THE SENSE OF BELONGING
SHUXIN YIN PORTFOLIO
Selected Works 2015-2024
Email: shuxinyin99@gmail.com
Tel: 734-596-6386
shuxinyin99@gmail.com
734-596-6386
EDUCATION
Master of Architecture
May 2025 Expected Ann Arbor, MI
University of Michigan
Real Estate Development
May 2025 Expected Ann Arbor, MI
University of Michigan
Bachelor of Arts
June 2022 | Beijing, China Tsinghua University
SKILLS
Modeling Rendering
Wight & Company, Architectural Intern
May 2024 - Aug 2024 | Chicago, IL
• Redesigned 100+ Chicago Fire Stations by categorizing them based on establishment dates and selecting 40 for detailed site visit, analysis and design.
• Conducted on-site measurements and data collection, then created Revit bubble plans and organized data in Google Sheets.
• Compiled "Basic of Design" documents in InDesign, including design summaries, exterior/interior analysis, and MEP systems to the City of Chicago.
HLW, Architectural Intern
Feb 2024 - Mar 2024 New York, NY
• Refined interior finish drawings with Revit.
• Participated in CA phase on Urby Journal Square, Jercy City, NJ Residential & Mixed Use project.
D1 Architect & Associates, Architectural Intern
May 2023 - Aug 2023 | Dallas, TX
• Executed a set of CD for the extension of a mosque.
• Developed of a SD site plan and renderings for a 133-hectare development.
• Conducted on-site measurements at a gas station for accurate space assessment.
Freelance Designer
Dec 2022 - Present Chicago, IL
• Engaged in communication with clients during SD, DD
• Conducted thorough site visits to brick, metal, and tile suppliers for the interior and exterior design of the single family house.
• Actively participated in CA, overseeing on-site work and addressing construction errors identified during supervision.
South China University of Technology, Architectural Intern
Jul 2021 - Oct 2021 | Guangzhou, China
• Created four accessible waterscape design proposals with case study analysis.
• Researched local history with brick materials for design development and created over 20 graphics for bidding file and video.
Cube Architectural Design Consulting, Architectural Intern
Jun 2020 - Aug 2020 | Shenzhen, China
• Utilized Grasshopper to generate different sizes of liquid glass curtain wall openings and communicated with clients to complete parametric design scheme.
Biophilic Museum
A Dialogue Between Local Nature & History
River Bank Reconstrution
Urban Planning For Hydrologic Mechanisms
Revit Rhino AutoCAD SketchUp Blender Vray Lumion Enscape Unity Photoshop Illustrator InDesign Premiere English Mandarin Cantonese
Shizuo (Beijing) Art Design, Interior Design Intern
Feb 2019 - May 2019 | Jan 2022 - Apr 2022 Beijing, China
• Designed a four-story villa's floor plan, paticipated in SD and DD, conducted reporting and follow-up communication.
• Created site measurements-based flat SD, used Lumion to create a walking tour video, used Enscape to make ten renderings for commercial project.
Adobe Suite Languages
PUBLICATIONS & EXHIBITIONS
Photography | Outdoor Magazine, July Issue
July 2020 | Qinghai, China
• Overlooking Ba’ai Yong in Angsay Village, Three-River-Source National Park.
Book | On Design, Experimental Design Studio Projects
August 2019 | Beijing, China
• See & Be Seen: Leg Gaming Space, Game Space Design, Studio Design 1
Academic Exhibitions | Academy of Excellent Course Work
December 2019 | Beijing, China
• See & Be Seen: Leg Gaming Space, Game Space Design
• Grid Spherical Dome, collected in China IPPR International Engineering CO., LTD. (Beijing)
December 2020 | Beijing, China
• Light · Space & Time Dialogue, Light Experimental Design
• I Shop Therefore I Am, Commercial Interior Design
Urban Enclaves
Mix Use Residential Building
Quadraverse Center
Mix Use Public Building
Working Samples
Construction Drawings & Construction Admins
Parametric + Hand-drawn
Biophilic Museum
A Dialogue Between Local Nature & History
Competition
Work
Instructor: He Xiaoxin
October 2021
This project explores an representation for the sense of belonging from cultural places. Kaizhou is an ancient city with a thousand years of history without a modern cultural building. The construction of a new cultural building is put on the agenda of the government. In response, a new indigenous museum, cultural symbols, is going to be erected. The design takes the local ancient Chinese paintings as the transfer text, then simulates the frame of natural landscape, and generates a series of landscape spacial experience in the museum.
