UNDERGRADUATE PORTFOLIO

UNDERGRADUATE WORK | 2003-2008 Museum of Moving Image, Dubai

Du(b)alities, Modular Housing Experiment Lebanese American University Restaurant Design - The Courtyard Sports Hall Design Furniture Design - Chair Cosy_X1

Top ten winning finalist at TRAFFIC DESIGN COMPETITION

Observation Tower Models

WORK FROM PRACTICE | 2008 - 2010 Sharjah Tv Studio Saraya Bandar Jissah - Residential Development

The program was to design a museum of moving image in a given site near Mall of the Emirates, Dubai.

The project was initiated with a kinematics(The branch of mechanics dealing with the description of the motion of bodies or fluids without reference to the forces producing the motion), whereby a karate kid performing a 560 degree flipkick was mapped.

The mapped diagrams aided in developing a formal language.

A complex module was developed to become a structural unit of the parametric skin, which allowed a varied level of transparency for light and vision.

Whereby they scale transform large enough to allow human access into different programmatic regions and scales to level of a mere texture, with out altering its genetics.

Museum of Moving Image

studying kinematics and mapping movement

Translation of 2D Kinematic study into 3D form.

Vertices forming the geometry.

Vertices get translated into structural openings or aperture

Generated maps used to determine the Aperture modules Apertures

Large Sized Apertures Medium Sized Apertures Small Sized Apertures

Diagram for Performative architectural skin responding to light. Diagram used to inform the structural skin of apertures by varying its module sizes.

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Ground Floor

1. Outdoor Landscaped Area 2. Stairs from the parking 3. Adminstration / Security 4. Restrooms 5. Entrance Hall 6. Mechanical systems 7. Restaurant / Cafe 8. Restaurant’s Kitchen 9. Cascaded Seating (views the water)

Aerial view

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First Floor

1. Exhibition / Gallery 2. Cinema 3. Restrooms 4. Ticket / Snack booth 5. Adminstration Office 6. Production Studio 7. Entrance Hall 8. Exhibition / Gallery

This was an 5th year experimental studio, where we started with a few words. These words were used to generate iterative abstract diagrams which were further translated into formal expressions or systems.

I start with the word ‘CAST’. In casting there is a profile and a substrate which takes the form of the profile, my fascination was when these profiles started to overlap. The substrate started to take unique forms, which were often referred in my case as ‘cookies’. A unique module was isolated and a rotational-connection system was introduced for it to expansively generate in a controlled manner.

An infill site was selected in the dense urban residential context of Dubai. These modules grew within the infill as a viral growth.

Du(b)alities

The idea initiated with the notion of imprint. Fingerprints are basically a profile epidermal layer of the skin. Magnification and mapping of different sections of the fingerprint produced unique discret profiles.

Varying degrees of profile overlap generated unique modules

Translation of the generated diagrams into physical models, whereby gypsum was casted into aluminum profiles. This resulted into a series of ‘cookies’ or modules

A selected module from the previous exercise was used for a generative system. A rotational connection system was developed whereby the module was repeated , rotated and connected.

This was a fourth year comprehensive project where we were asked to design the School of Design for Lebanese American University (LAU) in Beirut. The project was situated in a dense urban fabric with two street ends at different street heights.

The concept was to design an awe-inspiring architecture with an increased interaction among students and faculty within the school, and the school with its urban context.

I initiated the project with a research of modernday design schools. After laying-out the program and conducting site analysis I carried out a formal exploration exercise. Whereby I bought an old TV, dismantled it and then re-assembled its selected components to a produce the SMODEL (sketch+model).

Diagrams generated from the SMODEL were used as form generators.

The monocoque structure with gravity-defying architecture makes it sublime. In the heart of the school there is a communal area with interlocking spaces where students can eat, display work, read books, or just hangout, thereby increasing interaction.

Lebanese American University - School of Design

DE-CONSTRUCT

RE-CONSTRUCT

SMODEL (sketch + model)

Projected Shadows translated to Figure/ground drawings

Massing Study

Studio demanded to a restaurant design near an art gallery. The design breif established space constraints of 16m x 16m which shared both its side walls with adjacent buildings.

I envisioned a design space with dynamic views. Where the acting of eating would become the performance of the space and people would become part of the theaterics. Inaddition to internal excitement of the space, I intented to connect the interiors with the external courtyard by providing seating on terraces.

The dynamic form of a generic stair was used as an inspiration where the sightlines of users at different steps are interestingly different and interactive.

Restaurant at The Courtyard Art Gallery

Section a.a

Section b.b

Front Elevation

Steel I-Beam Structure

Moulded Beech Plywood

2cm Gypsum Board

Kitchen

Kitchen

Commercial Grade Fabric

ProďŹ led Aluminium Structure

Beech Wood Moulded Plywood

Beech Wood Parquet Aluminium Substructure

Scale 1:25

The challenge of this project was to design a long span structure over the sports areana. To have an understanding of forces and methods to span larger areas.

