Portfolio Qianru Zhu UCL

Programme : March Urban Design

PORTFOLIO QIANRU ZHU Selected works from 2018-2022

S h a n g h a i J i a o To n g U n i v e r s i t y , S c h o o l o f D e s i g n 2022 Graduate of Environmental Design

E-mail:zhuqianru51129@163.com

CONTENTS

Prologue

Interests always come from inspirations triggered by observing life stories. My interest in urban design and landscape design has been generated ever since I was young. Born in Shanghai since I was a child, I have been considering about city regeneration and iteration.

During my production of my portfolio, I could feel the challenge between pursuing beauty and practicality, since real-life designs require more attention to finding the actual problems of the site, meeting the economic indicators of the local government or developers, catering for needs of local residents and target customers.

Despite difficulties,in my profolio,in places in the world that I can’t see, there are many people who are suffering from disasters(Wildfire, hurricane, violence, epidemic, etc.) at different moments. I found improving their quality of life a wonderful and meaningful thing.

Increasing the size of effect from opinions of urban designers in city development is my goal.

01 The last piece of pure land

01-07

02 Living with Fire

08-13

03 Back to Normality

14-17

04 Rebuild the wall

18-21

Sustainable Mangement Strategy for Casa Blanca

Wildfire adapted strategy for Calistoga

Universal street design in the post-epidemic era

Old housing renovation to meet the overflow of living space of college students in the future

Other Works

Case study,Sketch,Landscape painting

22

01 The last piece of pure land

Sustainable Mangement Strategy for Casa Blanca

Group Work Category:Academic Work Time:2021.2-2021.8 Partner:Cheng Xiaoxiao,Lin Jiaxin,Wang Yiwen Contribution:Site analysis,Diagram,General strategy,Anti-poverty strategy,Render Instructor:Mengting Ge Location:Casa Blanca ,San Pedro Sula,Honduras

In one of the deadliest cities(San Pedro Sula)in the world, an embattled group of young men had little but their tiny patch of turf — A neighborhood called Casa Blanca— and they would die to protect it.

Surrounded by the gang known as MS-13 on all sides, residents in this community are also threatened by hurricanes and poverty.Therefore, we have formulated corresponding solutions to these three problems.

I am mainly responsible for the part of the preliminary analysis and the formulation of anti-poverty strategies. We re-planned the building layout, added a flood-resistant floating island system and a crime-resistant roof escape system, and gave the ground floor space and the new public space productive functions.

To create a circular economy model,we planned a commercial axis as the center and productive spaces around.

01

-Honduras-

1998 Hurricane Mitch 7,000 people were killed

11,000

in Honduras were missing in the months after the storm.

San Pedro Sula is one of the most dangerous cities in Honduras. Tens of thousands of people have fled gang violence in the country, many heading north toward the United States.

Members of MS-13, a gang that has taken over swaths of San Pedro Sula and has a presence in the United States, in the Honduran city.

By Tyler Hicks/The New York Times

Landing point Most Violent municipios Capital Drug trade land route Other roads

02

-Street gangs territory distribution in Casa Blanca,San Pedro Sula-

03

-Master plan-

-General strategiesStrategies

Existing Issue Criminal activity

psychic trauma

1

The guards were threatened with life

2

The shopkeepers were threatened with life

3

The residents were threatened with life

4

Women and kids were threatened with life

5

Increase building density

2

Clear spatial layout division

5

1

4

Ground floor activity Retain the original space - self - sufficient texture of the building

5

3

1

2

1

Building configuration

3

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Raised Livestock Raised Leisure Space Raised Welfare Institution Raised farmland Raised Children Activity Space Raised Orchard Floating Island Escape Route Building Type 1 Building Type 2 Building Type 3

