MICHAEL KING
B.A. Architecture, Clemson University, 2018
I believe all people search for something. For some, its answers to life’s biggest and most daunting questions. For others it is to find meaning and limitations. Still others search for hope or life. I search for beauty. Those who search for beauty are entrapped by its very nature. Artists, designers, architects, naturalists, engineers, and craftsmen become enslaved to its Siren call, working tirelessly to find it. It is why I love beautiful buildings, dramatic landscapes, wonderful music, and incredible cars. Growing up I would teach myself to draw, not only because I loved to do so, but because I so heavily respected great artists of the past and present, and I have always loved wonderfully made objects or machine. My love of beautiful has taken me to many places and pushed me to do many things. I spent months traveling across Italy and Southern Europe, exploring whatever I could find. I love to backpack and hike, pushing my body further each day to bear witness to awe-inspiring landscapes. From a small town in South Carolina I strove to become an architect. I am now about to finish my degree, and am one step closer to my goal.
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WORLD STAGE | HUMAN SCALE CREATING LOCAL PLACES ON A WORLD SCALE My studies have allowed me the immense privilege to study and to work in numerous locations across the globe. With projects, case studies, and studios spanning three continents, it is easy to fall back upon preconceived notions of architecture, design, and culture. The importance of place cannot be overlooked, for it defines a people, and in the end, architecture must be for people. Every inch of God’s green earth has a unique character, a site specific ethos which begs to be expressed. It is imperative that architecture extrapolates cultural, historical, and natural languages to express architectural ideas. This is not to say one cannot experiment, but rather to give direction to a modern interpretation and response of our time. Time, place, and scale; these are the ideas that interest me most about architecture and design. It is what gives both the designer and the design its identity through honesty. Although the selected projects do not express all projects I have worked on throughout my studies, they do represent a direction i wish to follow.
Berlin Genova
Chicago Clemson Charleston
Tehran
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BERLIN, GERMANY STEELGARTEN
In studying Berlin, one can appreciate the planned urban green spaces throughout the city. The rich cultural and historical fabric of the city make it of the utmost interest. Additionally, Berlin acts as the capitol of Germany one of the major leaders in Continental Europe. Due to these factors, the aspect of designing an experimental restaurant was an interesting task. Berlin is ripe with history, but it is also one of the most modern cities in Europe. This freed up the ability to attempt something experimental and out of the ordinary for the site, in a neighborhood of Berlin. The idea was to create a “steelgarten,” an architectural biergarten with steel canopies evocative of trees so familiar to German cuisine without simply adding another biergarten to Berlin. The proposal called for the program to go towards the rear of the site, anchoring a neighborhood green space and bringing the public into the park. The transition spaces were of different levels, giving a unique sectional condition. The “trees” were actually steel columns with monocoque canopies, thus experimenting with structural components and technological ingenuity.
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Delivery
Storage
In
Kitchen
Dining Room
Out
Storage Bar
Office
Women’s Men’s Kitchen Entrance
Kitchen
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS URBAN ART SHED
My team and I were tasked with designing a weather shelter along Chicago’s 606, a pedestrian walking and cycling path through various Chicago neighborhoods. The design would be influenced by information gathered in the field, and needed to be able to relate to the greater figure ground relationship as a whole. Our weather shed was inspired by a spatial complexity within graffiti along concrete walls in the emerging arts district our site was located in. We took into account the greater city scale, the district scale, and the human scale, which is exhibited throughout Chicago as a whole. Through various sketching exercises we were able to understand the importance of these three scales to design a weather shelter uniquely sited to Chicago.
