Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Felipe Velรกsquez Piedrahita
portfolio
2013
|3|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
0I cv Felipe Velásquez Piedrahita 05 there is nothing new under the sun venice architecture biennale 2012 09 inventory feria odeón, contemporary international art fair 12 public competition buena arquitectura, excelente pedagogía
index
16 casa primavera buena arquitectura, excelente pedagogía 18 residential building bell 134a building by a grid 20 transferia: an architecture thesis unearthing bogota’s environmental wealth 24 miu mobile interactive units 26 the longhouse
|3|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Education
Felipe Velásquez Piedrahita
08/2005 – 09/2010 Universidad De Los Andes {Bogotá, Colombia} Bachelor of Architecture, professional degree 01/2009 – 06/2009 Instituto Superior Tecnico De Lisboa {Lisbon, Portugal} Exchange Architecture Student Work Experience
i ncdve x
address: calle 127 bis # 17a – 30, bogotá, colombia e-mail: <felipevelasquezp@gmail.com>, <velasquez@estudioaltiplano.com> phone: {+57} 310 6975696 | {+571} 2742244 web: www.estudioaltiplano.com born: 08/01/1987 | bogotá, colombia nationality: colombian
july 2010 – Ongoing Altiplano Estudio De Arquitectura {Bogotá, Colombia} Co-founder of a l t i p l a n o estudio de arquitectura along with Alberto Manrique, Felipe Guerra, and Pedro Aparicio. Currently a l t i p l a n o is being operated by Pedro Aparicio and Felipe Velasquez in Bogotá, Colombia. Meanwhile Alberto Manrique and Felipe Guerra are continuing their academic formation at Columbia GSAPP and the Berlage Institute respectively. June 2012 – Ongoing Prosantafé {Bogotá, Colombia} Part time architectural, project and construction advisor for construction company Prosantafé S.A.S. May 2010 – August 2010
Uribe De Bedout Arquitectos {Bogotá, Colombia} Was invited to be a part of the team for the design of the competition for the Bogotá Chamber of Commerce Convention Center, which UdeB developed in partnership with Diller Scofidio + Renfro {New York City, USA}. After conceptual design phase in Bogotá, i spent three weeks in the New York offices of ds+ r working on the competition. We achieved second place. Built Work 05/2013 - Ongoing Faskha Apartment Apartment Renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t I p l a n o Size: 400 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 05/2013 – Ongoing Fonnegra Gerlein Office Space Reconstruction and Renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t I p l a n o Size: 360 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 04/2013 – Ongoing Estrada Apartment Apartment Renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t I p l a n o Size: 380 m2 Architectural Design and Construction
| 13 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
06/2012 – 01/2013 Monroy Apartment Apartment Renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t I p l a n o Size: 380 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 02/2012 – 12/2012 The Longhouse House Renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 480 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 06/2012 – Ongoing Casa Primavera Prefabricated Social Housing Prototype for Emergency Projects. Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 45 m2 {each dwelling, over 300 built and more under construction} Architectural Design and Construction Supervision 04/2012 – 08/2012 There is Nothing New Under the Sun – Venice Biennale of Architecture 2012 Installation. Venice, Italy Team: a l t i p l a n o + Carlos Balen Size: 7 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 02/2012 – 07/2012 Expansion of Brandy Domecq Headquarters Office Renovation and Expansion. Bogotá, Colombia
Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 450 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 12/2011 – 07/2012 Apartment G Interior design for a new apartment that resulted from the merge of 3 small apartments. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 450 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 11/2011 – 03/2012 Yokohama Offices Interior Design. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 320 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 10/2011 Inventory – 1st Edition of Odeon International Contemporary Art Fair Installation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o + Danilo Volpato Design and Construction 07/2011 Colombian Flower Pyramids Pavilion Temporary Pavilion for the International Flower Exposition. Bogotá, Colombia *Winner 1st Prize – Best Pavilion Design Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 72 m2 Architectural Design and Construction
03/2011 – 08/2011 Patio Apartment Apartment renovation. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 174 m2 Architectural Design and Construction 10/2010 – In Construction Residential Building Bell 134A Housing. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o Size: 3600 m2 Architectural Design and Construction Supervision 06/2010 – 10/2011 Clover House Private House. Zipaquirá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o + Joana Barossi Size: 400 m2 Architectural Design and Construction Supervision 03/2010 A Varias Manos stencil workshop at Villa Juliana. Intervention + 4-day community workshop. Villavicencio, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o + Estudio Marzo as a temporary collective called EnVozAlta. Size: Graffiti on 42 m x 6 m wall Design, workshop tutor, and realization.
