RICHARD CHOU
Hi, My name is Richard Chou. I am an aspired Architect, Artist, and Technologist. Thank you for reading my portfolio. Some of my projects include digital media. If you would like to view the additional material please visit:
www.richardchou.com
• Positioned as Digital Practice Leader to develop tools on BIM management, direct data-driven design,
and facilitate cross-platform data connection. • Led Digital Practice Team to firm-wide recognition and kick-started a new firm-wide R&D initiative.
RICHARD HSIENHSIN CHOU
Intern Designer | WET (Water Entertainment Technologies) Design | 2015 richardchou81@gmail.com • Produced models and sketches that informed the Schematic Design of large-scale water features. www.richardchou.com • Created diagrams for client presentaions using parametric-modeling.
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATION Teaching Assistant | Carnegie Mellon University | 2014-2016 • Taught 50+ students and performed course administrative tasks for Architectural courses “IntroductionBachelor’s of Architecture & Minor in Psychology to Digital Media” and “Generative Modeling”. | Carnegie Mellon University | May 2016 LEED Green Associate ARE in progress | AXP 60% complete
Volunteer Coordinator | Cannon Design + The Neighborhood Design Center (NDC) | 2017-Present • Appointed team coordinator of the firm’s charitable community design program. • Coordinated with NDC project manager, local district leader, and other community stakeholders to EXPERIENCE produce pro bono designs for the Baltimore Penn. Ave. storefront and to establish streetscape guidelines. Architect I/ Technologist | Cannon Design | 2016-Present richardchou81@gmail.com www.richardchou.com • Detailed features in two academic facility projects through Design & Construction Documentation. Fashion Designer | Polymorphism & Consenence/Dissonence Fashion Lines | 2016-2017 • Positioned as Digital Practice Leader to develop tools on BIM management, direct data-driven design, • Created conceptual fashion collections that explore material and digital fabrication. •EDUCATION Featured in CMU & Lunar Gala Fashion Show and Carnegie Musuem of Arts’ Materials World Fashion Show. and facilitate cross-platform data connection. CERTIFICATION • Led Digital Practice Team to firm-wide recognition and kick-started a new firm-wide R&D initiative. Bachelor’s of Architecture & Minor in Psychology Carnival Booth Chair | Carnegie Mellon University | 2013-2015 | Carnegie Mellon University | May 2016 Intern Designer | WET (Water Entertainment Technologies) Design | 2015 • Elected as Carnival Booth Chair of the Taiwanese Students Association. Managed the organization’s LEED Green design andAssociate construction of its 2015 Spring Carnival Booth – a themed two-story student-built structure.• Produced models and sketches that informed the Schematic Design of large-scale water features. • Created diagrams for client presentaions using parametric-modeling. ARE in progress | AXP 60% complete st • Awarded 1 Place in Independent Students Organization & Environmental Sustainability Award.
RICHARD HSIENHSIN CHOU
EXPERIENCE RECOGNITION & LEADERSHIP
Teaching Assistant | Carnegie Mellon University | 2014-2016 • Taught 50+ students and performed course administrative tasks for Architectural courses “Introduction to Digital Media” and “Generative Modeling”.
Architect I/ Technologist | Cannon Design | 2016-Present Mars City Design Competition – Finalist | 2016 • Detailed features in two academic facility projects through Design & Construction Documentation. EPIC Metals Design Competition – Second Place | 2014 • Positioned as Digital Practice Leader to develop tools on BIM management, direct data-driven design, NCMA Concrete Design Competition – Second Place | 2014 Volunteer Coordinator | Cannon Design + The Neighborhood Design Center (NDC) | 2017-Present and facilitate cross-platform data connection. SoArch Student Advisory Council – Senior Class Representative| 2015-2016 • Appointed team coordinator of the firm’s charitable community design program. • Led Digital Practice Team to firm-wide recognition and kick-started a new firm-wide R&D initiative. Taiwanese Students Association – President | 2014-2015 • Coordinated with NDC project manager, local district leader, and other community stakeholders to produce pro bono designs for the Baltimore Penn. Ave. storefront and to establish streetscape guidelines. Intern Designer | WET (Water Entertainment Technologies) Design | 2015 • Produced models and sketches that informed the Schematic Design of large-scale water features. • Created diagrams for client presentaions using parametric-modeling.
