Undergraduate Architectural Portfolio - Jon Hunt Ficken

J H F UNDERGRADUATE ARCHITECTURE

Contact Email : jonhuntficken@gmail.com Phone : XXX - XXX - XXXX

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Part One: Urban Design 06 : East Nashville Interstate Cap 14 : Urban Mapping

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Part Two: Architecture 22 : Columbus State Housing 38 : Mobile Performing Arts Center 52 : Small Living for Gulf State Park 60 : Auburn University Wood Competition 66 : Osher Lifelong Learning Institute 74 : Rosie’s Home - Rural Studio

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Part Three: Furniture Studies 82 : Frei Egidio Chair 90 : Chair “01” 94 : Architecture Table 73

Part Four: The Thinking Hand 106 : Notebook Sketches 108 : Empathetic Drawing - Rosie’s Home

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Part One: Urban Design

BLURRING THE LINES Year : 2022 Location : Northeast Nashville, Tennessee Type : Urban Design + Architecture

This was a combined urban scale and architectural scale design project aimed at stitching back together two communities broken by the interstate. The urban design portion of the project addressed this issue by using two loops that intersect to create pockets of program and encourage recirculation amongst the site. The architecture draws from that concept by using a rectilinear threshold and intersecting organic circulation. Both the plan and section play with the juxtaposition of the orthogonal and the organic to create a unique interior experience.

Urban Scheme

Urban Circulation

Architectural Circulation

Blurring the Box

Blurring in Section

Roof Elements

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Site Plan

Second Floor Plan

First Floor Plan

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The ground plane is one large 1:20 slope that works as an organic element for the section.

The skylight takes advantage of the deep roof, allowing ample filtered light for the galleries. This section also shows continuous ramp that connects the two gallery spaces.

The roof alters its shape based on the needs of the program beneath.

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The library uses a dropped ceiling and structural columns to bring the feeling of the wooded exterior inside, blurring the threshold.

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MAPPING AS UNDERSTANDING Year : 2022 Location : Northeast Nashville, Tennessee Type : Research This mapping aimed to aid in the design process of the project previously displayed. The exploration studied the fields of income and the public realm experience through extracting the publicly offered amenities in three different income settings. The amenities were divided into spaces that are experienced “collectively” and “non-collectively”. Collective consists of spaces such as public parks, schools, or community centers, while non collective consists of things such as public housing or libraries. The first step of this mapping process was deciding on a mixed grouping of income areas. Besides the location of the original site, two other locations were decided upon based on their economic history, while keeping a similar size to the original site. The original site is one of historically low income, a condition that continues today. The next site chosen is in East Nashville, which was historically low income but recently developed and is currently a mix of all income levels.

The third site is Belle Meade, which is on the opposite end of the income spectrum to the original site in west Nashville. It was and is an area of high income. By mapping the public amenities offered to these three contrasting areas, interesting findings about the types of spaces that are present, and the densities of them were found (Graphic 1). The extreme of density differences for types of locations led to pursuing more extractions through looking into the private sector of spaces (Graphic 2). Graphically overlaying these disparities made very apparent the vast difference in the urban and cultural fabric these areas had (Graphic 3). By plotting different scales, different disparities were able to be found and studied. I believe by studying the frequencies of different types of spaces, while underlaying the income, one can start to understand what is important to the people living in this area, and what spaces might be desired, or not desired by its residents.

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PUBLIC REALM NON-COLLECTIVE

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Graphic 3

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Part Two: Architecture

THE IN BETWEEN SPACES Year : 2023 Location : Columbus, Georgia Type : Residential

This project began with an investigation of the organizations of older European cities.

Two interesting typologies arose from that study that seemed suitable to apply to the program given. The first being the city plan that winded around the topography with subtle angles that pull the pedestrian through the street, and focus their attention on certain landmarks. The other typology focused on was the gridded plans seen in cities such as Paris or Barcelona. These presented an interesting diversity of spatial scales from the larger plazas for markets and public gatherings, to inner courtyards for private residences. Taking design principles from these findings, many iterations were done to create a scheme that pulled in the pedestrian using a variation of spatial scales, subtle angles, and a sectional procession that made use of the 20 ft topography change across the site. The form of the site drew from a modest dose of nastolgia that seemed fitting with the rest of the desires for the project, mixed with more modern building techniques and materials.

