From a young age Marbella Vasquez Farach was especially enthralled by things that could be perceive with several senses—materials that were pleasant to see, smell, and touch. She soon realized that architecture allowed her to make the most of the exploration of different medias and how they relate to the senses. The texture of concrete, the smell of wood, the sound of steel, and the sight of patterns and geometric figures were all impregnated into her senses, and she was thrilled to be taught to relate to them and place them harmoniously in different surroundings.
Today, her professional goal is to design and create valuable architectural spaces at different scales while using multi-disciplinary approaches. The different digital tools and software systems she learned at SCI-Arc M.Arch II Program allow her to explore, research, materialize and control new designs. As a Costa Rican, the young architect has a strong desire to be exposed to the latest and most impactful international trends, innovations and methods in architecture in order to be able to contribute the society, the community and her home country at large.
Thesis Project for the Degree of Master of Architecture SCI-Arc, Summer 2023
My thesis proposes a definition of ‘home’ as a set of psychological needs rather than mere programmatic satisfaction, needs that go beyond shelter and functionality. Exploring the concept of home through three key categories: Self, Connection and Transition. These categories provide a framework for understanding the psychological aspects of a home which both shape and mirror cultural values, social dynamics, and individual identities.
By manipulating the material, social, and ephemeral attributes of the home, this approach seeks to liberate living spaces from singular functions or emotions, creating ever-changing environments that explore the infinite diversity within our living spaces.
As someone born and raised in Costa Rica, I was compelled to explore the notion of “home” within the confines of my homeland. In a small town just two hours away from Costa Rica’s capital city, lies Bajos del Toro a valley nested between mountains and surrounded by an abundance of water. Many of the local families own land with a natural attraction such as a river, swimming holes or waterfalls. Gradually embracing tourism, locals open their homes to daily visitors, mostly Costa Ricans seeking an escape from the city to immerse themselves in nature. With little formal tourism infrastructure, the local’s homes become impromptu “visitor centers”.
Once a traditional Costa Rican house, that when you entered through the front door, you discover its interiors in a logical progression.
Presently, this house has been deconstructed and expanded to accommodate the new needs of its occupants and rather than possessing a singular manner of encounter, it presents numerous access points, and eliminates the hierarchies of spaces and functions within the house.
This way the home as a whole is used equally in time and is not determined by its programmatic functionality. It depends on who you are and how you desire to engage with the home and the categories that define it: self, connection and transition
The ‘Self’ category centers on intimacy, introspection, and nurturing feelings of security and comfort, fostering a sense of belonging. It encompasses lighting, decoration, objects, and surfaces, extending beyond traditional architectural boundaries.
‘Connection’ represents expansiveness and freedom, bridging domestic activities like food preparation with broader external experiences. From tranquil family rituals, it transitions into lively hosting scenarios, adapting to the space’s mood influenced by ongoing events.
‘Transition’ blurs the line between public and private spaces, integrating home, work, and nature. The home’s story is intertwined with the surrounding landscape, including a nearby river and waterfall explored during Miguel’s daily tours.
The categories: self, connection and transition are held together by its subjects, in this case Miguel, his wife Martha and the daily visitors. As individuals and as a cohesive entity, they collectively define what the home is today. This cultivates an enriched understanding of ‘home’ rooted in our collective human experience, acknowledging both universal threads and diverse cultural narratives that together shape our perceptions of living spaces. Of home.
Instructor_ Florencia Pita
Partner_ Kristoff Flix
3GBX Vertical Studio
SCI-Arc, Spring 2023
The project starts with the development of custom-made bricks constructed from plaster and offered in a range of muted colors. These bricks are designed to be individually arranged in patterns that facilitate overlaying, generating varying levels of density and porosity. The configurations and arrangements of the bricks stem from an initial notation, where experimentation with scales and figural shapes took place.
A concentrated experiment, the model showcases all potential combinations of bricks in a specific corner of the building, incorporating features such as balconies and window openings. In addition to providing aesthetic appeal and functional adaptability, the model also demonstrates how the bricks can serve as a self-supporting structure. The building itself incorporates a secondary concrete structure, while the brick design includes a screen facade that allows for ventilation and the entry of natural light.
