Portfolio 2017 by Đinh Long

DINH LONG

ARCHITECTURAL PORTFOLIO 2017

INTRODUCTION

Ä?INH Long is an architect with 5 years of experience. Born in Vietnam and a graduate of the University of Arkansas - Fay Jones School of Architecture (Class of 2012), he returned to his fast-growing home city of Saigon and has been working as an architectural designer ever since. He is currently practicing as a junior architect at DE-SO Asia, an offshoot of the award-winning Paris-based agency DE-SO. Longâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s formation at the Fay Jones School, which once boasted one of the Top 20 architectural schools in America, afforded him the privilege to receive excellent teachings from renowned architects and educators, namely Marlon Blackwell, Stephen Luoni, Peter Rich, and Korydon Smith. Here at the School, he acquired an attention to details, a clear understanding of architectural forms, and most importantly, critical thinking as a method of finding

meaningful architectural and urbanistic solutions for social, cultural, artistic, techtonic, and economic demands. For this educational privilege, he has demonstrated his dedication and commitment in architectural-urbanistic design and research during the following years interning and practicing. Practicing in Saigon, one of the most vibrant cities in the world, has also rewarded him a new understanding of the values of architecture and urbanism in the ever-changing world. Thanks to his work at DE-SO Asia and, prior to that, Ardor Architects, he has come to understand the beauty of cultural sensibility, the necessity of modernist rationality as well as the humanity of iconic aesthetics. He has developed an interest - and a pursuit in his career - in the study of urbanism and cultural sustainability.

CURRICULUM VITAE

FORMATION

2008 - 2012

Bachelor of Architecture Professional Degree University of Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design GPA: 3.38/4

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCES

10/2014 - current

02/2013 - 10/2014

11/2012 - 02/2013

DE-SO Asia

Ardor Architects

ACSA

Vietnam - France

Vietnam

LANGUAGES

Vietnamese

English

French

Mother tongue

Fluent

Intermediate

Academic

Personal

Canada, Italy, Rwanda, United Kingdom, United States

Cambodia, France, Malaysia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Vietnam

Olivier Souquet

Korydon Smith

Marlon Blackwell

President, co-founder, DPLG architect DE-SO architectes & urbanistes Paris, France o.souquet@de-so.com

Ed.D., M.Arch. Professor, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Architecture and Planning khsmith@buffalo.edu

Distinguished Professor E. Fay Jones Chair in Architecture University of Arkansas, Fay Jones School of Architecture & Design FAIA, Principal Marlon Blackwell Architects mblackwe@uark.edu

INTERNATIONAL TRAVELS REFERENCES

TABLE OF CONTENT 01

City Planning Exhibition Center

Ton Dan Garden Hotel and Apartments

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM Saigon, Vietnam 2012

A VERTICAL GARDEN IN A CONCRETE JUNGLE Nha Trang, Vietnam 2015

The Bridgeview

CII Office Tower

Saigon, Vietnam 2013

Saigon, Vietnam 2016

A CONDO LIFE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

AN ELEGANT ICON BY AN ICONIC ELEGANCY

Lotus Towers

Swiss-Viet Resort Planning

Bat Trang Village Planning

Quy Nhon, Vietnam 2016

Cam Ranh, Vietnam 2015

Hanoi, Vietnam 2016

A furniture designerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s house

Phuoc Loc Resort Planning

Han Riverbank Urban Planning

Fayetteville, Arkansas 2009

Can Gio, Vietnam 2016

Danang, Vietnam 2016

Van Lang University Campus Planning

Kimihuhura Social Housing and Urban Planning Project

Central Plaza and Crescent Park

Saigon, Vietnam 2013

Kigali, Rwanda 2011

A CAPITALIST MONUMENT WITH LOCAL AESTHETICS

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

A GREEN SCHOOL IN A GRAY SUBURB

A GREEN OASIS IN A SANDY DESERT

A PARK INSIDE A TOWN INSIDE A FOREST

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE

A RIVER TOWN INSIDE A BEACH CITY

A SCENIC COUNTRY AS AN URBAN VOID Saigon, Vietnam 2007

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

City Planning Exhibition Center DE-SO (main), Ardor Architects (local) Saigon, Vietnam 2012 - 2018 Under construction

Stages I was involved in: Design development, Construction documentation, Tendering, Construction Administration What I did in the team: Drafting drawings, designing details, writing specifications, supervising physical model building, approving suppliers, visiting construction site, supervising authorship, issueing correction drawings, producing projectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s publicity book, etc.

I, Olivier Souquet - the co-director of DE-SO and the chief architect of the project Ho Chi Minh City Planning Exhibition Center, hereby confirms Ä?inh Longâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s participation in the stages of project and his work in the team as described here as the truth.

