Panorama

Panorama selected works

“ To design is to change. Therefore, as architects, we are constantly changing. The ways in which we perceive the world and solve problems change with us. The turbulent flux of a designer’s mind cannot be understood as linear, but rather, panoramic. We are each the collection of our experiences, every datum inextricably linked and indispensable to the coherence of the whole. To live is to act analogously with one’s own experiences, in constant tension and harmony with others. It is in this place, between tension and harmony, that design emerges. ”

ROSS MACKENZIE M.Arch., M.I.P.D. Candidate, Weitzman School of Design contact: rossmack@upenn.edu 864-908-6991 3931 Pine Street, Philadelphia PA 19104

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THE FARM THE NEST VASCILLATING VOXELATIONS CARVING CONCAVITY CAAVCON 2020

ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

housing

RIBBON CONCEPT

PUBLIC MARKET

GREEN HOUSE

conceptual and diagrammatic study of program adjacencies and how they are connected through the “data ribbon” concept

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THE FARM DATA CENTER AND PUBLIC HOUSING

ARCH 602 Institution: University of Pennsylvania Critic: Tina Manis Location: Downtown Brooklyn, 30 Flatbush Avenue

The recent rezoning of the special BK2 District near Downtown Brooklyn promises to transform the area’s economy and demographic as new companies and a population of young, diverse professionals have begun to flock to the area. With these new arrivals comes an increased need for housing and public amenities for the new and historic residents of the surrounding neighborhoods.

The Farm addresses these issues through the introduction of a data center. Responding directly to the influx of companies to the area and their need for computing power, The Farm also allows for residents and visitors to see the physical manifestation of their digital lives by experiencing amenities formed and powered by data servers. Rather than being hidden away, servers are the most integral part of the project’s phenomenology, forming an experiential path throughout the building’s programming. By integrating servers into a variety of programs relating to work, home, and public space, The Farm seeks to redefine the ever present role of data in the heart of the city.

Data centers are often demonized for being the sources of large amounts of wasted energy, particularly in the form of heat.

The Farm further lives up to its name by integrating a literal farm in the form of a greenhouse, heated by the energy generated by the program’s servers. This heat is also utilized for the purpose of heating the building’s housing units. The produce grown within the proposed greenhouse is dispersed to the local community through the introduction of a public market on the project’s roof.

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DATA CENTER & PUBLIC HOUSING

PHYSICAL MODEL IMAGE, 18”L x 6”W x 6”H

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

AI MIDJOURNEY OUTPUTS INPUT: “CIRCUIT BOARD, RETRO FUTURIST”

1. EARLY ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE STUDIES HELPED TO HONE THE AESTHETIC AND MATERIAL SELECTIONS FOR THE PROJECT

GREENHOUSE

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DATA CENTER

DATA CENTER & PUBLIC HOUSING

2. A COMPOSITE COLLAGE FROM THE MIDJOURNEY OUTPUTS WAS CONSTRUCTED IN ORDER TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE PLANOMETRIC CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE PROJECT’S SEPARATE PROGRAMS

HOUSING

EXISTING OFFICE BUILDING

BUILDING SECTION

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GROUND FLOOR PLAN

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SUBWAY PLATFORM DATA CENTER EXISTING BUILDING PUBLIC ENTRANCE PUBLIC MARKET GREENHOUSE

DATA CENTER & PUBLIC HOUSING

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STUDIO UNIT

ONE BEDROOM UNIT

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ROOF PLAN

TWO BEDROOM UNIT

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DATA CENTER & PUBLIC HOUSING

RENDERING OF DATA EXPERIENCE

Physical model, 18” x 6” x 6”

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

EXTERIOR RENDERING

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THE NEST PUBLIC EATERY

* Awarded first place in Schenk-Woodman Competition ARCH 502 Institution: University of Pennsylvania Location: Callowhill, Philadelphia, PA Group Project: individual roles included conceptual design, 3D Modeling of project, and creating drawings

The Nest’s proposal for the intersection of Noble Street and Ridge Avenue emerged from a desire to connect pedestrian traffic on the street level to the Rail Park using a series of interventions which both respect and enrich the site. These spaces are divided into two basic programmatic portions, the scaffolding structure resting on the street level, and the “Eggs,” which are suspended above the Rail Park. The project seeks to harmoniously align both aesthetically and physically with the industrial and infrastructural aspects of the Rail Park and greater Callowhill.

Further, The Nest aims to provide a variety of programmatic and spatial experiences for the user. The scaffolding structure is designed to accommodate public and semi-private eating spaces which feature operable facade elements and are therefore adaptable to the needs of the user. The spaces within the scaffolding structure are densely organized, designed to immerse the user within a forest of structural members and moments. Further, as a result of the transparent nature of its construction, the scaffolding structure frames the spectacle of human circulation. “The Eggs,” which comprise the second spectacle of the project, are a series of ovoid private eateries which hang over the Rail Park itself. Suspended from a space-frame which is composed of both existing and additive structural pieces, The Eggs extend the project’s focus on opacity, providing for user privacy through the utilization of a translucent ETFE enclosure and netting skin.

