Nick Lesko | Ball State | Architecture Portfolio

Nicholas Lesko | Curriculum Vitae & Portfolio Ball State University Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

Nicholas Lesko

email : lesko.designwork@gmail.com

phone : +1 574 376 2042

Education

Employment

Ball State University | August 2020 - May 2025 (Expected) Bachelor of Architecture Minor - Digital Design in Architecture GPA : 3.82

Elevatus | May 2023-August 2023 Architectural Intern

Wawasee High School | August 2016 - May 2020 Academic Honors GPA : 4.2

instagram : @nck.lsko

Vivid Scenery | May 2022-August 2022 Hardscaping and Landscaping Patona Bay Boat Service | May 2019 - August 2021 Boat Salesman, Rental Coordinator

Competitions Proficiency Graphics Rendering : Keyshot v12, TwinMotion, Enscape, Lumion, Mantra, VRay Adobe : Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Lightroom, After Effects Grasshopper : Karamba3D, Ladybug, Honeybee, Cove Tool

PA AI Creative Challenge | 2023 Honorable Mention Buildner Museum of Emotions | 2023 Participant Buildner Microhome | 2023 Participant MKM Steel | 2023 Participant

Exhibitions Familiar Objects : Reconstructing the Familiar through Photogrammetry Featured Work

Modeling | Digital Rhino v7 Grasshopper ZBrush Houdini SideFX Revit Sketchup Blender

Parametric Architecture : Spatial Fragmentations Student Work Featured Work

Modeling | Physical 3D Printing PLA Laser Cutter Wood Shop Machinery Brick Saw, Hardscaping Tools Hand Built & Wheel Thrown Ceramics Ceramic Glazing, Kiln Firing

Spatial Fragmentations with Mumun Keser Parametric Architecture

Parametric Architecture : AI Creative Challenge Honorable Mention Featured Work

Workshops Gesture and Craft with Martin Summers & Patrick Danahy University of Kentucky

Habitat Formation with Nic Bao ACADIA & University of Colorado, Denver Microbial Drift V2.0 with Laura Maria Gonzalez Design Morphine - 02 -

Contents p.04 -

Endurahaus

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Biophilic Grotto

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Contemporary Urban Monument

Esoquietude Steel Spiritual Space

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Spatial Fragmentations

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Falling, Floating

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Microhome Living

Procedural Modeling Workshop

Museum of Emotions Proposal

Gestural Pavilion Steam-Bent Timber Assembly

Artifact Retrieval High Resolution Object Studies

-01- Endurahaus Competition Submittal Term : Summer 2023 Site : Icelandic Coast Microhome Design Limited Floor Area : 270 ft2

Designing not an instance but rather an assesmbly of parts allows for innovative fabrication, unique textural aesthetics, and new ideas about apparent age.

Endurahaus posits a procedural modeling method in which the generated geometry is fractured for ease of assembly and future repair. The result is a visual time lapse of a home with a direct connection to its site, built easily with low financial and environmental impacts, and a peaceful setting for a young professional couple.

The project proposes an innovative constructiton assembly in which the primary material is 3D printed sand. It uses material directly from the site with a simple bonding agent in a low-emission fabrication process. Its thermal properties met with its unique finish allows for it to be the building’s mass, insulation, and finish all at once. Over time, the home will be subject to bursts of violent weather, natural aging, and erosion, all of which will start to break down the house fragments. The primary function of the piecemeal assembly is that when this happens, replacement pieces can be easily fabricated, shipped, and substituted for old ones with ease. The use of local sand material and an environmentally friendly bonding agent means that the old pieces can be simply broken down to rejoin the landscape without lasting effects. Eventually, the house will be comprised of a mix of fragments new, old, and in-between, resulting in a beautiful evolution that embraces the appearance of age instead of running from it.

The ongoing attempt to address all factors environmental, economical, aesthetic, and longevous often means compromising one to satisfy another. Endurahaus attempts to meet all factors with a strong solution that honors both the client and planet. The project is versatile and can be easily replicated at any site worldwide that has a local sand deposit and a desirable living situation. With each unique site comes a different sand color and finish that seamlessly ties the home’s aesthetic to where it is situated.

Designing for part-to-whole relationships in architecture is becoming increasingly valuable and should be embraced as the new standard.

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Context Render

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Interior Renders Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Recycled Steel Because of the minimalistic and simple structural framing for the home, recycled steel wide flange members from nearby urban areas can be utilized to mitigate the environmental impact of material fabrication as well as keep overall costs down.

