Ian Gabriel Galang
california state polytechnic university, pomona
2018-2022 selected works
Ian Gabriel GalangEducation California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
The King s Academy
Work Experience
Awards Publications
CPP Architecture Interim Exhibition
"On the Grid College of Environmental Design s Official E-Newsletter
Skills Programs Adobe Creative Suite
A Fuller House
a multigenerational housing project
For this studio, we focused on experimenting with different housing model designs that strayed away from the current nuclear family ideal of a single family home. The studio researched different housing situations to better consider and understand the needs of the users for the housing models being proposed on various sites in Los Angeles. Choosing a housing situation personal to me, I decided to propose a multigenerational housing project and based it on what would have made my experiences living with extended family members more comfortable. Another added challenge for us to design around was to envision how a different set of users would use the space at a separate moment in time. I chose to design around the idea that the current users would be able to still comfortably live within the project even after they’ve grown and introduced new possible partners to the space. This resulted in the idea of creating a variety of spaces to allow the inhabitants to be able to come together as a family or retreat to privacy when desired.
The site I selected is in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. The initial set of users for this project are two sets of grandparents, the main couple, and their young children with it eventually transitioning to the grown children taking over the rest of the house with the possible future partners and their now aging parents.
The site I selected is located in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. It has a slight slope leading up to Dexter St. and has the unique quality of being a through lot with access on either end. The majority of residents in this area are renters consisting of young families and individuals in their early 30’s. This model of housing would allow individuals the ability to afford a property in the area by them gathering their resources together to purchase together.
The project can be separated by their functions and their inhabitants.
In the “first set of users” diagram, it depicts the separation of the two sets of grandparents, parents, and children and their proximity to each other and the shared communal spaces.
This diagram displays the “second set of users” with the children growing up in taking over portions of the house with their partners. The now aging parents taking over one of the grandparent suites. The former children’s rooms have been re-purposed to include communal functions.
The house can be entered on either Dexter St. or the main Ave 50 entrance. Both take you to entrance courtyards that spill into the large main living space of the house, and from there, the central corridor leads you to the more private quarters of the inhabitants and the second floor communal spaces.
There are a variety of indoor and outdoor lounges and sitting areas for the inhabitants to be able to come together as a family and also allow for more privacy when needed. The ability to retreat to different spaces really is a key feature for both the adults and the children as they grow older; they will be able to have a sense of privacy and a place to call their own within the home.
There are three main suites within the house: two suites on opposite ends of the on the ground floor for the grandparents and the third on the second floor for the parents. Each suite has the feel of a studio apartment with their own sitting areas, bedroom areas, and bathrooms. The children’s rooms are noticeably smaller as they would be re-purposed into either guest bedroom or fitness room as the children mature into adults
Walls were thickened to frame in on the garden views and direct light into the spaces a certain way. The walls allowed for program to be embedded within them and housed: bookshelves, seating, bathtubs, desks, and other items.
Home Away From Home
a boutique hotel adaptive reuse
We were given a site in Los Angeles along Hollywood Boulevard and Cosmo Street where two historic buildings already existed and converted them into a sixty-five room boutique hotel and destination attraction. I chose to keep the historic buildings rather than obliterating them and began to focus on how to incorporate them into my designs. I decided to use the gable shape as a recurring theme since the shape is associated with the house and a hotel is often called a “home away from home” The gable shape was restrained to the proportions of the grid created by the facade study where they either protruded from or cut into the building. I wanted there to be a clear difference between the old and new by using different colors, patterns, scales, and shapes. The existing ornate buildings were rendered in a charcoal gray with their window systems using the traditional grid mullion system often associated with older buildings and the additions made were rendered in white to stand out from A play of scale was used with the large addition that rests on top of the old to further emphasize the difference of what is new and existing. The arch shapes that cut into all of the additions was a way to incorporate the existing shapes already found on the buildings and helped give a unified appearance.
facade geometry
facade geometry
facade geometry
gable modules
gable modules
gable modules
arch modules
arch modules
arch modules
A facade study was done of the historic facades of the two existing buildings and a grid of lines were created to highlight the geometry and key features. Using these lines, they dictated the dimensions of the gable modules being punched into and added to the facade and the series of arches that were added to ground floor to visually tie the existing arches of the other building. The grid created a system for these shapes to be added onto the facades and gave points for the form of the large addition on top to reference.
