St. Paul Shade structure was designed for St. Paul Catholic School’s central entry courtyard in St. Petersburg, FL. The existing state of the site was completely open to the harsh sun, with the easy solution of a standard canopy pole tent. To revitalize this space into, a new pavilion was created to make this space welcoming for morning prayer, quick chats between students and teachers, and child pickup/drop-off. The casting shadows pays reference to the eastern blue star which is native to the area, as well as resembling the surrounding palm trees. The semi-translucent brown fabric provides a natural feel and a relief from the hot Florida sun. Small slips were added to help support fabric tension during high winds, in addition to being removable when seasonal hurricanes arrive.
I was the sole designer on this project working closely with principal Eddie Mastalerz. The process including several hand sketches for pole locations, fabric height variations, amount of fabric pieces, and transparency & color. Using SketchUp, multiple 3D models were made to give a visual reference for which iteration moving forward. Once modeled, it was placed on the existing site for final sizing adjustments within the courtyard, as well as balancing out the heights in comparison to the school and bell tower. Once all design decisions were decided, I created multiple renderings from underneath to surrounding views. After Eddie presented the project to Monsignor Gibbons, it was approved and was built the following spring.
Programs Used
SketchUp | Illustrator | Lumion