Architecture, to me, embodies the dialogues between our built environment and my everevolving perception of the world. As someone who was born in Taiwan, raised in Hong Kong, and having lived elsewhere, it has always been difficult to define my sense of belonging and identity. However, my conversations with the built environment are not static; they unfold in manifold perspectives as I continue to engage with new places, cultures, and people.
This portfolio is a collection of these newfound conversations. Each project and its context represents an experiential narrative, weaving together ideas of community, culture, urbanism, and sustainable / equitable design through architecture.
BAINBRIDGE VISTA GALLERY
Creative District Business Incubator | Bainbridge Island, WA
FALL 2023: ACADEMIC
PROFESSOR: Alicia Daniels Uhlig
PROGRAMS:
Bainbridge Vista Gallery is a mixed-use business incubator designed for the Bainbridge Creative District. Situated between Winslow Way and Town Square, the incubator and its plaza is an extension to the existing site that seeks to elevate the creatives by prioritising artists, entrepreneurs, and the community to appreciate local artistry through providing spaces for collaborative intiatives.
Considering the existing site and civic areas, the building orients towards active zones of the site to integrate and enhance the quality of the community experience without imposing on the established surrounding environment.
With biophilia connect community The ed through central first tor, while entrepreneuar event for
a local businesses
BARN GALLERY / EVENT SPACE
With AIA Framework for Design Excellence and biophilia strategies in mind, the building aims to connect both current and future occupants of the community to the surrounding natural environment.
various programs of the incubator are connectthrough its vertical/horizontal planes and the central stair deck. Affordable co-retail spaces on the and second floor support the local creative secwhile classrooms and meeting rooms strengthen entrepreneuar educational goals. The gallery and event space on the top floor serves as a flex space Bainbridge Artisan Resource Network (BARN), local makerspace, students, and Creative District businesses to exhibit.
THIRD FLOOR PLAN
TECTONIC SECTION MODEL - [PRELIMINARY DESIGN]
Aligned with AIA Framework for Design Excellence, the building designs for active living, movement, and community gathering. Its transparent architecture promotes openness, natural light, and visual connections between existing civic areas to improve wellbeing and connect people with local culture.
AIA
FRAMEWORK FOR DESIGN EXCELLENCE - [STRATEGIES FOR:]
• PROMOTE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & EXPOSURE TO LOCAL CULTURE
CO-RETAIL SPACES:
• SUPPORTING EXISTING & EMERGING LOCAL BUSINESSES
• RETAIL SPACES ON GROUND FLOOR FOR INCREASED FOOT TRAFFIC TO ENLIVEN AREA
VERTICAL & HORIZONTAL CIRCULATION:
• SPACES WITH VIEWS AND DAYLIGHT
MASS TIMBER BUILDING:
• LOCALLY SOURCED DOUGLAS FIR LUMBER
• RECLAIMING / SALVAGING MATERIALS
LIGHT & ENERGY:
• PASSIVE SOLAR STRATEGIES FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY TO IMPROVE AIR QUALITY INDOORS
• OPTIMISING ACCESS TO NATURAL LIGHT FOR WELLBEING & THERMAL COMFORT
• HIGHER WWR TO HEAT SPACES DURING WINTER; ROOF & ADJUSTABLE SHADES FOR SUMMER
UNIVERSAL DESIGN STRATEGIES:
• VISUAL CONNECTION TOWARDS
SHARED SPACES
• WIDE PATHWAYS, CORRIDORS
FLEXIBLE CENTRAL STAIRCASE:
• COMFORTABLE SEATING FOR INFORMAL SOCIAL INTERACTION
• ENCOURAGE MOVEMENT TO PROMOTE HEALTHY ACTIVE LIVING
• SIMPLE DESIGN FOR INTUITIVE USE
• INTERIOR / EXTERIOR / SURROUNDING
SITE CONNECTION
• INTEGRATING BUILT & NATURAL ENVIRONMENT THROUGH CONNECTION TO TOWNSQUARE
EXTENDED PLAZA TO TOWNSQUARE:
• PRIORITISING PEOPLE, NOT VEHICLES TO ENCOURAGE MOBILITY & ACCESS
• COMMUNITY GATHERING SPACES FOR VARIOUS PURPOSES.
