University of Waterloo School of Architecture | 2019 - 2024 Torshizi
Selected Works
Hello!
I am a recent undergraduate from the University of Waterloo’s School of Architecture and am seeking a full-time architectural designer position for the fall.
I am passionate about the role of design in justice and quality of life. I believe that when combined with human dignity, architecture can empower and elevate lives.
Here’s a collection of my architectural works. Enjoy!
I am writing this letter in support of Roxana Torshizi. As Roxana’s former employer at our architecture firm, Worrell Yeung, we had the pleasure of having her intern with us for nine months (January 2023-August 2023) and have been consistently impressed by her design talent, work ethic and enthusiasm to continuous learning.
From day one, Roxana was eager to jump in and contribute in any way possible. Given her previous working experience she was very comfortable in the collaborative office environment and presented herself in a very mature manner well beyond her years. During her time with us she worked on a variety of project types and tasks including a farm project in Rhode Island, a loft renovation in New York City, a new weekend house in Upstate New York and a penthouse renovation in New York City. On each project, she consistently demonstrated strong organizational skills and the ability to juggle multiple projects and concurrent deadlines. For the farm project, Roxana was intimately involved in the design process and worked to build an impressive physical model of the campus of buildings that required intense coordination and problem-solving skills to achieve and meet the requirements.
In addition, she worked with the project team to create presentation drawings and renderings. Roxana also worked on several residential projects ranging from conceptual design to drawing through the construction document sets. On each project, she consistently delivered excellent results and it was rewarding to watch her grow and learn from each tasks. Roxana also demonstrated to be a great team player and a very positive and energizing spirit in the office.
I believe Roxana has tremendous potential to be an excellent architect. Her combination of intelligence, design talent, collaborative spirit and self-motivation will continue to broaden her experience and I believe in time, will make a serious contribution to the discipline as a whole.
Sincerely,
Max Worrell, AIA
11 October 2022
To whom this may concern:
Roxana Torshizi’s internship with our studio commenced May to September 2022 wherein she was involved in the phases of predesign, conceptual design and design development of a variety of projects, including planning, multi-unit residential and office design During this internship she exhibited a high level of maturity and thoughtfulness that was much appreciated by myself and our team
Our projects tend to have aggressive deadlines while our work incorporates a high level of complexity and detail. In this context Roxana revealed an impressive work ethic: patience, dedication and diligence. During her work term there were many deadlines and we always knew we could count on Roxana to complete her tasks
Her practical experience includes preparation of conceptual design, design development, computer visualizations and client presentations Roxana’s contribution was considerable and valued. She exhibited a high level of enthusiasm for the craft and theory of architecture and in a team context she was a distinct pleasure to work with.
Please do not hesitate to contact me for further information.
Johnson Chou Principal Johnson Chou Inc.
Skills
Digital
Rhinoceros
Revit
V-Ray
AutoCAD
SketchUp
Adobe Suite
Lumion
Microsoft Office
January 2023August 2023
Manual
Hand drafting
Hand modeling
Hand sketching
Wood working
May 2022August 2022 Experience
Architectural Intern, Worrell Yeung Brooklyn, NY
Actively engaged with the design process using CAD, 3D modeling and renderings to convey ideas to clients and team members.
Effectively used CAD and Adobe software to produce presentation drawings for company website, social media and company portfolio.
Compellingly assembled client presentations and prepared company portfolio to communicate with clients and secure new project prospects.
Meticulously designed and crafted models by hand, and through 3D printing for client and media presentations.
Architectural Intern, Johnson Chou Design Toronto, ON
Intently engaged with the design process using CAD, 3D modeling and hand-sketching to convey ideas to team members.
Attentively used CAD software to produce detailed drawings for permit and construction packages.
Attended project site visits to speak with clients and complete site measurements to gain pertinent information and foster strong professional relationships.
September 2021December 2021
Student Designer, Rockliff Pierzchajlo Kroman
Architects
Edmonton, AB
Diligently used BIM and CAD software to 3D model and draft preliminary designs and feasibility diagrams.
Actively engaged in preliminary design phase through collaborative discussion, 3D-modeling, hand-sketching and composing site analysis diagrams.
Effectively managed back-end of website and produced attractive drawings to support social media presence.
February 2021May 2021
Intern Architect, Studio Brocca Toronto, ON
Diligently used CAD software to redline, draft, 3D model, and render construction and proposal drawings.
Actively involved in ideation and conception design phase through collaborative discussion, drafting, and hand-sketching.