Competitions 07/2013 Public Competition for the Expansion of the Colon Theater in Bogotá, Colombia Public Competition. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o + Mema Arquitectos + Carlos Balen + Alejandro Quintana 02/2013 Independence: Invitational Competition for Re-Thinking the Mobile Housing Solutions of Oil Rig Field Offices Second Place Private Competition. Bogotá, Colombia Team: a l t i p l a n o + Carlos Balen 02/2012 Wrapped Forest – Proposal for Architectural Record International Competition Aids Memorial Park – New York Public competition for a memorial park in Manhattan, New York Team: a l t i p l a n o + Carolina Maya + Carlos Balen + Carlos Martinez 10/2011 – Ongoing Buena Arquitectura, Excelente Pedagogia *Winner 1st prize for Amazon Region *Winner 1st prize for Andes Region *Winner 2nd prize for Pacific Region *Winner 2nd prize for Caribbean Region
|2|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Team: a l t i p l a n o + Mema Arquitectos + Carlos Balen + Alejandro Quintana Project exhibited at the Universidad Piloto de Colombia. Bogotá, Colombia. 05/2010 – 08/2010 Public Competition for the Design of the New Bogotá Convention Center – Bogotá Chamber of Commerce Bogotá, Colombia and New York City, USA Team: Uribe De Bedout Arquitectos / Diller Scofidio + Renfro 10/2009 Newark Visitors Center International Competition Newark, USA Team: Alberto Manrique, Felipe Guerra, Pedro Aparicio and Felipe Velásquez. Lectures 03/2013 There is Nothing New Under the Sun HUB Bogotá Altiplano was invited as keynote speakers in the series of architecture lectures “Posiciones de Emergencia” at the HUB Bogotá. 08/2013 En Construcción Universidad de los Andes Altiplano was invited as keynote speakers in an ongoing series of lectures by important Colombian architecture studios.
Seminars / Workshops 06/2013 – Ongoing Entrepreneurship and Finance Seminar- Ernst & Young. Bogotá, Colombia Currently attending a six-month long, weekly seminar on entrepreneurship and finance for leaders of small, up and coming companies. 08/2012 Biennale de Architettura di Venezia Attended as an exhibitor and as a participant to various events and talks at the 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale. The year’s theme was established by curator David Chipperfield as Common Ground, and delved deep into the basic ideas that are common to all architects when unprovided with excessively profound considerations. 07/2012 Building Local. Barichara, Colombia A design-build workshop organized by architects Maria Carrizosa, Adriana Navarro, and Ana Maria Gutierrez that explored the aesthetic, assembly and tectonic qualities of earth construction. Professors Ronald Rael and Ramon Aguirre led explorations with rammed earth, adobe, and fique paper. The 10day workshop consisted of designing and building the first phase of a house for a local family of campesinos. 07/2011 Pasaje. bogotá, colombia.
