~ Christian Pena
Architecture Portfolio 2020
Index Courthouse
p. 4
Birding Center
p. 18
Psychiatric Hospital
p. 22
Lift
p. 30
Sculpture House
p. 36
Tower
p. 44
Market Hall
p. 48
Courthouse Austin, Texas Professor Martin Häettasch Spring 2019 In Collaboration with Draven Pointer As the population of Austin, Texas continues to grow, there is an increasing need for more courthouses. The City of Austin is currently planning to build twelve new courtrooms on four lots adjacent to the existing courthouse and original Law Library and Archive. Located in the center of these lots is Woolridge Square, one of the four original blocks that were set aside as public parks in the initial planning of Austin. Wooldridge Square and its adjacent lots will transform into the new judicial center of Austin. In order to compensate the need for courtrooms and solidify the identity of this important civil function, this project focuses on monumentalizing Woolridge Square by completing a judicial square around the lot. The project proposes placing identical buildings that consist of six courtrooms and their supporting program on the lots to the east and west of Woolridge Square, bringing balance to the site. Bringing balance is the primary function of the justice system and the project seeks to reflect that in the architecture. Developing the courthouse on the western lot, the thirty foot change in topography across the lot allowed for the opportunity to raise the courthouse on a plinth. This move allows the western courthouse to establish a height datum with the eastern courthouse to maintain the balance. The plinth also allows for more public space to be placed underneath. The project has a path of green space to connect Wooldridge Square with the residential scale on the adjacent lot. Underneath the plinth lie additional program consisting of a cafe and public plaza with seating and planting adjacent to a water feature that creates a comfortable micro-climate in the Texas heat. The courtrooms themselves are expressed by projecting out of the plinth and being clad in corten steel. Inside the courtroom is a curved shape with a skylight at the top to contrast with the monolithic exterior and create a more monumental space for both civil servants and the public.
4
Historical Context
ft
100 200 300 400
Process Model
Process Model
6
Immediate Context
ft
25
50
100
200
Process Model
Process Model
7
Basement 2 Parking + Back of House
01
02
03
04
05
06
A B
1
C
2
D
3
3 E
2
F
4 G
2 1 2 3 4
Mechanical Room Storage Staff Parking Accused Drop-Off
H
ft 10 20
40
80
Section A
Level 5 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2
Level 1
Ground Floor B1 B2
8
Basement 1 Plaza + Cafe
01
02
03
04
05
06
A B
1
2
C D
E
3
F
4
G
1 2 3 4
Cafe Storage Plaza Water Feature
H
ft 10 20
40
80
ft
9
10
20
40
80
Ground Plan Entry + Lobby
01
02
03
B
04
-21’
-11’
05
06
-4’ A
B
C 0’
2
0’
1
A -18’
-30’ C
D
-18’
-9’
0’
E
4
3 F
D
G
H -25’
ft
10
20
40
1 2 3 4 5
Lobby Jury Briefing Water Feature Outdoor Terrace Woolridge Square
-15’
80
10
-10’
5
11
Level 1 Courtrooms + Support
01
02
03
04 1.1
05 2.2
3.3
4.4
5.5
6.6
06
7.7
A a
B
2 +28’
4
0’
b b
1 c
D
2 4
3
C
d e
4
3
2
f g
E
F
2 4
3 h
4
3
i
2 G
j H
ft
10
20
40
1 2 3 4
Waiting Area Courtroom Jury Suite Judge Suite
80
12
Level 2 Clerk Suite
Level 3 Lawyer Suite
01
01
02
Level 4 Sheriff Suite
02
01
A
02
A
B
B
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
A
B
B
+58’
+73’
+88’
1
1
1
1
C
C
C
C
D
D
D
D
2
4
2
3
4
5
6
7
5
6 E
F
F
F
6
8
9
6
8
10
6 7
6
8
10
Public Study General Office Records Exhibition Supplies Clerk Storage
2
E
6
40
4 3
E
6
10 20
02
+43’
5
ft
01
A
2
3
Level 5 Grand Jury
7 8 8 8 8 9
E F
7 7 8 8 8
3 4
G
G
G
G
H
H
H
H
80
ft
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
10 20
40
80
ft
Public Study Secretary Conference Assistant Admin. Assistant Chief Assistant Stenographer Lawyer Clerk Visiting Lawyer
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
13
10 20
40
Public Study General Office Deputies Book Keeper Sheriff Evidence Interview Room Holding Cell Fingerprinting
80
ft
1 2 3 4
10 20
40
80
Public Study Private Library Jury Commisioner Grand Jury Suite
Section B
Section C
ft
10
20
40
80
ft
10
20
40
80
ft
10
20
40
80
Level 5
Level 4
