MELISSA POULIN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO
STRUCTURE / TOPOGRAPHY
01
Academic Work - Urban Design Studio
WALL || GARDEN
05
Design Competition - Jardins de Métis International Garden Festival
CONVERGING CYCLES
07
Academic Work - 2nd-Year Design Studio
NOMA HIVE
11
Academic Work - Real Estate Studio
BERCZY PARK
15
Professional Work - with Claude Cormier + Associés (CC+A) PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
17
PARC JEAN-DRAPEAU
Professional Work - with CC+A
MELISSA POULIN
DETAILS
19
NOTES: 1. 4000 PSI CONCRETE, REINFORCED 12" O.C. W/ 38" EPOXY-COATED REBAR 2. NO STEEL SHALL BE CLOSER THAN 2" TO SURFACE
4 L704
1 2"
EXP. JOINT W/ CLOSED-CELL FOAM FILLER & JOINT SEALANT
Various Academic Courses
8'-8"
2 L704
CHEEK WALL
BLACK GRANITE STAIR TREADS
10 L704
FULL-DEPTH GRANITE TREADS
14'-0"
1'-0"
1 2"
EPOXY COATED SMOOTH DOWEL W/ PLASTIC SLEEVE @ 18" O.C.
CONCRETE PIP CHEEK WALL CONCRETE STAIRS HUNG ON CHEEK WALL W/ REBAR
TOP OF STAIR: 867.54 3 8" EPOXY COATED REBAR 18" O.C.
MEDIUM DUTY CONCRETE
GRANULAR BACKFILL 3 8"
6"
BOTTOM OF STAIR: 864.54
EPOXY COATED REBAR
CHEEK WALL FOOTER GEOFOAM SHEET
8"
ROOF DECK BUILDING STRUCTURE
ARTWORK SLEEVE & ATTACH TO EXISTING PIPE; POUR CONC. AROUND 1 2"
BUFFER W/ EXP. JOINT FOAM FILLER
CHEEK WALL STAIR B
2B L703
SCALE: 21" = 1'-0"
23
8"
8"
Personal + Academic Work
1'-9"
COMPACTED SUBBASE
7'-6"
2D L703
1'-0" 9"
7'-6"
CHEEK WALL STAIR B
SCALE: 1/4" = 1'
ELEVATION
8 L704 6'-1"
6'-1"
9 L704
GRANITE TREAD STAIRS, STAGGERED JOINTS
1'-2"
STAINLESS STEEL HANDRAILS
1" OVERLAP ON TREADS GRANITE TREAD MORTAR BED BACKER ROD JOINT SEALANT
SS DOWEL 38" X 6" MIN 2 PER TREAD CORE AND GROUT/EPOXY
SCALE: 1" = 1'
R2"
CHEEK WALL
TOP OF STAIR: 868.10
4 L704
R1"
SURFACE MOUNT FINISH GRADE
GRANITE TREAD DETAIL
1'-0"
1 2" X 2" SOLID SS RAIL NATURAL FINISH
SURFACE MOUNT W/ SS PLATE SEE XX/601
BOTTOM OF STAIR: 864.60
WASH
6"
10 L704
8"
8" 8"
NOTES: 1.4' x 6" x 14" BLACK GRANITE STAIR TREADS, THERMAL FINISH. 2 SS PINS/SECTION, STAGGER JOINTS
1 4"
5" 1'-3"
4" PIPE IN GEOTEXTILE SLEEVE
6"
Ithaca, NY 14850
4'-0"
OR TO FROST
2'-11"
CHEEK WALL STAIR B TREAD PLAN SCALE: 1/4" = 1'
1'-1"
CONTENTS Date: 5/2012 Project:
Drawing:
Checked:
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
8" MIN
1'-1"
ROOF PAVERS ON PEDESTALS
Clark Hall/Physical Sciences Cornell University
TECHNICAL DRAWINGS OF CONCRETE. 3. THINNEST PART OF CONCRETE STAIR MUST BE 8" MINIMUM
STRUCTURE/
TOPOGRAPHY
A new urban neighborhood built over the functioning Hudson Rail Yards.
