FRANK GIORDANO, Associate AIA, LEED AP, BD+C
FRANK GIORDANO, Associate AIA, LEED AP, BD+C 919-601-2241
fpgiordano@hotmail.com
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
8021 Bluffridge Drive Raleigh, NC 27615
EDUCATION: MASTERS OF ARCHITECTURE 2006, SCHOOL OF DESIGN, NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY: graduated with honors, BACHELOR OF ARTS INTERIOR DESIGN 2003, HIGH POINT UNIVERSITY: graduated suma cum laude, awarded Rose Furniture academic scholarship, Middlesex County Manufacturers academic scholarship
EXPERIENCE: HIGHER EDUCATION AND HEALTHCARE DESIGN, BBH DESIGN PA, 2007-PRESENT: Project Design, Project Architect, Project Manager, LEED NC/LEED Healthcare Administrator, Project Leader for The Healing Place of Wake County Bus Shelter Initiative and Competition, BBH Corporate Mission Committee RESIDENTIAL DESIGN-BUILD, BUILDSENSE INC, 2004-2006: Design, Project Management, Construction of modular, sustainable homes TEACHER’S ASSISTANT, NC STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DESIGN, 2005-2006
AWARDS: First Place, USGBC Natural Talent national design competition; First Place, Advanced Energy Emerging Green Builders statewide sustainable design competition; First Place Clock Tower Design Competition for Wake Tech Community College; Honorable Mention , NC Masonry Association design competition; , Nominated for Henry Kamphoefner Academic Fellowship
SKILLS: Autodesk Revit; Autodesk Architectural Desktop; SketchUp Pro; Viz, 3D Max; Artlantis; Adobe CS; light wood frame construction & carpentry;
OTHER: Completed IDP Fall 2012; Associate AIA; USGBC; Sierra Club; Union of Concerned Scientists; NC RiverKeepers; National Trust for Historic Preservation
LAKE WHEELER ROWING CENTER & BOATHOUSE
The displacement of water when a boat enters a lake, or when an oar pushes water backward to achieve forward motion is what inspired the siting and design of the rowing center. The boathouse is pulled back to displace the earthen shore of the lake, thereby creating a launch area for participants. The displaced earth is likewise pushed forward to introduce otherwise terrestrial program out into the water, allowing extended views of events and distant shores. Boats are loaded into the boathouse and beyond to the launch area in one straight motion, while visiting teams prepare for competition from an extended ramp staging area.
Program spaces are boxes that float within the facility: ample circulation allows for the unimpeded transport of gear. Exercise areas are in full view of spectators as they make their way to the main viewing platform.
AMERICAN NATIONAL SANCTUARY
Together with the obvious challenge of scale and scope, the American National Sanctuary project posed one fundamental question that became the primary design problem: what is universally “American”? My approach began with the exploration of quintessentially American attitudes toward secular, rather than spiritual progress, as the latter would be too difficult to define. That said, my design solution incorporates the central theme of Industry to describe a tendency toward resourcefulness, community, leadership and National as well as spiritual edification.
Entrance into the space is disjointed, representing the trials and difficulties—the starts and stops—one encounters along a spiritual journey. The main gathering hall or sanctuary is a raised, bridge-like plinth, with a looming meditation tower serving as backdrop to the altar. Structure is exposed hand-riveted steel. The parallel longitudinal exterior walls are stacked rough-hewn granite blocks. Inside the meditation tower, individual meditation spaces along the circumference allow for skyward contemplation through the sleek, concrete cylinder. A Foucault’s pendulum swings in the center of the tower.
DWELLING
My solution to the conceptual Dwelling project creates powerful and intimate living experiences by selectively removing what would otherwise be the “stuff” of primitive building materials—soil, stone and wood—from the site, and excavating the loose strata of unnecessary elements to reveal programmatic jewels. The remaining earthen media provides ancillary functions, and results in close proximities that create ephemeral light conditions.
The project’s programmatic artifacts are either set aside in order to create open space or remain partially excavated to allow for inter-strata circulation.
BEACH HOUSE
Beach House is sited on a south-facing shore on the North Carolina cost. The programmatic requirements included particular attention to refuge from intense summer sun, safeguards from the damaging effects of hurricanes, and the inclusion of flexible space to accommodate an active family. Emphasis was placed on the exploration of erosionresistant substructure, solar controls, and appropriate measures to counter high winds.
The resulting solution is a hybrid design that allows wind to permeate a concrete shell superstructure which doubles as a deeply-shaded gathering space in summer months, and a bright and warm living area in the off-season. The foundation system prevents potential erosion by shedding water away from structural plies by way of an extensive thickened-edge slab .
BRIDGE MUSEUM
The Venice, Italy Bridge Museum serves pedestrian traffic and houses fine arts and historic documents that chronicle the unique history of the city’s elaborate waterways, bridges and architecture.
My approach to the design solution considers the experience of moving through the seemingly endless labyrinth of narrow canals and alleys, and the ever shifting light, façade, and perspective that characterize movement by foot or gondola.
The Bridge Museum abstracts these notions and reinterprets them as close, shifting walls that support a minimal glassy gallery above the river traffic. Museum guests contemplate works and documents as they weave their way around the exhibits. Opportunities for reflection are plenty, as visitors absorb the extensive views of Venetian life from both sides of the main gallery space.
The pedestrian footbridge narrows at the bridge’s vertex, and offers access to a rooftop observation platform. Gaps between the heavy structural walls and the museum enclosure allow thin bands of sunlight to visibly cascade and shift along the inside masonry surfaces.
WAKE TECH CLOCK TOWER & PLAZA
The Clock Tower and Plaza was designed to be not only a landmark on the WTCC College of Health Sciences Campus, but also a place to gather, reflect and celebrate the unique attributes of the Health Sciences vocation and burgeoning Healthcare Professional.
The project was inspired by the unique ability of a Healthcare Professional to reconcile and balance the pragmatic, or learned aspects of their occupation with the emotional, or sympathetic aspects. Those seemingly conflicting qualities are what drove the design concept. The contrast between the rigorous core competencies and the soft, humanistic touch necessary for successful patient Healthcare outcomes is what gave rise to the introduction of precise, linear site walls that shift and separate to allow for the emergence of open, landscaped gathering spaces. Interpersonal connections are fostered by the introduction of grassy terraces that create intimate environments for impromptu meetings, and in their aggregate provide seating for larger convocations to which the clock tower serves as a backdrop.
BLUFFRIDGE DRIVE KITCHEN RENOVATION
The circa 1985 Bluffridge Drive contemporary home featured a small, inefficient kitchen with fixtures, finishes and appliances that were original to the house. The formal dining room was largely unused. The breakfast area, which was located near the home’s side entry, was awkward and uncomfortable. A cramped storage closet served as a pantry. Circulation around the work areas was achieved with trepidation.
The design solution involved eliminating inefficiencies by combining the kitchen and dining areas and replacing the breakfast area with a centrally-located informal dining area. An ample dry foods storage pantry was added to accommodate small appliance and coat storage.
Frank Giordano, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP BD+C 8021 Bluffridge Drive, Raleigh NC 27615 ph_919-601-2241 email_fpgiordano@hotmail.com