columbia university | graduate school of architecture, planning and preservation master of architecture - may 2019
university of utah | college of architecture + Planning bachelors of science in architectural studies - may 2016
lucille smyser lowenfish memorial prize | columbia gsapp, may 2019
The most outstanding student in the final semester design studio section selected by each critic
design excellence award | univeristy of utah CA+P, May 2014
Awarded for Excellence in design projects for Advanced Architectural Design Workshop
awards skills
The graphic below is intended to display professional experience with selected software through various projects at Jacobs, organized over time. These are the most common design softwares I use in my daily tasks, other proficiency is listed below:
Identified programs in LEFT graphic: bars show my comfort level with program
Rhino 3D
Grasshopper
Autodesk Revit
Enscape
Adobe Creative Suite
Sketchup
Other Skills:
Python
Javascript
Autocad
Github
Michael Soderberg, M.Arch mikesody@gmail.com
| 801.510.1154
I am interested in the confluence of architectural and computational design, especially as it relates to the future of optimized design. As designs further utilize historical and predictive data, designers will have the ability to deliver meaningful and novel solutions. My work aims to imbue a sense of purposeful simplicity through formal and organizational strategies. Many of my experiences have helped me to successfully collaborate with a diverse team, working closely with others to integrate pieces of a project into a whole driven by client needs.
experience
Architectural Designer | Jacobs
March 2020 - Present | Denver, CO
+ Developed an interconnected parametric model for a large pedestrian bridge mixing concession and support space, integrating solar power generation analysis, structural simulation model integration, pedestrian flow analysis, and leasable space effectiveness for a large Airport Client in the US
+ Developed custom parametric scripts used for analyzing people flow and space dynamics in a rapid and adaptable way for large scale architectural design projects
+ Conducted a quick study with a custom grasshopper script to understand the impacts of classroom occupancy and building circulation during covid for a university client in Colorado
+ Developed architectural drawings for all phases of design for projects in Aviation, Commercial, and Government sectors
+ Produced renderings and graphics for presentations to clients and industry professionals for multiple projects
+ Collaborated on initial design development with my team on mega scale hospitality projects internationally, including site planning and building scale design
+ Developed photorealistic renderings for client presentations and internal team design discussions and decisions
+ Developed a design guidelines book with my team, which was used to convey design characteristics and intent for a large national airport to future design teams looking to do projects at the airport
Generative Design Intern | Sidewalk Labs (Part of Google)
June 2019 - August 2019 | New York, NY
+ Developed innovative parametric modeling scripts to aid architectural and urban design using Grasshopper and Rhino
+ Integrated generative design methodologies into larger Python and Grasshopper workflows
+ Collaboratively designed approaches for geometry generation and classification related to buildings and urban designs
professional experience
PROJECT EXPERIENCE DIAGRAMS
school experience
Inspired by a project called “Olympic feathers” on visualcinnamon.com, I was looking for a better way to describe my experience and proficiency with software tools than typical resume examples with stars or bars that have no real meaning. By expressing my experience over time, I feel that these graphics are more helpful to gain an understanding of how well I know each program rather than arbitrarily assigning proficiency through some other means on a resume.
Each ring in these graphics relates to time spent on projects utilizing each software tool or suite. Because my experience is still growing with new projects over time, it was critical to create these diagrams parametrically with grasshopper and rhino so they could be quickly updated to reflect current timing. The programs shown relate to the most used or standardized programs in the architecture industry, and are colored to represent Rhino, Grasshopper, Revit, rendering tools like Enscape or Vray, the Adobe Creative Suite, and Sketchup. Because a lot of time was also spent physically modeling elements for projects in school, I’ve also included a ring for model making in that diagram. These graphics are generated with the grasshopper script to the right by feeding in a spreadsheet listing project names, timelines, and programs utilization to automatically generate an updated representation of skill development over time.
Programs | Rhino, Grasshopper, Illustrator, Telepathy, Human
diagrams [right] grasshopper script
[left]
point distribution method
toggle
point 1 selection index
point 2 selection index
arc tangent angle range
arc split point range
extension length range
offset distance range
Sited in the Brooklyn Navy Yards, the project is a job training center focused on Computer Science, Robotics, Industrial Design and Systems Integration for New York City. The project uses generative design to define the form of the building, and afterward analyzes the programmatic relationships that result from the form. The project understands automation as a tool to prepare for an unknown future, using automated design practices to theoretically design a system for developing a network of similar buildings to address job training.
bounded check boolean arc radius value constraints goals interconnectability density program flexibility area site interference intersection access to views vector
Various projects at Jacobs required an understanding of how users of a space would move through the space. I was able to develop a custom approach to modeling this movement. This approach was used in a university project to model student movement and proximity in corridors between classes, as well as model movement in airport restrooms to optimize sink and hand dryer placement and quantities. I was also able to adapt this approach to a large scale airport project to model concession space capacity and effectiveness throughout multiple concourses. In all of these projects I was able to rapidly develop these models and run simulations quicker than 3rd party movement simulation software, thus minimizing the time impacts of adding these softwares into our project team’s workflows.
