Originally presented through an animated film, scan the QR code or follow the link to view a highlight reel of the presentation (3:45 mins).
SELECTED PROJECTS
VENICE MIRAGE
FIRST YEAR PROJECT, THE BARTLETT UCL
THE ANTHROPOGENIC LEECH
FINAL YEAR PROJECT, THE BARTLETT UCL
BITTERSWEET LOVE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
LAAB ARCHITECTS & AEDAS 16 04 26 32 IN COLLABORATION WITH CHRISTINE WONG, PERSONAL
HEAT EXPELLED FROM SERVERS WASTE HEAT RECOVERY
LIVE CAPTURE
DATA FROM SITE
VENICE MIRAGE
A DIGITAL IMMERSIVE GALLERY
MAIN DESIGN TOOLS
RHINO, GRASSHOPPER, AUTOCAD, UNREAL ENGINE 5 & HOUDINI FX
Seeing the Venice Biennale being criticised as an out of touch event that relies heavily on energy & material resource, Venice Mirage proposes the implementation of an immersive gallery within its premise, providing spaces that caters to digital trends while minizing energy consumption.
This agenda is reflected by a simulated growth texture that responds to sunlight. The simulation is applied onto the immersive gallery external envelope as a heat dissipation device, mitigating the risk of expelled heat being transferred back into the interior, saving operational energy.
DEVELOPED IN CONSULTATION WITH
STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANT
VISITORS
HEAT EXPELLED FROM ELECTRONICS
IT TECHNICIANS
IMMERSIVE GALLERY SPACE
WASTE HEAT RECOVERY
ARTISTS
DATA SERVERS
PROVIDE DATA UNIQUE FROM SITE
LOADING BAY
ARRIVE BY FERRY
BUILDING SYSTEM STRATEGY
ARTIST STUDIOS
VENICE BIENNALE
MERIDIAN MAPPING TRADITIONAL CHINESE ANATOMY
SCANNED MAPPING LAYERED MESH & BUMPS
MATERIALISATION
PHYGITAL GROWTH EXPLORATION
Prior to my building project, my initial design exploration focuses upon the taxonomy of phygital growth on the human body through studying scan imperfection. These imperfection when translating between the physcial and digial are then amplified as a scarification unique to a user’s body.
VENICE BIENNALE
The elongated shipyards that shelters the Biennale have proved problematic when displaying digital mediums. The current solution of temporary black boxes have cause heavy reliance on air conditioning due to its electronics, demanding a unreasonable amount of energy. OUT OF TOUCH & RESOURCE DEMANDING
HEAT RECIRCULATES INTERNALLY
HEAT & SURFACE AREA
The issues raised called for a dedicated digital immersive gallery for the Biennale, housing digital art, artists and visitors under the same roof. Energy levels of each programmes are studied to formulate a suitable heat mitigation strategy.
GROWTH AS A HEAT DISSIPATION DEVICE
Speculating upon what phygital growth could mean when architecture is the body, the project proposes the growth texture as a heat dissipation strategy for the building, reacting to localization of heat from both internal and exernal sources.
HEIGHT OF TERRAIN
SIZE OF CREVICE
ZENITH ANGLE#
(SURFACE NORMAL VECTORSUN ZENITH ANGLE)
DISTANCE TO SUN@ ABS (SURFACE NORMAL VECTORSUN ZENITH ANGLE)
# SUMMER SOLSTICE SUN ANGLE AT NOON @ ONLY THE LAST 3 DIGITS OF DISTANCE MEASUREMENT WAS TAKEN DUE TO THE LONG DISTANCE FROM THE SUN.
BUILDING EXPLODED SECTION
The contrast in energy output between programmes suggest a spatial isolation strategy in the form of pods and corridors. The layered corridors in addition provides a uniuqe spatial experience as they weave through the pods.
DESIGN STRATEGY
The contrast in energy output between programmes suggest a spatial isolation strategy in the form of pods and corridors.
SUNLIGHT ANALYSIS
The sunlight analysis provides precise data on how the simulated growth upon the pod’s skin should react.
PARTIAL MODEL OVERVIEW
The section of both the immersion pod and corridors reveals the contrasting spatial quality it requires. Various building details were considered to facilitate the ideal immersive experience for the visitors when traveling between galleries.
