2023 Portfolio

ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO

caroline kacsur

digital wireframe model digital solid model with volumes digital section of solid model

wireframe model solid model

BOOLEAN

Through this project, I was able to explore the concept of Boolean architecture. The project had two main deliverables: a wireframe 1’ box with volumes intersecting each face, as well as a solid representation of the wireframe with the volumes represented by a lack of space. The project created a visual for intersecting volumes that eventually take on the inverted state - subtraction versus addition.

Fall 2018, Professor Robert Bruhns

RULED SURFACE

This project helped me to explore architecture through the use of ruled surfaces. For this exercise, I started with two different abstract hand drawings of ruled surfaces and furthered one into a physical model based on my own interpretation of the heights and cavities.

Spring 2019, Professor Joseph Choma

hand drawings ruled surface

vesselforlight plasterwhite siblingsofthree candle shrouds outsidebeginningtoend

VESSEL FOR LIGHT

This workshop explores the materiality and capability of concrete. The objective was to be able to shield a candle flame in this specific moment in the candle’s life. Three different iterations were created, and one was furthered into a set of three, the “triplets”. The iteration that I continued with played with the fluidity of concrete, letting the mold for it become a simple plastic bag. This let the concrete form to every fold and seam, pushing organicness.

Fall 2020, Professor Dan Harding

nighttime photo of triplets

nighttime photo of vessel b

vessel a vessel b vessel c

nighttime photo of triplets vessel for light

Fall 2019 Professor Douglas Hecker Completed with Summer Gallman

F L O W

FLOW is a coworking office building located on the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, NY. The space is a designated coworking space where different companies can use the floors as different workable areas.

FLOW is focused around the experience that the average employee has within their workplace. This building aims to help soothe employees’ stress by providing experiential water on every floor. The water is a mixture between rainwater collected on the roof and plumbing and flows through every floor to eventually meet at the ground floor and be expelled into the site. The incorporation of water aims to change the work environment from a “corporate” one to a more peaceful one and therefore encourage productivity, mindfulness, and optimism.

model photo

by Summer Gallman

form diagrams by Summer Gallman

pool/pond

socialization/ collaboration

WATERFALL circulation between floors

RIVER circulation per floor

waterfall river

POOL/POND socialization/collaboration circulation between floors circulation within floors

splash pad

building

sidewalk

park

infinity pond

streams

ice skating rink

figure-ground map

by Caroline Kacsur

porous glass

copper-cladded steel mullions snap caps

private (office)

public (circulation)

private (office)

public (circulation)

private (office)

public (lobby)

program

mechanical by Caroline Kacsur

electrical/air/ plumbling vent

steel column steel framing

precast concrete self-sensing concrete

materiality axonometric sections by Caroline Kacsur

by Caroline Kacsur

section perspective by Summer Gallman

model photo

by Caroline Kacsur

model photo

by Summer Gallman + Caroline Kacsur

M A R EL I B R A R Y

The Mare-Library is a small library located in Genoa, Italy for adolescents and wanderers. The libary sits on a historic port, directly next to the Porta Siberia, a medieval structure important to Genoa’s history. The Mare-Library aims to create a comfortable learning environment for all users, while also using sustainable methods of design and construction.

On site, the aim is to create a space that the Genovese can use as a piazza. Much is the space of the site is left open to be used as meeting areas, overnight parking, or outdoor markets. A space is designated to human-powered vehicle parking in order to promote less vehicular traffic and more sustainable practices of transportation. The half of the site against the water is raised up, similarly to the library, to create hardscape and green spaces for pedestrians to use to their content, while also holding cisterns underneath to contain excess rainwater. The original trees along the edge of the site next to the water are kept in place in order to not disrupt the current Genovese tradition of sitting under the trees to get out of the heat of the city.

On the exterior, the Mare-Library is sunken slightly into the ground in order to utilize more sustainable methods of ventilation, and this also makes the sloping roof able to be walked on top of by people. The sloped roof is also a mixture of opacity and translucency in order to help bring in natural light without hurting the books that the library holds. The library is also sunken into the ground to help complement the Porta Siberia instead of compete with it. Inside the library, a wooden egg-crated structure runs through the entire building. This structure doubles as book stacks and an experience for circulation. Each reading room floor is a green-tinted epoxy coating in order to help promote productivity and growth in people.

