User:Alaviola/sandbox

Qualifications of Structural Art
Structural art can be defined in two different manners. The first way is to look at it from the perspective of the three E's: Efficiency, Economics, and Elegance. The other way of analyzing structural art is the three S's: Scientific, Social, and Symbolic.

Scientific
One thing to that would help the analysis of this tower is to look at it scientifically. The Nakagin Capsule Tower is made up of a central tower with small cubical rooms around the outside of the central tower. The main material used is concrete. The main connectors that attach the cubical rooms to the tower are high-tension bolts. The structure is made out of concrete so there is a gravity load working on this structure along with wind loads due to the thirteen stories that makes up this building. The building itself is designed to hold 114 people either for residence or as office space creating more gravity loads then the weight of the building alone.

Social
Another aspect to consider when looking at the tower is it socially. The central towers of the build were constructed on site but the cubical rooms were built offsite. This offsite construction of the cubical rooms reduced the overall cost of construction when compared to construction of the whole building onsite. Being able to construct the cubical rooms offsite, reduces the cost by allowing the construction to be automated. The building itself was constructed in 1970 and finished in 1972. The building was condemned in 2010 due to concern of asbestos and concern for earthquakes over stressing it and knocking it down. The cubical were designed for bachelor businessmen that work in the local area. This is a congregation of people that are in similar stages of their lives, allowing them to easily find people to do stuff.

Symbolic
One aspect of the tower that is a little harder to analyze is the symbolism of the building. There is this sort of closed off, private feel given off by the cubical rooms. Each room is a small cubical that is segregated from the rest. There are very distinct breaks between each cubical really defining the segregation. The building represents a sort of sanctuary for bachelor businessmen that live and work in Tokyo. This tower has unique look that can be best described as futuristic. This could be a glimpse into the future of how structures are evolving.