Level 3
Level 2
Level 1
Ground Floor
B1
B2
Section D
Level 5
Level 4
Level 3
Level 2
Level 1
Ground Floor B1
B2
14
15
East Elevation
ft
10 20
Wall Section
40
80
40
80
West Elevation
ft
10 20
South Elevation
+37’
ft
10 20
40
80
40
80
North Elevation
ft
10 20
ft
16
10
20
40
+28’ 7”
+28’ 7”
+28’
0’
-8’
80
17
Birding Center Austin, Texas Professor Nerea Feliz Spring 2016
Located on the shores of Town Lake, Laguna Gloria is a beautiful spot in Austin filled with nature trails and sculptures. The site has a large quantity of visitors who come to birdwatch, visit the art school and meander along the peaceful trails. As more people are beginning to visit Laguna Gloria, an information center where visitors can come to learn more about birdwatching and view exhibitions has become necessary. This project is conceptualized as a destination at the intersection of the two existing nature trails. The massing of the building serves to have a minimal interruption of the trail with the sidewalks allowing visitors to enter from either direction, walk through the exhibition space, and continue walking along the trail. The form consists of three volumes of program connected by a continuous roof that slopes up as the program becomes more important. The building then serves as a buffer between the serene shoreline and the nearby meadow. With paths that go between the three volumes, visitors can walk to the end of these trails to have a more intimate experience with the water and observe the birds. With a fully glazed southern facade, visitors can enjoy views of the water, its surrounding green space, and the birds that inhabit the area while they meander through the exhibition space. The Laguna Gloria Birding Center fits seamlessly into the trails of the site and gives visitors more activities to occupy their time during their visit.
18
Section A
ft 4 8
16
32
Ground Plan
A
ft 4 8
16
32
20
The birding center allows visitors to enter the exhibition and rejoin the trail or access the shoreline directly.
21
Psychiatric Hospital Rusk, Texas Professor Dean Almy Spring 2017
Located in the woodlands of East Texas, Rusk is a very small town that is home to a psychiatric hospital. Rusk Psychiatric Hospital is the staple of Rusk’s economy; without the hospital, the town would have little commerce. Currently, the psychiatric hospital is a cluster of buildings in poor condition located behind building 501, the hundred year old face of Rusk Psychiatric Hospital. Building 501 is a nearly six-hundred foot long, forty-five foot wide building that is in extremely poor condition, with extensive amounts of water damage and decay. The project focuses on an extension to and restoration of building 501 in relationship to a redesigned psychiatric campus. By adding a new tower to building 501, the tower immediately becomes the identity of Rusk, materializing the staple of the economy. The tower then folds back into 501 and reappears on the south side to form the therapy mall, a space containing teaching kitchens and other activities that help patients regain skills necessary for reassimilating into society upon release. Program distribution was key in this project, with the organization of spaces creating a sequence that guides patients from the most stressful environments to the rehabilitation spaces upon arrival. With the tower containing administrative program, patients have no need to enter. The tower is clad with retractable louvers to deal with the harsh eastern and western sun; the color of these louvers and the aluminum panels begin the healing process. Blue is a soothing color often used in hospitals because it invokes a sense of calmness, relaxation, and order, feelings that are inviting for patients with mental illnesses. The protrusions of the additions from building 501 serve to expand the boundaries of the campus so that the patients feel less enclosed. The therapy mall distributes program in a spine layout around a courtyard that allows patients to interact among themselves, plants, and sunlight. Each program in the therapy mall has a storefront to allow for complete connection between all of the inhabitants and the adjacent green space, helping to alleviate the feeling of confinement.
