Selected Works 2014-2018

BIO

Landscape Designer and recent graduate from the University of California, Berkeley specializing in sustainable design and public space. Experience in a wide  range of project types from large public infrastructure to private residences. Good communication skills and a passion for high quality design. Able to manage  projects from a multi‐disciplinary perspective.

EDUCATION

University of California, Berkeley‐ Aug. 2014‐May 2016

Bachelor of Arts in Landscape Architecture with a minor in Sustainable Design  College of San Mateo‐ Aug. 2012‐ May 2014

Associates Degree in Architecture

EXPERIENCE

De La Tierra Landscape Design 2016‐2017

Lead Designer. Small landscaping company operating out of the east bay. Focused on providing eco‐friendly design for both private and public projects. Designed  private residences, drought tolerant and native plant gardens, and community farms in partnership with the Oakland A’s.

East Oakland Phytoremediation Project 2016

Project Manager. In partnership with Acta Non Verba Youth Urban Farm Project, provided community outreach on the issue of heavy metal soil contamination in  East Oakland neighborhoods. Designed and installed demonstration gardens for phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminates through a grant from the EPA.

Design Build Travel 2015‐2016

Lead a design build group while in University to design and con struct bus stations in rural El Salvador. Managed all phases of the project from grant proposal,  design development, and construction. Conducted post occupancy evaluations after completion of the project.

Hyphae Design Lab 2015

Design Apprentice. Worked on a variety of green infrastructure projects ranging from living walls to wastewater and bioremediating landscapes.  Responsibilities included preparing technical drawings, visualizations, 3D models, and prototype fabrication.

SKILLS

Adobe CS6 [Illustrator, Photoshop, Indesign]

3D Modeling [Rhino, Sketchup, Grasshopper]

Autocad   MS Office   Freehand Drawing  Technical Drawing  Digital Fabrication [laser cutting, CNC milling, 3D printing]  Model Making

Construction

LANGUAGES ENGLISH SPANISH  contact info: gorlando@berkeley.edu (650)302-3891

I am a landscape designer and horticulturist from the San Francisco Bay area. My specialties include planting design, technical drawings, irrigation, maintenance, and construction. I graduated with a Bachelor’s in Landscape Architecture with a minor in Sustainable Design from UC Berkeley in 2016. I have 2 years experience in Landscape design, construction, and maintenance; in addition to a wealth of knowledge of horticultural techniques. I have benefited from extensive hands on experience in a wide variety of project types from small scale installations to large public works.

As a student I took every opportunity to supplement my education with real world construction knowledge. I spent one summer designing and building a bus station in rural El Salvador with the Judith Lee Stronach Travel grant. I have built multiple parklets for the city of San Mateo and competed in design/build competitions. I also built an installation with a group of students for the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show.

In addition to this I interned at Hyphae Design Lab as a student where I was exposed to a wide variety of project types. Most of my work there was focused on providing technical drawings for graywater landscapes and living walls. But I also had the chance to install custom wall mounted planters for the Grand Theater and construct an installation for the Market Street Prototyping festival.

The last few years I have worked as a contracted designer at De La Tierra Landscape, which is a small design-build group operating out of the east bay. We have currently completed over a dozen projects for both private and corporate clients, with the largest being a rooftop garden at the Oakland Coliseum. The garden, known as A’s farm, contains over 30 redwood planters for fruits and vegetables, 2 custom pergolas, wall mounted green screens, custom benches, and a designated venue space for events and parties. We have also installed numerous native plant gardens and drought tolerant landscapes throughout the bay area. Many of the firm’s principles I embody as my own, such as a commitment to sustainable design and environmental stewardship.

My experiences as both a professional and a student have taught me the importance of attention to detail and having pride in one’s work. As a craftsman I value the act of working with my hands, and as a designer I take pride in the faithful execution of an idea. I believe these qualities combined with my experience would make me an excellent member to any team. Thank you for taking the time to view my portfolio, I hope you enjoy my work.