Education
2019-2024
2015-2019
University of Waterloo School of Architecture Cambridge, ON
Bachelor of Architectural Studies, Honours Co-op (BAS)
Vaughan Secondary School Vaughan, ON
French Immersion Diploma, Honour Roll, Ontario Secondary School Diploma
01 Nature’s Heirloom
The Blair Environmental School is designed with the rare Charitable Research Reserve’s mission at heart: making the world a more sustainable place by making the environment relevant to people’s lives. Located on the rare conservation reverse in Cambridge, Ontario, Nature’s Heirloom is composed of a series of thatched and wooden buildings, scattered on floating on piles, giving an impermanent and infinitesimal feeling in comparison to the vastness of the site. The project aims to bring relevance to the everyday lives of users through A) sensitizing people to the natural environment through big and small architectural moves that account for the topography, trees and swales and B) creating a legacy through a generational collaborative initiative which uses invasive phragmites on the rare site for the thatched structures. Nature’s Heirloom is about celebrating the gifts of nature which are often overlooked, and fostering the narrative that places the environment at the core of human relevance.
Located in the site of the Ex Mira Lanza factory in Rome, Italy, the proposed site strategy can be best understood in two parts; first is the West which focuses more on the immediate residential population, families and asylum seekers and the second which is the East, at the hinge of the site, which marks the beginning of programs that serve the greater site that are centered around the Tiber river, that promote gathering and performances.
The west contains a bar of residential buildings which are backed against the existing towers, maintaining its direct access to Viale Guglielmo Marconi via the alleyways. The placement of the residential at the west perimeter of the site also allows it to include the existing settlements in the abandoned Ex Mira Lanza buildings in the amenities since they create an enclosure with the settlement buildings. The proposed residential buildings are modest in their massing but contain rich living conditions with generous balconies, closed off by moveable glazing partitions to act as a winter gardens and provide a sun filled extension to the units common space.
The site sits in a valley with views from all around, including access from the surrounding roads. The proposal takes advantage of this spectacle condition by placing a market space in the centre to act as the new focal point for the community of residents. The existing site contains informal vineyards created by people in the settlements, so the proposed garden plots for rent allow for a unifying activity that nurtures the site in its people; one that asylum seekers, residents and families can participate in equally. The garden plots are located in a greenhouse that grafts onto the existing Ex Mira Lanza factory buildings and the market is in close relationship with the space for an opportunity to sell produce grown on-site.
The Ex Mira Lanza factory buildings have been readapted to elevate the living conditions of the people in encampments and to create a rich resource centre with classrooms, study spaces and a community kitchen. Grafted onto the Ex Mira Lanza’s north facade is a community kitchen and a coworking space at the fulcrum of the plan’s pivot which draws in people from various backgrounds with different needs.
Supervisor: Beatrice Bruscoli
Collaborator: Falak Nazer
Project: 4A Studio - Fall 2023
The community kitchen carefully mediates between the greenhouse and the market piazza allowing for a symbiotic relationship of growing food and sharing a meal. The existing encampments have been formalized with temporary partitions that hang from the repaired roof. This space is maintained by staff from the resource centre and allows for inhabitants to become exposed to the social aid that would help move them into the proposed social housing.
The north of the site contains a bar of communitybuilding programs. This includes a community centre that breaks off and hinges into a library embedded into the hill of the site, which is regraded to soften the elevational change down to the river, making it more gradual and removing the existing retaining wall. The library green roof extends to create a pedestrian bridge that can be accessed from
the roof or the ground level that goes to the other side of the Tiber River, allowing for university students on the other side of the river to access the sites amenities. The existing site had close to no direct access to the river, so new embedded steps are integrated into the hill, bringing pedestrians close to enjoy the sight of the water and access the walking path. The same stepping language forms an amphitheatre in front of Teatro India to serve as secondary outdoor performance space, which faces the iconic Gasometer, to accommodate larger performances and events and draw in people from the greater site on the other side of the river.
Residential Building Section dd
Typical Residential Floor Plan
View of Market Square, Greenhouse & Residential Buildings
View of Riverside Steps, Library & Pedestrian Bridge
03 The Hospitable Bench
Selected for UWSA Projects Review 2023.
A response to the anti-homeless bench on Main Street. There is a long bench located across from front of Coffee Culture in Galt, Cambridge. From its copious amount of metal armrests and the cold nature of its form and materials, it is clear who it is intended for, and more specifically who it is not intended for. With a large and growing population of people experiencing homelessness, and this location being an essential hub that mediates between the nearby shelters, food bank and the only safe injection site in Cambridge, it is often populated with unhoused people.
There are resources in place in downtown Galt that help to support issues such as homelessness, food sovereignty, drug addiction and more. But how can we address these large issues when every piece of our city is designed to push the most vulnerable populations into the streets and away from our shared public space. The message of the hostile bench is loud and clear, it says you don’t belong here.