Fashion Designer | Polymorphism & Consenence/Dissonence Fashion Lines | 2016-2017 • Created conceptual fashion collections that explore material and digital fabrication. • Featured in CMU Lunar Gala Fashion Show and Carnegie Musuem of Arts’ Materials World Fashion Show.
Teaching Assistant | Carnegie Mellon University | 2014-2016 • Taught 50+ students and performed course administrative tasks for Architectural courses “Introduction Carnival Booth Chair | Carnegie Mellon University | 2013-2015 to Digital Media” and “Generative Modeling”. • Elected as Carnival Booth Chair of the Taiwanese Students Association. Managed the organization’s design and construction of its 2015 Spring Carnival Booth – a themed two-story student-built structure. • Awarded 1st Place in Independent Students Organization & Environmental Sustainability Award. Volunteer Coordinator | Cannon Design + The Neighborhood Design Center (NDC) | 2017-Present • Appointed team coordinator of the firm’s charitable community design program.
• Coordinated with NDC project manager, local district leader, and other community stakeholders to
RECOGNITION produce pro bono designs for the Baltimore Penn. Ave. storefront and to establish streetscape guidelines.
& LEADERSHIP
Mars City Design Competition – Finalist | 2016 Fashion Designer | Polymorphism & Consenence/Dissonence Fashion Lines | 2016-2017 EPIC Metals Design Competition – Second Place | 2014 • Created conceptual fashion collections that explore material and digital fabrication. NCMA Concrete Design Competition – Second Place | 2014 • Featured in CMU Lunar Gala Fashion Show and Carnegie Musuem of Arts’ Materials World Fashion Show. SoArch Student Advisory Council – Senior Class Representative| 2015-2016 Carnival Booth Chair | Carnegie Mellon University | 2013-2015 • Elected as Carnival Booth Chair of the Taiwanese Students Association. Managed the organization’s
Taiwanese Students Association – President | 2014-2015
TABLE OF CONTENT 1. ACADEMIC Space Architecture Studio Systems & Envelope Studio Architectural Robotics Studio
5 9 12
2. PROFESSIONAL Occupancy Simulation Building Info. Management Building Info. Visualization Neighborhood Design
16 18 19 20
3. ART 3D-Print Fashion Interactive Media
23 25
ACADEMIC
ALVARIUM MARS ARCH. STUDIO
2016 | Individual Concept Project Mars City Design Competition 2016 Finalist A research-focused concept studio exploring Martian architecture.
MARTIAN ARCHITECTURE “Designing for the future is the extension of tackling challenges of the present.” Alvarium is a computational exploration in Architecture and urban design. The project took inspiration from biological/computational concept of “collective intelligence”, and explored a Martian city as an organism/ system. The city sustains through a resourcedistributing system, benefiting from the resiliency of a network. The project draws inspiration from METACITY/DATATOWN (MVRDV): a self-supporting city build upon data. It pushes boundaries of human habitation through creative assumptions and asking the ‘what-ifs’.
Network City (right): visioning diagram network types, its reference to technology systems (internet, block-chain, etc.), and similarity urban fabrics.
Input/Output (above): Students researched climate condition and environmental challenges of life on Mars, life-support systems, and human factors in space travel/ settlement.
ALVARIUM
POWERS OF SCALE Inspired by Powers of Ten (MVRDV), images below show input/output diagrams across scales, demonstrating the complex mechanics happening at its own scale while contributing to the system it inhabits.
RESOURCE MAPPING Infrared satellite images of key conditions for human survival on Mars (see image for categories) were analyzed through Grasshopper image sampling. These sampled values were merged into a combined depth map showing the gradient map of resource availability. The gradient map was then mapped onto a mesh created through 3D topography mesh, which created the framework for simulations and topographic analysis (surface slope, shading).
ALVARIUM
NETWORK MAPPING Visiting the Lunar Exploration Vehicle lab in CMU, students learned the capability and limitation of space rovers. This project explored employing a group of rovers with swarm behavior. Rovers with collective intelligence are more terrain-aware, and act as distributed points of contact to Earth, as losing signal is a major current issue.
