Miguel Villacorta Portfolio

SELECTED WORKS 2024 miguel villacorta

resume

miguel villacorta | mvvillacorta01@gmail.com

A creative, driven student who recently graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Architecture Design. Looking to gain further design experience in design or construction. Has experience working in collaborative environments and is conditioned to high-pressure, time-constrained situations.

education

University of Washington | Bachelors of Art in Architectural Design September 2019 - June 2023 | Seattle, WA GPA 3.7/4.0 Dean’s List from 2019-2023 Course Highlights- architecture studio, construction management, accounting, marketing, architectural photography, geography of cities Architecture in Rome | Study Abroad September - December 2022 | Stockholm, SE and Rome, IT

skills Photoshop Illustrator InDesign Rhinocerous 3D AutoCAD Revit Lumion Hand Sketching Elementary French and Italian

involvement Hospitality and Tours Representative | Climate Pledge Arena August 2023 - Current | Seattle, WA Presented and escorted groups on a 75-minute walking tour of the arena. Provided an enjoyable learning experience to sports and music fans. Assisted VIP guests with concierge service during sports and concert events.

AIAS mentorship | 2021-2023 Mentored prospective students applying to the architecture major Advising in portfolios, essays, and other application material

projects

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pg 4

take a bath

pg 10

rome 2050: tinkering

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hillblock’s homecoming

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birdwatching in union bay

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urban food center

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take a bath !

location northgate, seattle, wa

This exercise required that I imagine what the Seattle suburb, Northgate, would be like in 20 years. This imagination grew bleak considering its current trend of cyclical corporate “reinterpretations” without any concern for its community. I tasked myself with designing a Japanese Onsen-inspired bathhouse for the community, one that would allow for various levels of social interaction throughout. The act of bathing removes any sense of status or identity, contrary to Northgate’s former status as a shopping center. Its location takes advantage of Northgate’s current predominant population, commuters, who are provided with a place to stopover during their travels. Additionally, this project intends on highlighting previous residents of Northgate, Duwamish Natives and Japanese immigrants, and the importance of maintaining the health of the Thornton Creek Watershed that begins east of the site. My explorations were expressed through different media, such as black and white film, photo collage, and rendering.

when arch 402 | spring 2023

method rhino, indesign, photoshop, illustrator, lumion, black and white film photography

from the large pool

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concept development

Northgate has been suffering from a lack of character since the inception of its mall. Any sense of individuality has been subverted for the constant need to be current. There will always be a newer form of perfectionism that we can never seem to meet. What we can do is be human.

film photos

How can we promote aspirational living thats in dialogue with how people actually live?

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Site Plan

1st Ave NE

3rd Ave NE

Northgate Transit Center

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6

120

240

360 feet

NE 103rd St

from the light rail

NE 100th St

This bathhouse stands alongside the southern exit of the Northgate Light Rail Station. Greeting the commuters, one of Northgate’s prominent communities. The location of the bathhouse capitalizes on Northgate’s position as a setting of transfers.

People arrive here from every direction and transferfromtheirbuses,cars,bikes,andfeet to hop onto the train. The bathhouse looks to attract people in a moment of transition to stop and take a break after a day of work.

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facing north to the pools

sectionfacingwest

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from the bridge

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30 feet

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90 feet

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rome 2050: tinkering location testaccio, rome, it

when arch 400 | fall 2022

method rhino, indesign, colored pencil sketch, photoshop, illustrator, photo collage with Yessenia Islas

In this imagining of Rome in 2050, our climate rectifying goals are not met and the city is swept up in irregular climate change, where floods from the river Tiber engulf the city. In the neighborhood of Testaccio, a guild of tinkerers work to repurpose unwanted junk to be reused by Romans. This space lays perpendicular to the Tiber’s flow, similar to a train station and its train tracks, such that it can collect all of the city’s waste. On the ground floor is the swap market, where goods can be traded and distributed. This area lets the floodwater in. Suspended above the ground is the tinkerers’ workspace, which stays protected and allows the tinkerers to surveil the market for their next creation.

