architecture portfolio

unconvention

project one:dichotomous box

a downtown mixed use buildingfall, 2010

diverse programs in a mixed-use building require the conduction of similaractivities. instead of partitioning activities sporadically among programs, they

could be grouped in common “mixing spaces” and programmatic elements would be dispersed around them, thereby streamlining the actual actions

project two:intersect

university health center + emergency departmentfall, 2011

project three:graft

redevelopment of a suburban lincoln commercial centerspring, 2010

given ever increasing petrol prices, longer commutes, and a more and morepolluted environment, the sprawling tendencies of the 20th century are nolonger desirable. what if instead of building on new ground, we could graft

vibrant program into existing, underutilized urban spaces?

project four:hp

monocoque healthcare partitionsummer, 2012

abandoning traditional frame construction in the healthcare environmentallows for the development of a new typology, where systems and

interface are not only integrated into the structure, they determineits form

unconventioncapitalizing on an intersection of cycling paths used by residents for

recreation and students moving between campuses, an expansion of the university health system becomes a nexus of activity that embraces a broader

idea of health that is not simply reactive, but built on a framework of an active, robust lifestyle

12 min

10 min

8 min

6 min

4 min

2min

2

dichotomous boxdichotomous boxdowntown mixed-use buildingfall, 2010

drinkingtalkingwalkingeating smoking working sittingstudying readingshopping

lounge

shopsgrocery

balcony

balcony

restaurantcafe

lounge

bar

plaza

garden

balcony

quiet space

lounge

balconyofficebalcony

program organization

action group one (public)

action group two (semi-public)

action group three (public)

action group four (semi-private)

action group five (private)

typical activities

typical architecture is traditionally organized programmatically, with similar uses placed in close proximity to achieve “cohesion.” This method, however, ignores the fact that diverse programs may require the conduction of similar activi-ties. Instead of partitioning activities sporadically among programs, they could be grouped in common “mixing spaces” and programmatic elements would be dispersed around them as necessary, thereby streamlining the accommodation of actual actions

action group one

action group two

action group three

action group four

action group five

stretching of key elementsbeyond curtain wall for views

mixing spaces formedaround activities

connection of activitieswithin abstracted “box” shell

retail

grocery

barcafe

convenienceshop

office

mixing spacebecause the mixing spaces function differently than the more typical office and retail spaces spread throughout the building, allowing people to gather freely and adjust the space to meet undefined, spontaneous needs, these spaces must be more open and multifunctional. the mixing spaces require a versatile structural system that can handle loads with few intermittent supports. the mixing spaces are essentally narrow towers built around the service cores, so they can be supported by a diagrid system that can more evenly distribute loads, easily handle lateral forces, and is ingrained with an inherent redundancy, thus requiring only an outer structural skin for support.

graftgraftredevelopment of a suburban lincoln commercial centerredevelopment of a suburban lincoln commercial centerspring, 2010spring, 2010

greenhouse gas emissions by vehicle type

electric utilities

commercialresidential

transportation

industrial

passenger cars

locomotivesother

light trucks

heavy-duty vehiclesboats + shipsaircraft

$45

$60

$75

$90

source: energy information administration 2009 2010

projected

$40

$20

0

$60

$80

$100

$120

1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

the problem

runoff

to salt creek

water flows over imperviouspavement into storm drain

salt creek platte river

missouri river

mississippi river

gulf of mexico

90o

85o

80o

suburban area

rural area

oil prices

urban heat island

our dependence on automobiles has had a devastating effects on our environment.- we

actually use more energy getting to work than we use while we’re there, leading to rapid

depletion of our irreplacable resources, as well as adding heavy pollution to our environment

with only higher oil prices on the horizon, a continued reliance on the car would mean

that simply getting to where we need to be would require larger and larger portions of our

budgets, resulting in a decline in our overall quality of life

as we continually expand the reach of our concrete landscape, our environment will be further afflicted by

problems of contaminated runoff and the urban heat island effect. these problems affect not only our local ecosystem, but have lasting results all over the world

carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions

who is lincoln?