Recreation center roof, showing ventilation/light towers and courtyard
01
MELISSA POULIN
ACADEMIC WORK
2012
NEW YORK CITY
As Manhattan’s last large developable piece of land, the Hudson Rail Yards on the island’s west side have become prime real estate. The task in this studio was to design and program a mixed-use development over the functioning rail yard. I conceived the design as a set of structural layers stacked into a plinth of habitable thickness, and used the idea of plinth as building to create exciting spatial conditions that blur the boundary between “inside” and “outside”. Working within a complex set of physical and program requirements, I proposed a solution that creatively addresses functional, real estate, and open space requirements.
hw y
BUILDINGS
w. sid e
culture center/ meadow roof
residential/retail/office/commercial uses
th
“31st” and “32nd” pedestrian streets
11
PLINTH/ROOF DECK public open/green space
WEST SIDE YARD
high line access
LIRR daytime storage & maintenance
B
AMTRAK TUNNEL
10 th
A
future Hudson Park & Boulevard
trains to northern destinations
34t
h
NJ TRANSIT
33r d
commuter trains to NJ
recreation center, outdoor skating
Concept basis: current/future layers of structure + activity sitting stairs/ slope to roof overlook
C high line access
31s
t
urban plaza/park
A partially re-introduced street grid and network of central open spaces enhance the site’s urban character.
30t
h
100’
300’
500’
Concept evolution: examples of layering form + function over railyard
light/vent tow ers
roof/lawn
rec center
lawn/ice rink
plaza/park
roof/lawn
parking
rec center
rail yard ops
A
rail yard
B
rail yard
C
repair + m
aintenance
MELISSA POULIN
02
PULL UP base level to give plinth habitable volume
PUSH DOWN to meet street grade and maximize accessibility
PERFORATE to allow natural light and ventilation to reach lowest levels
11th
High Line
33rd
34th
03
MELISSA POULIN
30th West Side Highway
View from Hudson River looking east: open space is configured around topography created by a network of habitable roofs.
View towards main plaza and 31st street from High Line
LIGHT + VENTILATION TOWERS
PV PANELS
SKYLIGHT TILES
COURTYARDS
WIND
DAY
NIGHT
Natural light and ventilation structures become exciting architectural elements that serve as reminders of the activity and structural complexity below one’s feet.
MELISSA POULIN
04
WALL || GARDEN The garden wall, turned inside-out, becomes an exciting habitable structure.
DESIGN COMPETITION
2012
JARDINS DE METIS, QC
In collaboration with a classmate, we explored the idea of inverting the interior/ exterior relationship traditionally associated with the walled garden. In Wall || Garden, the wall itself -- no longer merely a boundary of separation -- becomes the garden. The outside of the wall, lush with plants and comfortable nooks, invites visitors to explore and relax. On the far end, however, a small mirrored room makes those who enter feel exposed or disoriented. Wall || Garden thus reveals how a boundary can be arbitrary -- or even deceiving.
05
MELISSA POULIN
mirror room: illusion of exposure
limited-access door
bench nook
Modular planting boxes set into wall
curl-up nook
standing nook
Plan view (not to scale)
MELISSA POULIN
06
CONVERGING CYCLES
A campus quad becomes a stage for performative and participatory landscape-shaping activity.
07
MELISSA POULIN
ACADEMIC WORK
2011
ITHACA, NY
In this project I was challenged to create a design for Cornell’s Agriculture Quad that reflects the Quad’s role as a center for the university’s agricultural research. My proposal: a productive, constantly changing landscape of willow plants that reveals various temporal cycles and engages university students in a participatory landscape-shaping process.
The design process began by “researching the research” at Cornell. As fast-growing, woody plants, willows are an ideal renewable resource in the form of biomass; the above graphic shows the various geographic and temporal relationships involved in willow breeding research based at Cornell.
Over the course of twenty years, the Quad is gradually planted up with shrub willows.
Year 1
A fabrication of paper and willow twigs expresses key structural relationships in the research. These relationships were then applied to the site to create a framework for its future development.
