LU ZHANG PORTFOLIO
INTERN Expand my knowledge of construction technique and event organization. Streetcar Department, City of Cincinnati August, 2014 - current Visited construction sites twice a week, recorded progress, attended construction meetings and drafted monthly streetcar construction report. Creativity in the Urban Environment.
LU ZHANG Placemaker + Infographer
SUMMER STUDENT
GRADUATE
Enhanced my overall design skills and pushed myself to think outside of the box. [IN]LAND Summer Session (Landscape Architecture) University of California, Berkeley July - August, 2014
Expand the scope of my knowledge and gain professional experience.
Created and Installed an interactive public art display made from a used shower head to emphasize depersonalization.
929.249.6088 r e b e ccz g @g ma il. com 3231 Bishop St. Cincinnati, OH 45220
Waterfront Estuary Park that centered on a large scale gear connecting various public amenities.
A
Designed urban picnic areas, meandering walks and an express bus station to Berkeley BART subway station.
Current GPA: 3.78 / 4.0 | 2013 - 2015 scholarship and assistantship recipient
August, 2013 - current
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Applied Geographic Information System (GIS) methods to complete a Greenbelt town land analysis and a suitability analysis for future development.
B
Led a team to innovate a park experience network and propose an associated park management committee on connecting stakeholders for future Burnet Woods redevelopment.
coordinated internationally, successfully marketed concepts. S.P.I LANDSCAPE GROUP, Shanghai A top 10 Chinese landscape architecture team specializing in luxury residential complexes July, 2012 – July, 2013 15 employees in one year.
Working with Mayor’s immigration task force to seek an additional funding source-immigrant investment (EB-5) for Over-the-Rhine urban revitalization.
Integrated the marketing goals and architectural designs into the corresponding landscape architecture concepts. assigned tasks to teammates.
GRADUATE ASSISTANT ArcGIS AutoCAD Sketch-Up 3ds Max Photoshop Illustrator InDesign Premiere English Chinese
LANDSCAPE DESIGNER/COORDINATOR
Developed skills in teaching, communication and creativity. College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP), University of Cincinnati August, 2013 - current
Coordinated with U.S. Element Design, S.P.I and the local developer for the Harbin Wetland Project.
Projects Assisted with AutoCAD and the site planning studio. Create infographic diagrams (Illustrator) and a booklet of summer studio outcomes (InDesign) for future planning department promotion. Coordinate the student exchange program between DAAP and Beijing Jiaotong University (Beijing, China).
2015
2014 MASTER OF COMMUNITY PLANNING College of DAAP, University of Cincinnati
Conceptual design of Wanke Guiyang shopping street (commercial); Schematic design of Nanjing Shimao Bond New City (residential); Conceptual Plan of Harbin Wetland Development (resort); Design of Nanjing Baixia Municipal Green Belt (park)
2013 PRACTICE SUN&PARTNERS GROUP
Urban Picnic
01-02
Net
Greenbelt
town
Suitability
Commercial
Residential
03-05
06
07
08
09
analysis
street
design
DESIGN ASSISTANT Trained professionally, worked in teams, and established an international perspective. Turenscape, Beijing An award-winning international team specializing in sustainable planning July, 2011 – March, 2012
Excelled academically, studied abroad, and participated in various extra-curricular activities. Hubei Institute of Fine Arts, within a Top 8 China Art and Design School August, 2008 - June, 2012
Led a team to brainstorm alternatives for a hotel redevelopment and was awarded an internship. Assisted in conceptual expression, including artistic sketches, 3D modeling and renderings, illustration diagrams and PowerPoint presentations.
Projects
Plan of Baotou Ecological Park Preservation; Comprehensive Plan of Hong Qi Canal Region
2012
UNDERGRADUATE
Sketch Won an Award of Excellence in the 8th Chinese Landscape Architecture Graduate Works Exhibition put on by top Chinese university, Peking University. Presented on Children and Elder Care as one of eight selected student speakers in a National Symposium. Elected as one of six city student representatives in a 2012 cultural exchange between Germany and China.
