Reem Abi Samra | Architecture Portfolio 2021 by Reem Abi Samra

REEM ABI SAMRA ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO

ACADEMIC • COLLABORATIVE • INVESTIGATIVE

ACADEMIC WORK KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

UPENN | SPRING 2020

CO-LIVING VILLAGE

UPENN | FALL 2020

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

PARSONS | FALL 2017

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

UPENN | FALL 2019

SHIFTING TOWERS

UPENN | SPRING 2020

COLLABORATIVE WORK DESIGN BUILD | STREET SEATS

PARSONS | SPRING 2017

RENUBU

COMPETITION | SUMMER 2020

PATCHWORK

COMPETITION | SUMMER 2020

SEAMLESS CONTINUITY

COMPETITION | FALL 2020

INVESTIGATIVE ARTIFACTS

VARIED | ONGOING STUDIES

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: BRIAN DELUNA

LIGHT • VOIDS • MYSTERIOUS WONDER

KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS A Marketplace that Encapsulates Light ARCH 502 | Spring 2020 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia’s urban identity has been in constant ﬂux, especially with the explosion and implosion of various industrial movements. Remnants of an industrial past remain around Philadelphia and within Callowhill, yet what is most prominent are the voids that have been left. Façades of vacant warehouses are now a canvas for artistic expression. Vents for underground subway lines act as skylights, bringing natural light into the earth. Voids have offered the city a different perspective on what is considered beautiful, unique, worthwhile. While much effort has been placed on revitalizing Callowhill, most empty lots are still widely unkept and vastly disregarded. Callowhill now acts as a parking-lot district to its neighboring Chinatown and Center City. The case study I’ve chosen was Etienne Boullée’s Cenotaph for Sir Isaac Newton, where he designed a massive monument that strategically manipulates light to create effects of night and day. Boullée wanted to envelope Newton with his discoveries and passion for the cosmos. Boullée uses the poché, or void, as a light capsule to dramatize the interior effects. My project seeks to mirror that sense of mystique and wonder, creating a massive structure that infuses interior spaces with natural light. It aims to praise the monumentality of necessary infrastructures as experiential and engaging playgrounds of curiosity and mystery through thoughtful design.

axonometric cutaway artist-inspired studies

KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: BRIAN DELUNA

site map (left) | figure-ground (middle) | texture map (right)

LIGHT • VOIDS • MYSTERIOUS WONDER

form and texture study models

KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: BRIAN DELUNA

“I wanted to give Newton that immortal resting place, the Heavens.” Etienne Boullée, To Newton

Etienne Boullée Cenotaph case study drawings exploded axonometric drawing and figures 8

LIGHT • VOIDS • MYSTERIOUS WONDER

KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: BRIAN DELUNA

LIGHT • VOIDS • MYSTERIOUS WONDER

north-south elevation

KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: BRIAN DELUNA

LIGHT • VOIDS • MYSTERIOUS WONDER

kaleidoscopic voids in plan KALEIDOSCOPIC VOIDS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: JONAS COERSMEIER

DIVERSE COMMUNITY • ADAPTIVE REUSE • URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

CO-LIVING VILLAGE

Mutually Beneficial Urban Housing Model for Transient and Local New Yorkers ARCH 601 | Fall 2020 Brooklyn, New York

CO-LIVING VILLAGE aims to provide housing to the transient residents of New York (such as incoming entrepreneurs and students) while planning for a sustainable growth and maintenance plan for the NYCHA building from which it stems. The complex provides a cost-effective cohabitation space with various lease terms for these communities that not only allows spaces for collaboration, learning, and meeting others, but also generates funds to continuously maintain the existing NYCHA complex below. In a sense, the power dynamic has shifted between gentrified and gentrifying agent, since the transient residents are indirectly investing in NYCHA’s sustainable future. The 9-5PM work model is no longer consistent with our modern world especially after the recent pandemic, and living in a dense city has often resulted in a heightened sense of loneliness and anxiety. Those living at the complex will have various opportunities to run into others, work remotely, and organize events within the commons. The cohabitation model thus aims to adapt to and drive forth a new urban lifestyle in response to the digitalization of work. Ideally, this model aims to expand beyond the context of NYC where inhabitants would be able to live in different cities around the world, expecting the same types of amenities and experiences provided here.