Artist Residence LAAGENCIA and Danish School KAOS Pilot invited a l t I p l a n o to participate in the organization of a Workshop Pop-Up Market. The event consisted of a complete day of workshops, installations, culinary activities, and a local band music festival. Besides participating in the curatorial and organization of the event, a l t I p l a n o realized an work in-progress illumination workshop that constructed a light panel made of recycled plastic shots that would act as part of the scenography for the music festival. 10/2010 vii BIAU – Biennal Iberoamericana de Arquitectura y Urbanismo. Medellín, Colombia. 3-day symposium with lectures, debates, award presentations, and exhibitions. Lectures assisted: Ana Elvira Velez {CO}, Carlos Pardo {CO}, Francisco Fanucci + Marcelo Ferraz {BR}, Inês Lobo {PT}, Jose Selgas + Lucia Cano {ESP}, Mauricio Rocha {MX}. 07/2010 Cartagena International Summer Studio Architecture for a historic preservation closed enclosure, Cartagena, Colombia Tutors: Mauricio Rocha, Paloma Vera, Isaac Broid, Takaharu Tezuka, Sebastian Irarrazabal, Carlos Mijares, Felipe Gonzalez-Pacheco, Carlos Campuzano, etc. Organized by Universidad de los Andes 05/2010
1st Encounter of Expanded Architecture. Bogotá, Colombia 5-day workshop at the creative space el parqueadero at the Museo Banco de la Republica, focused on creating possible strategies for public space regeneration in radical situations from a collective hands-on position. Tutors: Santiago Cirugueda and Carlos Hernandez. Organized by Universidad Javeriana. Invited as guest speaker to present the project A Varias Manos stencil workshop at Villa Juliana. Publications 10/2012 There is Nothing New Under the Sun / rammed earth at the biennale di venezia 2012 Publication at Ron Rael’s earth architecture blog: www.eartharchitecture.org link: http://www.eartharchitecture.org/ index.php?/archives/1181-there-isnothing-new-under-the-sun-rammedearth-at-the-biennale-divenezia-2012.html 08/2012 There is Nothing New Under the Sun, Exhibition Book,Traces of Centuries and Future Steps, Collateral Event 13th Venice Architecture Biennale 2012, Venice, Italy. 08/2012 Cuando Calienta el Sol, Nota
|3|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Uniandina, Triannual Official Magazine, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. Article on the winning project for the National Public Competition “Good Architecture, Excellent Pedagogy”. 11/2011 Primer Lugar Concurso Buena Arquitectura, Excelente Pedagogia / Altiplano + MEMA Arqs. + C.Balen + A.Quintana, publication at renowned architecture blog: www. plataformaarquitectura.cl. Architecture publication explaining the complete concept behind the project: all submitted diagrams, plans, and renders, were published. Article on the winning project for the National Public Competition “Good Architecture, Excellent Pedagogy”. link: http://www. plataformaarquitectura.cl/2011/11/29/ primer-lugar-concurso-buenaarquitectura-excelente-pedagogiaaltiplano-mema-arqs-c-balen-aquintana/ 11/2011 Colegios a la medidia del clima, publication at printed edition of principal national newspaper El Espectador. Article discussing the importance architecture must conceive when adapting itself to different climates. Article on the winning project for the National Public Competition “Good Architecture, Excellent Pedagogy”. link: http://www.elespectador.com/
impreso/vivir/articulo-314302-colegiosmedida-del-clima
Annual Competition with the project Transferia.
10/2011 Inventario, Exhibition Catalogue, 1st Edition of Odeon International Contemporary Art Fair, Bogotá, Colombia.
2010 Academic Recognition for Academic Excellence throughout Architecture Studies at Universidad de los Andes. Colombian Society of Architecture 2009-2010 Honorable Thesis. The configuration of a border as an urban articulator: case study of the Island of the Sun. Thesis Director: Mauricio Pinilla and Fernando De La Carrera.
