Christopher Esteban Torres UC Berkeley: Master of Landscape Architecture, 2012 Loyola Marymount University: Bachelor of Urban Studies, 2009 Columbia University GSAPP: New York/Paris Program, 2008
This portfolio will highlight four research and design investigations during my graduate and undergraduate education as a student of Urban Studies and Landscape Architecture. My work represents the four distinct global cities that I have been fortunate to study:Los Angeles,New York City,Paris,and San Francisco. My projects aim to understand how the macro and micro cultures of these places interact with the built environment to create physical and social landscapes of the city.
Hallidae Plaza
The Presidio
San Francisco
San Francisco
Berkeley
pg 4-5
pg 6-7
pg 8-9
The Brickyard
Take Me Nowhere
Drawings
New York City
Paris
UC Berkeley
pg 10-13
pg 14-17
pg 18-19
Hunts Point
Hallidae Plaza This four week project aimed to create a new urban plaza for the Powell St B.A.R.T. transit hub in downtown San Francisco. The spatial experience of downtown San Francisco reveals a moment of density unparalleled in the region.At the center of this node of urbanization is Hallidie Plaza, a disjoined and placeless void in the urban fabric. This project aims to use the site conditions of a high traffic BART station, proximity to tourist attractions , surrounding architectures and its location at the nexus of two urban grids to inform and guide a design solution that opens a new understanding of the built environment to the city and region.
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Street Grid Diagram B 4
Physical Models
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The project took place in the LA 102 studio at UC Berkeley with Linda Jewell that focuses on the potentials of structures in the landscape and their relationship to Landscape Architecture.
Final Model-Plan View
Street Grid Diagram A
tree 5th S
My concept is to design a landscape that organizes and programs both the surface of the palaza, but also the underground ticketing area of the train station. I created a series of steel-framed green walls that penetrate the surface to 25ft undergound. These streel beams are encased with glass with neon lights, organize a cafe area and more passive seat benches and ponds on the surface.
Context Map
Site Plan
Day Perspective
Section Facng East Section B 1”=8’
Perspective Facing East
Section Facng North 5
The Presidio In 1994, the Presidio of San Francisico, the 1776 Spanish and U.S. military fortification, became a public space. What is left is a haphazard agglomeration of its military past. My design re-connects the site to the waterfront and inserts a contemporary landscape of multi-functional spaces for the public to interact with the site.
left:
viewshed diagrams,
right:architectural
Site Plan
The project took place in the LA 102 studio at UC Berkeley with Linda Jewell that focuses on the potentials of structures in the landscape
Section:across 6
At the heart of my design is the Presidio Cultural Center, which will serve as the building and landscape devoted to the furtherment of investigating and interpreting the Presidio s 234 years of cultural significance. The building offers 16,660 sq. ft. of highly programmable interior space perfect for performances, special events, conferences, and exhibition space. The landscape offers an outdoor cafe, multiple plazas, wild grasses, olive trees, and distinct seating areas; all will stunning uninhibited views of the bay. My design of the parade ground actively questions how sacred the historical orthogonal alignments of the military barracks are to the future of the site. I propose that new an orientation should be the focus of the parade ground, one that is defined by very strong linear paths leading to a cultural center that lead the visitor directly to the waterfront. The spaces between the cultural center and waterfront become the backdrop for events to occur, with a great lawn that will accommodate events up to 10,000 people and smaller more intimate plazas and lawns for every visitor to make their own.
parade ground, facing north
process
Section:through
cultutal center and parade ground, facing west
Section:through
Section:through
cultutal center, facing west
cultutal center, facing north
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The Brickyard This six week project aimed to create a new public park on the waterfront of Berkeley,CA. The effects of urbanization on the San Francisco bay are clear and unavoidable. Skyscrapers pierce the heavens, bridges traverse massive expanses of water, freeways are perpetually congested; the context of the Berkeley shoreline re-affirms its position in a very urban condition. Rather than try to create a bucolic shield of idealized wildness around the park, the Berkeley waterfront must probe and explore the surrounding anthropocentric landscape.
Grading Plan
Context Map
At the heart of this design is the question can a space celebrate the urban condition of the park, and yet be critical at the same time?
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This design creates four systems to respond to four main site conditions: 1. A system of Berms 2. Waterfront Access 3. Pedestrian Bridge 4. Planting System
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The project took place in the LA 101 studio at UC Berkeley with Judith Stilgenbauer that is the introductory studio in the graduate program at Berkeley.
