PORTFOLIO
CARL F. BAHR Bachelor of Architecture University of Texas ‘10 281.910.3501 carlfbahr@gmail.com
ARCHITECTURE
FURNITURE
NASA INTERNSHIP
DRAWINGS
INKS LAKE LEARNING CENTER CAD, Illustrator, Photoshop, Models
This studio project focused on developing a center to be used both for short term and long term visitors to the Inks Lake Dam and Fish Hatchery. The main building had to be able to support everyone from casual visitors to school groups to researchers, so half of the main structure is dedicated to temporary living facilities and the other half is for spaces such as an auditorium and a cafeteria. The design itself is intended to address issues of what it means to build a building of this scale in a state park. It seemed futile to try to hide it. After a design process that explored the relation of the building to the land, it is situated on the largest hill on the site but built down into a natural depression on top of the hill, taking a commanding presence on the site. By cladding it in cor-ten, it would theoretically go from a completely foreign object upon completion to eventually blending into the textures and hues already on the site. The main feature of the design was an entire wall of operable 7’ wide louvres in the auditorium that would allow it to function both as a lecture hall and as a an observation area for the dam.
INKS LAKE LEARNING CENTER BRIDGE CAD, Illustrator
In addition to the main building shown in the previous pages, several other elements had to be designed as support. One of those was a pedestrian bridge from one side of the site to the other. The main concept behind the bridge was to keep it simple. The main building was already a strong enough act that anything else on the site could afford to be as simple as possible. To that end, the bridge is as direct as possible in crossing the water, except for being bent at an angle midway across so as not to seem like too long of a hike across when starting off from either end. The bridge is clad on either side by the same cor-ten steel that clads the main structure so that it appears as a simple beam spanning over the water.
SMART CAR DEALERSHIP, AUSTIN Hand-Drafting, Illustrator, Photoshop, Models
Given the ever increasing significance of green technologies, and Austin’s role as a hub of sorts for those who endorse those ideas, it seemed strange that there was no Smart Car dealership in Austin, but rather the nearest is in Round Rock. As such, the point of this studio project was to conceive of a dealership located in the heart of Austin that would stand out in the context of the urban landscape as well as begin to relate to the denizens of the city the green values of the Smart Car. Even though during researching the Smart Car it was found that they are not really all that “green”, the intent for the design of the building remained the same. Because the chosen site was along Shoal Creek, which runs through downtown, it eventually became obvious that an interesting way to tie the smart car to nature was to layout the various programmatic elements, like the showroom and cafe, and then determine the slope of the roof above each by extrapolating the angle of the banks of Shoal Creek perpendicular to each portion. Due to the natural variations in the topography of the site and banks, this determined a number of interesting intersections of the roof planes. To support the roofs, the main structure of the building was conceived as a series of massive glu-lam ribs, which materially also suggested a connection to the environment and made the building somewhat resemble a sophisticated lean-to. Raised Seam Steel Roof (1/16” Steel Tar Paper [Vapor Barrier] 5/8” Plywood)
8” Fiberglass Insulation
2”x8”
Operable Vents
1/2” Pine Paneling
Superglass (R-value 12)
2’ x 1’ Glu-Lam
2”x6”
1.25” Steel Bolt Plate 1/4” Aluminum Gutter
4’ x 1’ Glu-Lam
2.5’ x 1’ Glu-Lam
3”x8” (Bolted to Walls to support ceiling/roof )
Smart Car Austin 6th & Wood
Site Plan
1/8” : 1’
1/16” = 1’
Service
Kitchen
Storage
Mechanical
Sh oa l
Cre ek
Wo od
St.
Cafe & Waiting
Showspace
Management
Sales Outdoor Showspace
6th
N Str
eet
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MIXED USE,
COMMERCIAL-RESIDENTIAL Hand-Drafting, Illustrator, Photoshop
One of the biggest issues facing Austin is its rapid growth and the ever increasing number of people that want to live downtown. This of course means that there must also be an increase in all other businesses, too. As such, the most reasonable approach seems to be identifying underused lots in downtown filling them in with mixed use developments, which is exactly what this project was about. The design focuses on residential units situated above a commercial space/gallery and sandwiched between them a parking level, accessed by car-lifts. Also important to the design were a large outdoor communal area and an activity/community room, complete with rooftop garden.
AUSTIN READING & DATA AutoCAD, Photoshop, Sketchup, VIZ
Once again taking advantage of an under utilized portion of the downtown Austin cityscape, the Austin Reading & Data Center was envisioned as a sort of public center for those in Austin who don’t have a space of their own and are just looking to do anything like sit and read, have a meeting, or casually surf the internet. The building itself is designed to take advantage of as much natural light during the day. At night, it is supposed to act as a sort of glowing beacon, due to the slitted nature of the skin wrapped around the frame, for those looking for a place to go. Also important are the variety of spaces available, both indoor and outdoor, the building was designed with the intention of having an array of options for small to large groups needing various accommodations.
PLYWOOD CHAIR CNC-Routed Birch Plywood
Designed and built for a construction course focusing on material properties, the chair was designed to exploit the multidirectional strength of plywood that sets it apart from hardwoods in terms of it possible applications. The main expression of this is the cantilever of the seat over the base. Further development allowed for the exploration of issues of production on an industrial scale, flat-pack furniture, and assembly without the use of fasteners, chemical or mechanical. The following page shows the layout of all the pieces as they would be milled from a single sheet of 4’x8’ plywood.
