Anna Felappi
CURRICULUM VITAE Anna Felappi
Applying for : Architecture Internship
STUDIES
2022-2025
École Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne
BA in architecture by june 2025
2024-2025 2019-2022
Université de Montréal
3rd year university exchange
Lycée international Jean Giono de Turin
French baccalaureat with mention : Très Bien avec Félicitations du jury
SOFTWARES
Excellent proficiency : Rhino 3D, vectorworks, autocad, adobe suite (photoshop, indesign, illustrator)
Good proficiency : Revit, Archicad, Blender, Twinmotion, Grasshopper, logiciels
Microsoft and Google
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCES
Summer 2024
Autumn 2023
Ribes & Ribes - Barcelona
Architecture Internship
EPFL - Lausanne
Student assistant for a BA1
Mathematics course
Summer 2022/ 2023
Village Nature - Paris
Lifeguard (BNSSA diploma)
Oct 2021
Archest - Palmanova
Architecture and Engineering internship
Nov 2018
Chabanne & PartenairesLyon
Architecture Internship
LANGUAGES
C2 : french, italian, english
B1 : german, spanish
Anna Felappi
French and Italian, I grew up in both countries as well as that of Slovakia, where I spent eight years of my childhood. I’ve always been surrounded by an architectural heritage rich in diversity and history, ranging from the Palazzo Madama in Turin to the Medzi jarkami residential complex in Bratislava. I undertook the study of this field at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, and am currently spending my third year of bachelor on exchange at the University of Montréal. I wish to pursue my studies by focusing on sustainable and parametric architecture, both in practice and in research.
Index
PRESENTATION
BRICKS - brick tower
VILLAS URBAINES - building on a slope
CASE STUDY - revisiting a historical model
RAMMED EARTH - new building materials
LIMA - neighbourhood program
TABLEAU - using tools of today to revisit yesterday’s models
PARAMETRIC ARCHITECTURE - new tools
Detail of project LIMA
Red bricks frequently used in Montréal
//BRICKS
The brick, which for a long time ensured the load-bearing structure of buildings in North America, lost its appeal from the mid-19th century onward due to several technical innovations. Steel and reinforced concrete replaced this material, whose role was reduced to a thin envelope surrounding the building. The imposed thinness limited the artistic design freedom of architects.
During my university exchange year in Montreal, I was able to study the history of brick usage in North America and discover its uniquely expressive potential on facades while developing a project.
The exercise involved designing a speculative office tower at the intersection of three zones with highly varied scales: the Mont Royal park, residential neighborhoods, and towers reaching up to 25 stories.
Axonometric section of wall-floor connection
1. The orientation of the plot and the resulting sunlight determine the location of a public square.
3. A corridor separates the building into two to preserve and emphasize the site’s passage.
A first building rises six stories on the north side of the site, adapting to the height of the surrounding housing.
4. The main tower is topped with an observatory that faces Mount Royal.
6. The base of the main tower is oriented to streamline the passage at the corner facing the street.
6. A play of levels is implemented in the public square and on the ground floor to manage the three-meter elevation
A system of 3x3m prefabricated concretebrick modules shapes the facade, aligned on either side of ribbon windows that illuminate the interior offices. Thin columns extend down along the envelope, giving the tower a slender appearance. Positioned every 6m, the columns follow the load-bearing grid of the internal structure and are more pronounced due to their double thickness. They rise to the top of the tower, framing the observatory on the top floor.
Exploded axonometry of a fragment of the facade
Facade elevation
“The brick dresses mediate, just like pieces of clothing, between the expression of the individual - both the building as well as the architectand the conventions of the environment”
-
J.P Wingender. BRICK DRESSES
Left:
Right: Elevation of the east facade of
tower
The observatory at the top of the tower is in constant dialogue with its surroundings. With the south-facing facade slanted towards the park, it suggests a view directed towards Mount Royal. Its concave shape gives pedestrians on the ground the impression that it is looking at them.
A second open space animates the roof of the small building, adopting the architectural codes of the observatory, with a series of columns lining the terrace.