Wei Chuhou, a loacal official in the Tang Dynasty, wrote the Twelve Poems of Shengshan, which has been praised for thousands of years. Under the guidance of Wei, the culture and humanistic atmosphere of ancient Kaizhou was formed. The Poems opened a milestone for the Kaizhou literature spreadng. After thousands of years of precipitation, the unique cultural spirit - SCENIC TOWN - has been handed down.
CULTURAL CONTEXT
Shengshan Mountain is both a geographical location and a cultural symbol for Kaizho City. Mountains and rivers blend together, with majestic shape turning ups and downs, a ridge and a stream lie there, with distinct views all the year round.
The site is located between Landscape, backed by Shengshan Mountain and facing Hanfeng Lake. On the left side of the site is the restored Ancient city of Kaizhou, which once slept underwater.
Elements in Shengshan Mountain
Listed at right side, the scenery described in the poems no longer exists now. Through description of the poems, it can be presented by ink and wash paintngs back then. I extract the scene prototype of these scenes as the basic of the museum interior design.
Stonebed Hidden Cave Pavilion Bog & Canal Tea Hill Spring Stone Stairs Blossoms Bamboo Rock Pipa Platform
Kaizhou Cultural History
Waterfront Runway
Hanfeng Lake
Site Scope
Ancient Village
Shengshan Mountain Mountain Village
Local Feature Attractions
Undeveloped Land
Waterfront Plaza
Kaizhou Landscape
Shengshan Twelve Views Hu Xiaoxuan
Xuebao Mountain Juzi Garden
The Ancient Town Hanfeng Lake
Visitors may visity the museum in an ORDERLY touring way. Using different architectural elements, different Spaces in the flow line reflect the different characteristics of Shengshan Twelve Scenes. In the process of visiting, visitors can feel the continuous dialogue between space and exhibits, space and nature, space and self, and feel the inherited Shengshan spirit.
The museum looks like a mountain from a distance, but up close there is water, and bamboo shadows float on the way into the courtyard.
Real scenery photo of Shengshan Mountain. There are water curtain cave, water scenery and continuous mountains.
You can see the mountain at your fingertips.
Let's walk again from the second floor to the third floor via the outside stairs.
The sunlight makes the artworks look so beautiful.They separated from the wall, as if the relics come to life, standing in front of me. Look, what's that exit at the back? Let's go check it out.
The museum's Circulation Line is various,as there are air bridge and the tour to the whole roof. It allows visitors to experience the museum from the inside out. The rest platform is
Look, the light is pouring from the patio. In summer, there will be water in the middle, just like the spring in the mountains.
The material of the stone makes you feel like you're going through the cave.
The conference room is on the left.
Enjoy meals at the dining room on the right, where plum blossoms outside the window.The water outside echoes the Hanfeng Lake, which is just in front of the museum.
The sun pours down from the roof, the light is like a waterfall, forming a painting with the wall. Just buy our tickets and go in. Go to this skywalk and see where it leads.
Entrance B leads to the Visitor Center, which including consulting services, shops and office. Dense columns simulate bamboo forest. The journey starts with exploring the bamboo forest first and ends with the hidden beauty of the mountain.
Reception
hidden in the roof. Visitors can enter the platform from the interior and stroll around the roof.
Bamboo's Shallow Swaying on the Wave
Contrast With Mountain and Water Courtyard Hidden Platform
TOUR CIRCULATION ORGANIZATION
The MOVEMENT of visitors through the SPACE is planned by the Twelve Views of Shengshan Mountain, presenting high and low rythem in the building. The space design of the museum emphasizes the reference of natural Elements from the tour of the Mountain, the light, the water, the wind and the plants. Through framing, opening Windows and holes, it guides visitors to have more contact with local scenery, who are just admiring the space and the collection. While they are touring, they also constitute the scenery of others' eyes.