2011 PRACTICE TURENSCAPE
Portrait
GPA: 3.68 / 4.0 | 2008-2012 Hubei Institute of Fine Arts scholarship
2010
2009
BACHELOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL ART DESIGN Hubei Institute of Fine Arts
Gouache Oil painting Watercolor Photography Film-making
2008 ART AMATEUR
URBAN PICNIC WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE SOFTWARE KEYWORD
Conceptual Design Downtown Berkeley Bart Station Plaza, Oakland, CA 2 Weeks, July, 2014 Individual work AutoCAD | Sketch-Up | Photoshop | Illustrator The Road Versus the Street
INTRODUCTION Like Baron Haussmann’s Paris and Robert Moses’ New York, many urban forms have been transformed from natural topographies to grid patterns, which celebrates the high efficiency of automobile. Some early modernists believe “Man walks in a straight line” so the modern city lives by the straight line. The roads that do not curve and bend had become the enemy of the small scale streets where human beings actually hang out. Urbanism has been widely abused as a cookie cutter that raises skyscrapers but isolates people. Downtown Berkeley Bart Station Plaza is also within a typical grid form and adjacent to the busy six-lane Shattuck Avenue. In order to fulfill human needs, It had been extended from a narrow sidewalk (refer to the photo of Shattuck Avenue in the 1940s) to a plaza. (refer to the right floor plan)
The future city needs the dense and twisted tangle of the street. - Anna Greenspan
Shattuck Avenue in the 1940s (photo: Berkeley Heritage)
Berkeley Pathways Map (photo: Berkeley Path Wanderers Association)
URBAN PICNIC
Shattuck Avenue in the 1878 (photo: [IN]LAND Summer Session)
Stay time per day
BART STATION BUS STATION EXPRESS
E
D
TREE CANOPY Downtown Berkeley (aerial photo: Google earth)
Cyclist Tourists Bus riders Bart riders Students Artist Vendor Workers Residents Homeless
POROUS PAVEMENT GRASS CHAIR
NARRATIVE
TABLE MEANDERING PATH B
PICNIC SQUARE A
Downtown Berkeley Bart Station Plaza (aerial photo: Google earth)
Diversity Come for the culture, stay for the food. Lack of outdoor dinning & gathering space
Behavior frequency Sleep Drink Perform Sit Wait Eat Stand Talk Walk Commute
+ Behavior observation
BRICK PAVEMENT
BUS STATION BART ENTRANCE / EXIT
Liberalism
+
BLACKBOARD SITTING STAIRS
PLANTER
College Town
C
Urban picnic
This plaza is the largest transit and entertainment hub in Berkeley downtown. It is easy to be energized by the gourmet restaurants with authentic cuisine from all over the world, street vendors with fresh fruits and ice cream, on-street artists’ performance and various stylish pedestrians. However, this plaza is still in a chaos due to the vehicle exhaust emissions and failure of maximizing space for sitting, dining, chatting and relaxing. Picnic is a activity that usually occurs in the nature but here the term “picnic” is associated with “urban”, which leads us to rethink a human-based urbanism. A meandering place is full of intimate rhythms of everyday life. 01
URBAN PICNIC ROADS VERSUS STREETS
NARROW PATHWAY
The coexistence of street chaos and vitality of the plaza reminds me of the old streetscape in my hometown China, where wandering pathways and small gathering spaces that might decrease efficiency but actually are the root of urban vitality. In order to enhance street amenities, I intend to reduce the chaos from vehicle by creating a feature wall with doodle boards.
The plaza is reorganized by three pathways with different widths to serve users’ purposes, such as stroll, jog, transfer and even sleep. The narrow pathways contribute for transforming roads back to human scaled streets and creating small places for intimate gatherings.
NIGHT HOME
URBAN PICNIC SQUARE
Many homeless people live here and seems enjoy the urban atmosphere. Like plaza guardians, they talk to each other and even new visitors. I intend to reconfigure the landscape and provide space for them to live more comfortably.
