Benjamin Oliver - METROPOLIS Future100 - Portfolio Submission by bsoliver

Selected Academic Works

AcademicPorfolio|WeitzmanSchoolof Design

Benjamin Oliver Master of Architecture - University of Pennsylvania

Objectives, Interests, Identity Architectural Exploration

Designer’s Note

This portfolio aims to showcase my intuition and ability as a designer as well as how my design interests and passions have evolved and developed throughout my education experience at the Weitzman School of Design into a cohesive body of work.

I believe architecture does not succeed without consideration of locality, environment, program, and form. My design interests and investigations aim to explore how the intersection of these elements can be constituted and leveraged in various ways to influence an architectural design.

Place

The locality surrounding an architectural project heavily influences the resultant architectural intervention or idea. Locality imprints itself on architecture in a variety of ways. Vernacular / available materials influence the methods of construction, materiality, and continuity with other elements of the built environment. Weather and climate also possess a profound effect of attributing locality from the way that materials age and weather. Program and organization can also indicate place as various cultural processions and spatial particularities and traditions that influence the form and layout of space, light, privacy, etc.

Ecology

Environment and climate has always played a critical role in architectural design and now more than ever should be an essential if not the most important design consideration. New emerging ecological philosophies have led to exploration in the implementation of architecture in reimagining and mending the corrupted relationship between humans and their environment. Architecture’s unique position in the creation of experience makes it a prime candidate to demonstrate and curate a reimagining of human and non-human relationships and the interconnectedness of the ecological world which we are a part of.

Program

In traditional architectural practice, designers don’t possess much agency over the applied programs however educational design exercises can express how program can positively influence design on a scale that goes beyond the building scale. The scope of program can also lend itself to the designer by using it to guide choices made regarding place, ecology, materiality, etc. Program is a rich source of inspiration despite waning agency in its explicit details.

Form

My interest in the ability of form to energize, inject, inspire, and proliferate architectural, ecological, and social concepts that are essential to the built environment is evident throughout this portfolio as the formation of these ideas has been carefully considered and designed. I believe that form has the unique ability to act as a visual and aesthetic vehicle for the propagation of these ideas to the public. The formal and spatial conditions associated with the design play a critical role in the success and enchantment surrounding of an architectural idea.

Table of Contents

1. Against the Grain - Critic: 2. Owlish Assemblage - Critic :

3. DifficultWholes-Critic:

4. Architectures of Commoning - Critic :

5. VibrantArtifacts-Critic:

6. 1 + 1 = 1 - Critic : 7. Philadelphian Obfuscation - Critic :

Nate Hume

Gisela Baurmann

Nate Hume

Eduardo Rega

Barry Wark

Ryan Palider

ARCH 601 | Fall 2023

Location: Manhattan, New York

Against the Grain Urban Infill & Comprehensive Studio

Critic : Nate Hume

In collaboration with Dillon Day

AA gainst the Grain, explores spatialized methods of c combating food waste through the adaptation of domestic, and industrial forms and materials to create an urban gesticulation that challenges the license of typical urban forms. This project formally explores complexities and opportunities that exist within the contemporary city. The acquisition of air rights provides opportunity for volumetric expressions that break the vertical rigidity of cities. Our project aims to appropriate recognizable industrial figures and subvert their taxonomy in a way that creates a spatial experience that is almost familiar. Our site allows for emphasis of the oblique angle that extended past our buildings footprint and explored the air space of surrounding buildings. The oblique angle also creates an instinctive way of visually connecting various interior and exterior spaces.

The necessary thickness of thatch cladding allows for the burying of details and the novel deployment of secondary cladding systems obfuscating the point of enclosure between public and private space as well as a visual connection to volumes and areas that are accessible from the street. The dynamic nature of the cladding also contributes to accessibility, rather than simply mapping cladding to the boundary of the frame.

FormandtheCreationofthe Familiar

Incorporating familiar industrial or domestic forms into urban building design holds the power to cultivate a sense of comfort and resonance withincityscapes.Byintegratingelementsreminiscentofeverydaystructures, such as warehouses, lofts, or even residential homes, architecture canevokeasenseoffamiliarityand nostalgiaamongcitydwellers.

LeveragingaCollective Memory

Thesespacesnotonlyserveasfunctionalstructuresbutalsoasrepositoriesofcollectivememory,offeringa bridgebetweenthepastandpresent. Throughthisdesignapproach,cities become more than just conglomeratesofbuildings;theytransforminto dynamic landscapes that echo the essence of communal identity and sharedexperiences.

