CLAIRE WOLSK 2024 PORTFOLIO

claire wolsk

design portfolio selected works fall 2019 - fall 2023

bachelor of design in architecture university of florida

masters in architecture

columbia graduate school of architecture preservation and planning

page 01 core i studio; fugitive mobilities

page 13 design seven; housing and density

page 21 design five; florida landscape

page 29 environmental technology ii; tesseract

page 30 materials and methods i; stair project

master of architecture core i studio fall 2023

fugitive mobilities

fugitive mobilities one involves an exploration of neurological tension and stimulation; the molecularity of the human mind—it’s hyperfixations—in relation to care for the body and the world to which it belongs. hyper fixations and preoccupations within the mind manifest themselves in physical “phantom pain” and phantom memories.

deliverables interlace fragmentation neurologically and spatially; the gradual dissolution of the physical extents of the body into the atmosphere.

the study of inhale and exhale—the respiratory loop—exists in this context as a manifestation of neurological tensions; breath and air becomes representative of a mitigation of phantom pain and relaxing the soul.

the air we breathe is inherently politicized. inhalation and exhalation, as an undisturbed and fluid motion, is a privilege, granted by surroundings, bodily functioning, and conditions within which one enters the world. inequalities regarding accessibility and availability of fresh air consequently are used as a means of marginalization and oppression.

fugitive mobilities two involves an investigation of the idea of care operating under the conditions of excess, as explored in fugitive mobilities one. this exists in the sector of infrastructure repair and maintenance as material coverings of objects that are “worthy” of protection or conversely the covering of something in need of “repair.”

these dichotomies refer to the practice of broken world thinking, and the assumptions regarding the state of the built environment following a flawed and restrictive guide for how spaces should operate. initial material and detail studies investigated seemingly solid interscalar thresholds but still maintained a fluidness and transparency of their own.

in examining soft architecture, the wood + concrete + plastic “fabric” the structure beneath (wood and cast concrete), both holds the appendage of the tarp and poured raw-form concrete, while simultaneously protecting the intentional construction from the intervention of a new layer.

fugitive mobilities three addresses the sustainability and feasibility of fugitive planning through direct action in relation to construction and infrastructure interlaced with soft architecture and thresholds.

broken world thinking as proposed by Steven Jackson in Rethinking Repair proposes increased examination of erosion, decay, and breakdown rather than the traditional desire for innovation and newness. fugitive mobilities three examines the colonial archive of brokenness, disrepair, and the irreparable. this manifests itself in a study of scaffolding lined streets and tarp as a means of protection. site analysis measures the dimensionality and interscalar connections of maintenance and repair—as well as collective responses and responsibility regarding community resilience.

the threshold formed by scaffolding framework culminates in a wildlife habitat; a series of interspecies biodiversity corridors that occupy performative and stalled scaffolding.

the production of a “wild place that is not simply the leftover space… a place that continuously produces its own unregulated wildness” relates to my proposed intervention. the core of my project, is reclaiming a seemingly pure industrial construction, one that defines and intervenes in itself into the fabric of the urban scene of new york city. in creating a sort of fifth ecology, a union of human and non-human species along the island of manhattan, rigid edges and boundaries are solidified and reclaimed. what is being reclaimed is the connection rather than extraction of resources, of beings that suffer due to the human need to expunge resource.

thematic representations of the infiltration of scaffolding into the framework of morningside heights

“rewilded” scaffolding; elevated biodiversity corridor zones

master of architecture core i studio fugitive mobilities final project

“oystertecture”

expanding upon semester-long themes of brokenness, phantom pain, and protection, fugitive mobilities four expands on the weight of reclamation and repair in the urban environment.

scaffolding throughout manhattan exists as an industrial construction unable to deliver on its reparative expectations. its performative ephemerality evolves into a possibility of reclamation of systematic brokenness, through ecological repurposing projects.

oystertecture celebrates the lifecycle of the oyster—an organism that’s existence involves purification, solidification, consistency, and nourishment. through providing two key programmatic elements devoted to the lifecycle of the oysters, (the artificial wetlands and the upwellers) the complex introduces a program that reclaims negligent infrastructure.

the urgency of the following project is grounded in the vital necessity to embrace the anthropocene and look at what it means for the world of architecture and urban reclamation

“the heart is so tired of beating herself up, she wants to stop it still, but also she wants the blood to return, wants to bring in the thrill and wind of the ride, the fast pull of life driving underneath her. what the heart wants?

the heart wants her horses back”

“downhearted” ada limon quotations on the anthropocene

a major component of the intervention is a system of upwellers—containers devoted to providing protected environments for oysters to grow to a size until they can survive on their own and an artificial wetland complex, serving as a site of investigation and education regarding the intricacies of wetland plant ecologies. the intervention touches on phenomena relating to nourishment, progress, extraction, excess and disparities, and consequential replenishment.

