2019 / 2021
Blake Ahart / Portfolio
Contents 01
Mixed-Etc.
1
02
Cinema Parking Garage Addition
21
03
Habiter le Périphérique
33
04
South Broadway Cooperative
45
05
Flamingo Visitor Center
63
06
Travel Drawings
73
Resume
78
2020 Design Excellence Nominee ISSUE ‘21 Publication
Mixed-Etc.
community center & affordable housing
Spring 2020 Advanced Comprehensive Design critic:
Ryan + Stephanie Lemmo
East Austin – specifically the Holly district – is the trendiest and therefore most gentrified part of the city. In these gentrified Austin neighborhoods, there exists a clear differentiation between building types (and therefore occupant types). Single-family homes, large apartment complexes, low-income housing, businesses, public spaces, and cultural centers are easily distinguishable by their respective building typologies. The resulting urban fabric is a disconnected conglomeration of disparate parts that fails to unite residents or establish a sense of identity and place. This disconnect and disparity provoked a focus on ambiguity: the obscurity and fusion of occupants, programmatic function, landscape, and building. The site’s awkward shape – a product of recent urban developments – encourages a looser planning approach that
subverts its gridded context. This proposed intervention synthesizes some of the community’s best assets into a single complex – as an architectural and civic space that supports all members of the community. Mixed-Etc., an experimental adaptation of the typical mixed-use development, encourages commingling between residents, neighbors, and Austinites to undermine the city’s deep-rooted socioeconomic and racial hierarchy. Equity, accessibility, and a communal sense of spatial fluidity are at the heart of this design. In blurring the rigid (often rectilinear) lines that divide us, this destination-like complex provides longtime East Austin residents and new residents alike with space to nurture existing histories and build new futures grounded in place, community, and an East Austin identity.
Austin, Texas p. 1
01 A threshold between the Holly district’s residential and commercial, MixedEtc. blurs the lines between public v. private and landscape v. building.
p. 2
intake from E. 6th St.
access to metro & pedestrian crossing
dispersion to E. 5th St.
west interior elevation p. 3
Utilizing large landscape gestures and human paths of movement to organize the site, a central artery runs through the heart of the project connecting bustling 6th St. to the north and residential 5th St. to the south. Large sloping elements connect the public ground plane with the residential upper levels of the project, emphasizing porosity, accessibility, and ensuring residents/neighbors of all ages & mobility levels are able to fully engage with all aspects of the site.
E. 6core transit th S corrido tree r t ute etro ro m l i a light-r
E. 5
low -lyi
th S resi tre den et tial
ng +
east interior elevation Mixed-Etc.
p. 4
childcare center
main lawn
splash zone p. 5
metro station
performance stage
public library
community greenhouses
Mixed-Etc.
p. 6
00
3.
2.
1.
1. Childcare Center 3300 sq ft. max occupancy: 93 persons
2. Gallery, Education Center & Lecture Rooms 3425 sq ft. max occupancy: 146 persons
3. Coffee Shop 2000 sq ft. max occupancy: 83 persons
4. Library
8500 sq ft. max occupancy: 168 persons
5. Auditorium
2100 sq ft. max occupancy: 136 persons
6. Grocery
2050 sq ft. max occupancy: 204 persons
7. Cafe
2750 sq ft. max occupancy: 107 persons
4.
5.
6.
7.
p. 9
B
02 A
B
01 A
Mixed-Etc.
p. 10
site section A
p. 11
site section B
Mixed-Etc.
p. 12
a
p. 13
typical cantilever terrace railing
b
typical residential window sill
b
a
Mixed-Etc.
p. 14
c
c
d
p. 15
auditorium window header & terrace planter
d
auditorium window sill & foundation
p. 16
p. 17
two-story unit plan
Squatting atop the transparent public realm are 28 residential units - 6 one-story and 22 twostory units, ranging from 500 to 1500 square feet - aiming to accommodate young singles or friends living together, elderly widowers or couples, and families alike. Each unit is unique, embracing interior spatial individuality as opposed to exterior personalization. Levels and plans overlap, hug, and push one another, helping blur the lines between where one (possibly larger, more expensive) unit begins and where one (more economical, singular) unit ends. This continued lack of hierarchy fosters an overall sense of collective living rather than an individualized experience.
