Master's Architecture Portfolio 2018

CONTENT

04

The project proposes and tests the possibilities of introducing hydroponic agriculture practices in Greenland as a response to increasing quotas on hunting in Greenland.

Set in the eastern Queqqata Kommune of Greenland, in the small hamlet of Kangerlussuaq, the device takes the form of a deployable shelter to assess how hydroponic systems that use perlite [a natural insulant]as a growing medium for plants, can create comfortable indoor temperatures for shelter, but also for a potential indoor wall system applicable to larger [...]

BILHARZIA PREVENTION

Found most dominantly in children likely to bathe and play in the infested water and in women who do daily chores such as laundry and dishes in these water bodies, 95% of the total Tanzanian population is at risk of contracting Schistosomiasis [Bilharzia], with 50% being infected.

The installation proposed allows locals to interact with infested water without fear of becoming directly in contact with it. As a floating platform, water is pumped by stepping action. Walking on the modules pumps water up into a filtration chamber that uses [...]

SØNDRE STRØMFJORD

The new Kangerlussuaq terminal aims to respond to both increasing tourism pressures in Greenland and the lack of suitable gathering spaces for locals in Kangerlussuaq by rebuilding a new social airport in the center of the hamlet.

To counteract the eminent construction of a new international airport in the capital, Nuuk, and the economic repercussions it might have on Kangerlussuaq, the terminal also houses aeroponic food production infrastructure for the creation of a new workforce and local economy. By reconfiguring and mixing both [...]

WORKS

For 6 months I interned at the Viennese Architecture office Coop Himmelb[l]au in Austria, where I worked on two large resi dential housing towers for a pe riod of 4 and 2 months respec tively. For the first project, located in Vienna, I was tasked with drafting facade detailing and helped for the floor plans. Time was also put towards a large physical model.

For the second project, in Bulgaria, I worked on renderings and the facade,using wind simula tions in grasshopper for balcony placement and form-generation.

UWANJA WA FISI UNDERTAKING AUTONOMY

Located on the Tanzanian east coast, the city of Dar es Salaam is booming with new development and investment from the east. Confounded between new infrastructural potential and a plethora of possible development agendas for the city, local government ignores the struggle of sex workers within its slums.

Through an architectural camouflage of intentions, the project therefore addresses the plight of the 200 commercial sex workers of Hyena Square in Dar es Salaam by fostering illegal activities within its boundary. By re-framing [...]

22 30

FREELANCE / NORDIC ARCH. & HENNING LARSEN

Working on a short contract for the Nordic Architecture office, three classmates and myself worked on a large scale physical model of a masterplan project of a new residen tial area near Sisimuit, Greenland. We organized and assembled a 350 layer thick foam model into six A1 sized sections, for the model to be shipped to Greenland for a presenta tion to the local planning council.

At Henning Larsen Architects I made a total of three competition renders for a competition on a tight deadline; the project being an out door public park in Sweden.

RADI +

SHED

The project proposes and tests the possibilities of introducing hydroponic agriculture practices in Greenland as a response to increasing quotas on hunting in Greenland.

Set in the eastern Queqqata Kommune of Greenland, in the small hamlet of Kangerlussuaq, the device takes the form of a deployable shelter to assess how hydroponic systems that use perlite [a natural insulant]as a growing medium for plants, can create comfortable indoor temperatures for shelter, but also for a potential indoor wall system applicable to larger architectures. A dual-application of this greenhouse effect might then have applications in the built arctic world.

The device is built to be autonomous and self-regulating, and was used, in this case, to germinate radish seeds, as an alternative source of food for harder to reach communities and towns.

The mandate of the device is to design and built a prototype with architectural potential that is to be implemented in the field. The location of said implementation was in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, where I spent 3 weeks testing and analyzing the potential of hydroponic practices as spacial insulation for shelter.

Greenland is very much in an ideological conundrum, confounded between its preservation of traditional ways and its willingness to reach out to a larger international market. On one hand, its economic dependence from Denmark; on the other, sustainable practice, tradition, hunting, & an abundance of revealed resources due to global warming.

A lot of uproar within the local hunting communities is felt with the increasing quotas and limits enforced to preserve local animal populations. Alternatively, agriculture is beginning to make its way into local culture especially on the southern portion of the country, which, with its lower latitude, is much warmer than the rest of Greenland.