Year 5
Year 10
Year 15
Year 20
A four-year coppice, plant and harvest cycle parallels the four-year academic schedule.
MELISSA POULIN
08
2
1
4
3
2
4
3 1 50’
100’
One possible configuration after ten years of planting and harvesting
A1
09
A2 Stormwater depressions create favorable conditions for larger willows to grow, introducing temporal and structural variety in the planting. 100’
MELISSA POULIN
2.5’
Within the framework, certain processes including willow planting, coppicing, and harvesting occur annually.
2.5’ 2.5’
Five plots, five years
2.5’
basic plot: 18 plants 7.5’ x 22.5’ energy production capacity: 7 GJ
Salix alba ‘Vitellina’
Salix purpurea
Salix sachalinensis
Salix fragilis ‘Belgium Red’
The design is built on the foundation of students’ active participation; each year, students plant and harvest shrub willows which in turn become fuel for the university, forming a closed loop.
MELISSA POULIN
10
NoMa HIVE
An fresh, active mixed-use urban design brings new life to a neglected corner of D.C.
ACADEMIC WORK
2013
WASHINGTON, DC
In this interdisciplinary studio, I worked with real estate students to develop a real estate and master plan proposal for a highly visible 9.1-acre site on the north edge of the NoMa district in Washington, DC. We worked with a DC-based developer, and within a set of real-life financial and zoning constraints, which helped guide and shape the overall proposal. Inspired by the social, productive nature of a beehive, we conceived of NoMa HIVE as a well-connected, residentially- and amenity-driven neighborhood that attracts and serves a target market of young professionals and families. Through an optimized mix of uses, modular construction, and adaptable outdoor spaces, NoMa HIVE responds to a local shortage of affordable housing, open space and sense of place without compromising on building density or overall profitability.
HIVE NoMa
The N Street convertible plaza is an active focal point and gathering space
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MELISSA POULIN
ork wY
Ave First St
Ne
N St
Metro stop
Patterson St
to Union Station
M St
Pierce St
k Yor New
bike lane
. Ave
limited on-street parking
stormwater planters
mid-block pedestrian alley
convertible plaza/street
stormwater planters
ground-floor retail
ground-floor retail
residential lobby + amenities
residential + office lobby
First Street
North Capitol Street
N Street
N Patterson Street MASTER PLAN | A widened convertible plaza/street and mid-block pedestrian alley maximize open space and retail frontage.
50 100
150
200
feet
MELISSA POULIN
06 12
PRIVATE COURTYARD RESI. AMENITIES
HOTEL TERRACE RETAIL
HOTEL LOBBY + AMENITIES
PARKING
PARKING PARKING
PARKING
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MELISSA POULIN
HOTEL
RESIDENTIAL
PHASING + TIMELINE NoMa HIVE is a profitable mix of affordable residential, office and retail space totaling 821,002 SF, with an internal rate of return (IRR) of 15.4%.
FLEXIBILITY | A system of rails set into the plaza pavement serve as tracks for custom-designed, moveable street furniture modules. The rails also double as lighting elements in evening hours.
3’
3’
Moveable furniture module can be broken into eight smaller seating boxes
SCENARIO 1 | Weekday afternoon, N St. open to vehicular traffic. Furniture modules arranged by users as desired.
SCENARIO 2 | Weekend evening, N St. closed to vehicular traffic. Furniture modules arranged by workers to form a stage and seating for an event.
MELISSA POULIN
06 14
BERCZY PARK
Revitalization of a popular urban park in the heart of downtown Toronto
PROFESSIONAL WORK (with CC+A)
2013-2014 TORONTO, ONTARIO
Berczy Park, a 1.7-acre park in downtown Toronto, suffers from the wear-and-tear of decades of heavy use, and has an outdated design that no longer satisfies the needs of its users. Claude Cormier + AssociĂŠs has proposed an updated design that incorporates strong angular gestures, a bold paving pattern, custom fountain, and designated activity areas for a variety of users. I worked with a team of landscape architects on many aspects of the earlier stages of this project, from design conception and illustration, to preparing preliminary plan and section drawings for further refinement. My primary responsibilities were to produce a full 3D model of the park in SketchUp, and to create rendered views, animations, and illustrative sections to support the design concept.