Site Selection (above): Final site selected through analysis of surface atmospheric condition.
Simulating an expedition, agents searched for ideal locations of human settlement following the resource depth map (above). Agents were taught behaviors for self-preservation such as avoiding shaded area, drastic terrains, and maintaining distance with other rovers.
SECTOR MAPPING Evolutionary Optimization through Grasshopper Galapagos explored an equalized distribution of land-use zones. Fitness scores were assigned to allocated area, resource utilization, & adjacent zoning type. Optimization tool offered the opportunity to recieve instant feedback of zoning decisions made, and the capability of running thousands of different scenario in search for the theoretically “fittest� zoning plan.
STABILIZATION One discovery made through simulation is the gradual stabilization of networks while agents navigate across the landscape.As agents identify a location of high-favorability, they convert into anchors in their network. As loose agents continue to explore, anchored agents act as points of reference, creating an environmentally aware system
ALVARIUM
BIOMIMETIC URBANISM Alvarium envisioned a city built on the specific needs of Martian settlers, where prosperity relies on codependence. This project aim to make broader implications on current practices of urban planning and crisis management, and made the argument for evidence-based, socio-economic resilient city design.
Exploration: Origami systems exploring sheet-based modular systems
VEILED SYSTEMS ENVELOPE STUDIO
2015 | In collaboration with Ara Lee Studio investigated architecture systems that respond to programmatic and spatial needs for a rowing club and boat storage.
ENVELOPE TO STRUCTURE The project concept revolves around the desire to create a seamless integration from facade system to structure. Through diffusion of scale and material, the same system pertains both decorative and performative qualities.
VEILED
PROGRAM FORMALIZATION
STRUCTURAL FORMALIZATION
The boathouse consists of 3 programs: repair, storage, & circulation. Building massing is informed by conditions identified through the site analysis, including existing bike trail, flood line, and elevation to water. Subsequently, the building envelope morphs in response to the building footprint.
The project explored an integrated column system responsive to the architectural scale and function throughout the building. A parametric l-system column type was created to accommodate the slopes and apertures of the roof. Based on column location, Grasshopper script adjusts height, connection, and thickness of each column via structural analysis; fulfilling local specialization in the global system.
Floor Plan - Level 1
Section Plan - Boat House
Floor Plan - Level 2
Section Plan - Field House
VEILED
FULL ASSEMBLY
ROOF BEAM
ANGLED JOINT
Column Detail
Full-scale Mock-up
Section Plan - Field House
Structural System Exploration
Scaled Model
3d-Print Roof Prototype
COLUMN BEAM
Joint Detail EXTERIOR PANELING
STEEL FRAMING
INTERIOR PANELING
FULL ASSEMBLY
Building Components
COLUMN SYSTEM
TIMBER ARCH. ROBOTIC STUDIO 2015 In collaboration with Shanna Chan, Colleen Clifford, Feyi Quadri, and Matt Dawson.
INTRODUCTION
SYNTHESIS
The studio, in conjunction with architectural course "Introduction to Architectural Robotics" explores the use of industrial robot in architecture. Students familiarize with the ABB robots via RAPID codes as well as manual coordinate teaching.
In partnership with the Lathan St. Commons redesign project, the studio designed a hopsgrowing trellis for a local community garden. The structure emphasized light penetration and permeability, and optimized material allocation and structural integrity through structural analysis.
a simple stacking structure was designed through Grasshopper algorithms, which was then converted into robot tool paths through the HAL plug-in. Students learned to develop tool-heads and material containers to perform the specific tasks taught to the robot to achieve the design.
Stacking Excercise - Plan & Axonometric
Access
Public Spaces
Visibility
TIMBER
Spanning Formalization
Compressive Formalization
Modularity Formalization
FORM FINDING The studio designed a trellis that spans across the roofs containing the garden. Our team optimized material allocation while maintaining structural integrity by performing structural analysis via computational tool Karamba and identifying strategic placement of varying thicknesses of lumber. Wind Load Analysis
Gravitational Load Analysis
TIMBER
PROCESS & DOCUMENTATION The focus of the studio was to integrate industrial robotics with traditional construction methods. The studio introduced precise freeform steam-bending using industrial robotic arms. The robotic movements were parametrically defined through Grasshopper to translate geometry into machine code.
