Architecture Project: Market Hall

A market hall is an open space which is ordinarily meant for conducting business activities and in some cases civil functions. I can also be referred as a marketplace. Market halls have a historic origin in Great Britain from the 1620s2. The proper and mandate to build and very own a market house have been granted by the Queen only. During this time, the poorly managed market halls have been replaced by way of more sturdy market houses which have been mostly pioneered and run by way of corporations as hostile to the previous which had been owned by individuals. The market halls furnished a vast protected area the place vendors should conduct their companies on the ground with ease. The whole complex consisted of a town hall, a guildhall on the upper region. This mechanism of designing was originally done in Italy at Pallazo Del Broletto Como in 1215. Britain did not have such market hall designs until the 15th century. It was until the 19th Century when new improvised market halls started to emerge. The first impressive and extensive market halls were the St. John’s Market built in 1822 in Liverpool1. It was the first of its kind with a vast space and a spectacular design which offers comfort and security to the people. It had a robust roof backed up by iron pillars and surrounded by well-built walls. All this design was meant to enhance security to the market stalls which were built inside. Many designs then followed with the introduction of glass roofs which became widely used by the end of the 19th century. The very first market house to have a glass roof was built in 1845 in Birkhead. Then afterward a series of design modifications have been made. Market halls were meant for serving a variety of purposes both social and economic1. First is the provision of space for vendors to conduct business activities. Market halls famously known as a marketplace is mainly recognized as a place of buying and selling. A place where business people bring their goods or rather products to sell to interested customers. Market halls also served the civil functions and hosting of public meetings2. Sections of court rooms and offices of public civil servants were set aside in the design of a market hall. Remands and jails could also be included especially where the market house complex was big enough to accommodate more buildings. It was a whole conglomeration of activities. Originally market halls were only built for purposes of trading; exchange of goods and services. However, by late 19th century, architectural designers started to include more services apart from just buying and selling stalls. A market pace then began a whole inclusive place containing all social and economic amenities. General description of the project:My architectural structure is a public small market hall in downtown Lacoste, France. The design is consisted of 3 buildings: the main central structure and two subordinate wings (400 Square ft. each). Public space and a fountain surrounded by the structure complex. My architectural design has two levels:The floor level provides in total an 800 Square ft. of covered space for vendors to sell their products, and a 300 Square ft. of storage. The standard floor, the main building, provides a space for market supervisor’s office and closed area for merchants meeting. The main building has 2 roof access to the wings. The blobitecture applied here will consist of an arcade on the upper floor that will provide access to buildings on the upper floor. The building will have three arcades in each of the three buildings that will be interconnecting. The central building will be constructed in the form of a building envelope where the floor, the roof and the walls of the building will be merged together. This is basically meant to enhance its stability and support business activities. The central building will be strictly meant for holding public meetings and other commercially related activities. It will have a fenestration on the back side which provide adequate air supply to provide the sustainable room temperature that is conducive. The other two buildings will have an array of enfilade. The rooms will be constructed in a straight array with a walk way beside them. These will be basically meant for public and civil offices for civil servants. The two buildings will have a single stair case that connects with the ground floor, which will be constructed about 20 feet from the main entrance to the complex. The roofing will be done using corrugated iron sheets reinforced with stainless iron pillars to enhance support. There will a section for transparent iron sheets which will enhance penetration of natural light into the market hall during the day. Conclusion Construction of market halls has a long history. Technology has also advanced and at the same time techniques of architecture also improved. There is now computer programs designed to perform parametric, the designing of buildings using computer software. There is a dramatic change in the design of buildings between the 21st century and the time beyond 19th century2. The above description is not computerized but it can be used to design the described complex which is a market hall. Current market halls are more advanced and well-structured than ancient ones. In the 21st century almost every market houses have all social and economic amenities that are meant to offer service to the people. Hospitals, police stations, civil servants offices, schools and other institutions are currently being included in the design of market houses. Bibliography Pevsner, Nikolaus. A history of building types. Vol. 327. London: Thames and Hudson, 1976.2Schmiechen, James, and Kenneth Carls. The British market hall: a social and architectural history. Berghahn Books, 1999.