MaterialityandtheBlurring ofEnvelope

MonicaPoncedeLeonwrites that,“Atabasiclevel,equityin accessiswhatdistinguishesthe publicrealmfromprivatespace”. Equityinaccessisbothphysical andpsychological.Tocreatethe feelingofaccesstoourenveloping strategyjuxtaposesthinglassand thickthatchcladdingtoobfuscate thetruepointofenclosureand createafeelingofpublicityand porosity.Thenecessarythickness ofthatchcladdingallowsforthe buryingofdetailsandthenovel deploymentofsecondarycladding systemsobfuscatingthepointof enclosurebetweenpublicand privatespaceaswellasavisual connectiontovolumesandareas

thatareaccessiblefromthe street.Thedynamicnatureof thecladdingalsocontributesto accessibility,ratherthansimply mappingcladdingtotheboundary oftheframe.

Theuseofthatchenvelopingand masstimberstructureincontrast

FoodWasteReduction ThroughProgramming

Tobringattentiontoinnovativeways of addressing food waste, our program features a whiskey distillery whichprocessesgrainsandconverts them to alcoholic spirits. The spent grains from distilleries and other formsofalcoholproductionarestill nutrient rich and are typically only composted when the nutrient rich grainpossessespotentialtobeupcycledintoothergrainbasedproducts.

IndustrialtothePublicand PublictotheIndustrial

Theefficientoperabilityofadistillery requires open industrial floors foreaseofaccesstolargeequipment as well as efficient circulation and distribution of space. Both of these programs provide opportunities for theimplementationofvariousforms ofpublicspaceandtheirproductis somethingthatcanberetrievedmultipletimesaweek,creatingareturningpublicbasethatweavesthespace intotheirlivesandroutine.

GroundFloorPublicPhoto

DistilleryProductionFloorPhoto DistilleryProductionFloorPlan

AllocationofDynamicPublic Space

To further challenge traditional urban spatialrelationships,publicspaceisdistributed throughout the building at the ground level, mid level, and roof level. These public spaces are semi-enclosed and implement oblique view sheds that create opportunities to visually engage withspacesonecouldaccess,orhaspreviously accessed, guiding the public furtherintotheproject.

Ourgroundfloorisopenairandchallengesthenotionofstreetlevelbyshowcasing aging whiskey barrels through the gapsinthefloors,allowingthepublicto pass through them and experience their aromaticsastheyvisitthebakeryand/or distillery.

ARCH 601 | Fall 2023 individual work

Owlish Assemblage

UrbanHousing&Cohabitation

Studio

Critic : Gisela Baurmann

Location: Queens. New York

The goal of this project is to bring awareness to the he anthropocentric relationships that currently exist between the human and non-human world through disruption of traditional living characteristics as well as the reinvention of human relationships. To achieve this this project introduces a non-human cohabitant, the long eared owl, as a source of disruption and negotiation. This challenges traditional ideas of domesticity and comfort and architecture through the necessity of owl spaces, human spaces, and the inbetween spaces.

The form of the building is derived from the need of owls to nest in high spaces. Early massing studies using vertical gestures formed an interest in interlocking volumes as well as the seams between them. To integrate owls with humans, the circulatory spaces and public spaces are open air and permit the integration of humans and owls. To enable the interest and exploration of various interlocking forms on a building scale, unit clusters were designed to be malleable to be manipulated into the larger interlocking volumes and be able to negotiate with the necessary owl spaces.

SectionDetail

ExteriorView

RenewedRelationshipwith theNon-Human

Thebrokenrelationshipbetween humansandnon-humansthathas resultedinthecurrentenvironmentalcrisiscanpartiallybeattributed tothedistanceplacedbetweenthem byhumanconceptsofnatureand prestineness.Thisprojectaimsto subvertthistraitionalrelationship byconsideringthecomfortandpermissibilityofanon-humanentityon ahorizontalontology.Thisexchange ofexperinceshowcasestheinnate interconnectednessofourecology andthestepsneededtorepairour understandingandrelationship

Thisimageaidsinshowcasing theinterconnectedrelationships betweenthelivingspace,public commonsspace,andowlspaces. Theunhingingofsurfacesallowsa viewofunitaggregationindifferent partsoftheproject,aswellasit’srelationshiptotheexistingwarehouse building.

UnitPlan02

MassHousingandtheNeed forIndividuality

The housing crisis has necessisitated the need for efficient housing blocks thatareeasilydividedandfitintodifferentsiteconditions.Thisqualityhas overshadowed the need for a sense of individuality. The housing cluster designaimstorestoreasenseofindividualitywithinthecontextofmasshousing by creating dynamic apartments that aggregateintosimplierunitclusters

Thisinterlockingallowsforangular interiorspaceswhichcreatedynamiclivingenvironmentswhilealso maintainingarationalaggregatingform thatcanbemanipulatedbasedonthe buildingenvelopegeometry.Theplan viewoftheoverallflooralsoillustrates this,aswellastheunitrelationshipsto theowlspaces.

