CRYSTAL
TORRES THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN M ARCH I- FIRST PROFESSIONAL
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TABLE OF CONTENTS [DIS]FORTUNE
VISIBLY HIDDEN THE DEVICE
INTERLINK + BEACON LINK EXTENSIONS
TOWER LENS
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[D I S] F O R T U NE
Rainey Street, Austin, Texas To handle the homelessness crisis in Austin, it is important to address two major issues: the unhoused population, and the public eye. Regarding those suffering from homelessness, it is important to acnowledge the diveristy within the demographic, given that the causes of their condition ranges from issues of mental illness, trauma (physical or emotional), or disability as a result of drug addiction. Simply housing this group will not create a lasting impact for the majority, and that subset are the ones most in need of help. Regarding the public, it is crucial to alter public perception of this group away from simply taking the homelessness condition at face value...as it predominently does. By reflecting on the formal language any architectural implication would foster in the discourse surrounding this demographic, architecture should advocate an inclusive and rightfully respectful connotation. In doing so, architecture could play a vital role as an agent of progrerss in reforming the public perception on how this demographic is considered.
[DIS]FORTUNE_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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The formal and geometric implications chosen for the individual housing modules intentionally seeks to generate inclusivity and autonomy simultaneously. The form can be broken down into three main, larger components: two individualized, private sectors, and one communal area. The private sectors cater to specific needs and demands of the inhabitants – it is subdivided into a grid of rotating doors that offer versatile options for degrees of privacy and space, that is left to be designated at the discretion of the inhabitant(s). Furthermore, due to facilitated installation of these pivoting doors, various materials are used to compose their screen – some more porous and transparent, while others more robust and protective – to reiterate the fact that privacy and spatial footprint is at the control of the individual(s) living in the space.
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[DIS]FORTUNE_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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Rehabilitation centers and similar clinical programs of care offer a supportive role, and are laid out in a way to have an accessible yet nonintrusive relationship with the housing modules and semi-private spaces. The organizational layout of these programs is structured to formulate a shared, private courtyard space, to advocate the importance of community support and the interdependence of human relationships within the discussion of care. These clinical areas also function as a threshold between the more intimate communities formulated within this architectural model and that of the urban fabric.
[DIS]FORTUNE_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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Each housing module is tied to a semi-private space, which formally function as interstitial spaces that reach out to the neighboring units and ignite potential outgrowth of community networking. The second level of housing carries the same idea, and offers outdoor communal spaces that aggregate around the vertical circulation of adjacent modules, which result from registering the boundaries of the semi-private spaces and their relationships to the housing modules.
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[DIS]FORTUNE_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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VISIBLY HIDDEN Zilker Park, Austin, Texas
Each visitor to Barton Springs experiences the site in a different manner. From their relationship to the city, to their relationship to the treescape, the overgrowth around the trails, the gurgling of the creek, the creeping sounds of car horns, one’s perspective of this popular haven is directly influenced by their sensorial capabilities. The challenge is designing for each of these perspectives.
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VISIBLY HIDDEN_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_PARTNER ALI PEASE_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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The roles of nature and mankind are both inherently performative in the way they stimulate reactions off of one another, as well as within their own categorization of self. Within this realm of understanding lies the notion that good design between these two existences need not rely on large structural devices or interventions into site; rather, the relationship between the two acts as the design that acts as the performance. From there, any constructed device becomes assistive.
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VISIBLY HIDDEN_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_PARTNER ALI PEASE_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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Can the architectural device be human?
Perhaps somewhat, probably not entirely. However, when architecture and mankind join together to create a living, breathing, authentic performance they mimic the relationship between man and nature in a dynamically powerful way. In this performancewhere different sensorial capabilities act as the drivers for “scenic” and “character” development- the story is created for the viewer in the most personal of ways.
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VISIBLY HIDDEN_PROFESSOR PIERGIANNA MAZZOCCA_PARTNER ALI PEASE_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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Sound diagram
THE DEVICE
Zilker Park, Austin, Texas When it comes to the relationship between the built environment and sound, architecture tends to be enacted as the counterpart to sound, acting as either its amplifier or its attenuator. By studying a precedent performance, denoting the experience of sound and its position in space, this intervention emulates its characteristics by interpretating the experience of sound and translating it into a built form.
