627 Baltic St. Apt 3 Brooklyn, NY 11217 +1 612 616 0273 j.mike.zee@gmail.com
Mike Zee Portfolio
ST
W
HUDSON
1
W
10
3 4
9
6
2 3
1
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
ST
Private Residence 345 West 13th St
8 3
ST
GANSEVOORT ST
7
2
13
14
An affluent bachelor commissioned the full renovation of his bilevel penthouse in New York’s trendy Meat-packing District. The original apartment consisted mostly of closed spaces that did not reflect the client’s socialite lifestyle. But by altering the geometries of the plan and enhancing the viewable space, the apartment becomes inviting and sociable. The renovation opened the space in both plan and section. The dining room walls were removed which also augmented the display of the client’s art collection. The kitchen circulation was recalculated by incorporating a newly placed island despite plumbing complexities. And the master bedroom served as an optional extension to the social area through movable panels and a transparent fireplace. The staircase was originally enclosed and was the most obstructive force within the apartment. The new staircase featured thin, wooden planks supported by an almost invisible metal frame. The design focuses on horizontals moving the eye laterally, and in result, the staircase becomes a semi-transparent sculpture. In addition, this allows natural light to pour down into the apartment from the skylight above.
7A VE
w 21
6A VE
w 20
Extell Development Condominium Design
In May 2009, Extell Development commissioned a closed competition for a new condominium complex to be built on West 20th St in New York City. Located in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood, the design intent was to reflect the area’s artistic community and eclectic personality. Inspired by the modular systems of shipping crates, the design features six independent modules housed by the building envelope. These articulations are rotated on two axes not only independent of each other, but from the building itself. The glass curtain wall encased is rotated further on an additional axis resulting in three conflicting rotations per module. Extensive studies with both real and virtual models were necessary to maximize variability between components. The building’s facade then becomes a vertical landscape. Variations in shadow patterns transform the facade and in effect change the face and personality of the building throughout the day.
1 8
Ma dis on Av e
E3
7
2
E3
3
E3
2nd Fl RCP
1st Fl RCP
7
9 10 5 8 6 2 3 5
7
10
6
1 4
2nd Fl Plan
8
9
11
6
5
11 12
4
1st Fl Plan
Par
kA ve
E3
12
Private Residence 52 Park Ave A successful Las Vegas developer commissioned the complete renovation of a tri-level private penthouse on Park Avenue in New York City. As a regular commuter to New York, the client needed a secondary home for himself, his girlfriend and a wealth of personal belongings in a limited space. The client had a large collection of art deco furniture and art pieces. Having these objects on display, despite spatial constraints, was a necessity for him. To accentuate the art, central axes define the two lower floors maximizing circulation and viewing angles. Every room was used to display at least one of the collector’s pieces. Consequently, each room became inviting, opening the confined space. The second goal of the penthouse apartment was to accommodate the extraordinary wardrobe of both the client and his girlfriend. The client’s closet was in a relatively smaller space so each article of clothing was on display in an attempt to open the area. On the contrary, the client’s girlfriend’s closet was in a separate room of the apartment accessible by guests. This resulted in a concealed storage area based on an automated conveyor system to once again maximize space while minimizing the footprint.
2
E9
E9
3
2
1
Par
Ma dis on Av e
1
Hotel Wales 1295 Madison Ave
3
1
2
Established in 1902, Hotel Wales is the oldest operating hotel in New York City. The boutique hotel commissioned a full interior renovation of the twelve story building located on the Upper East Side. Design challenges included spatial efficiency, special accommodations for the hotel’s administrative staff, and aesthetic continuity with the history of the building. Other major tasks presented by the client were the timing and deadlines for the project. Since the hotel was relatively small and regularly operated at maximum occupancy levels, construction needed to be fast, efficient and well planned. As a result, the design allowed for construction to proceed in stages so that the hotel could operate during construction as efficiently as possible. Modernizing the historic building also proved challenging. Incorporating traditional proportions and carpentry techniques while also using materials like steel and glass was particularly problematic. The solutions came down to the details. Correctly and stylistically designing the transition from a chair rail and a base board to a frosted, glass wall for instance, proved successful only after meticulous design.