The project is a boutique hotel situated in Mexico City on a corner lot adjacent to an existing brick building. The hotel specifically caters to young fashion designers visiting the city to showcase their work. In addition to providing accommodation, the hotel features a retail space where guests can exhibit their creations. The hotel rooms offer options for short and long stays, and additional amenities include a workshop space, a cafe, and gardens, creating a multifunctional environment. Notably, all circulation areas within the hotel serve as usable spaces for exhibitions, further enhancing the overall experience for guests and visitors alike.
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Partner_ Arthur Modine
3GAX Vertical Studio
SCI-Arc, Fall 2022
Geometric primitives are basic shapes we instantly recognize, like cubes, spheres, and cylinders. They hold a fundamental power in their simplicity, even when not perfectly defined. In this studio, we explore the threshold of recognizability and how it allows for flexibility in the relationship between parts and wholes. Designing the “imperfect” geometric primitives using interlocking parts. Focusing on the assembly as the primary operation and connection as the secondary.
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AI image generation was used to meld curvilinear and rectilinear forms into a cube, creating a dynamic composition from which a puzzle was created. This assembly employs rotational movements with minimal contact surfaces, allowing an intriguing interplay between mass and void.
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The grade of the site inspired a 20° rotation which activates the cube, with the massing swinging downward to meet the ground plane. The concept’s continuity is maintained through spiral staircases, bridging the fragmented galleries both horizontally and vertically.
Marbella Vasquez Farach
A. Theater
B. Shop
C. Cafe
D. Sunlight Gallery
E. Midnight Gallery
G. Community Room
H. Mezanine Gallery
I. Spiral Gallery
J. AR Gallery
K. Main Office
L. Archive
M. Mechanical
O. North Gallery
Instructor_ Herwig Baumgartner
Partner_ Kyle Zufra
2GBX Design Studio
SCI-Arc, Spring 2022
2GBX engages in a comprehensive building project while asking some foundational disciplinary questions: what is the form of contemporary participation to the construction of scientific knowledge? How can we design an architecture that facilitates a network of stakeholders and allows them to work together? Can architecture promote awareness and active communication regarding technological investments? Specifically, how can a BIO-TECH facility act more like a parliament of negotiations?
The Biotech lab explores temperature and circulatory systems using cacti, creating a new biosphere between the building and the ground. Water storage and support structures hang from the lab spaces, some touching the ground while others float above. Objects beneath the lab spaces blur the line between lab and ground, merging organic and inorganic qualities. The lab spaces include wet and dry microclimate zones. Cacti act as a water storage system, resilient to temperature fluctuations and integrated into the building’s structure.
The water from the cacti is further extrapolated into the building system. Circulated through channels to the frozen iceberg, the flooded landscape, and microclimate zones on the interior of the lab, creating a renewable circulatory system that is always operating throughout the building.
At the center of the site the water is collected in a stepwell. Above, an iceberg centralizes the building. The iceberg creates a beacon that visually represents climate and environment issues that are actively being discussed within the parliament. This core is surveilling and monitoring the process of freezing and thawing. The parliament core is creating a new space for ecological optimization, exchange of policy and ideas, and new environment where nature is looking back at the human.
Ceramic Tiles, Type 3 & 4: Top Corner
Connection Clip
Water Proo ng
Primary Strcture
Aluminum Panel
Mounting Brackets
Secondary Steel Strcture
Insulation Panel
Ceramic Tiles, Type A,B,C,D
Celing Furring
Rod Suspension Hanger
Primary Channel
Gypsum Board
Concrete Top Slab
Metal Decking
Mullion
Steel Framing
Gypsum Board
Triple Glass
Growing Medium
Filter Fabric
Drain + Water Retention
Geotextile Root Barrier
WaterProo ng
Concrete Bed Insulation
Aluminum Water Channel
The facade system is a 3D custom made ceramic tile and pattern. The tiles are highly durable and sutable for interior and outdoor spaces. They are protected and harden with a glaze making the ceramic water resistant. The tiles are eco-friendly and made from locally available red or brown clay that is compressed into desired tile shapes; they are then dried and fired at high temperatures in the kiln.