UnitPlan01

EcologyandIndicator Species

Owlswerechosenduetotheir positiontoinfluencehumanunderstandingoftheinterconnectedness ofourenvironmentbuthumanand non-human.Thelongearedowlis nativetotheNewYorkCityarea andisuniquelypositionedtobe anindicatorspecies.Thisimplies thatthepresenceofowlsinanarea signalsthehealthoftheoverall ecologicalsphere.Thisshowcases thatthereareinfiniteconnections, relationships,andcausalitythatwe cannotdetectorevenunderstand. Thepresenceorabsenceofowls monitorsthehealthoftheenvironmentthroughnon-traditionalmeans leadingtoagreaterunderstanding ofthecomplexityoftherelationshipsthatexistintheecological world.Thisexampleshouldserve asawayofunderstandingthat ouractionshaveunknownripple effectsthroughouttheenvironment necessitatingarenewedrelationship betweenthehumanandnon-human

TransverseSection

UnitAssemblySectionDetail

UnitClusterAssembly

ThisunitclusterChoisyviewillustrateswhatanassembledclusterof5unique,2floor,unitscreates. Theresultisarectilinearprofilethatismalleable, allowingforpushingandpullingofvariousdimensionsaccordingtotherequirementsofthebuilding envelope. The physical model also showcases the abilty for the geometries of the individual 2 floor units to puzzel together into a regular and maluablegeometry.Thisallowsforefficiencyandformal flexibilitywhilecreatinguniquelivingexperiences andammenitiesfortheindividualsresidinginthe buidling.

unit cluster axon

Difficult Wholes Visual Studies Exercies

Critic : Nate Hume

Spring 2023

Thisexerciseaimstocreateaformalcompositionthatisreaddramatically indifferentwaysbasedonmaterialityandcolorthroughacombinationof renderingtechniquesaswellaslinedrawings.Throughseamsofdifferent dimensions,translucentmateriality,andoverlappingvolumes,thiscomposition’sdetailsshiftineachviewduetothehierarchyofcolor,tones,and materials.

Composition01

Composition02

Composition03

Peoples’s Media Center Architectures of Commoning Studio

Critic : Eduardo Rega

Location: Chinatown North, Philadelphia ARCH 502 | Spring 2023

TT he Chinatown Media Collective aims to act as aa force of amplification for the voices of the Chinatown community. The goal of this media collective is to publish news relating to the community as well as the city of Philadelphia from a leftist grassroots perspective. The collective will produce both printed materials as well as audio and visual broadcast mediums to report and educate. The media center will also serve as a community center where members of the Chinatown community can gather to learn, socialize, and organize activist events.

The site plan of the media center aims to populate the site with usable pools of space for gatherings, demonstrations, or outdoor lectures. These spaces are surrounded with the reintroduction of local flora with aims of providing some ecological repair to the area as well as an enjoyable public scene. The media center building is composed of two primary nodes that are composed of irregularly shaped spatial fragments that have the ability to be aggregated according to the growing needs of the Media Collective and the status of crowdfunding efforts. The irregular shapes of the nodes also allow the Media Collective to maintain visual continuity even as new components are aggregated

MediaProgramming

Thisprojectnodeisprogrammed tofocusonphysicalmediaproduction.Withgovernmentcensorship oftheinternetanddigitalmedia aroundtheworldbecomingmore prominent,physicallydistributed mediacanbecreatedandpassed alongwithoutleavingthedigital tracethatinternetsourcesdo.The mediacorporationispartneredwith IffyBooksinPhiladelphiatoassist theminlargerproductionvolumes oftheirhackingandgardeningzines .Thetopevelsareprogrammedfor printingproduction,withprinters andsupplies.Other

spacesareprogrammedwithediting andformattingworkspaces,aswell ascollaborationspacesandaspeakingareaforeducationalactivities.

Otherareasthroughouttheproject areprogrammedasdigiralmedia productioncenterswithspacesfor videoproduction,audiorecording, productionplanning,anddigital editing.Non-physicalmediacreates evenmoreopportunitiesforthe messagesandnewstobecirculated beyondthelimitsofphysicalmedia production.

Formas‘Billboard’

Thereintroductionoftheviaductintothearchitecturalcontextallowsforapedestriancirculation routethroughChinatownNorththatisfreefrom vehiculartraffic.Thehighlevelofpedestriantraffic tooandfromthePeople’sMediaCenterprovides opportunitiesforthemediacentertoshowcase currentnews,andongoingprojectstothepublic byusingtheirfacadesasbillboards.Theformal expressionofthebuildingmakesthisprojection possibleandlendsitselftotheproliferationofthe ideastheyrepresentandexpress.