The project therefore investigates the agricultural possibilities of hydroponic practices in Greenland as it could provide another means of acquiring food, help local economy, reduce dependence on the importation of produce and still somewhat resonate with the hunter-gatherer traditional culture of local populations.

The growing medium used for the germination of the radish seeds is perlite; one of the few plant growing mediums used in hydroponic systems that has a dual application in building insulation. It is inexpensive and provides an alternative to cultivatable land due to permafrost/

However its greatest potential lies in its ability to provide additional thermal insulation to spaces, to benefit both plants and people within. In all, this could provide an alternative to the increased food imports while capitalizing on the local raising temperatures and melt-water runoff of glaciers.

AUTUMN 2017 TUTORS: David Garcia & Jakob Knudsen

Built in 4 parts, the entire system is comprised of an aluminum frame,a sonic welded polyethylene growing film, a Tyvek wrap jacket, and a control box for water distribution and data collection.

The aluminum frame was built with rota-table joints to test different angles of water distribution with the polyethylene film built in two layers. Small pockets of perlite and radish seed were sown in between the layers where water could trickle down from the top “stem” before being pumped back up. At all moment of the data collection, temperature, humidity and water flow were registered within the space, with and without human heat.

The device was designed to assure a even distribution of water to all plants. To this effect a grid like sheet made of hexagonal pockets distribute water from top to bottom through openings in the sonic welding. This allows water to flow properly,and for roots to grow but stops.

The water would then be pumped to the top of he structure only to trickle down and guided back into the reservoir for the cycle to repeat. for the water to enter the film, aquarium piping was used to split the initial water current in 16 smaller streams.

This layer was built using two polyethylene plastic films sonic

welded together over pockets of expanded perlite with two seeds per pocket. Once germinated the seed less promising would be removed for plants not to compete with each other. Each pocket housed two tablespoons of perlite, giving a very low, but noticeable quantity of insulation.

Temperature and humidity levels were calculated and analyzed within the device structure, and thermal images of the growing pockets were taken. What was discovered was that the pockets had a very high thermal capacity. This heat storage capability was even further enhanced when influenced by local conditions like

a heat source. The device performed at its best when a person would stay inside the structure, allowing the pockets to harvest the individual’s heat release. The pockets would trap the heat create a rich growing environment for plants while passively increasing interior temperatures.

It is then easy to imagine and stipulate that this hydroponic system would perform well as a temperature regulating device especially in public spaces and interior environments with a lot of human activity.

SØNDRE

STRØMFJORD HYDRO + AIRPORT

The new Kangerlussuaq terminal aims to respond to both increasing tourism pressures in Greenland and the lack of suitable gathering spaces for locals in Kangerlussuaq by rebuilding a new social airport in the center of the hamlet.

To counteract the eminent construction of a new international airport in the capital, Nuuk, and the economic repercussions it might have on Kangerlussuaq, the terminal also houses aeroponic food production infrastructure for the creation of a new workforce and local economy.

By reconfiguring and mixing both social spaces and places for visit, the project allows and encourages mingling and exchange between locals and travelers as forms of participatory encounters and speed-tourism experiences, all the while training and encouraging locals into the practice of agriculture.

SPRING 2017 TUTORS: David Garcia

This project responds to three problematics observed in the settlement of Kangerlussuaq in Greenland. Currently, this hamlet built around an airport, is faced with increasing tourism pressures & it has a absence of suitable gathering spaces for locals. In addition, settlements like that of Kangerlussuaq have very limited access to fresh, yearly available, agricultural produce.

In response to these observations, the project considers the possibility of rebuilding the current airport terminal of Kangerlussuaq into a new “social” airport. Through the introduction of new agricultural technologies and the creation of multi-functional cultural gathering spaces within this traffic heavy terminal,exchange between locals and travelers are favored and common.