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Perspective Facing West Pespective Facing West From Pedestrian Bridge
Section A Facing North From Beach
Section B Facing West Site Plan 9
Walking to Barretto Park In the first semester of the New York-Paris Program I studied in the Urban Studies Studio entitled,Waterfront City: Landscapes for the 21st Century City lead by Moji Baratloo at GSAPP. The studio focused on ecology, society and their role in the critical configuration and manipulation of both physical form and abstract space. The physical context of the studio was the waterfront community of Hunts Point in the South Bronx. This is an investigation of how local populations informally occupy and transform junk spaces in their communities. The project focused on understanding how the visual cultural expression of the community can be infused into the landscape of the city, to be a catalyst of social, physical,and economic change. My project consisted of four phases of study: I. Case Studies II. Site Analysis III.Extrapolation IV. Intervention
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Junk Space is ANYTHING that is not fully utilized.Junk space is loaded with vision and potential. CASE STUDIES:
studied many situations IIstudied many situations where where unused and dilapidated unused and dilapidated spacesofof have been spaces thethe city city have been re-definedbyby re-defined thethe locallocal residents. residents.
THE LA RIVER
is a 51 mile THE LAstretch RIVER is of a 51concrete, severe pollution from mile stretch of concrete, garbage, urban runoff,and severe pollution from untreated sewage. The river garbage, urban runoff,and dissects 30 individual untreated sewage. The river communities, creating a dissects 30 individual massive junkspace.
communities, creating a massive junkspace.
GRAFFITI
along the Los Angeles along River GRAFFITI thegives Los new meaningRiver by infusing Angeles gives new the visual by cultural narrative of meaning infusing the the neighborhood into visual cultural narrative of the river. For many people, the the neighborhood into the space is re-claimed.
river. For many people, the space is re-claimed.
Site (Center) SitePhotos: Photos: (Center) Panorama of the LA River, Panorama of the LA River, (Bottom) Graffiti art on (Bottom) Graffiti art on the LA LA River(mos-la.com)+ River(mos-la.com)
COMMUNITY RESPONSE: Grafitti has been a dominant force changing the landscape of Hunts Point. I interviewed many artists including the legendary fathers of tagging in the Bronx, Tats Cru. The Point is an arts-based community center in Hunts Point that our studio worked with. Specifically, we worked with a program that trains young men and women for lives centered on social justice.This program is called A.C.T.I.O.N: Advocacy,Academic Support, Media Training and Youth Development.
SITE ANALYSIS: Hunts Point is historically defined by disinvestment, poverty, pollution, and hyper-industrialization. It is home to one of the largest food distribution centers in the world, two major jails, thousands of trucks, and eight waste reclamation centers. Socially, Hunts Point faces intense levels of prostitution and drug dealing.Environmentally, it suffers from urban island heat effect due to the mineral surface. Physically, the heavy usage of the roads have created streets that are crumbling and are not pedestrian friendly.
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CONCEPTUAL MODELS:Manipulation of materials extrapolating site conidtions of Hunts Point.
CONCEPTUAL MODELS:Manipulation
TITLE:Public-Private MATERIALS:Shredded Paper and Cardboard (Found) SIZE: 5inX5in
ITLE:Public-Private
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TITLE:Do Not Enter MATERIALS:Foam, Fishing Wire and Spray Paint(Found) SIZE: 12Ft Long
TITLE:Do Not Enter
of materials extrapolating site conidtions of Hunts Point
TITLE: Non-Profit Paradigm MATERIALS:Cardboard and Shredded Paper(Found) SIZE: 6inX5in
TITLE: Non-Profit Paradigm
TITLE: Urban Drift Map MATERIALS:Plexi, Tape, Glues, Screws, Bolts, Nuts SIZE: 1ftX2ftx3ft
TITLE: Urban Drift Map
Group #1: Junk space is not Group #2:Junk space is not Group #3:Junk space is in- Group #3: Junk Space is deused productivly
at its full potiential
visible to the community.
valued by outsiders.
WORKSHOP: Through the community center, The Through the community Point, in collaboration with fellow center, The Point, in students, Gabriella Gato and collaboration with fellow Sarah Perch, we presented a series students, Gabriella Gato and of lectures on Junk Sarah Perch, we Space and Urbanism to the social justice presented a series of program A.C.T.I.O.N. We split the particilectures on Junk Space and pants into four groups for them to Urbanism to the social map and define what they perceived justice program A.C.T.I.O.N. Wejunk split theinparticipants as spaces their neighborhood. into four groups for them to map and define what they perceived as junk spaces in their neighborhood.