LINK TO COMPETITION PUBLICATION: https://www.design.upenn.edu/architecture/graduate/post/2022-schenck-woodman-prizewinners-announced 10

PUBLIC EATERY

SITE PLAN

NOBLE STREET

RIDGE AVE

PLAN

SECTION

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

RESULTING MULTISCALAR TRUCHET PATTERN FORMULATED USING GRID OF SUBDIVIDED CIRCLES WITHIN QUADTREE STRUCTURE

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VASCILLATING VOXELATIONS PUBLIC MARKET

* Awarded first place in Schenk-Woodman Competition ARCH 502 Institution: University of Pennsylvania Location: Callowhill, Philadelphia, PA

This project is an exploration into the formal and spatial possibilities of truchet tiles and the patterns produced by their aggregation. Specifically, the repetitive and labyrinthine nature of the truchet pattern was of interest to the design of a marketplace. Through the iterative development of the pattern in grasshopper, the individual tiles eventually became multiscalar in order to create spatial and programmatic variation. This concept of scalar variation was applied to the site strategy by deliberately assigning smaller or larger tiles to regions of the site according to what programs were to occupy that region.

The pattern over the site was broken deliberately into two halves, split by the railway. The meandering path which divides these two halves creates an outdoor fresh food marketplace situated along the railway park. The form of the building and particularly the sectional qualities of the interior were further developed using the intersection of a second extruded truchet pattern, perpendicular to the original. On either side of the market, each half was assigned specific interior programming.

The building closer to North Tenth Street houses artist studios, a public gallery, and a makerspace. On the opposite side is a Community Center specifically geared towards serving the homeless population of Callowhill and North Chinatown, offering a cafeteria, limited housing, and job assistance programming.

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PUBLIC MARKET

EXTERIOR RENDERING

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

FORMS CREATED THROUGH MONOLITH

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PUBLIC MARKET

PHYSICAL MODEL, 12”L X 6”W X 6”H

MARKET RENDERING

AERIAL RENDERING

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

MDF frames

acrylic frames

wood veneer

shrink wrap

DIGITAL REPRESENTATION OF GEOMETRY

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CARVING CONCAVITY GEOMETRIC ANALYSIS

ARCH 501 Institution: University of Pennsylvania Critic: Jose Araguez Location: Philadelphia, PA Group Project: individual roles were 3D modeling and the building of physical model

This project is an exploration of aggregated polyhedra which form an infinite field. Through iterating upon the original infinite polyhedra by applying transformations such as stretching and shifting units, we produced a new and dynamic infinite field.

By cutting this field using curved faces and the chamber envelope, we created a series of anomaly pieces in the aggregation’s resulting form as well as finalized the separation of two materials:shrink wrap and wood.

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TEMPORARY FOLLY

PHYSICAL MODEL, 6’L X 6’W X 3.5’ H

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

SCREENSHOTS FROM VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCE

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CAAVCON 2020 VIRTUAL GATHERING SPACE “How can the concept of public space be reimagined in the age of COVID-19 and what are the possibilities for virtual reality to replace and supplement the ways we interact with one another?” * Finalist in NonArchitecture’s “Future Public Space” competition Fall 2020 Institution: Clemson University Critic: Dr. Elysse Newman Group Project: individual roles included 3D modeling of digital model and solely creating project’s drawings

The CAAV (Campus Alliance for Advanced Visualization) Conference is an annual gathering of international scope which assembles users of large-scale immersive visualization platforms, advanced video screen formats, and advanced visualization software. This Fall the CAAV was hosted by Clemson University and was reformatted to be conducted via Mozilla Hubs rather than in-person due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The spaces designed for the conference explore the notion of digital public space especially as it pertains to life during a pandemic, as well as the evolving role of virtual reality. For the purposes of the conference, a “Main Hall” was designed as an entry and gathering space for participants. The central feature of the Main Hall is a spiraling ramp which weaves in and out of the space’s many arches, as well as ushers users past any one of ten “portals.”

Branching off from the Main Hall are a series of ten “Tech Showcase Rooms,” each corresponding to their own respective portal. Each Tech Showcase Room was designed to both visually and aurally convey information about a particular subject, such as conference sponsors, resources available at Clemson, or simply to create immersive virtual experiences.

LINK TO COMPETITION PUBLICATION: https://www.nonarchitecture.eu/2021/05/02/caavcon2020/

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VIRTUAL GATHERING SPACE

REPRESENTATION OF PORTAL LOCATIONS WITHIN MODEL

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ROSS MACKENZIE PORTFOLIO

CONCEPTUAL PRESENTATION DRAWING

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