MISOYU:CHIBEN CAFE
Redefining Seattle, The Seattle Studio | South Lake Union, WA
[In Collaboration with Nicole Hibi]
INITIAL CONCEPT RENDERINGS
HOW do we make Seattle cool again?...
SPRING 2023: ACADEMIC
PROFESSOR:
Junichi Satoh
Matt Fujimoto
Elisa Renouard
PROGRAMS: Rhino7
Procreate
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
MISOYU:CHIBEN CAFE blends Seattle’s coffee culture with the vibrant energy of Asian city nightlife to “Defrost the Seattle Freeze”. Located in South Lake Union and home to tech giants like Google and Amazon, this project seeks to revitalise an area that is characterised by the systemic and uninspired corporate lifestyle routine.
This project focuses on the transitions between [day] and [night] alluding to the dichotomies of [inner child] and [adult night life]. The indoor courtyard serves as the central point of transition for these themes.
By day, the cafe caters to the [inner child] , offering a whimsical and carefree space for locals and workers to break away from their stressful schedules without pressure. With the choice of a quick grab & go window by the entrance or dining in, the indoor courtyard is all about engaging with the space and subtle interactions between people.
By night, the space transforms into a ramen restaurant located inside an alley, embracing the [adult night life] ethos. The intimate ramen bar becomes a space for the after hours of unwinding, socialising, and destressing. With the indoor courtyard area only opening up if the ramen bar is at its full capacity.
- THE SEATTLE TIMES
DEVELOPED CONCEPT RENDERING
- Site Location
- Amazon Offices
- Google Offices
TESLA SHOWROOM
MOODBOARD - [COFFEE vs. RAMEN]
DAY and NIGHT transition - a daily routine: point of transition at 5-6pm someone is closing [coffee cafe] and someone is opening [ramen restaurant]. Juxtaposition between day [inner child] and night [adult night life] to inform design.
PRELIMINARY MASSING AND SPACE STUDY
- Coffee
- Ramen
RAMEN / RESTAURANT FACADE IDEATION
where restaurant]. design.
MOODBOARD - [DAY vs. NIGHT]
ROOF EXPERIMENTATIONS
RAMEN / RESTUARANT
COFFEE / CAFE
- Circulation
- Program
16’ 32’ 16’
[DAY]:
[NIGHT]:
RAMEN / RESTAURANT ALLEY
RAMEN /
COFFEE / CAFE ENTRANCE
INDOOR COURTYARD
COFFEE / CAFE AREA
GASWORKS OF WATER
Future Visions: The Anthropocene & Environmental Crisis | Seattle, WA
Gas Works Park: Former Seattle Gas Light Company Coal Gasification Plant.
This project envisions Gas Works Park, a current [ Post-Industrialism ] Site, to become the city’s regenerative waterline by embracing water’s temporal nature. Ultimately uncovering the park’s unrealised [ Post-Post Industrialism ].
Protecting the waterways of Seattle is crucial not only for the salmon population, which serves as the primary food source for endangered local orca whales, but also for the broader marine ecosystem that relies on healthy waterways to maintain an ecological balance.
Inspired by the work of local architecture firm Weber Thompson and organisation Clean Lake Union to clean stormwater runoffs from highways and roads in Seattle, this diagram highlights their stormwater treatment initatives around Lake Union.
2.
3.
This exhibition was inspired by Dilip da Cunha’s “Ocean of Wetness” which critiques the divide between land and water as human constructed— a notion that has influenced how we inhabit the world. To see da Cunha’s vision of soaking is to embrace the fluidity and interconnectedness of environments, recognising wetness as a continuum that dissolves land-water binary and instead co-exists.
Seattle’s Gas Works Park is more than just a [ Post-Industrialism ] site, an instance reflecting the remnants of industrial activity. The unrealised [ Post-Post Industrialism ] is a timeless speculative vision that transforms the park into a fluid, adaptive landscape which can harness the forces of water to heal the natural environment. Through intertwining natural systems with the urban environment, such as the hydrologic cycle and the concept of sponge city, the park would utilise water as its own agency to restore ecological balance, mitigate climate impacts, enhance biodiversity, and more.