chunk model through new and existing structures initial massing studies

CO-LIVING VILLAGE

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: JONAS COERSMEIER

aerial perspective in site diagrams & typical floor plans at 1:500 elevation showing merged old/new build

DIVERSE COMMUNITY • ADAPTIVE REUSE • URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

new housing

a. existing NYCHA building typical floor plan

new housing

1 BR 2 BR

1 BR

3 BR

2 BR

patio 1 BR

studio

patio 3 BR

building long light well 2 BR 1 BR

patio

vertical circulation

conference room

2 BR

1 BR

studio

2 BR

laundry

public amenities

b. modified existing building typical floor plan housing

housing

public commons

housing

the old and the new: extended existing unit plan 1:500

new housing

below: small retail classrooms work spaces

daycare

existing housing c. new-build: cohabitation typical floor plan

the old and the new: 15th floor plan 1:500

CO-LIVING VILLAGE

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: JONAS COERSMEIER

apartments private | sleeping cells communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

section showing relationship between different apartment types (cohabitation model versus typical apartments) 18

DIVERSE COMMUNITY • ADAPTIVE REUSE • URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

façade material study CO-LIVING VILLAGE

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: JONAS COERSMEIER

apartments private | sleeping cells

housing

public commons

housing

communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

apartments

apartments private | sleeping cells communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

below: small retail classrooms work spaces

apartments private | sleeping cells

daycare

cohabitation house 2

private | sleeping cells communal | work & lounge

cohabitation house 1

communal | living & lounge dining work & cohabitation house 1

communal | living & dining the old and the new: 15th floor plan 1:500

cohabitation house 1 (left) communal work & lounge floor cohabitation house 2 (right) entrance and communal cohabitation house 2 living & dining floor 20

cohabitation house 2

DIVERSE COMMUNITY • ADAPTIVE REUSE • URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

apartments private | sleeping cells

housing

public commons

housing

communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

apartments below: small retail classrooms work spaces

apartments cohabitation house 2

daycare

private | sleeping cells communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

private | sleeping cells

cohabitation house 2

cohabitation house 1

communal | work & lounge cohabitation house 1

communal | living & dining the old and the new: 15th floor plan 1:500

non-cohabitation apartments (left) access to vertical circulation cohabitation house 2 (right) sleeping cells CO-LIVING VILLAGE

cohabitation house 2

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: JONAS COERSMEIER

DIVERSE COMMUNITY • ADAPTIVE REUSE • URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

apartments private | sleeping cells communal | work & lounge communal | living & dining

CO-LIVING VILLAGE

ACADEMIC • PARSONS • CRITIC: CARLO FRUGIUELE

BIOMIMICRY • GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE • INTEGRATION OF NATURE

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

A Transportation Hub, Bird Sanctuary and Wetland Ecosystem Lab PARSONS PUAD 4010 | FALL 2017 New York, New York

partition

cavity

The driving force of this project was derived from the great juxtaposition between the urban environment and natural landscape in Marble Hill and Inwood Hill Park. Pulling inspiration from New York’s location in the midst of the Atlantic Flyway, as well as from the fact that the city is home to more than 480 different bird species, the project acts as a transportation hub, research facility, and sanctuary. It is a lively hybrid ecosystem that integrates human life, plant life, animal life, and infrastructure as one. The project includes vendor spaces, a reading room, an ecology laboratory with classroom spaces, a nature center for the nearby park, and most importantly, constructed wetlands that expand from the last salt marsh in the city, Muscota Marsh, that wrap around and inside the building. As shown in the adjacent sketches, the design was inspired by some of the smartest architects in nature: birds. By examining the logic behind bird nests, I used biomimicry to emulate the functional aspects of nests’ partitions and apertures. The design was also highly influenced by the nearby hills and their synergy with the water and urban landscape.

weave

avenue

marble hill subway station & metro north transportation hub bird nest functional design analysis