Diagram of Paris highlighting the varying spatial scales

Diagram of Obidos, Portugal highliting how topography and sublte angles pull and focus the pedestrian

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Context Plan

Site Plan

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Early Iteration

Early Iteration

Early Iteration

Early Iteration of final scheme

Watercolor exploration

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2nd Floor Plan

Ground Floor Plan

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Gradual terracing down to the river offers a more processional experience, offering shops and cafes along the way.

Section showing the inner courtyard circulation concept in its vertical dimension

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Soil Preparation Porous Unit Paving Gravel Subbase Thermoplastic-Polyolefin Roofing

Rigid Insulation Wood Blocking (1"x1") Allumnium Drip Edge Decorative Wood Framing Decorative Wood Framing Decorative Wood Framing Thermal Insulation

1 x Wooden Slats Polymer-Based Exterior Insulation Continuous Self-Adhered Membrane 3 - Layer CLT Wall Panel 1 x Batten Decorative Wood Framing Decorative Wood Framing (Beyond)

3" Concrete Finish Flooring 2 Layers of 3" Subflooring Air Supply Duct (floor imbedded) 5 - Layer CLT Floor Plate 2 x Floor Support Plumbing Wet-Pipe Sprinkler System

Double Pane Insulated Glazing with Low-E Window Pivot Aluminum Frame

Wooden Window Sill Wooden Window Sill

Metal Angle

Stucco Rendering Concrete Sandwich Panel Polymer-Based Exterior Insulation Stucco Rendering

Supply Air Duct

3" Concrete Finish Floor Concrete Floor Thermal Insulation Gravel Concrete Paver

Above: Detail section with respective elevation Right: A few perspectives capturing the unique moments of the smaller scaled spaces

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ADDRESSING SCALE Year : 2023 Location : Mobile, Alabama Type : Performing Arts This project was located on Dauphin street in the heart of downtown Mobile. With that in mind, this proposal aimed first to address the community by giving back the valuable corner real estate. Similar to the plaza squares located around Mobile, this courtyard gave the public a place to convene and enjoy, regardless of whether they were using the amenities inside. To address the scale that the program required, cues were taken from the neighboring iron balconies and residential architectural. A large metal screen was draped over the form but bended up to provide a gestural invitation to the pedestrian, as well as cover from the elements. The perforations and white color also gave the building a lighter visual weight. The publicly focused program, such as the cafe and general lobby, were placed along the very active Dauphin Street.

The private program such as the dance studios and back of house were placed further away from Dauphin Street. Sandwiched between is the theatre, where performer and audience meet. Once inside, many double height spaces allow visual connection between program. A board room gets to share a view with a community room down to the courtyard, and dancers in one studio are inspired as they enter into their studio, looking down onto the studio below. These concepts together aim to provide an accessible and inviting meeting point for new shared experiences between the community.

Giving back to the public

Breaking down scale

Double height connections

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First Floor Plan

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Second Floor Plan

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Third Floor Plan

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K-Web Truss - (3’ depth)

8x8 W Shape Steel Structure

Site-Cast Concrete Shear Wall

One-way Site Cast Floor

Tube Steel Frame for Aluminum Screen

2’ o Site-Cast Concrete Column Perforated Alluminum Screen

Structural Diagram Floor

Occupancy Load

Egress Capacity

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1,235 People

2,250 People

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329 People

850 People

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158 People

850 People

1019.3 Exception 4 - Draft Curtain + Sprinklers

Capacity: 240 People 48” / .2/peron = 240 >50% of Occupancy Load exits to exterior

Floor 3 Capacity: 270 People

Floor 2

54” / .2/peron = 270

Capacity: 450 People 68” / .15/peron = 450

Capacity: 330 People 66” / .2/peron = 330

* Additional Fire Safety Systems:

Life-Safety Diagram

Automatic Sprinkler System

Emergency Voice Communication System (Stair capacity changes from .3 to .2 per person. Doors from .2 to .15)

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Separate System for Theatre

Supply Air Return Air

Mechanical Diagram

Brown Roof

Insulated Glazing

Perforated Aluminum Screen

Performance Diagram

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Process Models:

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Final Model

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TRAVELING SMALL Year : 2021 Location : Orange Beach, Alabama Type : Residential Architecture This project was a small dwelling designed for Gulf State Park in Orange Beach, Alabama. The client’s desire was to provide a less expensive travel option to encourage more tourism in the area. Due to a lower budget, the labor would be provided by the volunteers of the park. Because of that, the design solution needed to be easy to detail and build. By making simple moves using only squares, wood frame construction, and a traditional roof structure, I hoped to meet those needs while making the space feel uniquely untraditional. The main openings offer intimate views into the surrounding brush. A singular skylight is intersected by the main center walls to create three unique lighting conditions proportionate to the lighting needs of the 3 rooms.

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B A

Floor Plan

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Section AA

Section BB

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Skylight study models

Living Room Condition

Bathroom Condition

Bedroom Condition

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ELEMENTAL ABSTRACTION Year : 2021 Location : Montgomery, Alabama Type : Architectural Installation Award : First Place Overall By abstracting both the atmospheric function of a tree and mass timber at its elemental form, this design offers a pavilion that provides for the client’s needs while offering a unique sculptural experience for the community. The occupiable space was created by carving away from a grid of 6” x 6” beams whose gaps filter harsh light into smaller rays, changing continuously depending on the time of day. This gives the space its unique atmospheric condition that likens itself to the same conditions created by a deep forest canopy. The organic interior is inspired by the negative space between trees in a forest.

Site Plan

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Floor Plan

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Section AA

Section BB

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PROGRAMMATIC PROCESSION Year : 2021 Location : Auburn, Alabama Type : Architecture This site is located on an old slave plantation sitting just south of Auburn’s Campus.

The program was a new learning center for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

This provided a unique opportunity to emphasize architecturally the reclamation of the land. The S shaped form suggests an attitude towards the existing building, bending away from it and also introducing a purposefully different architectural language. The “S” also creates two exterior courtyards within its’ bends. The program is broken into three pods under one unifying roof where the gaps between provide covered exterior space for the community to gather. Within each pod, the program is situated in the middle of the space and encompassed by collapsible walls. This layout offers the freedom of choice for entry and circulation not offered by a more direct, traditional hallway. Together, the interior and exterior spaces of the building allow the user to decide how the building should be used, and provide a variety of opportunities for people to gather together, this being a stand against how the site was used historically.

Floor Plan Scale: 1/16” = 1’

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Section Section Perspective Perspective22 Scale 1/16”=1’ Scale: 1/16” = 1’

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Section Section Perspective Perspective21 Scale 1/16”=1’ Scale: 1/16” = 1’

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Section Section Perspective Perspective23 Scale 1/16”=1’ Scale: 1/16” = 1’ 72

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ROSIE’S HOME - POST FRAME PROTOTYPE Year : 2022 Location : Newbern, Alabama Type : Architecture Team: Jon Hunt Ficken, Anna Leach, Sarah Recht, Will Robinson, Grant Schurman, Julia Whitt, Laura Forest, & Peter Harpring Rosie’s Home builds upon Rural Studio’s ongoing post-frame construction research, where they first build a roof on site and then construct the home underneath. This approach allows the builder to more quickly work on site in a sheltered and controlled environment.

This version of a post-frame home is a multi-phased project. As a part of the spring semester, my group and I continued the project by designing and building the spaces below the roof. This project allowed a practical understanding of the design process from start to finish, and a meaningful, lasting client relationship.

