Landscape Architecture Portfolio - Tima Farhat

Tima Farhat landscape architecture portfolio Beirut, Lebanon 2022

‫ﺗﳰﺎ ﻓﺮﺣﺎت‬

Fresh Graduate - American University of Beirut Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences - Landscape Design and Ecosystem Management Class of 2022

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Table of Contents

The Tapestry: Saadnayel - Renewing the Connection Between People & Land

capstone project - 2022

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Capstone project that tackles the area of Saadnayel in Bekaa Valley - Lebanon from the socio-cultural/ ecological view.

Saadnayel - Bekaa - Lebanon

Coastal Ecologies of Chekka - Natural Landscape Design Studio

Spring 2021

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fall 2020

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july 2020

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Re-thinking the industrial aspect of Chekka, and exploring connections between the land and sea through remediation design ideas, and through dissolving the current industrial disconnectors to become social connectors.

Chekka - Lebanon

Pockets of Memory - Urban Design Studio Creating emotional spaces of memory for the residents of the neighborhood affected by the Beirut blast Beirut/ Lebanon

AREC: The Tannour Design and construction workshop - AREC AUB/ Bekaa/ Lebanon

Extra: Selected Work Selection of drawings/ collages/ graphics/ models.

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The Tapestry: Saadnayel - Renewing the Connection Between People & Land

capstone project - 2022

Project Statement Saadnayel is a village that is representative of Bekaa towns, in its social dynamics, demographics, morphology, and all of its complexities. Agricultural lands have decreased in area and importance to the people; and the Berdaouni river is currently disconnected from the inhabitants of Saadnayel, as it lost its past state of being a healthy water body for its people.

Saadnayel displays a certain dichotomy, where its main street shows a semi-urban fabric character as it is commercially used, and acts as a passage route from significant areas. Whereas its inner town is unseen and preserves some of the rural character.

Saadnayel’s remaining landscapes are in need of preservation, and with the current crisis in Lebanon, the residents of Saadnayel are nostalgic to a historical socio-cutural village character, and long for a sustainable living.

Thus, the aim of this project is to reinstate agricultural and socio-cultural values in Saadnayel, through creating connections from the core village towards the Berdaouni along the agricultural lands, and ending with a new “saha” for Saadnayel along the river, and surrounded by agriculture

The Mosque ‫اﻟﺠﺎﻣﻊ‬

The highway ‫اﻟﺸﺎرع اﻟﻌﺎم‬

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The Saha ‫ﺳﺎﺣﺔ ﺳﻌﺪﺎﻧﻳﻞ‬

The agricultural fields ‫ﴱﻞ ﺳﻌﺪﺎﻧﻳﻞ‬

Different landuse typologies along Saadnayel Residential Small houses/buildings for Saadnayel Locals

The urban sprawl along Saadnayel’s agricultural lands is shown in these exploded axonometrix views; showing the different landuse that took over.

Residential urbanization was the most evident along the agricultural lands, as more people started building on their or others’ agricultural fields; informal tented settlements as refugee camps are also present mostly along the Berdaouni river. Some industries are placed along the fields in proximity to the river.

Informal tented settlements Tented refugee camps for Syrian refugees

Commercial Commercial buildings (shopping stores, grocery...) along the

Buildings and houses taking over agricultural lands

Industrial Industries along the fields and near the river edges

Agriculture The agricultural fields distrubuted in between the urbanized area

Informal tented settlements taking over agricultural lands

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Historical Timeline of Saadnayel Lebanese refugees

Nationalists & supporters of Palestinian resistance

1840s - 1860s Ottoman Rule A trainstation was installed as part of the railway passing through Bekaa

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1948 The Palestinian Nakba Saadnayel hosted displaced palestinians after the Israeli invasion

1993 Israeli invasion Saadnayel hosted displaced Lebanese refugees fleeing the Israeli assaults in the South

The events that Saadnayel whitnessed allowed it to reach its demographic and landscape states today; with the agricultural lands, the polluted river, and the town spaces such as the trainstation space, the railway traces left, the open spaces... as well as a diverse community containing residents from different nationalities residing on different landscape conditions of the town

