PORTFOLIO
Carson Thompson
PERSONAL STATEMENT I’ve always enjoyed putting together a LEGO set or creating my own from a pile of bricks. Every time I picked up LEGOs I saw a challenge to make something better than last time. I like solving problems with constraints. I like the challenge to make something beyond solving a problem within the constraints. . Architecture is solving problems within different constraints but the real change is not just solving the problem. It is solving the problem in the most beautiful way possible. When designing a building, it’s more than another problem to solve. That building has a lasting impact on the people that use it and the community surrounding it. A building should be more than just four walls and a roof. It should change with people’s needs and it should change the way people look at buildings. After graduation I hope to design architecture that changes with the needs of its tenants.
CONTENTS CONCEPTUAL HARDIN HALL...................................................3-4 RULED SURFACES.............................................5-6 LOAD TRACING................................................7-8
APPLIED WOODEN BOX...............................................9-12 MOSQUITO BEACH......................................13-14 ALTERNATIVE LIVING COMMUNITY.........15-18
PHOTOGRAPHY.......................................19-20
HARDIN HALL Fall 2016 Clemson, SC
Proportions are a fundamental part of design. Analyzing Hardin Hall allowed me to understand proportions and how designers use them to design. Through a series of drawings I began to find the proportions and the patterns on the building facade. I constructed models help myself see the patterns and proportions in 3D space.
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CONCEPTUAL
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RULED SURFACES Fall 2017 Clemson, SC
CONCEPTUAL
Setting rules and learning to design within them. I set rules for myself to design with for this project. I only used ellipses and the blend tool in Adobe Illustrator. By manipulating how many ellipses and where they were on the page I could create many different out comes. A slight shift of the ellipse changes the design. I learned that designing within rules and adjusting them created infinite possibilities
Final Iteration
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First Iteration
Third Iteration
Second Iteration
Fourth Iteration
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LOAD TRACING Fall 2019 Clemson, SC
Load distribution is important to understanding structure. As I studied load distribution I noticed that most building structure had a grid system. The grid system used proportions to provide the most support while using the least amount of materials. The technique of grid systems and proportions were the same techniques I saw when I analyzed Harden Hall. I learned that bracing buildings diagonally creates another path for the load to travel and increases the stability of the building. Using diagonal members to brace the structure in both directions prevents it from twisting.
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CONCEPTUAL
Bay B
A
The floor receives live load and dead load which equal the total load. These loads are distributed across the floor. The floor load is then distributed to the joists as a distributed load. Half the distance between beams on either side is the amount of floor load they carry. The beam can either sit on top or in between the girders. The beam provide a point load on the girders. If the beams are evenly spaced the point load for each is the same. The girders frame directly into the columns where the columns take the load down to the footings.
The load path above is for the roof of the model and is the same for all other floors and bays. The columns on the floors below have to carry the weight of the floors above. A way to make the model more structurally sound is to make the base of the columns bigger than the top because the base has to support the weight of the building above. The base connection is glue. All connections between girders and columns are pin connections.
A
The direction of the flooring and how the joists, floor and girders attach.
Pin connection
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WOODEN BOX Spring 2019 Charleston, SC
APPLIED
The design process from idea to fabrication. I had the opportunity to design a wooden box and build it. During the design process I learned that wood swells and contracts and how to allow for tolerance. I wrote step-by-step instructions for myself to limit mistakes during the build process.
Sapele (lighter) and Walnut wood Silver Hinges Toung Oil
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The two right pieces show how many tries it took to find the right width so the top and bottom pieces would fit snug.
Checking next steps in my notes.
I used a paper template to draw the curves onto the wood so that all the curves would be the same.
Once I had all four sides ready for assembly, I place small wood strips between the pieces so the wood would dry flat.
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Assembling the box without glue to make sure all the Cutting the side curve. pieces fit correctly.
The niches for the hinges were hand chiseled.
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Cutting the top off.
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MOSQUITO BEACH Spring 2019 Charleston, SC Designers: Nick Hannah & Carson Thompson
APPLIED
Design for now and the future. The biggest challege was learning how to design in phases. The first phase was to design a space that could be buildt now and bring in revenue for the area. Phase two was expanding what was done in the first phase and improving the envirnment around the buildings so that people can enjoy being near the water.
PHASE ONE 13
MASTER PLAN
PHASE ONE 14
ALTERNATIVE LIVING COMMUNITY Fall 2019 Clemson, SC Designers: Ethan Curtis, Justin Hoppe, Seth Lauderdale & Carson Thompson Design on a large scale and a small scale. Designing a living community for Clemson University taught me how to balance thinking about site placement, individual rooms and how each building connects with one another and campus. Working on a large scale project helped me learn to not get caught up in the details. I learned to periodically step back and look at the project as a whole to make sure everything was cohesive.
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APPLIED
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PHOTOGRAPHY
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ARCHITECTURE IS LIKE WRITING, YOU HAVE TO EDIT IT OVER AND OVER SO IT LOOKS EFFORTLESS. ZAHA HADID