precedent studies

Spring 2014

One of the most rewarding aspects of an architectural education is that it is an era of finding one’s own style. But just like prose poetry, one must understand the traditions and rules before developing a more personal approach.

The first phase of this study involved diagrammatic explorations into an assigned precedent, in this case, Alvaro Siza’s Leca Pools. The horizontal silhouettes of the project, its varied axes, and the relationship between the natural and built environments were analyzed in hand-drawn ink on vellum.

The second phase took a similar path with an additional precedent chosen from a limited list. Recognizing the same horizontal qualities of the Leca Pools, the Robie House was selected and analyzed, this time through diagrammatic models.

Lastly, a visitor’s center was designed on the Leca Pools site while synthesizing the stylistic approaches found in both Siza’s and Frank Lloyd Wright’s projects.

Content

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Sequence of diagrams depicting spatial, stylistic, and environmental characteristics of Alvaro Siza’s Leca Pools far right, top

Diagrammatic model of Siza’s Leca Pools and their hierarchy of contours & environment, detached far right, middle

Series of diagrammatic models exploring the prairie-style characteristics of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House far right, bottom left & middle

Basswood & cardboard model of synthesized

Visitor’s Center at the Leca Pools far right

Diagrammatic model of Siza’s Leca Pools and their hierarchy of contours & environment, attached fall 2014

New Orleans is an incredible place to live, work, and build. To do so successfully, an understanding of the city at hand is absolutely essential. To dive into such a rich history, a metropolitan analysis initialized this study.

9 content far left, top Rendering of the Museum of the City, produced as a team far left, middle Hand-drawn analytical diagrams of the Lower Garden District far left, bottom Elevational views of the two inter-locking pieces of the Surveyor’s Wall left, top Hand-drafted first and second floor plans of the Museum of the City left, middle Diagrammatic model expressing the unique axes of the Lower Garden District left, bottom Aerial view of the Surveyor’s Wall, pulled apart and fitted together

This studio also afforded a unique opportunity in that it was completed with an assigned partner. This paired structure, although challenging for young students, was an excellent foray into what life in a firm will be like.

The team then took a slightly less macro approach and focused on the historic Lower Garden District. Each student produced a series of map-like diagrams and a physical model that revealed the neighborhood’s unique qualities.

These drawings were layered to create a web of construction lines, from which the Surveyor’s Wall was constructed. The Surveyor’s Wall was further reinterpreted to create a museum dedicated to New Orleans and the Lower Garden District along beautiful Magazine Street.

Spring 2015

The Mardi Gras Indian culture is an incredibly exclusive community, with a lengthy history that finds its roots in the Civil War era.

In recent years, those who produce and parade in the suits have found themselves in a spotlight. The suits are a costly production, and those who make them often live disadvantaged lives compared to those who belong to krewes like Endymion, Comus, and Muses. These factors combine to put the tradition of masking at risk, thus a need to establish support arises.

The first phase involved dissecting the different parts of the suit and understanding the tectonic relationship it has with others and with the body. These found characteristics were then interpreted into a small pavilion for sewing and performance.

The second phase expanded on these ideas, reinjecting them into a much larger institutional program which featured a wholesale supply market and artist’s residences. Its charged location along Claiborne Avenue under I-10 provided additional implications unique to the Indians.

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Collaborative drawing of an entire Mardi Gras Indian suit right, middle Analytical hand-drawing of the suit’s bib piece right, bottom

Tectonic interpretation of the bib piece and its individual components far right, top

Exterior rendering of the Mardi Gras Indian Institute, from Claiborne Avenue beneath I-10 far right, middle Longitudinal section of the Mardi Gras Indian Institute far right, bottom

Physical models of the Mardi Gras Indian Pavilion year three rome, italy

Concept Overview

Campo de’ Fiori is, without a doubt, one of Rome’s liveliest and most dynamic public piazzas. Visitors to Campo de’ Fiori will nd themselves not only ambling through the void of the piazza, but also lingering along its perimeter and occupying its many establishments. Here, one can nd a collection of restaurants, bars, and small shops. Many of them reach out into the piazza with their open-air dining spaces and large umbrellas, pulling patrons to the edges of the void. This arrangement is typical to Rome, but is found in such concentration in Campo de’ Fiori that it blurs and extends the borders of the piazza. Each of the four sides have so many extensions of its restaurants and bars that the ground oors of these bordering buildings become interconnected with the volume of the piazza. Thus, the architectural approach aims to recapture the experience of dwelling along the perimeter, creating new surfaces to rest, socialize, and learn. Focusing on the borders and their manipulating allows occupants to question where the central space, whether actively designed or left as a void for gathering, truly ends and where it begins.

Boundaries

Campo de’ perimeter shops. Many patrons to the de’ Fiori that restaurants and the piazza. creating new to question where it begins.