the project is presented as a tidal wetland regeneration complex, with a specification of rewilding oyster colonies, as well as the ecosystems they inhabit and facilitate. soft edges and boundaries are solidified and reclaimed through the coastal regenerative properties of the oyster as a natural vital infrastructure.

design 7

fall 2022

housing and density

partner studio in collaboration with addison besedic

the city should and will serve the needs of the existing community, allowing individuals to be involved in decisions that affect their quality of life. our proposal facilitates health and wellbeing through a series of consolidated initiatives. The availability of human-centered initiatives and humanistic design decisions promote healthier neighborhoods.

resources and opportunities that enforce mental and physical wellness begin with the built environment; constructions must provide well-maintained and affordable housing, safe open spaces and neighborhoods, healthy and affordable food, and accessible ation.

in achieving this goal, our city block design features three major attractors (overarching topics), centers for: health, recreation, and market goods

programatic axonometric

single family housing

attractors

health

private practices

mental and physical health minute clinic

recreation center

indoor sports complexes

gymnasium

food distribution hub

soup kitchen

supermarket

greenhouse

perspective view towards market and health care centers

perspective view towards recreation and health centers

health and wellness center: contains auditoriums intended for community presentations and conferences, here occupants learn about prevalent health and wellness topics, furthermore, health clinics, private practice offices, and numerous pharmacy and medical associated ammenities are located within the building as well as well.

food distribution hub: contains a soup kitchen to serve the homeless in the area along with a greenhouse that acts as a natural food supplier. the addition of the greenhouse ensures that individuals understand the origins of the food they consume.

the chelsea recreation club: contains traditional cardio and weightlifting equipment as well as an indoor sports complex complete with basketball courts, a soccer field, and a track; the chelsea recreation club also serves commercial purposes relating to health and wellness.

the garden plaza: portions of the garden serve as open spaces intended to facilitate relaxation and a multitude of outdoor activities. in adherence to the concept of the “rights of the city”, we have coined “the right to peace and enjoyment in the city.” our concerns lie in the ability of our program to contribute to contentment among individuals inhabiting built spaces, but this also became a priority in the construction of ample green space.

design 5

florida landscape fall 2021

the curriculum of design 5 is centered around an exploration of the florida landcape. we are encouraged to explore, document, and sketch our surrounding climate through field trips and research.

my intervention into paynes prairie, is meant to serve as a mediator between logic and emotion, imperfection and precision, and the architecture itself and the natural world. with this in mind, still water, ripples, rain, and heavy fog individually represent emotion. conversely, it is the architecture, the built world, that introduces the logic of function. as shown in the site plan, the model bridges orthogonally drawn lines with large sweeping sketches to imply a union of logic and emotion.

“a landscape haunts, intense as opium.”

Benjamin, Walter. “The Flâneur.” In Arcades Project, 1982. 416

at paynes prairie i was specifically interested in the way water affected the road cutting through the observation area. at the median, where the grass became muddled by rain and mud, the asphalt also appeared to dissolve into the patches surrounding the road. i took this to represent the emotional overpowering the functional. i replicated this in creating a path that, following heavy rainfall, becomes partially submerged by water. this occurrence would halt pedestrian traffic to the pavilion, highlighting the powerful dynamic between the natural and the built environment.

in our second exploration of the Florida landscape we were assigned the program of an art gallery at a local constructed wetlands. my inspiration stemmed from Le Corbusier’s concepts of the horizon; the inherent opposition between the horizontal and vertical. i treated my intervention (my gallery proposal) as a joint between the sky and the ground.

i focused on the surrounding sounds of the area, finding it interesting that while these were all conditions I could hear clearly, their origins were shielded by the vegetation.

sweetwater Wetlands is open and visible from the ground level up, however as the individual navigates through the path hidden complexities of the nature we cant automatically see are revealed auditorily.

“This is a place to stop, because here is a complete symphony, magnificent relationships, nobility. The vertical gives the meaning of the horizontal. One is alive because of the other. Such are the powers of synthesis”

Le Corbusier, on the Horizon

horizon studies of Sweetwater Wetlands

i became interested in De Chirico’s concept of fragmented ambiguity, playing with fragmentation of spaces through different materials as well as manipulations of the actual structure to represent the tension of De Chirico’s paintings. the spaces in the gallery are fragmented, and it is oriented as a series of 90 degree winding corners. this represents the ambiguity of the site in that wildlife is auditorily experienced, but is hidden to the individual due to the vegetation on site.

the above perspectives highlight the the gallery spaces. in adherence to de Chirico’s concept of ominous ambiguity i wanted to frame adjacent rooms as passageways into a different conditioned space.in these drawings, i intend to show the shift in sensory experience after the corner is turned and a new area is discovered.

in Sweetwater Wetlands, so much of what is heard is hidden from human sight, just as in de Chirico’s paintings, something rests and exists below the surface of obvious recognition.

perspective drawings of the gallery spaces

materials and methods stair project

selected joint detail drawings

wood slabs wood inears