[Under]water

new experience by design

Leo Spurgin
 00 project brief
Beginning with a list of aquatic events, some Olympic events and others wild ideas for new sports, the
studio was instructed to chose one of these aquatic events and design an “event specific pool” for said
event. The pool was to be highly specialized and unique, with its design generated out of the very
specific needs of the chosen event. The pools will be part of a new National Aquatic Training Facility at
Texas Tech University which will overtake the existing TTU Aquatic Center.
01 concept
transparent inspiration
My initial thoughts were to search for existing
swimming pools that were out of the ordinary. One
such pool is the main attraction and namesake
of the Glass Pool Inn in Las Vegas. The circular
windows allow any passerby to see into the pool
below the water line creating interesting visuals.
floating water
Following this idea of seeing into pools from the
walls of the pool, I came across the pool on the
roof of the Aris Hotel in Singapore. The pool can-
tilevers over the edge of the building and the wall
and floor that are cantilevered are glass creating a
unique visual for spectators below and swimmers
alike.
hanging hose
Embracing the idea of a pool that spectators could
see into from the sides and the bottom, I sketched
a long tube like pool that would be made out of
some sort of clear material. This long linear shape
would fit events such as individual lap swimming
or could be extended to be used as a marathon
pool.
gold-man-bowl
fishbowl
Another idea was for a bowl shaped pool so that
spectators could view the event from any angle. A
sport that would be perfect for this concept is
synchronized swimming. Conceptually it was an
attempt to create as open as a space as possible
underneath the pool for spectators to view the
event. I decided to develop this concept further.
conceptual collage
In an attempt to begin to understand the space
that this pool would create and how the spectators
would interact with this space I created concept
collages. These collages showed the space above
the pool but focused more on the space below the
water line of the pool.

The driving concept for every

design decision revolved
around the spectators
viewing the performance
from all angles, above and
below the level of the water.
02 pool research
pool transparency
Researching the feasibility of a large transparent
pool brought to my attention to the Aquadom in
Berlin, Germany in the SAS Radisson hotel. This
52’ high, 36’ diameter aquarium was constructed
inside of a hotel with cast acrylic panels fabricated
by Reynolds Polymer Technologies. Multiple panels
were chemically bonded together to form the large
initial idea
cylindrical form. These seams have 90% of the To form the bowl shaped pool that the design
strength a single panel would have which is not a calls for, the same technique used to construct
big enough loss in strength to become a hazard. the Aquadom will be used. The pool would be
prefabricated in panels off site and the panels
would be chemically bonded together on site. The
initial thoughts on the thickness of the acrylic was
that it would need to be 6” thick.
thirsty?
Part of researching the feasibility of this glass pool
was calculating how much water would be in the
pool and how heavy this volume of water would
be. I also looked into filtration systems at this
point and decided on the filter size that would be
required.
beach-in-a-can
I decided on a sand filtration system because of
the lower maintenance cost and lack of odor. In
addition to this sand filter system a sanitation
system using oxidation and ionization instead
of chemicals will be used to clean the water of
smaller particles that the sand filter does not get
rid of.
03 design
circular observation
My initial design had a circular pool with a bridge
over the top of the pool for spectators to watch
the performance from above. A glass platform
covers the spectator area below the pool and two
ramps lead down to this area.
light bulb
Although the symmetry of synchronized swimming
fits in with a circular design, I moved away from a
perfect circle as the symmetry was overwhelming
and boring. Also the circular pool brought up the
issue of how and where the swimmers would enter
and exit the pool. A design with an extension of
the pool on one side would solve this problem.
hanging pool
By examining the pool in section, I began to get
an idea of how much space below the water line
would be necessary. It was at this point that
the heights of the below grade platforms were
decided. The first level is 8 feet below grade while
the other two levels are 14 and 20 feet below
grade.
markup heaven
From this iteration the design progressed greatly.
The roof would become more articulated once
structural research was started. The locker
room area changed considerable from this point
however the viewing area below remained
basically the same through to the final design,
1

waves of change
In this second iteration of the design the roof
began to take shape. A glass curtain wall that
would remain part of the design now wrapped
around the public space opening it up greatly.
After this iteration the locker rooms changed
immensely and a reflecting pool was brought into
the design at the base of this curtain wall.
Sectional model showing how
the spaces interact at this
point. Demonstrates how the
spectators can view the pool
in close proximity from below
or from the sides.
04 structural development
homebase
Knowing how heavy the water in the pool was
going to be I began researching methods to
suspend heavy objects. I came across the
Homebase headquarters in the UK designed by
Nicholas Grimshaw. The structure of this building
relies on a large 80 ton central spine suspended
by a large mast and cable system.
floating saucer
Borrowing this idea of hanging the heavy spine
from a mast I devised a system of 5 masts to
hang the pool from. These masts would also hold
a system of trusses that would in turn hold up an
aluminum panel roof system.
 4

20’

115’

50’

5
12’ 6

mast murder structural suspension

The initial idea to hang the pool from masts
resulted in masts that were too short and did not
fit the program of the design. I began developing
masts based on the swimmers sticking their
legs up out of the water. The leg is an elegant
body part so these masts would be aesthetically
pleasing with their soft curves and gentle bulges.
In order to understand how the structure works,
I constructed a model of one of the masts and a
section of the central spine. The cables carry the
load of the trusses and the load of the pool across
the top of the masts and down to the concrete
anchors in the ground.
 35’
20’

115’

9’-8”

50’

12’

early structural diagram

 Pool Connection Detail
Steel cable connection through acrylic
35’
20’
115’
9’-8”
engineer ingenuity
During the structural development stage I had the
opportunity to converse with two engineers about
the structural integrity of my design. The first
change that was required for the pool to be stable
was the thickness of the acrylic. I was informed
that 6” of acrylic would not be thick enough but
10” would be structurally sound. This change
20’
115’
50’
50’
12’ 12’
revised revised
was incorporated into my design. The acrylic was Before I spoke with the engineers , I had
thickened to 10” at the bottom of the pool. The envisioned an anchoring system to keep the
curve of the pool led up to a band in the acrylic pool from pulling itself out of the ground. The
that is 13” thick to reinforce the connection. After engineers informed me that the system I had
this connection the curve continues upward but devised would be ineffective for the purpose
thins to 6” because the top of the curve is having it was to be used for. Instead they suggested
to resist less weight. concrete anchors with steel ties .
revised structural diagram
05 final drawings
roof plan floor plan
longitudinal section
cross section
circulation diagram detail section
The towering masts cause
the public space of the
building to seem to stick out
of the ground while the more
private space blends into the
ground with an earth burm.
Spectators are taken on a
panoramic journey on the
way to the bottom level. This
journey gives them a view
from multiple angles and
multiple sides of the pool.
 final thoughts
With the semester coming to a close and time running out on this project, I realize it will be sorely
missed. I have taken a great deal from this studio as well as my design. It has instilled in me a drive
to see things in a new light. Future designs will be full of new ideas mostly related to new ways to view
light, space, and how spaces relate. Just like any other profession thinking outside the norm is key to
the success of design. Never have I seen a pool that one can walk underneath and see up through the
bottom. Weather or not this project was a success, it has forever changed my outlook on design