Fall 2020

Professor Dan Harding Completed with Summer Gallman, Marissa Cutry, and Ross

Mckenzie

by Marissa Cutry

restore site ecology with native plants offer public garden for community collect rainwater and filter in belowground cisterns

mare bike

72 vehicle parking spaces removed 100 human powered vehicle storage spots

piazza

giving a proper front to Porta Siberia completing the piazza with library facade

interior render by Summer Gallman

existing pavers

glulam

epoxy

floor plan by Caroline Kacsur

longitudinal section by Marissa Cutry

interior renders by Summer Gallman

seeds planted

when novel is complete, adolescent brings book back so it can restart its life cycle.

take one, leave one return

adolescents donate unused books to library. adolescents must leave a book in order to be able to take one out.

collection

collection + collection process by Caroline Kacsur

transverse section by Marissa Cutry

column + beam

steel plywood

formwork

panels egg crate

plywood glass concrete + epoxy

pour

roof structure construction

by Marissa Cutry

exploded axon by Caroline Kacsur

1 tectonic detail

waffle structure beam meander column flooring

concrete + epoxy + glass steel glulam steel concrete + epoxy

exploded section axon by Ross Mackenzie

exterior render by Summer Gallman

structure detail

interior model detail

Spring 2021

Professor Dan Harding

Completed with Summer

Gallman and Madi Turner

UNIFY

Located on the historically- and environmentally-sensitive Honey Horn Plantation on Hilton Head Island, the new Coastal Discovery Museum facility and visitors center aims to bridge the local gaps of development versus ecology, tourists versus residents, and culture versus profit with three main focuses: community engagement, culture, and ecology.

Community engagement is promoted through interior and exterior spaces meant to engage people of all ages through emphasis on education and gathering. The culture of the Gullah-Geechee community can be seen through the locally-sourced materials that hold historical relevance. Ecology is emphasized through a “lighttouch” on the current landscape, implementing new ecosystems and energy sources to create a more sustainable and interactive experience. With these in mind, the new design of the Coastal Discovery Museum aims to unite Hilton Head Island into a place of community and accessibility for all people.

front render by Summer Gallman

site plan by Caroline Kacsur

biofuel conversion building

separate building that uses algae collected from the docks and converts it into biofule to be used as source of energy throughout facilities.

amphitheatre

outdoor space to hold different occasions such as concerts, lectures, plays, and other community events.

walking path

pathway through the loblolly pines + live oaks to teach visitors about the existing flora and fauna.

main facility + visitors’ center

new facility housing galleries, a library, a makerspace, a gift shop, classrooms, and support spaces.

lawn

outdoor space for community members to hold farmers’ markets or relax.

outdoor classrooms

flexible spaces to be used for educating visitors and students on history of the site and the importance of sustainability.

docks

home of algae farms + gathering spaces above Jarvis Creek to learn about and observe local ecosystems.

circulation diagrams by Madi

Turner

program diagram

by Caroline Kacsur

gallery admin + storage education

sloped site packed with hurricane debris native

.574 ACRES/YEAR of

to

algae biofuel diagram by Caroline Kacsur

environmental building section by Caroline Kacsur + Madi Turner

site section by Madi Turner

grass cloth

The use of grass cloth wallpaper is directly related back to the Gullah Geechee tradition of strip quilting. The grass cloth wallpaper is used to mimic the texture/ pattern of strip quilting, along with being used on building locations that promote the spread of kowledge and the connection of people to different areas of the building.

oyster shell + debris

The buildings flooring is comprised of oyster shells and small pieces of debris located on the site. The use of this material branches from the strong connection that Hilton Head and the Honey Horn Plantation have to oysters, and our buildings goal to be sustainable. These materials would be collected prior to the construction of our building to be repurposed into the flooring.

tabby concrete exterior

Tabby concrete is used on the exterior of the building to pay homage to it’s representation in the Lowcountry’s history.

exploded material axon by

Summer Gallman

renders by Summer Gallman

PROFESSIONAL WORK

AFFORDABLE TEACHER HOUSING

These sketches were an exercise done for Charleston County School District, analyzing two potential sites in Charleston, SC to provide teachers with affordable housing. The sites chosen are in close proximity to existing schools in the district, as well as a rapid transit system. Two schemes were curated for the first site, Mary Ford Elementary School. Both schemes look at building either apartments or townhomes to accommodate a lessdense affordable housing model. On the second site, the old C.E. Williams Middle School, two site orientations were explored. This site also investigates both a less-dense apartment option with apartments paired with surface parking, and a higher density option with garage parking and living spaces above.

Exercise done with Kameron Quick and Richard Gowe in Summer 2022. Richard Gowe and I developed the schemes together and I hand-drafted all schemes to present to the client. All credit goes to LS3P.

LS3P Associates, LTD.

mary ford elementary school

option 1

old c.e. williams middle school

scheme a option 1

scheme a option 2

scheme b option 1

scheme b option 2

LIVE-TO-PLAY (LTP) SCHOLARS & MODERN MINDS

LTP Scholars & Modern Minds is a project developed in Mount Pleasant, SC. The building is a two-story structure, where the first floor accommodates LTP Scholars, a school for students in grades 4 - 12 who are dedicated to becoming Divison 1 athletes in their college career. The second floor is dedicated to Modern Minds, a mental wellness facility that focuses on helping working professionals improve their mental health. Modern Minds works in tandem with another facility on site, Synchronicity, that centers on improving physical wellness.

Project done with Kameron Quick, Michelle Hertel, and David Burt Fall 2021-Spring 2022. My role primarily was the digital modeling of the building, as well as creating renders to present to the client. All credit goes to LS3P.