UCLA AUD M.Arch I ellen0753@g.ucla.edu
Oasis of the Soul
Jangala Luxury Hotel, Dunhuang, China
Practical Project | Teamwork (25 members) | 2019-2021
Project Designer, Zhiran Architecture Office
Hotel Jangala, a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ collection since Its design honors local culture through form and details, drawing inspiration from cultural richness and dynamic light to the spaces, while the cave-like design enhances experience of local belonging.
As project designer, I contributed across all phases, from architectural pre-design posed schematic concepts for building and interior layouts, led design development, construction documents, coordinated with consultants, and provided on-site guidance
since 2021, offers a serene escape from urban chaos. Buddhist caves. Truncated pyramid ceilings grace enhances spatial aesthetics and fosters an immersive
pre-design to the completion of interior construction. I prodevelopment, contributed to lighting design, reviewed interior guidance to ensure accurate implementatio.
Awards:
The Bund D.E.S.I.G.N. Hotel Awards, 2023 Golden Scale Award for Jangala Hotel, 2022
_500 temples, 25 km (16 mi)
_rooted in the 4th c. AD
_400,000 SF of Frescoes and Sculptures
Dunhuang Mogao Cave
The Mogao Caves, first built in the 4th century AD, served as a site for Bud dhist worship and pilgrimage. Located southeast of Dunhuang, the caves sit at a cultural and religious crossroads on the Silk Road. It’s one of the largest repositories of Buddhist art with the finest examples in the world.
The design features truncated pyramid ceilings of varying scales throughout the public areas. Dynamic daylight is effectively introduced into the space through skylights and windows.
The Jangala hotel spans 44,360 GSF and includes accommodation, dining, a bar, outdoor theater, botanical chambers, and meditation spaces. In compliance with local building codes, the hotel primarily occupies the ground floor, with some areas on the partial basement and second floor.
Jangala Luxury Hotel
Typical Mogao Geometry
Ground Floor Plan
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[2]
The hotel is nestled within a village with over 4,000 acres of vineyards, just 1.5 miles from the desert. It features a total of 25 guest rooms, categorized into three main types: Courtyard Rooms A, Courtyard Each room highlights the magnificent natural landscape, with views of the starry sky, sand dunes,
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[1]
[3]
Guestrooms_As-built Photos
desert.
Courtyard Rooms B, and Standard Rooms C. dunes, or vineyards, depending on the category.
Courtyard room A - Bedroom
Courtyard room A - Corridor
Courtyard room B - Terrace
Standard room C - Bathroom [1]
Bridging Time
The Dawn Luxury Hotel, Nanzhao Town, China
Practical Project | Teamwork (10 members) | 2019-2020
Core Design Member, Zhiran Architecture Office
This project renovates a historic Chinese house into a hotel by restoring traditional structures and façades, optimizing functionality, integrating modern pavilions, and designing the courtyard landscape. The 13,500 GSF wooden buildings feature 3 courtyards, combining historical respect with contemporary elements to create a cultural hotel for today’s era. It has been part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ collection since 2021.
In my role, I contributed to the renovation of building elevations, the design of small retreats, and the development of architectural lighting. I engaged with clients to present design concepts and proposals, addressing concerns of design integrity and project constraints.
https://slh.com/hotels/the-dawn-luxury-hotel
( As-built Photo )
Bower of Peach Blossoms
As-built Photo
After Renovation Before Renovation
Raised floor
The hotel lighting is designed to enhance the ambiance of the historic courtyard, using a darker tone to create depth, dimension, and texture through the interplay of light and shadow. This approach fosters a tranquil atmosphere. The lighting system is equipped with intelligent controls that differentiate scenes by time of day and are managed automatically by a computer system.
Inside-Out Factory
Material Research Institute, Los Angeles, U.S.A
Academic Project | Group work (2 members) | 2023
Instructor: Max Kuo, UCLA
In Santa Monica, an aging concrete plant is planned to be renovated for public leisure and building material research. In response to the site’s industrial character, the design opens the existing warehouse roof, converting the interior walls into an open-air enclosure that fosters community interaction.
The architectural layout centers around this enclosure. with the northern side along the street dedicated to institutional functions prioritizing efficiency and functionality. To the south, preserved silos create dynamic public exhibition spaces. The schematic concept features four distinct facades, each reflecting the unique spatial qualities within. This design embodies a harmonious synthesis of contrasting and engaging experiences for both professionals and the public.
North Elevation
South Elevation
This building has two main areas: the north section is dedicated to professional use, hosting research and functionality in its interior layout. Conversely, the south side is more open and designed with a flexible guide visitors through transformed industrial silos, encouraging exploration of panoramic views of the
research labs and offices. It prioritizes open discussion, efficiency, flexible plan for exhibitions and public events. External ramps the building landscape and the city of LA.
N-S Section Drawing
Perceiving Melody
Musical Structure in Real Space
Academic Project | Individual work | 2024
Instructor: Oana Stanescu, UCLA
This project draws inspiration from music, seeking to amplify spatial emotion through its building structure while uncovering architectural self-identification.
The study focuses on two levels of musical interpretation, using physical models to analyze Bob Dylan’s song “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right”, and comparing it with Kesha’s cover. One level involves immediate musical sensations, and another explores the relationship between musical structure and emotional delivery.
Building upon the song’s analysis, a diagram serves as the driving force behind the architectural design, employing varied structural forms to amplify characteristics and evoke compelling spatial belonging.