Mixed-Etc.
p. 18
p. 19
Mixed-Etc.
p. 20
2019 Design Excellence Nominee ISSUE ‘19 Publication
Cinema Parking Garage Addition parasitic parasitic movie movietheater theater&+ connective corridors corridors
Spring 2019 Intermediate Studio IV critic:
John Blood
During the daytime, the parking garage at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and N. Lamar services the nearby office of T3 Austin. Outside of business hours, however, it serves little purpose. This proposed parasitic addition functions as a “twisted step-sister” to the existing garage, balancing out its 9-to-5 mundanity with a new sense of levity and play. The curvilinear body of the proposed building hugs the north end of the garage and provides space for a small local cinema and a cafe. The rooftop of the garage would become available in the evening for live music, social celebrations, or film-related events as both an urban social hub and an elevated pseudo-town square. This reclamation of a private parking
structure seeks not to detract from its primary daytime function, but rather to optimize use of the site and provide much needed entertainment and gathering space for residents of the surrounding neighborhood. Newly carved connective corridors bring clarity and ease of access by reactivating Old 19th Street behind the parking garage, further re-engaging space lost to T3’s exclusive structure. Furthermore, it provides residents with an efficient pedestrian route that bypasses the busy nearby intersection. This increased access would in turn contribute to the revitalization of wasted parking space to foster a more walkable, livable, and engaged neighborhood.
Austin, Texas 1 p. 21
02 This proposed parasitic addition functions as a “twisted step-sister” to the existing garage, balancing out its 9-to-5 mundanity with a new sense of levity and play.
p. 22
p. 23
00
01
02
Cinema Parking Garage Addition
p. 24
5 p. 25
Cinema ParkingGarage GarageAddition Addition Cinema Parking
6 p. 26
p. 27
section 01
section 02
section 03
Cinema Parking Garage Addition
p. 28
p. 29
section highlight
Cinema Parking Garage Addition Cinema Parking Garage Addition 10
p. 30
p. 31
The theater’s pure interior acts as a canvas onto which light shows mimicking the palettes of the films being presented can illuminate the walls and beam into the night sky.
Cinema Parking Garage Addition 12 p. 32 Cinema Parking Garage Addition
Habiter le Périphérique Aubervilliers Social Housing Aubervilliers social housing
Fall 2019 Advanced Design - Europe critics:
Gäelle Breton Igor Siddiqui Jean-François Renaud with:
Alivia Green Ayman Boughaba Gabriel Pavon-Sudres Maria Navarro Sarah Hopper
This project, Habiter le Périphérique, was completed in collaboration with a small team of students at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville. The studio, “Around the Block,” focuses on the urban block as a framework for architecture in relation to the city, and is sited in Aubervilliers, a commune in the north-eastern suburbs of Paris, France. Previously a booming manufacturing hub, Aubervilliers’ economy and rich subculture has faded in the post-industrial era. Though the population of Paris continues to grow, the area has been historically neglected by developers and newcomers. Additionally, the city’s ring-road highway, Boulevard Périphérique, segregates the majority of Aubervilliers from what is often recognized as “inner Paris.” In an attempt to bridge the gap between “inner” and “outer” Paris, our building is sited
at one of Aubervilliers’ busiest roundabout-highway intersections, squarely straddling both sides of the highway. Our “cube” of a building acts as a prototype for future buildings over the highway, occupying the urban canyon that the highway carves through the city. Iconic superstructure, a flexible public lower level, and elevated courtyard-focused living suggest ways that Parisians can begin to occupy this prime real estate. Our particular block seeks to fill the gap in Aubervilliers arts-focused spaces, and features amenities like artist studios and a black box theater on the ground level. Above this public plinth rest 49 residential units -- ranging from studios to threebedroom apartments -- as well as an abundance of amentities, community and coworking spaces, and a central courtyard overlooking a public grove.
Paris, France 55 p. 33
03 Our “cube” of a building acts as a prototype for future structures over the highway, occupying the urban canyon that the highway carves through the city.
p. 34
p. 35
Habiter le Périphérique
p. 36
50m
50m
59 p. 37
50m
section 01
section 02
section 03
Habiter le Périphérique
p. 38
1 primary housing entrance + lobby 2 auxilary housing entrances 3 café + coffee shop 4 black box theater 5 market hall + périphérique patio 6 grove 7 artist studio 8 arts education center 9 artist studio 10 communal resident patios
p. 39
Habiter le Périphérique
p. 40
p. 41
Habiter le Périphérique
p. 42
p. 43
The building’s iconic superstructure in tandem with an arts oriented public ground level aim to create a sense of identity and place for a community often in flux.