CORRIDORS ARE DIMLY LIT TO PREVENT SHARP LIGHTING TRANSITIONS BETWEEN SPACES
3. COMPARTMENTALIZE STRATEGY WITHIN EXTERNAL CLADDING
1. FLUSHED SCREEN WITHIN CORRIDORS
2. SKYLIGHT FINS WITH WATER COOLING PIPES
DOUBLE HEIGHT ENTRANCE INVITES NATURAL LIGHTS INTO THE LOBBY
FINS ON THE FACADE WALL HELPS DISSIPATE HEAT
EXCESS HEAT
TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 40-55c
OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 5-15c
TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 21-24c OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 25-35c
TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 21-24c
TEMPERATURE GRADIENT 40-55c
HEAT & VENTILATION STRATEGY
As the site faces both hot and cold weather throughout the year, the cooling and heating straegy of each pods are adjusted accordingly to minimize energy consumption.
VENTILATION STRATEGY
HOT WEATHER (MAR-OCT)
COOLING STRATEGY
TYPICAL FLOOR VENTILATION STRATEGY
AIR CIRCULATION PATH
AIR CIRCULATION PATH FOR IMMERSION PODS
INTAKE/OUTAKE VENTS LOCATION WITHIN THE BUILDING
AHU FOR IMMERSION POD ACTIVE VENTILATION
COLD WEATHER (OCT-MAR)
HEATING STRATEGY
In general, external air passes through the chill/heated water pipes before entering the building, where exhaust are located towards the top of the corridors and pods.
TOPOLOGICALLY OPTIMIZED FLOOR PLATE
POD STRUCTURE OVERVIEW
The immersion pods are constructed with a steel monocoque chassis and weight optimized floor plate, allowing it to withstand constant vibrations from internal speakers while being structurally light.
HYDRALIC SUSPENSION
BOLTED CONNECTION WITH +-20MM TOLERANCE HEX BOLT IMMERSION POD MONOCOQUE STEEL FRAME
TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED FLOOR PLATE
TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED RESULT BOTTOM VIEW (50% REDUCED MASS)
TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED RESULT TOP VIEW (50% REDUCED MASS)
IMMERSION POD TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED FLOOR PLATE
DT2: CONNECTING THE IMMERSION POD TO THE BUILDING STRUCTURE
STEEL HALFEN CHANNEL WELDED TO STEEL BEAM
ACOUSTICS INSULATION
POLISHED CONCRETE FLOOR FINISH
IMMERSION POD EXTERIOR
Externally, the fixings of the individual textured panels are concealed to retain its visual purity.
IMMERSION POD INTERIOR
Internally, meshed flooring allows air cooled by water pipes to ventilate within the space, cooling both the occupants and electronics within.
EXAGGERATED TEXTURE TOWARDS DOOR OPENING
HOT AIR THROUGH MATERIAL CONDUCTION
STEEL BEAM WITH INTUMESCENT PAINT CONCRETE STEEL DECK
STEEL FRAME STRUCTURE
BOARD WITH VAPOR BARRIER
SANDBLASTED 3D PRINTED GREY ALUMINUM PANELS
SLIDING DOOR
COOLING/ HEATING COPPER PIPES
RAISED FLOOR STEEL GRID
FLUSHED WHEN CLOSED
TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED STEEL FLOOR PLATE
PANEL DIMENSION
3D PRINTED SKIN CLADDING DESIGN
Requiring extreme precision, the cladding is 3D printed using a selective laser melting (SLM) process. This creates a much finer aluminium surface compared to conventional printing methods.
SEAM BETWEEN PANELS
3D PRINTED EMBEDDED SUB FRAME STEEL ANCHOR
5MM THK.
INITIAL TEST FORM
INTERIOR REVERBERATION ANALYSIS
To minimize acoustic reverberation, the shape of the interior has undergone multiple simulations to ensure that all digital art could be conveyed as intended.
IMMERSION POD SECTION DRAWING
The technical drawing demonstrates the complexity of both the structure, systems and construction methods all within one coherent narrative.
DETAIL SECTION 1 @1:25
1. SPEAKERS AND PROJECTORS
2. 3D PRINTED PERFORATED MESH
3. COOLING/ PIPES
4. AIR HANDLING UNIT OUTTAKE
5. ACOUSTIC INSULATION
DETAIL SECTION 2 @1:25
1. AIR HANDLING UNIT INTAKE
2. TOPOLOGY OPTIMIZED STEEL FLOOR PLATE
3. SPEAKERS AND PROJECTORS
4. RAISED MESH FLOOR WITH COOLING PIPES BELOW
SECOND FLOOR GALLERY SECOND FLOOR GALLERY
THE ANTHROPOGENIC LEECH
AN EXPLOITATIVE APPROACH TOWARDS CIRCULAR URBAN METABOLISM
Awarded the Year 5 Architectural Design Prize
MAIN DESIGN TOOLS
RHINO, GRASSHOPPER, BLENDER, REDSHIFT & HOUDINI FX
Addressing the locality of pollution within our built environment, the anthropogenic leech is a decentralised community hub that converts carbon emissions into renewable energy. Employing a parasitic philosophy, the infrastructure attaches itself to energy-inefficient buildings throughout the city, exploiting its resources systemically as a holistic system, providing beyond the boundaries it serves.