In order to begin to combat systemic issues, we need first address the fact that anybody should be allowed to take up space in the public realm and in our city. The Hospitable Bench is a response to the current hostile bench. It does not solve all systemic problems but it aims to bring dignity to the small moments and raise awareness to the larger issues.
A two part project:
1. Strip the existing bench of everything that makes it hostile and replace it with elements that make it hospitable.
2. Create a map that compiles and simplifies the existing resources in Galt, making the information accessible to those who need it and raising awareness to those who are not directly affected, to remove stigmas and nurture compassion.
Hostile design tells you you cannot take up space, hospitable design tells you you can.
Supervisor: Jaliya Fonseka
Project: 3B Studio - Fall 2022
Storage
Exploded Oblique: Modular Construction & Materiality
MAP OF RESOURCES GALT, CAMBRIDGE
LIST
OF
RESOURCES:
1. Cambridge Self-Help Food Bank
LIST OF RESOURCES:
54 Ainslie St S, Cambridge N1R 3K3, ON
2. Trinity Community Table 12 Blair Rd, Cambridge N1S 2H5, ON
1. Cambridge Self-Help Food Bank
54 Ainslie St S, Cambridge N1R 3K3, ON
3. OATC Cambridge Clinic 150 Main St, Cambridge N1R 6P9, ON
2. Trinity Community Table 12 Blair Rd, Cambridge N1S 2H5, ON
4. The Salvation Army 12 Shade St, Cambridge N1R 4J5, ON
3. OATC Cambridge Clinic
5. The Bridges - Shelter 26 Simcoe St, Cambridge N1R 8P2, ON
150 Main St, Cambridge N1R 6P9, ON
6. Argus Residence - Youth Shelter
740 William St, Cambridge N3H 3W9, ON
4. The Salvation Army 12 Shade St, Cambridge N1R 4J5, ON
7. Cambridge Vineyard
147 Eglin St N, Cambridge N1R 5H6, ON
5. The Bridges - Shelter 26 Simcoe St, Cambridge N1R 8P2, ON
6. Argus Residence - Youth Shelter
740 William St, Cambridge N3H 3W9, ON
7. Cambridge Vineyard 147 Eglin St N, Cambridge N1R 5H6, ON
EGLIN ST N
AINSLIE ST N WILLIAM ST
04 Cedar Towers
The Cedar Towers are located on the corner of Queen Street East and Central Park Drive, bringing high density housing, many programs geared towards marginalized populations, and a rich pedestrian experience to the Bramalea City Center. The building programs include retail at grade to help formalize many of the home businesses in the surrounding neighborhoods and provide an affordable space for growth whilst creating jobs to support the local economy. The recreational mass is planted on the ground floor, hinging toward the neighbourhoods, specifically the senior housing, with a lower elevation to preserve views. This also opens up the public square the McKenzie tower and becomes a host to community events. The second floor is a coworking space that supports this cause through programs that address this demographic including skills training, writing centers, speakers series and other resources to help grow independent businesses or re-enter the workforce. The massing and program of the building focuses on the interweaving of “work” and “play” programs to encourage a healthy balance and emphasize the importance of both components and their distinction from the home. The third floor is composed of private offices available for leasing, a community kitchen and a makerspace. The towers are assembled in a series of 4 modules, each containing their own green roof. The towers are broken up to mimic having neighborhood blocks within a high rise tower. In a set of four floors, each module has a continuous atrium and access to a shared green roof to encourage residents to engage with one another in a semi-private outdoor space. By creating blocks with shared green roofs, we avoid isolation from private balconies while still making people feel safe going outside as there is familiarity between residents of the same module block.
Supervisor: Adrian Blackwell
Collaborator: Simar Mangat
Project: 3A Studio - Winter 2022
Bedrooms
Bedrooms
05 The Giving Chair
THE GIVING CHAIR
A chair can be a place to sit
When you want to rest your legs a bit. If you want to lull yourself to sleep Lie on your back and dream of sheep If your arms and legs are a little bit longer, You may need a chair that’s a little stronger. Take it apart and make it a bed, Tie a rope to the front and make it sled. Tie it to a tree and make it a swing, Give it big armrests to feel like a king.
A chair can do whatever you teach it, Only matters where you put all the pieces. A chair can be whatever you please, So bring all your needs and sit its crease. No matter your mood, your muse or your groove A chair can be whatever you choose.
The following are model images and renderings of a residential farm project in Rhode Island, and presentation drawings of residential project in New York. Both projects are in design development phase.
