FRANK FENG selected works: academic and professional
academic
professional
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p1
fight club
p5
sanctum sanctorum
p7
bar chair
p 11
cemetery
p 15
performing arts center
p 19
nsa data surveillance center
p 25
flamenco institute
p 27
data central
p 29
bench installation
1 fight club architectural design studio III Flocking behavior is a natural instinct exhibited by a group of birds. When birds sense danger they will react and alter their behavior. The project explores the same concept, but through humans. The premise of the project is based upon the collective behavior of humans. The architecture questions what it is like to experience a violent space and explores how we interact within it. I researched human flocking patterns and used that data set to generate the form of the building. The site is located within the proximity of the Pepsi Center (an arena for sports) in Denver, Colorado. My approach on the project examined the massive amounts of people that would wait in line to enter the arena. By examining their movements, this project creates a diversion to the groups of people there and attracts them towards the site. By creating danger based on the three rules of flocking (separation, cohesion, and alignment) the collective human instinct would guide them towards the site. The program is a fight club that engages in violent behavior, which in this case, attracts the bystanders near the site.
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separation
cohesion
alignment 3
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2 sanctum sanctorum architectural design studio I This project is located on top of a natural rock formation called El Morro near the city of Grants, New Mexico. This 200 feet tall bluff has been, for many centuries, an important location for cross-country travelers who have left thousands of inscriptions on the surrounding rocks. It has been home for ancient puebloans for many centuries because of the deep pool that holds water all year long. The program is a sanctum sanctorum; a very private or secret place. A place of contemplation and understanding. During our site visit to El Morro, I felt a great tension between the earth and the sky. As we hiked through the trails to reach the top of this bluff, a storm had developed and intensified my experience. This experience developed my concept of forces opposing. The studio aimed to help our understanding of architectural fundamentals such as tectonic and stereotomic elements. The final model is constructed out of clear acrylic, basswood, and rockite. These materials are metaphors of the elements to my concept. The acrylic visualized the ethereal sky; rockite visualized the dominance of the earth; and basswood as a medium for what is in between. These materials are representation of the opposing forces that I felt at El Morro.
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3 bar chair architectural communication II Architectural communication was a fabrication class that was intended to help students understand the action or process of designing and manufacturing. We explored and investigated material research including wood, metals, plastics, and concrete. It helped further our knowledge of joinery and the use of fabrication machinery. Bar chairs have a certain elegance in the way we interact with them. This elegance is influenced through the design by having a smooth and curved form. The three steps below the seat allow users of different heights to rest their feet. This bar chair is constructed of 16 gauge cold rolled steel. The pieces were designed in Rhino and then exported into the CNC Plasma Cutter for cutting. All the pieces are hand bent and the perforations in the seat allows more control when bending the steel. In the end, the pieces are MIG welded. This was my first time working with metal and welding. Through this project I learned about various metal properties, connections, and techniques.
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exploded isometric diagram 8
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4 cemetery architectural design studio VI + landscape architecture The design process is expressed by the transition from grief to healing. It is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The site is an unused portion of the urban fabric; much of which are shrubs and earth. It is tucked in between a major highway and a busy street. Realizing that each person experiences loss differently, the architecture offers spaces of contemplation, gathering, and reflection. The project engages natural and human systems, illustrating to the cycle of life and death: form, texture, and light, dormancy and rejuvenation. The architecture allows a more intimate space as the cycle of the sun moves from east to west across the site. Within the space of the columbarium, the light from the sun dispels the shadows creating a dramatic contrast of dark and light through the voids of the monolithic elements. As the visitor transitions from darkness to light along the promenade the volcanoes come into view. The end of the promenade reveals the undisturbed, natural landscape that unfolds with the earth below, and the volcanoes in the distance. From dark to light, intimate to expansive, expresses the powerful cycle of life and death within the cemetery.
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a f g
e d c
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keyed notes
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a. b. c. d. e. f. g.
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funeral home / crematorium cemetery entrance mausoleum cemetery transitional corridor viewing room parking
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5 performing arts center architectural design studio IV The site for this project is located in an unlikely art mecca in a desert city called Marfa, Texas. Visitors are attracted by the unique vibe and ambiance that the city has. The design of the building is influenced by the studies of tourism in the city. I began to research movements and patterns of people throughout the year. The creation of the density maps visualizes the dissipation and accumulation of visitors through each season. This led to the development of the concept of temporality. Human experience is temporal when you are in that moment; much like the temporal experience of the visitors. Through more analysis of this idea, I began to correlate temporality through the performing arts. Architecture can embody the same experience. The performing arts center allows various experiences through the building itself. Occupants are able to access the ramp system and experience what a performance arts center is like through out the building. These ramps dictate movement through certain points of the building and offers different perspectives for the user.
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tourist density - fall
tourist density - spring
tourist density - summer
tourist density - winter 16
first floor N
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second floor
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6 nsa data surveillance center architectural design studio V At the start of the project I was interested in the idea of privacy and what that means to the public and to the NSA. In a way, self reflection is privacy. It is what we are and how we display ourselves. We tend to manipulate our image by blending in with society and change how others perceive us. We are hesitant to show our most intimate information to others and because of this we manipulate our image to fit the needs of society. Further exploring this idea, I noticed that the information we keep most secret can also be physical. These items that we consider important are with us subconsciously, but not physically. We have hidden things in our home to protect what is important to us. I have explored these private conditions and started to understand what they are in the home. For example, we enclose our most private entities in the house, such as the sock drawer. What makes the sock drawer such a private condition? It is the context around the private entity that makes the sock drawer private. The banality of the socks hides what is really there. Making people perceive what is there, but not what is in it. The project allows society to perceive how privacy is displayed publicly and privately. It is located within the downtown area of Albuquerque, New Mexico next to the Civic Plaza. The architecture creates a thin barrier within the volumes defining public and NSA. The mirrored volumes manipulate our image of what is there and blends itself within the site. It is only in the interior of the space where the public is allowed to enter those volumes and essentially reach into the sock drawer of the NSA. Where the most private information is stored and is ultimately disclosed.
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diagram of privacy 20
section looking south
activate civic plaza 21
introduce infrastructure
program interaction
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first floor + 4’ N
second floor +38’
third floor + 97’
fourth floor + 131’
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7 flamenco institute collaboration with Mira Woodson (professor at the University of New Mexico), Adam LeBlanc, & Richard Pham We were hired by an interior designer to visually represent their idea of the new Flamenco Institute at Hotel Albuquerque. The interior designer provided us with two interior perspectives of the space that were not rendered. She explained to us what she wanted in the interior. Together, my two colleagues and professor, represented the renderings through photoshop. We collaborated on both renderings and took on specific parts of it that best suited our skills. These renderings were later published in the Albuquerque Journal.
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8 data central the social media workgroup (SMW) and the american institute of architect students (AIAS) This project is a design collaboration for an interactive L.E.D. public artwork on the south and east façade of the CARC (Center for Advanced Research Computing) facility on Central and University. It was in collaboration with the Social Media Workgroup (SMW) and the American Institute of Architect Students (AIAS). The design is based on the idea of movement. Since the facility is located on two of the most active streets at UNM, the design intent was to capture that movement in the placement of the L.E.D. strips. There are twenty strips of L.E.D.’s on each glass plane that incrementally rises in slope to visually represent the movement on Central Ave. The progressive rise of the L.E.D.’s are also influenced by the slope of the street. The installation of the project consists of multiple 3D printed modules that are attached to the window sill of the interior of the space. Each ‘B’ module has a certain degree of slope that allows each L.E.D. strip to rise. The L.E.D.’s are attached to various lengths of aluminum C channels.
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‘A’ module
‘B’ module
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9 bench installation the american institute of architect students (AIAS) During my time with AIAS, I was one of the chairman of the installation committee. The others were Adam LeBlanc and vice president of AIAS, Nicolas J. Garcia. We proposed to do an installation that was very much interactive. We wanted to create a bench that would allow resting in the Student Union Building. We broke this down into phases. The first phase was the design charrette, in which we created initial concepts and various designs for the installation. We produced measurements, drawings, physical models, and 3D models. The second phase included the breakdown of materials, price, construction methods of the design. This phase also included interacting with admin and faculty to get approval and also for critique of our designs. The last phase was the actual construction of the design. The bench is made of Russian Baltic birch plywood. We chose this wood as it was durable and in our budget. We then created the cut file in Rhino and exported it to the CNC Router where the wood would be cut. The form was created by Adam LeBlanc. It was a design that would be the most efficient in getting two pieces of the bench on one sheet of 4’x8’ plywood. I have learned a lot throughout the installation committee as one of the chairmen. Leadership and organization was critical in determining the success of this project. We led weekly meetings and discussed issues and problems with fellow members.
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FRANK FENG feng.frank.s@gmail.com 505.515.7655 www.linkedin.com/in/fsfeng
EDUCATION The University of New Mexico, School of Architecture and Planning Bachelor of Arts in Architecture
Aug 2011 - May 2016
EXPERIENCE The Social Media Workgroup - Research Assistant
Aug 2015 - May 2016
Indigenous Design + Planning Institute - Graphic Design Specialist
Jan 2016 - May 2016
William McDonough + Partners - Intern Architect
Jan 2016
Collaborated with a team of interdisciplinary students to design projects on media and technology Designed and developed an L.E.D. installation project Designed and created posters, flyers, and logos Curated and displayed students work at 516 ARTS
Designed presentation layouts, flyers, and posters for events Collaborated on two projects with team members Created concept layouts and diagrams for presentations
Organizations The American Institute of Architect Students, University of New Mexico Chapter - Chief of Staff
Jan 2015 - May 2016
The American Institute of Architect Students, University of New Mexico Chapter - Head of Installation Committee
Jan 2015 - May 2016
The Chief of Staff maintains and inquires overall officer and member progress Organized meetings and helped fundraising events
Proposed a public bench installation in the Student Union Building Oversaw the conceptual design and construction of the project Collaborated and organized meetings with students during the process of design and construction
Awards Design Excellence Award - School of Architecture and Planning
May 2016
The Kosonivich Prize For Design Excellence - First Prize
Dec 2015
Overall achievement of undergraduate work and progress awarded by UNM SA+P Achieved best project of the semester in the undergraduate architecture program at UNM SA+P
Skills Software
2D drafting with AutoCAD 3D modeling with Rhino Rendering with V-Ray Proficient with Adobe Creative Suite Experience with arcGIS
Technical
Fabrication with wood and metal machinery Experience with laser cutting and 3D printing