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

ACADEMIC • PARSONS • CRITIC: CARLO FRUGIUELE

alive

topographic

silence, stillness

planar

natural light

unknown boundaries

ease of access

vegetated

NATURE

biodiversity fresh

‘impractical’

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

time slows down

rushed

URBAN

noise & chaos

demographic diversity

ﬂuid natural voids, caves, spatial conditions

high tech

controlled

rigid structures highly populated

ecological analysis of inwood hill park development of a “hybrid ecosystem” 26

BIOMIMICRY • GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE • INTEGRATION OF NATURE

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

ACADEMIC • PARSONS • CRITIC: CARLO FRUGIUELE

bird nest biomimitec design

BIOMIMICRY • GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE • INTEGRATION OF NATURE

port of arrival port of arrival

port of arrival bird access botanical garden human access vendor & cafe spaces

playground

research/learning center

elevated park meditative reading room

topographic path

constructed wetland

existing salt marsh

bird and human access diagram transportation hub section

bird circula

human circ

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

ACADEMIC • PARSONS • CRITIC: CARLO FRUGIUELE

BIOMIMICRY • GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE • INTEGRATION OF NATURE

HYBRID ECOSYSTEM

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: EDUARDO REGA CALVO

HYPERACTIVITY • FLEXIBILITY • MONUMENTALITY

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT A Socially Interactive and Ever-So-Flexible Machine ARCH 501 | FALL 2019 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The MEGASTRUCTURE represents the ultimate release from the socio-technological hindrances of the past, embodying utopian and futuristic visions for alternate modes of reality. Borrowing from Cedric Price in his description of the Fun Palace, the megastructure is a “socially interactive machine”. I have defined the megastructure as a monumental system within which hyperactivity occurs. Based on a derived or imposed grid, it delicately balances its powerful presence on the site while still conforming to certain contextual constraints. In this case, the Hyperactive Monument attaches itself onto the existing Penn Museum, infusing the site with activity. This project re-envisions the Penn Museum as a sequential experience of human development and everyday life, breaking down the cultural and temporal hierarchies that were previously imposed in the spatial organization of the exhibition spaces. The Penn Museum will be renamed as a “Museum on the Everyday Ordinary”, and exhibition spaces will extend themselves into the attached megastructure. In addition, the museum itself will become an artifact within the Hyperactive Monument. The Hyperactive Monument is thus designed as a scaffolding system comprised of various datums within which constant performance and activity occurs, offering flexible spaces to exhibit, perform, educate, research, gather, and play.

axonometric drawing physical section model

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: EDUARDO REGA CALVO

VILLE SPATIALLE | Yona Friedman, 1959-60.

CONTINUOUS MONUMENT | Superstudio, 1969.

NEW BABYLON | 1959-74. Constant Nieuwenhuys

These selected studies unpacked various notable "megastructures" to define them by their core structural and ideological principles. It is important to note that despite its name alluding to massiveness, I defined the megastructure as characterized by transformation, flexibility and activity rather than by size.

HYPERACTIVITY • FLEXIBILITY • MONUMENTALITY

REFERENCE 01 - GRID

REFERENCE 02 - DATUM

SHELL

Axial system with proportional logic and intersection points

Primary and secondary levels for activating and suspending events

An envelope that encloses the structure

VOXLS

CORE

CORE PART 01 - STRCUTURE

Volumetric pixels that allow flexibility in the shell to expand

Horizontal & vertical channels to move along various datums

Trusses, columns, beams

Within a team of two students, we derived a "kit of parts" from the selected megastructures and used it as a toolkit to design our individual projects. The diagrams on this page were developed by me and my classmate Umar Mahmood. The rest of the project was design and developed solely by myself.

