“Beauty is in the details.�
Mid-Western Children’s Home Design Build - Cincinnati, Ohio Mid-Western Children’s Home reaches out to touch the lives of children in need of physical, spiritual and emotional healing. The ministry of Mid-Western is a loving tribute to the compassion of our Lord who said: “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” - Matthew 19:14
In December of 2009, Mid-Western Children’s
Home reached out to volunteers in need of some additional help with maintenance on their grounds. Upon arriving on site – we recognized an even larger need. A bridge connected was dilapidated and in need of full replacement. This bridge connected the two campuses currently disconnected.
After a year of designing, planning and
reaching out to corporate sponsors we finally had the funds to replace the old bridge.
The bridge was designed as a 60’ clear span,
with galvanized steel and pressure treated lumber. Each design decision was made to reduce required maintenance and reduce final cost.
After every
Saturday and sometimes Sunday for two years we finally had a completed bridge.
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Mid-Western Children’s Home Design Development
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Mid-Western Children’s Home Construction Photographs
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Exquisite Corpse Design Build - Muncie, Indiana “One of the basic tenants of Surrealism was the notion that creativity/genius could be a shared experience... the Exquisite Corpse was designed for group participation and relied on the chance encounter as a disruption of rationality and a product of the shared, oceanic unconscious in which the Surrealists believed.” The idea of an Exquisite Corpse is usually only designed in two dimensions but we were to apply this into a third. Each group was to design a part of the whole and when all parts were joined together a holistic design would then be achieved. Limited to an 8’-8” H x 2’-6” D x 5’-0” W and only four different material choices we were to create space. With no other restriction on the project, my partners and I designed a space with function and coordinated connections with the parts of the Exquisite Corpse adjacent. Standing alone our piece of the Exquisite corpse had a viewport to the sky and a small seat for relaxing. Upon standing next to its adjacent pieces, this small seat converted into a lounge. Creating a function within a tight space and coordinating design changes and making compromises with the adjacent projects proved more difficult than initially perceived, but overall the project was a great learning experience.
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André Breton, Le Cadavre Exquis: Son Exaltation, exhibition catalogue, La Dragonne, Galerie Nina Dausset, Paris, 7-30 October, 1948.
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Exquisite Corpse Design Development
Structural System
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Portals Through Volume
Extensions Beyond Proposed Volume
Orthagonal Planes
Non-Orthagonal Planes
Final Composition
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Exquisite Corpse Final Built Piece
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Department of Natural Resources Sleeper Cabin Prototype
Design Build - Muncie, Indiana In a collaborative effort sleeper cabin prototype was designed to fit the needs of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources with a $4,000 budget. Located on Summit Lake State Park, this 128 ft2 cabin was designed with the fundamental principle to transition between the built world and natural landscape. After eight weeks the project finally reach approval from all perspectives. Meeting the necessary building and accessibility codes our design converted from two dimensional drawings and renderings into our world of three dimensions. Defining responsibilities and scheduling construction took the better half of the next week. I was designated as the project manager, responsible for coordinating construction, completion of drawings, liaison between colleges and professors, as well as quality control on the construction site. The next weeks flew, drawings converted into a completed foundation with stud wall construction. Sixteen weeks later initial sketches evolved into a completed cabin.
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Department of Natural Resources Sleeper Cabin Prototype Preliminary Design
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Department of Natural Resources Sleeper Cabin Prototype
Design Development/Schedule
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Department of Natural Resources Sleeper Cabin Prototype Construction Process
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Department of Natural Resources Sleeper Cabin Prototype Open House
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Gossip Desk
Furniture Rehabilitation Rehabilition - Cincinnati, Ohio In early 2014 a friend purchased a piece of furniture in the hopes that I could rehabilitate the piece. Upon arriving at her house to pick the piece up – I realized that the only salvageable pieces were the hardware and lampshade. After researching the furniture type, I began to take inventory on the existing pieces for my own understanding of connections. From there, I began to design replacement parts. I began to design out each individual aspect of the gossip desk. Every piece of wood on the original desk was replaced with old growth red oak. I salvaged and reinforced the original frame for the upholstery, put new batting material and a 60’s inspired graphic pattern. Upon taking apart the lamp, I realized that wiring was shot and needed replacement. I salvaged the original switch and changed out all the wiring. Throughout the process I thought of finish details. The box joint at the desk highlights the beautiful contrast of side grain to end grain. All mechanical fasteners were predrilled and covered with wooden plugs. The desk was attached to the bench with dowels to hide the connection.
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Gossip Desk
Furniture Rehabilitation
Rehabilition - Cincinnati, Ohio
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