10/2010 EnVozAlata collective / A varias manos stencil workshop in Villa Juliana, Exposition, Biblioteca La Ladera, Medellin, Colombia. Collateral exposition at the VII Iberoamerican Bienal of Architecture and Urbanism regarding the projects presented of the workshop 1st Encounter of Expanded Architecture, Bogota, Colombia. Awards 2010 First Prize, national public competition Good Architecture, Excellent Pedagogy, for both Amazon and Andean regions. Competition for building solutions to reconstruct the national educational platform damaged by the rain seasons of 2009-2010. 2010 Second Prize, national public competition Good Architecture, Excellent Pedagogy, for both Caribbean and Pacific regions. Competition for building solutions to reconstruct the national educational platform damaged by the rain seasons of 2009-2010. 2010 Thesis Nominated to the 10th Architecture Students National
Languages Spanish, English, Portuguese, French. Software: Microsoft Office, ArchiCAD, SketchUp, AutoCAD, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign. Travel Experience Countries Visited Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, México, United States, Canada, France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Netherlands, Germany, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Egypt, Israel, China, Japan, Singapore. Other Information Attended Culver Summer Military Academy under the Aviation Program in i998 – 1999 – 2001 and 2002. Other activities include piano and guitar playing, and soccer.
|4|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
I
n the same way that construction is achieved only through the transformation of matter and the transformation of landscape elsewhere, the realm of
architectural design has evolved through time as the transformation, reinterpretation and super-imposition of knowledge and information.
With each built structure a process of alteration of landscape and matter
begins, and when it is completed, a process of decay also starts; a moment of ar-
chitectural knowledge is frozen and represented for as long as the structure lasts in its initially conceived form.
There is nothing new under the sun consisted of hoisting 3.5 tons of earth
into a small chamber of a 15th century palace and then compacting it into a solid rammed earth object. We wanted to provoke discussion regarding topics of tradition, contemporaneity, territory and the built environment.
The installation formally suggests to the observer how architecture depends
in the form of territory, energy, and resources.
We felt that working with earth would be the most appropriate material to evoke this discussion for three reasons: i.
Understanding earth as a basic construction material used all over the world. Traditional building techniques necessarily depend on oral tradition or transformation of knowledge to evolve and survive. iii. The plastic notion that conjures the act of subtracting compacted earth from the ground to mold it into new shapes without interfering in its material capacities. ii.
Therefore in order for us to make it possible to build this installation in rammed earth, we had to submit ourselves to the learning process of the technique. We
traveled to a colonial town in the Santander region of Colombia called Barichara where rammed earth is commonly used.
Through a construction workshop called Building Local, we got familiarized
with the technique. Afterwards we had to do some tests in the outskirts of Bogota
01
There is nothing new under the sun Venice Architecture Biennale 2012
type rammed earth installation year 2012 exhibition traces of centuries and future steps 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale team altiplano + *carlos balĂŠn location barichara, tabio, colombia / palazzo bembo, venice, italy
|5|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
where we ended up building a 1 to 1 model of the installation for Venice. This process enriched our experience with the technique and was true to the essence of transformation and trespassing of knowledge and information.
We created a web platform to continue discussions surrounding the project: http://www.rammedweb.com/ The idea is to invite different architects, artists, or other field professionals, to propose a topic and submit an image that accompanies the topic in order to create a
one week debate, discussion, or knowledge transfer regarding the selected theme.
Some possible themes we are staring on are: i. Landscape and territory control. Different way to transform to create architecture. {city and nature} ii. The architects purpose within the built environment. {particular and personal experiences in different cities of the world} iii. Architecture as an empirical approach. *Carlos Balen. Architect of the Universidad de los Andes. Worked with Simón Vélez as resident architect for the Indupalma Headquarters in Barrancabermeja, Colombia. Founder of Balen Arquitectos. Carlos was invited by Altiplano to participate in the thinking and construction of There is Nothing New Under the Sun for the Venice Biennale 2012.
Ramming earth in barichara. a first layer of rock isolates from humidity of the floor. the wooden formwork {2.44m x 1.22m} contains the earth while it’s rammed with a wooden pisón. earth was mixed with lime and a small percentage of cement to assure durability to exposure. the wall was sealed from water with cactus oil. ancient technique; knowledge transformation via oral communication and practical experience. | 63 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
The building. reflections on the contemporary built landscape. inside the rammed earth building a computer screen hosted the web application along the four months of biennale. | 73 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
[...] And yet I hesitate, I hesitate to... to end. Yes, there it is, it’s time it ended and yet I hesitate to — Samuel Beckett
P
ieces. Fragments of a fictional place. The men who organized and held
dreams after the open door of an odeon, a day they had to close it.