8

10 10

Hurricane damage

Houses were flooded and damaged

Lack of clean water for domestic use

The lack of food

Disaster shelter

Production + leisure activities

Street eye

Water recycle system

Archimedes Island 4

11

9

1

11 1

2

3

1

1

3

1

2

3

2

3

5

2

7

Poverty

no job

inefficiency of work

hunger

Rainwater pipe

Production + leisure activities

Monitoring and early warning systems

The roof system

Light warning system

5

10 1

2

3

2

2

5

1

2

3

4

5

2

3

4

5

2

1

5

-Architecture strategies-

2

7

8

9 6 11

6 3 6

04

-Anti-poverty strategies-

-Crime strategies-

05

-Water cycle strategies-

-Flood prevention strategies-

WATER COLLECTION

① ROOF RAIN CATCHER

② DOMESTIC WATER COLLECT

FLOATING ISLAND

RAISED ISLAND

BUILDING

③ RAINWATER STORAGE TANK

⑦ WATER USE IN LIVESTOCK

④ PAVEMENT INFILTRATION

WATER LEVEL

WATER REUSE

⑤ TERRACED WATER FILTERATION

⑧ WATER USE IN AGRICULTURE

⑨ WATER USE IN PEOPLE'S DAILY LIFE

⑥ RAINWATER GARDEN FILTERATION

WATER FILTRATION

① ROOF RAIN CATCHER

③ RAINWATER STORAGE TANK

⑤ TERRACED WATER FILTERATION

④ PAVEMENT INFILTRATION ② DOMESTIC WATER COLLECT

⑦ WATER USE IN LIVESTOCK

⑧ WATER USE IN AGRICULTURE

⑨ WATER USE IN PEOPLE'S DAILY LIFE

PURIFICATION POOL BLACK WATER

06

Normal water level

Low water level

Archimedes Island

07

02 Living with Fire

Wildfire adapted strategy for Calistoga

Individual Work Category:Academic Work Time:2021.5-2021.9 Instructor:Jiayue Jiang Location:Calistoga,Napa county,California,America

Being famous for its wine,the Last year's glass fire made the local wine industry suffer a lot of losses.Also,located at the northernmost tip of the Napa Valley,Calistoga is one of the high-risk communities affected by wildfires in the western United States .With the increase in temperature and the decrease in precipitation, and the high flammability of forest plants in the south of the mountain, the risk of wildfires is increasing year by year.

My strategy starts from the protection of animals, wine industries and people.

I planned the town into a water-oriented community and made full use of the local Napa River’s water source during the wet season and the rainy season to supplement the dry season (which is also a fire-prone period).Also,I attempted to build a reservoir upstream to ensure the water source of the newly introduced water channel.

In addition, the public space in the center is re-used. This design encourages people to not only escape, but also participate in fire-fighting operations when necessary. The closer water source will increase their self-confidence.

08

09

10

11

12

13

03 Back to normality

Universal street design in the post-epidemic era

Individual Work Category:Academic Work Time:2020.11-2020.12 Instructor:Jiayue Jiang Location:City streets in developed countries

After implementing lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19, many countries are struggling with its impact on economy.

However,with the normalization of the epidemic, people will be used to living with the epidemic in the future. This projection one hand,aimed at economic recovery and social self-repair after the epidemic and on the other hand,give people the right to choose social distancing instead of forcing isolation or stipulating social distancing.

The design site is virtual, and it is suitable for countries with occasional epidemic outbreaks or with urgent economic recovery needs, such as China, Australia, etc.It will guide the society to return to a normal state faster through new ways of consumption, and to be more dynamic than before.The philosophy is based on the diversification of social space.,so the street is transformed into a multi-functional street integrating commerce, entertainment, sports, etc. without private cars to expand the urban public space, thereby dispersing the flow of pedestrians in large shopping malls, office buildings and sidewalk.

I hope this design will guide people on how they gather and provides space with secure social distance for those people who still resist on social interaction and strengthen social equality to a certain extent.

14

15

16

17

04 Rebuild the wall

Old housing renovation to meet the overflow of living space of college students in the future

Individual Work Category:Academic Work Time:2021.9-2020.11(8 weeks) Instructor:HongYa Tang Location:Longchang Apartment, Yangpu District, Shanghai,China

In China, with the increase in the number of graduate students, colleges and universities are facing a shortage of domitory resources. At present, 11 universities in China have cancelled graduate dormitories. Especially in large cities like Shanghai, the cost of renting a house is too high for groups who come to Shanghai to study to afford.

China’s university campuses have always been a closed social structure, including school buildings, catering, cultural centers, and auxiliary facilities for middle and high schools. This independent structure will be broken in the future to meet the needs of Shanghai city students' demand for low living cost.

The Longchang Apartment in the center of Shanghai is known as the last "village in the city" in Shanghai. More than 250 residents struggle with congestion every day. Obviously, the environment is not suitable for families to live in. However, this enclosed living mode retains the close neighborhood relations in the past,which just meets the social needs of the young students in the future. Thus, being transformed into a student apartment will be the best choice for it.

18

19

20

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-Other worksPlant configuration in a park in Zhejiang Province,China

2019 Case study of Douglas House

2018 Sketch

Through manual model making, I was deeply attracted by the frame on the large glass, which allows the user to more clearly define the room and outdoor space. The outdoor scenery, through the framed glass framed by the framed glass, forms a beautiful landscape painting. .

2018 Pen drawing

2020 Reconstruction of the old factory building in Suzhou Creek, Shanghai------Office inteior Design

2020 Plaza Design for Doctoral Students' Apartment of Shanghai Jiaotong University 22