LAURA HUAN WU Selected Works, 2011-2017
Address
30 Sickles St Apt 3D New York, NY 10040
Contact
laura.wu@columbia.edu 1 (774) 270 3261
CONTENTS Vertical Block
Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2016
Promenade Theater Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2016
Surface Activation
Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2015
Building Yacoubian Exhibition
L.E.FT Architects & Columbia GSAPP, Summer 2017
Urban Respite - Mt Sinai Union Square Perkins Eastman Architects, Summer 2017
Consumable Sugar Shack Studio North, Summer 2015
Spring Chair
Dartmouth College, Fall 2011
Curriculum Vitae
VERTICAL BLOCK Core III Housing Studio Critic: Eric Bunge In collaboration with: Laura Lee Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2016 10 weeks
Site: 3 blocks between 144th St and Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY A semester-long exploration of light and density. We began with the question of how to break up the typical dense city residential block to let in light and air. By dividing a proto-typical cube into smaller modules and splitting them apart, we increased access to the perimeter from within the units, filling all living spaces with light. This act of splitting created horizontal datum levels that served as an elevated street condition. Additionally, we added a diagonal cut to the modules to create outside public spaces. Rotating these modules allowed for a variety of unit typologies within each orientation. After lighting studies of precendent projects revealed hierarchies in access to light, we aimed to achieve a democracy of light across modules by varying the window sizes according to height and cardinal direction. Along the diagonals, the windows are also subtly graded to allow more light into units facing the interior courtyard. Residents of the vertical block enter the building and travel up central cores to the datum levels. They experience these datums as they walk to their module, and then enter their unit from stairs leading above or below. At the datum level the spaces created by the diagonal cuts form pathways and courtyards, allowing for parks and green spaces to be dispersed throughout, activating the life of the building.
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Sectional model at 1/8� scale - basswood plywood, acrylic
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Precedent study of the Celosia housing complex in Madrid by MVRDV. For the physical model, a wireframe technique was used to highlight the modularity of the design. The courtyards and vertical circulation of the building were further emphasized using color perspex. The milled foam base show the streets curving around the radial grid of the site. The perspective sectional drawings were created by studying lighting conditions within the individual units and for the central courtyard and building as a whole. We explored the idea of representing light as a hatch. Abstracting and laying forms of light reveals the visibility of furniture and architectural details in the drawings. Model in collaboration with: Laura Lee, Adelaida Albir, Julie Perrone Drawings in collaboration with: Laura Lee
Wireframe study model - soldered steel wire, perspex, foam base
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Perspective section - light study of central courtyard
Perspective section - light study of unit at 6am
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Initial concept model exploring diagonal cuts
Reconfigurable massing study model across all 3 blocks of the site
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BLOCK TYPOLOGY A
BLOCK TYPOLOGY B
BLOCK TYPOLOGY C
AXON VIEW
ROOF
4TH FLOOR
(1) STUDIO UNIT (2) 1-BEDROOM UNITS
3RD FLOOR
(1) 2-BEDROOM UNIT (1) 3-BEDROOM UNIT
(2) 4-BEDROOM UNITS
(3) STUDIO UNITS SHARED KITCHEN
(2) 2-BEDROOM UNITS
(3) STUDIO UNITS SHARED KITCHEN
(2) 2-BEDROOM UNITS
(1) STUDIO UNIT (2) 1-BEDROOM UNITS
2ND FLOOR
1ST FLOOR
(2) 4-BEDROOM UNITS
Unit matrix - Floor plans by block typology
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Typical residential floor plan
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Section through west block
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Model photos - graded windows and outdoor public space
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Render of datum level activity
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PROMENADE THEATER
Architectural Technology IV - Building Systems Integration Critics: Clementina Ruggieri, Junko Nakagawa, Jason Stone In collaboration with: Dylan Belfield, Tien Chen, Anosha Zanjani Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2016 12 weeks Site: Myrtle Ave and Cypress Ave, Ridgewood, Queens, NY A new typology for theater that incorporates a microbrewery with dynamic and flexible performance spaces. The proposed Ridgewood Promenade Theater & Microbrewery is a one-stop entertainment and dining destination that combines four interconnected black-box performance spaces with a microbrewery, restaurant, and office spaces. Inspired by the show Sleep No More, an interactive version of Macbeth, the Promenade Theater is an experiment in creating flexible spaces suited for an emerging theater typology. Actors have the option of performing on multiple stages set at various levels in each box, and audience members can climb the different balcony layers to follow and interact with them or filter to and from the brewery space. The result is a more dynamic, porous kind of theater that allows for new and challenging types of performances. Structurally, the building uses a steel column and beam system throughout, with brick and terra cotta cladding. The interior of the four theater boxes contains flexible and reconfigurable scaffolding that supports the stages and audience balconies. Our sustainability strategy included rainwater collection, filtration, and reuse. The high ceilings allow for a stack ventilation effect, in which cool air flows into the building and warm air naturally rises and is released through vents in the ceiling. A complete set of construction drawings was developed for the course.
