John Nguyen _ April2019

JOHN T. NGUYEN

SELECTED WORKS 2015 - 2019

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

PORT

About My name is John. This collection of works is progress statement of my educational journey in landscape architecture. These works highlight comprehensive understanding of the cultural and physical processes that shape environments and envision creative design solutions that realize the complexities of the modern landscape.

I LYRICAL NARRATIVE (pg. 04)

BARRIO RECUERDO (pg. 08)

II PECULIAR TIDE (pg. 14)

THE RESERVIOR (pg. 16)

EMBER (pg. 18)

RED ROCK CANYON (pg. 22)

III EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN, CAPTURE THE UNSEEN

VI SKETCH-2-UNSTRESS (pg. 32)

MIX-MEDIA PHOTOGRAPHY (pg. 34)

INTERNSHIP (pg. 36)

(pg. 28)

Collab.

L YR I C A L N AR R A TIVE

Group members : Gilbert Perez | Tatsuyuki S. Winter 2017

The Tongva Native Indian, also known as “The People of the Earth”, is one of the first tribes to inhabit the Los Angels Basin and the Southern Channel Islands more than 10,000 years.

Our goal for this design is to create educational and immersive experience for all of our guests at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG). Our design is inspired by lyrical storytelling of the Tongva people via music, and mythical storytelling via art installation of an artist. The experience begins at the Southeast entrance of the village.

You will be greeted by the blooming yellow of the bladder pod plants, following by the exotic fragrance of the white sage, and last but not least the feeling of protective and homey portray by the tall beautiful blue elderberry trees. Along the pathway, you will find hidden gems that will tell Tongva tales. The storytelling pathways will guarantee create a fun and interacting experience for both the child and parents. The expansion of our project site allows us to relocate and design a new conference center for the staffs, a nice outdoor amphitheater, and a bigger scale of the Tongva village. With the new design concept, we have successfully created more open space and interactive circulations for our guests.

n.t.s

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A-he Ya A-he Ya i-ha-yo-e-e-i-ya i-ha-yo-e-e-i-ya i-ha-yo-e-e-i-ya i-ha-yo-e-e-i-ya [ Heya , welcome ]

Repeat

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[ hey ... welcome ... ya] [ hey ... welcome ... ya] [ hey ... welcome ... ya] [ hey ... welcome ... ya]

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DIAGRAM A : Music Score & Topography

DIAGRAM B : Dance Movement + Circulation

Analyzing the tone of Tongva music, “Welcome Song.” After figuring out the musical pattern, horizontally apply it to the landscape as if a musical note. We translated the musical pattern into topography on flat existing site by using Rhino. After creating 3D model, we have fused onto existing topography on the site.

Since water is a significant element for Tongva Village, we picked up the Tongva music of “Water.” This time we analyzed dance movements of the music. As a first step, symbolize the dance movements in order to represent it abstractly. Then we applied the movements into our landscape circulation.

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Existing Building

Existing Building

Existing Building Restroom Hidden Gem

Conference Center

Landscape Site Plan n.t.s

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DIAGRAM C : Planting Zone

~ Blue Elderberry ~

Schematic Planting Plan n.t.s

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~ CA. Black Walnut ~

~ White Sage ~

~ Bladderpod ~

~ Date Palm ~

~ Toyon ~

~ Holly Leaf Cherry ~

~ Our Lord’s Candle ~

~ Mesquite ~

~ Weeping Willow ~

~ Tanbark Oak ~

~ Pinyon Pine ~

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> El Sereno, located 6 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles, is a predominantly working class Latino neighborhood currently experiencing shifts in its social and communal fabric. Many of the community’s older buildings and infrastructure have recently been proposed for redevelopment through means of a bioscience corridor, and opportunities for public engagement have presented themselves at a crucial stage in the future growth of El Sereno. > I have spent one whole quarter analyzing the corridor’s waste conditions how it has become a huge environmental problem that affect the air, soil, and groundwater of the community. I was able to map out the existing and active recycling centers on the site to propose a new network self-sustainable recycle centers that use waste to do more than just recycle but also producing clean eco-fuel.

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Solo.

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PECULIAR TIDE This project explores the malleability of form, such as: the study of strata, topography study, density of materials, etc. The final process is an incorporate three different design theories: interaction of strata lines, a topography that shows the shedding and holding of water, and a plan that utilizes two verbs from Richard Serra’s “Verb List.” My main concept is from the two verbs: of reflection and to inlay. My definition of reflection is about the consideration and collaboration of my previous work to continue integrates it into my new design.

From start to end, I use my most previous generated plan as you can see in my Diagram A, and literally use the verb “of reflection” to reflect and use it as my new design. Last but not least, I use the verb “to inlay” as a way to stitch two of my plywood models into one. For the technically part, I use an angle grinder to sand, dig, and curve my way around my plan to create different elevations and circulations.

