Laura Baer
Portfolio 2014
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Laura Baer
Work Experience
22.06.1987 Female Swiss and Brazilian
2014
laura.carolina.baer@gmail.com + 41 78 831 09 37 + 55 11 97075 4942
Studio Arthur Casas, São Paulo Architect: project design for an hotel in Sao Paulo, design and project management for luxuries appartements in Brazil, competition for the interior design of the Dolder Waldhaus Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland.
2011-2013
Devanthéry et Lamunière Architectes, Geneva Architect: Project design for the Cornavin Hotel renovation in Geneva. Interior design for a villa attic in Tannay. Competition for two housing buildings in Clarens, Transformation project for a 60’s school complex in Geneva. Renovation project for an apartement in Geneva.
2012
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale, Lausanne
Teaching Assistant: Project critic of 1st year students, coordination and organization of a 20-students class. Research Assistant: Curating “Dream Evian” and “Blue Hub” Exhibitions, London architecture travel guide conception.
Architect EPFL
2010
Something from Us, London Intern: Project design, including furniture, for a restaurant in London, concept development and events organization for “Cornwall with love”
2007-2008
UNDEND Architektur, Zurich
Intern: Drawings for housing complex “Rautistrasse” in Zurich. Concept and project design for the transformation of Warteck factory, in Basel.
Education 2010 - 2012
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
2005 - 2009
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Master in Architecture Minor in Technology Management and Entrepreneurship Industrial Design option at ECAL Bachelor in Architecture Industrial Design option at ECAL
Awards & Distinctions
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2013
Le Perrier, 1st prize for housing competition, with dl-a team (project p.30)
2012
Beyond Oscar, Community Career Investment, WISH Foundation - EPFL
2012 2011
Global Shaper membership, World Economic Forum Best Of Architectural Design, Archizoom - EPFL (project p.16)
2011
Published in Best Of Architecture, EPFL (Media x Design lab)
Languages
Fluent (spoken and written) in French, Portuguese and English. Basic knowledge of German.
Software
Vectorworks, Autocad, Archicad, Artlantis, Rhino 3D, VRay, Sketchup, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Excel, Word, Powerpoint.
Hobbies
Gastronomy, Design, Fashion, Photography, Ski, Pilates, Travels 3
Table of contents
Curriculum Vitae 3 Selected Projects 6
Nomade Hotel, Prof. I.Lamunière et M.Ruzicka-Rossier, 2012 8 Dream Evian in New York, Prof. I.Lamunière, 2011 16 Green Heatscape, Prof. J.Huang, 2010 22 PAV - Parc, Prof. A.Bassi, 2009 24 Ario - contemporary art center, Prof. C.Rebelo, 2008 26 Getaway House, Prof. D.Dietz, 2007 28 Le Pierrier, competition with dl-a, 2013 30
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Selected Projects
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Nomad Hotel Diploma project Spring 2012 Professors: Inès Lamunière & Monique Ruzicka-Rossier Assistant: Déborah Piccolo
“Urban nomad” is the name we give to a new population of temporary residents increasing in metropolitan cities in this new generation of heightened mobility. New York is where we propose a new model of hotel that meets the needs and desires of these urban nomads while catalyzing the neighborhood life. The hotel occupies the site adjacent to the extension of the hub of Penn Station, currently occupied by the underground railway, and acquires the role of a condensed city, becoming an equipment for the city and the neighborhood. The extension of public space from the station takes the conceptual form of a carpet of public programs from which emerge three towers - the hotel. By disseminating the public program of the hotel in the carpet, urban nomads become actors as well as spectators of the city. Urban nomads with varied purpose of visits have different frequency and time of stay. The hotel responds to these different types with standard rooms, and a flexible system that allows studios as well as apartments of 1-2 rooms.
diagrammatic site plan
classic hotel Public programs are concentrated within the building and does not communicate with the city.
concept 1 Public programs are exported from the hotel and disseminates into the city. diagrammatic long section
concept 2 Public space of the street thick- ens and connects various pro- grams on several levels.
