Portfolio
Andrew Thomas Wong Lebanon, NJ
This porfolio contains the design work of Andrew T. Wong
digital photograph independent work
PERSONAL STATEMENT As a young kid, I would often visit my father’s architectural firm in New York City where I would be mesmerized by the process of design, hand drawn sketches and computer generated renderings. The model shop housed the most elaborate buildings I had ever seen, with miniscule details that fed the eye. The office space itself was also unique; white walls and black carpeting, modern and sparse, it was unlike anything I was used to in Clinton, New Jersey. I often flipped through the pages of my dad’s design library, where there were whole buildings made of glass and cables, structures that became wondrous spaces, whose purity and compositions allowed me to drift and imagine myself engaging and occupying them. Throughout my high school career, I have stood out amongst my classmates because of my artistic ability and analytic strength. I am most fulfilled by creative projects that investigate complex questions rather than the simple memorization and reiteration of facts. In addition to my involvement in the arts programs at school, I feel I am set apart from my peers because of my intense passion about architecture and design. Involvement in the arts is uncommon in my school, but that does not deter me from pursuing my goals. Within my high school curriculum, I have strengthened my basic design skills through creative arts courses, such as drawing and ceramics. I also devote significant free time researching, discussing, or engaging in design activity. For example, I have spent countless hours in the school library reading books on art and design, and as a result I have started the foundation for a design education. The librarian has come to know me personally and feeds my interests by setting books on architecture to the side for checkout. This past summer, I also participated in the Introduction to Architecture course at Cornell University Summer College for six weeks, which I found to be a truly enlightening and exciting new experience. The world of architecture and design is one of my most intense passions because design is ubiquitous, a profession for society, and critical to the way we live. Andrew T. Wong
1 pencil on museum board - 9” x 11 1/2” Drawing IV classwork
2 pencil / colored pencil on paper - 6 1/2� x 8� independent work
3 pencil on paper - 9� x 12� independent work
4 pencil on paper - 34� x 42� independent work
5 pencil on paper - 8� x 10�
Cornell Summer College class work
6 pencil on paper - 4� x 6�
American History individual project
7 ink on paper - 8” x 15” Drawing III classwork
8 pencil on paper - 8 1/2� x 11� independent work
9 clay ceramics with glazes Ceramics II classwork
10 basswood model - 13” x 3 1/2” x 3” American History individual project
11 digital photograph independent work
12 digital photograph independent work
13 chipboard model / Sketchup 3D model
AIA NY Summer Introduction to Architecture
14 paper model - 4� x 12� independent work
15 chipboard and basswood models - 4” x 4” Cornell Summer College classwork
16 chipboard and basswood model - 4” x 4” x 4” Cornell Summer College classwork
17 pencil on paper (with photoshop effects) - 26� x 40� Cornell Summer College classwork
18 chipboard model / pencil on paper - 21” x 28” x 8” Cornell Summer College classwork
enlarged cross section
enlarged cross section
concept sketches
plan
longitudinal section
site section
exploded axonometric interior study sketches
19
pencil on paper (with photoshop effects) - 26� x 40� Cornell Summer College classwork
final model
final model
final model
19 chipboard and basswood model
Cornell Summer College classwork 12” x 19” x 21”
final model
concept sketches
20 digital photograph independent work
21 pencil / colored pencil on paper - 4� x 4� independent work
22 acrylic on canvas - 16” x 20” Spanish III assignment
23 charcoal on paper - 18” x 24” Drawing III classwork
IMAGE NOTES 1 Self portrait: This piece is my first self portrait, in which I attempted to portray the idea of thinking while simultaneously investigating the texture of skin. 2 Untitled: This mask-like image uses natural elements to form its expression and dimension. In experimenting with composition and form, the piece illustrates another character when turned upside-down. 3 Study of shoulder bags: this sketch was intended to explore the diversity of fabric and shape. I contrasted the supple materials with bolder techniques such as hatching. 4 Bike: This drawing explores the engineering and detail of the bicycle while exploring composition and circular movement both visually and objectively/ literally/ functionally. 5 Various sketches: These quick studies ranged from 90 to ten second drawing exercises in which volume, light and shadow combine to create space and form. 6 This drawing of a Shoshone Indian site was an imagined setting based on research. It aims to have foreground and background communicate by introducing shape and tone. I find the simplicity of the forms to be provocative. 7 This inkwork investigates spatial perceptions between figure and ground and aims to question the relationships between industrial, urban and rural societies and the dialogue between them. 8 This sketch portrays the progression and experimentation with proportion of the human form. The final form was greatly influenced by the artist Henry Moore, whom I greatly admire. 9 Various clay ceramics: these pieces explore weight, color, texture and shape in the ceramic medium. 10 “The Monitor” ironclad basswood model: this model focused on craftsmanship and use and manipulation of materials. It was an early demonstration of basswood model making. 11 This photograph of auditorium seating focuses on light and pattern to develop a “landscape.” 12 This photograph of my barn plays with proportion and how it relates to the figure (my brother). This barn has a special place in my heart; besides the fact that much of my photographic inspiration stems from here, it doubles as my own dance studio where I have spent countless hours choreographing. 13 AIA introduction to architecture project: this model supplemented with SketchUp renderings incorporated a public gallery, studio, garden space and home. The concept building was to be placed in Petrisiono square in SoHo. The smaller side of the building corresponds to the skinny point of the triangular lot which increased publicity to the gallery space. The opposing side was intended to hold a more private component; the home and garden.
14 This paper model evolved from a series of paper lamps. In this exercise I aimed to create a fluid form with a biological connotation. 15 This bas relief and other model intended to address rotation through point, line, plane and volume. The gridded model adds logic and demonstrates the progression of rotation. 16 This basswood cube followed the bas relief exercise where the idea of rotation was further developed. The matrix documents singular movements in various scales to illustrate the complexities of rotation in a defined space. 17 This technical drawing of a threader defines the tools key aspects and functions. The tool has a shifting upper plate that calibrates according to the necessary drill bit. I drew cross sections of the tool as it twists through space to discover its path and component complexity. 18 This model was a “vessel” for the threader tool. The model and concept were inspired by piston movement in an engine block. The internal triangular volumes aim to reveal the logic behind the model and ultimately house the tool in a custom nodule. The sketches show other proposed concepts as well as sections describing the movement and language. 19 These drawings and subsequent final model were conceptualized on the basis of a “cliff dwelling.” The main idea was to create a logic in which rotating volumes were defined. The ribbed landscape is necessary when introducing the logic of the frames, and how the frames define specific individual undulating volumes that amass to a greater space. The technical drawings illustrate various spaces and their relationships to the site while the various sketches show the conceptual process and other proposed designs. 20 This photograph is of my father’s tractor. Instead of addressing the vehicle frontally, I examined the profile which lent an interesting interaction between the bulb, grill, and surrounding space. 21 This pencil and colored pencil drawing utilizes the tools of drawing as the subject matter. 22 This painting is a masterwork study of one of Joan Miro’s earlier pieces titled “The Peasant” (1914). The piece is highly provocative and vivid. The sense of color and abstraction makes this piece unique and powerful. 23 This charcoal drawing is a masterwork study of Gentileshi’s “Judith beheading Holofernes” (1611). The original painting has been one of my favorites. With similar lighting and emotion as Carravagio’s work, it was exciting to use a totally different medium while attempting to keep the paintings power and vigor.