Barretto Park
INSTALLATION: Based on information revealed Based onthe the information revealed in the workshop, in the workshop, we created an we created an installation that installation that highlighted urban highlighted urban design design approaches to walk safely to approaches to walk safely to Barretto Park. The installation has Barretto Park. two roles: to be an The interactive installation has two roles: learning tool and to empower the to be an interactive community center with new ideas learning tool and to empower how to shape their community. the community center with new ideas how to shape their Above: Results from workshop community. Below: Design process and installation Above: Results from workshop Below: Design process and installation
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Take Me Nowhere In the spring semester of the New York-Paris Program I studied in the Urban Studies Studio entitled, Talking Cities lead by Jim Njoo in Paris, France. The studio studied peripheral conditions of the suburbs found within the urban core of Paris in the Saint Blaise quarter in the 20th arrondissement of Paris. This investigation aims to look at residual spaces in the city. These spaces are often called abandoned, lost or dormant. In the absence of a strict program and architectural interventions, new users have emerged. Within the St.Blaise quarter in Paris lays Le Petite Ceinture, an abandoned railway line that is a thriving juxtaposition to the planned city. My project consisted of four phases: I. History II. Usage/Users III.Ethnographic Filming IV. Analysis/ Definiton
HISTORY:
Le Petite Ceinture is a 34kilometer railroad that was operational in 1852 and continued to be built until the 1900 Exposition Universelle. Ridership peaked at the end of 19th century. Soon after, Le Petite Ceinture fell out of popularity because of the opening of the Metro in 1900 and advent of the personal automobile. Today, Le Petite Ceinture is rarely used. For almost a century it has sat dormant and closed. Le Petite Ceinture has become a void in the urban fabric of Paris.
Historical Images:Rue Davot Station 1900, 1925 Map of Le Petite Ceinture, 1910 of Map of Le Petite Ceinture, Rue d’Avron Station1900 (RATP.com)
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INFORMAL USERS In the dormancy of official usage, In the dormancy of new users have emerged on Le ‘official’ usage, new users Petite Ceinture. These users risk have emerged on Le Petite aCeinture. 200 Euro fine every time they These users risk trespass onto Le Petite Ceinture; a 200 Euro fine every time concepts of ownership and legality they trespass onto Le Petite mean nothing to these users. Ceinture; concepts of Their urge to discover uncover the ownership andand legality mean space supersedes the physical nothing to these users. and legal barriers to freeze and and Their urge setup to discover uncover space nature of contain thethe precarious supersedes the physical the space. I identified four main inand legal setup formal usagesbarriers of the space:
Park.
Destroy.
to ‘freeze’ and ‘contain’ the precarious nature of the space. I identified four main informal usages of the space:
Mappings: (right)section of Mappings: (right)section of research of research of Le Petite CeinLe Petite Ceinture (above) locations of ture (left) locations of four informal usages. four usages Images: Four Informal Usages
Tag.
Garden.
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ANALYSIS AND DEFINITION In this final phase of the
FILM: Take Me Nowhere: This film focuses on the relationship This film focuses on the between Le Petite Ceinture relationship between Le and the Petite Ceinture andengage the users that currently the users that currently space. Through a series of interengage the space. Through a views, the explores the series offilm interviews, thesocially constructed meaning of the space. film explores the socially constructed meaning of the The film hypothesizes that through space. The film hypothesizes the informal users interaction with that through the informal the space, Le Petite Ceinture users interaction with the space, Le Petite Ceinture becomes more than just anywhere; becomes more than just it becomes a place of Nowhere.
In this final phase of the projectII created created aa small project small50 50 page pagebook bookthat thataims aimsto to unpack and define the unpack and define the theoretical parameters of theoretical parameters of places of Nowhere and the places of Nowhere and the importance of spontaneity within the urban landscape. importance of spontaneity
within the urban landscape. some and a spectacle to others.�
AN
INQUIRY INTO THE
Nature and Causes of
anywhere; it becomes a place of Nowhere.
NOWHERE By Chris Torres Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation
(Above) Front Cover, (Opposite,top)Excerpts from the chapter Destruction(s) (Opposite,bottom) excerpt from the chapter Five Tenets of Nowhere
(Left) Surveillance camera (Left) Surveillance camera footage footage from neighboring from neighboring businesses (Cenbusinesses (Center) ter) Police paperwork to Police view surpaperwork to view surveillance veillance footage (Right) Stills of footage (Right) Stills of interview shots interview shots
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Drawings These images are the result of two drawing workshops in the graduate school at UC Berkeley.. The work as followed: 1. Life Science Building Axon 2. Hargrove Music Libaray Section 3. Vladimir Sitta Folly 3D Model 4. Augmented Reality: Waterslide 5. Colorado Trailer Settlements -Front Cover 6. Post-America: Rustscape -Back Cover
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Contact: 310.908.1763 christorres9@gmail.com 5858 Abernathy Drive Los Angeles,CA 90045
2635 Fulton Street Berkeley,CA 94705