Endgame, Fin de partie. From the end of the game we started our game. In-
ventory material left in place unassisted, full of intangible memory. Like a ship without pilot we start on a journey through the layers of time displayed on the walls and naked structures of the old TPB. We collected wood col-
umns, steel beams, desks and all sorts of dusty rubble could find along the way. Recorded signed the wreckage. We invented our idle inventory making
visible the potential of the materials in order to create new conformations, share insights and random thoughts. Taking away a decade of rest, we sus-
pended columns and beams to form a small auditory, architecture, structure, elliptical sculpture or shell.
From the history of this enigmatic and emblematic building, space of art
and culture of Bogota we reckon fragments and gaps. Where are the inventories, equipment and objects left in the course of the years of the TPB? Perhaps in the memory of people. The story is heard, chopped, stolen, sticks, reorganizes and invents, not encapsulated or embalming. When a piece of memory passes in front we play with it and let it go. We release a collection, bricolage over bricolage arranged for visitors that enter the newly opened door of the Candelaria can build relationships and wander a place that appears.
a l t i p l a n o was commissioned an intervention for the first Odeon art
fair in Bogota. The fair is held in the old TPB building, it began as a theater, used as a tv studio finally abandoned for nearly 10 years. We decided to map everything we found.
02
Inventory Feria Odeón, Contemporary International Art Fair
installation 2011 exhibition feria odeón, contemporary international art fair altiplano + *danilo volpato location fundación teatro odeón, bogotá, colombia type
year
| 83 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Once we had the complete inventory of the material available at the building we proceeded to decide the space and type of intervention we were going to build. We found columns, beams, desks, tables, doors and drawers amongst other. The intervention became an addition of three functions; contemplative space, exhibition space for the inventory and an auditory for the conferences held during the art fair. *Danilo Volpato is a brazilian artist by ECA/USP. Lives and works between Sao Paulo and Bogota. He was invited by Altiplano to collaborate in the thinking, production and construction of Inventario.
All cultural content of the fair {workshops, conferences} took place at the sculpture - auditorium. The floating beams slightly balanced their figure after decades of repose. |9|
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 10 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Data sheets of abandoned objects. following scientific methods of organizing and classifying objects.
using the process of inventory an enterprise faces when encountered with bankruptcy. a rigorous approach to all the left-behind objects found in the old teatro popular de bogota conduced to hours of measurements, observations, and fictions. once concluded all articles had been systematized by the routine to a series of datasheets that commenced to share a story. | 11 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
D
uring 2010 and 2011 La Niña phenomenon damaged more than 3,300 schools nationwide. This situation compromises the education of thou-
sands of children who require an efficient response in practical architectural solutions that strengthen academic dynamics and the national project of ed-
ucation. The Ministry of National Education as promoter, cooperating with Foundation Argos and the Colombian Society of Architects as an advisory body design a public competition for the design of architectural prototypes of
the spaces that compose the educational infrastructure for the different regions of the country.
In the emergency caused by the raining season, we propose a project that seeks to go beyond formal solutions. Architecture in series that can deal, in a versatile, simple and efficient form the following aspects: transportation, installation and construction, cultural adaptation, climate, topography and the needs of each region. The schools are prefabricated modular buildings, comprising the circulation, furniture and public space. These modules for its multiple functions sizing easily to the topography and generate diverse spatial relationships between prototypes, separated each other by courtyards and streets.
The different possibilities that can occur between outdoor corridors, indoor corridors, courtyards, ramps, stairs, steps, pots, benches, bins, games, drinking fountains, among others, stimulate, encounter, games, meetings and discussion. Integrally forming the identity of an individual, social group and in turn the entire educational community. The project takes as its starting point the need to configure the architecture from a pedagogical thinking, understanding architectural space as a teaching strategy. In this way architectural space creates pedagogical situations and architectural situations fabricate pedagogical spaces.