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: EDUARDO REGA CALVO

HYPERACTIVITY • FLEXIBILITY • MONUMENTALITY

section a

section b HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: EDUARDO REGA CALVO

hyperactive monument as music venue pennmusem façade on display as artifact 38

HYPERACTIVITY • FLEXIBILITY • MONUMENTALITY

choisy analytical drawing

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITIC: EDUARDO REGA CALVO

HYPERACTIVITY • FLEXIBILITY • MONUMENTALITY

HYPERACTIVE MONUMENT

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITICS: FRANCA TRUBIANO & PATRICK MORGAN

BIM • CONSTRUCTION DETAILS • OFFICE DESIGN

SHIFTING TOWERS

An Office Building Modeled and Detailed using REVIT ARCH 532 | SPRING 2020 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Throughout the semester, I developed a full set of construction drawings for a 9-story typical office building to be built on 19th and Walnut in Center City Philadelphia. The set included Floor Plans, Sections, Elevations, RCPs, and Details. It was an exciting exploration into Revit and BIM modeling, and an even more exciting opportunity to compeltely detail out an entire building. Fortunately, based on my performance in this class and on previous work experience, I have the pleasure to now be a Teaching Assistant for this very class.

reflected ceiling plans for basement and lobby exterior rendering highlighting cantilever onto Walnut St window sill detail

SHIFTING TOWERS

ACADEMIC • PENN • CRITICS: FRANCA TRUBIANO & PATRICK MORGAN

BIM • CONSTRUCTION DETAILS • OFFICE DESIGN

SHIFTING TOWERS

COLLABORATIVE • PARSONS • CRITICS: HUY BUI AND CARLOS GOMEZ DE LLARENA

DESIGN BUILD • SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE • PUBLIC SPACE

DESIGN BUILD: STREET SEATS

A Public Seating Space That Celebrates Sustainable Architecture PARSONS PSCE 3020 | SPRING 2017 New York, New York Team members: Gabrijela, Michael, Charlotte, Maha, Alyson, Shaya, Javier, Finn, Jeana, Pranati, Phil, Naiky, Seung, Katelin, Russell.

As a team of product design, environmental studies, business and architecture students, we designed the public seating area on the corner of 13th street and 5th avenue in NYC to not only maximize seating but to also raise awareness on a social issue that needs to be addressed: climate change. We used bamboo, a sustainable and versatile material, to celebrate its strength and length as a construction material that is not commonly used in our urban context. We installed solar panels to power lighting fixtures that turned on automatically at night, and worked with community gardens to liven the structure with greenery. After 6 months of offering the community a seating and gathering space, we de-installed the structure, distributing the plants to local residents and recylcing the wood for future student projects.

photograph from installation day photographs from fabrication and planting process

DESIGN BUILD: STREET SEATS

COLLABORATIVE • PARSONS • CRITICS: HUY BUI AND CARLOS GOMEZ DE LLARENA

DESIGN BUILD • SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE • PUBLIC SPACE

drawing set approved by structural engineer DESIGN BUILD: STREET SEATS

COLLABORATIVE • PARSONS • CRITICS: HUY BUI AND CARLOS GOMEZ DE LLARENA

DESIGN BUILD • SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE • PUBLIC SPACE

day 1 after installation DESIGN BUILD: STREET SEATS

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

SUSTAINABILITY • EQUITABLE ACCESS • AFTERLIFE

RENUBU

Mobile COVID Testing That Reinforces Communities During & Post Pandemic COMPETITION ENTRY | SUMMER 2020 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Team Members: Anabella Gilbert, Liam Lasting

With the Coronavirus pandemic inducing an insurmountable amount of medical waste as well as disproportionately affecting communities with varying access to healthcare, RENUBU seeks to respond to these problematic issues. RENUBU is a mobile COVID testing unit that aims to address the following five key issues:

1. The fear and anxiety developed around testing 2. The politically-induced controversy around testing, social distancing and wearing masks 3. Testing automation and the efficiency in results 4. The poor disposal methods of medical waste 5. The safety and comfort of those receiving and performing tests.

