ARCHITECTURE
PORTFOLIO. 2023
2024
University of Arizona College of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape Architecture
GENE KING
GENE KING
EDUCATION / ORGANIZATIONS
HONORS / AWARDS
08.14.2004 Phoenix, Arizona 520.251.1659 geneking@arizona.edu
Chaparral High School
Design Excellence (ARC201) AIA Southern Arizona
Scottsdale Community College
Design Excellence (ARC 202) AIA Southern Arizona
University of Arizona
Work Showcased AIA Arizona State Conference
Tau Sigma Delta (national honors society)
EXPERIENCE Research Assistant University of Arizona, CAPLA
Design Excellence (ARC302) AIA Southern Arizona
PUBLICATIONS / RESEARCH sustainability | community engagement •
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Apanovich, N., King, G., Limbaugh, A., Smith, G., & Bernal, S. (2025). Socio-cultural benefits of an urban agriculture initiative designed for vulnerable populations in Tucson, Arizona. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 14(3), 1–18. https:// doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2025.143.022 https://capla.arizona.edu/studio/capla-students-collaborate-iskashitaa-refugee-network-experiential-learning-garden
preservation | architectural history/theory •
https://capla.arizona.edu/studio/architecture-student-helps-reconstruct-ancient-greek-history
CERTIFICATIONS CITI Program Training Human Research
Tucson, Arizona Summer, 2023
Research Assistant Archeological Mapping Lab Tucson, Arizona August, 2024 - Current
Architectural Assistant • Mt. Lykaion Excavation & Survey Project • Parrhasian Heritage Park Field School Arcadia, Greece June, 2025 - August, 2025
Teacher’s Assistant ARC101; Foundation Studio I Tucson, Arizona Fall, 2025
Chris Limberis Fieldwork Scholarship Hellenic Cultural Foundation
Spring, 2025
SOFTWARE Graphic Design & Animation Adobe Suite • Photoshop • Illustrator / InDesign • After Effects • Lightroom Drafting & 3D Modeling Rhino 7 Sketch-up AutoCAD Revit Blender Grasshopper Architectural Visualization Enscape D5 Render
41 E. Congress St. 12
54 Brewery Ave. 22
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I am a fourth-year Bachelor of Architecture student at the University of Arizona, originally from Phoenix, Arizona. My design philosophy is rooted in creativity, curiosity, and a continual pursuit of knowledge. I am especially interested in how form can both respond to and enhance the human condition, a principle that underpins much of my work. I believe that meaningful change begins with education, and I aspire to devote my career to both learning and teaching, using design as a vehicle to inspire, inform, and transform.
Teacher’s Assistant ARC102; Foundation Studio II
Won, Spring, 2025
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Tucson, Arizona Summer, 2023
Nominated, Fall, 2024
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Intern Craig Nealy Architects LLP
311 E. 7th St.
Deans List with Distinction Design Excellence (ARC301) AIA Southern Arizona
Tucson, Arizona 2022-2023
ACADEMIC
Fall, 2024
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Tucson, Arizona 2022-2027
Nominated, Spring, 2024
TAB
Scottsdale, Arizona 2021-2023
ABOUT ME
Nominated, Fall, 2023
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Scottsdale, Arizona 2018-2022
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PROFESSIONAL
34 The Cabinet Room
35 Monier Courtyard
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ADAPTIVE REUSE AIA SOUTHERN ARIZONA DESIGN EXCELLENCE - NOMINATED SEMESTER COURSE PROFESSOR
FALL 2023 ARC201 CHRISTOPHER DOMIN
THREE - ELEVEN EAST 7TH STREET
This project explores the research and analysis of an “existing condition”, a building in Tucson’s Warehouse District, in order to reveal its embedded systems of logic and fundamental architectural principles. In response, series of generative interventions is developed.
