1. design studios 2. competition 3. foundation studio 4. furniture design 5. graphic design
biography
A. Plascencia is a fourth year undergraduate architecture student at the University of Texas at Arlington. He has married his interests in architecture, community engagement, and design to bring leadership and conviction to the campus and his community through his collaborations with Freedom By Design, the Student Senate, and the Football Team, a Creative Collective. As well as his contributions to the campus, he engages in a private design practice that has influenced and informed his venture into an architectural education.
A.Plascencia is an experiential learner, and is always looking to expand the bounds of their knowledge through new experiences and opportunities.
Apart from his private practice, he is currently employed as an architectural intern at Merriman Pitt / Anderson, and as a research assistant by the School of Architecture.
project one
Course
Instructor
Programs
design studio
ARCH 3553
Steven Quevedo
Revit, Rhino, Grasshopper, Illustrator, Photoshop
The given project is the development of a wall building on a set of ruins in the city of Verona, Italy. The building services a set of museum galleries and learning spaces, as well as creates set of contemplative areas wherein the existing ruins and urban fabric meet the new development.
Due to the qualities of the site, the project investigates intervention on existing structures by mimicing the load bearing wall typology of the inherited landscape.
design studio
ARCH 4556
Mehdi Farahbakhsh
Revit, Rhino, Grasshopper, Illustrator, Photoshop
The given assignment was to address the issues of affordable housing and walkability on an abandoned golf course in north Arlington using emerging technologies such as 3-D printing and prefabrication technologies. The project was completed with the help of Luis Alcantar and Tony Pham. The team determined that to address the given issues, the approach would have to consider what happens in between the buildings as equally as inside them, and the focus of the project shifted to one concerned with urban planning in addition to the building science. A. Plascencia primarily developed the following 72”x72” drawing displaying the site strategies and callouts, and aided in the design of the model and following drawings, however it was built with the aid of the teammates.
The approach, then, was one of that delineated a set of policies needed to succeed. As well as this, the build science was standardized to sets of 13’x13’ prefabricated structural cubes with 3-D printed infill panels. A section of the site was chosen to model and design as a case study of the developed system.
diagram outlining extents and location of model
axonometric drawing of model
competition
Dennis Chiessa
Honorable Mention + Placed in 2023 AIAS LiA Perspectivas Juried Exhibition
Entering the UTA Bridge the Gap competition with Elizabeth Adebayo and Tony Pham as Studio8, the two week design event was concerned with the Arlington major road, Cooper Street, that divides the UTA Campus, and the design of an art installation along the series of three bridges that connect the East and West edges of campus.
The goal was two examine the North and South bridges, and reimagine their role as a part of the developing fabric of Arlington and the University. The task being to redesign the connecting corridors in a way that will immediately begin to restitch the campus in 2023, as well as a projection for what the broader community might look like in 2030 by identifying the bridges as a symptom of a larger issue: the transit desert in Arlington.
Studio8’s analysis of the city and interest in public transportation were the primary motivators for the development of the design, and the resultant proposal. While the design and urban analysis process was collaborative, A. Plascencia entirely produced the first board, and worked on revisions of the other two.
the moment: the first board displayed the team’s proposal for the art installation on the bridge, and began the narrative regarding the use of the bridge as a catalyst to begin to address the transit issue in arlington, texas. the team believed that their built project could also serve as a part of a larger continuum of work and policy
the dream: the second board launches an urban analysis of the bridges’ relationship to existing corridors in alrington’s fabric, and begins to speculate how the university can utilize the existing bridges to reinvigorate identified corridors in a fabric fractured by years of car centric infrastructure and policy.
the future: the final board speculates on the future this combined installation and urban development plan could bring. the team imagines a robust university campus in harmony with the developing city around it. the entry stresses the importance of incremental progress in such efforts, and the place something as seemingly simple as an art installation can have in that effort
Lacking any definite form or configuration, the kinetic object can fold and stack into any piece of sculpture or furniture your heart desires! The paraphernalia shown was developed as a part of a larger installation to exhibit and invite play with the fthneed, and lead to discovery of new configurations.
The project in its conception was an exercise in material use and digital fabrication. The objective was to reduce waste as close to zero when working within a sheet of material, while learning to use the CNC. The exercise tested fabrication capabilities while simulating contemporary material restraints. It succeeded in this regard, utlizing the full extent of two 4’x8’ sheets of material, in this case, plywood. It was only during the intial design phases that the exercise adopted its multi-use objectives. The fthneed members were entirely cut by CNC, then assembled by hand and hammer.
CNC Instructor
CONFIGURATIONS
FTH_01 CHAIR
FTH_02 LOW CHAIR
FTH_03 ROCKING CHAIR
FTH_04 LOUNGE CHAIR
FTH_05 LOW LOUNGE CHAIR
FTH_06 CAT’S CRADLE
FTH_07 COFFEE TABLE + BENCH
FTH_08 SHORT BENCH 01
FTH_09 SHORT BENCH 02
FTH_10 SHORT BENCH 03
FTH_11 STOOL
FTH_12 PODIUM
FTH_13 DISPLAY SHELF
FTH_14 MOUNTAIN SHELF
FTH_15 SLANT SHELF
LOUNGE CHAIR
LOW LOUNGE CHAIR
The fthneed is an object of play.
assorted projects
Designation
Materials
furniture design
Personal projects
Plywood, Oak Board, Oak Dowels
A growing interest in other areas of design, the craft of building, and growing familiarity with materials resulted a series of extracurricular furniture investigations. The projects explore applied proportions, methods of jointure, and material relationships at a much smaller scale than that of building.
Each project in this series seeks to express a similar language while investigating different design motifs and utilities. As well as this, each project is made entirely by hand, with exception of Coffee Table 02, which introduced CNC milling into the building method. Finally, all projects are dimensioned to be able to be moved by one person. The measurements of construction allow each project to be comfortably carried through standard residential doors.
Programs / Methods graphic design
Designation
Personal practice
Photoshop, Illustrator, Photography, Mixed Media
Separate from any academic endeavors, A.Plascencia also engages in freelance graphic design. This practice preceded his architecture education, and continues to influence and inform the collective body of work.
He has impacted the local Dallas music scene with his work, working with clients such as A-Wall, Pretty Boy Aaron, and Danny Bonilla. As well as this, his work has been featured in publications such as Central Track, Bandcamp, the Dallas Observer, D Magazine, and NPR publications, and has aided in the accumulation of 10+ million streams across digital streaming platforms. It is through this practice that A.Plascencia has gained experience in building and maintaining client relationships.
The following are a series of both personal and client oriented works; they follow no specific medium or method of creation.
