Selected Works
Finn Senkier
Contents: Document contains selected works from the field and studio
Internship
Foundry Architects
Summer 2021
Matson Britton
2023
Instructors Marco B, Paola G, Achile M.
Architecture 401 Fall 2022
Mixed use library for Seniors and a kindergarten in Piazza dei Ciompi, Florence, Italy.
Cal Poly
Instructor Alex Hirsig
Architecture 352/353
Winter/Spring 2022 Crane Cove Climate Change Center
Cal Poly
Instructor Ansgar M. Killing
Architecture 481 (Thesis)
2023 - 2024
Cuesta College
Instructor JoAnn Moore
Architecture 222
Spring 2020
Cuesta College
Instructor David Fernandez
Architecture 244
Spring 2020
Soceitas ex Machinas
in Milano, Italia
Internship
Foundry Architects
Summer 2021
A collection of preliminary renderings done for Foundry Architects in Santa Cruz. This building is intended to be a mixed us building on the corner of 38th and . The bottom floor is intended to be Foundry Architect’s new studio, while the top two floors are residential.
Preliminary View drawn by my principal
House
Internship
Foundry Architects
Summer 2021
The preliminary renderings for Foundry Architects in Santa Cruz depict a Soquel house, emphasizing dynamic lighting, outdoor spaces, and privacy. They aim to balance modern design with the natural environment, ensuring functionality and aesthetic appeal, while also enhancing privacy and outdoor living through innovative design solutions.
Preliminary view drawn by my principal
Beach House Aptos
Beach House
Internship
Matson Britton Architects
Summer 2023
Render and elevations for a large single family coastal home in Aptos.
Render and elevations for a townhouses in downtown Santa Cruz, designed for students.
Radicato
Arch 401A With Mariah Bosche
Instructors Marco B, Paola G, Achile M. Fall 2022
Within the historic context of Florence, the site located in piazza dei ciompi, is rooted in the rich history of Florence. As the site has evolved, it remains as a lively communal space. Through analyzing the needs of the community, it was apparent the site needs to incorporate green park space, flexible vendor space, and a peaceful escape from the lively city. Since this site has been and will continue to evolve, the design intent is to be resilient and flexible while also drawing inspiration from the surrounding historic building. In order to give as much of the ground space back to the community in the form of a park and vendor space, the design will lift the massing off the ground level creating void space. By doing so the new height of the program space will be acoustically enhanced for reading rooms and children sensory space. The children’s sensory space will be additional program that will provide children with a controlled tranquil space. This will be designed to appeal to young children’s sight, sound, smell, and touch.
viaPIETRAPIANA
viadeimartorodelpopolo
West Elevation
East Elevation
VIA DEL’ULIVO
BORGO ALLEGRI
VIA MICHELAMGELO BUONARROTI via del’agnolo
FIRENZE, TOSCANA
Rooted Void Uplifted Carved
The site is rooted in a vibrant rich history which inspired the form. The design is intended to weave in plan and section in a root-like form that connects the community.
The design created a void space in order to encourage circulating on the existing path through the site and to capture views of the duomo. This void creates a threshold for the kindergarten and library space which are bridged together.
Due to the urban nature of the site, there is a lack of open park space within the community. By removing or sinking parts of the ground floor, the site opens up and creates more opportunity to give green space back to the community.
The form was carved to fit programmatic spaces and enhance the user experience. This allowed for more outdoor terracing and interactive sight lines.
Program Diagram
Children’s Library
Exhibition Space
Vender Space Library Admin
Reading Space
Indoor and Outdoors Play Space
Reading Space
Children’s Sensory Space
Classrooms
Teacher and Admin Space
Crane Cove Climate Change Center
Arch 353
Instructor Alexander Hirsig Spring 2022
The Crane Cove Climate Change Center tells the story of the site it sits on. The form of the project is derived from the cranes that sit on the surrounding sites and the ships that were built there. These ideas are integrated with the now residential white collar neighborhood the museum sits on. The building connects with the water on the North-Eastern side of the site by including a second lobby at the ferry terminal. In addition to the vernacular of the site, the building draws from the environment of the site, the heating and cooling system of the building takes water from the bay. Connecting the local environment with the local vernacular. The louvers that rise on the facade represent the vulnerability of the site from rising sea levels. This site is expected to be underwater in the coming years, but most likely San Francisco will build a barrier to stop it, however the rusted steel facade reflects the in inevitable reality of climate change.