50.2% female31.3 years old

0-4 5-9 10-14 14-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75-84 85+

primary home buying age

1 unit, detached57.2%

1 unit, attached5.9%

2 units4.9%

3-4 units3.7%

5-9 units6.0%

10-19 units8.2%

20+ units11.6%

1970:1528 sq ft

1980:1595 sq ft

1990:1905 sq ft

2000:2057 sq ft

2008:2215 sq ft

family of 2.99people

housing type

median floor size

100,000

200,000

300,000

1970 1980 1990 2000 2008

city population

the average linconite belongs to a family ofapx. with apx. one child

incidentally, most of the population is of prime homebuying age, from young, new families, to empty nesters

looking to downsize

most of these people are looking for single-family homes...

...which are getting bigger all the time!

since the population of lincolnis rising rapidly...

1970 1980 1990 2000

1000 mi

3000 mi

5000 mi

7000 mi

...meaning that people arefarther and farther from

where they need to be

oil crisis distance traveled towork each year

lincoln c. 1950

lincoln c. 1960

lincoln c. 1970

lincoln c. 1980

lincoln c. 1990

lincoln c. 2000

lincoln current

planned commercial + industrial use

projected future residential growth

city growth

...the only way to fill those needsis to grow out.

future planning accomodatesthat trend...

project site

the site:Winthrop and South Stcentral Lincoln, NE

retailofficecommunityvacant

pedestrian pathbicycle path

point three:bicycle station

point four:retail

point twelve:Winthrop Rd, west sidewalk

point eleven:Winthrop Rd, east sidewalk

point one:South St. west entry

point eight:Leon’s

point six:bike path connection

point nine:bike path connection

point seven:potential leased space

point two:South St west entry

point ten:Sewell St

the site is in a condition that does not allow it function asa vibrant urban center. It is littered with vacant lots that lendan air of blight to the area, vast parking lots make the spaceseem less hospitable while impermiable pavement createsrunoff problems, and retailers, dependent almost entirely uponautomobile traffic, fare poorly in low-visibility areas away from South St.

what if we could apply the life-saving power of the graft to architecture?what if we viewed cold, under-utilized areas as wounds to a vibrant city?could we take a more intense, sustainable model, or the best featuresof multiple models throughout the city and graft them onto the wound?

the solution: graft

primary path

secondary path

the western half of the site is less porousbecause bordering yards and retaining wallsforce pedestrians to use the streets

at the southern edge of thesite, bordering an establishedneighborhood of single family houses, plots are smaller

spaces are porous on theeastern part of the site, whereusers can meander in fromthe park

at the nothern end of the site,bordering South St, the scale ofthe building plots is large

where no longer useful,buildings are destroyed

if structures must beretained, glass walls allow path users to see their destinations

by grafting more dense, useful programs into the underutilized paved areasof the site (transplanting parking to garages or on street spaces), the site ispoised to take on a much more vibrant life. meanwhile, site connections ona pedestrian and cyclist scale are reinforced, helping to improve accessiblityand integrate the site with surrounding infrastructure

when a being is wounded to an extent that they can no longer function in a meaningful capacity, they can either be left to die, or they can, with precision surgury, be saved. as long as it still has its roots, the key components that sustain life, a new body can be grafted onto the wound. as time goes on, the two grow together and ultimately it is the foreignattachment that overtakes the scion as the dominant presence

retailresidential

communityparking

two story garage(119 spaces)

underground garage(82 spaces)

on-street parking(116 spaces)

bicycle stationbus stop

new leasable space

remodeled offices

two-story office space

refurbished retail space

Leon’s grocery

ten apartment units

eleven single familyhouses

pedestrian pathbicycle path

intersectintersectuniversity health center +emergency departmentproject completed with nolan stevens,kelsey kamrath, and nicole bridgefordfall, 2011

recreation network

student commuter network+

commuter path

recreational path

by locating the health center at the intersection of two networks of cycling paths (one primarily used by students and one for recreation), then drawing those paths into a junction, the resulting intersection has the potential to become a living hub of social, healthy activity

outdoor social space

integration of healthy activities works in section as well as in plan. while different types of activities may be seperated by floors, connections are designed not only to make moving between areas intuitive, but also to expose users to as much variety of activity as possible, so as to draw them seamlessly from one to another while still retaining the integrity of the spaces. the junctions where these connections occur form hybrid phenotypes, where the behaviors of the environments around it allow limitless possibilities for activity

exploded axonometricfifth floor

fourth floor

third floor

health center to serve students and the mua

a transitional social space that provides access

the other programs contained within the building.