Agricultural lands were put up for rent for refugees per tent or per plot for an organization

2010 Expansion of urban areas, and of unproductive/scurb lands

2002 Agricultural Prosperity Agricultural practices took over the Bekaa Valley

Agriculture started to lose some of its value for the residents, and as a providing landscape element

2011 Syrian War Displacement of Syrian refugees towards the Bekaa Valley

0.5 km 1 km

2 km

2017 artificial areas agricultural lands woodlands grasslands unproductive scrublands water bodies

Syrian Refugees

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Masterplan of Saadnayel

Seasonal vagetable crops with crop rotations

The Weekly Souk Re-envisioned

Fruit tree orchards beginning at the core village and towards the river

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Fruit tree lanes as connectors 4

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Wheat/maize/barley crops with crop rotations

The Agricultural Plaza

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‫ﺳﻮق اﻟﺴﺒﺖ اﻟﺠﺪﻳﺪ‬

The Weekly Souk Re-envisioned

The newly re-envisioned Souk is developed into a social space that brings together all the agricultural harvest and people on a weekly basis.This space includes plenty of functions that bring back the people closer to their traditions in agricultural processes. It has spaces that display the processing of some harvest (onion, garlic hanging...), and it also features interaction with water and the fruit trees.

selling the agricultural produce

integration of the fruit trees from the fruit tree network and orchards

displaying the process of garlic/onion drying

seasonal water storage and play

vegetable markets

continuation of the water canals

people get together on a weekly basis

Fruit trees

harvest processing

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Softscape and hardscape strategy

The Agricultural Plaza Plan

‫اﻟﺴﺎﺣﺔ اﻟﺠﺪﻳﺪة‬

The Community Orchards The Greeting Parking ‫ﻣﻮﻗﻒ اﻟﺴﺎﺣﺔ‬

‫ﺑﺴﺎﺗﲔ ﺳﻌﺪﺎﻧﻳﻞ‬

The Refuge Playgrounds ‫اﳌﻠﻌﺐ‬

Cherry Trees - Prunus Avium green cobblestone Apple Trees - malus domestica

Persimmon Trees - diaspyros

Pear Trees - pyrus gravel surface

The Nomad Space ‫ﻗﻠﺐ اﻟﺴﺎﺣﺔ‬

wheat/maize crop rotations

Populus Tree - populus concrete bridge

Sunflowers

wetland plants

The Sunflower fields ‫دوار اﻟﳩﺲ‬ The Bekaa Valley miniature mounds ‫اﻟﺘﻞ‬

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The overlooking Terraces ‫اﻟﺠﻠﻮل اﳌﻄﻠﺔ‬

10 m

20 m

The Agricultural Plaza Film Perspectives

The wheat fields summer

‫ﺑﺴﺎﺗﲔ ﺳﻌﺪﺎﻧﻳﻞ‬

The community orchards and playground

‫اﳌﻠﻌﺐ و اﻟﺒﺴﺎﺗﲔ‬

The nomad space

‫ﻗﻠﺐ اﻟﺴﺎﺣﺔ‬

fall

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Typologies of paths walks in between orchards giving a sense of enclosure and varying

walks within fields of tall crops providing a sense of the Bekaa valley

seasonal experiences

Section - through the agricultural plaza and river

mounds creating a valley experience wheat fields as part of the agricultural plaza concrete benches at the bottom of the mounds

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the nomad space to be activated by the people

mound experience along with the orchard trees and wheat fields

informal walks within the orchards

fruit trees providing various experiences and highlighting the tapestry colors

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Coastal Ecologies of Chekka - Natural Landscape Design Studio Project Statement The was done in pairwork with a student from the Architecture department.The project focuses on coastal ecologies in Chekka and aims to preserve their richness, heal the layers mainly affected by the cement industries and bring the people back to the coast that was once lively.

The project was done over two scales: a macro-scale exploring the large picture and finding general strategies to mitigate the pollution and enhance the social aspect, and a micro-scale that tackles a zoomed-in area where-in it explores the connection between the land and the sea to reach the project’s aim.

