Honeybee Laboratory

The intent of the architecture is to magnify the perspective of the honeybee by placing the participant into the hive. The architecture draws from the geometries of the honeybee and the langstroth hive. Through an iterative process of examining these characteristics and applying them to the functions of the bee lab the project developed a way for the architecture to become part of the educational experience.  The orientation of the public entry faces west, exposing the rhombille curtain wall  to the daily rising sun. This emphasizes the warmth and light that starts the daily cycle of the honeybee. The massing of the building is modular like that of a hive. Within the boxes a series of framed programs are enclosed by honey trusses that hang from the ceiling creating vertical zones of experiences without closing off spaces. The walls of the boxes are monolithic only allowing light through the entrances and the voids created by the spacing of the modular enclosures. The other main source of light comes through skylights that are staggered along the axis of the building. The light washes across the wood surfaces of the trusses creating a warm light that illuminates the interior from above. The lighting from above, along with the rhythm of the trusses varying in heights, produces a sense of a randomness that has a underlying order.