My design encorporated curved trusses, which sat elegantly on the site. Provisions for natural light were made. And spaces were organized accordingt to their programmatic qualities.

Sports Hall Design

Parti Diagram

Structural Detail

This chair was the final project of a major elective, Furniture Design. The goal of the course was to educate students about tools, materials and methods of construction.

My concept was to design a monolithic chair which seems like a series of isolated blocks having the reading of a chair when seen together. The connections are hidden and small gap produces a strong sense of gravity among the units.

The essence of the chair is in its material, where a nonconventional material, cardboard, is used. Cardboard is not only cheap but it’s also recyclable. Moreover, different cuts against the corrugated flutes produced a variety of texture.

Furniture Design - Chair

Process Images

Furniture Design Exhibition , American University of Sharjah, 7th-Feb-2008

Traffic Design Gallery had an international lounge chair design competition in year 2008. The requirement was to design a single-seater that can be used in casual indoor spaces.

The concept of my proposal was to design an exciting contemporary lounge chair that is ergonomic and environmentally-friendly.

The whole notion of a chair has been revitalized in my design, where I have studied the forces of a seated human body and translated them on a digital fabric. This makes the chair ergonomic and very inviting to its users.

In today’s energy-thirsty world, energy resources are being consumed at phenomenal rates. Manufacturing and construction industry are to be blamed the most. My design exploits this opportunity of Traffic Design Competition to make a statement on how recyclable material such as cardboard or corrugated fiberboard can be put to alternate uses such furniture, rather than just using it in the packaging industry.

Corrugated fiberboard is an excellent recycling candidate. This helps to conserve natural resources and energy.

COSY_X1

Selected in the top-ten winning nominations at Traffic Gallery’s Lounge Chair Design Competition

Field of forces being applied on a digital fabric

Digital Morphology

3D Visualization

A design competition initiated by SAMA Dubai developers.

The competiton was to design an observation tower at the Lagoon developement , Dubai.

My design was inspired by nature and tradition. A parametric structural skin inspired by the arabic geometrical patterns and the idea of basket weaving.

The building gracefully sits on three major structural element creating a tripodal condition. And a parametric skin intensifies or relaxes to inform the programatic needs

Observation Tower - Lagoons

Reference Images for development of a superstructure skin

Sharjah TV wanted to re-brand themselves and increase their popularity by opening a landmark Tv studio at Al Qasba.

Al Qasba is a famous canal walkway with a variety of restaurants, cafe, shops and offices. And public features such as the ferris wheel called ‘Eye of the Emirates’, the musical fountain and a canal flowing through with boat rides. Al Qasba is particularly popular among familes and has these ongoing festivals throughout the year.

Sharjah TV was interested in capturing this vibrancy of the city’s heart by opening a Tv Studio.

ITN , famous britsh channel, were hired as consultants and had their say in the planning / programming of the architecture.

I envisioned a landmark that not only serves the purpose of a Tv studio but also contributes to the urban setting of Al Qasba by becoming an event. And aids Shrjah Tv in forming an identity. A dynamic mashrebiya-inspired skin was developed, which illuminated in response to the activity on site and varied in its perforation to identify the active edge.

SHARJAH TV STUDIO - UAE Octuber 2009

Existing Logo of Sharjah TV Studio. The ordering/ construction lines of an arabesque star regenerated.

Size and proportions of the module influenced by the existing geometry found on site context

An offset algorithm applied to produce varying modules / panels that carry identical genetics. The arrangement of the panels is informed by the parameters found on site.

SITE CONTEXT

MOSQUE

Restaurants / Cafe

NURSERY

Shops

Offices and Business Center

BLOCK F

BLOCK E

Illuminated Skin at night

BLOCK D

Proposed Sharjah TV Studio

Multi-purpose Area.

Eg Cultural Events

Ground Floor Plan

First Floor Plan

Saraya Bandar Jissah is a massive developement project in Oman. The client envisioned a contemporary architectural style with a regional influence for the 300+ residential plots and 2 hotel masterplan.

Situated in a mountaineous region, the challenge was to minimise cut/fill, maximise views and incorporate for the rare flash floods in the area.

I primarily worked on this project for 18 months and assisted in plot set outs on masterplan, conceptual massing for hotels and designing residential units all the way from planning on CAD to modelling and rendering final 3D models.

SARAYA BANDAR JISSAH - OMAN 2008 - 2010

TYPE J Villa

GFA - 700sqm

Ground Floor Plan

First Floor Plan

Roof Plan

Typical Details

Adnan Ihsan

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B.Arch

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+971 50 6977104

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adnan.ihsan@hotmail.com

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