Elevation of the north facade and its context
Roof plan N
Model showing the integration of the neighborhood into the vineyards of Vevey 1:500
//VILLAS URBAINES
Located in the heights of Vevey, amidst the vineyards of Lavaux, and with a breathtaking view of Lake Geneva, an unused plot of land needs to be developed to accommodate about a hundred housing units.
The topography of the site, with its steep slopes, is at the heart of the study and interest of the site. A true territorial asset and planning challenge, it will become a source of solutions for the development of the project.
The guiding thread of this research: the historical model of the Lausanne Urban Villa. What makes the Urban Villa relevant in the context of this project is its placement on the slope. The Lausanne urban villas were built to address various topographical challenges.
The intimacy as well as the visual openness that this typology can offer to the housing units, while establishing spaces with more or less communal character, make this historical model an ideal reference for the site. Their large entrances and common staircases, their radiant plans, and their density have thus guided the creation and organization of the neighborhood.
Vectorworks Educational Version
The site is accessed from Vevey via a funicular, leading to a large square oriented towards the exceptional view of the lake. The neighborhood is then organized into three main zones, each with its own typology, strongly influenced by the Lausanne urban villas.
The first central zone houses medium-sized buildings, organized in three rows that follow the existing topography. Duplexes occupy the western part, which is quieter and more intimate due to its less dense typology. The larger buildings serve as a point of articulation between the two spaces and interact with public squares through their commercial ground floors.
of models (right): “Large typology” floor type; Two “medium typology” floor types; Two “small typology” floor types (duplex); “Small typology” ground floor; Intersection showing the three typologies within the neighborhood.
Ground floor plan
Legend
Vectorworks Educational Version
Revêtement
Revêtement
Left (top): Elevation; (bottom): plan showing the structural composition of the walls; Right: section showing the structural composition and its legend.
The model of the Lausanne Urban Villa is developed based on the concept of sequence, which sets the rhythm of the space by defining moments: the entrance hall, leading to the antechamber, in alignment with the living space. This work of thresholds was studied during the design of the large typology, presented here.
Vectorworks Educational Version
Designed to accommodate a high density of housing, the central circulation core allows each residence to have two facades open to the surrounding views, reflecting the concept of a radiant plan. From the entrance hall, the same spatial organization logic is applied to each unit, whether it is a two-room, oneroom, or studio apartment. A custom-designed piece of furniture that combines storage spaces and the kitchen defines the entrance to the living room and separates it from the antechamber, which in turn provides access to the bedrooms.
Typology plan of the large building
//CASE STUDY
As part of the development of the Urban Villas project, the Verdeaux building by architect Dreier Frenzel, located in Renens, was a major source of inspiration. Like a modern reinterpretation of the Lausanne urban villa, this architectural reference incorporates all the traditional codes of the first typology.
This residence, located on a triangular plot, had to work with limited development possibilities.
Top: Site plan of the project Left:
By moving the vertical circulation elements outside the building envelope, each floor manages to maximize its available surface area.
This architectural typology thus creates a subtle play of its spatial organiyation, offering each resident a different journey to their apartment, and an optimized arrangement of the interior spaces.
Elevation of the rear facade of the project
A series of plans illustrating the atypical arrangement of interior spaces, offering on one side, night spaces with clean lines, day spaces that adopt a row configuration, creating effects of contraction and expansion that evoke the concept of “fractal.”
Where the two forms meet, an interstitial counter-shape emerges, taking ownership of the daytime spaces such as the entrance, kitchen, dining room, and living room, organizing them in a row that contracts and expands.
Axonometry illustrating the pathways wrapping around the building, providing a private entrance for each resident.
Detail of wooden casing
//RAMMED EARTH
In light of the current challenges posed by climate change, it is crucial to develop new sustainable construction materials in order to reduce the carbon footprint of the sector and preserve natural resources. I had the opportunity to participate in a workshop in Fribourg thaat explored earth construction combined with wood, with its constraints and opportunities.
Over several weeks, we designed a wooden formwork to produce a rammed earth module that, when assembled, would create a seating area. It was an opportunity to learn how to handle prefabrication tools while studying rammed earth, its timeframes, and its relationship to the land.
