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This portfolio contains selected projects from my undergraduate studies at Texas A&M University. These four projects were chosen to highlight different pedagogical and design focuses across each design studio. Program, scale, and design strategies vary throughout each project, creating a unique collection of ideas and projects with their own identity.

001.

3-12

IHMH | Baltimore, Maryland | Fall 2020

002.

13-22

18x18x36 | Urban City Block | Spring 2021

003.

23-32

Belvedere | Barcelona, Spain | Fall 2019

004.

33-40

New BSE | Texas A&M, College Station | Spring 2020

IHMH Marina Yacht Club| Boutique Hotel | Baltimore, Maryland

001

Fall 2020|Professor: Koichiro Aitani| Partner: Oscar Avila

The Inner Harbor Marina & Hotel Located in the Inner Harbor and within the heart of Baltimore, the Inner Harbor Marina & Hotel Building integrates and merges multiple aspects that are important to the city. First, with an ideal location, a yacht and marina club with a small coffee shop by the building’s entrance make up the ground floor. A central, open atrium with strategically placed staircases takes the user up through a variety of different experiences, views, and spaces that maximize user experience. A luxury seafood restaurant with an aquarium/cocktail bar makes up the second level. The upper level consists of a high-end boutique hotel; unique rooms, suites, and a luxury spa all come together with different color themes, design, and art throughout every space. The Hotel is designed with an angular form that takes advantage of the views that the surrounding context provides, and creates unique spaces in every room. Separating the private, upper levels form the public spaces in the lower levels is a spacious, outdoor space that gives the building a distinctive overhang nature. Art is a very important aspect of Baltimore, so we mean to integrate that aspect of the city’s culture by using the outdoor terrace as exhibition space. Here, visitors can come and enjoy some fresh air with views straight to downtown Baltimore, and art created by local artists during the hot summer months.

The project was designed as an integration of all architectural systems. This included proper structural layout and functionality, electrical, mechanical, waste removal and programmatic systems, daylighting and ventilation, energy preservation, materiality and aesthetics. Both group members (my partner and I) were heavily involved in conceptualization, design process, and spatial and programmatic organization. Post production and editing of most images was done by me, some changes were implemented in order to fit to my own design within my portfolio.

The map shows art areas and locations near down town Baltimore and our site location, the Inner Harbor.

Downtown Baltimore

Inner Harbor Project Site

The IHMH is

right at the , right across downtown, and just a short distance from many important industry and commerce areas.

Atrium & Circulation

Yacht Club

North

Back of House

Outdoor Space

South

Restaurant

Cafe

Lobby

Hotel Service

East

Spa

West

LVL 1

LVL 3

- Marina Yacht Club - Coffee Shop - Lobby/Atrium - Aquarium

- Outdoor Terrace - Seasonal Art Exhibition

LVL 2

- Bar & Drink - Outdoor Dining - Luxury Seafood Restaurant

LVL 5 - Hotel Rooms - Suites - Luxury Spa

LVL 4 - Hotel Rooms - Suites

Hotel Rooms

Each hotel room is uniquely designed with art from many styles, such as paintings, murals, and sculptures that fall into a color theme specific to each room.

Hotel Suite

The LED powered window frames help illuminate the building at night and give off different colors throught the building. Each color displays the theme of the interior room or space in which the window is placed.

18 x 18 x 36 Urban study|Schematic Design|Spatial Analysis

002

Spring 2021|Professor: Marcel Erminy| Solo Project

The project site is an imaginary 18x18x36 meter lot, placed, either horizontally or vertically and located within a conceptual 3:5 ratio urban block system that is oriented 45 degrees north or south. The premise of the project was to design three different conceptual building schemes with different programs: a library, gymnasium, and a school/design institute, and all had to be the same dimensions as the site. These had to be designed within the same imaginary site or block system, but had to have different building conditions. To do so, each scheme was conceptualized with different orientations, façade location, and site location. Depending on site constraints, each scheme could be either 36m horizontally (either wide or deep depending on façade location), or 36m vertically. Prior to the design process, various precedents with different urban conditions were analyzed and studied along with urban design methods and strategies. Daylighting, ventilation, structural layout, circulation, originality, and programmatic organization were some of many things that were analyzed and incorporated into each scheme. Students were allowed to expand the building 6m underground and 6m above the building in order to add more program space and design strategies, so long the building respected the boundaries of each block as it is done on many urban cities throughout the world. Finally, one of the three conceptual schemes was chosen and further developed into a concrete, finalized design. In this case, the design institute scheme was chosen for development.

