This project is for the eVolo Skyscraper Competition and is located in Phuket, Thailand. I chose this site because of the increased need for water management and emergency housing. The focus is on the use of gravity for the collection, purification, and distribution of water. There is also a focus on the circulation around the emergency housing as my interpretation of a skyscraper.

To me a skyscraper means continuous circulation throughout the structure, connecting the different spaces. So for this competition I took the vertical circulation of a typical skyscraper and compressed them down into a shape that follows the curve of the surrounding site.

Thailand experiences eight months of heavy rainfall per year with winds coming from the west.  There are landslides and flooding throughout the towns.  The other four months are known as the dry season where the residents are left without enough pure drinking and irrigation water.  On top of the landslide and flooding issues there is also an occasional tsunami that lands on the island destroying the towns.

To help lessen the sting of landslides and flooding, the people of Phuket have began to plant mangrove trees, which are native to the area, but have been chopped down in the past for resources. The mangrove trees have a varied root system that allows them to collect water in many smaller spaces rather than one large area.  This inspired my project to have multiple locations for water collection.  The study of paper folding inspired the angles of the water collection. The creases made by the triangular shapes display the benefits of creasing materials.

In order to keep Thai traditions in the architecture I added a waterfall.  Waterfalls are used to show peace and prosperity.