INSTANT MUSIC SPATIAL TRANSFORMATION
At the first level, physical models spatially depict the real-time feelings evoked by 2 different versions of the song. Dylan's rendition conveys a sense of resignation and acceptance, while Kesha's cover appears unstable and vulnerable feeling.
DYNAMIC MUSICAL STRUCTURE ANALYSIS
Moving to the second level, the focus of analysis is musical structure, especially timbre analysis. The dynamics of the song are dictated by the singers’vocal delivery and instrument playing. Both singers utilized distinct timbres, notably in their vocal timbre, to amplify their intended emotions. Dylan employs a talk-singing style, whereas Kesha opts for a crying tone. Building upon these observations, a diagram illustrates the pivotal shifts in musical structure that drive emotional amplification.
Bob Dylan's Kesha's
Inspired by the sone and its cover, this project seeks to translate and intensify spatial emotions within architectural structures, simultaneously exploring and unveiling the concept of architectural self-identity.
The house wrapper attempts to explore the indoor-outdoor delineation which facilitated by the translucent fabric with diverse skylights. By reorganizing spatial functions and enclosures, the design generates dynamic facade expressions.
Homunculi
Synthetic World-Building in Cuisine
Academic Project | Group work (2 members) | 2023
Instructor: Simon Kim, UCLA
This project synthesizes cuisine language and architectural language , exploring spatial transformation during the cooking process and spatial organization above the table setting. Through this process of performative world-building, architecture transcends its conventional human-centric focus, embracing compound beings and their intricate worlds encapsulated within larger contexts.
The concept of homunculi—small, artificially created humanoid beings from alchemy—represents the limits of human understanding and perception. In architecture, it refers to small-scale models used for world-building. Architectural homunculi symbolize key design elements and aid in visualizing concepts during early development stages. These miniature models enable the exploration of unconventional forms shaped by their occupants.
Spatial Analysis in Fermentation
Fermentation is a culinary process that produces abundant gas bubbles in bread. In this study, I explored homunculi by intentionally manipulating the internal space of the dough, using a 3D printing tube to investigate controlled spatial dynamics.
Room Temperature Fermentation Process
The elastic network of the dough structure encases and stabilizes the gas bubbles produced by yeast. It also supports the PLA tubes, which puff up the bread.
Baking Fermentation Process
During baking, the dough undergoes a secondary transformation within its internal structure. The high temperature solidifies the protein matrix, ensuring the bread retains its shape. Simultaneously, the PLA tubes soften in the heat and adapt to the expanding gas bubbles.
The interplay between fermentation and 3D printing technology creates a dynamic structure, resulting in bread with a unique texture and shape.
dynamic space created in fermentation
Spatial Analysis in Table-setting
Table-setting serves as a culinary language delineating the cuisine organization, echoing architectural principles. In this project, homunculi elements are conceptualized as a set of Italian cuisine — antipasti, primi, secondi, contorni, dolce — meticulously arranged as a novel table-setting, mirroring the sequential order of courses akin to a site layout.
Baked Synthetic Dumplings
Dipping Sauce
Miso Soup Black Tea
Grilled Synthetic Popcorn
This synthetic culinary world transcends the boundaries between the scale of a cuisine table setting into a dynamic public space on a human scale. The undulating folds in the tablecloth, resembling topographical
FROM PLATE TO PANORAMA_AXONOMETRIC DRAWING
setting and the architectural landscape. Extending its influence beyond the tabletop, it metamorphoses topographical features, catalyze an organic landscaping approach applicable to this design.
The main program of buildings on site is related to the resources exhibition. By addressing the pervasive issue of food resources in our daily lives, the project engages in a discourse surrounding human needs and rights concerning food, emphasizing considerations of both quantity and quality in our dining experiences.
This dual exploration intertwines culinary and architectural principles, contributing to a synthetic worldbuilding of the intersections between the two disciplines and their impact on societal aspects.
Antipasti Space Rendering
SunBloc
International Solar Decathlon Competition (U.S. DOE)
Practical Project | Teamwork (25 members) | 2013
Instructors: LMU Architecture & Prof. He Xiayun, GAFA
The Sunbloc project participated in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon Competition. Out of a global pool, 10 teams advanced to the final round, tasked with designing, constructing, and operating a fully functional solar-powered building. This project focused on developing an experimental residential prototype made from EPS foam, chosen for its lightweight, flexibility, and high insulation quality. Sunbloc aims to address underutilized urban spaces while promoting sustainable living.
In my role, I contributed to the design development and construction phases , focusing on optimizing the structure and waterproofing systems. Additionally, I actively participated in the pre-fabrication of the foundation and EPS units and engaged in sponsor outreach
Manufacturing Method
2D templates are employed to cut EPS blocks, while a hot wire cutter is operated on-site by a team of two individuals.
Foam block ( 3685x1200x600 )
Template
PRE-FABRICATION
SUSTAINABLE DESIGN
EPS demonstrates superior adaptability in regions prone to frequent earthquakes and extreme weather conditions due to its excellent thermal properties, low density, high compressive strength, and strong plasticity.
A. Wind Skin Natural Ventilation The wind go through the heated panels to control inner condition.
B. Energy Skin Photovoltaic panels Sunbloc gets all energy from solar panels on the roof.
C. Thermal Skin Heat Preservation Light weight building with efficient thermal mass.
D. Water Skin Rainwater collection Exterior green wall is draining water from the facade.
The perforations on the sliding doors were all computed using Rhino. Multiple curved apertures were designed to reduce direct sunlight, ensuring natural light diffuses evenly into the interior space.