LEGEND MASTERPLAN DIAGRAM
1. URBAN PARK/ CARBON SINKS
2. CARBON/ALGAE RESEARCH HUB
3. CENTRAL TOWER
4. CIVIC HUB
5. TRANSPORT INTERCHANGE
6. RESIDENTIAL HUB
7. TRANSPORT INTERCHANGE 2
LOCATION OF SEQUESTRATION
LOCATION OF CITIES
THE LOCALITY OF EMISSIONS
The recent discovery of “carbon domes” within our cities challenged our general belief that the efficiency of capturing carbon is constant regardless of where it occurs.
Our lack of awareness to the locality of pollution has shrouded us under a veil of ignorance, exposing our futile attempts of sequestration far from the source that produces it, magnifying the effects of climate change.
Therefore, the remedy for our predicament requires a series of holistic interventions that could be applied in scale within our cities, remediating pollution directly within the heart of the problem.
POLLUTE
PRODUCE
EXTRACT
CARBON CYCLE OF CITIES
EXCERBATES CLIMATE CHANGE IN REALITY Capturing pollutants
SEQUESTRATION
CONSUME
DISPOSE
ILLUSION =/=
URBAN GIS DATA ANALYSIS
The intervention starts with the anatomy of the city, in which digital data is used extensively to pin-point the tumour within. Focusing within the heart of Hong Kong, energy consumption data from individual buildings are obtained and analyzed. Expressed Volumetrically, buildings that are most energy-demanding are represented with white bars.
RESOURCE PATH SIMULATION (LAST ITERATION)
RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT
FORM FINDING
To devise a form finding strategy holistically upon the site, anthropogenic and climatic data are used to identify regions abundant with metabolic resources.
PATH SIMULATION
Combining these data creates a holisitic mapping that could then feed into a resource path simulation, maxmimizing its cover upon the most resource rich areas.
PROGRAMME DISTRIBUTION
Seeing the segregated district surrounding it, the design proposes the blurring of boundaries of the three distinctive programmes, extending the host’s life as a hub.
BUSINESS DISTRICT
UNIVERSITY DISTRICT
WEIGHTED PROGRAMME DISTRIBUTION
EXPLOITING THE HOST - INTERNALLY
HOST HVAC SYSTEM
PARASITE HVAC SYSTEM
EXPLOITATING THE HOST - EXTERNALLY
DIRECT AIR CAPTURE PODS
CLIMATIC SENSORS
2024 2050 2100
EXPANSION & MUTATION
As the host and its surroundings transition to a more energy-efficient lifestyle, the parasite with its insatiable thirst for carbon expands its territory in search for more resources. Seeing its surrounding urban morphology and condition altered, the parasite re-evaluates areas of attraction and expands accordingly.
ALGAE CIRCULATIVE CAPILLARIES
BIO-DEGRADABLE SILICONE MEMBRANE
POD CARBON TO ALGAE SYSTEM
TOPOLOGICALLY OPTIMIZED STEEL PLATE
WITHERED SKIN
CONTRACTING VEINS
POD BIOMASS RECIRCULATION SYSTEM
2024 - 2075 2075 BEYOND
VEGETATION TAKES OVER THE INTERNALS
ALGAE BATTERY CORE
BIOMASS BATTERY CORE
BITTERSWEET LOVE
RUM, SUGAR, DIVORCE
“Bittersweet Love” is a tale about two entities, human and machine, and examines them through the notion of “divorce”. The project explores the possibility of a divorce ritual within a factory process line in which they provided each other the needed selfsustainable lifecycle. By providing a place that lays closure for those who cannot move on in a severed relationship, the architecture itself reflects upon its own “divorce”; how to cope with its existence when the industry that relies on its infrastructure is no longer flourishing, and to speculate the methods of honoring its afterlife.
MAIN DESIGN TOOLS
RHINO, GRASSHOPPER, AUTOCAD, UNREAL ENGINE 5 & HOUDINI FX
WINDOW ELEVATION
“An incision on the aged bricks reveals a sharp blade, punctured through the ground, coated with care from god himself.”