When visitors enter the lounge, two air bridges would be seen, which attract people to explore.
Green plants on the roof terrace provide a cool place for visitors.
Green plants on the roof terrace provide a cool place for visitors.
Visitors can enjoy different views of the mountain lake on different steps.
The roof terrace is connected by steps, as if climbing a mountain, forming the roof garden.
At the entrance, you will feel yourself in a sea of bamboo, sparkling water and skylight cave.
At the entrance, you will feel yourself in a sea of bamboo, sparkling water and skylight cave.
The roof of the building uses primitive stone, which was the common material of the footpath in ancient Kaizhou.
the grey brick, which is commonly used in local traditional buildings.
The main facade of the museum faces south, equipped with plenty of light. The main building is mainly used for exhibition and collection, and the auxiliary building is for office. Both buildings are connected on the first floor. The exhibits are placed on the south side with ample daylight, while the facilities are placed on the northeast and northwest sides. The building is built with local stone materials, while using traditional paving and wall building methods, emphasizing local characteristics.
lassoka terracotta brick
Structural Material
A. Rooftop
B. Curtain Wall
BIOPHILIC SECTION & LAKE VIEW
The section of the museum shows its location which is right between the mountain and the water. Visitors can approach the museum by land or water. The contour of the museum's facade descends from north to south, connecting mountains and water with curves and straight lines. Let the museum lie quietly and naturally in the landscape.
This project integrates the edge of Shengshan Mountain and the Curve of Kaizhou City into the museum architectural form. The Twelve Scenes of Shengshan Mountain in Kaizhou is used as the translated text to interpret the museum volume with the landscape environment. Through the new interpretation of the text and the traditional materials, the museum and the old city of Kaizhou launched a dialogue of time and space.
The Waterfront sidewalk, depending on the water level in the season, allows people to watch plants in winter and fish in summer.
River Bank Reconstruction
Urban Planning For Hydrologic Mechanisms
Studio work,Tsinghua University
Instructor: Huang Yan
Individual work
August 2020
As a carrier of collective memento, homeland is the exact place for most residents to store the common memory. For me, Zhongshan, as a box storing my intimate memories, always gives me a sense of belonging when I think of her. Among all the shards of memories, the unique local geographical conditions could bring distint commonness and resonance to most Zhongshan people. This project selects a part of riverside in Zhongshan and discusses the posibility of "attaching" the city memory onto modern landscape.
Starting from the river, the project hopes to bring more people and activities to the site through the reconstruction of buildings and landscape, stimulate the vitality of the site and increase the possibility of different and interesting stories happening on the land.
Personally, people are the foundation of architecture and site, while activities are the CORE. Zhongshan is my hometown, and this project is also with my ulterior motive. I hope that through the construction of the site, my hometown will present a story of people and nature growing together and changing. And this story could have happened in many more cities with riverbanks.
Riverside Home
In the past 100 years, the urban area of Zhongshan City has developed maritime and river trade relying on Qijiang River. It once formed a prosperous scene of industry and commerce by the riverside. However, with the shift of the development center of the city, many old buildings and shipyards along the river have been abandoned, forming a complex land status quo. In recent years, the government is trying to build cities landmarks along the Banks of the river and downtown to stimulate the river but in vain.
The site is located in a monsoon climate zone, where precipitation and water level vary greatly throughout the year. The transportation status of the river has declined, but people's daily lives are still connected to the river, though less and less.
CONCEPT ANALYSIS: WATER SURFACE MECHANISMS
The river flows from northwest to southeast through The city of Zhongshan. Because of the local complex and changeable hilly terrain and climate, dense and complex river network has been formed, thus forming a rich surface mechanism. Since ancient times, these different forms of water networks are also closely related to local life, culture, transportation and other aspects.
The main stream bifurcates into tributaries, reducing the width and depth of the river. The tributaries go deep into every cell of the city, feeding the local people more affectionately.
In the hinterland of the city, the water network is artificially improved to form a reservoir in the mountain forest. Many people gather here and have their leisure activities near the reservoir.
This is a local traditional way of planting and breeding. Silkworm and silkworm provide each other with the necessary conditions for survival, forming a good economic and nutrient cycle.
