal engages the idea of temporary structures that embrace the future weathering and wear brought about by the impact of the environment and human occupants. Standing in stark contrast to the permanent and often industrial structures of West Zürich, the delicate layers of timber framing, the prominence of the roof and its cantilevered position over the river are intended to focus the attention of visitors from the activities of Escher-Wyss-Platz to the muted sounds of the river below. This is especially accentuated on rainy days when the runoff falls directly off the north side of the roof into the river.

The essence of this proposal is a large roof structure, sheltering a combination of thermally enclosed spaces and the open space between them. Although lightness is the overall impression of the structure, lateral stiffness is provided by a dense upper layer of diagonal supports, which stands in contrast to a more open and very regular system of supporting columns in the lower layer. The mix of open and closed spaces offers flexibility to accommodate use requirements that change according to the time of day, as well as the seasons of the year.