RUTH SARASTIA KUSWARA [ar·chi·tec·ture port·fo·li·o]
résumé
Ruth Sarastia Kuswara Architecture Student
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CONTACT Email: rskuswara@gmail.com Mobile: +1 (515) 715 3881 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ruthkuswara Location: Ames, IA
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND Iowa State University
HONORS / AWARDS NCMA Unit Design Competition
August 2017 - May 2022 (Expected)
3rd Place | Spring 2020
Major: Bachelor of Architecture
BWBR Prize Competition
Minor: Urban Studies Cumulative GPA: 3.91 / 4.00
Nominated | Spring 2020
Iowa State University College of Design Dean’s List Fall 2017 - Spring 2021
SKILLS Computer Software AutoCAD Revit Rhino 3D & V-Ray SketchUp Enscape & Lumion Adobe Creative Suite Microsoft Office
Personal Cross-culture communication Creativity & curiosity Problem-solving Time management & multi-tasking Community & teamwork
Language English | Full Professional Proficiency Indonesian | Native Speaker
REFERENCES BO-SUK HUR Architecture Assistant Professor | Iowa State Contact: +1 (857) 756 4345
THOMAS LESLIE Architecture Morrill Professor | Iowa State Contact: tleslie@iastate.edu
PROFESSIONAL / WORK EXPERIENCE DSN S 115 / College of Design | Orientation Course Peer Mentor August 2021 - November 2021 Ames, IA Mentored first-year design students + assisted with in-class and community-building activities
OPN Architects | Summer Architecture Intern May 2021 - August 2021 Cedar Rapids, IA Developed visualizations + designed & modeled + assisted with CA tasks for various projects
PT. Han Awal & Partners | Summer Architecture Intern June 2019 - July 2019 Jakarta, Indonesia Developed a design proposal + built digitial and physical models for several cultural projects
BOBOS Design | Interior Design Intern March 2017 - April 2017 Jakarta, Indonesia Produced technical drawings, digital & physical models for residential projects
LEADERSHIP / ORGANIZATIONAL ACTIVITIES Cornerstone Church of Ames | Worship Leader & Choir Member August 2021 - PRESENT
Fellowship of Indonesian Christians in America (FICA) | Media Marketing Volunteer January 2021 - PRESENT
International Friendship Connection (IFC) | Student Leader January 2019 - PRESENT
Indonesian Student Association (PERMIAS Ames)| Vice President January 2018 - June 2019
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[p/6]
THE L OOP
[p/20]
EXPAND
[p/30]
PIGNETO SOCIAL HUB
[p/38]
NATUR E = AR CHITECT
[p/46]
MAXMIN
[p/50]
WATER FR ONT
[p/64]
PHOTOGR APHY
01 THE LOOP BWBR COMPETITION | NOMINATED
Spring 2020 Project Site
: Chelsea, NYC
Program : Art Gallery & Residential Instructor : Bo-Suk Hur Team member
: Jia Lan Chow
Production : AutoCAD, Rhino 3D, Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator New York City has been represented as the “melting pot” of America, but how true is it within the city’s context? The demographic shows that even though New York City is filled with people of various ethnicities and cultures, they tend to stay within their own boundaries - boundaries that have been socially constructed over the course of years. The LOOP is a project in Chelsea, NYC, which sought to BREAK THE BOUNDARIES OF CULTURAL HOMOGENEITY by bringing in artists of different backgrounds into a creative, collaborative space, where they can live, create, and inspire. The LOOP is a project that encourages people to learn, understand, and celebrate the vibrancy of cultures in Chelsea that are forgotten.
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[BLURRING BOUNDARIES EXPERIMENTAL MODELS]
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Mirror | Wooden Dowels | Acrylic Paint
Candle Wax | Bass Wood
Acrylic Sheet | Resin
Plaster | Metal Rod | Watercolor Paint
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[CURRENT CONDITION] Chelsea was once an industrial area. Factories were clustered into one area and many immigrants from all over the world came to live and work in Chelsea. As we move towards the 21st century, however, Chelsea began to evolve to become a luxurious and high-class residential and art district. This shift then pushed the vibrant cultures and diversity out, and Chelsea became a monotonous area.
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[PROPOSED CONDITION] We see the future of Chelsea as an area of blurring cultural boundaries. Our manifestation of the future of Chelsea involves open opportunities for people of different cultures to meet and mingle. We sought to break the cultural boundaries that have been constructed over the past years and allow for people to learn, understand, and celebrate other cultures aside from their own.
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[MASSING STUDY / SITE PLAN]
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SITE CONTEXT
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STRUCTURE
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PUBLIC DECKS
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CENTRAL VOIDS
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ELEVATE DECKS
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PRIVATE RESIDENTS
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SOLIDS WITHIN VOIDS
ART GALLERIES
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[PROGRAM DIAGRAM]
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[AXONOMETRIC PLANS]
[SOUTH ELEVATION]
[SECTION A]
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[PUBLIC DECKS & GALLERIES] The design of spaces revolves around the series of public circulation decks. This decking system creates nodes or intersections for cultural mingling. The voids between the decks are then filled in with solid spaces, reserved for art galleries, exhibitions, and workshops.
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[EGRESS / ACCESSIBILITY DIAGRAM]
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[ R E S I D E N T I A L ] The residential sector of the project hosts artists coming in from all around the world. The units are designed to have an open plan for flexible usage of space, reserved for the creation and expression of art. The void in the center of the residential area is meant to be a cultural mingling space,
where
residents
can
meet
one another and share experiences.
[UNIT TYPES]
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02 EXPAND Fall 2020 Project Site
: Meredith Lawn, Des Moines
Program : DSM Art Center Extension Instructor : Thomas Leslie Team member
: Jen-Ni Lin
Production : Rhino 3D, Lumion, Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator Our vision for this project is to EXPAND PEOPLE’S CIRCULATION on to the site and extend the Sculpture Park. The building is an extension of the UNDULATIONS of the Pappajohns Sculpture Park. It houses a museum without disrupting the flow and integrity of the site itself. Walking from the park, people are given a choice of walking up the roof or entering the building. Either way, they are slowly elevated up or brought down and under. Just as the true state of a green space is never flat, we brought that into our design.
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[CONCEPT DIAGRAM]
EXPAN
D
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[EAST ELEVATION]
A
[SECTION A] 24
[PROGRAM DIAGRAM]
[CIRCULATION DIAGRAM]
[LOBBY]
[GALLERY]
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[MAIN ENTRANCE]
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GREEN ROOF DESIGN
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The rooftop is designed as a gathering space, but it is also a piece of art. As the wind blows and the snow falls, these native Iowa prairie grass will sway like a kinetic art installation.
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03 PIGNETO SOCIAL HUB Spring 2021 Project Site
: Pigneto, Rome
Program : Social Hub | Residential, Workshop, Co-Working, Cafeteria, Offices Instructor : Consuelo Nunez Ciuffa & Simone Capra Team members
: Cuiling Chen & Jen-Ni Lin
Production : AutoCAD, Rhino 3D, V-Ray, Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator Rome is a piece of archeology; every inch of the city holds a story. The stratified city is a collage of all its archaeologies; it has gone through numerous urban regenerations and/or renewal, which produces a highly dense urban fabric filled with overlaps of numerous geographic plots. A quick glance of Rome may give you the impression of chaos or unruliness, however, that is precisely the beauty of the city - its charmingly organized chaos. The stereotomic nature of Roman architecture is greatly influenced by the nature of the urban environment itself, which becomes the most imperative concept for our proposal. The Pigneto Social Hub is a gift to the neighborhood. All things considered, the project seeks to serve the people’s needs and to elevate their living experiences. It is designed to be a melting pot of people of all ages, economic statuses, professions, and cultures, allowing them to interact not only with the site and its beautiful archeology, but also with one another. The architectural gesture of public thresholds reimposes the significance of Rome’s history and urban morphology, which can now be relished and embraced by everyone. A site of wondrous archeology that was once deemed insignificant, inaccessible, and abandoned is now brought back to life, bringing happiness and joy into the neighborhood.
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[VOLUMETRIC AXON] The site is located in the northwest corner of Pigneto (a neighborhood in southeast Rome), ringed within Via Prenestina, one of Rome’s main consular roads, Via Ettore Fierasmosca, Via Scipione Rivera, and a system of railways on the north edge. Settled on the site is one of Rome’s archeological ruins, Il Torrione Prenestina - one of the largest mausoleums in Rome after that of Augustus and Monte Del Grano. What currently remains in the area are low-income housing, shacks, and the archaeological ruin of the Torrione.