In order to do that, the project explores and designs the connection between the land and the sea

Before

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After

spring 2021

Strategies Process

Residential area/ community gardens as an extension of the agricultural lands

Agricultural lands

Wetlands along the river to purify the water and create a buffer zone

Miyawaki Forests

Agricultural terraces to prevent erosion

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Sections showing the activities along the site Social Hub at Coastal Edge

Layered Axonometrics

Natural Strategies Miyawaki Forests and Remediation strategies for the ecological aspect

Social Strategies Bringing the people from the land to the sea through the ecological corridor

Technological Strategies Circulation & Facilities

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Sea/ Coast

Ecological Corridor as Linear Park

Running Track/ Biking Lane

Miyawaki Forests

Land

Typologies of spaces from Land to Sea Winter Spring

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Pockets of Memory - Urban Design Studio

fall 2020

Project Statement Beirut underwent an explosion at its port, which highly affected the port area and neighborhoods around it.

This project intervening on the vacant spaces located in the neighborhoods majorly affected by the blast. After the Beirut Port blast, there was a sense of community among the residents of the neighborhoods near the port, however there was no space provided for this community to get together.

This project aims at providing social and cultural spaces that bring back the intangible memories of communities. The landscapes would act as emotional places of reminiscence, and as ecological enhancements to the city.

Concept Plan The trainstation hub The neighborhood orchards

Urban forests

The community courtyards

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The cultural squares

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800

Zoom in perspective of the communiy courtyards 1

The Community Courtyards Empty plots between buildings

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Public outdoor spaces for the community

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The Community Plaza Empty plots near commercial area Areas for resting/ socialization Art exhibitions for the public

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The Neighborhood Orchards Vacant plots near the port/ highway

The Narrow Alleyways Fruit trees that used to be planted in the orachards of Beirut in the past

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The Urban Forests Larger vacant plots near the port/ highway

Forests to bring back the interaction with nature & to enhance Beirut ecologically

In the neighborhood of Mar -Mikhail and other neighborhoods with somewhat old urban fabric in Beirut, narrow alleyways are found between residential buildings, and are often used by pedestrians to get to some of the buildings.

This intervention in the alleyways transforms them into interactive areas for the residents of these buildings.

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The Urban Forests 3 1

Urban forests planted through the Miyawaki Urban forests method, using native plants, and allowing for community participation in the planting of these forests, thus giving a sense of appropriation to the residents.

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The Orchards Fruit Picking

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Orchard walks

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Picnics/ family gatherings

The Cultural Stairs

Providing greenery while preserving the function/mood of the cultural stairs

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Quercus calliprinus - Palestinian Oak

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Cercis siliquastrum - Judas Tree

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Pistacia palaestina - Wild Pistacio

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Laurus nobilis - Bayleaf

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Arbutus adrachne - Strawberry Tree

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Rhamnus Alaternus - Italian Buckthorn

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Arabic calligraphy with notions that bring back memories of 2020 & the explosion

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The Trainstation Hub Public/outdoor cafe & garden for the community

Old trainstation as a vintage commercial store

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AREC: The Tannour

july 2020

This project was done during during a 1 week workshop.

The project was done and executed in group work as a class of 8 students.

The idea was a series of thoughts that finally landed on a “Tannour” area with a pergola for seating and shading.

A “Tannour” is a traditional Middle Eastern bread making oven that is handmade with a mix of material that retains heat (Clay, goat hair, cement....). The project reflects a tradition that is significant to the culture of Lebanon and other Arabian countries. The structure also serves as a functional seating area for the visitors of this area.

The project was developed and executed at AREC (Advancing Research Enabling Communities Center) of the American 18 University as Beirut in 2020.

General Plan & Section Line Stools for seating

Traditional tannour for bread making

Wooden Plank (19.5x60x5.2 CM) for swing

Galvanized steel wires (2mm) To be planted by grape vines

Section 1 - cutting through pergola

Plan & Sections of the Tannour

Section AA’

Tannour Rebars Cement Sand Cement blocks

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Cut plan of tannour

Section BB’

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Extra: Selected Work Collages

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Sketching with Pen

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Collage

Watercolors

Model Making

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