image courtesy of Kim Wendell Design
image courtesy of Kim Wendell Design
image courtesy of Kim Wendell Design
Northside Piers, Tower 2 164 Kent Ave
This 30-storey, 270-unit condominium tower sits along the East River in New York’s most up-and-coming neighborhood: Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Designed in collaboration with FXFowle Architects, the luxury kitchens and bathrooms were my area of focus. Twenty kitchens, eleven master bathrooms, three secondary bathrooms and four powder rooms were created to retrofit the condominiums. Each room type was uniquely designed to accommodate code restrictions, ADA requirements, and budgetary constraints. Marketable aesthetics were also important in the creation of the kitchens and bathrooms. Each respective space was designed as two-dimensional planes translated into three-dimensional space. In the kitchens, a marble slab falls from the ceiling, turns 90° to form the countertop and turns again into the floor like a waterfall. The master bath countertops reflect this design and repeat this concept in the tub and shower. The second bath also incorporates rotating planes but instead of marble uses mirrors from the ground to the ceiling. Along with the completion of all the construction documents for the tower’s kitchens and bathrooms, my participation in the project included weekly budget and design meetings, project management by redlining construction drawings and working closely with Kim Wendell Design rendering studio to accurately display the design intent.
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
Street Grid Studies South Amboy, NJ Railroad
Ma
(9)
t
(8)
in S
(7)
St ter Pot
Ra
ilro
ad
y 35 Highwa
(10)
(11)
(12)
(1) residential zones
(5) all zones
(9) new proposed urban plan
(2) industrial zones
(6) greenspace + beaches
(10) variant A
(3) commercial zones
(7) low-speed roads
(11) variant B
(4) high-speed roads
(8) New Broadway
(12) variant C
In the spring of 2006, the mayor of South Amboy asked Mario Gandelsonas’ Princeton University studio class to rethink and influence the design of New Jersey’s small seaside town. Once exclusively a shipping town, the street grid of South Amboy is now riddled with railroad tracks and highways limiting the accessibility to commercial activity and inhibiting the growth of the town. My analysis was conducted in a twostage process. First, by using GIS mapping the entire site was dissected into commercial, residential and industrial zones, significant roads and park areas. Based on this information a three-dimensional site plan was extruded representing the street grid as a web of literal street walls. This led to the second stage of the analysis which identified where the street walls imposed forces on other areas of the grid. Obvious forces like Highway 35 circumscribe the grid and push stress away and into the town. More subtle forces, like Main St, bisect the grid, segregating the east and west sides. The resulting solutions incorporated new roads to alleviate stresses within the city network. Roads connecting both the north and south highways make the streetscape more permeable. Furthermore, extending Potter St away from Main St and into the rectilinear framework creates a new accessible center of town and a more cohesive street grid.
Investigations of Space Princeton, NJ
public/private configuration a
public/private configuration b Living
Bedroom open/closed configuration a glass 2-way mirror glass
Sink Shower Dining
2-way convex mirror sand-blasted glass Kitchen
2-way mirror 1-way mirror 2-way mirror
Toilet open/closed configuration b
These studies investigate the inherent qualities and abilities of conventional space within open and closed environments. My first study examined the free plan. Structural columns remove loadbearing walls from the plan, increasing customization of space. Yet, the plan is not truly free as the column grid dictates inhibits the layout. My design moves the load-bearing elements to the exterior, freeing the plan from the column grid and freeing the section as well. Vertical circulation is moved away from the primary space. The free plan and free section allow for maximum customization of the interior and accommodates a diversity of programs. My second study investigated more conceptual ideas of space. Inspired by the work of artist Dan Graham, I created a house to examine spatial dichotomies. Designed as a series of pavilions, each independent structure fulfills the normal requirements of a basic home. Over the course of a day, walls change in transparency and reflectivity. For instance, the occupant of the toilet can sometimes see outward from within, while people outside only see a mirror. Sight lines are directed by mirrored surfaces that allow the occupants to see in every room. Omniscience is achieved in a room that is conventionally considered private and closed. The rest of the house features similar dichotomies.