Bending Process
Robot/ Bending Jig Setup
Documentation: Anchor Assembly
Joint Detail
Anchor Detail
Documentation: Edge Connection
Tensile Model
Assembled Prototype
PROFESSIONAL Since 2016, I worked as a Junior Architect in an AEC (Architecture/ Engineering/Construction) firm specializing in Healthcare and Education Architecture. In addition, I was elected the Computational Lead of my office’s Digital Practice Group. Our mission is to make computational design an integral part of the design process in the office. We serve as thought leaders collaborating on projects across the firm to push boundaries to advance technology in practice and improve the quality of our designs.
OCCUPANCY ANALYSIS
VIRGINIA TECH WAR MEMORIAL HALL
TRAFFIC/OCCUPANCY SIMULATION
CannonDesign was hired to create the design for the expansion and renovation of the Virginia Tech War Memorial Hall. The team is tasked to evolve the large facility into a multipurpose student wellness center and to fit the four major departments that will reside the building, including: Recreational Sport, Education, Health & Wellness, and Counseling.
One major goal of the design team is to create prominant circulation spaces that alleviate the traffic created by all four departments. Special attention is also given to access to the historical portion of the building on the West. As the computational designer of the design team, I simulated student traffic through defined agents. Using data obtained from occupacy analysis (see next page), simulated students moves through the building to their destination using the shortest path. The team is able to evaluate circulation space decisions based on the compiled traffic heatmap.
OCCUPANCY ANALYSIS
OCCUPANCY ANALYSIS
TRAFFIC ANALYSIS
During the feasibility study phase of the project, the team obtained class/practice schedule and daily usage data from each department residing in the building. Compiling these information, I created an interactive Excel interface displaying occupant VS capacity information in all program spaces at a given date & time.
Circulation traffic is estimated based on occupancy data achieved previously. The three main entries of the building are weighted to reflect current student traffic pattern. This tool helps identify high-traffic zones and the impact of different options of circulation and access.
BUILDING INFORMATION MANAGEMENT BUILDING DATA MANAGEMET
USER INTERFACE & IMPLEMENTATION
The complex nature of healthcare and education facilities requires rigorous management of large amount of equipment and hardware information. Working in Dynamo, I developed several workflows to automate tasks in importing and exporting model data from Revit and into platforms such as Excel or Grasshopper.
Part of my mission as the computational lead within my office is to ensured that digital tools are accessible and user-friendly to the rest of the firm. Using basic programming and plug-ins available, I created simple user interfaces that are playable through the Dynamo Player, which executes scripts without the need to access the programming platform.
BUILDING INFORMATION VISUALIZATION
PROGRAM PLANNING
DAYLIGHT STUDY
This collaboration with the office healthcare advisory expert explores a live interactive visualization of hospital program massing, based on area calculations derived by schedule utilization models in Excel.
The Digital Practice Team created daylight analysis diagrams via Grasshopper plug-ins (Lady Bug & Honey Bee). The team then incorporated a parametric massing model to excecute daylight optimization (Galapagos).
The first prototype shows live-changes via Grasshopper from Excel data. The goal of this project is to create interative web-application used as a planning tool during meetings.
NEIGHBORHOOD STREETSCAPE DESIGN In Progress 2017 | CannonDesign Volunteer Coordinator In partnership with the Neighborhood Design Center In collaboration with CannonDesign Baltimore
STOREFRONT
PENNSYLVANIA MAINSTREET STREETSCAPE REDSIGN In the summer of 2017 I kick-started my firm’s charitable outreach. Partnering with a local non-profit, my team created storefronts and streetscape guidelines for the Upton neighborhood in West Baltimore. To understand the community, we conducted site visits, survey studies, and visioning workshops with the local district leaders.
STREETSCAPE
Site Research: identified locations based on key categories
While the primary project scope is to create street scape design guidelines, we believe that our design analysis can have greater impact in informing the next master plan of Upton. We created four main areas of focus in the redesign: Store Front, Street Scape, Community Space, and Circulation Space.