Photographs taken during the workshop
The tests conducted and the various results obtained allowed for a better understanding of the impact of the different types of earth used, the amount of water added, and the desired shapes. The lessons learned from these workshop weeks demonstrated that rammed earth is a construction technique that offers remarkable ecological and structural qualities; it is essential to rediscover it in order to adapt it to the current context, a potential I wish to explore further in the future.
Photography of the formwork created
Detail of wooden structure
Located in the heart of the Nations Neighbourhood in Geneva, several projects organized and carried out by first-year bachelor students at EPFL resulted in the creation of five infrastructures with varied programmes, stretching from Parc Rigot to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum.
The idea was to use projects created by student groups from previous years as the foundation for new ideas and constructions that would enliven the green spaces of the neighborhood. It was in this context that I participated in the conceptualization of LIMA, a large wooden and canvas structure serving as the entrance to Parc Rigot.
//LIMA
Vectorworks Educational Version FOUNDATIONS: laying the groundwork for a project rooted in the present, one that can evolve, rise, and adapt to the challenges of time.
Lima Via
Eireipia
Velarium
Six distinct projects are implemented in the Nations District, activating the city’s green spaces while offering the opportunity to assimilate construction techniques and the workings of a construction site, as well as the management of local and reusable materials.
Velarium: a roof providing shade and an extension of a circular seating area.
Lima: the entrance to Parc Rigot and an exhibition space for artistic canvases.
Via: a wooden-rammed earth bench connected to flower planters.
Eireipia: a system of rammed earth modules serving as seating in a bus waiting area.
Nyx: a rammed earth staircase tracing a desire path along the slope.
Mesos: a wooden structure serving as seating and a platform.
Each project connects to its context and activates the space for the users of these areas.
Nyx Mesos
A park with multiple functions
Lima takes root in the soil of Parc Rigot and rises towards the sky of Geneva, a grand entrance to a site with a rich and varied programme.
Lima means “file” and derives from the Latin verb “limare,” which translates to “to refine” or “to smooth.”
Like a file that shapes and perfects a raw material, Lima creates a gentle transition between the street and Parc Rigot. It marks a threshold, a resting space, preparing the visitor for the continuation of their journey. The result of meticulous woodwork, the project delicately rests at the entrance of the park, and the visitor can glimpse, through the suspended canvases, the green of the grass awaiting them beyond.
The various users pass through and make the entrance to the park their own.
‘Interior of a Fish Shop by Candlelight’
//TABLEAU
A theoretical exercise based on the notion of verisimilitude, linking the questions of classical image composition and the implications of virtual reality in art today.
This work required critical analysis of the construction of a masterpiece in the history of art: *Interior of a Fish Shop by Candlelight* by the Dutch painter Gerrit Dou (1613-1675).
This study not only allowed for the assimilation of the compositional techniques of this work through the expressive tools of architects (section, plan, axonometry) but also the learning of contemporary digital tools aimed at reproducing the interior space represented in the painting (Rhino, Blender, and Photoshop).
The study of perspective in Gerrit Dou’s painting allows for the reconstruction of the depicted space, which can then be modeled from the plan and section that have been drawn.
Échelle: 1:50 4
Modeling of the room in Rhino. Light analysis and material studies in Blender are used to achieve a representation similar to the original painting, before refining the image in Photoshop.
[Titre]
Reinterpretation of the original scene from the painting.
The same scene viewed from a different angle and later at night.
//PARAMETRIC ARCHITECTURE
During a project developed in collaboration with civil and environmental engineering students, I had the opportunity to learn to develop a project using modeling tools such as Grasshopper and Ladybug on Rhino.
This project provided a deeper understanding and a newfound interest in parametric architecture, which I am eager to further explore during my internships.
The conceptualized project was a solar panel in the shape of a leaf placed on a post with a parametric shape, fully modeled on Grasshopper. A Python program calculated the position of the leaf in order to maximize the surface area exposed to the sun, influencing the orientation and placement of the panel in relation to its support.
While the project remains simple, I wish to learn more about parametric architecture and its associated tools in the future.