3D Printed Sand Local sand deposits are used in printing so, if they break down or erode, nothing foreign is left on-site. Companies like Sandhelden are pioneering the 3D printed sand components industry, and have displayed proof of concept in creating structurally sound, low-emission, environmentally friendly, lightweight, waterproof pieces that could be viably used in a building assembly.

Assembly Chunk

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- Endurahaus

Elevation : North

Elevation : West

Elevation : South

Elevation : East

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Spatial Layout

Utility Functions

Sleeping Area | Elevated Bed Platform

Solar Energy is collected and stored in several long-term batteries, with a sum total of 800 kwh storage capacity, which can sustain the home for up to two weeks without additional energy

Storage Area | Space Underneath Bed

A rainwater collection gutter directs waterflow from the sloped roof through a purification filter and into a 1600 gallon water tank, which is enough to support two individuals for 10-18 days depending on usage

Living Area | Variable Layout Common Space Kitchen Area | Food Prep and Storage, Bar Counter Restroom Area | Exterior Access Water Closet and Shower Electricity Storage | Solar-Generated Energy

Restroom waste is stored in a secure, air-tight container that can either be transformed into fertilizer for gardening or safely removed and disposed of when full

Water Storage | Rain Water Collection and Storage

Floor Plan

Axon : NE

Utilities

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- Endurahaus

-02- Biophilic Grotto Course : ARCH 302 Term : Spring 2023 Instructor : Patrick Danahy Site : Indianapolis

The typical monument is, at best, an noninteractive celebration and exaltation of a historical figure or idea. This project aims to challenge this on multiple levels by creating a monument that is solid and resolute, interactive and inhabitable, and experiential with specially crafted conditions. The Biophilic Grotto proposes the application of 3D printed concrete blocks that form cavern-like interior volumes at two elevations. It celebrates the natural, unrestricted growth of fauna and vegetative development as opposed to the artifical and controleld installation of “green” features in urban architecture. Visitors are invited to move through the interior and experience relief from the noise, light, and coldness of the downtown environment, while being a part of a true urban garden.

The architectural features are drawn from two sources. The first a tool kit of classical vaulted spaces, which are applied at various scales and frequency to generate an uneven and intricate layering of shelves, steps, pedestals, arches, and texturing. The abundance of places suitable for plant growth fosters a rich and diverse urban garden that is fed entirely by daylight from multiple angles. The second source is, ironically, high resolution scans of historical monuments. These statues commonly have cloaks or fabric carved into them, which when used at a large scale form impressions that look like ripples or dancing shelves. These moments allow maximum plant population, even moss growth in the seams of the printed stone blocks.

As a statement, the Biophilic Grotto challenges the typical character of a monument.

Seeking to revitalize the downtown area with a rich plant population, it invites interaction from passersby and solitude to those who seek it. Formally it both imitates surrounding buildings and stands out as a unique instance in the downtown environment. Programmatically, it offers an unrestricted and unmaintained urban garden.

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Interior | Upper Level Perspective

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Interior | Upper Level Perspective

Interior | Lower Level Perspective Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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- Biophilic Grotto

Balcony walkways on upper and lower level allow immersion and experience, without contamination or interference

Poche reveals the subtractive operations carried out to impose vaulted qualities of classic architecture

Impressions in the stone that imitate rippling fabric allow additional growth opportunity as “micro biomes”

Context Render Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Typical array of “windows” imitate surrounding buildings, but are open air and allow daylight to filter in at unique angles throughout the day Rear stair column allows for unobstructed street view, engaging alley perspectives, and acts as structural spine

Cavernous opening oriented west takes advantage of abundance of sunlight in afternoon for fauna growth

Section Render - 15 -

- Biophilic Grotto

-03- Esoquietude Course : ARCH 302 Term : Spring 2023 Instructor : Patrick Danahy Site : BSU Campus

Esoquietude delivers experiential tranquility and crafted atmospheric beauty in a gestural approach to a nondenominational spiritual center. The solution has spatial qualities akin to historic baroque designs, applying abstracted layout details in an amalgamation that generates a new concept at the plan level. The construction is efficient through optimized structural steel application, with a combined beam-andcolumn and space frame assembly to blend the grandiose gathering spaces and the typical height amenities. The members are optimized using a Karamba3D analysis to maximize efficiency and load capacity while minimizing material usage in an effort to embrace environmental practices.