Circulation
Diagram
Leeward courtyard full sun exposure Sun:
The months: June, July, August and September all require some sort of solar shading. The months: October, November, December, January,February, March, April and May all require sun for solar heat gain. This means that the building should incorporate daylighting from the south of the building as much as possible due to the cold weather. While for the summer months adding louvers to the facade would help cool the building. Even though adding windows on the east side would add to much sunlight, the views of the bay may be worth it.
Wind
The months: June, July, August and September all have strong winds from West, which can potentially be used to cool down the building during hot summer months. January, February, October and November have winds coming from all directions. Whereas March, April and May have it predominantly from the West. While December is the only month where winds come mainly from the East. All of this is to say that outdoor space will need to protected from the wind, mainly from the west during the warmer months. Acoustics
The main source of noise is from the cars on the street. In addition, there is construction in the area which can be noisy. Also, the ferry will be a bit noisy when coming in and docking.
Atrium - sunlit to open up the building with light at its core
Pull
Pull up and down on corners to creat a form derived from the cranes and the ships used and built on the site.
Reflect Reflect the topography of the surrounding mountains and hills in the Bay Area.
Open
Open up the building to sunlight and subtract from the form of the building to reflect the site and make entrances apparent.
Shade
The final step is adding louvers to the facade to shade the building in some parts, but mostly to mimic the wavy pattern of the ocean and reflect the threat of a rising ocean.
Office Spring Section
This section displays how the building uses skylights in the roof for the light to be refracted in the upstairs exhibits. Both the lobby and the exhibits have operable windows that allow for cross ventilation. The building also has HVAC and radiant cooling to help cool the building.
This section displays how the building allows the sunlight to enter in the spring through the louvers. This helps light and warm the building. In addition to the daylighting this section shows the use of radiant heating to warm the office.
Exhibit Winter Section
Societas ex Machinas
Thesis
Instructors Ansgar Killing
2023-2024
In contemporary society, technology’s pervasive integration has detached beauty from narrative and culture, particularly evident in mass-manufactured products and urban structures, leading to a ‘placeless’ aesthetic. This phenomenon is starkly observable in Milan’s Navigli district, once a bustling waterway network now reduced to a mere tourist spot with its history obscured by modern developments. My proposal aims to reconnect this district with its cultural roots through a strategically placed museum dedicated to canal and river art, combined with office spaces and apartments to enhance local engagement and utility. Situated on a neglected parking lot at the intersection of the district’s tourist and industrial zones, the building is designed to integrate with the canal, serving as a new cultural hub and transportation stop. This revitalization seeks to embody the local heritage and technological advancements, positioning the museum as a modern ‘church’ in a secularizing society, bridging historical beauty with contemporary needs.
Gallery Detail
Art in Milano Investigation
“Il Bacio” by Francesco Hayez serves as a profound inspiration for my thesis. This painting, one of Hayez’s most famous works, epitomizes Italian Romanticism—a movement characterized by an exploration of human psychology, personal expression, and the natural world (Tate).
On the surface, “Il Bacio,” meaning “The Kiss,” depicts a passionate embrace between a Robin Hoodlike figure and a woman in a blue dress. Painted in 1859 before Italian unification, the kiss symbolizes the unification of Italy and its ties with France, subtly hinted at by the woman’s blue dress. A shadowy figure in the background adds a layer of mystery— suggesting themes of surveillance and urgency. Is the kiss a fleeting moment for someone on the run? Is the shadow approaching or departing?