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM

A museum for urbanism The City Planning Exhibition Center (CPEC) is intended to be a place to showcase urban planning information as well as outstanding architectural projects in and around the metropolitan area of Saigon / Ho Chi Minh City. It will also serve as a networking point for architects, urbanists, developers, city officials, and citizens alike. It is one of a very few public buildings with cultural and iconic appeals to be built in the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new financial district.

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM

An urban museum Because of its political and cultural place in the new financial district of Saigon, the building is consciously designed to stand out and to be symbolic. The buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s facades respond to its complex urban context in uniquely various ways: an anomaly non-orthogonal shape facing the historic city center to the West, a public atrium as the welcoming entrance to the East, and an LED-lit media screen / a louvered hanging garden facing the Central Plaza to the South.

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM

The program The program includes exhibition spaces for urban planning models and drawings in various scales, an auditorium of 200 seats, an office space of 2000 m2, and a basement for parking garage, model workshop and cafeteria. A hanging garden is introduced on the South facade to create a buffer zone between the exterior and the interior, that also serves as break areas for contemplating guests. The ground floor is half outdoor and half fully glazed to facilitate a sense of openness and transparency to all citizens.

Fourth floor

Third floor

Second floor

First floor

Ground floor

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM

LED-lit media screen cenarios

The structure The structure is primarily steel which reduces the weight of the entire building and in turn reduces the cost of the foundation. The use of steel also facilitates the complex structural assemblage and enables faster construction process since many structural members can be pre-fabricated off-site. In addition to steel, reinforced concrete is used for the 4 cores, the floors, and the foundation. MẶT CẮT C-C SECTION C-C TỶ LỆ/ SCALE : 1/150

AN URBANISTIC MUSEUM FOR URBANISM

The materials The buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s exterior material choices take climate and culture in serious consideration. Anodized aluminum, the primary cladding material, minimizes the affect of the strong tropical sunlight and of the corrosion from heavy rains. The perforated panels wrap around the hanging garden and serve as a giant LED screen displaying colorful images at night. The ground flooring material employs the terracotta feels of ancient Champa and Angkor kingdoms which once ruled the region, effectively balancing the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s modern form and cladding. After 3 years of design and 3 years of construction, the building is slated to be open in 2018.

Construction progress as of Spring 2017

A CONDO LIFE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

The Bridgeview Ardor Architects Saigon, Vietnam 2013 - 2015 Completed

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design, Design development, Construction documentation, Construction Administration What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, experimenting various forms, designing facade, designing unit layouts, designing site landscape, designing details, building 3D model, rendering perspectives, supervising physical model building, visiting construction site, etc.

A CONDO LIFE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

The Bridgeview The Bridgeview is a luxury condominium project priced and designed for middle-income families. Its suburban context is surprisingly ideal for a dense and economical living condition among high-class villas and townhouses, with location by the river and a panoramic view to an iconic cable-stationed bridge, hence the name â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Bridgeview.â&#x20AC;?

A CONDO LIFE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

Form follows context The project is composed of 2 buildings of 10 and 15 floors, whose forms seek to respond to the context. The 15-floor block spreads its welcoming arm at the end of the street leading from the main road to the project, while edging its place closer to the river. Both blocks are positioned to gain the most views to the bridge and to the skyline of downtown Saigon.

A CONDO LIFE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

Condo type A - 40m2

Condo type B - 56m2

Maximum affordability The concept seeks to optimize all aspects of design to achieve maximum affordability such as long hallways and uniformly sized openings, while preserving high standards of living such as large windows, wood flooring and glass ballustrades. The facade strictly follows the units layout which is repetitive. Thus a painting strategy is utilized to create an interesting combination of highlights and illusory depths for the elevation design which is a cost-effective solution in many crowded Asian metropoles.

A time-efficient project The design started in 2013 utilizing building information modeling software Revit. This method afforded the developers a fast-track building construction that saved them time and money. The entire project was completed in 2015, and all units were sold out well before that due to such affordability. It was certified as a green project for its employment of sustainable materials and energy-saving fixtures among other measures.

A VERTICAL GARDEN IN A CONCRETE JUNGLE Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Ton Dan Garden Hotel and Apartments DE-SO (main), Tuan & A (local) Nha Trang, Vietnam 2015 Concept design

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying local and historical arts, designing floor plans, designing unit layouts, etc.

A VERTICAL GARDEN IN A CONCRETE JUNGLE

Ton Dan Garden Hotel and Apartments is ideally situated in the very center of the coastal city of Nha Trang in Central Vietnam. It stands tall in the middle of a very dense city block and is only accessible through narrow alleyways. Rising to 20 floors and having merely a 4-meter distance to its neighbors, the design of the

building seeks to optimize its residentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; living conditions without compromising its density. The solution is to create a buffering outdoor areas for every residential unit to increase the distance from neighboring buildings. These loggia spaces at the same

time provide the units with greenery and relaxation to combat the stress and compactness of the dense city center. Meanwhile, the exterior envelope of the building forms a pattern of concrete louvers that acts as a cover for the units from eyes of the neighbors as well as the excrutiating in Central Vietnam.