The Renubu’s adaptable and sustainable nature also gives the system the chance for a unique afterlife. In addition to being used for future medical testing, the pods can be deployed in a variety of different environments and impact several communities. They can be used as kiosks in community green spaces, political campaigning units, temporary shelters, and more. The Renubu’s simple construction techniques allow for the pods to be disassembled easily, resulting in pieces that can be individually re-purposed.

covid testing pod afterlife as icecream kiosk smartphone app and branding concept

RENUBU

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

Using a construction system based on the company, ByFusion, the RENUBU is made out of recycled medical waste. This system uses a large-scale machine that collects the waste, sanitizes it and grinds it into small pieces. These pieces then get melted and formed into large plastic sheets ready for a prefabricated construction. The RENUBU pods are easily manufactured off-site prior to their deployment. Since the collected medical waste varies daily, each pod is unique in color and texture. For additional infection control, antimicrobial solutions, such as Microban, are applied to the finished materials. Each RENUBU pod contains a Cepheid machine, sterilizer and 3D printer. Test tubes are first analyzed for the virus, then sanitized, ground, and melted to form either 3D printing filament or string. These two new products are then used to print more tubes and cartridges.

testing pod exploded axonometric 54

SUSTAINABILITY • EQUITABLE ACCESS • AFTERLIFE

material regeneration system network

elevation in any context RENUBU

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

SUSTAINABILITY • EQUITABLE ACCESS • AFTERLIFE

RENUBU section (top) and plan (bottom) RENUBU

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

DIVERSITY IN DESIGN • VERNACULAR • HOUSING PROPOSAL

PATCHWORK

A Housing ‘Neighborhood’ Complex that Reminds Us of Home THE HOME COMPETITION | Summer 2020 In Collaboration with Umar Mahmood

As expats, we have always felt like we live in two places at once. We thought: how can architecture reflect a sense of belonging when our perception of the “home” is continuously evolving? What would an urban housing complex that housed residents from around the world really look like if it reflected those living in it? Our project reflects a patchwork architecture that stiches together memories and life experiences. The urban complex mimics a neighborhood comprised of characters with different backgrounds and personal goals. Considering various family types – including multigenerational families, transient inhabitants, and nontraditional families – the homes are designed with the flexibility to grow and transform with their owners. A catalog of plug-in balconies and windows from cultures globally could be attached or detached from the complex to emulate a sense of familiarity to its inhabitants while also reflecting the diversity of those living within. The architecture adapts to its inhabitants; for example, as a family grows in numbers, new spaces can be plugged into the existing structure, and existing spaces can be subdivided. Communal outdoor spaces are provided between private living quarters where cross-generational and cultural knowledge among inhabitants can be shared.

housing complex with attachments that reflect the diversity within catalog of architectural attachments from various cities

PATCHWORK

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

SITE SPECIFICITY • PROGRAM-DRIVEN • ACTIVE GROUND

SEAMLESS CONTINUITY

A Maternal Clinic and Market Hall in West Philadelphia HOK DESIGN FUTURES | JANUARY 2021 In Collaboration with Umar Mahmood

Our clinic and marketplace is designed primarily through an analysis of the existing geometries and views within the site, with the intention of beneﬁting the local community and nearby Masjid. By extracting the viewlines from the Masjid and nearby park, our project maintains continuity with the site, bringing in exciting features without competing with the existing structures. Our aim was to activate the ground ﬂoor plane as a continuation of the Masjid, inviting people into the building through seamless geometries that guide their path and blend naturally within the landscape.

site plan perspective diagram of geometries extracted from site lines (right)

SEAMLESS CONTINUITY

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

maternal clinic

market

exploded axonometric 62

SITE SPECIFICITY • PROGRAM-DRIVEN • ACTIVE GROUND

ground floor - market and landscape plan PATCHWORK

COLLABORATIVE • COMPETITION • CHARETTE

SITE SPECIFICITY • PROGRAM-DRIVEN • ACTIVE GROUND

2nd floor - maternal clinic plan elevation PATCHWORK

INVESTIGATIVE • ACADEMIC • ONGOING

STUDY SKETCHES • MATERIAL STUDIES • DESIGN PROCESS

INVESTIGATIVE ARTIFACTS A Selection of Architectural Studies and Process Work VARIED STUDIES | ONGOING

The following pages include a selection of process models, material studies, sketches and other forms of architectural investigation in my practice. These works have either acted as stepping stones within a project, or have remained as studies that have furthered my capacities as a student of architecture.

figure-ground drawing exploration for ARCH 602 Studio, Spring 2021 3D interperations of figure-ground drawing with material mappings, Spring 2021