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[SITE PLAN] CUT LEVEL: +41.00
[SITE CIRCULATION]
[MASSING] 33
SECTION A
SECTION B
[THRESHOLD] In
response
geographic
to
the
condition
history
and
of
site,
our
the massing of our building project is nestled into the ground, allowing for a fluid connection to and from different levels of the multi-layered site.
stereotomic
The
nature
of
Roman architecture in relation to the environment is applied to the design of threshold spaces within the massing of our project. Within our project, two solids are placed in relation to one another. The form of these two masses is delicately pushed and pulled in response to the structure of the tomb and to the urban fabric of the site. A portion of the two solids, where they intersect,
is
then
extracted,
which
creates a third space that does not belong to either one of the volumes. This third space is a threshold, blurring the boundary between indoor and outdoor,
and
public
and
private.
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[ORGANIZATION OF SPACES] The two masses on either side of the central core are organized into public - workshops, coworking spaces, offices, and cafeteria - and private spaces - residential units. The ground level of both buildings, which is directly accessible from within the central core, is designed with an open concept, allowing people to have a totality of freedom as to how they interact with the space. The division of programs within the ground level is created through a series of arches, which creates an illusion of spatial division without having to separate the spaces into individual rooms.
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04 NATURE = ARCHITECT Fall 2021 Theme : Designing a new origin story for the world to achieve SURVIVANCE Instructor : Mitchell Squire Team members
: Angie Espinoza, Megan Van Dalen, & Ruodi Zhang
Production : Rhino 3D, Hand-drawing, Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator In this studio, we focused on how the INSTRUMENTALITY OF ARCHITECTURE can help us speculate on important issues that are shaping the world and its people. Our desire was to arrive at or at least suggest what might be non-existing places, progressive imaginaries within and beyond the discipline, on the theme SURVIVANCE. Our project approaches the theme of SURVIVANCE through the lens of humans’ relationship with nature. Throughout the process, we discovered that the world we live in today is built upon the notion of our own assumptions or based upon the limitations of human understanding towards nature. The current discipline of architecture is centralized around human architects and clientele. Suppose the problem revolving around the built environment is the progressive depletion of nature caused by human actions, then why is nature not a part of the equation towards finding the answer? Understanding this, the agency of our IMAGINARY, FICTIVE ARCHITECTURE should accept a wider scope of participatory elements, including human and nonhuman actors, where nature performs the role of an architect and human performs the role of a client.
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[SURVIVANCE]
At face value, the term “survivance” invokes, but suggests something more than mere survival or subsistence.
Deconstructed, sur-vivance divulges a bursting forth of life. Sur:
above and beyond, rhyming in intent with hyper, meta, super. Vivance: the French take on the Latin root for vitality, vigor, and vivaciousness. Thus, survivance: hyper vitality, super vigor.
Surviving as thriving. Thriving as surviving.
- e-FLUX Arch x Guggenheim 2020
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[EXPLORATIVE MODELS]
Nature is about delicacy. It is about balance. It is about unparalleled energy. It is about fragments of a whole. It is about the state of being immersed fully in all your senses. This action of immersion, as mirrored by the movements within this assemblage, can be unpredictable; it can be unnerving, but that is the process it takes to discover SURVIVANCE.
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[THE PROGRESS]
[THE MACHINE]
The Earth began to cry aloud. The Earth is destroying much of what humans have built for themselves. They began to ask, “Did we do this?”
The machine stimulates the body and reveals visual and audible illusions, embedding a new reality within their minds that changes the entirety of their relationship with nature.
[THE ORIGIN]
[THE ARCHITECTURE]
[THE EVOLUTION]
The story began millions of years ago - a world in which nature alone existed and it was good. Humans used the resources for their own good, but things quickly got out of hand.
The architecture, which takes the form of a machine, marks the beginning of the future world, where humans are no longer in control of the built environment.
The machine grows and takes over, and the old world begins to fade away. People begin to evolve. They lose the control they’ve had.
[THE NEW WORLD]
[THE GUIDE]
[THE SUMMARY]
Hundreds of years went by, and here we are in the new world, where nature is eminent. In the new world, nature is the architect. Nature can no longer exploited.
Nature, the architect, directs the way we live by creating the spaces we need and using them. It provides natural energy that is then transported into the architecture for people to use.
Being fully immersed within nature means that humans are losing freedom, but what is beautiful is that losing freedom means gaining freedom.
[THE NEW LIFE]
[THE EXPANSION]
We can live as we normally do; however, when we start to exploit, nature warns by shaking the architecture. It’s a reminder that we should not exploit our resources.
The new world is still growing and expanding. Nature is transforming the entire planet. People are adapting and living in harmony with nature. There is no more need to look back.