COMMUNITY
CIRCULATION
Site Analysis: information compiled from research
NEIBORHOOD DESIGN
COMMUNITY VISIONING
PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE STREETSCAPE DESIGN CannonDesign & the Neighborhood Design Center
The team attended four community meetings to understand the needs of the residents, as well as to engage the community in the design process. Team members participated in visioning excercises with the attendents, discussing their aspirations for the main street street scape and the community.
WHO WE ARE Hello! We are the Baltimore office of CannonDesign. We are a group of architects and designers who strive to strengthen our community through the built environment. The site we are looking at is Pennsylvania Avenue. For some of you, this is your neighborhood and your home. Our mission is to reinvigorate a sense of community in this area and design it to be whatever it is that you imagine. During this meeting, we will ask you to define your idea of a storefront; of a neighborhood, as well as what that includes. We will then utilize these ideas to create a street that captures your identity as a community. We want you all to play a part in the development of your locality and your home.
PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE CORRIDOR The Pennsylvania Avenue Corridor is the heart of Baltimore’s former cultural and entertainment neighborhoods: Mondawmin, Parkview / Woodbrook, Penn North, Druid Heights, Sandtown-Winchester, Upton, and Heritage Crossing. Our intent of work involves making recommendations to define and enhance the character of the corridor, mainly through the studying of the streetscape. We will be directing our efforts toward storefronts and pedestrian elements by outlining guidelines and methodologies. As the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and others have already provided significant studies and designated goals of the corridor, we will be building upon the recommendations set forth by those planning committees.
Following the four areas of focus, the team researched aspiration images and asked the participants to vote on the image that they like most.
ACTIVES •
Introduction — 5 min Presenting who we are and our approach in to understanding the archiectural needs of Pennsylvania Ave.
•
Survey — 3 min Quick paper survey to understand how residents and business owners feel about the existing streetscape.
•
Visioning — 20 min Team splits into groups (Storefront, Streetscape, Community Space, & Circulation Space) for in-person conversations with poster images to inspire conversation.
•
Open Discussion — 5 min Any follow up questions or comments to share with the group.
Handout
Visioning Poster: Existing(left) v.s. Aspirational(right)
NDC Survey Questionnaire
NDC Survey Questionnaire
Select the option from the scale below each question that most applies to you.
Select the option from the scale below each question that most applies to you.
Always
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
Frequently
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
13. The one thing I would most like to see less of on Penn Ave is [e.g.: trash]:
4. I visit Penn Ave during the weekdays.. Always
Agree
12. The appearance of a building’s entry design impacts my perception of a business.
3. I visit Penn Ave during the weekends. Always
Strongly Agree
11. Green spaces (trees, plants, parks, etc.) impact my sense of community.
2. I spend two or more hours when I visit. Always
In addition to discussions, we conducted survey studies asking residents to indicate their engagement to the main street shops and their opinions on existing street conditions. From the results we identified hidden correlations that gave the team valuable design insight. Our survey results also helps the team prioritize issues the residents deem most critical.
10. Street arts along Penn Ave impact my sense of community.
1. How often do you visit Penn Ave [within a week]?
Occasionally
Rarely
SURVEY
Never
14. The one thing I would most like to see more of on Penn Ave is [e.g: benches]: 5. I visit Penn Ave during normal business hours (9 am - 5pm). Always
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
6. I visit Penn Ave before or after normal business hours (9 am - 5pm). Always
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
15. Please explain your answer to 13 and/or 14: Please tell us a little more about yourself:
Never
Affiliation:
Gender:
NEXT STEPS
Age:
7. I visit Penn Ave for one of the businesses on the street. Always
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
8. I visit Penn Ave for leisure. Always
Frequently
Please explain if you chose neither for Affiliation:
9. I live within a 15 minute walking distance from Penn Ave. Strongly Agree
Survey
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Survey Analysis: Correlation matrix
The team will complete the re-design by April 2018. It is our hope that we can create a design that is not only cherished by the community, but also one that demonstrate the potential of Upton neighborhood and will lead to growth and prosperity.