“No fear, no envy, no meanness” -Liam Clancy
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ORTHOGRAPHIC DRAWINGS
EXISTING CONDITIONS This project, taken as a whole, was an act of response rather than imposition. Working within what already exists, ocially, materially, and spatially, forces forced us to engage with context, constraint, and history, transforming limitations into generative conditions. Reuse as it relates to the built environment reduces material waste and embodied energy, reframing sustainability not as an add-on, but as an inherent design condition rooted in what already exists. This project, and projects like it reinforce architecture’s role not as an autonomous object, but as an ongoing negotiation between past, present, and future
SOUTH
This project, taken as a whole, was an act of response rather than imposition. Working within what already exists, ocially, materially, and spatially, forces forced us to engage with context, constraint, and history, transforming limitations into generative conditions. Reuse as it relates to the built environment reduces material waste and embodied energy, reframing sustainability not as an add-on, but as an inherent design condition rooted in what already exists. This project, and projects like it reinforce architecture’s role not as an autonomous object, but as an ongoing negotiation between past, present, and future
NORTH The North face of this building was important to dissect. Opening directly to the sidewalk, this facade acts as the mediator between the private interior and the public realm.
NORTH
EAST
EAST EXISTING CONDITIONS
WEST
Prior to becoming a local community center, which often hosts events on a weekly basis, 311 East 7th street was once a bustling bike shop. The lofts, which are now used for storage, were once home to spare bike parts used by local customers. Already established as a hub for the local community, the adaptation of this building will need to remain sensitive to local needs and conditions. Noise from local bars, the smell of fresh tamales, and people bustling by late at night are part of this buildings heritage and should be considered throughout the design process.
These interior elevations function as tools of negotiation between old and new. They reveal how a building has been lived in, altered, and constructed over time. By closely studying these surfaces, I was able to design interventions that respect historical continuity, enhance spatial clarity, and maintain the integrity of the existing architecture while accommodating new programs and requirements.
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INTERIOR ELEVATIONS
The east elevation, slightly more provate, opens up to en exterior courtyard for holding events, parking, etc.
This warehouse was originally constructed in the 70’s using double whythe brick walls with a gap in between as a form of insulation before the techniques we use today were widely available. The original brick construction can still be seen today, although it was painted over on the west-facing interior wall. The building also includes two ground-level storage rooms as well as a small bathroom.
EXTERIOR ELEVATIONS
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KIT OF PARTS
ROOF
SECTION PERSPECTIVE
ROOF PLAN
FIRST FLOOR PLAN
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BASEMENT PLAN
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“Less is more” - Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
WORKING MODEL 10
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HOUSING FOR THE UNHOUSED AIA SOUTHERN ARIZONA DESIGN EXCELLENCE - NOMINATED SEMESTER COURSE PROFESSOR
SPRING 2024 ARC202 SIRI TRUMBLE
FORTY - ONE EAST CONGRESS STREET
A permanent housing solution for those experiencing homelessness in Downtown Tucson, designed based upon knowledge of ecological and environmental qualities of Sonoran Desert climate as well as socioeconomic theories and experiences of homelessness and Housing First.
“Be not daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly now. Love mercy now. Walk humbly now. You’re not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.” - excerpt from the Talmud
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FORMAL, STRUCTURAL, & THEORETICAL ORGANIZATION
SITE
“It is the first and most important, the moral element of Architecture. Around it were grouped three other elements; the roof, the enclosure, and the mound, the protecting negations or defenders of the hearth’s flame against he three hostile elements of nature” (Semper, 102). I began this project by reading portions of Gottfried Semper’s “The Four Elements of Architecture”, which would then go on to inform the theoretical organization of this low-income housing project. It was, and still is, my belief that when designing something so essential to human life, housing, for people who lack even the bare necessities, we must return our focus to essential elements that make up what Marc-Antoine Laugier describes as “The Primitive Hut”. THEORETICAL DEVELOPMENT (GOTTFRIED SEMPER)
STRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT
LOAD VS NON LOAD BEARING
SPATIAL ARRANGEMENTS Overall, this project was designed to accomodate the most essential needs of an average human being, all while maintaining a certain degree of beauty and functionality. There is beauty in simplicity. And there is beauty, not in the most expensive materials on the market, but in the manner in which a collection of items is composed.