A unique custom fountain and exciting paving pattern activate this important public space.
15
MELISSA POULIN
N TO ING
ST.
LL
WE A
From Scott Street, across activity green, towards flatiron building
FRO
NT
ST.
A’
T OT SC . ST
View through allée of plane trees, testing a design scenario with different paver colors
A
A’
MELISSA POULIN
16
PARC JEAN-DRAPEAU Master plan for a large-scale urban park on Île-Sainte-Hélène
M
ON
T
A RE
L
PROFESSIONAL WORK (with CC+A)
As part of the project team, my major responsibilities were to draft and render existing and proposed sections in order to illustrate the proposed changes, primarily along the shoreline areas of the island.
SECTION 1
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MELISSA POULIN
MONTREAL, QUEBEC
Île-Saint-Hélène, which lies adjacent to Montreal in the St Lawrence River, was originally home to the 1967 World Expo. After the Expo, the island was re-vegetated and converted into a large public park that is now overgrown and suffering from a lack of maintenance. CC+A teamed with architecture firm Daoust Lestage to propose an approximately 92-acre master plan that emphasizes the historical context of the Expo and establishes key view and circulation corridors.
SECTION 2
Key plan (by Daoust Lestage)
2013
SECTION 1 - CURRENT CONDITION Overgrown vegetation lines upper and lower paths that run along the shore, blocking views and access towards the river. A steep slope and vegetation render the Lac des Cygnes difficult to access.
SECTION 1 - PROPOSED CONDITION The upper and lower paths are brought closer in elevation, and a staircase provides easy river access. Overgrown vegetation is cleared, and the shore of the Lac des Cygnes is lined with a boardwalk.
SECTION 2- CURRENT CONDITION An enormous sculpture by Alexander Calder, originally a focal point at Expo ‘67, is surrounded by overgrown vegetation. Views to sculpture and over the river towards the city are blocked, and accessibility between upper and lower paths is limited by a retaining wall.
SECTION 2 - PROPOSED CONDITION Vegetation is cleared and the Calder sculpture once again becomes a prominent focal point. A belvedere extends beyond the shoreline to provide views to downtown Montreal; a staircase invites pedestrians to circulate between upper and lower paths.
MELISSA POULIN
18
SITE ENGINEERING Teaching Assistant Position
ACADEMIC WORK
2011-2012
SITE ENGINEERING COURSE
I took the department’s Site Engineering course in Fall 2011, and in Fall 2012 was employed as a Teaching Assistant for this course. I helped teach a variety of topics including: • roads and parking lots • stairs and ramps • swales • stormwater pipes and filter bed sizing • detention ponds (Shown are samples of my own site engineering exercises).
Detention pond and swale exercise
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Road and parking lot exercise
MELISSA POULIN
Stairs and ramps exercise
PLANTING DESIGN
Key BS CC SA MA VU SR CA PJc CO HSm HSd SM SV JS VR SI MD BMs BMc PT PA PQ PJp PC HM HVe HVa FG AF AA
Planting Plan: Reading Garden, Tompkins Learning Partners, Inc. Ithaca, NY. Spring 2011
ACADEMIC WORK
2010-2011
WOODY PLANTS COURSE
Below is one of several planting plans I produced for a course in Woody Plant Selection, Design and Landscape Establishment (taught by Nina Bassuk and Peter Trowbridge). In addition to classroom work, we installed and maintained several gardens on the Cornell campus.
