Jordan Walters - MIT - Work Sample

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

Jordan Walters Portfolio 2024

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Array Library

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. Columbia University - Design 2 Studio - I Verona.

This building design explores grid manipulation as a new form for libraries in the digital era while yielding to institutional needs.

Oasis Situated on the historic campus of Barnard College, this library is tasked with both embodying the collective knowledge of the school and operating as a gathering point in front of the central green.

Media Mix There are a large variety of learning styles that extend beyond reading books. The stack system accommodates artwork, screens, and auditory experiences within its uniform cells.

Seed This initial model consisely states the spatial logic driving the design approach.

First Growth Material experiments show how a grid can be manipulated to be both solid and diffuse. This model recalls a honeycomb and its association with gathering.

Second Growth The structure reponds through the extending and retracting of intersecting plates. The Array arches over a performance space and lays flat under a walkway, it reaches to create floating plateaus.

At its Core On one hand the atrium allows the library collection to become visible as a corpus held by the institution. On the other it serves as a metaphor for the gestational activity of the liberal arts university.

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100ft

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. Columbia University - Design 2 Studio - I Verona.

Array Library

100ft

Claremont St. Claremont St.

B B

A

A

Broadway Broadway Main Entrance Main Entrance

100

100

C

C

Campus Site Plan The library is a centerpiece flanked by modern and historic buildings.

Section A through Reading Rooms The hive-like reading rooms display student activity towards the campus.

100ft 100ft

Library-level Floor Plan The front of the building hosts reading rooms while the back is intended for research.

The left side elevates classrooms on a south-facing series of enclosed terraces.

Section B through Atrium, Classrooms, and Theater A central skylight illuminates the building core and a basement theater opens onto the rear street for public events.

100

100

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2

Array Library

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Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. Columbia University - Design 2 Studio - I Verona.

B

Floor Plate and Circulation Two sets of stairs and a spiral ramp provide means of ascent.

Section C through Core and Street At its bottom, the stack floats free of the structure and becomes an elaborate showcase.

Axonometric Cutaway The library stacks are held on one face of the atrium as a vertical, undulating grid.

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Between Brownstones This research and design project presents a Danish housing model as a potential solution to urban social issues in the United States.

Housing History “Dramatic demographic and economic changes are taking place in our society and most of us feel the effects of these trends in our own lives. Things that people once took for granted – family, community, a sense of belonging – must now be actively sought out. Many people are mishoused, ill-housed, or unhoused because of the lack of appropriate options”

population that is reliant on social ties

The Contemporary City

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Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2016. Columbia University - Independent Research Project - L Meisterlin.

Cohousing, A Modern Alternative

historian

Lucy

Sargisson

suggests,

“deliberation results in the discursive

to provide stability and meaning. Given cohousing

reconstruction of selves that are more

isolationist ideas about the role of private

system is a much needed antidote to the

public-spirited, tolerant, knowledgeable,

between theory and practice, utopia and

housing for over a century. Luxury condos

current structure of urban community.

and insightful about one’s own and

pragmatism, cohousing is a form that

provide pristine finishes and an eye

Within the framework of cohousing,

others’ interests.”

promises to replace with housing design

towards exclusivity while public housing

one is able to measure value amongst

intellectual development inaccessible in

what has been devastated in the urban

falls into disrepair and neighborhoods

familiar faces in a collective instead of

urban culture may be returned through

social fabric.

move well beyond the affordability of the

solely in an mechanistic society governed

intentional community encoded in the

form,

average person. The market provides a

by utility. The cohousing participant is a

buildings we choose to live in.

cohousing was first recognized in 1960s

high-priced dream of autonomy and few

person providing directly for others and

I believe that cohousing has

Denmark by architectural theorist Jan

arrangements for community.

seeing the fruit of their actions in terms

the potential to return a fugitive sense

of shared happiness.

of social foundation to the modern

this situation, it is time to rethink what a

Our cities have been shaped by

home is and what it is capable of. Halfway

In

its

late-modern

I

believe

that

the

The emotional and

Gudmand-Hoyer. His article “The Missing

While many people accept the

Link Between Utopia and the Dated One-

public atmosphere that this generates

Cohousing typically involves a

city dweller. While the origins of living

long

Family House” gave the first argument for

and are resigned to a cityscape that

small to medium sized group of friends

communally stretch back to the beginning

revolved around the ideal of the nuclear

a union between the commune and the

neglects collectivity, for the people who

and families chosing to occupy adjacent

of civilization, cohousing developed as a

family and its architectural expression:

modern family. This thinking was strongly

are struggling socially and economically

living quarters and to share a central

deliberate rejection of the use of housing

the single family detached home. Yet in

influenced by social movements of the era

this mode has become toxic. Entire

space for community gathering. This

to barricade onself from society. It posits

the 20th century and beyond, profound

and Utopian visions of communal living.