By looking at the inlayed shapes somehow in a way interfere the flow of my main strata. Peculiar Tide is the perfect title to show the unusual interruption of these shapes that strangely made it look like they are naturally meant to be there.

PLAN n.t.s

SECTION A-A’ n.t.s

SECTION B-B’ n.t.s

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RED ROCK

CANYON L A S

V E G A S

VISITOR CENTER

VICINITY MAP

C

LOCATION MAP

37'-6"

19'-7"

8'

25' Decking Plan See Enlargement Plan

Decking Framing Plan

25'-5"

See Enlargement Plan

40'-5"

5'

19'-1"

Wooden View Deck Enlarged Plan

Boardwalk & Handrail

n.t.s

See Detail

5'

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Bench Detail See Detail

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13'-11"

LS-03

2x6” Redwood Railing Cap

Fascia Board

2x8” Joist Decking @ 16” Spacing o.c.

5'-3" 4'-2" 2x6” Redwood Decking @ 1/4” Spacing Railing to Rim Joist

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See Detail

2x6” Boardwalk @ 1/4” Spacing

LS-03

Beam to Joist to Decking See Detail

2x8” Joist Boardwalk @ 18” & 24” Spacing o.c.

7'-7"

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LS-03

Post to Beam See Detail

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LS-03

2x8” Sandwich Beam 2x8” Rim Joist 6x6” Post

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DECKING PLAN

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n.t.s

7'-6"

DECK FRAMING PLAN n.t.s

2x2” Redwood Slats 2x6” Rafters 2x8” Sandwich Beam 6x6” Post

8'-0"

3'-3"

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SECTION C-C’

n.t.s

3'-4"

1'-6"

2x6” Redwood Decking @ 1/4” Spacing o.c.

2x8” Sandwich Beam

2x8” Joist 2x8” Sandwich Beam

SIMPSON STRONG-TIE Beam Connector

Galvanized: Bolt / Nut / Washer

2x8” Pressure Treated Ledger

6x6” Post

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Galvanized Post Anchor

BOARDWALK POST TO BEAM

n.t.s

Concrete Footing

2x6” Decking 2x8” Joist @ 16” - 24” Spacing o.c.

SIMPSON STRONG-TIE Z-MAX Galvanized 18-Gauge Hurricane Tie Galvanized: Bolt / Nut / Washer

Galvanized Post to Beam Column Cap

2x8” Beam

6x6” Post

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POST TO BEAM

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n.t.s

BEAM TO JOIST TO DECKING

n.t.s

2x6” Rail Cap

2x3” Redwood Slats 4x4” Stud

2x2” Baluster @ 4” Spacing o.c.

3'-5"

6x6” Post 2x4” Redwood Slats

4'-7"

2'-4"

1'-3"

Galvanized 1-1/2” Wood Screw 3/8” Galvanized Carriage Bolts & Nuts

2x8” Sandwich Beam 6x6” Post

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RAILING TO RIM JOIST

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BENCH DETAIL

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Abroad.

Sketch (left) - Tiananmen Square /天安门广场/ Sketch (bottom) - The Great Wall /长城/

These narrow alleys or /Hútòng/ 胡同 are no more than 5 ft. wide. These hutongs are now historical imprints of how traditional Chinese housing and small town layouts. They might be small and narrow but they carried a great and long antiquity.

Making someplace out of no space - The residents/vendors turning their /Hútòng/ into their own store front selling from clothes to food goods. The struggle is the mother of innovation.

Within 500 ft radius of our project Hutong alley, my fellow classmate, Tab, and I went around and collect data on different plant species to study the soil condition, plant family, planting culture of the community, and shade area percentage of the area.

I photographed my hand next to the winter melon leaf (above) to record the alley condition inventory to provide a sense of texture, scale, and context. The sofeness of my palm and the leaf can give a sense of how smooth it might be. The veins on my palm and the veins on the leaf also create a relationship between we human have with plants and nature.

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With the lack of outdoor space in the Hutongs, the residences have to make the alleyway their own backyard. All it takes is a couple chairs and a table to either drink tea or play chess together is what they do usually do to pass the day. While others took iniative to build their own little homey pergolas of winter melon(top left corner) out of scrap wood. There is still an absense of community ownership and expression of building a greener alleyway. One of our design interventions was to repurpose the existing community center into a community lathe garden that can be open up to have indoor and outdoor interactions. This will allow other activities to take place, such as: farmer market, art and craft workshops, gardening classes, etc. It will be a safe and happy place for the community not only to socialize but also share their knowledge on planting with one another.

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Extra.

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Updated April 2019

714.820.3033 johntnguyen1 @ cpp.edu