Down by the river, there is a shoreline, where a lot of industrial and commercial trade gathered. Because of the climate, the water level of the river has obvious seasonal changes.
The river flows from tributaries to the estuary, deepening in depth and width. Integrate water network to form a whole, from complex daily activities to simple sea and offshore activities.
MULBERRY FISH PONDS
A public space interlaced with water and forest is created. The site provides an open public space for the surrounding residents and people to relax. It also attracts a wider range of tourists to carry out fitness, party and other activities here, and creates a diversified ecological waterfront landscape. Man-made lake and Qijiang River echo, leading the scene into the water.
Constructions
Multiple indoor and outdoor activity Platforms are built around the lake to introduce the waterscape of the river into the life. There are Elevated Trails for cycling, walking, and open areas for exercise or selfstudy.
People would explore nature on the banks of the river. Shops will be established in the southeast of the site and near the streets to provide supplies for people, so as to making people to stay longer. Large-scale Greenery can maintain and improve the local microclimate and ensure the habitat of egrets and other organisms.
Woods Walking
Woods Walking
Side Connection
Water Trails
A District Axon
Urban Enclaves
A Blend of Dynamism and Oasis
Studio work, University of Michigan
Instructor: Lars Gräbner, Christina Hansen
April 2024
The vision of the project redefines urban living by integrating the suburban charm of porches and gardens into the heart of the city. As suburban living appeals to many for its tranquility and spacious outdoor areas, we aim to merge these qualities with the convenience and vibrancy of urban life.
The design for the project transforms suburban features into vertical means, creating semi-private "porches" and semi-public courtyards for residents.This approach offers the best of both worlds: the serenity and community feel of the suburbs, alongside easy access to urban amenities like healthcare and education. By blending these lifestyles, the project encourage a new urban living experience that harmonizes suburban comfort with the dynamic urban environment, encouraging people to stay in the city.
In the urban context, the standard housing model often comprises dark, double-loaded corridors flanked by repetitive apartment layouts. The structure incorporates varied heights to harmonize with the neighboring TV station and Detroit News buildings. At the southwest corner, a tower rises prominently, offering expansive views of the Detroit River. The variation in elevation not only enhances the urban skyline but also provides a visual connection to significant local landmarks.
SITE STRATEGY
Situated on a compact site with an existing high-rise hotel, the proposed building adopts an L-shaped configuration. This layout defines the building’s boundary while creating an inward-facing courtyard that provides residents with a secluded communal space. The design strategically sets back from the adjacent hotel, ensuring both privacy and ample daylight penetration.
SOCIAL CONTEXT
This project challenges the traditional model of residential transience by encouraging continuity and community. By offering a diverse array of apartment types within the same development, residents can adapt their living arrangements to meet changing needs without the disruption of relocating. Whether scaling up for a growing family or adjusting to a quieter, downsized lifestyle, the flexibility provided allows residents to remain within their community, fostering deeper connections and a sustained sense of belonging.
8. GREENWAY INTERACTION
BUILDING SECTION: STRUCTURE & PERFORMANCE
The overall concept is to minimize the life cycle emissions of the system with considerations for the system cost. There are rainwater collections on rooftop and landscape to supply the watering needs of plants and greenaries.
EXTERIOR RENDERINGS
The building’s structure blends prefabricated concrete with a cross-laminated timber (CLT) framework, including load-bearing walls, columns, and beams. For the semi-public corridors, a self-supporting concrete structure is used to ensure durability and structural integrity. The incorporation of timber slats on the facade is designed to create a uniform appearance and establish a cohesive architectural language throughout the building.
Semi-private Green Hallway
Semi-public 6th Level Terrace
This project offers a variety of unit types to suit different needs. The low-rise residential units are two-story lofts with a double-height balcony. The lower level features an open-plan living room and kitchen, while the upper level provides private bedroom space. Options range from 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom to 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms. The tower units are single-story apartments with stunning river views from the living room and bedroom, offering a blend of convenience and luxury.
