Rosalyn Dunkley

Design for an art and AI research center, Montreal.
Studio professor: Gilles Saucier, 2019

Situated in the Mile-Ex at the conspicuous intersection of Alexandra Place and Alexandra Street, this building embodies the changing character of the post-industrial neighbourhood.

Layers of corten inspired by spalting wood guide circulation throughout the center, guiding visitors around sloped exhibition rooms and light-filled studios.

The result is a study in sections; a cut through natural wood, floor plates expressed on the elevation, and moments of compression as the levels misalign inside. Relationships between the different spaces are anything but expected.

Studio professor: Fabrizio Gallanti, 2019

The town of McMasterville is located along the bank of the Richelieu River. The proposal would extend the existing physical activity networks in the area through the rehabilitation of a contaminated site. A pedestrian and cycling bridge would reach over the water celebrating the riverain and natural landscapes there.

The project is a response to the town’s application for Transit Oriented Development in 2017 which envisioned the construction of residential towers on the site. The realisation of that plan would likely reinforce the dependency of McMasterville on economic activity in Montréal instead of strengthening its own identity. The bridge, on the contrary, would link McMasterville further to its immediate natural setting.

The site’s former use as an explosives factory left the soil contaminated with heavy metals and TNT. The rehabilitation of the land would involve the planting of four phytoremediation gardens with specific species that absorb and degrade the present contaminants. The gardens would become a living memory of the industrial history and make the site accessible to the public as a park with a network of trails.

The proposed bridge would extend from the new park to the other side of the river, currently only traversed by car and train bridges. Along the crossing would be found interior spaces particular to its aqueous location; a viewing tower, a submarine room, an indoor rowing tank and pools curiously negotiating the water level. Above, a lodge and café become meeting points for cyclists and cross-country skiers.

Architectural puzzle, design for a university without a site.
Professors Kiel Moe, Michael Jemtrud, Salmaan Craig, 2018

This project was an exercise with a strict set of rules. Various parameters were fixed, such as the length of the perimeter of the building as well as the number and dimensions of the windows. The challenge was to generate architectural form from a generic “template”. This iteration uses a stepping system both vertically and horizontally to manipulate the envelope.

The second program of the design occupies the voids that run throughout the building. Filled with air, they serve to improve the passive heating and cooling of the building. Hypotheses about how heated air might circulate were tested using analog methods with saline solution and water to emulate real-life scenarios. The results then informed the design and the rooms were programmed accordingly.

Design for the public library of Chambly, Quebec.
In collaboration with Patricia Johnsson, 2015

Designed for the small
community of Chambly, this library took on the role of a community center, 
incorporating co-operatively tended gardens as well as indoor and outdoor lecture halls. Ramps outside made the otherwise flat terrain variable while remaining easy to meander across. The library also relies on an inter-library loan system, and is therefore designed to accommodate people rather than books in greater numbers. 

Design for an Arctic Research Centre
In collaboration with Patrizia Bayer, 2016

The Arctic’s harsh climate demands a careful negotiation between comfort and
efficiency in building. The remote site for this research station, in Alert, Nunavut, inspired the modular nature of this project, as well as a delivery schedule to the Northern tundra. The changing nature of the station was designed to work in tandem with the evolving research of Northern flora and fauna. In this way, the researcher, the environment, and the station all inform each others’ 
development. 

The modules of the station are delivered four at a time by plane, filling the cargo volume of a C-130J aircraft for efficiency. 
The roofs, equipped with
photovoltaic technology, change shape according to both the initial function of the module, and its time of
delivery. The energy of the research station relies on the modules working together. 

Prototype design
In collaboration with Patrizia Bayer, 2016

An inventory of kerfing patterns. This project is the result of material research on laser cut wood. The most successful patterns were pursued. The patterns ranged from linear to
parametric, the most compelling
seeming to be the deliberate
geometric shapes classified under D. 
This technique could be applied to flat-pack furniture design, as well as dynamic architectural elements. 

Design for Pier 1, Old Motreal
2015

The new focus of Pier 1, 
situated at the mouth of the Lachine Canal, would be the Camera Obscura. It would draw people to a vantage point in the city from which they could observe a panoramic view of Montreal, including the mountain and the famed Five Roses sign. 
The resulting projected image would offer a new experience of the city. 
The camera obscura would be complemented by a theater and event space, bringing the pier to life.

Design for a floating house in the port of Montreal.
2014

The Audax house floats across the harbour from the Old Port of Montreal. It interprets the industrial landscape that characterises the port by using some of the same
architectural language; shafts used for the trasport of grain, and their supporting trusses. 
The house’s secondary program is a bike repair shop, accessed from the well-used bike path leading to Ile
Notre-Dame. 

Design for a community arts center, 2015

Paper Hill was the historic center of newspaper printing in Montreal. The building design for this community center was inspired by the mechanical printing process, and attempts to bring the dynamic aspects of a printing press to the working of the community. The three blocks house a cafe, a gallery and studios respectively. There are many opportunities for activities to overlap, for performances to happen, and for impromptu interaction between individuals, the space, and creative material. 

Prototype installation, in collaboration with Qinqin Yu, Frank Ren and Zaphira Kalaitzakis, 2015

The Wallflowers sit unassumingly on the wall. Relaxed and open in human absence. Sensing movement, they curl up on themselves. 

The installation was achieved using arduino coding with PIR sensors and servo motors. Shell made from mylar and frosted plexiglass using a laser cutter. 

2 layer lithograph, 2016

The printmaking process of lithography involves applying and removing layers of tusche to a limestone base, eventually embedding a greasy image in the stone and enabling it to be transferred to paper. 

From August 2016, I was working at Millar + Howard Workshop, an Architect's practice in England. The office is on the top floor of an old woolen mill in a picturesque Cotswold valley. 

I was drawn to the practice for various reasons. Firstly, their architecture is simple, honest and high quality. Thought goes into every detail on projects big and small.

The historic rural landscape is both a challenge and richness for design; contemporary architecture must compliment and respect the centuries-old local vernacular, all the while being innovative and forward-thinking in terms of environmental impact as well as other implications of design.

The practice values craftsmanship and both directors had first-hand building experience. MHW is also using 3D virtual reality to help communicate spatial designs to clients. It was an interesting tool to learn to use and think about how it can be used in the field of architecture. 
 

2016

Exploration of an object as an "instrument". The initial stage was to write a narrative about found object, then to develop it in an imaginary place. The task then was to make a drawing instrument, the result was a set of bell clappers made of cast silver. They reflect the different stages of the storyline.