LEGEND

Current Airport Outline Security Line Circulation

Airport Office Space Airport

LEGEND

Current Airport Outline Security Line Circulation Terraces Courtyard

Airport Office Space Airport Arrival Hall Check-In Counter Security Check Security Staff Room Post-Security Waiting Area Employe Lunch Room Clinic

Passport Control Immigration Counter Cantine Eating Area Washrooms Storage Kitchens Shops Market

Agricultural Workshops Hotel Office Spaces Hotel Check-in Counter Rooms

LEGEND

Current Airport Outline Security Line

Circulation

Terraces Courtyard

Airport Office Space Airport Arrival Hall Check-In Counter Security Check Security Staff Room Post-Security Waiting Area Employe Lunch Room Clinic Passport Control Immigration Counter Cantine Eating Area Washrooms Storage Kitchens Shops Market Agricultural Workshops Hotel Office Spaces Hotel Check-in Counter Rooms

Lobby

Agriculture System Storage Plant Water Filtration Tanks Bus Stop Flight Gates

Spread mostly around the hotel, but also partly around the building are grow walls for produce which is sold within the airport. These walls follow-up on the investigations of the previous device and make full use of perlite to insulate spaces.

The hotel uses vacant rooms to grow produce, keeping the water systems from freezing, even in times of low-tourism in winter.

The roof of the airport is adorned with skylight chimneys.that guide light to specific program areas, revealing and changing space. These skylights cater to their underlying program in terms of timeof-day and daily use, but also with strong consideration of plant life, sunlight hours and orientation.

The local community does not recycle building materials. Waste is burned at the local landfill twice a week, and building materials are gathered in other sections of said landfill, never to be used again. To mitigate the amount of waste and limit the high import costs for the new construction, the new airport terminal attempts to rebuild using as much of the current building as possible without compromising the final design.

The airport’s design reflects this approach through a structural floor plan that does not differ much from the current terminal. Most new construction is located in the terminal’s hotel, an addition in its own right.

Commuters waiting to take flight after crossing security still have the opportunity to interact with the general terminal area through this catwalk

If an inpromptu performance begins, no one is left behind. Perfect time for a selfie!

This wall

opened

After the security check area is closed, the post-security area is open for all travelers and locals. The catwalk is unlocked and offers views towards the atrium areas.

Extruded skylights are used to direct additional light to plants. They prove especially helpful in darker winter months, where a few more meters in height can add a few hours of sunlight due to the sun

This wall is perfect for beet crops, as they require less sunlight

Tables can be moved, and the eating area can transform into a small scale stage for locals and travelers to enjoy

Circulation Barriers

View of the runway

PERMANENT GROWING CYCLE

the Catwalk

the Main Atrium

RAPID BILHARZIA PREVENTION

003

RAPID BILHARZIA PREVENTION UNIT

Found most dominantly in children likely to bathe and play in the infested water and in women who do daily chores such as laundry and dishes in these water bodies, 95% of the total Tanzanian population is at risk of contracting Schistosomiasis [Bilharzia], with 50% being infected.

The installation proposed allows locals to interact with infested water without fear of becoming directly in contact with it. As a floating platform, water is pumped by stepping action. Walking on the modules pumps water up into a filtration chamber that uses coconut activated charcoal.

MODULE RECONFIGURATIONS

Floating on thick rubber inner tubes, the device is amphibious and can filter from both smaller water basins and shallower ones. The entire system is modular and can be reconfigured and reshaped into different organizations depending on the water body and use.

AUTUMN 2018 TUTORS: David Garcia & Thomas Chevalier

The device is assembled with three different modules and can be reconfigured many ways. The basic module lies on the inner tube of a scooter, greatly found in eastern Africa, and joins other modules at three parts. The pumping module has a hand-held siphoning pump mechanism on the underside of the stretched fabric to pump water from below, up to a filtration bubble on the single filter module.

The filter itself was made using locally available coconut agricultural waste. The husk of the coconut (a carbon based element) was used to make activated coconut charcoal, proven to have great filtration and purification properties. In addition a nylon 25 micron mesh, could essentially remove the cercariae pathogen while still allowing good water flow.

Module;

Filter

Water Bubble

The device was deployed at five locations on the eastern coast of Tanzania to test the activated coconut filter and the local population’s reception of design. Three of these test sites which were along the Msimbazi river; a shallow but thoroughly infested waterway running through the city of Dar es Salaam.

When analyzing the water both before and after filtration for salinity, dissolved solids, conductivity and pH I realized that the filter works to some extent. The filter greatly improved the smell and color of water samples, and always seems to bring samples closer to neutral pH, placing every sample within both the WHO and the Tanzanian bureau of standards guidelines. The cercariae worms were also removed by the mesh.

UNDERTAKING AUTONOMY

Uwanja wa Fisi is an active and bustling area both night and day, but environmental elements seem quite stable all throughout the year.