A VERTICAL GARDEN IN A CONCRETE JUNGLE

The form of the building itself is a modern interpretation of the architectural marvels of the lost empire of Champa, in which Nha Trang used to be one of their most celebratory cultural centers. The Cham Tower, from which this project draws an indirect reference, is one made from terracotta materials and sitting harmoniously with nature and landscape.

The building is divided into 3 parts: lobby and hotel on the bottom floors; studio and one-bedroom apartments on the middle floors; larger apartments, penthouses, rooftop bar and swimming pool on the top floors. The building is designed to achieve an affordable level of luxury in order to compete with the either excessive or low quality of the timeshare real estates market.

A CAPITALIST MONUMENT WITH LOCAL AESTHETICS Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Lotus Towers DE-SO (main), Tuan & A (local) Quy Nhon, Vietnam 2016 International Competition (2nd Prize)

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying local and historical arts, experimenting various forms, designing floor plans, designing unit layouts, supervising physical model building, designing graphics for presentation panels, writing project description, etc.

A CAPITALIST MONUMENT WITH LOCAL AESTHETICS

The site Lotus Towers, situated in the peaceful town of Quy Nhon which once was the capital of the now perished Champa Kingdom and later hosted strategic air and naval bases during the Vietnam War, are to be the tallest in Central Vietnam with 50 floors.

Bar

Condos

The program The project will house a five-star hotel as well as luxury condominiums with unobstructed panoramic views to the sea, the mountains, and the city. It will also have a shopping, entertainment and convention center with underground connection to a beach park.

Hotel

Spa & pool Convention Entertainment Shops Beach park Tunnel

Parking

A CAPITALIST MONUMENT WITH LOCAL AESTHETICS

Ground floor plan

Level 3 floor plan

Level 5 floor plan

Typical floor plan

Tower 1 roof terrace plan

Tower 2 roof terrace plan

An urban project within an architectural project The towers seek to address the spatial conditions of the public realm as well as of the corporate profitability. The project provides the city with a redesigned beach park and underground vehicular parking, at the same time connects directly to the central plaza and various points of visit in the city center. Its emphasis on modern shopping center and rooftop bars, along with its iconic yet sensible form, creates a point of great attraction to the lives in this peaceful coastal town, which has yet to be disturbed by the storm of corporate tourism.

Condotel type A

Condotel type B

Condotel type C

A CAPITALIST MONUMENT WITH LOCAL AESTHETICS

Local aesthetics The project is profoundly inspired by the Cham culture which once made this town one of their great capitals. One can relate the curves of the towers to the form of the ancient Cham temples, to the intricacy of the textiles and ceramics from their trade villages, and to the flexile dance moves of their women. Small cuts on the walls and louvers express an abstract representation of the engravings on ancient Cham stone sculptures. All vegetations are local and adaptive to the regional climate.

AN ELEGANT ICON BY AN ICONIC ELEGANCY Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

CII Office Tower DE-SO (main), Tuan & A (local) Saigon, Vietnam 2016 International Competition (2nd Prize)

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, experimenting various forms, designing floor plans, designing office layouts, supervising physical model building, designing graphics for presentation panels, writing project description, etc.

AN ELEGANT ICON BY AN ICONIC ELEGANCY

The CII Office Tower aims to be one of the first office buildings in the new financial district of Saigon. Located next to the City Planning Exhibition Center, a cultural icon of the district, the tower must be conscious of its appearance in order to bring harmony to the surroundings and realize the delicated master plan of the district. That is to say, the building must be modern, sustainable, and most importantly, elegant.

AN ELEGANT ICON BY AN ICONIC ELEGANCY

The tower is designed to be, by all means, an urban project. First and foremost, it is a mixed-use building with retail areas on the lower floors, a sky bar on the rooftop, and office spaces on the rest. Secondly, it is a public plaza, which means offering free and welcomed visitations to its terracing courtyard with access to its many shops and cafes. Finally, the appearance of the building respects urban aesthetics and hierarchy in order to reach a common greatness among a chaotic bundle of modern buildings.

Taking inspiration from its neighbor, the Exhibition Center, the tower utilizes the double-facade design to combat the strong sunlight of this tropical city, making it more energy-efficient. Horizontal aluminum louvers are applied on the North-South facades, blending both the tower and the Exhibition Center into one single complex. However, the EastWest facades utilize highly reflective glass panels as sunscreen to preserve the views to the river and to the central lake of the district from inside the tower. In the storm of competitive capitalism, many real estates developers are often fooled by the flashy presentation of their building in a middle of an empty field. But we as responsible architects must provide them with the real context, and not just what works inside the machine, but also what is essential in our human cause.

