ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO SELECTED WORKS|2019-2024
PRATT INSTITUTE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
Circles, Symbols, and The Infinite Game
: Manifesting an Amphibious City through Participatory World-building Degree Project Seeing Gowanus Residential Housing, Studio 301
Music in the Round Community Center, Studio 302
Interpretando L’ospizio Oggi Asylum Seeker Center, Studio 402 With Büro Ole Scheeren office
PROFESSIONAL PRACTICES:
REFERENCES + RESUME
: Manifesting an Amphibious City through Participatory World-building
Type: Degree Project
Date: 2024
Partner: Olivia Chow
Professors: Adam Elstein & Frank Gesualdi
Given that the world’s ecological crisis of the 21st century is increasingly on the move, it is critical to consider what the global city shows in relation to the sea level rise and the various water crises. The crisis has shifted the focus from the land to the ocean, making the ocean a new frontier for human occupation and activity.
This project unfolds a condition in which a city floats on water. In research of post-capitalism and utopian city topics, we aim to impact the question of what makes an ideal living space, who are the urban planners, what are the social injustices caused by urban planning, and how can urban planning transcend current unjust social divisions?
Using the game board as a planning mechanism, the project shifts from conventional grid systems to the interlocking grid of sacred geometry. This fosters a new urban spatial order that mirrors contemporary society’s openness and dynamism while mediating opposing interests.
Amid the juxtaposition of cultural heritage and encroaching commercialization on prototype site Lamma Island, it emerges as a transformative force, attuning the island’s development to people’s desires. At its core lies a commitment to adaptability and collaboration, employing amphibious architecture to create a future in which coastal communities prosper symbiotically with nature.
Circles, Symbols, and the Infinite Game represent more than a city; It’s a testament to architecture that honors local traditions and empowers communities to shape their built environment according to their needs and values, thus architecture becomes a vessel for collective imagination to perpetuate circles of reinvention and upward social mobility.
In research of post-capitalism and utopian city topics, we aim to impact the question of what makes an ideal living space, who are the urban planners, what are the social injustices caused by urban planning, and how can urban planning transcend current unjust social divisions?
Interrogating the paradoxical nature of late-stage capitalism, we identified the use of sigils as a tool to intervene. In ancient civilizations, sigils were often integrated into architectural designs, making these spaces sacred. Sacred geometries can be seen in these spaces in all cultures. Reviving the ancient practice offers a critique of capitalism’s obsession with productivity, efficiency, and constant stimulation.
The basis of the game board is rooted in the sacred geometry of the Flower of Life. The Flower of Life is a geometric pattern consisting of evenly spaced, overlapping circles arranged in a hexagonal pattern. The interlocking cyclical grid generates new spatial relationships through the extraction of geometry formed by the creation of a sigil, the unicursal hexagram, within the flower.
Lamma Island is an underdeveloped island in Hong Kong with less than 6000 people living there. It becomes the project’s testing ground to strategize the “Game Board”.
We see the history and culture of Lamma Island as a continuous process of change and contest. The new coastal line should not merely be a nostalgic snapshot, but a democratic space that facilitates programmatic transformation.
The water path and elevated pedestrian path formed two structural systems in this floating city, and they generated different spatial relationships within them. Architecture modules are also generated from the same symbol. These modules can serve as residential and market spaces, and further be combined for space efficiency or unexpected juxtapositions depending on the game pieces’ formation.
Embracing rising sea levels, the project employs amphibious architecture to support a future where floating communities thrive harmoniously with nature. Having structures pushed to the sea floor, it enables the architecture to float with the sea level and develop the new urban coastline.
One side starts on the old quarry site and the other on the village area, then gradually connects together with the existing fishing villages to form its own city ecosystem.
The density of the layout of the bamboo structure forms its own wall system or gap for passing through. The individual module allows for privacy while having a shared courtyard space between families. Large space formed by modules acts as platform or landscape for social exchange of ideas and resources. The elevated path extends to streets bridging communities together for neighborhood events.
Circles, Symbols, and The Infinite Game is about the notion of a new mode of urban living that is more equitable and inclusive. It’s a framework that not only supports adoptive reconfiguration but also encourages a level of upheaval. It’s a testament to architecture that honors local traditions and empowers communities to shape their built environment according to their needs and values, thus architecture becomes a vessel for collective imagination to perpetuate circles of reinvention and upward social mobility
Type: Residential Housing
Location: 586 Sackett St, Brooklyn, NY.
Date: Fall 2021
Partner: Ziyang Xiong
Professor: Gregory Merryweather
“Seeing Gowanus” embodies a mixed-use residential project catering to approximately 100 occupants through three distinct unit types, offering shared amenities such as communal kitchens, libraries, a public gallery, and open art studios.
Amidst New York’s shifting demographics, the quest for high-quality yet affordable living spaces and the essence of community becomes pivotal. This endeavor challenges conventional notions of space ownership and the evolving concept of ‘publicness.’ By integrating diverse public programs within the residential structure, the project not only optimizes unit allocation but also fosters stronger connections among residents.
The architectural approach embraces “two means of transparency”: literal and phenomenal transparency. Polycarbonate windows and transparent surfaces facilitate visual connections between spaces, inviting glimpses into studios, libraries, and kitchens. This intentional design creates an environment where spaces intersect, creating an interplay of adjacency and synchronization, fostering increased interaction among inhabitants. This reimagining of the industrial Gowanus area as ‘RE-SEEING’ infuses life back into the community, establishing a vibrant urban fabric.
Modular Home Configuration
Massing Model Process
Diagram
Level 4
-residential unit
Level 3
-residential unit
-gallery
Level 2
-residential unit
-gallery Level 1
-art studios
-gallery entrance
-lobby -atrium
The architectural design embraces dual forms of transparency: literal and phenomenal.
Through transparent polycarbonate windows, residents gain visual access to various spaces within the building, fostering a sense of connection. Whether strolling along the hallway or gallery path, one can peer into studios, libraries, and communal kitchens, blurring boundaries between spaces. This intentional arrangement, where spaces overlap and synchronize, encourages increased interaction and engagement among inhabitants.
Egress stairs and elevators located both side of the courtyard, ensuring convenient access throughout the building. Adjacent streets feature two distinct entrances—one for residents and the other providing public access for gallery.
Strategically positioned, four expansive libraries installed at different levels in the structure, offering inclusive access for all residents.
By relocating kitchens from individual units to shared spaces, ample room was created for installing more units. This not only enhanced affordability but also significantly bolstered the sense of community among residents.
The Green Facade strategy is thoughtfully divided into four distinct categories tailored to various programs: The public gallery boasts a belt of translucent polycarbonate glass, while shading plates and plant containers adorn the units. Shared kitchens are embraced by ivy meshes, and shared libraries feature flowering vines trellises. This deliberate differentiation not only aids in external comprehension of the building’s layout but also signifies varying levels of privacy.
Furthermore, the surfaces of the roof and courtyard serve as the fifth facade, flourishing with verdant growth that seamlessly intertwines across the entire structure. This lush greenery extends onto the roof and courtyard, unifying the building as a cohesive whole. Residents enjoy an immersive connection with nature, encountering vibrant green spaces throughout the building.
Type: Community Center
Location: 300 Beach 62nd Street, Queens, NY, USA
Date: Spring 2022
Partner: Baran Yilmaz
Professor: Leonard Leung
Arverne in the Rockaways faces significant flood risks, with its current elevation merely resting at 7 feet above sea level. The devastating impact of Hurricane Sandy in 2012 further underscored the vulnerability of the area’s infrastructure near the shore. In response, there’s a pressing need to revitalize Rockaways, reigniting community life and restoring the allure of this region.
The Project endeavors to unify the community by tapping into a shared cultural heritage—Black People’s Music. Deliberate attention is paid to the design of each music venue, aiming to accentuate its unique characteristics.
Moreover, it seeks a seamless fusion of interior and exterior spaces, transforming the entire area into a vibrant playground, and inviting people to spend leisurely weekends immersed in its offerings.
African Americans constitute a significant demographic in the Rockaway Beach area, prompting a focused exploration of the rich history of African American music, which forms the bedrock of various musical genres. Our investigation delves into the timeline of these genres, drawing inspiration from their compelling narratives.
Each music genre possesses distinct characteristics, informing our design’s spatial organization.
To honor these unique traits, we’ve curated dedicated spaces: a black box theater for musical theater and film, a dynamic music venue accommodating larger crowds and vibrant performances, outdoor stages for open-air performances, and a space reminiscent of the ‘invisible church.’
The design planned the landscape to complement the architectural layout. The amphitheater gracefully adjoins the expansive lawn, while the music in the round finds its place amidst the serenity of a wetland. The black box theater and music venue seamlessly connect, strategically positioned along the path leading to culinary and education programs. These venues are ideally suited for nighttime events, creating a captivating ambiance.
Type: Asylum Seekers Center
Location: S. Michele, Rome, Italy
Date: Spring 2023
Professor: Federica Vannucchi
“Interpreting L’ospizio Oggi” redefines the historic San Michele building along the Tiber River to forge a renewed bond between the city and its inhabitants, particularly asylum seekers. This project revives the multifunctional essence of San Michele, once a hub for various activities, by integrating asylum seekers into its functioning. It seeks to mend the disconnect caused by urban developments like the Lungotevere road, opening San Michele to the riverbank and the community.
This initiative addresses refugee system challenges by offering a space where asylum seekers live, work, and contribute economically. The design revolves around three key categories: commons, residential, and commercial, fostering adaptable spaces for diverse interactions and identities.