Habiter le Périphérique Périphérique 66p. 44 Habiter le
2021 Design Excellence Nominee
S. Broadway Cooperative historic revitalization & urban adaptation
Spring 2021 Advanced Design critic:
Clay Odom
Drawing from the emergent characteristics of interwoven biological systems, this intervention in historic Downtown Los Angeles seeks to stitch, mend, fill, and bridge the gaps that disrupt the cyclical processes on which we rely. By cultivating uninterrupted, self-sustaining systems that provide residents with fresh food, clean water, purified air, a temperate microclimate, and supportive housing, the South Broadway Cooperative serves as a model for adapting to and overcoming metropolitan plight. Ultimately, this proposal will free a city’s residents from their infrastructural binds – a reclamation of humanity’s basic survival needs from crumbling civic frameworks. In an effort to empower urbanity’s most vulnerable communities, this
semi-removed societal anomaly utilizes contextual resources to power a cooperative living model that is self-propagated & scalar. Conceived as an architectural intervention that behaves like a living, breathing naturallyresponsive organic entity, the S. Broadway Cooperative mimics a plant growing in an urban setting. By creating a framework to support human & nonhuman life, the S. Broadway Cooperative, will serve as a prototypical development that can age and “green” with its inhabitants. It is a structure that will thrive in maturity rather than simply basking in the glow of infancy and newness. This proposal seeks to tap into DTLA’s under-utilized “upstairs” roofscape in a way that literally brings it back down to Earth.
Los Angeles, California p. 45
04 Like the mutually beneficial relationships between plants and fungi, the intervention draws from existing resources to foster its own growth while re-invigorating Los Angeles’ once-thriving Broadway District.
p. 46
existing historic structure
p. 47
proposed intervention
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 48
original building
hydroponic farming
maintain historic facade
p. 49
residential entry & lobby market, food hall, farming
residential area; private
“shoot”
terrace level; private
market, food hall, farming; public
“root” underground expansion space
p. 51
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 52
hydroponic vertical farm Produce grown in the co-op’s 21 farming stations would fuel the adjacent market + food hall, while consuming 90% less water and enjoying an average 28-day harvest cycle - 3x faster than with conventional farming methods.
production
axonometric
p. 53
3-story market & grocery
produce storage & handling
food hall, cafes, & kiosks
consumption axonometric
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 54
circulatory system water + energy distributed throughout system via tower ducts; integrated external irrigation system to monitor exterior’s micro climate, while a radiant heating/cooling system utilizes water to moderate internal climate
dwelling units (13) 1-bed units (21) 2-bed units (10) 3-bed units
85 beds total
shoot system vertical circulation, resource distribution, & structural cores
p. 55
**
*
*generation
WEDEW, Wood-to-Energy Deployable Emergency Water systems can be implemented to generate fresh water & affordable, renewable energy from biomass / waste plant matter. Similar technology would provide the co-op with sustainable resource supply fueled by plant waste from internal functions: food production, cafes, and residential compost.
**collection
water tank & filtration system: water used for agricultural, residential purposes to be re-filtered and recycled
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 56
kitchen module axonometric
p. 57
overall unit axonometric
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 58
plant / building scale
“...will serve as a prototypical development that can age and “green” with its [human + nonhuman] inhabitants.”
2024 2022
2030 2030
“...will ser age and “ inhabitant
p. 59
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 60
p. 61
S. Broadway Cooperative
p. 62
ISSUE ‘21 Publication
Al Wathba Flamingo Center education center & training facility
Summer 2020 Bee Breeders Competition Entry with:
Jessica Chen Celine Wu
Located in the United Arab Emirates’ barren desert landscape, the Al Wathba Wetland Reserve is an unexpected sanctuary for wildlife on the outskirts of bustling Abu Dhabi. Covering less than two square miles, the reserve supports a robust ecosystem of plant, aquatic, and bird life. Infamous for its thousands of migratory flamingos – notoriously persnickety about their choice in breeding grounds – Al Wathba allows locals and visitors alike a rare intimate glimpse at these brilliant creatures. Our proposal for the Al Wathba Visitor Center aims to be an oasis within an oasis, beckoning visitors with open arms and serving as a place of respite from the sweltering heat. Much like common bird blinds, our proposal is lifted from the ground.
The building acts as a blind not only to flamingos and the wide array of wetland wildlife, but also to visitors arriving at the site. It gives little away prior to entry – but layers of veiled walls are pulled back to reveal a magnificent view of the landscape. Taking formal cues from the Bedouin tent, the visitor center’s formal fluidity nods to the adaptability that is needed to survive in such harsh climates. The design aims to foster the sense of reprieve offered by traditional, rudimentary forms of shelter. Additionally, we utilized local palm wood for the visitor centers lifted structure and exterior cladding to ensure minimal environmental impact and to put regional waste to good use, allowing this biological anomaly to independently thrive.