In my art investigation, I interpret the painting as a form of surveillance. The foreign powers controlling Italy’s fractured states sought to maintain their influence, hindering Italian unification—a goal not achieved since the Roman Empire. I view the shadowy figure as a representation of contemporary surveillance, where society is constantly monitored, not just by people but by the machines we’ve created. Our data is continually sold by for-profit companies, tracking our consumption habits in a capitalist society.
The painting’s overt depictions of surveillance include drones and telescopes of varying technological levels, symbolizing the pervasive monitoring in our lives. The mechanical ductwork hints at the technology used to preserve these paintings in museums, maintaining their beauty. The different versions of “Il Bacio” by Hayez reflect analog reproduction, contrasting with the mass-produced artifacts that oversee and scrutinize the paintings.
Elevated Park
Map of Milan
Giovanni Enrico Pestalozzi
Via Pesto Via Leone
Tolstoi
Via Lodovico il Moro
Pedestrian
Castello Sforzesco
Torre Generali
Milano Centrale
Duomo
Universita Bocconi
Site and Circulation
Via
ViaCarloTorre
VialeCassala
ViaBarbavara
CorsoCristoforo
Colombo
ViaVincenzoForcella
Ventimiglia
Via Elia Lombardini
RipadiPortaTicinese
ViaCasale
Bergognone Da Fossano Via Cerano ViaVoghera
Viaprivata Gaspare Bugatti Via Novi
Via Bergognone da Fossano
ViaValenza
ViaAngelo Fumagalli
ViaFilippoArgelati
The building’s facade covers the curtain wall of the gallery, letting in very little natural light. The facades punctures consists of mechanical ducts and exhaust vents to accentuate the mechanical feeling of the building. In addition, there is a periscope to allow gallery visitors to look down on the canal below connecting the facade of the building which is a map of the canals abstractly arranged to connect with the actual canal.
Axon Section
Front Elevation
In Celebration of Mies van der Rhoe
Arch 222
Instructor JoAnn Moore
Spring 2020
This gallery was inspired by the works of Mies van der Rhoe. This building specifically draws on many elements from the Farnsworth House while employing a more organic contemporary form inspired by the hills surrounding the site in San Luis Obispo. The building is raised from the bottom on the front part of the facade to pay tribute to the unique design of the Farnsworth House while also forcing visitors on a winding path to the entrance so they can see the mountains to their right.
Location: San Luis Obispo
Precedent: Farnsworth House
The Farnsworth house is one of the most important pieces of residential international architecture in the world. The ingenious design was lifted over 3 feet above the ground to be flood resistant. In addition to the stilted frame, the house employs an iconic steel frame structure with beams and columns representing the trees around the site in a modern way. Due to the mostly glass facade, the building is very inefficient and provides little cooling even with the dramatic roof.
Structure
North Section West Section
Shade Front
Elevate Roof
Mimic Mountains
Contour Roof
Mies Rectangle
Let Light In
Main Gallery
San Luis Obispo
Blue Studio
Arch 244
Instructor David Fernandez.
Fall 2020
The BLU Studio is a modular small home that was used as a template for construction drawings. This building was designed in Revit using parametric and manual drafting in order to achieve the specified drawings.
1/2 " GYP.BD.
2X SILL. PTDF
CONC. SLAB. (REFER TO STRUCT.)
7MIL VISQUEEN VAPOR BARRIER
RIGID INSULATION
4" BASE ROCK OR SAND
Thank You
01. LAMINATE WOOD
Glue wood together to desired thickness of the model. Ensure proper contact with clamp to prevent shearing during milling process
02. MILLING
Mill wooden piece using a CNC Mill. Supervise milling process at all times to prevent damage to machine and workpiece.
03. VACUUM FORMING
Parametric Lighting Project
A group project to create an object through parametric scripting in Grasshopper. Our group created a lamp from the form of CNC milled wood. The lamp uses Acrylic in non planar forms to disperse the light from the light place above.
Using acrylic with a minimum thickenss of 1/16”, vacuum form over the milled piece, ensuring adequate spill over
04. TRIM EXCESS
Using a band saw, trim away excess material