The Alley is a school of the creative arts. Regardless of background, age, or experience, anyone willing to learn can come and experience this unique school. Various installations and spaces are available for people to work, learn, or simply relax. As art is the main focus of the building, it can be found displayed in various ways and mediums throughout each different space. The building connects its unique areas through a vast atrium that creates the feeling of an “alleyway” as visitors travel throughout the building.

1. Boxing/kickboxing Gym A gymnasium experience with two full size boxing rings, training areas, weightrooms, and a relaxing underground spa. With a single, outdoor punching bag room that can be spotted from street view, this building creates an iconic corner condition.

2. Library Within the tower, a historic book collection is displayed inside a concrete, oval-like structure held up by tension properties. Adult and children’s libraries, computer labs, media rooms, a bookstore and a coffee shop all create a copact, but unique experience.

3. Creative Arts School A central, open space inspired by a city alleyway splits the building and becomes its central hub while creating a vast natural light source. All parts of the building have some connection to this alleyway, including the lower level workshops.

Conditions

Block Study

All different building conditions, disregarding orientation, sunlight, and program

Void Arrangement

Different block layouts with integration of organizational constraint

Building Condition Amounts

Fill void space witha appropiate building conditions found through Block Study CD

Record number of all building conditions that form each block Corner-Deep

CL CT

CD Corner-Long

Corner-Deep

Corner-Tall

Corner-Long

ED ET

ED CL

Corner-Tall

Edge-Tall

Edge-Long

x1 CT

CT EL

Edge-Deep

Edge-Tall ED

Organizational Constraint

Every condition must be present at least once on every block system

CL ED

CT ET

Edge-Long

ED CD

EL EL

Edge-Deep

ET CT

CL ET

ED EL

18x18x36 406.502.SP2021 MARCEL ERMINY

Program/Site/Case Study Scheme Program 1 Material: Site Analysis: Process

Scheme Program 2 Name:

Rodrigo Matas

The diagram above illustrates one of many ways the project site and city blocks can be analyzed. Each block was organized with different configurations of buildings with 2:1 or 1:1 ratios from a plan view. Depending on the location and orientation, each building could have one of 6 differrent building conditions, which had to be present at least once on each block.

Scheme Program 3

Midterm Presentation Date:

01.29.2021

x3 ED

Revision/Development

Final Presentation Page:

1/2

THE ALLEY

School for the Creative Anyone passionate about creative design can study and learn art at the school. Classrooms, study rooms, conference rooms, computer labs, workshops & studios, and many other spaces are available for use to all levels and ages.

Spatial Relationships Each section is labeled with a letter, which is represented on the floor plans by a labeled section cut.

The basement courtyard is displayed at the left. This space is used for social gathering, leisure, and even work if the climate allows it. Vegetation is found throughout this courtyard in order to bring students closer to nature, ease their minds, and cool the space.

Below you can see the school’s library: a two-story-high wall bookshelf that continues on the uppermost ceiling, creating a greater sence of space and aesthetics. In this space, people can find art & art history books as they please, or they can simply come for casual reading or study on any available spot.

The school’s basement level is used as the heart of the building. Here, many different activities, events, and presentations take place. With a vast, open plan, the basement workshop can be used for various specific purposes depending on the occasion. Study and work tables can be utilized in order to maximize productivity, the space can be cleared for large gatherings, presentations, exhibitions, and more.

Materiality varies throughout the building. Corten steel panels throughout the facade insulated glass panles let light inside in strategic ways atrium corrugated steel panels exemplify the horizontality of the “alley.”

Belvedere Urban Renovation| Parc De la Ciutadella | Barcelona, Spain

003

Fall 2019|Study Abroad| Professor: Miguel Roldan| Partner: Oscar Avila

The city of Barcelona is a domain of multiple levels; with an abundance of buildings, ranging from historic and preserved, to modern and inventive. They all have their own autonomy, but always share a similar trait. As you go up, each level has its own function, program, purpose, and importance. In contrast, the Parc de la Ciutadella, our project site, consists of only a ground level, with one single point of access to an upper level: Gaudi’s fountain, known as Cascada Monumental. Our project aims to bring forth the levels of the city into the park by organizing spaces within three different categories that are important to the city of Barcelona. Filled with history and artistic expression, the city’s culture and traditions are the focal points when you enter the building. The second floor is used for learning for both students and any visitor that comes along, tying our building to Barcelona’s scholar recognition and impressing schools, one of which is just across the park. The upper level becomes a representation of the culinary brilliance of the city by bringing a small café that serves coffee, pastries, and traditional Catalan snacks and dishes to all public. Through these various levels, the visitor is liberated from a singular view, and now has the freedom to experience the park from multiple perspectives. Inversely, there is also an inner to outer expansion, as the platforms and roof of the existing museum have been converted into green areas, which creates an extension of the park towards the city.