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Exterior render of south facade
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Basement floor plan
Ground floor plan
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Second floor plan
Third floor plan
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East-west section showing lightwells
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North-south section highlighting sustainability features
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Render of audience scaffolding and circulation
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Experiential render of staggered stages
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SURFACE ACTIVATION Core I Critic: Christoph Kumpusch Columbia GSAPP, Fall 2015 2 weeks
An apparatus for generating new forms and typologies that emerge from activating different parts of a surface. Drawing from analysis of a site at the corner of 14th Street and 9th Avenue, I became interested in a pedestrian crosswalk that had been redrawn to accomodate more pedestrian traffic and create a pocket of public gathering space. From this, I abstracted the ideas of manipulating the urban surface, the expansion and contraction of spaces, and the memory and imprint left behind in a rapidly changing urban landscape. I began with a single planar surface, a square, and divided this into sixteen subsections - four open spaces, four public spaces, four semi-public spaces, and four spaces that connected to the ground. These types are represented in the model by materials of different opacities. They are defined by a series of acrylic ribs that hinge open to activate the space. The ribs are nested into the ground so that when open they leave an imprint of where they once rested. The resulting subsections are able to hinge open to varying degrees, creating different, flexible conditions for activated spaces.
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Detail photos showing different opacities and rivet connections
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Study models of hinging mechanism
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OPEN SPACES PUBLIC SPACES SEMI-PUBLIC SPACES CONNECTING TO GROUND PRIMARY CIRCULATION SECONDARY CIRCULATION
Analysis grid of flattened model plan
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Complete activation of surface
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BUILDING YACOUBIAN
Exhibition, in collaboration with L.E.FT Architects & Columbia GSAPP Team: Ziad Jamaleddine, Adede Amenya, James Brillon, Laura Wu, Matt Davis, Shuosong Zhang, Veronica Watson Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon August 4-19, 2017
This exhibition examines the impact of decades or war and social upheaval on modernist architecture in Beirut through the case study of one building. The Yacoubian building in began life in the late 1960s as luxury resort housing, with all the latest amenities and a dazzling view to the sea. Throughout the subsequent years of wars, refugees, and eventually peace, it has undergone dramatic changes in both function and, as a result, form. Apartments were split and combined, turned into embassies, militia safehouses, and a 20 room motel. Balconies were enclosed with successive layers of cheap glass facades. Open air corridors became streets to be encroached on, gated, and trespassed. Hundreds of water tanks were added, filled by trucks to complement the city’s water shortages. Two 150 KVA generators were bought by few, who sell electricity to the deprived many. With warmer summers, hundreds of AC units have littered balconies and every ledge. Thousands of meters of cables and pipes drape the building’s facades. Gardens have been replaced by flower pots. Spiked dividers separate neighbor’s balconies. Through three axonometric drawings, we documented these changes, capturing both the Yacoubian of decades past, with its social upheavals, as well as a snapshot of how the building stands today. Within its concrete slabs, the Yacoubian hosts an evolving microcosm of Lebanese society, one that has reclaimed the building and their city for themselves.
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Team at exhibition opening.
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Axonometric of front facade, showing modifications in red
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Worms-eye axonometric of back facade
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Catalogue of building materials, including later additions
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URBAN RESPITE
Atrium redesign for Mt. Sinai Union Square Hospital Team: Cristobal Mayendia, Sebastian Medina, Laura Wu, Tania El Alam Perkins Eastman Architects Summer 2017 Site: 10 Union Square E, New York, NY 10003 As part of an extensive ongoing renovation project, our team was tasked with finding a beautiful but cost effective way to modernize the current atrium and public spaces of the Mt. Sinai Union Square hospital. Our approach was to turn the atrium into a green lung, one that supported both the healing of patients and the wellbeing of the staff that used the space every day. We wanted to turn the atrium into not just a space that people passed through, but a destination in its own right, one where visitors, patients, and staff would be encouraged to linger, reflect, and gather. The design of a modern zen garden on top of the existing auditorium encourages this quiet reflection. A sense of unity is created by opening up views to the atrium from the elevator lobbies and balconies.