PLYWOOD SIDE TABLE CNC-Routed Birch Plywood
In order to further develop the language established in the design of the plywood chair, a small side table was also built. It adopts the same language in terms of joinery and how it doubles up the main structural elements, though in the chair this was meant to ensure it was strong enough to support the weight of its occupant and here it is to address issues of torsion when force is applied to the corners. The main improvement over the chair is that it no longer rests on two rails but on four points instead which allows it to sit on uneven surfaces better.
CONCEPT FURNITURE SolidWorks 2010, PhotoView 360
As a means of both honing my SolidWorks skills and formalizing some concepts, these are a few original furniture designs. There is an emphasis on maintaining a minimal material palette in each piece.
LUNAR/MARS ROVER Model (Foamcore, Museum board)
Working from an existing digital model, as developed by the Habitability Design Center team of architects, this was a simple modeling exercise performed in order to begin exploring the form that a rail system would take over the front of a lunar rover. The key factors here were maintaining as many possible configurations for devices mounted on the rails and obstructing the view from the nose windows as little as possible. Achieving both of these are crucial for the success of an extraterrestrial vehicle. Maintaining view corridors while navigating the rover is necessary for successfully navigating a lunar or martian surface that has heretofore gone unexplored. Similarly, it is very important that the devices mounted on the rail system are configurable in a wide variety of ways. When it comes to extravehicular exploration, the rails serve as a mount to all the lights and other devices that the crew will need for completing their mission objectives. Pictured to the right are the rover without any sort of rail system and the rover with one of the rail configurations. These models were also used to mockup different wheel sizes which were being explored largely for their aesthetics and what size wheels looked appropriately proportional to the rest of the vehicle.
MODULE MOCK-UP SYSTEM Sketching, Photoshop, SolidWorks 2010
One of the main functions of the Habitability Design Center is creating full-scale mock-ups of potential lunar lander modules that are then used for evaluations that are examining if the proposed design will be suitable for the expected mission activities, from the mundane, like having three people in a confined environment for several weeks, to whether there is enough space for those same three people to don/doff their space suits. These are often the very beginning stages of a design as these tests will reveal how the designs must be modified to accommodate. This project was just a quick proposal for a new system that is stronger than the average on as the request from the sponsoring division was for a more structural configuration than usual so that the mockup could better handle the loads exerted by crew members as they lifted themselves either into their suits or onto their sleeping bunks. As such, the concept was to use aluminum extrusions instead of the usual pine 2x6s.
ALTAIR MOCK-UP As part of my internship with the HDC at NASA, one of my main tasks was assisting with the evaluations performed with our full scale mock-ups. Generally, this meant that between rounds I assisted with adjusting the modules depending on the next rounds requirements. Additionally, I assisted with the modification of the mock-up as the testing dictated and the creation of new parts and items to be used by the crew members, such as the back units (PLSSes) seen in the photo above, stacked in the front right of the platform. I also served as the unofficial documenter for the group.
LISSITZKY, DECONSTRUCTED Adobe Illustrator
By recreating a number of El Lissitzky’s Prouns in Illustrator, it was possible to add and subtract various graphic elements from each and do a brief study of the composition elements and patterns that were used. After discovering a few trends, such as the tendency to juxtapose just one or two rounded element against a multitude of orthogonal pieces or that the projection of various elements is consistently inconsistent, the task then became to see if, by applying those observations, new Prouns could be composed that were similar enough that they could be mistaken for those of Lissitszky. A few of those attempts are on the following page.
EUROPE SKETCHES Ink, Marker
During the fall of 2008, an opportunity presented itself to travel across Europe for several months, ranging from as far north as Norway and Finland all the way down to Italy. Throughout the trip, I kept a sketchbook, not so much as a direct analogue of what I was seeing, but rather as a means of exploring phenomena that were observed. Here are just 3 out of many. The first one is an exploration of the way that tree shadows fall over irregular shapes or steps. The second drawing is an abstracted way of looking at how buildings obscure green spaces. And the final drawing is sort of interpretation of a Mark Rothko piece, exploring how his art has simple shapes and color schemes, but still relay a great sense of depth and atmosphere.
CARL BAHR
1711 Rustic Oak Ln | Seabrook, TX 77586 281.910.3501 carlfbahr@gmail.com
Objective: To work in an innovative and active environment, where creativity and originality thrive in design. Education: University of Texas, Austin, TX Bachelor of Architecture, 2010 European Traveling Design Studio, Fall 2008 (Stockholm, SE to Rome, IT) Proficiencies: Software | AutoCAD 2010, Sketchup, SolidWorks 2010, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Partworks, Microsoft Office Hardware | 3-axis CNC Router, Router, Bandsaw, Tablesaw, Chopsaw, Radial-Arm Saw, Belt Sander, Planar, Jointer Other | Hand drafting, Sketching, Abstract Illustration, Model Making, German (intermediate), Tetris Work Experience: Robert Shaw Manufacturing Detailer/Draftsman Fort Worth, TX May 2011 - Present • Taking architectural drawing sets and producing all requisite drawings for the production of high-end architectural millwork. • Includes producing detailed drawings, of furniture, cabinetry, and wood paneling, in coordination with architects and installers, in order to ensure everything meets or exceeds standards expected by the architect. NASA Habitability Design Center Intern Houston, TX November 2010 - May 2011 • Projects include: working on full-scale mock-ups, sketching out ideas for project proposals, researching equipment, and modelling of existing design concepts, both physically at all scales and digitally using SolidWorks. • Worked with a multidisciplinary team of engineers, architects, ergonomists, and industrial designers on a wide range of projects.