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long section
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level +1
level 0
level +2
level -1
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bar / panoramic rooftop cafe / media center / spa lecture room / library / yoga workshop retail / bar / nightclub restaurant / retail
restaurant / retail gallery / offices / karaoke cafe / ballroom / pool cinema / cafe / theatre
retail
supermarket / lobby art gallery / lobby fitness / lobby
dalle de rĂŠpartition
traintracks
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Dream Evian Master I Spring 2011 Professeur: Inès Lamunière Assistant: Julien Fornet
What is the feeling of Evian? How can we build the feeling and atmosphere of Evian to transpose them in the urban context of New York? These are the questions we sought to answer in this project. For us, Evian is precious. We conveyed this theme of preciousness in our hotel as if it was a reversed jewel. A form worked in the mass, which has some special qualities: it is pure, fluid, but developed with different types of angles causing a loss of marks in the space. This theme has first been worked on with the lobby, the main area of the hotel, in which the visitor finds himself immersed in the atmosphere of the precious. Entirely gilded, it is a great, majestic and introverted volume that leaves its imprint on almost all floors of the hotel. It is built within a consistent mass containing among others the vertical circulation. In the spa, on the top floor, we find the same formal work of fluidity, angles and purity of the material. This time, the only connection with the outside world is the sky. The space is bathed by a zenithal light penetrating by large wells of light in the roof. Whiteness and purity of space are reminiscent of Evian water and mountains. Regarding the hotel room, it is a very simple and quiet space with one highlight: a window where, as in the lobby, one is absorbed in a precious atmosphere, but this time the experience is more intimate, at the scale of the body. The exterior of the hotel is like a big stone. It reminds us of Evian, the Alps, the universe of the lake. The façade is made of a very smooth concrete, slightly greenish and poured in strata. The window’s glazing is fixed flush with the façade, so we perceive continuity in the mass. In the rooms, the windows deform outwards so that we have a window for the bedroom and another for the city. In this way, the building fits subtly into New York’s scenery, while preserving its special atmosphere of Evian.
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spa
standard floor
ground floor
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rooms typology
section
west elevation
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Green Heatscape Master I Fall 2010 Professeur: Jeffrey Huang Assistants: Nathaniel Zuelke & Trevor Patt
In the harsh and demanding environment of the Emirati desert, the establishment of a university campus raises many questions in terms of energy saving and thermal comfort. This project interrogates the design process through the instrumentalization of digital media and computational methodologies to generate dynamic and evolving systems based on changing circumstances, thus providing an effective and accurate architectural response. A precise knowledge of local climatic conditions is crucial to do so.
campus development phase 1
This is why we initially analyzed existing forces affecting the site in order to extract patterns of adaptive growth. These site-specific climatic mappings defined a design strategy and implementation areas. They confirmed the presence of a potential network of vernacular oases at the lowest points where all the conditions (topography, runoff, wind, humidity, etc..) are combined to provide an environment suitable to the implantation of the university infrastructure. We subsequently developed a model based on this mapping to simulate the campus development over time, along with the capacity to respond to anticipated and unanticipated future scenarios.
climatic mapping
campus development phase II
campus development phase III
longitudinal section
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PAV - Parc Bachelor III Spring 2009 Professor: Andrea Bassi Assistant: Julien Woessner
As part of the redevelopment of a former industrial zone at the outskirts of Geneva, the studio proposes a reflection on the urban form and programatic diversity. The mix of housing, offices and activities offers a new urban neighborhood that lives 24/24h. Here, the project tries to maximize the interactions of working and living communities through a central park. The buildings are placed in relation to existing access present on site, a train track coming from central Geneva on the west side and the national highway on the east side, and they are oriented in a way to protect the park from adjacent nuisances.
laura baer
The typology can be expanded to a bigger scale, through the repetition of this urban form in the identical parallel sites. In this strategy, all the neighborhood parks combined engage to the city scale.
ST Sbph denSiTe
ST SBPH Densité Bureaux Logement Activités
12’500 m² 36’493 m² 3 15’290 m² 15’092 m² 6’111 m²
Bureaux Logement Activités
611 places de travail 611 personnes 96 logements 453 personnes 10 commerces 60 personnes
site plan
12’500 m 36’493 m 3
sbph bureaux logmnt activites
travees : structure 7 m pl. de parc 2,3 m
36’493 m2 41,8 % 41,3 % 16,9 %
20 m
40 m 20 m
0m
Expansion strategy
0m
baer laura
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20 m
20 m
hab. p. travail comm.
