Undergraduate Portfolio

M

K

KEVIN MILLER

UNDERGRADUATE PORTFOLIO

“As an architect you design for the present, with an awareness for the past, for a future which is essentially unknown.�

- Norman Foster

CONTACT

2102 Bank St. Baltimore MD 21231 kmiller@jmt.com // 410.812.9320

EDUCATION

Clemson University Bachelor of Arts in Architechure Minor in sociology May 2011 // 3.28 GPA AutoCAD // Hand Drafting Drafting Photoshop // Illustrator // In-Design Graphics Rhino // Grasshopper // Revit // Sketch-up Difital Rendering V-Ray // Hand Rendering Laser Cutter // 3D Printer // CNC Milling Physical Processing Word // Powerpoint // Excel // Outlook OS X // Windows XP // Windows 7 Systems

SKILLS

ACHIEVEMENT

Scholarship.

The EMCOR Scholarship for Mechanical Engineering McGraw-Hill Scholarship 2007-2011 Recognition.

Chosen to present the 2008 Henry C. Turner Prize for Innovation in Construction Technology to Charles Thorton recognizing his dedication to the ACE Mentor Program at the National Building Museum in Washington D.C.

EXPERIENCE

Professional Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson // Intern Architect // 10-2012 - Present Assisting in all parts of the design process I have worked on several educational, commercial, and government transportation projects in the Baltimore-Washington area under the supervision of department project architects.

The experience in a multi-disciplinary firm has provided evidence of the collaoration that is essential to success.

CSS Antennna // Entry Level CAD Drafter // 10-2011 - 10-2012 As a member of the engineering team I assisted in the construction and management of 3D digital models and 2D mechanical drawings that are essential to product development and manufacturing. Both the models and drawings maintain a high level of detail and accuracy.

Volunteer ACE Mentor Program // 02-2012 - Present As a mentor with the nationally recognized ACE Mentor Program I work closely with high school students who are interested in pursuing a higher education in Architecture, Construction or Engineering alongside other participating local professionalls in the construction industry. Guiding them through a semester long competition project mentors hope to provide the students with essential experience they can bring with them as they continue their education.

Table of Contents

Second Year Design Studio

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Third Year Studio: Study Abroad

Attention to Detail

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Fourth Year Drawing Inquiry

Fourth Year Studio Competition

Computational Design

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Fourth Year Design Build

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Live Work Play

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Density Adaptation

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Filtered Circulation

Filtered Circulation Clemson University, SC Professor Bernard Sill Serving as the home for the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities at Clemson University, Lee Hall has become a popular destination point for guest of the University seeking to explore students work that is on display in the studios, classrooms and galleries. With this in mind I proposed to guide visitors to these spaces directly with the intent to alleviate additional pressures on more private spaces that currently surround the main entrance.

Inspired by organic structures the final scultural design attempts to bring new life to the studios surrounding it.

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Pins connecting the sections of the bridge enable the freedom of motion that is required to adapt to the load.

To equally distribute the weight the bridge naturally adjusts around the center point of the load.

It soon became apparent that the strength of the joints would be the first to give way.

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Design Solution

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A high volumn of activity around the main entrance acts as a distraction to the offices, lecture hall, art gallery and library that surrond the lobby.

By creating a seperate and more direct entrance to the studios on the second floor the traffic around these areas can be controlled.

The proposed location utilizes a breezeway below the studios to filter visitors to the entrance via an adjacent courtyard.

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Design Intent

Challenging visitors to interact with the unique spaces created by the bridge, the sculpural form intends to reflect and encourage the creativity of the undergraduates that fill the architectural studios of Lee Hall everyday.

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Structural Integrity With a background in structural engineering and bridge design our professor, Bernard Sill, placed a strong emphasis on the structural integrity of the proposal. Advising me that the cylindrical design is among the strongest natural geometric shapes I felt that the organic exterior shell around the substructure would serve as a compliment to its structure.

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Density Adaptation Barcelona, Spain

Professor Toni Montes Partner Veronica Acosta Ildefons Cerdas, an early visionary and urban planner, imagined a city designed around the need for several key components; natural sunlight, ventalation, accessible greenspace and the seamless movement of people, energy and goods. His plan would be realized through the implementation of the Eixample grid however several of the Cerdas key components would be abandoned over time as a result of increased population density, most notable of which accessible greenspace inside each block. Over time this greenspace was replaced by program. In an ongoing effort of urban revitalization throughout Barcelona since the ‘98 Olympic Games, these interior courtyards are once again being explored as opportunity for expanding the quality of open public spaces that serve each neighborhood.

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Circulation Through the modification of the site topography we control the circulation. In compliance with the American Disability Act slopes that are greater than 12% are not fit for circulation and thus create a discontinuity. Using this as a guideline we position the disconinuities around the entrances to pursuade visitors to use the full length of the ramps.

By forcing them use the full length we create a moment of anticipation as they prepare to reach the top.