22
ft
20
40
80
160
Circulation
Staff
Patient
Public
New Patient
Ground Plan
a6
a18
a15
a17
a16
a14
b9
b10
b11
b12
c10
c9
d14 a1
a6
a13
b1 b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 b7 b8 b8
a12
a3
20 40
80
B
c7 c6 d14
b13
C
160
Medical
Admissions
Administration
a1 a2 a3 a4 a5 a6 a7 a8 a9 a10 a11 a12 a13 a14 a15 a16 a17 a18
b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 b7 b8 b9 b10 b11 b12 b13
c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10
d1 d2 d3 d4 d5 d6 d7 d8 d9 d10 d11 d12 d13 d14
Multi-purpose Infection Control Employee Health Flex Space Dental Office Dental Exam Medical Office Medical Exam Medical Lab Physical Therapy Breakroom Isolation Room Pharmacy
c8
a4 a5 a6 a6 a6 a7 a8 a9
Therapy Mall Cafe Social Space Library Reading Room Computer Room Flex Space Post Office Peer Support Storage Patient Education Teaching Kitchen Trust Fund Patient Property Visitation Music Room Clothing Center Barbershop Arts and Craft Room
A c3
c5
D ft
c2
c4
a11 a10 a2
c1
Admissions Supervisor Medical Officer Photo ID Office Observation Room Interview Room Security Reception Storage Breakroom
Program Distribution
Meeting Room Worker Compensation Job Center Patient Transportation Patient Rights Facility Training Training Room Flex Office Break Room Storage Office Courtroom Unrenovated 501 Lobby
Administration Admissions Medical Therapy Mall Public
24
View from Entry
Rehabilitation
Therapy Mall
Stress
Medical
Admissions
View of Therapy Mall
25
Administration
East Elevation ft
20
40
80
160
40
80
160
40
80
160
40
80
160
40
80
160
Section A ft
20
Section B ft
20
Section C ft
20
Section D ft
20
26
27
28
29
Lift High Island, Texas Professor Coleman Coker Fall 2019 In Collaboration with Natalie Avellar, Luis Bosquez, Marcella Pastrano, Draven Pointer, Makayla Ponce, Trenton Sexton, McKenzie Sosa, Iuliia Tambovtseva, Valentina Tambovtseva, Emrehan Tuna, Roufeng You
The Houston Audubon Society is a nonprofit conservation and education organization that focuses on preserving and restoring the natural environment for birds and people. High Island, Texas is a tiny town with a population of about 300, but the town has thousands of visitors from all over the world every year because the town is a hot spot for birds. The Houston Audubon Society owns and runs four sanctuaries in High Island, and these sanctuaries attract thousands of species of birds while they migrate through the Texas coast. Houston Audubon reached out to us to design a screen porch and fire pit for the volunteers who visit High Island and run the sanctuaries. The project focuses on generating an inviting space for volunteers to gather, hold informal meetings and birdwatch. This space is a key part in the master plan of the Houston Audubon with the goal to redevelop their headquarters in High Island and attract more volunteers. This project shows volunteers that the Houston Audubon cares about them, and it protects the users from the swarms of mosquitoes that inhabit High Island. The project consists of a screen porch, an overhead shading structure, benches and a fire pit. The screen porch is jagged in plan to allow for the integration of the bench around the corner, which then has a clear relationship with the fire pit. The shade structure then sits on two columns that project out of the bench and fire pit. This connection generates a dialogue between each element while allowing the elements to have their own character.
30
32
33
34
35
Sculpture House Professor Michael Benedikt Fall 2018
The Sculpture House is an exploration of architecture as inhabitable sculpture. Design decisions were made for aesthetic and spacial considerations, not functional reasons. Each room is treated as an individual component with a different color scheme and roof composition; the rooms juxtapose each other to generate an interesting composition in plan, elevation, section and perspective. While decisions were driven by form, the house still functions successfully with program being distributed in a logical way. Rooms meet each other at various angles, setting up the opportunity for view corridors that can see all the way through the house. The view corridors not only allow one to see through the house; they allow inhabitants to see both the inside and outside of a room simultaneously, creating a rich layering of space. This layering of space adds to the quality of the sculpture because the house is not only interesting formally; it also has stimulating architectural moments for the inhabitants.
36
Kitchen Isovist
Bedroom Isovist
Living Room Isovist
Layered Isovist
1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8
Carport Laundry Room Kitchen Guest Room / Office
38
Living Room Screen Porch Master Bedroom Master Bathroom
4
1
7
8
2 5
3
6
ft
8
16
32
39
64
40
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
41
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
ft
4
8
16
32
The window placement allows for rooms to share a world in common and a world apart simultaneously. 42
The juxtaposition of the rooms, roofs and colors generates architecture that is inhabitable sculpture.