During the day, commercial sex workers of the area stay around their homes, under the employment of regular clients. They spend their time at home, or around, chatting with other girls, and look after their children. They also take the time to perform some chores for the household.

At night, local men gather around bars and taverns at the square. Girls usually frequent the bars in search of potential costumers and bring them back to their residences if they have a place to stay. Children are at home and are often only separated by a curtain, while their mother is at work in the other room.

004

UNDERTAKING AUTONOMY UWANJA WA FISI SQUARE

Located on the Tanzanian east coast, the city of Dar es Salaam is booming with new development and investment from the east. Confounded between new infrastructural potential and a plethora of possible development agendas for the city, local government ignores the struggle of sex workers within its slums.

Through an architectural camouflage of intentions, the project therefore addresses the plight of the 200 commercial sex workers of Hyena Square in Dar es Salaam by fostering illegal activities within its boundary.

By re-framing commercial sex work practices through the introduction of increased sanitation stations and a reblocking housing strategy, the proposal relinquishes the financial autonomy the sex workers came seeking at the square, yet all under the guise of gentrification for the more conservative regimes of power in place.

INDUSTRIAL

AUTUMN 2017 TUTORS: David Garcia & Jakob Knudsen

02 03

04

Camouflaging Commercial Sex Work

Five sanitation service sites, ancillary to the Water Tower, are spread throughout the development. These sites front as anchor points of services but serve a larger purpose in the evening for the commercial sex workers without a home to practice within.

Five sanitation service sites, ancillary to the Water Tower, are spread throughout the development. These sites front as anchor points of services but serve a larger purpose in the evening for the commercial sex workers without a home to practice within.

Acting as sites for laundry, showering and latrines, these zones not only increase the quality of life of the residents but also proposes a potential vocationnal practice from which the women of the area, can learn as a way out of commercial sex work. As sanitation zones they also double as commercial sex work facilitating solicitation, cleaning, escape from authorities, but also a sense of ownership of space and security.

Acting as sites for laundry, showering and latrines, these zones not only increase the quality of life of the residents but also proposes a potential vocational practice from which the women of the area, can learn as a way out of commercial sex work. As sanitation zones they also double as commercial sex work facilitating solicitation, cleaning, escape from authorities, but also a sense of ownership of space and security.

This symbolical new temporary home for the sex workers or around the square, enhances a sense of security and power to be exerted onto their customers. They are two level structures with latrines on the ground floor, and showers on the first, operated and maintained by the women. Well lit and dignified, they become reminiscent of bath-houses, and are core to the emancipation of the commercial sex workers of the area.

This symbolical new temporary home for the sex workers or around the square, enhances a sense of security and power to be exerted onto their customers. They are two storey structures with latrines on the ground floor, and showers on the first, operated and maintained by the women. Well lit and dignified, they become reminiscent of bath-houses, and are core to the emancipation of the commercial sex workers of the area.

The

phase

Public Furniture Food Vendors

Public Furniture

Vendors

Public Furniture

Vendors

Earth

home

space for vegetation.

Pre-built, thick, painted concrete walls have been cast with deep notches that allow for tin roofs to be slotted into. These notches also channel rainwater to drain perpendicularly to the roof orientation and onto neighbor roofs.

have space for vegetation.

Pre-built, thick, painted concrete walls have been cast with deep notches that allow for tin roofs to be slotted into. These notches also channel rainwater to drain perpendicularly to the roof orientation and onto neighbor roofs.

have space for vegetation.

Earth

Pre-built, thick, painted concrete walls have been cast with deep notches that allow for tin roofs to be slotted into. These notches also channel rainwater to drain perpendicularly to the roof orientation and onto neighbor roofs.

Showering units are a core element of the “services” zones on site. Designed to facilitate commercial sex work for the women of the area, smooth edges, places to sit, lay and things to grab on are all integrated within the units and camouflaged as typical showering elements. Benches can be re-arranged to create a long surface to lay on while the general design nd intent of the showering units allow locals to quickly clean and rinse the area a er services are performed.

Housing clusters create light wells when assembled following the planned foundations and allotments. These small 120 cm x 120 cm areas are purposefully places to allow light to seep into all home and have space for vegetation. Pre-built, thick, painted concrete walls have been cast with deep notches that allow for tin roofs to be slotted into. These notches also channel rainwater to drain perpendicularly to the roof orientation and onto neighbor roofs.