PLAY at Pershing Square
a community center in the heart of downtown los angeles
For this studio, the project focused on the redevelopment of Pershing Square in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. The current park is an underutilized space with very little to offer to residents and visitors. In hopes to activate the area, the redevelopment includes a redesign of the existing landscape and the addition of a community center complex that houses a library, classrooms, a sports hall, an indoor pool, outdoor athletic courts, and an events space.
The first portion of the redesign focused heavily on the landscape to create various new entrances to facilitate better flow and movement through the site. The network of pathways separated and defined the three main sections of the park: athletics, educational, and events. I named the project PLAY at Pershing Square because of the different types of play that happen within each sector: play sports, play area, and play music, etc. The type of tertiary pathways within each sector change depending on the program. In both the athletics and events sections, the tertiary pathways are very straight and direct and are meant to move people from one place to another quickly. Within the educational section, the paths are more meandering and intersect with others to create islands of play areas and gardens.
After deciding the ciruclation and organization of the site, the design of the building complex continued to revolve those ideas. The bar-like building follows the main walkway and is further broken into three portions by the secondary paths. I chose to design the complex as a low-lying structure that slowly rises from the ground to contrast its towering neighors. The buildings are then connected by a large sloping living roof that is also accessible from the ground; it acts as the fourth type of space that exists within the park and is free from any designated program.
Athletics
Educational Events
Flex
Program Diagram
Athletics Educational Events
Los Feliz Mixed Use
a mixed use housing development
This project focused on the creation of a mixed use development situated in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Prospect Avenue. The five story building contains an underground parking garage, ground floor retail, and 45 private residences on the upper floors. The possible housing units within the project consist of a combination of studios, one bedrooms, two bedrooms, and two story two bedroom townhouse style units. The building runs along the perimeter of the site and creates a secluded courtyard space separated from the loud and busy intersection that the residential tenants, commercial tenants, and customers can all enjoy. On the ground floor level, the storefronts are left as unfinished large open spaces ready to be further divided and customized by the future tenants. The lobby to the residences are also located on the ground floor and have their own elevators connecting the parking and the apartments. All of the apartments have an outdoor balcony and floor to ceiling windows to allow for light filled interior spaces and, for the units facing away from the courtyard, to take advantage of the amazing views of the downtown Los Angeles skyline and the Hollywood Sign and surrounding hills. The top floor of the complex houses various private amenities for the residents to enjoy: lounges, game rooms, fitness room work, spaces, and a rooftop garden.
Mountainside Retreat
a scientific retreat perched atop mount vetter
This project was designed as a scientist retreat facility where researchers can work ,stay for extended periods, and educate as well. Perched atop the summit of Mount Vetter in Southern California, the compound has incredible views of the San Gabriel Mountains. The complex is divided into two with a rear footpath and an upper bridge connecting the two structures. The private scientist quarters are set on top of the peak to provide more privacy and houses the office, bedrooms, bathroom, and other amenities needed for extended stays. The public two-level observation deck is easily accessible to the public being at the end of the road with parking banks on the side of the road. The structure contains public bathrooms and has the ability entertain a larger amount of people for lectures and demonstrations hosted by the scientists. The overall design of the building drew from the native flora and was heavily inspired by the blooms, leaves, and overall structure of the yucca plant found growing along the hillsides of Mount Vetter. The petals and flowers of the plant were used as a module and can be more clearly seen in plan where the petal module was stacked and rotated. The vertical elongated louvers that clad the majority of the buildings and bridge were inspired by the leaf blades of the yucca plant. They provide the interior spaces protection from the sun and help frame the views as well. The materials for this build were chosen with care as the area is prone to fire; the building itself is clad in stucco while the louvers would be made out of a lightweight metal such as aluminum
We were encouraged to find a source of inspiration based on either astronomy or the flora for the form our project.
The yucca plant can be seen growing abundantly on the site and along the mountainsides. The whole plant served as inspiration for the building with the blossoms being used as for the form in plan and the leaves being used to guide the shape of the louvers that clad the facades of the building.