Gino Orlando

A’s Farm

Location: Oakland Coliseum

perspective rendering

Project Overview- This project was completed in partnership with the Oakland A’s and Acta Non Verba Youth Urban Farm Project. I was contracted to design a rooftop urban farm and outdoor classroom at the Oakland Colliseum that will be used for education on food production and host youth oriented events. My responsibilities included designing the farm, providing renders and construction documents, and budgeting materials. I was also responsible for communicating with the construction team and insuring the proper execution of the design. The design includes over 30 redwood planters for crop production, 2 custom pergolas, seating areas, and wall mounted trellises. We also repurposed a used shipping container to store tools and gardening supplies. When completed the farm will showcase sustainable farming practices and provide an area of respite and enjoyment for fans at the coliseum.

Date- 2017-2018

process photo

BIRD’S EYE PERSPECTIVE VIEW

redwood pergola

fence detail

planting beds

corner pergola

2016 Thomas Church Memorial Design Competition

Ocean Beach Esplanade and O’shaughnessy Seawall

Constructed in 1916, the O’shaughnessy Seawall was a monumental project in the early history of San Francisco. Located along the Great Highway, adjacent to the scenic views of the Pacific Ocean, the seawall and adjoining promenade helped popularize Ocean Beach as a recreational spot for San Francisco’s growing inhabitants. The purpose of the 2016 Thomas Church Design Competition was to develop an adaptive reuse strategy that preserves the character of the original design while remaining relevant to the needs of the 21st century.

Drawing inspiration from forms seen in Nature, the seawall design uses abstract geometry as erosion control. The Cor-ten steel panels provide the formwork for the application of the shotcrete wall that is the main source of strength. The existing seawall is restructured into a new system as a backwall to hold fill created by the landform of the new wall. The angular faces dissipate wave energy far more efficiently than a traditional seawall, and aid in the deposition of sand which in turn strengthens the coast.

Ocean Beach is a popular location for a wide range of programs from surfing, exercising, picnics, sightseeing, and all sorts of recreation. But part of this appeal comes from the openness of the beach and adjacent promenade that gives people the freedom and flexibility to engange in a variety of activities. Rather than being replaced these features are enhanced with new blue stone paving and plantings of Red Alder along the central axis, and new space in the form of platforms created by the bends and extrusions of the new wall. These, in turn, act as vantage points and openly programmable spaces of gathering.

In one swift gesture it accomplishes both the task of providing adequate erosion control while operating as a monumental piece of sculpture as well. The result is a highly dramatic wall that adds to the character of its surroundings and responds to the passage of time. It’s an approach that will blend itself into the surrounding environment, while over time becoming established as a placemaker and point of departure.

EXISTING PROMENADE & SEA WALL

FILL LAYER

POCKET SPACES AS PROGRAMMABLE MODULES

AVENUE STYLE TREE PLANTING

PROPOSED - PAVER EXTENSION [COMMUNAL GATHERING SPACES]: BENCHES + BON FIRE PITS + SMALL STAGES/ PLATFORMS + PUBLIC TELESCOPES

SHOT-CRETE LAYER

COR-TEN STEEL SKIN

East Elevation scale: 1”=30’

Detail Plan 1”=30’

raised planter

bluestone pavers viewing platform and seating arena concrete benches

alnus rubra (red alder)

existing access point

cor-ten steel retaining structure

Prevailing winds occur largely from the ocean currents. Wind is nearly constant on the site and influences people’s behaviors. The Cor’ten wall acts as a partial barrier to protect those in the promenade from the western wind and the unpleasant sand particles suspended in strong gusts.

WIND FLOW ASPECT & SOLAR PATHS

Sunlight influences behavior by increasing comfort levels on days when the ocean may bring in strong cold fronts. The corten steel and concrete wall acts a passive heating element, with its characteristic themal mass optimal to provide radiant heating. A widened level of comfort creates an environment where a large range of activities become possible.

The Cor-ten allows for the first line of defense for the seawall. In Coastal conditions it has a lifespan of around fifty years. After this period the panels can either be replaced or allowed to naturally erode. Even if they are allowed to break down, the Shotcrete retaining wall will continue to provide adequate protection for another century. It will retain the angular geometry of the tessellated panels, as well as the wave dispersing properties of this form. When the wall eventually breaks down, the accumulation of sand which has been constantly building up in the meantime will provide a last line of defense. This will take the form of artificially created dunes that have developed from strategic nodes placed along the wall.