The exterior is crafted to communicate with the surrounding material palette while still standing apart as a more sacred moment. The dark brick veneer, mounted on a steel structure, address the site while subscribing to a unique color scheme that’s more comtemplative and sober. The aluminum fins, dancing across the exterior walls, are a way to add intrigue and motion to the facade as well as concealing all glazing from apparent view. The terraced roof and spherical carve outs produce a thick poche in which the building systems are contained and the space frame is housed, and a method for collecting rain water for storage and utility use.

Strategic references to Ball State University’s campus postures Esoquietude at the fulcrum of student residence life to provide a retreat from the ever increasing stressors of campus. At a crossroads between dorm buildings, dining halls, recreational facilities, and classroom buildings, it is intended to be equally available to any category of student and faculty, at any point of their day on campus. Inviting yet private, the project is established as an enduring singularity while openly inviting any and all to gather, meditate, and worship. It is a highlight of the school’s student life and will provide rest, relief, and recreation for decades.

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Perspective Render

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Spatial Layout Main Sanctuary Chaplain’s Offices Main Lobby Event Center Fellowship Lounge Garden Courtyard Conference Rooms Library + Study Rooms Solo + Group Meditation Classrooms Support Offices Kitchen + Food Prep Miscellaneous Storage Restrooms

Total Square Footage : 13,000 ft2 Site + Floor Plan

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Building Axons

Rain Analysis

Elevations | West (Top) and East (Bottom)

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- Esoquietude

Structural System

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Connections |

Space Frame Section, Joint Facade Fins Bracket, Series

Elevations | North (Top) and South (Bottom)

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- Esoquietude

-04- Spatial Fragmentation Parametric Architecture Workshop Term : Fall 2023 .. ..

Instructor : Mumun Keser Site : The Unreal

Architecture postures a space as a bridge between the users’ and the architect’s visions and imaginations. Taking hypernormative Spaces and intersecting them results in Fragments that provoke new ideas and can help bridge that gap between the visions of the designer and the patron. This project is the result of a workshop led by Prof.

Keser from the University of Innsbruck. His work aims to find not only the boundaries but also the bridges between natural and artificial systems. The distinction between the real and the surreal is smeared by the intersection of volumes representing what is “beyond real” with a typical building assembly. The result is a hybrid experience that turns these intersections into inhabitable spaces with new geometric and architectural qualities determined by a parametric and procedural workflow.

The application of this work flow can be both theoretical and practical. The logic behind it is that overly normative and predictable Spaces are hardly architecture, and to introduce a conversation piece - or interruption - by Fragmenting it is to provoke new ideas and experiences. This can be done aesthetically, in how the volumes are representative of different experiences that interact with each other based on proximity and density. It can also be done realistically, by taking predictable horizontal levels of a building and drawing parts of them up and down to create vertical atriums that are engaging, intriguing and more beautiful.

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Detail Render

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The Fragments, as a cluster of spaces, are inserted as an interruption to what is otherwise normal.

They may be inhabitable and real or simply an interpretation of an experience, which varies at every edge and point as indicated by the contouring and overlapping of spaces.

Further exterior detail is added to give a sense of regularity and relief, yet introduces chaos at the edges of the fragmentation as a way of accenting that which has been disturbed

A typical column grid is installed, sans the ones that would interrupt the crafted fragments. What is not real requires no structure or support beyond the faith of the viewer

Floor plates are run through the volume, scattering at the center of intersection to create islands that may or may not be inhabitable

The base volume is fragmented at intersection points, and select pieces are then removed to be developed as the “beyond real” additions

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Speculative Site Render

Fragmented Detail Render

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- Spatial Fragmentations

-05- Falling, Floating Competition Submittal Term : Summer 2023 Site : Unknown Coast Collaboration with Graham Longnaker Competition : Museum of Emotions

Extruded magnificently along a rugged coastline, the Museum of Emotions is an experientially driven conceptual design that breaks convention to evoke instinctual responses. The bold, directional colonnade standing resiliently on the horizon is a visual spectacle in which one finds two opposing ends of the spectrum of emotion terror and serenity. The stages are moulded intentionally, each meticulously designed around a specific atmosphere, one producing a gripping adrenaline rush and the other a blanket of peace and ascension.

A visitor’s first encounter is a tranquil, monolithic elevator door that delivers one to the entry hall. Beginning the seemingly endless path out, they are required to conquer a narrow chamber suspended 150 feet above the harsh, jagged coastline. The walkable spaces are irregular and chaotic, demanding slow movement and deliberate steps while clinging to the edges—a heart-pounding experience intended to produce fear and anxiety at the threat of a Fall to the death. The end of the chamber reveals a pair of hidden stairwells, one on each end, which lead the way to the upper level and relief from stress.