03
Public competition Buena Arquitectura, Excelente PedagogÍa
type emergency school prototypes y winner 1st prize - andean region y winner 1st prize - amazonic region second place - caribbean region second place - pacific region jury: giancarlo mazzanti, alejandro sokoloff, elly burchardt, antonio manrique, carlos hernandez year 2011 — ongoing team altiplano + mema arquitectos + carlos balén +alejandro quintana location colombia | 12 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Taking advantage that most of the national territory has wood as an accessible resource, of renewable capacity, and low carbon footprint. We decided to make this material the main element in the construction of the prototypes. All the prototypes are constructed with the same elements: structural wood frames, green roof, and wood panels that compose the faรงade. The materiality of the panels varies according to the region. The different needs of climate, ventilation, lighting, noise and temperature control of each site determine the final design of the faรงade. That way and recognizing our immense climatic diversity the panels ensure that the system is applicable not only to the general conditions of each region, but also those specific to each location. The use of elements with openings in the faรงades, transparent chimneys and reflective ceiling, encourages cross ventilation and indirect overhead lighting, saving energy and generating the comfort demanded by school spaces. The system is able to support standard materials by using a 1.20m x 1.20m grid. The construction system is divided into two parts, a simple frame structure and faรงade panels formed from prefabricated elements, ensuring easy transportation of materials and a mass production process; simple, inexpensive, easily constructed, lightweight, fast and above all, feasible and realistic. Prototypes of these schools are currently being built throughout the country.
| 13 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Andean region prototype
Amazon region prototype
| 14 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Caribbean region prototype
Pacific region prototype
| 15 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 16 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
C
asa Primavera is a social housing solution focused on providing a hu-
man response to the problems caused by the rainy season of 2010 and
2011. It is an initiative that understands the immediate need for shelter of many affected, however more than a shelter the solution provides a home.
The house responds to the governmental area requirements of Vivienda de
Interés Prioritario. It´s 43.5 m2 distributed in two bedrooms, one bathroom, and
one open social space that includes the living room, dining room and kitchen. All
spaces have natural lighting and ventilation to ensure bio-climate performance. The typology in L gives the possibility of having a courtyard that provides a pro-
ductive space for the family. Traditional elements such as the porch, open kitchen and yard to ensure proper ownership housing families.
The design of the Casa Primavera is based on three fundamental points: i. Responsive Architecture:
p Housing permits and proposes future growth in three stages designed specifically to contain productive spaces that adapt to the families economic growth. p With the possibility of a productive space for the families economic purpose, when put together the houses build a neighborhood, which builds a community. p Type in “L” that forms a courtyard sheltered by the house. Cross ventilation and natural lighting in all spaces. p Traditional cultural elements of rural regions as the porch {social interaction element}, the open kitchen, and patio.
04
CASA PRIMAVERA Buena Arquitectura, Excelente PedagogÍa
prefabricated housing 2012 - ongoing team altiplano location northern colombia / diverse regions type
year
| 17 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
ii. Efficient Construction
p The concrete foundations are prefabricated and do not require skilled labor for installation. pThe house is built with a prefabricated PVC modular wall system, which allows a quick, clean and minimal waste construction. p The PVC has a high aesthetic quality aspect, which is absolutely resistant to harsh climate. It is very effective with hygienic standards since it works against the proliferation of fungi and other humidity related affectations. iii. Quality and Economy
p All features are made with high quality materials and are supported by respectable construction industries in the country. This guarantees minimal maintenance. p The system is extremely economical, allowing greater infrastructure for less. {Stove, plating baths, fixtures, dishwasher, PVC window frames, etc. are all included}. This makes the house ready for living once the habitants receive the home.
area: 43.55m2 a r e a : 43.55m2
| 18 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 19 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
L
ocated in a corner of northern Bogota, it has a street on one side and a
pedestrian trail on the other. Initially the lot was made up of four houses
in a row that where brought down. The new building will have 24 apart-
ments from 90m2 to 150m2. The intention was to have as many apartments
as possible looking to the street, avoiding internal apartments. Each floor is comprised of 6 apartments, all different from each other, which sought to maximize the use of exterior facades having just one indoor unit. We used a
repeated structural module on the main facade, in order to reverse the posi-
tion of the terraces in the adjoining apartment floors, thus ensuring a rhythm of voids and planes.
