Dardan Hoxha

DARDAn HOXHA UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS ARLINGTON

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

2008-2013

Dardan Hoxha

816 Misty Cove Dr. Apt 310 Arlington, TX 76013 (469) 463 - 4845 dardan.hoxha@mavs.uta.edu

Contents 415 Eleventh Avenue New York City

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Urban Charger 14-19

Horton Plaza Competition Entry Franklin street Lofts New York City

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Naval Museum Seville Spain

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River Walk Graphic Design San Antonio

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Autophagous House

Innsbruck, Austria

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Notational Sketches

Kimbell Art Museum Nasher Sculpture Center

US Post Office

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Transformative Pavilions Steel Competition Entry

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415 ELEVENTH AVENUE Javits Center

Midtown Manhattan 34th-42nd street Located on the west side of Manhattan the Jacob K. Javits has presented a challenge since its opening in 1986. The Governor recently announced plans to demolish the “eyesore blocking views� of Hudson River and build a new convention center in Queens.

Following this discovery I was eager to propose a redevelopment plan that would link Midtown to the Hudson River through a series of public and semi-public spaces. This proposal will transform the area from a post industrial wasteland of abandoned buildings into a central node connecting two of the main public realms, that of Broadway and High Line. The city grid will be reintroduced and the streets will continue west to the river at which point they will be terminated by a series of follies serving as multi purpose spaces.

From the park a series of light stainless steel bridges stitch nature to the residential buildings. The façade of the convention center will be preserved on specifi c locations of the development in which the buildings will be oriented primarily for public use. This dynamic development responds to cultural, economical, and political issues while simultaneously embodying historical and contemporary principles of urban design.

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existing Figure Ground

415 ELEVENTH AVENUE

Proposed site plan

NEW YORK, NEW YORK Almost by defi nition, the tower assumes a secondary role in the urban context as it is recessed behind the exiting wall of the Javits Center to establish a human scale. Consequently, at a specifi c moment its most dynamic program is reveals to the avenue as a constantly changing and charged element. The moments of collision between the horizontal building and the vertical tower are celebrated through a void on the south side that becomes an exterior courtyard, and an additive element on the north side that serves as a connector between the two buildings. Conceptually the athletic club is a continuation of the High Line, which connects to the building through a light steel bridge.

The building is comprised of three distinct components, two of which are linked through continuous spatial elements. The form begins with a square base that defi nes the edges of the block and as it moves vertically the tower is rotated and tapered slightly to take advantage of unobstructed views. The undulating form of the tower causes the interior fl oor plates to change slightly, thus offering unique layouts for every unit.

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PLAN +04 01

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diving pool recreation pool 03 leisure pool 04 indoor bath 32oC 05 turkish showers 06 cold bath 07 fi re bath 08 sound bath 09 rest space 10 changing rooms and showers 11 exterior garden 01

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PLAN +01 14

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basketball court volleyball court 14 racquetball court 15 dance studios 16 open to below 12

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PLAN +00 19 22

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athletic club entrance lobby entrance control 19 athletic club administration 20 juice bar 21 athletic store 22 recreation center changing rooms and showers 23 retail space 24 housing lobby 25 housing administration 17

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PLAN +55 stuido units one bedroom units

PLAN +30 studio units one bedroom units two bedroom units three bedroom units

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north

West

south

east

section through the Athletic Club

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HORTON PLAZA

URBAN CHARGER SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA TEAMMATE EDUARDO CASTANEDA FALL 2011

Urban Charger is a physical interactive architecture, where information and form intersect, allowing the reactive surface to become responsive to the variable qualities of its environment.

The technological faรงade actively responds to individual life patterns and interacts with bodily activities that emerged in diverse fields. The skin is capable of producing renewable energy by dispensing electricity through a photovoltaic system that consists of a lightweight structure supporting a series of thin silicon skin, network of solar vacuum tubes, and energy storage.

Urban charger unifies the dissimilar strip through the site with the public square that becomes a green space which is the center of attention for the surrounding buildings. It supports any form of physical activities of

the strip mall and the surrounding neighborhood by the added public and semi-public spaces underneath and next to the vertical structure. The additional program is for either teens or seniors dedicated to expanding activities from the neighborhood and accessible through a new walking path, converting the datum into part of an urban infrastructure.

Urban Charger overcomes the dissociation between physical fixed building and variable programs. This is an urban infrastructure that surgical integrates into the existing urban fabric by linking systems of points, lines and landscapes, that strengthens the plaza and revitalizes the city.

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FRANKLIN street LOFTS NEW YORK, NY SPRING 2011

Located on the south west corner of Franklin street and Broadway, Franklin lofts are designed to provide an inspireding space for artist to live and work. To make art easily accessible to the public a gallery is located on the first floor where artist can showcase their work. The facade of the gallery facing Broadway is enclosed in glass which provides views of the art and allows the space to be naturally lit.

The concept for the work space of the north side lofts was an inserted cube.

This plug in piece is cantilevered in order to define the edge of the block.

The living part of these lofts is a twolevel space, with the public space being on the first level and the more private on the second one, which overlooks the work space.

The idea of the loft on the south side was to have a two level condo where the work and live space is interchangeable. A spiral staircase provides internal access between the two levels.

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Longitudinal Section

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Levels 4, 6, 8, and 10

Levels 3, 5, 7, and 9

Entry Level

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NAVAL MUSEUM

NAVAL MUSEUM

SPANISH TRADE AND EXPLORATION SEVILLE SPAIN SPRING 2011

The Naval Museum of Seville was designed for the collection, preservation and interpretation of the rich history and culture of Spanish trade and exploration. It will house a permanent collection of artifacts from the Golden Age including a replica of the Santa Maria ship used

by Christopher Columbus in his first voyage to the New World.