waiting areasdouble-height waiting areas have a view

of the bike path that drops down into the

emergency departmente.d. provides emergency medical

service to the mua and university area

health center

complete dental care for students and the mua

dental clinic

full-service pharmacy with pick-uplocated in the junction

pharmacy

future expansionspace for future needs

unl healthcare studiounl college of architecture’s

healthcare studio

for community education on topics such as preventative health

classrooms

elevated social space adjacentto bike path

bike stop spaceincludes bike racks, access to

parking and bike paths, etc

including a double-height rock wall andglass enclosed work-out spaces

including an elevated running track

second floor

first floor

a destination social space containing a restaurant, coffee bar, social seating and retail

hphpdigitally fabricated high performance partitionproject completed as a research assistant for brian kellywith brent pauba and andru meinerssummer, 2012

2

frame constructionthe traditional structural frame of a partition is at odds with the needs of the systems wedged within it. system components often need to be routed perpendicular to the direction of the frame, corrupting the formal logic and structural integrity of the frame.

monocoque constructionin a monocoque, where there is no internal frame, systems are able to define their own logic. because the structure is no longer dependent on a rigid framework, the systems inside the wall, in tandem with their external interfaces, can begin to define the form of the structure.

chassis constructionbecause the body and the structure are separate entities, not only is the scooter heavier and more material intensive, but internal links must be tightly compressed within small gaps between the two.

monocoque constructionWhen structure and skin are unified, the scooter becomes cheaper to manufacture, more efficient to drive, and easier to ride, while unburdoned cavities in the monocoque allow shorter, more direct linkages.

Vespa LX 150 and GTS 250at a glance, the two Vespas appear nearly identical, but underneath their chic Italian exteriors lay entirely different foundations. whereas the first utilizes a traditional frame chassis, onto which the body panels are applied, the latter is built around a monocoque, in which the structure and the body are one.

the sheer volume of systems that need to be integrated into healthcare partitions often leads to an inefficient, convoluted organization when packed into a traditional frame wall. this project sought to explore alternative construction techniques of monocoque structures to allow better integration of system and skin, while providing parametric control of the body in response to criteria like structural stresses, bifurcation, and air distribution

HINS task lighting perforation

sanitation

monoque sink

healthcare storagemonocoque partition

compact bonecompact bone is the stiff, outer layer of the bone that provides much of a bone’s strength. compact tissue, which makes up 80% of total bone mass, is far denser than cancellous bone, but is porous enough to allow some blood vessels to flow through

task lightingLighting emitted from the partition varies in intensity based on the orientation of the surface, allowing only a small amount to shine directly on occupants while optimally lighting work surfaces

HINS lightingHINS lighting provides a convenient alternative to hand washing for sanitizing skin that may contact the patient

ventilationPerforation in the partition varies in density and size, directing air where it is most needed

cancellous bonecancellous bone is a sponge-like cellular structure that both forms cavities for integral systems and lessens the overall weight of the bone. the porosity and thickness of cancellous bone varies with the structural and functional needs of the bone.

blood vessels wind through the cavities in the cancellous bone. While blood vessels also follow osteons in compact bone, there they constricted to small direct passages parallel to the direction of the bone. Within the cancellous bone, porous cavities allaw free adaptation to particular needs.

blood vessels

by conceiving of the partition as a monocoque, in which the systems and interface are integrated into the skin, the relationship of systems which had previously competed for space becomes less of a problem of organization within the form and instead is embraced as a composing element of the form itself. much like a bone wraps structure around critical blood production facilities, developing different densities to respond to localized needs of strength and lightness, the partition adapts to programmatic and structural needs, allowing it to be optimized for specific conditions.

connectaugmenting the skin’s ability to deal with structural stresses, particularly lateral forces, a ‘poche tissue’ creates a cellular structure within the wall, adding extra strength. like the skin thickness, the tissue reacts to stresses on the wall surface, providing more reinforcement where the wall complexity is greatest.

thickenthe skin of the partition varies in thickness based on the stresses imbued within it, becoming narrow and light where forces are minimal and deeper where the structure is under the most pressure, particularly around folds in the surface.

supportbecause the internal systems can no longer attach to a regular frame, the poche tissue must be able to provide adequate support. this support, however, does not need to be evenly distributed; rather they are attracted to elements within the space, creating more points of connection where they are needed and dissipating where they are not.

LOCATION:

TYPE:

X EXTENTS:

Y EXTENTS:

acute care partition wall

plan

10’

17’10

0’ 5’2’6”