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER Project: Designer: Location: Year: Status:

A furniture designerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s house Dinh Long Fayetteville, Arkansas 2009 Undergraduate project

Types of project: Academic semestral individual project; Adaptive reuse project; Small-scale mixed-use project; Urbanism project. Areas of research in the project: Hybridization: typological, programmatic, sequential, material, structural, formal, archetypal; Contextuality, functionality, materiality, sculpturality, light, scalar intimacy, public / private spaces, interior / exterior spaces, conservation / transformation, etc. Professor: Marlon Blackwell

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

A study of urbanistic adaptive reuse The city of Fayetteville, characterized by its hilly terrain and youthful college townâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lifestyle, has a fair mixture of vernacular, Modernist and contemporary architecture on its urban landscape. Designed by local modernist Warren Seagraves in the 1970â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, the existing office building on the site is supported by standard steel structure on a rationalized grid and enveloped by a brick cladding system. The site for the house has intricate relationships with the urban Dickson Street and the suburban Church Avenue. The mission is not only to design a private house for a furniture designer with a studio and a shop but also to utilize the inherent architectural quality of the existing building in the language of the new design.

CHRURCH AVENUE

DICKSON STREET

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

A study of materials, of surfaces, of layers, of envelopes The house is an intricate system of folding skins which form the unique spaces through its overtures and closures. There are 3 main skins: polished concrete, matte concrete, and brick veneer. Each skin correspond with a material and a sensibility for specific spaces.

The polished concrete surface moves from the roof of the shop, becomes the platform of the porch, folds around the private living quarter and nally turns into the storage of the studio. The matte concrete surface forms the volume of the party room, becomes the platform of the pool and folds up into the roof of the back yard. The brick surface, the transformation of the existing brick veneer, connects the front court to the party room, the pool, the garage and the back yard.

Kitchen Workshop Hibernating space

Transition space Garden

Exhibition space

Parking space

Socializing space Porch

Entrance

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

LIVING POLISHED MODEST INTROVERTED

ENTERING WARM DISCRETE HOMELY

These hybridizations are facilitated by a mixture of overlapping functions, materials, volumes, and personalities. The result is a collection of diverse spaces in a single house. Every space is one to explore and contemplate.

MEDITATION NATURAL BRIGHT INTIMATE

CONCENTRATING MATTE OPEN/PRIVATE INTROVERTED

The house is: • typologically hybrid; • programmatically hybrid; • sequentially hybrid; • materially hybrid; • structural hybrid; • formally hybrid; • archetypally hybrid.

TRANSITIONING REFLECTIVE/MATTE GRAND/DISCRETE FORMAL/INTROVERTED

LIVING POLISHED MODEST INTROVERTED

GREETING POLISHED GRAND >> MODEST FORMAL >> INTIMATE

A study of hybridization

SOCIALIZING MATTE MODEST >> GRAND INTIMATE >> FORMAL

RECEIVING WARM OPEN/MODEST INTIMATE/EXTROVERTED

SELLING POLISHED GRAND EXTROVERTED

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

A study of public / private mentality, of interior / exterior emotionality The urban context gives the house the opportunity to be open to the streets and to foster a social life for the owner. At the same time, the interior courtyard and the garden provide outdoor spaces without sacrificing privacy. Louvers and pergolas are selectively utilized to create ambiguous barrier conditions between these spaces. Every corner sets a distinctive mode of living for the artist.

A DREAMY HOUSE FOR A DREAMER

A study of urbanism / suburbanism The house is situated at the corner of an urban street and a suburban one. The treatment is logical and emotional: The urban street is fronted with a modern shop closest to its edge, whereas the suburban street preserves the nostalgia of the Seagravesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; building and allows backdoor access to the home-studio quarter.

A GREEN SCHOOL IN A GRAY SUBURB Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Van Lang Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s New Campus DE-SO (main), Ardor Architects (local) Saigon, Vietnam 2013 Detailed planning approved

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design, Detailed planning What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying historical urban development of Saigon, experimenting various planning configurations, experimenting various building forms, designing floor plans, designing classroom layouts, supervising physical model building, designing graphics for presentation panels, etc.

A GREEN SCHOOL IN A GRAY SUBURB

A private school with 15000 students and hundreds of educators and staff, Van Lang University boasts quite a number of academic majors ranging from economics to engineering and architecture. Its new campus is situated in a dense suburb to the North of downtown Saigon. With the rapid urbanization eating up the remaining farm lands of the area, the proposal sets out a mission to preserve one of the last green spaces for the future generations.

The site has two of the most ideal qualities for the location of a university, which are a direct access to a multi-level road and a border with a winding creek. Hence the planning concept is a combination of an urban strategy and a landscape strategy. All the buildings of the campus are lining up along the urban road, whereas the green spaces and sport fields are edged towards the water. This campus is both a dense neighborhood and a park.