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Roadmap diagram showing public circulation and scope of work
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4th floor plan showing zen garden design
2nd floor plan
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View of zen garden and ceiling installation
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Render of green wall concept
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View of entry
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CONSUMABLE SUGAR SHACK Studio North Design-Build Workshop with a team of 8 Led by Moskow Linn Architects Summer 2014 1 week Site: Farm in Norwich, VT
A consumable sugar shack whose walls are burned in the process of making maple syrup. Studio North is a 6-day Design-Build workshop located on a farm in Vermont. A group of 8 students led by Moskow Linn Architects convenes to build small-scale design solutions for a rural landscape. The walls of the sugar shack are composed of split firewood, stacked on beams. During the sugaring process in the spring, the stored wood is burned in the evaporator while in the fall it is refilled, responding to the changing seasons of the site. In the summer, the structure doubles as a teahouse. The front door is inset to create a porch space to view the nearby pond. Large steps double as seating. Day 1: Research and brainstorming: ideas and sketches from the group were combined into the final design. Days 2-6: Construction Phase: digging foundation, completing stairs, erecting walls and roofbeams, splitting wood to fill walls Later construction: attaching doors, nailing down sheet metal roofing
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East elevation in March (sugaring season)
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Construction - end of Day 5
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Top: Roof detail Bottom: Interior view with evaporator
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SPRING CHAIR Architecture I Critic: Karolina Kawiaka Dartmouth College, Fall 2011 2 weeks
A “kinetic sculpure� able to hold 180 pounds of downward force whose movement expresses the tension and compression of wood. Inspired by the coils of a spring, the chair compresses down when a weight is placed on top. Strips of poplar, chosen for its flexibility, were laminated together into parabolic curves using clamps. The curved pieces were glued to a contured top and base. The final piece was left unstained and finished with a clear coat to highlight the natural properties of the wood.
Sketches - design progression 44
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Contact: laura.wu@columbia.edu 1 (774) 270 3261 Address: 30 Sickles St Apt 3D New York, NY 10040
EDUCATION Columbia University GSAPP, New York, NY Master of Architecture, expected graduation 2019 Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH B.A. in Economics modified with Math Study abroad semesters: UniversitĂŠ Toulouse II - Le Mirail, Toulouse, France Kyoto Institute of Culture and Language, Kyoto, Japan
Sept 2015 - present Sept 2009 - June 2013
Harvard University GSD, Cambridge, MA Career Discovery Program in Architecture 6-week intro course in studio architecture and representation
SKILLS English - Native
Adobe Photoshop
Mandarin - Fluent speaker
Adobe Illustrator
French - Advanced
Adobe Indesign
Japanese - Intermediate
Revit
Spanish - Basic
AutoCAD
Hand modeling
VRay
CNC milling
SketchUp
Laser cutting
3DS Max
3D printing
Vectorworks
HOBBIES Cinema Yoga & Meditation Go / Weiqi / Baduk Traveling
Rhino
June - July 2012
EXPERIENCE July 2018 - Aug 2018 Atelier Bow-Wow, Tokyo, Japan Architectural Intern - 7 weeks Worked on the schematic design of small scale residential and commercial projects through drawings and iterative physical models. Conducted research into the site, historical context, and viability of an urban intervention in Munich. April 2018 - July 2018 Kieran Timberlake, Philadelphia, PA Architectural Intern - 3 months Worked on developing details, construction drawings, and construction administration for several large scale mixed-use higher education projects. Fabricated models and large-scale mockups to evaluate designs. May 2017 - April 2018 Perkins Eastman Architects, New York, NY Architectural Intern - 1 year full time Worked on the design and development of healthcare projects, including the schematic design and planning of a new hospital and renovation in New York. Assisted with BIM management and Revit model maintenance. Sept 2017 - present GSAPP Fabrication Lab, New York, NY Sept 2016 - May 2017 Shop Monitor & Project Assistant - 10 hrs / week Oversaw and instructed students in laser cutting and 3D printing. Monitored the use of shop tools and equipment to ensure student safety. Instructed students in CNC milling and coordinated mill schedule. Assisted with small-scale demolition and construction projects around the school. Jan 2016 - May 2017 GSAPP Visual Resources Collection, New York, NY TA for Collection Development - 10 hrs / week Digitized, edited, and catalogued images from Avery Library collection. Assisted faculty in preparing images for lectures and research. Conducted independent research of notable projects to expand collection. July 2014 - Sept 2015 Kathleen Doyle Interior Designs, Hanover, NH Jan - Sept 2013 Marketing and Design Assistant - 15 hrs / week Coordinated marketing campaigns for promoting design business. Assisted with operations, accounting, and project management. Designed pillow and cabinetry layouts, prepared presentations for clients. Keynote Systems, Hanover, NH August 2013 - Sept 2015 Support Consultant - 40 hrs / week Provisioned scripts using JavaScript and KITE proprietary software to test and monitor website performance. Provided daily triage analysis of website performance to clients. Other Experience GIS flood mapper & research assistant Surveyor’s assistant Book preservation technician
Thank you!