6
Sectional Studies Coney Island, NY
5
1
4
3 2
2
1
4
3
5
6
The senior studio course at Princeton had students examine an undeveloped block in the heart of Coney Island. Students were asked to create a center for performing arts within the site. My preliminary analysis focused on sectional cuts through the area as opposed to conventionally using site plans. Interestingly, I found that the city’s street wall did not end at a building’s façade, but instead extended beyond into the surrounding shops, restaurants and amusement game areas. The resulting designs tried to capture this unique aspect of Coney Island. Since the site focused on performing arts, dance was used to inspire its formation. Four dance techniques were analyzed by mapping out the dancer’s body position in four basic moves for each technique. By arranging each move sequentially like section cuts through a building, a structure forms which was later realized in virtual and physical models. Translating these forms from sections to plans resulted in a continuous, flowing enclosure alluding to the program within.
Hand Drafting Introductory Studio
Under the direction of Paul Lewis of Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis Architects, Princeton’s introductory architecture studio worked exclusively by hand. As digital media now overshadows the field of modern architecture, this introductory studio taught students to represent their concepts and theories through undervalued traditional techniques. By using only graphite, paper, a parallel rule and chipboard the studio completed two projects. In the first project, students were given the front elevation drawing of Gerrit Rietveld’s Schroder House. The task was to extrude the elevation, translating a two-dimensional drawing into a three-dimensional structure. My design extruded the geometries of the elevation at a tapered angle of 30⁰ to create a series of triangular prisms. By extruding at an angle, the original elevation and the remaining three facades become secondary to the structure. Four new projections become the primary elevations for the building subtly re-orienting the viewer. The second project similarly used a two-dimensional drawing as the foundation for a three-dimensional extrusion, yet reversed the process. A plan of the Barcelona pavilion was used as a planar section cut and extruded. Study models were constructed to investigate the design possibilities which focused on viewable space and the free plan. The supplemental hand-drafted drawing displays the structure as an isometric unfolding.
Skyline of Existing Conditions
Skyline proposed by NY Department of City Planning
Skyline proposed by Municipal Art Society
Urban Development Coney Island, NY
Massing proposed by Municipal Art Society
Existing Site Plan
DCP Site Plan
MAS Site Plan
Existing Axonometric
DCP P Axonometic Axon Ax onom on o et om eticc
MAS Axonometric
The Municipal Art Society (MAS), a nonprofit architectural activist group established in 1893, commissioned a massing study of the Coney Island downtown area in Brooklyn, NY. Once considered the “world’s playground,” Coney Island has transformed from a premier amusement park in the first half of the twentieth century to a sandy wasteland. Recently acquired by a private developer, the site was to emulate a Las Vegas-style resort. Outraged, community groups, the Department of City Planning (DCP) and MAS offered alternatives to be reviewed by the City Council. My participation included constructing three comprehensive virtual models of Coney Island that compared the DCP’s plan, the MAS plan and the site’s existing conditions. I also attended weekly meetings and was responsible designing the amusement area for the MAS plan. In an effort to refine the DCP’s suggested plan, there were three main goals MAS wanted to achieve. First, the site featured many historic icons such as the Cyclone rollercoaster, the Wonderwheel, and the Parachute Jump, all already named as historic landmarks. Other buildings such as the Child’s Building, Nathan’s and the Shore Theater should have been considered landmarks under the request of MAS. Second, MAS suggested that the open air amusement space be expanded from nine acres to 27 acres to support Coney Island’s traditional entertainment features. And third, MAS opposed the DCP’s plan for waterfront skyscrapers that obstructs views of the waterfront and the amusement area.