The project is separated into two portions: the scientist’s quarters and the observation deck .The are connected by a footbridge and dirt trail.
School of Architecture
the new architecture campus at cal poly pomona
For this project, we were tasked with designing a tower to house the College of Environmental Design’s Architecture School on the Cal Poly Pomona Campus. The tower would occupy the existing footprint of the CLA tower and surrounding buildings designed by Antoine Predock and would act as the new centerpiece and landmark of Cal Poly Pomona. Various strategies were used to develop the project; the shape of the buildings and walkways on the plinth level was derived from carving out volumes that followed an imposed grid to further allow better movement a from one side to the other. The tower form came from a series of formal exercises and was inspired by other case studies that focused on collaboration and education. The network of bars that cover the tower like a web house and disguise a series of staircases that connect the various levels together. There is a copious amount of educational spaces spread out throughout the plinth level and tower itself. Within the plinth, large discussion rooms and facilities such as a cafe and construction work yard and shop are located. Within the tower, galleries to display student work, presentation spaces, fabrication lab, classrooms, studio spaces, staff offices, and a library can be found. All of the studio space levels and other educational spaces are all grouped on the floors above each other. They are all open to each other from bellow and are accessible from the grand public staircases to encourage movement and collaboration amongst the students.
SECTION A
For this specific portion of the Mount Curve Residence renovation and addition, I worked closely with the clients and Catharine to design a remodel of the existing bathroom. The clients had wanted to bring more fusion of contemporary and vintage charm to the space to make it more fitting for their 1920’s storybook tudor. A rich emerald green and brass scheme was selected to bring in with the art deco flare of the period the house built in. The walls were nearly tiled to the ceiling to create drama as you enter the space. The tiled walls are visually split with a chair rail detail to separate the two different patterns the tile would be laid in. The unlacquered brass and marble vanity console brought in a unique detail and allowed the walls and the mosaic black and white floors to shine.
Catherine Garrison Architect Internship
Over the summer of 2021 and throughout the school year, I had the opportunity to work for the firm Catherine Garrison Architect Inc. as an intern. The practice is a small architecture and design firm located in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles with work primarily focused on custom private residences. I was involved in all aspects of the firm from attending client meetings, document set up, drawings, designs, and material selections. I created schematic designs to show to clients and drafted working plans, sections, and detailed drawings for the different projects to compile them into the project sets..
I was entrusted with having control over certain projects and came up with various design bids to present to Catherine Garrison and to clients. The Mount Curve Residence was a project I worked on heavily and closely communicated with the owners. The clients wanted to overhaul a bathroom and add onto the house to create a larger kitchen and primary suite. I scheduled meetings with the owners to discuss the materials, paint colors, designs and scheduled the order of the materials.
Aside from the Mount Curve Residence, I also worked on creating visuals that included many other elevations, colored drawings, and renders to present to the other clients.
I created various design for the exteriors using different color options to present to the clients. The clients had an affinity for the vintage storybook aesthetic and did not want the addition to look new. Following this aesthetic, I suggested adding trim details, typically found on tudor revival homes, to both the additions and the front facades. Iterations of the trim designs and color schemes were presented.
Studio One Eleven Internship
Over the summer of 2022 and throughout the school year, I had the opportunity to work for Studio One Eleven as an intern at their Long Beach office. The firm is a larger sized practice and works on an array projects ranging from large residential developments, skyscrapers, commercial spaces, adaptive reuse, and mixed-use developments. The company values very community oriented projects and strives to include and interact with the surrounding communities.
As an intern, I worked with other interns as a team to create and finalize three graphic styles to be implemented in future work to create a more cohesive company-wide style. We then presented a detailed instruction booklet to the design team to explain the steps and techniques we used and answered any questions regarding the work. We also created a series of graphics for the Orange County Grand Parks projects that Studio One Eleven worked on to be submitted for the 2022 AIAOC Design Awards. After agreeing on a graphic style, we divided the work between the three of us. I personally worked on the Rise Park Majestic Gardens Illustrative site plan , Rise Park Majestic Gardens longitudinal section, and the Solis Park Illustrative section. One of the parks we with graphics we created, Rise Park, was selected and received an award under the residential development category. I personally spent As a team, we were rotated through various projects to help and work