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THE DEVICE_PROFESSOR IGOR SIDDIQUI_THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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INTERLINK+BEACON Melbourne, Australia
Participating in the Land Art Generator Initiative of 2018, the Interlink + Beacon focuses on the endorsement of incorporating renewable energy resources as a primary catalyst for design. The research into the project’s site - St. Kilda Triangle, Melbourne, Australia - indicated that the beachside suburb offers a place of gathering and community, and that the locals were protective of this defining characteristic. My design proposal sought to conserve locally beloved iconic structures, such as the Palais theatre and the neighboring Luna Park, as well as the natural topographical features that identify the uniqueness of the site, such as the beach, foreshore, and the Slopes.
INTERLINK + BEACON_PROFESSOR NANCY CLARK_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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The Interlink + Beacon proposes an intervention that consists of two essential components, the first being the “marker”. The “marker” is characterized by an energy generating tower that functions as the attracting beacon with the potential of being an added identifying element of the site.
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WIND DIRECTION DISTRIBUTION
INTERLINK + BEACON_PROFESSOR NANCY CLARK_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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The second component is the “connector”, which refers to the interlinking bridge that directly guides the pedestrian circulation from the St. Kilda Triangle to the foreshore. The bridge takes advantage of the significant sectional shift the occurs in the landscape by proposing an added level to its program that calls for the natural slopes to be carved out, and thus create an “underground” condition. The circulation that occurs on the lower level of the bridge guides visitors to these “underground” spaces. This then transforms the function of the slopes to that of a green roof over these conditioned spaces underneath, without ever taking away the quality of the slopes with makes them unique to the people and to the site.
INTERLINK + BEACON_PROFESSOR NANCY CLARK_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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LINK EXTENSIONS Savannah, Georgia
The program for the Link Extensions project was temporarily housing for graduating SCAD students, as they further develop their careers in the transition period between academia and practice. It was important that the design develop public awareness of local art movements by integrating the public with the design process of these student artists.
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LINK EXTENSIONS_PROFESSOR JAMES LEACH_PARTNER LEXY RAIFORD_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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The integration of the staircase facilitated the programmatic arrangement throughout the whole structure. Since the central staircase leads the public directly to the third level and does not interact with the internal circulation of the second level, spaces conducive to public activity were arranged on the first and third level. First level was directed mainly for the public, where the majority of square footage area was dedicated to gallery and exhibition space. Also, on this level were facilities for the artists, such as woodshops and painting areas, which could also play a role as part of the exhibition of creative process. The second level houses the living quarters for the artists, which can be accessed by two private staircases within the building. Third level is host to the studio spaces for the artists as well as open rooftop area, where artists can choose the extent of public interaction they feel most comfortable with.
LINK EXTENSIONS_PROFESSOR JAMES LEACH_PARTNER LEXY RAIFORD_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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Although the staircase acts as an individual piece, the idea is that it functions as an evidently vital component that holds the project together; therefore, “building” and “stair” represent counterparts in the sense that they work to complement each other to create a functional system. The stairs lead the public directly to the activity of the artists, while underneath the steps – cloaked in a draping skin – is a habitable, enclosed, public space.
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LINK EXTENSIONS_PROFESSOR JAMES LEACH_PARTNER LEXY RAIFORD_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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TOWER LENS New York, New York
Located in the Special Hudson Yards District in Manhattan, New York, the Tower Lens project takes advantage of varying characteristics of its context. The master plan for the future Hudson Yards district promises a highly attractive future for the neighborhood that will encourage pedestrian activity and event opportunities. To further stimulate the city’s aspirations with the neighborhood, this tower’s design intent derives from the idea of taking advantage of the surrounding context’s characteristics; twisting the tower provides a more advantageous approach that offers the inhabitants with a more dynamic view that does justice to the efforts in renovating the district. The skin enveloping the building becomes an element of light control as well as structural support. Throughout the tower, the skin meanders across creating diverse opportunity for public and private spaces that offer different levels of transparency. On the lower level, a cantilever supported by the skin structure creates an indoor/outdoor space that interacts directly with the Hudson Yards Park.
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TOWER LENS_PROFESSOR NANCY CLARK_PARTNER ERIC VARGAS_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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The tower encourages pedestrian circulation amidst the extensive expansion plans of the district, and creates a center point for interaction among these developing renovations, including the Javits Convention Center expansion and the new Hudson Yards Parks. Also located near the Highline entrance, it complements the circulation of this area through the use of open spaces that run through its ground floor, initiating at the corner where Highline activity begins. The tower’s program – hotel and residence – also complements the developments by providing a place to stay and thus generating an opportunity to explore the new features of this district, making it a much more activated area and thus a pleasant, interactive neighborhood.
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TOWER LENS_PROFESSOR NANCY CLARK_PARTNER ERIC VARGAS_UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
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