The plaza is broke into a series of small picnic squares. Each of them serve for either couple intimate friends or a small family group. People can relax on the lawn and watch the colorful “street ballet”. The designed slope and reconfigured lawn surface of picnic square make a comfortable relaxing posture possible. Urban picnic is not a compromise of urban chaos but a adaptation to a denser environment and a more innovative urban life.
A Storefront pathway Width: 6 - 8 ft. Material: the original brick pavement. Functions: a linear path connects all the store entrances and serves as a main axis of the plaza.
B Meandering pathway Width: 2.5 ft. Material: the typical running track texture Functions: the narrow soft path and slope provide a meandering path for people to pass through at daytime and the homeless to sleep at night.
A
Storefront Pathway
B
Meandering Pathway
C Bart & Bus Express Width: 6 ft. Material: the typical running track texture Functions: the express provides a fast way to transfer between the Bart station and the bus station. The doodle boards visually blocks Shattuck Avenue and adds fun to the pathway.
C
Bart & Bus Express
D
Urban Picnic
D Urban Picnic Types: 1. flat surface with a slope; 2. uneven surface Materials: wood, grass and concrete Functions: the area provides two ways to have picnic, which depends on the preferences that users want to sit or lie down. 02
NET
In today’s rapidly urbanizing world, open space such as parks are perceived as vital spaces that offer the much-needed public space for people in cities. With one of the most expansive park systems in North America, Cincinnati is no exception. In recent years, the city has focused much attention on the parks, particularly on the redesign of several parks within urban neighborhoods. On such park in the city is Burnet Woods.
Entry points are not connected through a cohesive circulation entry point.
Nature center; picnic areas; gazebo; trails are unique to park.
W W ho Whereen Trails conditions hy a te may not be Some paths are ? nd rs suitable for hidden in the Is th FLOW everyone. woods or pedes e park restricted by trian friend INFRASTRUCTURE trees. ly? Students; dog walkers; resident cut-throughts; drug users; homeless camps.
the uses Whoils and tra y? Wh
Hospitals; University of Cincinnati; Environmental Protection Agency.
LANDSCAPE PERCEPTIONS
Lake; woods and tree cover; hills and unique to park.
Wh infraosowns pa tructu rk re? vis Do ib es ilit la y i ck nt o o f pa rk
Activities are “hidden;” lack of visibility can perceptions.
Structures are underutilized from a programming perspective.
sily Are ities eatilized? Activities are actisvsed & u acce not connected.
held t idelyns abou Do w eptio perc ? park
In this class, we have interacted with the public in a public presentation setting, make presentations, and learn how to gain feedback. The major deliverables of this workshop are site mappings, user surveys and interviews, major issues analyses, stakeholder interests diagrams, and strategic framework plans.
university side.
Trails are used by a variety of groups; may not necessarily be used in manner intended.
community’s idea of the park.
Gazebo lacks formal programming, which encourage alternative activities.
Is in fr inteusedastruc nde in it ture dm s ann am er? en ne i tie ar by s pa rk s?
INTRODUCTION
Some points are not visible and inviting; lack of trails and infrastructure on south side of
s the at claim m wh Whoand froaway? parrkoximity p
SOFTWARE KEYWORD
PLAN-MAKING Workshop Burnet Woods, Cincinnati, OH 8 Weeks, Nov. - Dec., 2014 Michelle Brzoska, Ellen Deatrick (2 Weeks) Zhenxuan Yin, Jiangcheng Hao Ruoxi Yang (6 weeks) AutoCAD | ArcGIS | Photoshop | Illustrator Experience network & park management
Unique amenities and natural lands and natural
D in insto ne t e th raitu arb e p ct tio y ar w ns How d k? ith signa oes ge of the park?
WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE
Individuals age 15-34 dominate block percentages around park; People within Clifton, Avondale, Corryville, & CUF neighborhoods identify with park.