FILL LAYER “IRON WALL” EXISTING SEA WALL & PROMENADE

The ability to withstand large swells during periodic storms is the most important design feature. The Iron Wave Wall is formed to disperse wave energy through its’ unique geometry. The design was formulated through the manipulation of points, pushed and pulled, mimmicking natural coastal formations. By slowing down the velocity of waves, sand is allowed to accumulate along the wall, creating an added barrier through the formation of sand bars.

The success of the orignal promenade as a linear space is perserved in the new design. The main access points along the promenade is lined with an avenue of alder trees. New pocket spaces for open program are created through the addition from the new wall. These programmable spaces can be activated directly by each user. Thickening the seawall transforms the experience of walking down to the beach, by creating a more framed narrow view of the ocean.

AND ACCESS POINTS

NEW PRESIDIO PARKLANDS

Location: San Francisco,CA

foredune

dune scrub

serpentine scrub

serpentine prairie

coastal prairie bluff scrub

riparian

400ft site plan 1 ft contours

Project Overview- This project was completed during my first year of studio at UC Berkeley. It’s site is the Presidio in San Francisco at the current location of the Presidio Parkway Project. The aim was to design a parkway that would cover the Doyle Drive renovations in a spectacular regional gateway. The Parkway would also link the upper presidio to crissy field, two highly popular areas of recreation. My design provides this linkage through a system of pedestrian access paths which navigate a swath of topographically forms and native plant communities. It includes over 8 distinct plant communities and a sustainable water harvesting basin. In essence it is a combination of ecological services with recreational needs in a highly urbanized environment.

Date- 2015

Status- completed

vantage point perspective section

native prairie constructed wetland mixed coastal scrub

dune grassland

foredune

wildlife corridors plant communities

pathway perspective

site context

bird’s eye

Energy Bioscience Plaza Redesign

Project Overview

Studio project completed at UC Berkeley. This was a design exercise in reimagining an existing landscape. My landscape was the Energy Bioscience Plaza by Andrea Cochran. The project is located in Berkeley and consists of a series of cor-ten steel retaining walls defining a zig zag access path to the building entrance. My design takes note of the cor-ten steel retaining system but instead uses it to define a large public plaza. The idea being to create a design that is more inviting for use as informal gathering. It is a design the ties together the communities of the surrounding neighorhood in a simple yet elegant manner

Date- 2016

Status- COMPLETED site plan

Indian Rock Community Park Design

Location: Berkeley,CA

illustrated site plan

Project Overview- This was a project I completed in an upper division studio course. The project involved a conceptual redesign of a popular community park in North Berkeley. The site had many characteristic features such as a prominent rock formation and established groves of coast live oaks. It is also located in a highly residential context. My approach was to accentuate the rock formation with a stone paving system of similar rock type as well as to harmonize both the upper and lower levels of the park. I also designed an integrated system of rainwater catchment and porous pavement to eliminate runoff to adjoining properties. The goal was to create a design which increases the userability of the site yet does not detract from the natural beauty of its unique rock formations.

Date-May 2016

Status-completed

RENDERS & DIAGRAMS

landscape render

drought tolerant landscape

living wall design

landscape render

Team Members

Joaquin Tobar Martinez

Joseph Magsaysay

Project Overview

This project was completed while I was a student through a grant from the Judith Lee Stronach Travel Fund. We were tasked with the design and contruction of a bus station in rural El Salvador. The final design included cmu retaining walls, custom concrete benchs, and a galvanized steel canopy. The bus station was constructed by myself and my team members with the additional help of hired laborers. This was one of my most rewarding projects to date as it provided a much needed service to a highly impoverished community.

Date July 2015

Status completed

construction of cmu retaining wall

concrete bench and planter

wildflowergarden

drought tolerant perennial bed

cal native garden

drought tolerant sedge planting

flagstone paving and stone benches

cal native perennials

native meadow planting

DG paving and drought tolerant beds

cal native beds

CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS

SMALL STRUCTURES ASSIGNMENT

GRAYWATER LIVING WALL