A GREEN SCHOOL IN A GRAY SUBURB

The spatial concept of the campus includes a large raised plinth with grand stairs that connects all the buildings and forms various spaces for studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; activities, from recreational to academic. Underneath the plinth are parking and support spaces, which can help reduce expensive construction cost by avoiding building underground basements.

The buildings form 2 logical lines: administrative buildings to the road and classroom buildings to the landscape. There are courtyards and gardens between the buildings to maximize the infiltration of nature into the site. These voids can also be developed into new buildings in the future as the university grows larger. The landscape areas can also be populated with more low-rise buildings of circular or curved forms in the case of expansion. The creek embankment is treated naturally with many local mangroves instead of the concrete structures that have destroyed urban sensibility and distanced urbanites from nature. This can also be a place for students to relax and search for creative inspirations. All this, we hope and believe, will set a standard for sustainble universities in Vietnam, as well as Southeast Asia.

A GREEN OASIS IN A SANDY DESERT

Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Swiss-Viet Resort Planning DE-SO Cam Ranh, Vietnam 2015 International Competition (First Prize)

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying local and historical arts, experimenting various planning configurations, designing unit layouts, designing graphics for presentation panels, writing project description, etc.

A GREEN OASIS IN A SANDY DESERT

The beaches of Cam Ranh bay in Central Vietnam are some of the most beautiful with white sand and clear water. However, today it is increasingly populated with hotels and resorts that appear foreign and insensible to the lands they occupy. Observing these shortcomings, our proposal for a new five-star resort utilizes local features as the essence of the staying experience. In order to realize this concept, we have to address 3 basic questions with regards to the context.

1/ How to respond to the local climate? To address the hot and dry climate for most of the time of the year, the proposal must create a micro-climatic zone to keep a level of comfort for the guests without relying too much on air conditioning systems. Here comes the concept of a green “oasis” in the middle of the desert. Within this “oasis,” local vegetation is extensively distributed to cool down the temperature and offer a relaxing feel for the guests. Meanwhile, landscape ponds act as a natural air conditioner for the desert resort. To keep the micro-climatic zone working, the “oasis” is protected by a surrounding wall with a strong border and a mineralistic appearance.

A GREEN OASIS IN A SANDY DESERT

2/ How to respond to the siteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s topographic and geological conditions? As the site lies on a continuous sand dune parallel to the beach, it is divided into 2 areas: one facing the sea, and the other facing a large natural lake and the mountains afar. The logical solution is to compact most of the essential program in the area closest to the beach. The rest of the site is preserved for future expansion, but at the moment can be used as an outdoor museum of desert plants which can attract tourists to explore the local ecological system. An artificial lake is created here to act as water reservoir as well as to facilitate a diverse landscape.

3/ How to respond to the traditional culture of the area and, in particular, its traditional architecture? Cam Ranh bay was once part of the Champa Kingdoms that has excelled in manufacture and utilization of the terracotta bricks. Terracotta was extensively used to construct temples and palaces in the Kingdoms, as well as to produce potteries and sculptures. The architecture of the resort is inspired by the Cham classical buildings which feature stepping podiums and platforms, and the harmonic integration of vegetation in the built environment. The proposal seeks to recreate the feeling of stepping into an ancient Cham building but with all the modern comfort. The result is a green and cool â&#x20AC;&#x153;oasisâ&#x20AC;? protected by a modern Cham palace with a sustainable compactness in the middle of a desert.

A PARK INSIDE A TOWN INSIDE A FOREST

Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Phuoc Loc Resort DE-SO Asia Can Gio, Vietnam 2016 - ongoing Construction documentation

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design, Design development, Construction documentation What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying local vegetation and architecture, experimenting various planning configurations, designing pavilions and buildings, designing landscapes, designing graphics for presentation, etc.

A PARK INSIDE A TOWN INSIDE A FOREST

Phuoc Loc Resort is located in a newly founded urban area in the middle of the preserved mangrove jungle of Can Gio, south of Saigon’s metropolitan area. As the centerpiece of the new town, the resort seeks to attract tourists getting away from the city for a short vacation. The resort takes advantage of the existing planning and amenities of the new town in order to benefit and be benefited from it. That is, to

help promote an ecological living environment to boost sales of the town’s houses and to provide a place of activities for the town’s residents. The resort is divided into 3 main sections by intricate systems of bio-swales and walkways in order to facilitate its operation. The activities section - including sports area, swimming pool, organic gardens, organic

products shop and resort lobby - is positioned by the main roads and intersection. The hotel section is isolated on the primest part of the site which is closest to the river and has a sweeping panoramic view of the mangrove forest. The camping area are less private and more connected to the activities area and the river. The rest of the site is open to the public and serves as attractive amenities of the town.

HOTEL

CAMPING ACTIVITIES

COMMUNITY

A PARK INSIDE A TOWN INSIDE A FOREST

we are protected !!!