Each group member had a large amount of contribution with the building design. The shapes that configure the general spaces of the building are circular in nature, and by organizing the program based on different points of intersection and spaces created by them. 3-D modeling was done simultaneously by both team members working on different parts of the building and merging together to create a final product. Each team member was assigned their own architectural section to complete, the one displayed on this portfolio was created by me, along with all the renders and drawings, with the plans being an exception. For these, I only edited colors and textures to fit my portfolio.

The building is placed on a central location, between both green houses and the geology museum, which is connected to our design through a roof entrance. The design of the columns was created in order to bring forth a sense of connection or congruency between all four buildings.

We designed the building with simple materials found in nature. Woods and lighter tones are found on the majority of the interior spaces, bringing a feeling of warmth and peace inside. These are complemented by the sleek tones of the concrete slabs and stones that make up the majority of the floor and ceiling space. Finally, reinforced steel columns envelope the building throughout the facade.

New BSE Adaptive Reuse|Program Expansion|Texas A&M Campus

004

Spring 2020|Professor: Priya Jain| Partner: Pedro Barron

In the early 1950s there was a huge boom in building construction throughout the United States. Texas A&M was no exception from the list. Campus was undergoing a large expansion program, adding various buildings in order to fit the fast-growing student population of the college after WWII. One of these buildings was the Biological Sciences East Building, which finished construction in 1951. Designed by Carleton W. Adams, the building was designed with no aesthetical principal in mind, it was simply made to hold a purpose. “Functionalism is architecture that lays stress of adaptation of structural form and materials to specific uses; efficiency, suitability, and economy should be the guiding factors in design, the use of decorative or surface ornament is secondary.” Today, the building is still used by the biological department. However, the university has grown exponentially since its construction and the building has not been properly adapted to fit the current student population; very few renovations or restorations have been done to the BSE building, causing poor working conditions for students and staff. The project aims to give a new life to the Biological Sciences East Building by fixing the main problems of its outdated design and expand the floor space by 15,000 feet squared. Extensive research, analysis, reading, and surveying was implemented prior to design in order to obtain a clear idea of the problems that needed fixing, along with the best strategies to do so.

By adding floor space, the interior of the building is given much more freedom to create an efficient space with private and public accommodations for everyone. The building is located at a prime location in campus, right at an intersection between the campus library and various busy public plazas. The design of the addition space uses new materials and a different design style that retains the original autonomy and horizontality of the building, while creating a new, exiting corner condition that no longer disappears from people’s gazes, but invites them.

Project research was extensive; historic and current information about the building was needed in order to design the New BSE, so research tasks were separated by both team members. I was assigned to doing historical research about the building, while my partner acquired current information. Building analysis was done simultaneously by both members through a series of building visits and an extensive survey released to students, staff, officials, and random people in and around the BSE. The current building analysis drawings and the sections were done by my partner, and later redone by me to fit my portfolio design. The survey results were recorded by my partner, but the informational graphs were done for this portfolio

Biological Sciences East Building (1970)

New Biological Sciences East Building (Proposal)

The current BSE building contains various different laboratories, offices, classrooms, and one auditorium. However, this building lacks space in many ways. Labs need more storage space, main circulation is cramped and obscure, offices need light, and no public or open space availabe. These problems are the main focus for the rennovation & expansion of the building.

HISTORIC PLANS (1987)

The original preserved plans and files were obtained from Texas A&M library archives. These plans were made by digitally drawing and painting over the original plans. Some information such as hand-written notes and dimensions was omiteed for representative purposes. The plans from 1987 do not differ too much for the current floor plans. Most laboratory spaces are left alone, while various offices were redistributed, and a fourth level is added on the fourth level with a small lab, storage, and a green house.

The BSE lacks sufficient lab space for the current amount of students.

NEW Biological Sciences Building The expansion of the building allowed for the creation of more storage and office space. This allowed spaced to be opened for more adequate laboratory and public spaces, including a small coffee shop near the reception space.

The interior layout did not receive major modifications except for the first two floors. Instead, most changes happened within the private spaces/rooms to clear up space and let more sunlight in. The hallways were expanded and were given much more natural light through the usage of more windows and glass partition walls.

“A great building must begin with the unmeasurable, must go through measurable means when it is being designed and in the end must be unmeasurable.”

- Louis kahn

Thank You!