No designed “hint” in landscape to point towards location of activities.
ownership of park roads and paths may comes to designing park.
parking sign-age Topography limits views into and out of the park; tree cover also limits such views.
enter park & for what purpose. Inconsistent, unclear, & lack of sign-age negatively
DONUT DIAGRAM The right diagram presents the correlations of issues related to our main concerns - flow, infrastructure, landscape and perception, which is based on a group brainstorming with Brzoska, Deatrick and Yin. Each question (on the inner grey ring) is answered according to the four concerns. The donut diagram with multiple rings is not a static mode. Each ring can be rotated to create a new correlation for identifying the most important issues.
Perceptions of Lack of inviting sign-age negatively
Obstructed views may contribute to perceptions of fear, uneasiness.
crimes may discourage some people from visiting the park.
03
NET DONUT DIAGRAM OUTCOME FIVE ISSUES
1 Some entry points are not visible & inviting. 2 Crime may discourage some people from visiting park. 3
signage, and lack of
4 The substantial tree cover is a unique element within the nearby park system that should be protected.
METHODOLOGY
MANAGEMENT
An ideal 60*60 ft grid pattern representing a series of identical comfort zone is applied on the site. Each node/dot stands for a potential location of attractions. Based on the grid, the initial location is slightly changed by the existing condition and the movement of a park spine - a main experience path, however the series of comfort zone still remains with a different shapes. In this way, the experience is affected by those attractions. A series of visual implication of safety and amusement is created to break the feeling of danger. The attractions are categorized into primary, secondary and tertiary. The primary is permanent structure or space with programmed use. The secondary is permanent structure or space with temporary programmed use. The tertiary is temporary installation without programmed use. In this method, the park is mainly connected by a experience network, which creates a new fabric of Burnet Woods.
ACTION FRAMEWORK
5 Activities are “hidden;” lack of visibility can
NARRATIVE An urban park serves as a physical bonding that encourages social interaction. As urban park at the heart of Uptown, Burnet Woods is surprisingly underutilized and poor-maintained. The geographic disparity of uses is critical to park’s performance. The underutilized areas psychologically imply danger, which exaggerates the negative part of the park. However, actually it is a hidden gem lacking of recognition. Therefore, We plan to activate this park by creating a series of comfort zones, which increases the public participation in both purposeful and purposeless activities. As known, an experience of a space is strongly affected by an individual mindset. We expect, walk, enter, look, feel, touch, smell, listen, and perceive. The experience ends up can be amusing, satisfying, or boring and disappointing. The goal is how we can intervene an experience to create more comfort zone and obtain a positive perception.
04
NET Attractions Map Burnet Woods, Cincinnati, OH (aerial photo: Google earth) Please contact me if you are interested in a package of renderings for the tertiary attractions.
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GREENBELT TOWN WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE SOFTWARE KEYWORD
Physical Analysis Greenhills, OH 4 Weeks, Feb. - Mar., 2014 Lydia Yen, Sara Woolf ArcGIS | Photoshop | Illustrator Land Use, Zoning, Historical Evolution and Suitability Analysis
HISTORIC EVOLUTION
HOUSING AND DENSITY
MAPPING Historical Growth Patterns
INTRODUCTION The village of Greenhills, Ohio is one of only three “Greenbelt Towns� in the United States. To this day, the village has retained a greenbelt area which surrounds the village. The population density is attributed to its roots as it was one of the planned communities that was established by the United States federal government during the Great Depression. From this graphic above you can see the evolution of Greenhills, Ohio as the post-war population moved back and sought suburban lifestyles, the suburb of Greenhills changed dramatically. As part of the analyses for Greenhills, we examined the urban form, population housing density, current land use and zoning, and neighborhood form through time.
By the 1980s forward the population has fallen to be more synonymous with the surrounding communities. Unfortunately the area in general, including Greenhills, has decreased since the 1980s. (United States Census Bureau.)
PERSPECTIVE The lollipops and loops individual farmlands in the thirties to subdivision housing in the outer rims of the community. Against the motto of the city, this also meant that the community expanded into the green area.