Abu Dhabi, UAE p. 63
05 Echoing traditional Bedouin forms, the tent-like structure offers reprieve from the harsh desert climate while maintaining a minimal footprint.
p. 64
One’s experience of the Al Wathba Visitor Center begins upon arrival via automobile. After driving up to the tower and parking within a tent-like, veiled structure, visitors are directed towards a set of stairs and lift. Here, visitors ascend to an elevated bridge and cross an exterior courtyard towards the tower entry - ideas of being “elevated” from the surrounding environment are immediately at play. Entering the tower, guests are immediately greeted by a reception desk, the sweeping wood-clad ceiling, and a view of the wetlands beyond. Prior to descending a floating staircase to the center’s lower spaces, visitors pass a display area with specimens and educational materials. Guests depart and return from their wetland trail excursion via another exterior court along the structure’s eastern edge.
p. 65
12
11
17
10 1
13
9
16
B
7
2
8
14
3
A
15
6 4 5
00
01 C
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
entrance kitchen cafe panoramic view terrace waiting area courtyard access to trail gift shop
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
exit to parking parking site entrance pedestrian bridge reception display hall admin office training room Al Wathba Flamingo Center
p. 66
p. 67
section A
section B
section C
Al Wathba Flamingo Center
p. 68
a
wind tower leg
b
header & sill at display space 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.
p. 69
coping rigid insulation timber frame sheathing vapor control membrane batten & ventilated cavity exterior softwood cladding palm wood roof truss hinge mechanism operable wind tower panel cavity insulation & timber frame roof membrane CLT structural member CLT leg & foundation support gypsum board interior sheathing window header double glazing base track finished concrete topping acoustical mat product CLT floor panel
c
wind tower roof & opening mechanism
a
c
Al Wathba Flamingo Center
p. 70
p. 71
Though its dynamic curves and sweeping forms provide an iconic landmark for guests, the center remains neutral to the ever-changing topography of the wetlands.
Al Wathba Flamingo Center
p. 72
Study Drawings Abroad 2019 Travel UTSOA’s Europe study abroad program consists of a one month travel period through Western Europe and two months of study at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville. The sustained drawing excercise on the right explores the meditation pavilion at Carlo Scarpa’s Brion Vega Cemetery through traditional drafting techniques and digital rendering. The following sketches document my time spent at various sites throughout my travels.
Fall 2019 critics:
John Blood Elizabeth Danze
p. 73
51
06 This sustained drawing exercise explores the meditation pavilion at Carlo Scarpa’s Brion Vega Cemetery through traditional drafting techniques and digital rendering.
p. 74
Venice, Italy
Venice, Italy
Bellinzona, Switzerland
Castelgrande
Mechernich, Germany Bruder Klaus Field Chapel
p. 75
Stuttgart, Germany Mercedes-Benz Museum
Dornach, Switzerland Goetheanum
Convent of La Tourette Éveux, France
Convent of La Tourette Éveux, France
Travel Drawings
p. 76
p. 77
Blake Ahart 512.636.2371 blakeahart@utexas.edu blakeahart.com
Relevant Experience Education
Snǿhetta
Texas at Austin
Bachelor of Architecture | Spring 2021 3.80 / 4.0 GPA
École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville Paris | Fall 2019
Honors & Awards Dean’s Design Distinction | Spring 2019 Design Excellence Nomination | 2017, 2019 - 2021 University Honors | 2016 - 2021 ISSUE Published | 2020 - 2021
Architecture Intern, June - December 2020 New York, NY Member of large team engaged in schematic design & design development studies for a multinational automaker’s new headquaters; facade & massing specific studies with a focus on visualization and client presentation; schematic facade module & detail development; design development of parametric masonry walls & landscape interface
Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Designer, June 2019 - March 2021 Austin, TX Team member participating in schematic design process on a variety of projects including mixed-use developments, restaurants & hospitality, and low-income housing; early schematic design direction, master site planning, visualization, digital modeling, drawing production, concept package assemblage, custom furniture & signage, branding packages
Charles Di Piazza Architecture
Intern, December 2018 - January 2020 Austin, TX Team member for high-end residential project, digital and physical modeling, renderings, digital walkthroughs, schematic proposal drawings
Bodron + Fruit
Independent Contractor, Winter 2018 Dallas, TX Digital architectural modeling and visualization
Involvement UTSOA Freshmen Mentor AIA Homes Tour, Docent AIAS, Member Senate of College Councils Absolute Texas, Member ISSUE 20, Graphics & Outreach
Skills Adobe Suite Photoshop Illustrator InDesign Premiere
Fabrication 3D Printing
Model-making
Digital
Rhinoceros 3D Revit AutoCAD SketchUp 3DS Max Lumion Enscape V-Ray Blender
AvroKo
Intern, Summer 2018 New York, NY Member of small team designing interiors for a high-end hospitality project; produced renderings and presentations for clients, conceptual design for custom furniture, composed material and idea boards for presentations