Immersive Computing Research Center
Instructor Umut Toker
Program: A space for innovation and display in the sciences needed to create virtual reality and immersive computing. Including individual workspaces for researchers as well as larger testing and demonstration spaces. The program is organized between private research spaces and public interactive spaces. The overlapping shell provides a layer of privacy between private and public while enveloping the
various programmatic spaces.

Site: San Francisco, Russian Hill.
With the famous Lombard Street at its top right corner, this site lends itself to becoming a landmark for tourists and San Francisco’s people.

Process: Analogue 3D collaging to develop both a concept and the spatial organization of the project.

One of my favorite processes during
the development of this project was the modelmaking,
both analogue and digital. I started
with form generation models and eventually
found inspiration in the geometries I was
creating accidentally and purposefully with
pieces of scrap paper and wood. The idea
of a large, enveloping shell fell into place,
reminiscent of the layers within a piece of
hardware, smooth and continuous on the
outside but complex within. The various layers
and sizes of spaces would provide a space for the
research of virtual reality and augmented reality,
providing a campus for software engineers,
designers, and researchers.
The final analogue model of the project
is shown in contrast to the initial models.
This model served as a practice field for new
tools, such as 3D printing, laser cutting, and
CNC milling to get a clean effect. The model
is in white and there are color highlights to
emphasize the smaller interior spaces and the