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N Spaulding Ave
N Kimball Ave W Bloomingdale Ave
0 SCALE: 1”=100’ 100 200
N Spaulding Ave
N Kimball Ave
ELEVATION SOUTH ELEVATION SOUTH
ELEVATION NORTH ELEVATION NORTH
ELEVATION EAST
ELEVATION WEST
ELEVATION EAST
ELEVATION WEST
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GENOVA, ITALY
METAPHYSICAL, ETHEREAL, ELEMENTAL Metaphysical, ethereal, and elemental; these are some of the ideas that came to mind while viewing Michelangelo’s Prisoners. The juxtaposition of smooth marbled skin next becoming rough, raw, chiseled stone along with the struggle for freedom from the form captured my mind in the same regard as the figures in the stone. It is difficult to criticize many of the display of works in museums in Florence Italy, especially the Academia. However Michelangelo’s Prisoners are seemingly overlooked by those there to see David. The unfinished marble pieces are much more fascinating to me, and deserve a much more dramatic and appropriate space. This was the basis of the idea for my proposal for a temporary exhibit in a museum in Genova, Italy. With a complete absence of light and exception, other sensory readings begin to strengthen. Sound, movement, and touch all become more important to how one moves throughout space. Sited at the port, the project returns its real estate to the sea, topped with a reflecting pool. The water cleanses one as they enter the space, and are then transfigured and enlightened through the darkness inside. The darkness is interrupted by brilliant white light from above, allowing for sharp contrast. In the emptiness and rawness of space, Michelangelo’s prisoners are in an element far more dramatic and evocative of their character.
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CREATE A SPACE FULL OF
texture
MAKE A PLAY OF
scale
FILL THE SPACE WITH
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CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA HEALTH, VIBRANCY, CONNECTIVITY
The Community 1:1 studio looks to explore the role of the architect and architecture in a greater community. The studio focuses on ideas of placemaking, community involvement, collaboration, connectivity, and building. The studio has long been involved with the Green Crescent, a proposed cycling and pedestrian trail connecting the towns of Central, Pendleton, and Seneca South Carolina, as well as Clemson University and Southern Wesleyan University. We were tasked with designing a mobile trailhead which would act as a branding and fundraising tool, while also providing a blueprint and kit of parts for future trailheads to be placed throughout the trail. The design team researched local architecture styles before crafting the idea of a covered map table which is informed by a southern porch. The design and construction is meant to be easily constructed using off-the-shelf materials and a basic knowledge of building. For an added element of safety, the transparent roof glows at night using solar powered lights, which provides a beacon for those along the trail at night. Being a design build studio, the Community 1:1 team constructed the trailhead during finals week.
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CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA SUBURBAN LIGHTHOUSE
Charleston, South Carolina is perhaps one of the most unique urban conditions in the United States. Its recorded history predates the nation where it resides and unique social, cultural, and natural issues continue to arise in the Holy City. The suburban sprawl in West Ashley in particular is on the cusp of becoming a newly urbanized area. Situated on a former grocery store site, the performing arts theatre acts as a “suburban lighthouse� to its neighbors. Its scale and material are appropriate for its locale, and its simple form does not offend the residents living nearby. Louvers shade the interior from the South Carolina Sun, while also giving character to its form. The warm glow of the light too would play off the rusticated steel covering the theatre box. At a larger local scale, lamps are to be introduced, alluding to the architectural language of the theatre, thus acting as a gateway to the West Ashley community.
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3 2
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TEHRAN, IRAN
ANCIENT FABRIC | MODERN TAPESTRY My only exploratory project in the Middle East thus far, the figure ground and mapping study of Tehran cemented both the importance and unique character of an ancient city while also revealing specific cultural aspects of places I have never been before. The ancient patterns of the city are clearly visible in the figure ground which, most importantly, is also the location for the city’s famous and ancient Bazaar. The organization of a city around commerce speaks the illustrious history of the region.
Medieval Center
1”:1000’
1”:1000’
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CURIOUS | CREATIVE
EXPLORATIONS IN CREATIVE THINKING Creativity and curiosity are perhaps the most important traits a designer must possess. The yearning to learn, understand, and invent keeps a designer or architect on the cutting edge to form new spaces and experiences. However, even if the traits of curiosity and creativity are present, tools and techniques must be developed to explore and extrapolate a relationship to the physical world. I find the concept of making immensely important to what I do and how I think. I enjoy experimenting with physical tools. Pencils, pens, and charcoal are almost always within arm’s reach. Ink drawing and ink wash are tools I find invaluable, as they permit the depiction of ambiance and place which i try to capture. Objects too are helpful in understanding a greater system. A high emphasis is placed on craft. The presence of a drawing, an object, a sculpture, or a piece of architecture is found in its craft. High levels of craftsmanship differentiate the incredible from the mundane. Every designed thing, be it a cup or a cathedral must adhere to, evoke, and reflect high levels of craft.
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CREATE
for people
DESIGN
for people
LEARN for people
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