The client was looking a way to differentiate from the rest of the residen-
tial projects around it. We accomplished this by using good quality materials, maximizing the communal areas, ensuring a patio in the back of the project and increasing the size and quality of space.
05
Residential building bell 134a Building by a grid
type housing 2012 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; in construction team altiplano size 3600 mts2 location bogotĂĄ, colombia
year
| 20 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 21 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
L
ocated high up in the Oriental Mountain Range of Colombia in a pla-
teau crossed by rivers that flow from the Eastern Hills that flank the city,
Bogotá always enjoyed a privileged geographical position. Sadly, throughout the twentieth century, the city’s hydrological corridors were systematically covered and canalized to make way for a fast growing metropolis.
One of these corridors, the San Francisco River, was the fundamental axis in
Bogota’s establishment and development and had been almost completely erased from the collective memory of the city’s inhabitants.
This situation presented a perfect opportunity for the proposal of a proj-
ect of urban re-vitalization through the rich but forgotten Ecological Structure of the region.
transferia acts as a two-part strategy: A large-scale urban proposal,
and a specific building that acts as the central hub of said proposal.
Unearthing Bogota’s Environmental Wealth In order to guarantee a real, long-term recovery of Bogota’s buried rivers, a self-sustainable strategy had to be considered for their use.
A greatly inefficient transportation system and the predominantly North –
South direction of Bogota’s main vehicular axes make for a great opportunity to utilize the city’s East – West flowing hydrological corridors as sustainable mobility channels. A Sustainable Interurban Hydrological Transportation Sys-
tem is therefore proposed, unearthing and revealing the massive web of rivers, canals and streams and regenerating the green belts that surround them to create
longitudinal parks, while establishing a ferry based system that could bring a new alternative to public transport.
Connecting the dots Along with the urban strategy, a landmark building is also proposed to celebrate
06
Transferia: an architecture thesis
type housing year 2013
team altiplano size
3600 mts2 colombia
location bogotá, ||22 3 ||
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
the rebirth of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hydrological structure, establishing an example of how architecture can embrace the river instead of denying it and to add value to an already deteriorated part of the area.
The building is placed in the current bus parking lot of the Regional Bus
Terminal of Bogota, which is located along the San Francisco River basin, and
constitutes a clear example of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s former attitude of denial toward the
river. The regionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s old railway also passes between the Terminal and the River, and according to current city plans it will soon be restored to become the new Regional Railway.
Taking advantage of this strategic mobility crossing, the building acts
as a central transportation hub that connects future Subway and Proximity Trains to the existing adjacent Bus Station and the proposed Hydrological
Transport System, while encompassing around the San Francisco River to
give it the importance it deserves in the contemporary landscape. The proj-
ect, thus, creates an oasis inside the city through a hybrid building {housing, hotel, offices and commerce} that enables urban life to grow in an important but disconnected part of the city.
The Project occurs as an urban landmark, factorizing elements of different
natures to rise as a great unifying, regenerating connecting and multi-scale flow transmitting entity that appeals to the natural memory of the surroundings and
forms a controlled landscape in a monumental space, sewing the immediate city
and proposing a better quality of life that is sustained in the natural public space for its inhabitants.
