landscape/planning portfolio Sketchup designs for town revitalization 2 Place-making through custom lighting/monumentation 3 Bringing barren drainages back to life 4 Story-telling and foundational planning for a historic site 5 Illustrating a river’s energy in open space lands 6 Siting utilities and managing resources 7 Traffic calming with sculpture 8 Landscape and architectural drafting 9 Photorealistic simulations 10
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My roles in creating a town revitalization plan for the dilapidated pueblo of Fronteras, MX, were to interview residents (in Spanish) regarding public works and land use, plan a modified wastewater treatment system, and get community buy-in for pedestrian use of the town’s historic canals through open space fields. I then built a Sketchup model of the town’s topography and buildings, reoriented the town’s commercial center towards pastoral views, designed a riverside equestrian center, and translated these concepts into Sketchup and Illustrator graphics. This project was awarded the ASLA-AZ Student Award of Excellence (Group, 2010). Existing Treatment System
Proposed Treatment System
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My primary contribution to a master plan for a new childrens’ hospital was the design of place-making monumentation. Inspired by the graceful form of an outstanding native grass, sideoats grama, these dynamic sculptures move with the wind by day, and change color when a young patient approaches them by night. These fabricated elements introduce a playful, soothing, and regionally-appropriate form to this award-winning master plan (University of Arizona Design Excellence Group Award, 2010). I mocked up this concept in wire and beads, modeled it in Sketchup, and rendered scenes using Illustrator and Photoshop.
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To create municipal guidelines (Pima County, AZ) for the design of multiuse Low Impact Development/Green Infrastructure BMPs, I synthesized concepts of civil engineering, environmental science and design. Using Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, I created a methodical manual illustrating multidisciplinary concepts and a recommended design process. This work was later incorporated into the County’s Drainage Criteria Manual. I also applied these principles to the conceptual design of a 17-acre riparian restoration area and open space park, which was constructed in 2011. This research gained the Desert Studies Award (Garden Club of America, 2009), as well as the University of Arizona’s Dept. of L.A.’s Outstanding Thesis Award (2010).
Seeding, 2011
Grading, 2011
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As-Built, 2012
Tumacacori National Historical Park’s 2005 acquisition of an adjacent ranch property necessitated the preparation of a cultural landscape inventory. As lead researcher and author of this historic landscape architecture study, I was responsible for: digitization and analysis of historic photos, land records, and site drawings; description of cultural traditions practiced at the site; aerial photo time-series interpretation; interview of previous landowners, NPS employees and stakeholders; delineation of historic, modern-era, and contemporary landscape features; and comparison of historic site evidence to known technological and environmental history. Organized both chronologically and thematically through written explanations, maps, and illustrations, this document has been referred to as an “encyclopedia” of the park’s history by the park’s chief of resources. Since its completion, it has opened new opportunities for visitor interpretation, and provided evidence necessary for reclaiming the historic layout of the mission’s associated agricultural landscape.
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My submittal for a design competition for the Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center was a conceptual master-plan celebrating the survival of the Rio Grande. Re-directed river flows, and a procession of land-art installations interpret the “control” and “flow” of the riverine system. Utilizing on-site materials, including jetty-jacks, these sculptures and earthworks tell a story of both the harnessed and unrestrained power of this life-giving river. In order to keep the design of individual installations open to interpretation, I hand-sketched a master plan and installation vignettes, rendered these with marker, Photoshop, and InDesign to form a consistent visual language, and organized them in the form of a “walking tour” map.
inlet
air-space flight backwater basin narrows
apron
snag
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As an environmental planner for Transcon Environmental and EPG, LLC, I helped manage the permitting progress of a mining project, and analyzed land use and resource impacts caused by utility and road proposals. In these roles, I built GIS models, mapped impacts, strategically sited facilities, illustrated public communicationz, tracked permitting requirements with spreadsheets, and wrote technical reports and specifications.
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While an MLA student, I designed, built, and installed a traffic circle in my neighborhood under the supervision of the City of Tucson DOT. This effort involved: the design of a flamencoinspired sculpture; Sketchup rendering; community association charette; fabrication oversight of a metal-worker; development of grading, planting, and hardscape plans; and installation.
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I am proficient drafting with AutoCAD 2012, Civil 3D, Revit, and Solidworks. Using these programs, I have prepared planting and hardscape plans (below, student), sized/laid out drip irrigation lines and sidewalk expansion joints (right, EPG, LLC), and created detailed architectural elevations (above left, student), among others. I have also produced 3D models by importing .dwgs into lasercutters and Sketchup (above right, Design Collaborations, Ltd).
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Existing Conditions (base photograph)
Civil 3D: Draping Project Features
3ds Max: Matching the scene & rendering
Simulated Conditions
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At EPG, LLC, I created legally-defensible photorealistic simulations showing “before” and “after” conditions of powerline proposals. In each of these, I began by photographing the viewpoint and measuring features of the scene with a GPS. Using Civil 3D, I draped structure models onto a DEM, connected them with 3D conductors, and graded building pads. I then used 3ds Max to match the perspective of the .dwg to that of the photo, apply materials to the model, accurately light the scene, and render .pngs. Finally, using PS, I stitched these .pngs together, and added vegetation layers using copies, brushes, filters, and masks. Precise rendering of this sort demonstrates both individual and cross-platform software proficiency.
Photoshop: Stitching & Blending