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METABOLISM
FORMAL DEVELOPMENT
The Metabolism Movement was a Japanese, post-war movement viewing cities and buildings as living organisms that grow, change, and regenerate. One of the primary goals for this project was to allow infinite growth in the vertical direction through the organization of each unit as it relates to the aggregation.
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final aggregation The formal organization of this project is the result of a 3-step aggregation method focused on natural ventilation, service cores, a central courtyard, and outdoor terraces for each unit. The weaving of units in this manner creates an enclosure that meets each of these goals. Structurally, the unit is arranged according to the locations of loadbearing and non-loadbearing walls.
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EXPERIENTIAL ANALYSIS Several environmental principles were considered during the design process based on several studies of the unique Sonoran Desert Climate. These principles were used to best adapt this design to the climate and allow it to be integrated into its environment rather than just placed within it. Some of these principles include, but are not limited to, rainwater harvesting, light diffusion, cross ventilation, evapotranspiration, and the presence of courtyards within each aggregation. Each of these design choices keeps the spaces within the site comfortable for its residents, while maintaining a healthy relationship to the environment as a whole.
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FINAL MODEL “Je suis un mensonge qui dit toujours la vérité” -Jean Cocteau
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PERFORMING ARTS CENTER AIA SOUTHERN ARIZONA DESIGN EXCELLENCE - NOMINATED SEMESTER COURSE PROFESSOR
FALL 2024 ARC301 EDUARDO GUERRERO
SIXTY - ONE OPERA DRIVE
Everything and everyone has a story. Stories filled with moments and experiences that mold us into who we are today. True growth and understanding happens, not when you open your eyes, or open your ears, but when you open your mind and your heart. Do not be afraid to unfold your own story or the stories of those around you, because I truly believe that the greatest book of all, is the one sitting right beside you.
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” -Maya Angelou
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DOG - EAR noun Merriam Webster : The turned-down corner of a page especially of a book Dog Earing describes the practice of folding down the corner of a page to mark a specific spot, often to save a place in the text or highlight a passage for later reference. The folded corner resembles a dog’s ear, which is how the term originated. A method of remembering.
CONCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT 26
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FORMAL DEVELOPMENT
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I began this project with an exploration of memory and a question that I have asked myself over and over again throughout the years. I ask myself who we become without any recollection of our experiences as I live many of my own a few times over so that my grandmother can remember hers. I soon came to realize, throughout the development of this project, that each and every moment in our lives contributes to who we are at our core, not just because of how they mold us, but becuase of how the choices we make leading up to these moments affect those around us. We are not defined by our memories, but by how others remember us. In this way, our stories and the stories of all those around us live on long after we, and our memories, are gone.
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SECTION PERSPECTIVE
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FIRST FLOOR PLAN
THIRD FLOOR PLAN
FOURTH FLOOR PLAN
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MASSING
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CORES
light structure circulation
VIEWS
ROOF PLAN 30
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ARCHITECTURAL VISUALIZATION
CRAIG NEALY ARCHITECTS LLP
With the introduction of several commercial establishments to the Tucson area, concept designs were quickly and thouroughly developed over the course of several weeks. I had the priveledge of contributing to the development of these projects through architectural visualization.
“He built an architecture of Bach, stone by exquisite stone, raising a musical cathedral so vast that its furthest chancels were in Nineveh, it’s furthest dome at St. Peter’s left hand.” - Ray Bradbury
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THE CABINET ROOM 100 South Avenida del Convento Ste 150, Tucson, AZ 85745
CABINET ROOM GADSDEN HOSPITALITY GROUP craig nealy architects llp 06.03.24 my role : 3D visualization artist
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MONIER COURTYARD 160 South Avenida del Convento, Tucson, AZ 85745
MONIER COURTYARD GADSDEN HOSPITALITY GROUP craig nealy architects llp 06.18.24 My role : 3D visualization artist
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“The struggle towards the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart” -Albert Camus