Retaking the river the loop like shape of the building emphasizes the new attitude of embrace and celebration that buildings can now have toward ecological corridors. | 23 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Integrating systems the building acts as an organizer and mediator between the new hydrological transport system, the regional train system, the countrywide bus system and the urban green corridor. | 24 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
Comercio Ptos. Fijos Hotel Z. Comunales
AK 50/Cll 24 Terminal Av. Boyacรก/C. Hayuelos Cll. 13/El Vergel
Viv. A Viv. B Oficinas Parqueo Hall Transportes Abordaje
Cra. 30/Muzu Av. Boyacรก/Calle 13 Las Americas/Fucha FerrocarrilSur AutoSur/Cra. 30 Caracas/Restrepo San Cristobal | 25 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 26 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
T
he understanding of the complex relationships between different natural phenomena that make up the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vast array of ecosystems has
become paramount to the sustainable development of human kind.
As architects, our practice must not be reduced to the mere design of walls
and ceilings; as technology advances we must explore different fields of action where we can apply conscious, logical thought processes and analysis to different problematic situations.
The Mobile Interactive Units are a hive mind of interactive spaces where users
The project mixes different thoughts on the ecological paradigm with project
can experience different representations of natural events through light and sound. intentions that emphasize on digital, analogous, social and environmental interactions through the design and construction of specific immersive devices that warp our spatial perception.
miu 5 was designed to represent graphical exaggerations of how different natural phenomena directly influence evolution and adaptation processes.
Fluctuating exterior environmental conditions {temperature, light, humid-
ity} are measured through the use of piezoelectric sensors, and a computer
processes the information in order to project a mutated image on the entrance wall that evolves in different ways according to its current habitat.
This project was designed and built under the tutorship of Felipe Mesa {Plan
B Arquitectos} and Hernando BarragĂĄn, and was coded using Wiring.
07
Miu mobile interactive units
type interactive year 2013
units
altiplano mts2 location bogotĂĄ, colombia team
size 3600
| 27 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 28 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
C
hanging times and children moving out prompted our client to ask us to re-think her house, which was a neo colonialist home that had been inhab-
ited by her and her family for the last 30 years.
The prior configuration made the house seem empty and un-suited for
a single occupant. The general layout and the size/use ratio of spaces was very representative of past times, but was now obsolete. Even more so given her new situation.
The house, a 50-meter long neo-colonialist home in Bogotรก that spanned
from one street to another, had one entrance on each street. Because of parking convenience, the main entrance had been out of use and the back door had replaced it as the main entry point.
The decision was thus made to improve the back entrance, and to cut the
house in the middle point inserting a new open space volume that could serve as a buffer between both entry points.
By joining the new volume with the kitchen and both entrances, the percep-
tion of a single open space is enhanced to help the client inhabit the whole house when she is alone inside it.
08
The longhouse
type
renovation and new building year
2012-2013
team altiplano size 600
mts2
location bogotรก, colombia
Photography Santiago Pinyol | 29 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 30 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
F
lower crops need great infrastructure for the planting, seeding and transportation of they’re plants.
After being commissioned for the second time to design and build a pavilion
for a flower crop company at the Proflora Flower Trade Show, and having won best pavilion in the fair the first time around, we identified three important directives that shaped the path ahead:
p The necessity for economy and ease of construction.
p The ephemeral nature of a pavilion makes it paramount to use reusable and recycled materials in order not to cause waste.
p The vast resources of materials available to us in the crops. Keeping that in mind, we identified several specific pieces of hardware used in the flower production process such as baskets for transportation and seedling trays, many of which were out of use, and used them as our building materials taking advantage of they’re repetitive, fixed size and modular natures. After much experimentation, we identified the virtues of each piece and decided to use them around a simple and low cost wooden structure to make up the final pavilion.
After the fair was over and the pavilion was deconstructed, most of the
pieces were able to return to they’re original purposes. We won best pavilion in the fair again.
Type Pavilion Team Altiplano + Pablo Ricaurte Year 2013 Size 60 m2 Location Bogota, Colombia Photography Santiago Pinyol | 31 |
Porfolio | Felipe Velazquez
| 30 |
p este portafolio fue diseĂąado e impreso en bogotĂĄ, colombia, se usaron las fuentes tipograficas adobe calson pro.