Portfolio_Tao Luo

Ambiguous Horizon A reinterpretation of American Barns Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Academic Project, Individual Work Instructor: Homa Farjadi ARCH704-Second Year Studio, Spring 2021 The project is an art and multimedia campus of University of Pennsylvania that provides program spaces for classrooms, lecture spaces, residential spaces and art gallery for students and teachers to enjoy short-term stay. The design of the campus takes its precedents from the vernacular construction language of log barns, and landscape relationship of bank barns, to create a new series of reinterpreted horizon on a gentle landscape near Philadelphia.

The organization of the volumes follows in a pattern of natural growth in the order of one after another, as could be seen in the vernacular barn construction. For each of the volumes, different log construction strategies, formations and relation to its immediate landscape varies to provide a collection of various experiences that also have affiliation to one another.

The use of timber volume and glass tube envelope plays with different climate controlling strategies, while providing a similar interior spatial quality to the barns, and using material translation to create a contemporary version of the American vernacular architecture.

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Pop Up Defamiliarization An Urban Recreation Landmark Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Academic Project, Individual Work Instructor: Kutan Ayata ARCH602-Second Year Studio, Spring 2020 The Pop Up Defamiliarization is an urban water recreation facility that supports water diving, swimming, sauna, spa and all other sorts of water related activities. It houses three deep dive pools in 120ft, 90ft and 60ft respectively. The building form studies the topology of typical water tower from Hilla Becher’s documentary photographs, to form a hybration of water tower structures, while housing a main water body containing water related programs in the air.

The design uses alternate material and structure to the traditional water towers and thus form an alternative interpretation to how an urban landmark with unique program can be made taking the precedent of an existing building typology.

People are free to explore this urban landmark structure as if they are exploring inside a water tower - an other worldly and fantastic world of water recreation.

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Exploring the water world The upper volume has a wide range of water-related recreation programs such as swimming, diving, sauna, yoga. The open and connected single space makes people feel like exploring inside a heterotopia of water world.

The diving pools aim to provide sense of light and mark of distance by installing a series of under water LED light panel inside the pool.

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The Lighthouse An Urban Sign of Vivid Community Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Academic Project, Individual Work Instructor: Brian Phillips ARCH601-Second Year Studio, Fall 2019 The Light House is a residential extension project in the riverfront Cherry Street Pier in Philadelphia. The project aims to acknowledge and enhance the existing actvities that contribute to the existing pier, by modifying the current truss to create a flat surface for a new layer of housing units on top, and a middle space inside the truss for a linear art gallery.

The gallery and housing programs added to the pier supports the existing activities in the pier, and invite more people to come and enjoy the urban riverfront.

The building takes the geometrical language of truss and extends it to its plan, facade and spatial volume. By creating a series of opening, connection through different levels, the building explores the sense of light in various aspects. The truss openings bring natural light into the structure during the day, and at night, the roof and facade display light filtered in different ways from wthin the residential units. As a result, the extension project becomes an art installation itself that serves as an urban sign of a vivid riverfront community.

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