Conceptual Perspective Drawing (by Jon Hunt Ficken)

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A Conceptual Perspective Drawing (by Jon Hunt Ficken)

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Section AA

Section BB

01 SOUTH ELEVATION A201 SCALE: 3/16" = 1'-0"

03 NORTH ELEVATION 3/16" = 1'-0" A201

02 EAST ELEVATION A201 SCALE: 3/16" = 1'-0"

04 WEST EXTERIOR ELEVATION A201 SCALE: 3/16" = 1'-0"

Elevations

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Trenching

Plumbing Install

Pouring Concrete

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Slab After Pulling Battens Off

Framing

End of Semester

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Part Three: Furniture Studies

FREI EGIDIO CHAIR Year : 1987 Location : Teatro Gregório de Mattos, Brazil Type : Chair Material : Tauari Wood (White Oak Pictured) This chair was built as a part of Rural Studio’s Wood-shop class in which students are asked to dissect and replicate well known chair designs. The process included first learning the tools we had to work with, then drawing our process step by step. For this chair that included 60 hand drawn slides of our process (some of which are included in the coming pages). After our process was approved, we built a mock up and then moved on to the final product. This process took around 12 weeks and instilled a deep appreciation for the details and complexity of fine wood working.

Parts Diagram

Procession of Construction

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Drilling Process w/ Jig Concept

Exploded Axon of Chair & Parts

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Above

Side

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Front

Back

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CHAIR “01” Designer : Archival Studies Year : 2018 Location : Copenhagen, Denmark Type : Chair Material : Pine Plywood, Danish Oil This chair was studied as a lesson in joinery. Archival Studies’ aim with this chair was to mix the joinery, structure, and proportions of traditionally crafted Chinese and Japanese furniture with contemporary materials and fabrication techniques.

The chair’s minimal aesthetic mixed with its intricate jointing techniques were the initial draw; both to build something beautiful, understand complex construction techniques, and learn more about the possibilities of plywood as a material. The chair was studied and built alongside Ben Bush, associate professor of industrial design at Auburn University.

Above

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Front

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ARCHITECTURE TABLE 73 Designer : Donald Judd Year : 1990 Location : Marfa, Texas Type : Table Material : Pine Plywood, Danish Oil This table was built to be my personal studio table in my home. I chose to replicate one of Donald Judd’s designs for its simplicity visually as well as the function of the gap between the two horizontal pieces. The gap allows for abundant storage while keeping a clean top surface. It was built out of four pieces of 4’ x 8’ pine plywood that interlock to self support without the need for screws or nails. This allows for simple construction and deconstruction if it needs to moved elsewhere.

This study also broadened my knowledge of how plywood can be used as a tool for beauty, which is in contrast to its traditionally utilitarian purpose.

3/4” = 1’ Scale Model

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3/4” = 1’ Scale Model

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Pieces Separated

Detail

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Front

Side

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Part Four: The Thinking Hand

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Graphite on Arches Paper 140 Hot Press 34x22

Their Names Top left to bottom right

This drawing was a semester long assignment with the aim of teaching how drawing can be a tool for empathy and understanding. Focusing on the pictures of Rosie’s (our client) wall gave me a door into Rosie’s life, which allowed me to get to know her on a much deeper level very quickly. I got to know who her friends were and how she met them. Who her family was, where they lived now, and who the regular’s were at her home. This relationship gave me a greater weight of responsibility for what were doing as a team.

We were not building a prototype for rural studio, but a lifelong home for a friend.

Long Wall Raheem (Rosie’s Grandson). Ethal (Rosie’s Mother) with Rosie. Tristen (Rosie’s Granddaughter) with Rosie.

Whitney (Rosie’s Youngest Daughter).

Whitney with Prom Date. Whitney.

Tiffany (Rosie’s Second Daughter).

Kathy (Rosie’s Eldest Daughter). Eric (Rosie’s Son). Whitney.

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Short Wall Whitney (Rosie’s Youngest Daughter). Kathy.

Tiffany holding her child Kristen. Tiffany.

Frankie (Rosie’s Husband) with Rosie - M. 2011.

Eric. Tiffany with Husband Kendrick. MIRROR OF LONG WALL. Rosie and Frankie. Rosie and Frankie with Pastor and his wife. Frankie with his three daughters, Rosie with her neice in law, Denise

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