EXTERIOR VIEW
Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
CLEANSING
SHREDDER
EXTRACT
CLARIFIYER
DIVORCEES KEYCODE
FILTER
EVAPORATE
CRYSTALIZE
CENTRALFUGE
DIVORCE
SELF SUSTAINING PROGRAMME CYCLE
The diagram illustrates the relationship between the process of manufacturing the product, by-product and divorce ritual. The making of sugar provides the necessary sensorial incubator for a emotional driven journey while being a neutral spectator during the process. Functionally, both the ritual and the factory provides each other the needed supply and demand.
1 Control Valves
Workers closely examines the ratio between the three ingredients for caramelization to occur.
2 Fountain
Inspired by chocolate fountains, the constant flow of caramel prevents the unwanted bitterness of burnt sugar.
3 Cauldron
The cauldron softens the caramel with the embedded heater coils within the base of the pot.
THE
DAY AIR SMELLS LIKE CARAMEL
Charred Sugar
The legacy of the factory sugar goods goes on in the form of caramalized air. Once a product of a process line becomes the by-product of a ritual. Sugar, water and baking soda are mixed and evaporated while the aroma slowly develops.
BITTERSWEET LOVE DIVORCE CHAPEL
THE LONE AND WEARY THE BAR
SQUARE MILE RESIDENTIAL
The Face of the neighbourhood
The client asked us to design a residential tower with a facade that would be a statement piece for the upcoming revitalised district. Our team proposed a podium facade that would mimick a veil blowing in the wind and would shimmer with during daylight. I was involved through RIBA stages 3 to 4.
PROJECT TYPE
Residential, Exterior
3D Modeling and Construction Drawings INVOLVEMENT
LAAB ARCHITECTS OFFICE
Assistant Architectural Designer ROLE
MAIN DESIGN TOOLS
RHINO3D, GRASSHOPPER, AUTOCAD,ENSCAPE, INDESIGN
3D Model of the Leaf Facade
FACADE LEAF DETAIL
The veil consist of thousands of individual leaves that would be mounted onto a c-channel. Each leaves are angled differently so that the colors of each unit would vary during daylight. I was responsible for the tender drawings as well as the 3D modelling of the design. Both full height wall sections and 1:5 detail were considered to realise this project.
Section Construction Detail of Leaf Feature
Plan Construction Detail of Leaf Feature
HONG KONG EXCHANGE
A Financial Trading Hub For The Digital Age
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange asked us to redesign their outdated stock exchange hub with an image that will set forth into the digital age and compete with the other globally significant stock exchange markets. Our approach towards the design is a modern and simplistic choice of materials, while heavily using digital tools to create the features within the premise. I was involved through RIBA stages 3-6.
PROJECT TYPE
Finance and Trading, Interior
INVOLVEMENT
3D Modelling, Grasshopper Scripting and Construction Drawings
LAAB ARCHITECTS OFFICE
Assistant Architectural Designer ROLE
MAIN DESIGN TOOLS
RHINO3D, GRASSHOPPER, AUTOCAD,ENSCAPE, INDESIGN
SEPARATION EQUATION FINS WIDTH (X)
NO. OF FINS + 1 = w
Wall Overall Pattern Logic
Wood Veneer to Fabric Detail
AUDITORIUM CEILING
The auditorium serves as the venue for IPO ceremonies, an important space within the whole project. The ceiling consists of four types of panels, where they are configured in wave like pattern that converges within the center. I was mainly responsible for the detail design and layout configuration of the ceiling design.
Reflected Ceiling Plan General Layout
Ceiling Section of Ceiling Panels
POWDER COATED
PANEL IN DARK GREY
3M STICKER ON ALUM. PANEL
Reflected Ceiling Part Plan
Standard Unit of the Ceiling Panel
TYPE SP 1
TYPE SP 2
TYPE SP 3
TYPE SP 4
RED/BLUE
VAU RESIDENCE
A Sustainable Way of Living within a Historic Neighbourhood
The VAU residence is a luxury residential tower located Ho Man Tin, Hong Kong. The client asked for a sustainable design while showing visual character, therefore it gave me exposure to the requirements of attaining the BEAM plus certification process through the design requirements and material selection. Using Revit as the primary tool in design also allowed seamless collaboration between our team that are working in parallel.
The highlight of the tower’s design is the feature wall, a angled grid facade that reflects light at various angles from its surrounding. The elements of the feature wall is dissected into various modules to help translate the design intent to the contractors.
Facade
Facade Wall Feature - Top View
Roof Area Calculation For Attaining BEAM PLUS Credit