Type A
Type B
Type C
Type D
Type 1_ Bottom Corner
Type 2_ Bottom Corner
Type 3_ Top Corner
Type 4_ Top Corner
CONSULTANTS
SEE SHEET A1.001 FOR PANEL DEATILS
TERRACOTTA FACADE PANELS
EAST LABORATORY
FACADE PLANTERS
WATER CHANNELS
CIRCLATION CORE
STRUCTURAL COLUMN / MECHANICAL CHASE
DATA CENTER
PARLIAMENT
BOX SEATING
HANGING WATER STORAGE
CIRCLATION CORE
STRUCTURAL COLUMN / MECHANICAL CHASE
HANGING WATER STORAGE
CIRCLATION CORE
Instructor_ Florencia Pita
SCI-Arc, Fall 2021
The studio’s intention was to work through scalar changes in order to navigate the project in all scales, understanding that interiority and exteriority are intermingles into a single narrative. We began designing the new classroom’s furniture and objects, then the classroom. Finally, zooming out to design a full elementary school. The project will be an extension to the Dimond Ranch Elementary School located in Pomona, Los Angeles.
Re-thinking the role of the classroom and investigating alternatives to traditional scholar furniture. Three Thonet chairs were intervened. New materiality has taken over the Thonet chair’s bent wood, changing its proportions. The chairs are bubbling, and they inspired a search for a sensory play.
In the redesigned elementary classroom, the focus is on exposing children to diverse materials and sensory experiences. By engaging their senses, children can develop new ways of playing and understand the world through touch. Nature and outdoor spaces are incorporated, blurring boundaries with the surrounding landscape. Water, sand, dirt, and slime encourage sensory play. The design allows children to freely
interact with the complex, climbing walls and exploring materials like grass, stones, and plastic playgrounds. Traditional classrooms are reimagined using different materials, with inflatable structures bounded by diagrids, creating a contrast between rigid and soft forms. The complex includes programs for different grade levels and outdoor spaces like an amphitheater, sculpture gardens, and event platforms.
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Details. Details
Instructor_ Dwayne Oyler
Partner_ Kyle Zufra & Piyush Panchal
Fall 2022, SCI-Arc
This project investigates the future of architectural details by questioning their current definition and exploring different viewpoints. Inspired by Zaha
Hadid’s Vitra Fire Station, the proposed detail seamlessly embeds a stair into a concrete wall, revealing a steel plate as the anchor. Steel shelves connect to the embedded plates, creating a cantilever and housing
interlocking concrete and wood pieces. The handrail connects to each individual stair, forming a cohesive whole. This project aims to achieve material complexity while maintaining the original geometric intent within the concrete volume, offering a nuanced and integrated approach to architectural details.
Exploded Isometric
A.1_ 1/8” Laser Cut Plate
A.2_ Poured Concrete Insets
A.3_ Milled Wood Inset
A.4_ 1/2” Milled Wood
A.5_ 1” Steel Rod
A.6_ #8 3.4” Screws
A.7_ 1/8” Laser Cut Plate
A.8_ 1/2” Milled Wood
A.9_ 1/8” Laser Cut Steel
A.10_ 1/4” Bent Steel Rod
A.11_ 1/2” Milled Wood
Steps Exploded Isometric
C.1_ Top Stair Assembly
C.2_Middle Stair Assembly
C.3. Bottom Stair Assembly
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Instructor_ Andrea Cadioli Visual Studies II
Spring 2022
“alter|Nature” explores the codependency of physical, digital, and biological elements in bio-diverse environments. It redefines objects in the Anthropocene era, collapsing spatial organizations and power structures. The project aims to create Trans-Habitats where organic and inorganic elements find ecological logics. Through the exploration of nature’s ceaseless morphogenic modulations, “alter|Nature” delves into the aesthetics of events and rituals.
Arrangements were generated using scripts and procedural design, simulating ecologies through stills and perspectives. 3D objects modeled in ZBrush were transferred to Unreal Engine for real-time simulations. The compositions were then reorganized as landscapes, resulting in interactive playgrounds enriched with procedural sounds and machine vision. Digital materials were synthesized and reconstructed as Physical Based Rendering materials, exploring the boundary between familiar and uncanny, digital and physical legibility.
Scuptural Furniture
Instagram: @cientoveintiuno.cr
Summer 2020
The project fuses the practice of architecture with the search for sculptural form. I design, build, and assemble one-of-a-kind concrete, glass and acrylic pieces that become sculptural tables. The first collection uses the fabric formwork technique. The flexible module is subjected to torsion and tension, leaving the folds and texture etched into the cement. Once dry, the fabric is peeled off and the cement is finished with layers of resin or left raw.
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