Programs | Rhino, Grasshopper, Adobe Creative Suite
[left] university corridor traffic study [top] restroom average crowding simulation [bottom] restroom pathway analysis
single concourse bridge intersection diagrams
multi concourse bridge intersection diagrams
This project investigates the home in an entirely digital world, where physical possessions are replaced by digital possessions, in person dialogues are replaced with instant messaging and video chats, and basic functions of the post-war suburban house are outsourced through the internet. The main deliverable of this project was a video animation and script that explained how people might spend their time when they don’t need to travel to physical destinations any longer. The home remains the physical center of life, but life has become digital, and errands are run with light through satellites and fiber optics. Thus the project, and I believe architecture in general, needs to be less interested in form and concept, and more interested in the function of physical space in a digital world. Programs | Rhino, Grasshopper, ArcGIS, Google Earth Studio, Adobe Creative Suite, After Effects, MeerkatGIS
[left] ISP availability and speeds map [right] translation from IP space to physical space
traditional and future home design + circulation diagrams
FACADE ANALYSIS
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Various projects at Jacobs required parametric and computational analysis as it related to building facade designs. I was able to utilize Rhino and Grasshopper to simplify facade designs to make them more constructible, and to analyze the solar power generation potential of different designs. These studies became critical in the development of the projects, especially as it related to maintaining a visual design characteristic while providing parametrically optimized designs.
[left] bridge facade rendering [right] bridge facade solar analysis
Experiential Infrastructure seeks to analyze the country to understand how the future truck stop will address issues of energy production and emissions in a market dominated by electrified autonomous vehicles. The project provides and algorithmic system to assist designers in understanding the needs and potentials of individual truck stop sites. Sited in the desert near I-80 and Reno NV, an example of a future truck stop seeks to place the driver into the landscape and re-center them on the place they are in.
[left top] emissions + absorption graph [left bottom] power production + fuel network graph [right] algorithmic data layers
vertical neighborhoods
By fully complying with current zoning, setback, and density requirements, an organization of 14 independent micro towers combine to form a unique micro urbanism. Each tower is formed through a series of stacked “neighborhood quads” comprised of four individual, yet connected floors. These neighborhoods in the sky share their own unique spaces in which the residents can fully explore their own collective interests. The units themselves range in size - small, medium, large. Each unit type forms its own neighborhood quad throughout the project and mix in arrangement where connected horizontally to other towers. On larger scale public floors, the towers are connected to enlarge the public space and unify the overall community, also providing egress support and a thoughtful use for sky bridges and views.
This project was a collaborative group project with Michael Hoehn Programs | Rhino, Grasshopper, Illustrator, Photoshop
[left] project model [top] public patio floor plan [bottom] community gym floor plan
[top] floor type plans [bottom] unit type plans + axons
Much of my work at Jacobs has been in a more traditional architecture role. Through many various projects in multiple regions and project types, I’ve been able to develop construction drawings and renderings for client deliverables. Featured here are a few examples of work I’ve been able to complete specifically with Revit and Enscape.
Programs | Revit, Enscape, Photoshop
3 x 3 x 1/4" STEEL ANGLE, ANCHOR TO L6x8 ANGLE
STEEL SUPPORT, REFER TO STRUCTURAL
STEEL COLUMN, REFER TO STRUCTURAL
JAMB EXTRUSION BY METAL PANEL MANUFACTURER, TYP. 2" AIR SPACE CMU VENEER
6 x 8 x 3/8" STEEL ANGLE, ANCHOR TO STEEL COLUMN PANEL LINER 3 5/8" STEEL STUDS
STEEL COLUMN, REFER TO STRUCTURAL
CORNER EXTRUSION BY METAL PANEL MANUFACTURER,
cover art
The project to design a simple procedural cover for this work sample was influenced by Dan Schiffman on his youtube channel The Coding Train. In one of the videos posted on that site, Dan implemented a 2D perlin noise flow field to influence sample points as they moved through a field of random vectors and to trace their paths over time. The original project was completed through Java and Javascript, but for the cover I decided to challenge myself and use Rhino and Grasshopper.
A simple area was defined to match the dimensions of the cover, and a plugin for grasshopper developed by McNeel called 4D Noise allowed me to define a flow field of vectors to fill that area. Using another plugin, Anemone, I created a loop that would sample the vector field and update sample point positions to create paths that were then smoothed, baked, and exported to Illustrator for formatting for the cover. All of the plugins used to supplement Grasshopper can be downloaded at food4rhino.com