An ecological project

we are under the forest !!!

The design is set out to minimize the human impact on the site and to implement sustainable features to create a built environment harmonious with nature. The materials and forms of the buildings and the landscape are minimal and have an intentional relationship with their surrounding. Wood and concrete are consistently used in the design of hotel blocks, activity pavilions, elevated walkways, bridges, piers, and benches. Their forms correspond in the 2 logics of contrast (orthogonal forms in organic surroundings) and imitation (organic forms as extension of organic surroundings).

An economically sound project The buildings and landscape must be easy to be constructed, operated, and maintained. Because of the saltiness of the water in the rivermouth area and the dry and windy climate, the types of trees are carefully selected and tested. Local trees such as mangrove varieties are especially utilized to create a naturally green resort. The bio-swales system also help retend rainwater on the site and can be used for irrigation.

A community project

Retreat villas surrounded by nature

Pavilions blended into nature

This is the place for residents of the town to meet and relax together on the weekend, fostering a friendly modern neighborhood. It is also a place for many commwunities in the island of Can Gio to visit and hold special events in the many facilities of the resort.

The project is hoped to create an example of how to design a sustainable resort with profound educational and communal values. It is also hoped to increase sales and prices of the villas and townhouses

of the town as well as its livelihood. If it succeeds, other resort projects on the improverished island of Can Gio will be able to replicate and help make a more sustainable tourism industry.

Mangrove river edge

Landscape transition: wild to tamed

Activities belvedere

Elevated pedestrian pathway

Fresh water reservation

Bioswale

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD Project: Designer: Location: Year: Status:

Kimihuhura social housing project Dinh Long Kigali, Rwanda 2011 Undergraduate project

Types of project: Academic semestral individual project; Urban planning project; Urban design project; Mixeduse social housing project; Critical regionalism project. Areas of research in the project: Rwandan vernacular typologies, Kigali urban context, social housing strategies, mixed-use urban planning strategies, sustainability in developing country, incremental growth, etc. Professors: Peter Rich, Korydon Smith

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD

Kimihuhura The Kimihuhura neighborbood is one of the most impoverished slums of Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. Many of its residents lack the most basic urban services such as power, clean water and sewage. Located on the side of a hill - typical in the mountainous country of Rwanda, it is bordered by a boulevard on top, a small dirt road at bottom separating the neighborhood from the wetland. Another dirt road runs through it at the middle, disecting it into two parts. Circulations between these dirt roads and the boulevard are made up of arbitrary and unevenly steep paths which are often synanimous with sewage. Because of all these conditions, the neighborhood suffers from a heavy corrosion problem. The mission is not only to ameliorate the existing living conditions of the local residents, but also to find a feasible and sympathetic solutions of architecture and urbanism that can preserve the vernacular characteristics and foster economic upward mobility, all the while increasing the density of the area up to three times.

Existing spatial conditions of Kimihuhura neighborhood

Rwandan urban dwellings

cooking space - sleeping space

cooking space - washing space

cooking space - living space

excreting space - sleeping space

excreting space - washing space

excreting space - cooking space

A typical urban dwelling in Kigali features separate toilet and kitchen structures. Washing activities are also done outside the house but with dignity. The main house is where eating, socializing and sleeping activities take place. The project sets out to study the vernacular living patterns of Rwandans in order to integrate them into the new architecture, which decidedly rejects the International Style social housing approach rendering placelessness across cities of the world today.

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD

Incremental growth Unlike the normative approach to social housing projects, the proposal features government-funded structures with access to power and water systems. Thus the architecture is left to the inhabitants to initiate and expand according to budget. Each structure of various sizes can shelter up to 5 households and a ground floor storefront. The construction will start on unoccupied land to avoid relocating local families far away from their existing social network.

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD

The master plan The building structures follow the contours of the topography, creating a poetic series of terraces and courtyards. Markets, parks and schools are also integrated to enrich the life of the neighborhood and help mobilize its residents upwards. The proposal will triple the existing density and still preserve the traditional living patterns.

Suggested first ground floor

Suggested second ground floor

Suggested third ground floor

Suggested upper floor

A HUMAN PROJECT FOR A HUMAN NEIGHBORHOOD

The materials Most of the contruction materials will be local and inexpensive such as mudbricks, terracotta, corrugated metal, wood, etc. Concrete which is expensive and rare in Rwanda is only used for foundations and structures. The exterior ground employs pervious pavers and grass lawn which will help prevent corrosions.