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dry vs. flood conditions

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section facing east

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the entrance colonnade

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ground floor plan

the marketspace

the tinkerer’s workspace

1st floor plan new structure existing structure

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site pla tiber the rive r

monte testaccio

plans and sections of existing structures

Mattatoio was Rome’s former slaughterhouse. Millions of animals were killed and cleaned scrupulously before being distributed, minimizing the weight of the sacrifice made for our survival and sustenance. To truly honor the gift that comes from sacrifice, we must pass it on, making the gift continuous. By tinkering, we honor the material by thanking it for its usefulness and repurposing it for someone else’s future enjoyment. As a group of 5, our projects acted as a series, encouraging a future where we consider and prolong our materials’ lifespans.

mattatoio, rome, it

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hillblock’s homecoming

This project was a mixed-use affordable housing project for the neighborhood of Albina in Portland, Oregon, a historically black community that had been victim to disvestment and resettlement. In this project, my role primarily involved the affordable housing, where I helped with the configuration, layout, and massing.

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location albina, portland, or

when 2023 barbra g. laurie NOMA student design

competition

method completed with other UW NOMAS chapter students; revit, photoshop, rhino, illustrator

Our affordable housing goes beyond the 100 projectrequired count by including an additional 44 units. To allow for a better sense of community and increased accessibility to the central courtyard, pointaccess blocks are used and allow units to be in close proximity to a stair and elevator.

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box form

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extract core

mirror forms

rotate

sun and light access

community space

point access blocks

community courtyard

timeline

point-access block layout

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Birdwatching in union bay

location union bay nature park, university of washington, seattle, wa when arch 300 | fall 2022 method rhino, photoshop, illustrator, physical model, collage

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When trying to gain inspiration for a nature experience in Union Bay Nature Area, I turned to one of the experts of the park, my father. He is an avid birder and always knows the specific trees, marshes, and logs where he’ll commonly find a bird perching. In my site studies, I viewed the park through the lens of three species of birds, the bald eagle, the virginia rail, and the blue heron. These three birds reside in different areas of the park and enjoy a distinct spacial experience that ensures their survival. I then designed a birdwatching tower and a walk-through instillation that allowed humans to feel these spacial qualities.

Materially, I incorporated local materials and used gabion walls to emulate the gradually accumulated collection of materials that compose a bird’s nest and habitat.

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the bald eagle

the virginia rail

the blue heron

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section of a bald eagle’s canopy

section of a virginia rail’s reeds

section of a blue heron’s pond

the birdwatching tower

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sections of the reeds

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sections of the tower

site section

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05

urban food center

location columbia city, seattle, wa when arch 302 | spring 2022

method rhino, indesign, photoshop, illustrator, physical model, hand sketching

This project is a center for food production and distribution.The site location in Columbia City sits in an effective pocket from the rest of the city of Seattle, giving this neighborhood its own distinct feel and culture. My studio explored the history of this neighborhood, the adjacent farmers market, and the geological forces that have shaped its sprawl. The valley that envelopes this neighborhood was carved by glaciers, as well as the north-south movement of its population throughout. Glacial carving and movement was a driving force behind the massing, circulation, and program layout.

People move through the building longitudinally like glacial till, subverted by mass between forms and traverse the three masses like ice climbers.

The sharp faces of the facades allow for sun-exposed growing spaces. perspective looking north

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The Massing Concept

The massing was born from a series of exercises where a rectangular mass was split into interlocking shapes. Finding reasoning for the fracturing led to the glacial metaphor, where ice and earth are under constant pressure, equally informing each others’ forms and outcomes.

Growing space took precedence, occupying the sun-exposed crevasse, whereas exchanging space acts as glacial till, a hollow space beneath the ice where rock is grinded, mixed, and distributed.

final model

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1/2“ scale model of interior growing space

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ground floor plan

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farmer’s market collage

longitudinal section

Kitchen

Indoor Growing

Dining Market Hall

Compost and Rainwater Collection

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Library

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Teaching Garden

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class site model

ground floor

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transverse section looking south

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elevation facing west

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elevation facing south

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transverse section looking north

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