Allison Dewey Architecture Portfolio

ALLISON DEWEY

Phone: (612) 210-9119

Email: allisondewey@ku.edu

Located: Minneapolis, MN + Lawrence, KS

EDUCATION

2021-PRESENT

University of Kansas

M. Arch Program- 3rd year- 3.81 GPA KU Honors Program

2017-2021

Lakeville South High School

Graduated Summa Cum Laude with Honors and STEM recognition

INVOLVEMENT + LEADERSHIP

2021-PRESENT

Delta Gamma (Beta Kappa chapter)

+Director of New Members (2022PRESENT)

+Director of Committees (2021-2022)

2021-PRESENT

Student Mobilization (StuMo)

+Leadership Team (2022-PRESENT)

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

2022 Jennings Family Scholarship

2021

Lakeville Rotary Service Above Self Scholarship

2021

Alyssa Ettle Memorial Scholarship

Master of Architecture Student

JOB EXPERIENCE

2021-PRESENT

University of Kansas

+Student Ambassador

2022

The Hangout Gulf Shores

+Food Runner

+Retail Associate

2019-2022

Caribou Coffee

+Team Member

2018-2019

Chick-Fil-A

+Team Member

+Team Lead

SOFTWARE EXPERIENCE

+Sketchup

+Enscape

+Revit

+Rhino

+Adobe Suites

KIDS ON THE KAW Environmental Education Center

LOCATION: Kaw Point Park, Kansas City, KS

PROFESSOR: Shannon Criss

YEAR: Spring 2023

Kaw Point Park is located at the convergence of the Kansas and Missouri Rivers. The park was first discovered by Lewis and Clark on their westward journey. With a beautiful view of the Kansas City skyline the park has potential to be a huge asset to the city. However, the site is currently covered in concrete, surrounded by industry, and unfriendly to visitors, especially children. This project aims to bring new life to the desolate park and create a childcare center for young children to learn the importance of their relations with the natural environment.

EVALUATE

In it’s current state, this park is unattractive, noisy, and uninviting.

UNDERSTAND

A look into developing masterplans for the area help to understand the perspective of community members and their desires for their city.

PRESERVE

In a highly urbanized context, it is of utmost importance to preserve existing green space and enhance the site with more of it.

BUILD

In order to most engage the entire landscape I opted for a long, thin form on the edge of the buildable site.

ENGAGE

Additional added programming to the site transforms this lifeless park into a city attraction and a place people want to visit.

CONNECT

The project aims to invite all members of the community to Kaw Point Park, both young and old, to enjoy and appreciate the beauty of nature.

outdoor coworking space

long form with exterior shades

boxes stacked and tilted

boxes stacked, tilted, staggered, and raised

timber

grass + wildflowers

curtain wall + steel mullions

shading devices to filter light

green roofs

2’ overhang protects from high summer sun

DYNAMIC SPACE

Outdoor Pavillion

LOCATION: Riverfront Park, Lawrence, KS

PROFESSOR: Shannon Criss

YEAR: Spring 2023

The word dynamic can be defined as characterized by constant change, activity, or progress. Human intervention in nature has the capacity to harm, overwhelm, and destroy, yet it also has the capacity to supplement, to revive, and to add value. The task of this project was to discover the balance of human intervention within the natural environment. The structure was to be an open-air pavillion hosting groups of four to six people for small gatherings and conversations at Riverfront Park. The word dynamic comes to mind as I think about both architecture and nature, and it became a central focus for me in the design of this project.

open culvert, view to levee

clearing of the trees, view of river

Riverfront Park is located along the Kaw River, just north of I-70. After spending several hours observing, sketching, photographing, and experiencing, we each chose our own site for which we would construct our pavillion. The site I chose centers around a large tree that has been struck by lightning and stands alone among dense, wooded areas

Around this tree there is a clearing in the trees on the riverfront with great views of the river, a long open view of a culvert, to a levee in the distance, several frisbee paths, and a walking path that passes through. This specific site was very dynamic to me and I desired to create an intervention for conversation, rest, and curiosity, among the various surrounding experiences.

walking path

frisbee path

tree covering

summer winds

winter winds

watershed

Moving into form, I experimented with taping, folding, bending, cutting, and tearing many index cards. Ideas began to emerge of a structure that would surround the tree and give unique access to the surrounding events of the

First came the pods- taking two strips of index card about one inch thick and bending them so they overlapped on the top and bottom at a 90 degree angle. Next I decided to join the pods and allow movement into the structure with an overhanging pentagon where each angle of the pentagon aligns with the right angle of the pod.