[The model minority myth is a damaging and dividing notion that all Asian Americans are universally intelligent and prosperous beings whose innate hard work has led to their achievement of the American Dream. This myth is a perpetuates the idea that Asian Americans are socially, politically, and economically more successful than other communities of color.]
In honor of 2024 May’s Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AA+NH/ PI) Heritage Month, “ MATUS ” was thought of in response to students’ evolving values and growing dissatisfaction at the lack of diversity reflected in the curriculum and faculty demographics within the UW College of Built Environments (CBE).
MATUS sought to create safe spaces for AA+NH/PI and BIPOC-identifying students through providing opportunities in our various events for growth, learning, and awareness.
From planning to execution, our goal was to take up as much space in as many different capacities as possible.
• Hosting series of weekly events throughout May
• Collaborating with only AA+NH/PI and BIPOC professionals in the field
• Partnering exclusively with local Asian-owned businesses
• Offering reception inspired by Chinese heritage with cut fruit and cake
• Curating a playlist featuring only AA+NH/PI artists.
PROGRAMS:
Procreate
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Indesign
+ 3 additional firm tours of Asian-owned firms
TEAM MEMBERS (Event Planning/Organisation & Graphics):
Eunice Chen, Hannah Hu, Caitlin Truong, Jodi Van, Carol Zeng.
* NONE of the graphics shown were solely my own work.
As young students of architecture and design, we are reclaiming and redefining our narratives, asserting that we deserve to make and take up space with our voices.
TEAM MEMBERS:
[Graphics Team] - Christina Chen, Eunice Chen, Davien Graham, Skylar Lin, Sydney Miyasato, Thomas Morgan, Thomas Nguyen, Vinh Nguyen, Carol Zeng.
[Physical Model Team] - Mackenzie Manalo, Edilyn Marquez, Van Le.
“Highway to Nowhere” is a physical remnant of the incomplete freeway project that was cancelled and disconnected from the US interstate system. It severely tore the neighbourhood apart, destroyed the homes of families, and fragmented the city. Leaving what once was a thriving community full of history and culture diminished.
Where there’s people, there’s power. This project embodies the vision of creating both physical and metaphorical platforms to restore power and ownership to the residents of West Baltimore. These platforms aim to stitch together the severed community by empowering residents and local organisations, encouraging growth, and providing access to resources and transportation. In making a conscious effort to foster community revitalisation, this project integrates needs specifically identified by the neighborhood and considers the 2035 West Baltimore MARC Station Development Plan.
PROGRAMS:
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Indesign
SITE CIRCULATION
EXTERIOR SKYBRIDGE OVERPASS
DAYCARE AND PERFORMING CENTRE
CIVIC CENTRE INTERIOR
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES
COMMUNITY CENTER FOR RESIDENTS AND LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS.
MULTI-GENERATIONAL HOUSING FOR COMMUNITY GROWTH .
MIXED RESIDENCES AXON
01 - Assisted Natural Ventilation
02 - Natural Ventilation Intakes
03 - Photovoltaic Panels
04 - On-Site Stormwater Treatment + Filtration
05 - Hot Water Storage
06 - Solar Thermal Collectors
07 - Underfloor Heating
ROW HOUSES IN CONVERSATION WITH EXISTING NEIGHBORHOODS VIA SIDE STREET ACCESS.
PHYSICAL MODEL IMAGES - PLATFORMS COURTESY OF [MODEL GROUP]
THE RECLAIMED BRICK PROMENADE SERVES AS A PERMEABLE PAVEMENT FOR WATER FILTRATION.
BIOSWALES ON SITE USES NATIVE PLANTINGS TO ADD AESTHETIC QUALITY AND RETAIN STORMWATER.
UNDERGROUND PIPES DELIVER INFILTRATED STORMWATER TO IRRIGATION SYSTEMS AND BUILDING CISTERNS.