Existing Zoning
EXISTING LAND USE
Existing Land Use
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SUITABILITY ANALYSIS WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE SOFTWARE KEYWORD
Physical Analysis Whitewater Township, OH 4 Weeks, Mar. - Apr., 2014 Lydia Yen, Sara Woolf ArcGIS Suitability Analysis & Priority Development
INTRODUCTION
We examined a semi-rural area in Whitewater Township, Ohio. Whitewater Township is located northeast of the City of Cincinnati, and has the potential to incur suburban growth in the future. We focused on a 1 mile by 1 mile square area, which was chosen arbitrarily. Within this area, we completed a simple suitability analysis. The suitability analysis allowed the students to determine the future development potential of the chosen area.
Contour Lines Elevation
Slope
COMPOSITE SUITABILITY ANALYSIS
The determination of the best possible location to build a community would preferably be for conservation and single-family residential sub-divisions. In order to protect these environmentally sensitive areas and the natural beauty of undeveloped lands, we were interested in sub-dividing the land northeast of our selected site so as to not itability analysis map. Moreover, the land in the northeast is characterized by soils with high limitations for development and minimal slopes (0-10%), making development easier and cheaper to construct.
PRIORITY DEVELOPMENT less desirable in blues, with the very least desirable areas in lighter shades. These areas tend to agglomerate around the area where the river splits into smaller streams towards the southwest corner of our selected area. The location of these highlighted areas in addition to value composites taken from the previous maps, has helped us determine that the further away from the streams, the slight slope of the land, and the soil composition make the northeast corner an ideal development site. Hydrology
Slope
Soil Type
Value
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COMMERCIAL STREET WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE SOFTWARE KEYWORD
02. Landmark
01. Feature Wall
Conceptual Landscape Design Guiyang city core, Guizhou province, China 2 Weeks, July, 2012 Xiaochen Ma, Fei He Photoshop Commercial, Landscape and Street vibrancy 09. Trellis
INTRODUCTION The site locates at the intersection of Changjiang Road and Zhujiang Road nearby a light rail stop, which provides citizens convenient transit accessibility towards this commercial street in Guiyang city core, Guizhou province, China.
GOALS outdoor environment. A discovery and vibrant pedestrian space encouraging people to interact.
Opportunities: It is accommodated by a health care centers,
A green oasis full of diverse species, colors and seasonal changes.
banks. It takes 8 minutes walking to Guiyang No.25 High School and Guiyang Kindergarten. It takes 10 minutes walking to Walmat and Suning.
A lighting system building interactive and changeable night experience.
Constraints: Streetscape is too simple and wild to be
A variety of seating options in both shadow and sunlight.
#02 MOSAIC coming from Piet Mondrian’s paintings. The distribution of dots, lines and areas express the emotion and rhythm of landscape architecture. Water features, plants and pavements are all organized by grid pattern. Everything keeps its simple way to give a consistent feeling of the commercial street.
tai-chi, gathering, performance, exhibition and festivals. landscape features.
#01 GAMES BETWEEN LIGHTS AND SHADOWS In order to emphasize the visual senses and time changes of landscape architecture, an interactive multi-media technology is designed in the day. to diversify lighting experience at night and various landscape constructions are designated to
#03 GREEN ISLANDS Scattered green islands make the original rectangular pattern more vibrant and interesting. Curvy walking paths blur the boundaries between the vehicle in a forest.
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RESIDENTIAL WORK TYPE LOCATION TIME TEAMMATE SOFTWARE KEYWORD
Landscape Architecture Xiaguan district Nanjing, China 10 Months, Aug. 2012 - May. 2013 Xiaochen Ma, Fei He AutoCAD | Sketch-Up | Photoshop | Illustrator Community Master Plan & Construction
INTRODUCTION
SPACIAL ANALYSIS
This project is located in Xiaguan district Nanjing, China, in the north of Zhangshan north road, the south of Nantong road, the east of Huiming road, the west of Thangshan road. Yangtze river in the west of this district, which provides a good riverfront view. The ct includes multistory buildings, high rise buildings, commercial buildings and facilities. Multistory buildings are located in the west of this site, and surrounded by high rise buildings. In response to the location, environmental advantage and well-utilized space, we intend to build a high-end community.
RENDERING & COMPLETION
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