INVESTIGATIVE ARTIFACTS

INVESTIGATIVE • ACADEMIC • ONGOING

hybrid plan study by merging Baths of Caracalla and VitraHaus, fall 2020 geometric study using figure-ground relationships of coastal lines, spring 2020

STUDY SKETCHES • MATERIAL STUDIES • DESIGN PROCESS

INVESTIGATIVE ARTIFACTS

REEM ABI SAMRA EDUCATION

(347) 859-3833 | reemabi@design.upenn.edu | linkedin.com/in/reem-abi-samra

Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA Expected May 2022 4.0 GPA

· Pursuing a Master of Architecture Degree · Awards: Warren Powers Laird Award; Harlan Coornvelt Memorial Medal; Charles Merrick Gay Scholarship

Parsons School of Design, The New School

New York, NY Aug 2014 - May 2019 Dean’s List | 3.87 GPA Dual Degree

· BFA in Architectural Design, Honors Thesis: Vertopia: Vernacular Practices in the Urban Environment · Awards: Dean’s Scholarship; Dean’s BFA Scholarship; Chase Scholarship; Daniel Fraad Scholarship · ELOA Grant towards an anthropological drawing project across Mediterranean cities, June 2019

Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, The New School · BA in Urban Studies, Honors Thesis: Inwood Hill Park & the Future of Green in the City

EMPLOYMENT & LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

· ELOA Grant towards field work & thesis research in Tanzania on sustainable land & wildlife conservation, June 2018

Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA Aug 2020 - Present

Teaching Assistant for ARCH 531 & 532 Construction I & II with Professors Ryan & Trubiano · Markup BIM REVIT drawing assignments and assist with REVIT modeling tutorials

PennPraxis, University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA Jun - Aug 2020

Design Fellow for the Fresh Air Everywhere Project in collaboration with the Fresh Air Fund · Taught a 7 week virtual design class of 15 students from New York’s 5 boroughs · Prepared daily presentations on architecture & art history with assignments and virtual 1:1 desk crits · Organized midterm and final presentations with guest critics from UPenn, Columbia, and Parsons Design Fellow for the Stages of Learning Project

Philadelphia, PA Jun 2020 - Present

· Conducted intensive research and analysis on critical & alternative pedagogy · Collaboratively designed a learning environment where artists, designers, and activists will assemble and collaborate on workshops, performances, lectures, facilitated reflections, and research

West Chin Architect

New York, NY May 2017 - May 2019

Architecture Intern

· Created digital & 3D printed models of completed & in-progress residential projects using AutoCAD & Rhino · Developed construction documents and renderings for bid sets, DOB sets and client presentations · Coordinated with material & appliance vendors and compiled schedules

Parsons School of Constructed Environments

New York, NY Aug 2018 - May 2019

Research Assistant to the Director of Architecture, Emily Moss

· Conducted research on modern vernacular practices in various cities · Organized the public program “Indigenous/ Modern” with 6 outside architects & scholar

Parsons Street Seats Design Build in collaboration with the DOT

New York, NY Jan 2017 - May 2017

Member within an interdisciplinary team of architecture, environmental science and business students · Designed & fabricated a public seating space that was accessible for 6 months on the corner of 13th Street & 5th Avenue · Collaborated with bamboo vendors, solar panel technicians, and local community gardens to create a scaffold-like structure that provided public seating, greenery and night lights

SKILLS

· Won the 2018 Core77 Design Community Choice Award based on its inclusive and sustainable design

Modeling & Visualization

Handicrafts

Languages

AutoCAD, Rhino, Grasshopper, Revit, 3Ds Max, V-Ray, Keyshot, ZBrush, Adobe Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Premiere), 3D printing, laser cutting

Woodworking, Ceramics, Painting, Sketching, Screenprinting

Fluent in English, Arabic, French and Musical Score Beginner in Python

I am an aspiring architect driven by a constant curiousity to learn and create. I hope to design worlds bursting with color and texture through an investigative, interdisciplinary, and collaborative practice.

REEM ABI SAMRA ARCHITECTURE PORTFOLIO