TM Peterson Architectural Design Portfolio 2022

thomas-mark peterson virginia tech school of a + d m.arch 2024

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how do you start the search? how do you wonder? how do you show depth? these pages document a semester of graduate architectural education in the fall of 2021 - an accumulation of a lifetime of questions. they are the distillation of multiple sketchbooks, projects, conversations, photographs, drawings, phone calls, silhouettes, ponderings, coffees, films, lectures, etc. each page reads as a poem, a provision of what was then, now.

studio

structure + form the octagon is a shape of in-betweens; a circle yearning to become a square, a square that is not yet a circle. a shape found to be sacred in geometry. the intersection of form was constructed using only the tools of geometry: a straightedge and compass. only two sheets of paper were allowed in order to create a perfect joint. the intersection of structure was constructed as a study of force giving form to material. it is a juxtaposition to the purity of form.

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union of forms how do you find beauty in the mundane? three ordinary forms were nestled within each other in order to create a new unified form. drawings were made to study the interstitial space between the forms as well as the unified space.

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page + 3 folds

design is a process of working between the flat and the fold. flat sheets of bristol paper containing various groupings of drafting dots were folded three times. each fold gave a greater understanding into the material’s sensibilities and desires.

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intersection how do you reveal an object? drawing has become an integral tool and teacher. construction lines, smudges, and erasures allow oneself to see the reality of the past while pursuing the true, good, and beautiful. it is a way to materialize the unseeable and the unspeakable.

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waltz

how does it meet the ground? a single plan was continued, rotated, and translated as both a compositional study and inquiry into the interpretation of movement found in new forms.

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space/time how do you search for the unexpected? models were photographed in a formal manner until an unshakeable urge from the camera was acted upon. long exposures were then informally improvised by gesturally slicing through the subjects with the camera. the result gave rise to new and beautiful forms, each comprised of the same objects yet in separate points of time and space.

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design + build

what is the minimum condition for beauty? a materials bank was designed in order to respond to excessive waste of materials for architecture students. the materials bank will be built by 9 students in virginia tech’s burchard hall in the spring of 2022. a rational system of concrete columns was deemed appropriate for the design as a conversation between the materials bank and burchard hall. storage is maximized through wall space and a rear area to be managed by students.

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what are your rhythms? what is your breadth? what fuels the fire?

independent works

soli deo gloria, studio krakow, 2019 20

(um)bauhaus, studio krakow, 2019

screenprint studio kraków is a guerrila screen-printing workshop and poster exhibition with the umbau school of architecture. during this time, educators, architects, and artists regain creative confidence and recognize krakow, poland’s rich history of utilizing posters as a vehicle for public conversation around the genuine needs and aspirations of society.

(um)bauhaus is a homage to the bauhaus centennial in both subject and process, as well as scientific investigation into entropy. entropy is the lack of order or predictability; the gradual decline into disorder.

soli deo gloria is a contemplation of what it means to fight for the true, good, and beautiful. inspired by the works of sister corita kent and johann sebastian bach.

cut paper shapes were dropped at a constant height and velocity above a sheet of paper. the falling shapes gave rise to the composition of the screenprint. beginning with orderly constants, we observe the universe tend towards chaos before our eyes.

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biomimicry wax worm triptych is meant to draw attention to the utilization of galleria melonella larvae as a solution to the plastic pollution epidemic. the larvae possess bacteria that aid in the decomposition of polyethylene terephthalate into ethylene glycol: a biodegradable substance. the enzymes and bacteria responsible for plastic degradation can be isolated and applied in a domestic setting as a “plasticcompost-container” or in an industrial recycling center.

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wax worm triptych, 2020

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turning the gem, 2020

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photography turning the gem is an exploration of the idea that reality, humanity, the self, etc. can all be equated to a multifaceted gem in which light enters, refracts, and behaves in varying ways among its environment. there is no right way for the light to behave, it only is. the series is an attempt to photograph a single sculpture from many perspectives across its urban landscape in norfolk, virginia.

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words scribble poems is a published collection of poems and photographs. it is a quiet defiance an experiment in form & beauty an encouragment to others to share their own story.

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scribble poems (cover), 2020

scribble poems (excerpt), 2020

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THE MANIFESTO 1. Be UNREASONABLE 2. Be THOUGHTFUL 3. Be a POET 4. Be a WARRIOR 5. Be FAITHFUL 6. Be a JOKER 7. Be a FRIEND 8. Be RAW

thank you thank you