Finally I raised the structure on square platforms that cause the structure to sit lightly on the site and allow the pods to be comfortably sat on.

LIGHT - the overlapping of the two walls of the pod along with the pentagon-shaped overhang/connecting force aim to shade from high summer sun and allow lower winter sun to warm the space.

WATERSHED - the curves of each pod serve to direct water to the ground in areas where it will flow naturally into the culvert as well as down into the river.

VIEWS - the series of individual pods connected by the overhead shape frames views from within the pavillion and are lifted 18” off the ground to create benches for trail-users to stop and take in the views.

A PLACE FOR CELEBRATION

Community Gathering Space

LOCATION:

PROFESSOR: Kent Spreckelmeyer

YEAR:

Celebration is a frequent activity in Lawrence, KS. The essence of this project was to design “a place for celebration” in the Lawrence community, serving everyone from young families to current college students, to Jayhawk alumni. Additionally the structure is to partner with the neighboring Lawrence Community Center and provide a multi-purpose outdoor, covered space that would host recreational sports and activities. Lawrence and the University will surely continue to celebrate their accomplishments for years to come, and a designated space for this celebration would be largely beneficial to the city.

After winning the 2022 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship, Jayhawk fans flooded Massachusettes Street. The street was overflowing with excitement, joy, and chaos. This project could serve as a hub for celebration in moments like these and a public asset to the community in the more quiet, day-to-day moments.

The current Lawrence Community Center is located on the corner of 11th and Vermont St. in historic downtown Lawrence. With the University campus to the West and plenty of shopping and dining on Massachusettes Street to the East, the site for this project is an a high-traffic area. When celebrating Jayhawk victory this site is in the

11th Street

direct path from student dormitories to Massachusettes St. The Lawrence Community Center itself has held its presence in the location for many years, but is in need of new life. A Place for Celebration would attract community members to the area and potentially revitalize the center.

traffic to site

Massachusettes Street

Lawrence Community Center

I then took inspiration from the weaving pattern of a basketball net. I found many precedents of a diagrid structure and decided that would best convey the concept I wanted to achieve in this project.

I began the design process by investigating possible connections to the existing community center. I landed on a structure that would connect at the first level roof and reach over and across the previous parking lot. The aim was to creat occupiable space on top of the roof that would serve as a viewing area to the court.

The final design consisted of poles that arched from the roof, over the court, and anchored in the ground. The shape in essence was an oval-shaped dome, with openings on both of the shorter ends allowing circulation through the pavillion.

JOURNEY

Kit of Parts Excercise

PROFESSOR: Alejandro Aptilon

YEAR: Spring 2022

The Kit of Parts excercise begins to channel a lot of first-year conceptual thinking into something that more closely resembles architecture. The task involved building a structure that incorporated ideas of enclosure, structure, circulation, and views with only a kit of specific parts. Through many trials and arrangements of the different parts, my design included a more enclosed area with larger walls, thinner pieces were used for railings, and multiple upper level balconies allowed for all kinds of views from the structure. I learned a lot about architectural organization and hierarchy, along with how to convey conceptual ideas in a legitimate structure through this project.

Using a drafted floorplan I used Adobe Photoshop to highlight the four main elements of this project- enclosure, structure, circulation, and views.

enclosure

structure

circulation

views

This project also taught me much about hand-drafting. Understanding line weights, perspectives, and other simple drafting concepts was a major takeaway from this project.

WALL SYSTEM Repeated Note Cards

PROFESSOR: Barry Ballinger

YEAR: Fall 2021

A conceptual design project- this excercise sought to understand pattern, form, and function. It began with a simple pod constructed through cutting and folding. That pod was then repeated in a discovered pattern that would enable the “wall” to stand using only the pod and wooden dowel sticks. As part of the excercise, the elements were not allowed to be glued or taped together, they must stand alone.