Vertical modules serve as flexible residential and workshop spaces, creating an organic exterior landscape that aids navigation and cultivates unique identities. These modules interact with the building’s core, facilitating a blend of private and communal spaces.
/o-spi-zio/
In the past, a building intended to welcome foreigners and pilgrims, providing them with the necessary assistance.
San Michele was an enormous building complex that accommodated multifunctional facilities including prison, oratory, factories and orphanage. The construction of the building took from 1686 until 1834.
Asylums who lived there will work there as well, in their own way contributing to the building. The goods they produced in the building were sold to different stores in the city. Like the print house mainly produced books for elementary school and the woolen mill produced fabric for the apostolic palace and for the soldiers.
The refugee system is modified every year but still have problems. Most of the EU countries were like welcome to europe and now go home. They could only provide a temporary concentration center but not a long term solution for the asylum seekers.
By providing a place where they could live and work together, they offer economic benefits to the countries they immigrate to. For themselves, economic security&self-accuration.
Derived from the scheme, are 3 main categories: commons/residential/commercial.
The module could serve as residential and workshop spaces, and further, it could be combined for space efficiency in different juxtapositions. The spaces in between could be negotiated between residences based on their identities and desires.
In bringing these to a vertical configuration on san michele’s facade, the design aims to preserve the same dynamics by activating the exterior surfaces of modules as a continuous landscape. They served as a systematic mode for wayfinding that seems organic and allows for unique spatial identities to form.
The continuous surfaces extend to the ground to bridge the community and the city It welcomes people to access it.
Acting as platforms for social exchange, production and reproduction of culture.
Individual modules allow for privacy while keeping an eye on the street by maintaining visual engagement.
Louis Kahn writes in The Rome Letters of 1954 that “the street is a room by agreement, a community is a room dedicated to the city for common use, and its ceiling is the sky.” The future of urban communities is in large part the facilitation of the right to the city, the right to contribute, the right to be recognized for your role in your community regardless of where you come from.
with Büro Ole Scheeren
Type: Headquarter Complex
Client: JD.com (Joybuy)
Location: Shenzhen, China
Design Stage: Preliminary Design
Type: Commercial Mall+Office Building+Hotel
Client: China Juji Investment Co., Ltd.
Location: Shijiazhuang, China
Design Stage: Design Development
Type: Office Building
Client: Tenova
Location: Shenzhen, China
Design Stage: Schematic Design
Type: Commercial Complex
Client: Hua Run (China Resources)
Location: Beijing, China
Design Stage: Concept Design
References: Adam Elstein
aelstein@pratt.edu 917-842-7019
Frank Gesualdi fgesualdi@studios.com 212- 865-7335
Mitesh Dixit m.dixit@domainoffice.eu (+44)7438-196237
Federica Vannucchi fvannucc@pratt.edu (+39) 331-7815891
Büro Ole Scheeren | Architecture Internship
MAY-AUG 2023 | Beijing, China
Contributed to 4 complex projects at different design phrases.
• Designed atriums and facades for commercial complex
• Researched for concept design
• Prepared clients presentations and office design manuls
• Produced AutoCAD drawings for floor plans, elevations and sections based on rhino models.
Lost Pattern | Art Director SEP-DEC 2021 | New York, USA
• Developed and executed creative concepts for advertising campaigns.
• Photographed and retouched product images to create high-quality visual.
• Collaborated with clients to ensure cohesive messaging and branding.
Pratt Manhattan Gallery | Gallery Attendant AUG-DEC 2022 | New York, USA
• Curated the exhibition spaces and art handling art pieces,
• Gave tours to optimize guests’ experience.
Mounted Paper | Graphic Designer
JUN-AUG 2021 | | Shanghai, China
• Designed logos, wall papers, and lookbooks, boosting marketing sales by 2.2x for this fine furniture brand.
HouDao Education | Marketing Coordinator
MAY-DEC 2021 | Sydney, Australia
• Implemented campaigns to promote products and services.
• Maintained and cascaded educational materials, guidelines, event information and allocation information to retail and PR teams.
• Created and published social media content everyweek that reflects the organization’s mission.
Email: jiangzhang404@gmail.com
Phone: (+1) 347-820-4855
Website: jz.hotglue.me
EDUCATION
Pratt Institute
Bachelor of Architecture AUG 2019 - MAY 2024 | Brooklyn, NY
AWARDS
Pratt Institute President list-2021,2023
Rome Scholar-2023
Merit-Based Scholarship-2019-2024
SKILLS
DESIGN
Rhino / Revit / AutoCAD / Grasshopper / GIS / Photoshop / Illustrator / Indesign / Lightroom / After Effects / ProCore
MEDIA
Enscape / Vray / Microsoft Office
Videography / Photography / Motion Graphic / Animation FABRICATION
CNC / 3D print / Laser Cut / Hand Model
LANGUAGE
English, Mandarin Chinese.