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD Project: Designer: Location: Year: Status:

Pettaway Neighborhood Revitalization Dinh Long Little Rock, Arkansas 2012 Undergraduate project

Types of project: Academic semestral collective & individual project; Urban planning project; Urban design project; Mixeduse development project; Urban architectural project; Sustainability project. Areas of research in the project: Little Rock historical development, Main Street building typologies, Pettaway neighborhood urban/ suburban context, liner building/strip mall rethinking, medium-density housing, mixed-use urban planning strategies, low impact/sustainable design, etc. Professors: Stephen Luoni, Jeffrey Huber

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD

The context Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas, used to be an industrial city with a thriving street car system that connects all corners of the middle-sized city, fostering trade and bridging different cultures. Main Street, Little Rock was the busiest street in the state, populated with townhouses and tight-knitted blocks. As the city grew more automobile-dependent,

interstate highways divided it into unreconcilable parts and slowed down economic propersity of the areas outside its downtown. The Main Street section in the Pettaway neighborhood lost its businesses and its identity. Today it is a high-speed road populted with suburban building typologies and has a high percentage of low-income house-

holds. Many incentives to revive it since the 1980â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s have mostly failed to bring the street back to its heyday. The Community Design Center of the University of Arkansas, directed by Stephen Luoni and assisted by students, was tasked with designing a revitalization plan that is creative, contemporary and realistic.

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A classic plan In order to revive the neighborhood, one must understand why it was dead in the first place. Students and faculty alike visited the site, made analysis of the place in the past, and compared it with the present. The Main Street of the past was a place benefitting from a mix of different modes of transportation from walking to cars and street cars; accommodating a mix of various land uses from residential to retail, banks and offices; accommodating a mix of vernacular and contemporary architectural styles.

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1920â&#x20AC;&#x2122;S Main Street Little Rock Frontage and Program of the Corner and Infill Conditions

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These are exactly the guidelines for a revitalization plan of the neighborhood.

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Cap i

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Cap itol Ave .

2012

1920â&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD

A complete neighborhood The Pettaway neighborhood revitalization project is an educational one. It aims to educate not only the participating students but also the residents of the neighborhood as well as many urbanists seeking to revive their cities. The project is divided into 4 developable sections. Each one serves a specific function appropriate to its context. All are mixed-use in various ratios and environmentally sustainble. These sections ultimately form a loop that are connected to transit and parks.

Infill The principal concept is to â&#x20AC;&#x153;fill in the gapsâ&#x20AC;? which are vacant lots or demolished ones along Main Street and its branches. This will help tighten the street edge and strengthen the commercial aspects of the street. Nodes or intersections are promoted as places for eventful interactions. Suburban residential blocks are replanned into pocket neighborhoods. Mixed-use buildings are encouraged to be developped to accomodate flexible functions and to increase the livelihood of the streets.

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD

Teamwork and individual work The first phase of the project requires students to bring thoughtful urban ideas to the table and select the best one to further develop. In the second phase, each student is responsible for a new infill building of the chosen plan. Ä?inh Long is responsible for the liner building.

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD

Liner building community kitchens, acoustic bars, or designers’ stores. The north end of the building is an open space that can hold artistic events or even a small farmer’s market, whereas the tower to its south end can host signage and cell phone antenna.

The liner building is the landmark centerpiece of the urban planning project. With its iconic yet vernacularly inspired form, the building is in fact a contemporary “strip mall” which houses a variety of urbanistic commercial spaces that can be

FLOOR PLAN SCALE 1/8” = 1’ -0”

A CLASSIC PLAN FOR A CLASSIC NEIGHBORHOOD

Publication The book “Pettaway Neighborhood Revitalization: Manual for a Complete Neighborhood” was published in 2012 by the UA CDC, using the studies and designs by students and faculty during 2 semesters. The project won the “Excellence in Housing Education Course or Activity Award” from the ACSA/AIA Housing Design Education Award for the year 2012 - 2013. The complete report can be found here: http://uacdc.uark.edu/work/pettaway-neighborhood-revitalization-plan

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status: Prize)

Bat Trang Village Planning DE-SO (main), ATEK (local) Hanoi, Vietnam 2016 International Competition (Second

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying historical urban development of Bat Trang and Hanoi, experimenting various planning configurations, designing sample iconic architecture, designing sample public plazas, designing sample vegetable gardens, designing graphics for presentation panels, etc.

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE

Bat Trang Bat Trang is a ceramics trade village at the periphery of the Hanoi metropolitan area that has been famous for its fine products for hundreds of years. Though its heyday of providing the old royal palace with high class chinaware and porcelain roof tiles is now a distant past, the village is still a large manufacturing hub of ceramics in Vietnam. Today, however, the village is feeling the pressure of urbanization and fierce competition in a globalized economy. For decades, the village and its famed products have fallen into decline and relied much on industrialization and urban sprawl to keep floating. For decades, many of its heritage buildings have been lost and its identity unrecognizable. Thus comes about this project which seeks to revitalize the urban structure as well as redefining Bat Trangâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s identity and making it a livable place in the 21st Century. Our proposal aims to address all these problems at from macro to micro scales.