communities have been turned out and

initially took the form of houses, private

that a return to collaborative living

changes have taken place in society

Since that time cohousing has gained

those who stay are forced into precarity,

streets, and a shared house but the

through the sharing of space, resources,

that have made such housing not only

widespread acceptance in Scandinavian

overwork, and loneliness.

concept has recently been applied to

and labor can instead be a refuge from

inappropriate but also unjust for vast

culture and can be seen as part of a

This modern transition is well

single, urban buildings as well. In any

the damaging effects of isolation and

portions of the population. Encoded

functional contemporary communalism.

understood and widely documented. In

form, the members will frequently share

the constant pressures of competition in

within the architecture of the nuclear

Choosing a different path than

1991 housing theorist Dorit Fromm wrote,

responsibility to cook, clean, plan, and

today’s society.

family home is a system of social relations

our Danish counterparts, since the 1960s

“Basic human qualities of creativity,

provide care.

and technical functions that ease the

the US has emphatically embraced the

service and a sense of oneself as a useful

lives of many while alienating others.

single family house and the private car.

member of society were supplanted with

combating current trends is the self-

In the 21st century a housing

We built gated communities and guarded

a measure of one’s economic worth of

governance of the cohousing community.

crisis has pressed these issues so as to

towers at the expense of transit. These

saleability in the marketplace.” Local

In a return to democratic ideals, decisions

make them more relevant than ever.

norms are now deeply entrenched in

communities once provided limits that

are only reached through deliberation

Communities have been fractured and

social policies, housing programs, and

promoted mutual importance. In the

and consensus. For an individual, arguing

hollowed out as a result of real estate

consumer demand. The observation of

shift to a situation in which fracture of

and deciding the fate of a group can

capitalism. The housing that remains

insularity that inspired Gudmand-Hoyer

networks is the norm, these forms of

empower and teach responsibility for

is tragically ill suited to support a

is once again showing its relevance.

protection and validation have been lost.

others in a meaningful way. As political

–McCamant & Durett

American

housing

has

Of

greatest

significance

in

Between Brownstones

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2016. Columbia University - Independent Research Project - L Meisterlin.

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5

6

R

Cohousing New York Housing in New York is at a crossroads as a supply shortage combines with an influx of the affluent to raise a perfect storm of unaffordability, leading to an exodus of longtime residents. Not only does such rapid change undermine the character of the city, the cost of housing also damages its competetiveness and economic pluralism. Emphasizing real estate values and business over diversity is a losing proposition - over time this compression also leads to a decline in the quality of business and in the cultural vibrancy that attracted workers in the first place.

And while recent city housing policy has sought to generate lower housing costs, this is still not sufficient to ensure that people continue to find New York a worthwhile place to live. Affordable housing can promote class diversification, but this does not guarantee maintenance of the robust communities that stabilize against the difficulties of city living.

Focusing on the dimension of cost alone ignores the real meaning of quality housing. It’s too common that government solutions only provide a solution to statistical problems. Instead, by experimenting with and applying new housing typologies, it may be possible to achieve deep social good and long term interpersonal value rather than objective affordability alone.

Playroom Library Roof

Back Yard

B

1

2

3

Playful Heights Community

Lounge

Kitchen/Dining

Game Room

Living Room

This housing layout is a prototype conversion of a Brooklyn townhouse into a cohousing project. It proposes 2 additional stories to accommodate approximately 20 people (a standard brownstone suits 12).

The design is family oriented with an open environment. It incorporates a number of varied gathering spaces and a winding stairway through a skylit atrium.

25’ wide by 75’ long and 70’ tall with 7 total stories 2 Studios, 1 1BR, 4 Small 2BR, 2 Large 2BR. 40% communal

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Work a Day

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2018 - 2021. Phase 3 Interiors.

Construction is about more than how to build - it’s about communication and relationships with both the wealthy and the working.

Concorde Hotel

I managed this lobby renovation near Rockefeller Center. The client wanted a luxury space on a tight budget, so much of the work we did was to elevate standard materials through precise installation.

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Work a Day

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2018 - 2021. Phase 3 Interiors.

Neuehouse

I ran the construction of a luxury co-working space that involved welding steel officefronts and doing detailed install work for a demanding client.

Framestore

I coordinated the set-up of a high-end data center for an animation company. We prepared structural steel, custom HVAC, and major electrical upgrades.

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Against the Grain

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2021 - 2022. Commissioned Furniture.