The main entry provides a view of the surrounding foliage directly through the windows and screen porch. 43
*SKYHIVE 2020 Competition Entry Shortlisted Project
Tower Austin, Texas Summer 2020 In Collaboration with Raymond Castro, Johan Cheah, & Draven Pointer
Austin, capital of the proud state of Texas, holds the title of the “Live Music Capital of the World.” It is home to various music and art festivals like Austin City Limits and South by Southwest. People from all over the globe gather to experience these events and discover what is new in the world of entertainment and art. “Keep Austin Weird” is the unofficial slogan of Austin --but as the city continues to rapidly grow, how can it maintain this identity? Architecture is a representation of who we are as people and what we value. The design is a hub for artists and creators, without whom, the city’s unique identity would not exist. The goal of the design was to create a tower that would not only represent the city’s culture, but also generate it. The tower is a culmination of living, production, and performance spaces that allows visionaries and innovators to collaborate, create, and share. The vibrant façade breathes new life into the Austin downtown area and its radiant light bestows personality to the city skyline. The façade bursts from the ground with a passionate, bold red, and as it ascends, fades into the cool blue sky. The building’s proximity to the existing Austin Convention Center and Waller Creek reinforces its role as a hub. Situated at the bend of the stream, the ground condition rejuvenates Waller Creek. Nature from the creek is pulled up by terraces rotating up the tower. Their sweeping forms guide visitors into a grand entrance and up the tower for performances and exhibitions, where creatives share music, film, theater, and more. Urban development has driven artists away from the central core of the city. A new Co-Living housing model brings artists back to downtown. The tower is made out of a series of community modules in which the design encourages creators from all fields to collaborate. Each module is made of special studio units that allow for personal and joint work spaces, resulting in a perfect mix of privacy and sharing. This intermixing of art fields will provide inspiration and generate new ideas and creations.
Tier 5 Community Living
Tier 4 Collaboration Space
Tier 3 Movie Theaters
Tier 2 Performance Hall
Tier 1 Auditorium Plan
Ground Floor
Tier 1 Auditorium Interior
Entry Condition
*UTSOA Issue 14 Publication *2018 Lyceum Competition Entry
Market Hall Guelph, Ontario, Canada Professor Martin Häettasch Fall 2017
The city of Guelph, Ontario, has a long history of food at the heart of the city. The first plans of the city were drafted with prominent consideration given to the location of the market hall. As Guelph continues to develop, the desire for a more densely populated downtown increases. A new market hall with an expanded program can boost local economies, activate the downtown area, and become a new community hub within the heart of Guelph. This project seeks to strengthen the urban authority that the market hall holds on the city of Guelph and provide the citizens with a more pedestrian friendly community center, promoting social connectivity. The cruciform shaped building resulted from the continuation of a new green axis that connects the Eramosa River to the back of city hall and the perpendicular connection of the neighborhoods to the train station. This is a powerful form that serves several purposes at the urban scale: it marks the location of the new cultural hub of Guelph, generates two new axes for the city to use in future development, and it brings order to the site and its surroundings. At the scale of the building, the form appears to be two intersecting volumes, but the building operates as three juxtaposed volumes of different program. The lines between public and private begin to be blurred with the adjacency of and transparency between various programs. The juxtaposition of the assorted programs and the literal transparency between them begin to provide moments for social connectivity between the public, workers, and residents of the building. The ground floor of the market hall is fully glazed with the perpendicular volumes raised to the height of the glass in order to establish an open ground floor that invites circulation throughout the site. The Guelph Market Hall establishes food as the heart of the city’s culture and socioeconomic system. Additionally, it brings a variety of people and cultures together into one central location where they can communicate and assimilate as the city is redeveloped. It is a place of interaction and community, providing the occupants with a shared experience that can bleed out of the site and revitalize the city of Guelph.
48
Cultural Hub
Extend Axis
Cross Axis
Site Plan
ft 40 80
50
160
320
Hierarchy
Open Ground Floor
Axonometric in Context
51
Views
Level 3
Level 2
9 14
8 16 12
13
10
11 15
ft
1 2 3 4
Market Hall Outdoor Stall Space Restaurant Public Event Space
5 6 7 8
15
30
Ice Skating Park Space Maze Vendor Lockers
60
120
9 10 11 12
52
ft
Office Space Specialty Items Cafe Auditorium
13 14 15 16
15
30
Concession Storage / BOH Residential Lounge Teaching Kitchen
60
120
Ground Plan
A
3
7
4
3
1
B
6
2
5
C
ft
53
15
30
60
120
East Elevation ft
15
30
60
120
30
60
120
30
60
120
30
60
120
Section A ft
15
Section B ft
15
Section C ft
15
54
55
Aluminum Cladding
Skylight
Insulation Sheathing
Lateral Bracing
Wood Veneer
CLT Structure
Concrete Slab
Wood Flooring Concrete Slab Concrete Footing
56
The central atrium represents the new heart of Guelph with all program and people weaving into a single focal point.
The market hall extends to receive visitors approaching from the new green axis, strengthening pedestrian connectivity. 57
crpena96@att.net University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture