UNDERGRADUATE PORTFOLIO
CURVES OF CONNECTIVITY
SPRING 2024 STUDIO
USAFA VISITOR CENTER
FALL 2023 INTEGRATED STUDIO
HEXADOMES
SPRING 2023 STUDY ABROAD
THE INDUSTRIAL WEDGE
FALL 2022 RESEARCH STUDIO
ROWLAND-KNOWLES CENTER
FALL 2021 STUDIO
BOOLEAN OBJECT STUDY
FALL 2021 WARM-UP PROJECT
PHOTOGRAPHY
COLLECTION OF ARCHITECTURAL PHOTOS
Spring 2024 Studio
Professor: Peter Massin
Team: Leah Thaxton
The objective of this project was to design a train station on the Texas A&M University campus. Drawing from the most basic function of a train, we extracted the notion of movement. Because of this, we decided to use curves derived from the least resistant path of directional change found in movement studies, looking at modes of transportation and human interaction.
Considering that this train station is a center that people will be moving in and out of constantly, we wanted our site to be very compositional and create a spatial continuum between the interior and exterior spaces to integrate the architecture into the surrounding context. We represented motion on different scales by continuing this continuum within the floor plan itself, incorporating fluid lines that extend beyond the traditional “bounds” of the building.
Since the site is located at the intersection of various majors on campus, we figured this could be a good opportunity for students to display their research and work for people to view as they wait on their train. This will also further integrate the building into campus, as it is a place where students and the public converge, just as railroads converge at moments. The walls further tie into the idea of movement by some of them hinging and sliding on rails - as passengers navigate through the station, they encounter spaces that adapt and transform, creating an ever-evolving experience that captures the essence of travel.
The pneumatic envelopes and moments of massings emerge from the interplay of dynamic tectonics, characterized by the steel structural network. This network serves as a baseline of connection between the different volumes and planes of the building. The exterior facades are not merely a static structure, but an interaction of materials and forms that reflect the arrivals and departures occurring within the building.
Fall 2023 Integrated Studio Professor:
Ray Holliday Team: Mallory JordanThis proposal for the United States Air Force Academy Visitor Center in Colorado Springs derives from the idea of flight, considering half of the students that attend the academy become pilots. The form began with a basic wedge directed towards campus, and then was divided into horizontal sections, with a vertical core volume maintained in the center and cantilevers to either side. An airplane wing is complex in that it has many layering moments and dynamic parts that interact with each other to create a lift effect, and that is something we wanted to replicate in this building through both materiality and the form. The program includes an auditorium, exhibit, presentation room, bookstore, and office spaces intended to promote the academy to prospective students. Structures, systems, and sustainability efforts were taken into consideration during the design process.
The structure is steel with two concrete shear wall core areas. The structural bays are primarily 25’ by 20’ with the joists at 5’ spacing. The beams and girders are W12x26, except in the theater and cantilevered areas where larger ones were necessary. The columns are all HSS6x0.188, and the beam to beam and beam to column connections are single plate or double angle shear connections. The floor slab is 4” lightweight concrete on 2” metal composite deck.
A Variable Air Volume system was used to optimize the amount and temperature of distributed air. There is a main air handler unit in the second floor mechanical room that is sized to provide for the entire building. It is located directly next to the air shaft to service all three levels. The ducts are large coming from the AHU, but then reduce in size as more distance is traveled. There are 2x2 diffusers throughout the drop ceiling, and slot diffusers around the exterior perimeter wherever there is a curtain wall. Carrier was chosen as our AHU manufacturer because they make their equipment in a modular design that can be disassembled when maintenance is needed.
Spring 2023 Study Abroad
Professor: Miguel Roldán
Team:
Aiden ShertzerIn recent years, Barcelona has made efforts towards becoming a greener city. From the implementation of the superblock plan to the addition of parks and community squares, the city is sequestering carbon dioxide while also providing areas for people to gather. In respect for this desire to improve the city and environment, we have designed an underground structure created by a series of overlapping domes. Due to the tight knit organization of the Gràcia neighborhood, we aimed to both ease the process of construction and diminish its footprint. The underground structure is made up of an assemblage of prefabricated glulam, hexagonal modules forming varying sizes of domes. The materiality, being carbon negative, reduces the CO2 footprint, contributing to the project’s overall sustainability.
The series of fifteen overlapping structural domes are perforated throughout, meaning no spaces are completely closed off. The organization of the floor plan reflects the non-hierarchical organization of Gràcia to encourage constant movement and exploration. The booleans play with light and shadow through the hexagonal structure, as well as provide interest to the people on the ground level to wander down and experience the green and water spaces that they see beneath them. The interaction between levels not only applies to the movement of people and light, but also to air flow and temperature. The spaces experience cross ventilation, a natural method of cooling, by bringing in cooler air through the boolean cutouts to replace the warmer interior air. Overall, the result of this design is in alignment with Barcelona’s movement toward creating more green spaces for both people and the environment.
Fall 2022 Research Studio
Professor: Marcelo López-Dinardi
Team: Kate Holbrook
The towns of Bryan and College Station exist because of them being major stops on an industrial railway in the 1800s. This semester, we decided to research how manufacturing and production had an impact on the landscape, and how we could possibly improve the areas affected. Industries including manufacturing, automotive, energy, oil and gas, and construction are located on a site within the boundaries of the Union Pacific Rail. This physical and functional barrier created by the railroad creates a situation where this sliver of land wants to be its own island in the midst of a grid plan city. The industrial purpose of the land stands out against the residential and commercial use in the surrounding context. This isolating principle continues into the site itself with property lines and chain link fences separating the twenty-plus industries from one other.
Our primary strategies for this site are remediation, recreation, promoting current and upcoming industries, and further isolating this site from the residential context. This was achieved by designating zones for local agriculture and outdoor spaces for industrial workers, while relocating the actual industries into a single building that acts as a barrier. In order to restore Finfeather Lake and the water table for recreational use and ecological health, the process of phytoremediation will be initiated. By planting specific vegetation both in the water and the surrounding soil, the arsenic, nitrate, phosphorus, and lead levels will decrease dramatically over time. As for the air and soil, catalytic oxidizers and bioventing will be used to decrease the amount of pollution in the area.
Fall 2021 Studio
Professor: Gabriel Esquivel
Team: Meghan Palmer
The objective of this project was to design a recording and performance facility in downtown Houston. This new studio is dedicated to black female artists, as it is funded by Beyoncé. Space, acoustics, soundproofing, and the expected program were taken into consideration during the design process.
This project was meant to be theoretical and monumental, so much of the exterior is inspired by Kurt Schwitters, a German artist that designed interiors. He did installation art, which is an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. His faceted geometries are intersected with dense columns, creating an interesting articulation of the surface. Our final building has contrast between smooth surfaces and these jagged geometries, creating a parts-to-whole relationship where the forms depend on one another. The use of layering facades and wrappers enveloping the building create visual interest.
Fall 2021 Warm-Up Project
Professor: Gabriel Esquivel
Team: Individual
This warm-up project displayed how additive and subtractive Boolean processes create unique spatial relationships between solid and void. Through these operations, the notions of fragmentation and parts-to-whole were represented in the objects, as the spaces were divided yet depended on one another to function.
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