Quadraverse Center
Multi-functional center combining cinema, library and office
Studio work, University of Michigan
Instructor: Jonathan Rule
December 2023
This project on the Ann Arbor campus innovatively combines functional spaces, starting with an auditorium inspired by 'Paprika.' It integrates a library, following Walburg Library's classification system to create new spatial relationships, with 'image' shaping the auditorium, 'word' the library, 'orientation' an office tower with exhibition space, and 'action' the lobby. This design meets site-specific needs and institutional regulations.
Physical Model - Auditorium Section
After analyzing the wind direction and the illumination of the site, it was found that Ann Arbor has predominantly southwestern winds and receives abundant sunlight for more than half of the year. Therefore, it is proposed to place the library on the south side. In the summer, trees will be planted on the southern part of the site to reduce direct sunlight, while in the winter, the fallen leaves will allow for sufficient sunlight. Additionally, the zoning codes of the area were analyzed, along with the standards and setbacks for surrounding buildings.
SASHLEYST.
Movie Scenes
These captured movie scenes each focus on a recurring red pattern, repetitive numbers, repetitive doors, elevators leading to different spaces, mirrors in elevators, and corridors and handrails.
Design Development
These captured movie scenes gradually bend up and down, diverging from everyday experience. These scenes act as transformers from reality to dreams, much like a movie theater, which serves as a transitional space between the everyday world and another world within the film. The audience experiences this blurring of spaces while immersed in these settings.
Auditorium Physical Model
In the physical model, I designed the interior to guide the audience's flow into the screening room. As they enter from the back, the handrails on the wall transition from straight to curved, signaling the shift into a surreal space. Mirrors on the walls reflect their images, creating a selfreflective experience. Exiting the cinema, they encounter repeating patterns and decorative door frames, some functional exits. Due to limitations, the floor remains flat, but the ceiling incorporates curved elements.
Top View of Auditorium
Patterns Side Mirrors Side
Study Model Phase I
Toolkit
Study Model Phase II
Grid Spherical Dome
Zhongyuan Design Institute Exhibition
Digital Design,Tsinghua University
Instructor: Yichen Lu, Xudong Huo
Team Members: Wang, Hao, Ouyang
December 2019
This project explores the relationship between the individual's feeling of being protected and the spatial structure. Starting from the embryonic origin, it extends to the process of conflict and backtracking during growth. The circle is the archetype of the womb, the original breeding place of human beings. Life is born in the division and development of cells. The project seeks to use the domed structure as a scaffolding, like a sheet of cells enveloping the unknown future. In this project, I was responsible for writing parametric codes and building models. Finally, as a representative of the team, I made the exhibition report. This is an attempt to apply parametric design and pay homage to the Fuller dome.
Concept Model Generation Process
Model Generation Process
Transformation from Balls to Grid Dome
Physical Model by 3D Printing & Laser Cutting
Trace: Origin of Belonging
Six Perspective: the origin of people’s sense of belonging
Art Works & Photographs, 2015 - 2019
Belonging is a main theme in my projects. My thinking about the origin of people's inner sense of belonging goes back a long way. I chose six of my art works and photographs as clues to illustrate my understanding of belonging.
1. Material: As a medium of daily life, matter often shows a person's life taste, identity and status. These self-defining labels represent a person's inner consciousness and serve as an important personal calling card. As the phenomenon of "judging people by things" becomes common and accepted, the relationship between material things and personal belonging becomes closer.
2. Figure: Some people would choose a person to rely on as their emotional and belonging place. This person can often be his nearest and dearest or even himself, with the spiritual resonance in the interaction between the self and the object.
3. Resident: Residence is the concrete living space of different individuals. Each home is distinguished from the rest of the living space by the unique traces produced by one’s body under conscious control.
4. Spacial: The natural and cultural environment of the settlement place exerts a subtle influence on people's living habits, shaping the connection between people's sense of belonging and city memory.
5. Spiritual: In people's inner spiritual world, the sense of belonging is often related to faith. People find their inner habitat in a group, which may be manifested as religious belief.
6. Fictitious: When the above conditions no longer meet people's needs, the fictional environment or the creation of unknown stuff might become the source of their new sense of belonging.
Material, Drawing, 2015
Spiritual, Siena, 2019
Figure, Drawing, 2017
Fictitious, Qingdao, 2019
Resident, Drawing, 2017
Spacial, Milano, 2019
Art works
Photographs
SHUXIN