The museum consists of three different buildings, the Archives, Cartography, and the Naval Display. In order for one to reach the most prominent collection of artifacts, the Naval Display, they would have to travel through a sequence of galleries.

The two main buildings of the museum are connected through a ramp which becomes the architectural promenade of the museum. This ramp acts as an armature that unites the two buildings into one. Furthermore the ramp metaphorically signifies the voyage to the Americas. The display of the Santa Maria ship is such that it appears and disappears out of the sight of the observer as they are sequencing the spaces within the museum.

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RIVER WALK GRAPHIC DESIGN SAN ANTONIO, TX FALL 2010 The program of this project called for an infill mixed use building to facilitating a small graphic design firm, a restaurant, and a pied-Ă -terre. The project was approached by grouping the programmatic elements in section from public to semi-public to private.

The site condition which slopes down fifteen feet from the street to the river provided a great opportunity to create an architectural promenade that would provide a passage and connect the two levels together.

The main entrance of the building is on Soledad street while a secondary entrance serveing the caffè and gallery space is on the river walk level.

The gallery space is a poche condition with narrow openings on the floor above to difuse light.

The cantilevered portion of the facade is intentionally designed to be a heavy element which would appear floating.

The facade then wraps around on the west side and becomes a screen to block direct light.

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Development of single cell species.

Autophagous House

Mutation through transformation generates colonies of species.

AUTOPHAGOUs HOUSE INNSBRUCK, AUSTRIA in collaboration with Moritz Hanshans Autophagous House deals with the connection and interaction of soft and hard elements. The soft elements perform as the floor, while the hard elements create structure and enclosure. Linear components serve as connecting parts transforming from wall to floor to column. This relationship forms a complex environment for a single-family house in the middle of the Alps. As a driver for the project research was conducted on algae cells and their nature of reproduction in contrast to shark teeth and their nature of destruction. The tension between these two different elements, one that creates life and the other that destroys anything it comes in contact with, became the main focus in developing the house.

In terms of visual appearance the Autophagous house establishes the effect of a helium filled balloon. The lightness of the object achieved through the porous surface and the column variation hints the notion of redefining gravity.

Visual features of the house are further established by taking inspiration from cinema for aspects such as light, space, and movement. The building constantly changes as you move around it thus offering another shape from each viewpoint.

The buildings effects go beyond the conventional spatial conditions of a house thus transforming the inhabitants experience into a sustained encounter between building reality and cinematographic fiction.

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TRANSFORMATIVE PAVILIONS

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TRANSFORMATIVE PAVILIONS CULInARY ARTs CoLLeGe DALLAs, TeXAs sTeeL CoMPeTITIon enTRY sPRInG 2012

Transformative Pavilions incorporates rich cultural traditions of Deep ellum with new programmatic elements by overlapping and interlocking them into a unique special experience. The roof garden designed as an urban park serves to tie the commercial retail spaces, culinary school, and cultural entertainment into a cohesive whole.

The elevated landscape supported by a steel superstructure houses programs ranging from music performances to art festivals, and playgrounds to open urban spaces.

The design of this project was approached by conceptualizing the basic fundamentals of a culinary institution: grow, harvest, and prepare.

A fi eld was to be provided to plant the herbs and vegetables; a series of habitable spaces would then allow the students to cultivate and prepare the food. These pavilions were designed

as jewels, to showcase the institutions most prominent practice, the art of cooking. A folded landscape ramping from the ground level becomes the architectural promenade inviting visitors to go through a progression of spaces similar to a museum. A mechanical system incorporated into the design allows the kitchen to detract to the space below while the seating area of the restaurant, stacked above the kitchen during the day, detracts down to the urban park level and becomes accessible to the public. Circulation to and between the pavilions is not only through the park level but also through a series of steel walkways suspended from the superstructure. These walkways create a unique spatial experience not only for the students but also for the public.

A programmatic bar containing the common elements of the culinary

school is inserted below the urban park on the north side. As part of the entertainment district, art shops and artist studios are inserted alongside elm to engaging the street and bring back the atmosphere Deep ellum was once known for. These elements will not only enable local artist to sell their work but they will also become a showcase of the history and culture that inspired artist in Deep ellum.

Between these two programmatic bars, the space is transformed into an interior public plaza housing the public elements of the school such as the auditorium, wine room, pastry shop, and the library. This becomes the public armature, which pierces through the building and provides an interaction through the integration of all the programmatic elements.

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URBAN PARK LEVEL

MEZZANINE LEVEL

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30’

62’

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT

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PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT

GROUND LEVEL

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT

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sUPeRsTRUCTURe

PRoGRAMMATIC TRAYs

PAVILIons

FoLDeD LAnDsCAPe

PAVILIons MoRnInG - TeACHInG KITCHens AFTeRnoon - ResTAURAnTs eVenInG - BARs VeRTICAL CIRCULATIon

PRoGRAMMATIC TRAYs

RAMP To THe UPPeR PARK FoLDeD LAnDsCAPe eLeVATeD PARK sUPeRsTRUCTURe CoLUMn sYsTeM CIRCULATIon To AnD BeTWeen THe PAVILIons

PARKInG sTRUCTURe

CULInARY ARTs CoLLeGe

BoUTIQUes ART AnD MUsIC sTUDIos CoMMUnITY CenTeR

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URBAn GARDen eXTeRIoR seATInG PAVILIon (TeACHInG KITCHen/ ResTAURAnT)

eLeVATeD PARK soFTsCAPe HARDsCAPe

seCTIon A-A

seCTIon B-B1

seCTIon B-B2

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6'

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14'

30'

CULInARY sCHooL ReTAIL sPACe

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MARKeT sPACe PUBLIC ReALM

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