Green spaces planning

Pedestrian streets planning

New buildings planning

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE

Water edge condition 1: Bat Trang Lakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wetland farms

Water edge condition 2: Red Riverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s green bank

Water edge condition 3: Creekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s green bank & terraced farms

Identity Bat Trang, like many other ancient villages around Hanoi, is defined by its rural context, with the rivers and the lakes that form its organic beauty for centuries. Our proposal recognizes this as an important identity feature and a necessity to amplify it: a revitalization plan that focuses on the central lakes with a distinctive development in modern agriculture and sustainable housing.

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE

A culturally and urbanistically sustainable proposal The proposal includes organic vegetable gardens that are mixed with parks and plazas along with new low-rise and medium-rise housings as well as other urban amenities such as sports center, schools, markets and cultural center, compacted on and around the central lakes. The new housings will provide a model for a

sustainable urban lifestyle in the village which will soon become synonymous with the larger metropolitan area. The low-rise shophouses will allow a continuation of the traditional living and a consistency within the existing urban structure, whereas the medium-rise housing clusters are secured on artificial islands to increase density as well as to add a high-end quality to the real estates market.

A MODERN LIFE IN AN ANCIENT TRADE VILLAGE

Street redesign type 1

Street redesign type 2

A contemporary proposal For the existing parts of the village, the proposal seeks to ameliorate many chaotic and decayed corners to create a coherent urban experience and to boost tourism in the village. Ceramics will be extensively employed in many important places such as the main routes, the central market and the river harbor. The warm tone of terracotta pavers and roof tiles itself will define the large scale appearance of the village. At the same time, the colorful and tamed patterns of porcelain tiles cladded on walls, roofs, benches, and billboards will emphasize iconic landmarks to achieve a unique and coherent Bat Trang identity. With all this redesign and replanning, Bat Trang is hoped to return to its glory days with a modern and sensible touch.

Street redesign type 3

A RIVER TOWN INSIDE A BEACH CITY

Project: Architects: Location: Year: Status:

Han Riverbanks Urban Planning DE-SO (main), ATEK (local) Danang, Vietnam 2016 International Competition (2nd Prize)

Stages I was involved in: Schematic design What I did in the team: Researching site conditions, studying historical urban development of Danang, experimenting various planning configurations, designing sample iconic architecture, designing sample public plazas, designing graphics for presentation panels, etc.

A RIVER TOWN INSIDE A BEACH CITY

Han River is historically the originating point of the now sprawling city of Danang, once a small fishing town which made an ideal place for trading goods and hiding storms. Today an international attraction for its beautiful beaches, the city for years has oriented its

focal points along the seaside with many hotel and resort developments and neglected its core as a livable urban center. With this project, the city is trying to revitalize and modernize the living conditions of its residents along the historic riverbanks.

Our proposal has 2 main principles: identity and ecology, which guide our understanding of the sustainable urbanism of the riverbanks. At each section of the river, a different identity emerges while vegetation and shades are intensified.

A RIVER TOWN INSIDE A BEACH CITY

We think of the banks as green urbanistic public corridors. These two corridors are given a diversity of nodes for various activities and views. From farmersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; markets, floating veggie gardens to floating art theaters and even ecological resorts. Further to the less urbanized outskirts of the city, we propose green embankments in order to preserve the rural sensibility as well as to prevent flooding and to promote eco-tourism. Another aspect to be considered is the real estate market that will follow the beautification of the banks. Thus we include in our proposal clusters of medium-rise and high-rise mixeduse neighborhoods adjacent to the banks in order to create a model for sustainable township.

The aim is to provide Danang the uniqueness it deserves: a livable city with sustainable developments, walkability, greeneries, and public spaces. All the while, the focus will return to the city center and continue the story of the Han river, which for hundreds of years has nurtured the personality of the people of Danang.

Along with that, the city itself is aiming to replicate the success of Melbourne and San Francisco, youthful cities that promote creative entrepreneurship and smart growth. These citiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; vibrant communities of technology and intellectuals are the kind that Danang wants to attract. For that aspiration, our proposal for the project only concurs.

A SCENIC COUNTRY AS AN URBAN VOID Project: Central Plaza and Crescent Park Architects: DE-SO Location: Saigon, Vietnam Year: 2007 - ongoing Status: Construction documentation Stages I was involved in: Detailed planning, Design development, Construction documentation What I did in the team: Producing planning drawings, diagrams, and description; designing detailed floor plans, sections, and elevations; designing technical details; calculating statistics; organizing all drawing documents; coordinating various sub-consultants; writing project description; supervising physical models building; visiting construction site; etc.

I, Olivier Souquet - the co-director of DE-SO and the chief architect of the project Central Plaza and Crescent Park in Ho Chi Minh City, hereby confirms Ä?inh Longâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s participation in the stages of project and his work in the team as described here as the truth.