Project brief:
From our client’s lake-side retreat the morning sun of the vernal and autumnal equinoxes rises across the waters of Twelve-Mile Bayou directly beyond the distant skyline of downtown Shreveport, Louisiana.
In celebration of the two times of the year when the plane of Earth's equator passes through the center of the sun's disk simultaneous to the intersection of the solar ecliptic and the celestial equator, our client requested a structure from which to observe and reflect on the earth’s path through the universe and, pragmatically, provide a platform for socializing, fishing, boating, swimming, watching and launching fireworks, etcetera.
On-site, an axial alignment with the equinoxes allows the pier to project seventy feet into the lake, threading between and projecting beyond the beautiful Bald-cypress trees hugging the shoreline.
Steel was chosen as the primary structural material reflecting our client’s interest in expressed tectonic material intersections and a deep love and appreciation for the beauty of cantilevers. The steel-structured awning provides shade; similarly structured benches provide seating and all aspects of the design echo the fundamental nature of the pier’s primary cantilever. Concrete pilings and footings, support the steel structure. Ipe decking and louvers complete the material list.
Our client regards the pier not only as a utilitarian object but also an object of beauty meaningfully placed in spacetime.
Area: 390 square feet
Year completed: 2019
Location: Shreveport, Louisiana USA
Consultants: Fenner Consulting, LLC
Photography Credits: Jonathan Dean
2015
2018
Concrete pilings
Concrete footings
Steel superstructure
Ipe decking and awning louvers
Studio Name: Robert M. Cain, Architect
Robert M. Cain, Principal
Carmen Stan, Project Architect
Drew Bell, Intern Architect
Fenner Consulting, LLC (structural engineering)
Photography Credit: Jonathan Dean