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ALL CIRCULATION

LIMITED CIRCULATION

NO CIRCULATION

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Material Permiability Based on a facades orientation to the sun we developed a ratio of materials used to control the amount of natural sunlight that enters the space beyond the facade. For example, in the warm months the climate of Barcelona can be very intense. Therefore southern facades should not allow excessive amounts of natural sunlight into the building by using materials high in opacity. Likewise it is also essential for north facing facades to be as open as possible to allow for the greatest amount of natural sunlight throughout the day.

N, NW, NE 1. Open 2. Glass 3. Translucent 4. Wire Mesh

N, NW, NE 1. Glass 2. Translucent 3. Open 4. Wire Mesh

N, NW, NE 1. Translucent 2. Glass 3. Open 4. Wire Mesh

N, NW, NE 1. Wire Mesh 2. Translucent 3. Glass 4. Open

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While preservering the private balcony that is a repescted pastime of the spanish culture, the space created by the double skin also acts as a layer of insulation assisting to reduce the dependance on HVAC units and thus energy consumption.

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Attention To Detail Zumikon, Switzerland Professor Harry Harritos Hand Rendering

As the skillset of the architect expands with advancments in technology common practices like hand rendering on which architecture was founded are left behind. Essential to visualization and the communication of ideas the hand has the unique ability to capture something that no technology ever will, passion through a hightened attention to detail. I came to realize this after completing overlay after overlay to develop the perfect composition of plan, elevation and perspective views using landscape blending techniques .

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Introduction

I chose the Zumikon Residence

by Gwathmey Siedel as my final drawing because of the personal connection that I have with he town in which is located, Zumikon Switzerland. Zumikon was my home for two years. This experience allowed me to pull from my memories of the Swiss landscape when reimagineing the site.

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Process

South Elevation

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Trees: Elevation

Trees: Plan

Bushes

Much of the success of the design lies in the combination of layers and textures that work together to produce a balanced composition.

Reimagining the site in the hand rendering it was important to reflect this as to not take away from the strengths of the built structure.

In order to do so successfully, each component of the texture catalog Ground Cover is layered and distributed equally in the hand rendering to mimic the depth evident in the elevation, plan and perspective views.

Texture Catalog

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Hand Rendering

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Live Work Play Greenville, SC

Professor Yuji Kishimoto Studio Competition Our professor Yuji Kishimoto is a highly respected member of the Clemson community for his commitment to the betterment of the University. As the assistant to the President of the College of Architecture he has established many connections throughout South Carolina. Reaching out to the mayor of Greenville he asked if we could organize a studio wide competition to explore ideas for the development of a deserted site at the entrance to the city that would serve as a “Gateway� to visitors who wish to explore all that downtown Greenville has to offer.

Upon completion of the proposals the studio would present their ideas to a board of directors and the mayor to inspire the future develoment of the site and hopefuly spark some ideas for the city planners.

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Residential

Priv ate Offic e

Program Intersection

The intersection of private office space underneath the residential tower attempts to filter noise from the heavy traffic of I-385 that runs parallel to the site.

View Manipulation

With the addition of the fins, views around the sides of the building are maximized taking advantage of the prime location at the entrance to Greenville.

Site Restoration

At the base of the building retail is introduced to the site creating opportunity for buisnesses and defining public space throughout he site.

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Development Strategy

In the residential tower I thought it was important to develop several different size floorplans each with their our private balcony access.

With different floorplans, housing options are offered in multiple price ranges. Typically when units are available in multiple price ranges they will sell much easier effecting the return of investment earlier in the construction process which in turn limits the amount of delays in construction as a result of funding.

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Parametric Design Clemson University, SC Professor Dave Lee Team Design Build

Advancements in building technology are quickly allowing architects and designers to develop innovative design solutions that were one day unimaginable. In a design inquiry studio we explored the potentials of computational design through parametrics. Parametrics attempt to use algorithums to “intellegently� develop or guide the process and impletmentation of a design. It is a very powerful tool that is growing in popularity around the world and could prove to be very useful as people continue to explore its limits.

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Introduction

Early renovations to our campus facilities promted a glass partition to enclose all of the administration offices. The wall however failed to provide any means of privacy to the desks adjacent to the hallway.

Simply as a temporary solution the faculty chose to hang paper on the glass blocking views from the hallway. Our class recognized this problem as an opportunity to integrate the use of acquired computational design methods to construct a wall that would serve as a long term solution to existing privacy issues and be asethetically pleasing to promote a more inspirational work environment.

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Process The organization and size of the holes respond to the proximity of the faculty desks in relation to the glass partition based on a point attractor system developed in Grasshopper. To maximize the privacy where offices are located directly along the wall the holes dramatically reduce in size and increase in disorganization.

Oppositely where privacy is less important the wall intellegently opens to reveal the space within. << Courtesy of Alex Tomlinson & Veronica Acosta

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Method & Construction Through a series of small tests the class was able to come to a conclusion on the most effecive and more importantly efficient method to complete the wall installation. As a class we shared our experiences and ideas on a blog that would soon become the narrative for the design build.

Please explore our findings and follow the progression of the build at http://clemso.ning.com/forum

Incisions are cut into the fabric to expose the space behind.

The resulting flaps are pulled tight and secured together.

Straws are inserted to open the hole by way of tension.

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[THANK YOU

M

K

KEVIN MILLER

UNDERGRADUATE PORTFOLIO