ART
CONSONANCE/ DISSONANCE 2017 | Carnegie Museum of Art Fashion Show In collaboration with ChengCheng Zhao
We stand at the convergence of human and technology, where technology’s ubiquitousness dissolves seemingly definite boundaries of the past. Today human and machine are increasingly intimate; their relationship multi-dimensional. Technology is our extension, and influences our decision. This collection illustrates a dichotomy: two forces working in consonance and dissonance. It aims to create a dialogue through art between ambiguous precision and calculative aesthetics. Our design process is non-linear. Whereas conventional fashion reserves fabrication as an afterthought, it is a driving factor to our design, with the goal that the end product is one that is truly a unity of the divided.
BEAUTY IN ERROR The main component of the design, series of 3D printed lace, originated from a FDM 3D printer calibration error. The printer extrusion flow was slightly too low during calibration, and resulted in the extruded filament’s reduced width and failing to adhere to the previous extrusion. The result is a delicate and flexible lace-like mesh. The unique quality and potential of the printed surface became the main component of the design, also as a celebration of experimentation and machine-driven design.
CONSONANCE/DISSONANCE
BEAUTY IN INTUITION We’ve assumed various different roles in the design process, but we are first and foremost artists. Thus, we relied on our artistic intuition in the final part of our process. Printed meshes were used to create two distinct modules, and used to create the two looks previously designed. The designs were largely informed by the modules created, but stayed true to the original concept to create two contrasting aesthetics based on the same design language.
Look 1
BEAUTY IN FUNCTION The first prototype, despite its fascinating texture, was too thin and brittle to sew. Thus, we experimented with other infill patterns and printer settings. We identified the points of failure in the original print, and redesigned the component, including a fully-adhered frame around the surface to allow slack for sewing and protect it from breaking. The conventional slicer software did not support the level of customization we needed, so we revised the machine code to fulfill the design specification. Key aspects such as print strength, density change between layers, production time, and ease of removal were all incorporated into the machine settings.
Look 2
Rendering by Jim Marsh
HARBOR BUBBLE
2017 | Light City Artist Proposal In collaboration with Adam Louie, Jim Marsh
LIGHT CITY 2018 Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts in 2016, Light City is the largest festival of light, music and innovation in North America. Central to Light City is the BaGE Light Art Walk along Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, featuring attractions including illuminated sculptures. The CannonDesign Baltimore Digital Practice Team submitted a proposal to build an interactive art installation for Light City 2018.
INSPIRATION One of our office’s most valuable assets is our studio culture. We collected everyone’s thoughts on the Pinterest board. Certain themes arose as many of the precedent images began to use similar technologies, namely motion tracking, projection mapping, and kinetic elements. We realized that the design must reflect our culture, so we identified the key drivers in determining the final design: interaction and dialogue. Our preferred choice of medium would be projection mapping, and the challenge then was to design the installation to house the interactive elements.
HARBOR BUBBLE
Final Design: Light-weight Canvas Pavillion with Projection
Leap Motion Experiment with Grasshopper Simulation
Assembly and Material Diagram
DESIGN EXPLORATION
INSTALLATION
Our preliminary sketches depicted simple screens to serve as backdrops for moving spectators to affect the projection. A number of previous installations used light to animate scenery and illuminate nearby features, but lacked the notion of interaction we hoped to bring.
The design-build nature of this proposal kept our spirits high throughout the entire design. The majority of the budget was allocated to the structure and securing the installation. As we would provide the labor ourselves, we planned for a warehouse space to prototype, stage, and build our bubble. The plan for a hollow pipe structure provided us flexibility for any adjustments in construction, as well as projection fabric to conform to any shape.
Projection mapping is dependent on two mediums: the input controllers and projection surface. We quickly obtained an Xbox Kinectand, Leap Motion controller and experimented with delayed video-keyframing and motion-tracking via Grasshopper. The final form of the projection surface was determined by the intended site location and playfulness from designing the audience’s intended interaction.
We believe that the most compelling element was the interaction station, which consisted of a computer outfitted with a camera and motion tracker. The participant would make gestures into a screen and the bubble screen would respond. Nearby spectators and their movement would also be captured in the station’s viewport to further enhance the experience.
Thank you. www.richardchou.com
UOHC DRAHCIR