Hardscape,Landscape, Gathering

Thisviewshowcasesthegeometricrelationships betweenthePeople’sMediaCenterbuilding andthesurroundingdesignedlandscapingand hardscaping.Theformalcommunicationbetween thebuildingfigureandthegroundisimportantto createaholisticproject.Asnewpartsareadded tothebuildingasneededthegroundmustalsobe manipulatedtoacceptthenewspace.Theorganizationofinteriorandexteriorspacealsolendsitself tothecreationofseeminglycontainedspacesthat canbeusedformeetings,organizing,demonstrating,orsimplyrelaxing.

ExteriorView01 ExteriorView02

CaseStudyAnalysis

Vibrant Artifacts

Theoretical Ecological Design Seminar

Critic : Barry Wark

Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in collaboration with Kitachon Pimsri-Bradley

Fall 2023

VibrantArtifactDay0

Hyperobjectivity,Weather, Ecology

Thedesignofthisfacadesystemaimstobringforwardconceptsofweatherand timeintoforwardconsciousnesstohelpbetterunderstandtheirsignificanceand hyperobjectivityinrelationtoecologyandarchitecture.Toachievethisgoalwe analyzedthewaythatwaterisdirectedthroughguttersanddownpipes.Rather thanhidetheprocessofweatheringformedfromwater,wewantedtocelebrate andcontrolit.Waterischanneleddownthroughopenpipesintonew copper ‘gargoyles’whichfillwithwaterandspilloverthebaseofthefacade.Thisalong withothercopperelementsandgeometricadvantages,createsavibrantdisplay ofstainingasaresultoftheoxidationofcopperandthepathofwaterovertime.

ARCH 501 | Fall 2022 individual work

Critic : Ryan Palider

Uncanny Binaries PhiladelphiaArtMuseum Extension

Location: Fairmount, Philadelphia

The goal of this project is to create an architecture of in-betwttweenness and codependency. One that marries seemingly opposite ideas of massiveness and lightness, solid and void, public and institution, object and field and uses these contrasting elements to create a new composition that can be interpreted in multiple ways to provide mixed readings. The importance of public space to architecture is emphasized by its central role in the project. A dynamic public space intercedes between the differing programmatic elements of the project and occurs at their collision point so that occupants may experience the offerings of contrasting programs through visual and spatial exchange. This public space not only acts as a point of spatial exchange between the different programs but also allows public access to the waters edge that is deprived elsewhere on the river bank.

The project’s materiality aims to help tear down the preconceptions of what a museum is. The rough corten steel demystifies the institution and invites people of all backgrounds to feel welcome. Corten steel also reflects on the city of Philadelphia’s history of steel production and celebrates the material as an homage and tool of democratization. Holistically, this project is an amalgamation of opposites that unite contrasting ideas of program, space, and mass to create a new composition. Public space and traditional institutions are merged together to create a new hybrid spatial configuration. Seemingly opposite spatial, formal, material, and programmatic elements merging together to create something that cannot be perceived only one way. This project exists uneasily between programmatic differences and spatial inbetweens.

ChoisyView

Thisviewhighlightsthegroundfloorcirculation aswellastherelationshipofthevariousmuseum floors.Thedifferentcutsshowdifferentgallery spacesandtheroutestakentocirculatethrough them.TherelationshipbetweenthePMAextensionandthenearbywaterworksisalso illustratedbythisview.

ExteriorView02

ModelPhoto01

ModelPhoto02

GalleryFloorPlan

Thefloorplanofthegalleryspacesillustratesthe overallgallerylayoutaswellas theimpromptu galleryspacesformorespontaneousexperiences. Thisplanalsoshowsthebi-sectionofthebuilding allowingpublicaccesstothewaterfrontwhichis otherwisedeniedalongmostoftheSchuylkillin Philadelphia.

ARCH 501 | Fall 2022 in collaboration with Conrad Tse & Sydney Cleveland

Philadelphian Obfuscation 501CuriousCabinets Exhibit

Critic : Ryan Palider

Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

TT his study explores how a complete composition can can possess multiple readings through the codependence of differing geometric qualities such as the relationships between the solid and grid, the curvilinear and rectilinear, and areas of balance and unbalance throughout the form of the object. The solid and grid interact with each other to create the total form and this relationship is inconsistent as you move around the object, creating multiple figural qualities.

The angled geometries and cantilevers aim to distort the sense of balance of the composition and are resolved in other places by the orthogonality of the grid. The study also developed a tertiary system of graphics and relief to add another dimension of new readings.