No. 8 19 30 1 3 1 1 11 10 8 3 1 5 7 6 2 13 13 7 17 6 26 10 40 45 13 16 70 16 43
Botanic Name Buxus sempervirens 'Northland' Caryopteris clandonensis 'First Choice' Salix arenaria Maackia amurensis 'Starburst' Viburnum utile 'Conoy' Syringa reticulata 'China Gold' Caragana arborescens 'Pendula' Pieris japonica 'Carnival' Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana Gracilis' Hibiscus syriacus 'Diana' Hibiscus syriacus 'Minerva' Syringa meyeri 'Palibin' Spiraea x vanhouttei 'Snow White' Juniperus scopulorum 'Skyrocket' Viburnum rhytidophyllum 'Hefline' Salix integra 'Hakuro Nishiki' Microbiota decussata Buxus microphylla 'Sweet 'n' Low' Buxus microphylla 'Curly Locks' Pachysandra terminalis 'Green Carpet' Polystichum acrostichoides Parthenocissus quinquefolia var. saint-paulii Pieris japonica 'Prelude' Paxistima canbyi 'Compacta' Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' Heuchera villosa 'Encore' Heuchera ' Amethyst Myst' Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue' Athyrium filix-femina Astillbe x ardensii 'Fanal'
Common Name Northland Common Boxwood First Choice Bluebeard Creeping Silver Willow Starburst Amur Maackia Conoy Service Viburnum China Gold Japanese Tree Lilac Pendula Siberian Pea Tree Carnival Japanese Pieris Nana Gracilis Hinoki Falsecypress Diana Rose of Sharon Minerva Rose of Sharon Palibin Meyer Lilac Snow White Vanhoutte Spirea Skyrocket Colorado Redcedar Fenceline Leatherleaf Viburnum Nishiki Willow Siberian Cypress Sweet 'n' Low Littleleaf Boxwood Curly Locks Littleleaf Boxwood Green Carpet Japanese Spurge Christmas Fern Saint Paulii Virginia Creeper Prelude Japanese Pieris Compacta Canby Paxistima Golden Hakone Grass Encore Coral Bells Amethyst Myst Coral Bells Elijah Blue Blue Fescue Red-Stemmed Lady Fern Fanal False Spirea
Size 12-15" 6-9" 6-9" 1.5-1.75" 24-30" 1.5-1.75" 30-36" 15-18" 2-3' 18-24" 18-24" 30-36" 24-30" 3-4' 30-36" 30-36" 12-15" 12-15" 15-18" 6-9" 6" (#1 pot) 12" stake ht. 12-15" 3-6" Plug 6" (#1 pot) 6" (#1 pot) Plug 6" (#1 pot) 6" (#1 pot)
Roots Cont. Cont. Cont. BR B&B BR Cont. B&B B&B Cont. Cont. B&B Cont. B&B B&B Cont. Cont. Cont. B&B Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont. Cont.
Comments
Grafted on standard
MELISSA POULIN
20
SITE CONSTRUCTION
Construction drawings + details for a green roof design
21
ACADEMIC WORK
2012
This extensive green roof design for Cornell’s Clark Hall accommodates existing circulation and structural requirements to become an accessible outdoor space. Shown here are selections from a more complete set of construction documents.
Layout plan
Paving plan
Detail sheet
Lighting + furnishings plan
MELISSA POULIN
SITE CONSTRUCTION COURSE
NTS
NTS
Construction details for a set of stairs. Drawings not to scale.
NTS
NTS
Construction details for planting beds and lighting. Drawings not to scale.
MELISSA POULIN
22
ARTWORK
A Bachelor’s Degree in art continues to influence my approach in landscape architecture.
Charleston Church. Linoleum block print.
Collapsing barn, Union. Pen and ink.
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MELISSA POULIN
As an undergraduate, I studied fine arts and art history. This experience informs my current understanding of landscape architecture as that of dynamic “functional art” which engages natural and social systems. My specialties were drawing and printmaking; I continue to enjoy sketching as a primary way of thinking and recording.
Amsterdam Window. Pen and ink.
Waterville Railroad Bridge. Linoleum block print.
Arms/hands. Pen and ink.
Fallen Tree. Graphite on paper.
MELISSA POULIN
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MELISSA POULIN 10627 GRANDE ALLÉE MONTRÉAL, QC H3L 2M6 T: 514.318.9370 mel.poulin@gmail.com