Y
R
W
O
E SI G N S
Y
R
W
O
S N G SI E
S N G SI E
I
S
S
D D
OWRY ESIGNS
S
DD DD
D D
D
N G E
OWRY
ESIGNS
DD
D
D D
D D
ESIGNS
D
D D
D D
D
D
dowr y
D
Graphic Design Dowry Designs
reduce reflection fix button hole
crop
crop
DD
E SI G N S
Y
DD
R
Y
W
R
O
W
N
G
DD
O
OWRY
ESIGNS
DD
I
S
DD
Y
R
Y
D
crop
accent eye color soften lighting remove blemishes
W
O
R
D
ESIGNS
W
OWRY
D
DD
D
ESIGNS
DD
D
DESIGNS
OWRY
D
E
O
Y
D D D D
cholzer@dowrydesigns.com www.dowrydesigns.com
dowr y
DD
R
m1:+1.917.952.5201 m2:+1.646.736.7619
W
135 Central Park W. New York, NY 10023
O
D OWRY D ESIGNS
DD
OWRY
E S I G N S
D D
DD
Christin Holzer
adjust contrast deepen blues
crop
Collection 2009
Dowry Designs, a start up fashion line for women’s dresses and jackets, needed graphic designs for the company’s promotional materials. Because Dowry Designs lacked a clear, established image for the line, the first graphics were intended with expansion in mind. Instead of reinventing the company’s brand repeatedly in the future, the design was decidedly simple and elegant in order to co-evolve with the growth of the fashion line. Designs such as the company logo, clothing labels, business cards, invitation postcards and a detailed portfolio were required. I worked closely with the company’s founders in many one-onone sessions for various projects. Formation of the company logo is an ongoing project. One of the first graphics produced was the Dowry Designs invitation postcard. These 5” x 7” invitations, used to attract people to events for the company, showed four selections that best represent the fashion line. The layout as well as choice of photographs was important to attract attention while displaying the company’s depth. Although the pictures were professionally photographed, each image required detailed touch ups and color balances to optimize display. The same alterations were required to create a detailed portfolio intended for buyers.
5’-0 ” ”
8’-0
x1
x2
0” 1’-1
5” 1’-6 ”
x4
3’-6 ”
x4 3” 3”
x8 2’-4
”
3” 5” 7”
x8 1” 2”
x4
x8
3”
2” 2”
x4 3” 1”
921”
x4 5” 1”
Console Table Furniture Design
Design in the built world not only encompasses conceptual theory, but also requires a practical framework to progress from idea to reality. On a micro scale, furniture design expresses this notion very well. To learn more about the fabrication process, I designed and constructed a console table. The design of the table was limited because a band saw was the most advanced machinery available to me and the project budget was low. A 5’ x 8’ sheet of Medium Density Fiber (MDF) wood was used as most other woods were expensive and could only be purchased at precut dimensions. The MDF sheet could only be cut in perpendicular lines, however, restricting the table to a rectilinear design. The concept features four legs that continue passed the planar surface of the tabletop clasping it down like hands. At the base, the legs continue like feet and are held together by a plane similar to the tabletop. After carefully developing the design, I found that the table’s construction process required special care. MDF is an aggregate of multiple wood pulps compressed under intense heat. The result is a material with two smooth finishing sides and rough, porous edges. If water happened to seep into the edges, the pieces would bow and destroy the table. To prevent this, dry wall solution was applied to the MDF to seal the edges and create a smooth finish after sanding. After applying a primer to further seal the wood, the table was coated using oil-based lacquer paint and then finally assembled. In retrospect, I learned that MDF may have not been the most suitable wood to use. Restricted to oil-based paints, eco-friendly waterbased paints could not be used. Additionally, I found that cutting from a single sheet of MDF decreased the precision of the woodworker’s cuts, increasing the need for adjustments.