05 MAXMIN NCMA COMPETITION | 3RD PLACE
Fall 2020 Instructor : Bo-Suk Hur Team members
: Brenna Fransen, Jia Lan Chow, Jihoon Kim
Production : AutoCAD, Rhino 3D, Adobe Photoshop The MaxMin block allows for environmental features such as the design of breezeblocks and greenery infills. Breezeblocks are a passive strategy for ventilation and allow for unique geometries in the facade and beautifully patterned shadows. The voids of the CMU block can be rearranged and configured to match the aesthetic of the client or to tie into the site context and culture. Greenery infills also utilize the variation in the CMU voids by placing the block on the ground as a path, allowing grass to grow through and around the block. The blocks could also be placed vertically allowing for plants to climb in and around the blocks as a trellis. The unique geometry of the zigzag design allows for variety in atmospheric qualities such as light and sound by the spaces created within the CMU. When the zigzag is placed outward, the wall can act as a form of sound absorbancy. The textures can be arranged to stagger, creating maximum surface area on walls needing to reduce sound. The voids in the center of the block leave space for color inserts to change the mood of the natural lighting entering the space.
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[FACADE VARIATIONS] 49
06 THE WATERFRONT Spring 2019 Project Site
: Riverfront, Kansas City, MO
Program : Health & Wellness Center and Commercial Instructor : Ayodele Iyanalu Production : Rhino 3D, Adobe Photoshop, Dremel 3D Printer, CNC, Hand-drawing
& Acetone-transfer
The Waterfront is a project in Kansas City, Missouri. Inspired by the urban morphology of the city, the project was designed based upon the EXTRAPOLATION OF POINTS, LINES, AND EDGES of the city’s surrounding environment. The river is a beautiful part of the urban landscape, so why are we not utilizing it as we would utilize the land? As a public-interest project, the Waterfront sought to unite people through health, fitness, and wellbeing, and commercial activities. The idea is to bring in a sort of “VIBRANT CITY” into the water.
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r e c o n STRUCTED deconSTRUCTION Everything is composed of something - simple, individual, modular pieces. broken down into
Everything has the potential of being smaller, less complex things. Eveything
can be exploded into points, lines, and edges.
The idea
behind “reconstructed deconstruction” is the whole nature of modularity, where things can be deconstructed and reconstructed into newly-composed compositions.
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VERTICALITY
HORIZONTALITY
ANGULAR EDGES
DEPTH
EXPANSION
PERSPECTIVE
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[STUDY MODELS]
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[MANIFESTO]
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[IMAGINARY LANDSCAPE] 3D Paper Relief / CNC Board
We currently see the Riverfront in Kansas City as a border stopping the public from experiencing the river itself. The river remains an untouched nature. How does architecture play a part
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in
expanding
people’s
experience
in
the
environment?
[SUPER SECTION]
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[PROGRAM DIAGRAM]
SKYWALK
OBSERVATION DECK
BRIDGE PATH
BRIDGE PATH & CIRCULATION
CIRCULATION & BIKE RACK
POP-UP CAFE
POP-UP STORE
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[EXTERIOR PERSPECTIVE] The Waterfront project is a public-interest design, intended to bring the city into the water. The river is a beautiful part of the urban landscape, yet it is not utilized to its full potential. This project allows people to jog, walk, bike, shop, and dine, while enjoying the beauty of the river.
[INTERIOR PERSPECTIVE] The spaces set apart for pop-up shops and restaurants allow fantastic, local businesses to market their products and/or services in a beautiful, unconventional setting. People who utilize the bridge are able to shop and dine, and discover new, local entrepreneurs and business-owners.
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[PHYSICAL MODEL]
06 PHOTOGRAPHY An exploration of lighting, colors, and compositions. Camera Softwares
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: :
Sony A6000; Lens: Sigma 35mm / iPhone Xr Adobe Photoshop & Lightroom
Tokyo International Forum Location: Tokyo, Japan Architect: Rafael Viñoly
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Oasis Hotel Location: Singapore, Singapore Architect: WOHA
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Library@Orchard Location: Singapore, Singapore Architect: New Space Architects
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Museum of Pop Culture Location: Seattle, WA Architect: Frank Gehry
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The Apurva Kempinksi Location: Bali, Indonesia Architect: Budiman Hendropurnomo
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Grand Canyon Location: Yellowstone National Park, WY
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Email: rskuswara@gmail.com Phone: +1 (515) 715 3881 LinkedIn Profile: Ruth Kuswara