Corrugated roofs can be slotted into available allotments, regardless of their built status, as temporary shelters against rainfall, and

additional covered courtyards to be shared between neighbors. Rods can be slotted into the outer edge of the foundation to provide additional support.

At times, latrines installed in the sanitation zone serve as escape hatches when authorities raid the area. In these cases, a manhole is located on the underside of installed furniture. When commercial sex work is performed on the second level, within the showering units, these nearby elements can be moved by the costumertypically not fined by local police enforcement - to allow for the sex worker to escape on the lower level inconspicously.

Showering units are a core element of the “services” zones on site. Designed to facilitate commercial sex work for the women of the area, smooth edges, places to sit, lay and things to grab on are all integrated within the units and camouflaged as typical showering elements. Benches can be re-arranged to create a long surface to lay on while the general design and intent of the showering units allow locals to quickly clean

and rinse the area after services are performed.

At times, latrines installed in the sanitation zone serve as escape hatches when authorities raid the area. In these cases, a manhole is located on the underside of installed furniture. When commercial sex work is performed on the second level, within the showering units, these nearby elements can be moved by the costumer - typically not fined by local police enforcement - to allow for the sex worker to escape on the lower level inconspicuously.

VENTILATION & SUNLIGHT EYLET

DRAINAGE GROOVE

TREATED POLISHED CEMENT SURFACE

RUST-PROOF PAINTED TIN ROOFING TOWEL RACK & HANDRAIL

MOVE-ABLE BENCH

TUB DRAIN INTAKE

FIXED FAUCET

HANDRAIL

CAST STEPPING GROOVES

CONCEALED MANHOLE

MOVE-ABLE BENCH & LANDRY TUB

VENTILATION & SUNLIGHT EYLET

SHOWERING & LATRINE UNIT / CAMOUFLAGED SEXUAL SERVICES & ESCAPE

Housing clusters create light when assembled following the planned foundations allotments. small 120 cm cm areas purposefully places allow light to into all home have space vegetation.

SHARED COURTYARD & PASSAGE

INCOMPLETE UNITS

DRAIN & ROOF SOCKET

Rainfall

Pre-Cast Painted Concrete

Rainfall

Painted Cement Blocks, Concrete or Brick

Rammed Earth Streetscape

Common Stove Bench

HOUSING UNITS / SHARED SPACES AND OPEN-ENDED DESIGN

Supplementary program elements to further increase the quality of life of the square’s inhabitants, that also propose new ways of emerging out of sex work, through vocational training and support are implemented. These include a kindergarten, some bars and gambling zones, a park and some maintenance and training rooms adjacent to the stations.

The kindergarten, for example, plays a crucial role in the re-framed sex-trade around the square. A large portion of the sex workers have children, which become a problem when the women work out of their own homes. In this case, the kindergarten and public park serves two purposes: they add an actual physical place for the children to play outside, and second they offer an opportunity for the women to run the daycare; taking a break from sex work, allowing other women to work away from their children,and learning a potential new vocation into childcare.

The housing development scheme stays sensitive to the qualities of the area observed during the expedition. Shared courtyards and possibilities for covered exterior cooking are built. Through this,the already present camaraderie felt between the women is enhanced and given public importance.

As is common with informal settlements such as these, the housing framework also permits for an add-hoc approach to building, understanding that family structures migrate and change rapidly while also catering to the present creative and crafty nature of its inhabitants.

Bars are found all around the square, and mostly consist of kiosk beverage stands with outdoor seating areas. And it is between the buildings that these spaces for drinking and gambling are located.

The base of the water tower is opened up and becomes a gathering place for the women in the morning. They share experiences about bad clients they should stay away from. They delegate who will be operating the kindergarten today, and outline if any of the services ancillary sites requires maintenance.

In the evening, a space between bars can be rearranged for gambling by using nearby food stalls that have been emptied in order to play kolokolo, a dice game of chance favored by locals.

The Water Tower become core to the women’s emancipation and potential transition out of commercial sex work, all the while guiding newcomers through the safe practices of sex work. At night, it becomes a place for monetary exchange and solicitation and is directly adjacent to one of the 6 services sites.

Situated in a residential neighborhood near the train terminal of Vienna, Coop Himmelb(l)au was tasked with the design of a 19 storey residential building in partnership with Delugan Meissl Architects.

FREELANCE WORK