0m
453 p. 611 p. 10
0m
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long section
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typologies offices | housing | activity baer laura
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ARIO - contemporary art center Bachelor III Fall 2008 Professor: Camilo Rebelo Assistant: Claudio Nunes
Long beaches, strings of hills, picturesque neighborhoods, modern buildings, favelas: Rio de Janeiro is a city of diversity, rich in contrasts. Located on the “Rodrigo de Freitas” lagoon, a few dozen meters from the shore, the project of a center for contemporary art takes advantage of this unique location to create a quiet place for contemplation in the heart of this energetic metropolis.
top floor
Standing apart from the city, the center allows the visitor to disconnect from the hectic city life. Arriving at a mysterious opening, visitors penetrate a dense mass and are brought in a vast reception area. Instantly they are immersed by a place conducive to introspection that accentuates the emotional disconnection with the city. Amethyst, a semi-precious stone characteristic of Brazil, was the choice of the conceptual object to further define the project. Amethyst can be identified as a compact element composed of three distinct states. These three elements are transposed into the reception area, the circulation space and the exhibition spaces. As a reflection to the carioca landscape, this big mass contains no angle. It looks like a smooth rock eroded by water. This concept of “erosion” is also applied to the openings for access and views, allowing natural light and panoramic views into the building.
2nd floor
1st floor
north elevation
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section
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Getaway House Bachelor II Spring 2007 Professor: Dieter Dietz Assistant: Daniel Pokora
In East Germany a currently active opencast coal pit covers a vast area of about 14km by 6km, with excavations varying from 0 to 40m of depth. In 2015, the mine will be closed and the extraction will be stopped. Despite the magnitude of the project, the site is planned to be regenerated in the near future. From 2020 to 2033, the open pit will be gradually flooded so that the site can regain its beauty and natural serenity. The reflection on the development of a project thus centered around a theme that would respond to the architectural use of this site before, during and after the flood. In this context of speculative development, the project proposes to create a path that, in line with the flooding, evolves into a public bath. Initially modular wood panels adapting to the terrain creates a public access site. Each year, the system is extended by the addition of panels that gradually form a structure of “boxes� progressively buoyant. The position of the panels define the slope of each box and its final shape is defined by the addition and removal of panels. The project proposal thus allows the creation of different spatial qualities of the bath, complete with different degrees of intimacy and a variation of light and shadow.
site plan
axonometry
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system gradual evolution
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Le Perrier Winter 2012-2013 Competition for housing, awarded 1st prize Collaboration with dl-a team
Les résidences « Le Pierrier » se situent dans le quartier de Clarens à l’ouest de Montreux et s’intègrent à un ensemble de plusieurs immeubles de logements construits ces dernières décennies. Le projet propose deux bâtiments, l’un à l’Ouest, l’autre à l’Est de la parcelle. Ils sont reliés entre eux, sur la Route du Lac, par des locaux commerciaux et de bureaux sur deux étages. Cette géométrie permet à la route du Lac d’être connectée à deux grands espaces extérieurs vivants et ensoleillés, un espace minéral et un espace végétal. Ceux-ci sont aménagés et orientés sur le lac et le sud, et se déploient avec générosité entre le quartier d’immeubles existants, le nouvel ensemble du Pierrier, et les villas du Bochet. Le projet reconstruit une continuité topographique entre le contexte et le nouveau quartier. Il supprime les différences de hauteurs, murs et murets actuels afin de permettre des relations plus continues et « naturelles » avec le voisinage. L’implantation des bâtiments permet de préserver les vues dont bénéficient les voisins tout en en créant de nouvelles pour les futurs habitants. Les balcons des appartements sont disposés de manière à maximiser les vues vers le lac et les montagnes et à préserver l’intimité des habitants. La géométrie et le décalage des balcons en alternance un étage sur deux permet d’offrir un ensoleillement optimal et de délimiter des sous-espaces, soit une partie protégée sous le couvert du balcon de l’étage du dessus et une partie en double hauteur. L’architecture est contemporaine, elle privilégie les espaces épurés. La volumétrie en facettes des immeubles s’insère dans le quartier et permet des vues différenciées et originales sur l’environnement. standart floorplan
" Le long d'un généreux balcon : une enfilade entre séjour, salle à manger et bibliothèque"
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Route du Lac view | the buildings connected by a two storey plaza
South view | two public spaces : the urban plaza and the park
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Laura Baer Architect EPFL
laura.carolina.baer@gmail.com
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