Ascending to the second chamber, a flood of light, warmth, and beauty greets visitors.

An expansive colonnade complements a surreal seascape, emphasizing the daylight and dancing shadows cast by polished materials. Hanging stalactite-style pillars act as a canopy for a shallow reflective pool, in which a stepping stone path appears to lightly Float on the surface of the water. Moving through the throne room-like hall, visitors are offered panoramic views of the boundless sky and lined with scenic varieties of trees. Forgetting all worries and anxiety of the prior hall, visitors can move toward the resolution of the journey at their leisure, basking in the serene atmosphere. At the conclusion of the museum, a full evolution has taken place. Beginning with the frightening risk of plummeting to one’s death and ending with total peace and comfort, visitors are offered an emotional experience like none other.

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Cliffside Entrance View

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‘Negative’ Hall | Perspective Render

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Going Out

The lower level, or the “Going Out” leg of the experience, obstructs all clues to the character of the above level

A thin viewport runs the full length of the tunnel at eye level, allowing a small glimpse of the endless, violent ocean that stretches out on the horizon

Variable length steps are arrayed chaotically along the passageway, open to a terrifying fall below

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- Falling, Floating

‘Positive’ Hall | Perspective Render

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Coming Back

The upper level, or “coming back” experience gives not view down at the lower level, only outward and upward

An almost royal colonnade frames the sky, a series of beautiful trees, and the ocean between ornate marble columns. Visitors can step to the side and meander their way down the hall, pausing for the views

Hanging pillars accent the path, drawing eyes upward and catching the light in an elegant and magestic dance

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- Falling, Floating

-06- Gestural Pavilion Course : ARCH 202 Term : Spring 2022 Instructor : James Kerestes Site : Unspecified

Inspired by large scale steam-bent timber projects, this wood pavilion design is a blend of structural engineering problem solving and social engagement with the community. Programmatically it is designed to be a small outdoor performance space for the arts, creating opportunity for community events and gatherings to observe music, performance, artistic expression, and other talent. Formally it reaches out with specific direction, Gesturing toward onlookers and passers-by in a spiral reaching motion.

After initial massing produced a satisfactory form, a workshop was held to run a displacement analysis on it as a standing structure. The analysis revealed excessive stress being placed on the upper central “petal” of the Pavilion, rendering it unbuildable in its current state. As a structural solution, steam bent timber members were utilized to replace the dense, solid wood section. The resulting effect was not only more structurally optimized to bear its own weight, but it created a beautiful effect when the sun raked through the wood members onto the grassy hillside. This was also an opportunity for pairing two different finishes of timber to accomplish a more interesting gesture that offered unique perspectives depending on where viewers were situated.

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Plan Render

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Plan Render

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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Assembly Drawing

Structural Displacement Analysis

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- Gestural Pavilion

-07- Artifact Retrieval Course : ARCH 302 Term : Spring 2023 Instructor : Patrick Danahy Site : Unspecified

This is a series of four high resolution object studies. The logic behind them is the idea of Retrieving details, qualities, textures, formal movement, or materials from Artifacts documented using photogrammetry. The intention could be any of a variety, not all of which are necessarily architectural. The end results, though, are highly detailed, slow rendered images that capture unique qualities and aesthetics.

As an architectural object study, these objects can capture formal movements and spatial qualities in a beautiful art piece that can be referenced as inspiration or exploring different scales and orientations. Sources like interior scans, facade details, or unique ornament can be used in a sculptural workflow that reveals these objects at specific moments. These moments can provoke conversations about new ideas in architecture and fabrication.

Practically, this workflow can be applied for creating printable or millable paneling.

Using the same toolkit of scans and references in subtractive & additive workflow, replicable panels can be developed at extremely high resolution with close attention to ornament and fine detail. This has recently become useful because of the high level of detail possible with 3D printing technologies. This fabrication method adds no cost, and sometimes even reduces it, with the addition of intricately textured objects.

Artistically, these objects are intended to display reference to a specific toolkit developed as a result of a study. The first of four was a precedent study on monuments and statues, highlighting stone sculpture qualities. The second was completed as part of a workshop, introducing interior scans as presented by the winding staircases. The third was an end-of-semester study on indoor-outdoor volumes and opposing material integration. The fourth was an amalgamation of scans from a mural, a glass sculpture, and a heavy copper door, all of which were collected during a weekend field trip. These pieces display architectural qualities in an artistic, scale-less manner that can be displayed as singular pieces or a set of studies for further development.

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Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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- Artifact Retrieval

Ball State Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning

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- Artifact Retrieval