JC port
folio jennifer cahill
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Clifton Library 1 Hut Project 2 Urban Renewal 3 OTR Fabrication 4 Residential Studio 5 Skyscraper 919’ 6 Sinclair College 7 Thesis 8
SITUATED in a popular dining and entertainment district, the current library for the neighborhood of Clifton is well-used but undersized. Our program called for expanded adult, children, and reference sections, along with space for a growing segment of computer users, and a cafe. My design consists of one- and two-story 'masses' designed for these functions, oriented for optimal views and a variety of spatial experiences. A glass facade on the first floor allows for pedestrian interaction at the street level and gives the rest of the building a lighter feel, despite its vernacular brick cladding. Walkable green roofs provide respite from studying and offer some of the best views around. This project was completed my sophomore year, and allowed me to learn formZ quickly through its direct application to a building design.
Clifton Library CLIFTON, OH
JCJ
WHAT ARCHITECTURE student wouldn’t like their own ‘Studio Hut’ - a place out in the woods to get away from the chaos of the classroom? With ourselves as the client, we designed a space for just the basics: sleeping, bathing, eating, and drafting. My ‘hut’ was inspired by the experience of climbing a tree. A louvered wall created by 2x12s provides filtered light and privacy, while a narrow staircase leading up to the loft and roof hatch gives climbers the satisfaction - and the rewarding views - of reaching the top of a tall tree.
hut project OXFORD, OH
THIS URBAN design studio focused on creating a socially and environmentally sustainable community in the inner-city neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine. My piece of the project was a residential development, combining infill and an existing building to provide units for a range of incomes. Garden terraces and flowing louvers act as key features to draw middle-class homeowners to the development. Wealthier residents will provide funding for green strategies (solar thermal, bike storage, energy star laundry facilities, etc.) that will benefit ALL residents.
URBAN RENEWAL CINCINNATI, OH
PRIVATE (for 6 units) PRIVATE (for 1 unit)
PUBLIC (for all units)
SECTION
OUR DESIGN/BUILD STUDIO in Cincinnati's inner-city neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine focused on Miami University's Center for Community Engagement. My small group of four designed and constructed display space for the Center. Panels, a cantilevered display case, and a hanging projection screen were used not only to pin up materials for interior display, but also to project the Center's message to passerby. I had the unique opportunity to work directly with fabricators, consider community input, and design with great attention to detail and constructability. More importantly, living in this unique neighborhood allowed me to experience the political and social aspects of architecture.
OTR FABRICATION CINCINNATI, OH
DESIGNED for middle-age clients, the program of this house had to account for visits from two adult children and accomodate an elderly mother who had recently moved in. The design makes special considerations for accessibility, placing all of the house’s important functions on the upper, entry level. The grandmother’s quarters are separated from the public living spaces by a glass atrium, which serves as a spatial buffer and houses vertical circulation. Within this space, the stairs serve as a thermal mass to protect the atrium from excessive temperature changes, and a two-story garden space allows for future installation of an elevator shaft. From the exterior, the house is clad mostly in cedar siding and appears to cantilever from its northern edge, where the mass of concrete block visually anchors the building to the ground.
RESIDENTIAL STUDIO CLIFTON, OH
AT 919’ TALL, this Manhattan skyscraper features a transparent cantilever of banquet halls, bars and sky lounges. Lit from within, the horizontal stroke of the cantilever counters the verticality of the tower. To complement the extroverted nature of this public facade, the rest of the tower is sheathed in the relative opacity and darkness of reflective bronze glass. The cantilevered mass is separated from the tower by a narrow canyon, and 2 escalators run through the interstitial space, pulling passerby off the street and up into the building. Inspired by the Central-Mid-levels escalator system in Hong Kong, the idea is to bolster retail above the ground floor by luring consumers in with an escalator ride and, at the end, the draw of a skinny skybar glazed on five sides.
SKYSCRAPER 919’ NEW YORK, NY
3 BDRM (1181 SF)
1 BDRM (642 SF) 2 BDRM (1082 SF)
1 BDRM (880 SF)
UP DN UP
DN
1 BDRM (880 SF)
2 BDRM (1156 SF) 1 BDRM (827 SF)
3 BDRM (1181 SF)
residential 0' 5' 10'
20'
40'
4 2
1
5 6
3
SERVICE CORRIDOR
16
7
UP DN
DN UP
ICE/VENDING
15
8
14
11 13
10
9
12
hotel 0' 5' 10'
20'
40'
FOOD SERVICE FOR RESTAURANT
FOOD SERVICE FOR BANQUET HALL
UP DN
DN UP
RESTAURANT
UP
BANQUET HALL
20'
40'
WEST 31ST STREET
141' - 8"
LOADING DOCK 2623 SF
RETAIL 6776 SF
EXISTING CONCRETE DRIVE
144' - 6 1/4"
TENTH AVENUE
UP
EXISTING - 12 STORY STRUCTURE
UP UP
RES LOBBY 1797 SF
HOTEL LOBBY
EXISTING SINGLE STORY STRUCTURE
STUDIO 450
UE DYER AVEN
0' 5' 10'
5026 SF RETAIL 2840 SF
south elevation
WEST 3OTH STREET
SINCLAIR’S NEWEST ADDITION (Building B) is designed with both past and future construction in mind. The main concern was creating connection through the building - connecting areas of campus and at the same time ‘connecting’ students socially. The building’s glass atrium carves a winding canyon through the stone-clad core of the building, creating access between the existing building/parking and what will eventually be a main quad on Sinclair’s Cincinnati campus. At the same time it provides an enjoyable space for students to meet, lounge, and study. The circulation core protrudes into the atrium, activating the space. Diagramatically, the atrium separates classroom spaces from the shorter library wing. This studio was intended to familiarize students with creating a Design Document set. Annotated plans, wall sections, curtain wall details, and additional drawings are included in that DD set.
SINCLAIR COLLEGE MASON, OH
NORTH
EAST
SOUTH
WEST
In the vacuum of Outer Space, the usual parameters for architectural design simply don’t apply. There is no gravity, no north arrow, no atmospheric weather – not even a designated up and down. Yet as explorers and researchers venture into such “extreme” environments, drawn by the allure of the unknown, architects will undoubtedly follow. As a profession, we must ask ourselves: what is the architect’s role in extreme environments? The label of “extreme” suggests a wide spectrum of conditions, from outer space to Earth’s polar regions. As climate change and population growth continue to strain available space and resources, human development will increasingly encroach on these environments. Contrary to popular belief, such intrusion into the natural landscape is not only inevitable but may be beneficial, as exposure to unfamiliar environments produces a population that will advocate on their behalf.
THESIS PROCESS
ST. JOHN, USVI
[lighting quality studies]
My thesis paper examines three frontiers of human exploration: the Arctic, undersea environments, and outer space. Analysis of these three environments highlights the similar design challenges they face. In each, architecture has the opportunity to mitigate extreme conditions such as disorientation, atypical daylight, containment, and lack of familiar sensory stimuli. Designs must be especially sensitive to users’ psychological comfort as they attempt to adapt to their unusual surroundings. In addition, I suggest that architects are uniquely qualified to address the challenges of building in extreme environments, since hostile conditions demand creative solutions to difficult spatial issues. I presented this paper at the Spaces & Flows conference in Detroit on October 12, 2012. It has been accepted for publishing in “Spaces & Flows: An International Journal of Urban and ExtraUrban Studies.” The thesis process will culminate in the design of an undersea research station off the coast of the US Virgin Islands, incorporating principles explored in the thesis paper.
JC
THANK YOU