Furniture is like physical poetry. It relies on the language of tradition and craft. It speaks to the needs we already feel but haven’t resolved.

Totem Case

This 3-piece furniture set houses the culture of a modern home books, music, and art - and serves as a statement in itself.

Ghost Secret

A performance stand designed for a musician with a complicated electronics set-up.

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Supreme Clientele

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2016 - 2018. Frederick Tang Architecture.

These realized projects bridge the gap between Architecture and architecture and bring some academic play into the real world.

2F

1F Sackett Street

An artist couple requested a minimalist apartment conversion for their townhouse.

Above: One option to provide studios on the ground floor and a new kitchen above Right: The pure forms of the finished space

Mack Weldon

An underwear company wanted an office to match their bold branding and became a frequent client.

Center: Floor Plan of MW’s Midtown office, for which I designed an extension and coordinated construction Left: Officefront graphics and angular custom tables Bottom: Retail furniture concepts for MW products

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Structure 1..2..3..

A person may live for a century but a building can last for a thousand years, we’re always in the act of reinterpreting the designs of the past.

2016 - 2022. Personal Photography.

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2023

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Visual Circuitry

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. UC Berkeley - InArch Advanced Studio - K Plymale.

‘Visual circuitry’ describes the way the viewer’s eye moves through a composition. This commute is a major part of graphic design.

MOULI gRATER MADE IN usa

3: Components and movements of a cheese grater

1: The latent dynamics between objects in a still-life

5: Unfurling the graphics into the third dimension 2: Translating the relational study back into ‘objects’

4: Interpretation of the cheese grater in motion

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Wanderloop

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Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. UC Berkeley - InArch Advanced Studio - K Plymale.

Floor Plan

Situated on a famous waterfront, this community center extends a vital urban circuit and mimics the wavering shoreline.

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Theater

Garden

Old Pier

Cafe

Open Tables Serra Tilted Arc

Pool

Plugging into the Past The Wanderloop is a reimagination of the many piers that once jutted out into the San Francisco Bay and even preserves a fragment of a remaining one within its walls.

The perimeter of the building serves as an extension of a popular waterfront strolling path and emphasizes the experience of being on the water. A rooftop walkway centers the visitor between city and sky.

Tearoom

Wanderloop

2015. UC Berkeley - InArch Advanced Studio - K Plymale.

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

The City by the Bay The Wanderloop’s geometry is an interpretation of the neighborhood fabric, which swings as the city adapts to a bending shoreline.

The central walled area blocks out the urban surroundings and permits isolated contemplation of the lapping water and stretching sky.

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Electric Sheep

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2016 - 2018. Personal & Frederick Tang Architecture.

Renderings allow depictions of fantastical objects and assessments of potential beauty. They are halfway between the dream world and reality.

Dimension R

A series of rendered sculptures emerged from an attempt to push workplace software to the limits of imagination.

Latigona Loft

A loft addition to a small Upper East Side studio apartment required extensive testing of the the new stairway and ceiling.

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Amman Agropark This urban park looks to the history and future of Jordanian development in order to address environmental balance in the Amman of today.

Urban Lungs

2010

1950

Suffocating Growth Amman has rapidly evolved into a city of 4+ million. The loss of pasture land combined with clogged streets has led to poor air quality. Nonprofit Amman Urban Lungs has identified the remaining areas of air-purifying vegetation in order to preserve them.

Swords into Plowshares I worked with a local urbanist to propose another ‘lung’ for Amman: an active missile defense base that may one day be reclaimed as public land. This project is both imaginary and preparatory.

Topography Analysis A study of the various levels of elevation shows 70 feet of height change.

Peaks in red and valleys in green define the site.

Use by Elevation It is important to make the main pathway around the park relatively level while placing vegetation downhill for rainwater

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Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

2015. Columbia University - Design 3 Studio - K Baxi.

Slope Analysis Slope is crucial for accessibility and flat areas make gathering easy. Steep areas are better for recreation

Use by Slope Community gardens are placed in the flat, easily traversable areas while olive trees grow on their customary slopes

Amman Agropark

2015. Columbia University - Design 3 Studio - K Baxi.

Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

Park Space: The remaining area of the park is divided into either earth or concrete terraces.

Selected sections are raised to create shaded pavilions high on the hill. Dividing lines become walkways and scientific towers are erected on the former launch pads as a symbol of peace.

Legend 1 Research Tower 2 Observation Tower 3 Bathroom 4 Greenhouse 5 Agronomy Center 6 Cultural Center 7 Vertical Farm 8 Market 9 Restaurant 10 Child Care Center

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Jordan Walters - MIT - 2024

Thanks for Reading

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