Portfolio
Architecture + Design
Sepideh Azin Pratt Institute Bachelor of Architecture
The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people to know what it is are the ones who have gone over. Hunter S. Thompson
Selected Works 01
Villa Complex
11
Administration Building
21
kindergarten
31
Library
39
Dormitory
49
Dynamic System
57
Where it all started
65
AA Visiting School
71
Furniture
77
Resume
Veisar Villa Complex Firm: Metamorphorsis Method Location: Kojoor, Iran
Veisar Villa Complex Kojoor, Iran
Kojoor is a small area in Mazandaran, a city north of Iran. The area is known for its beautiful mountains and greenery. We were asked to design 60 units of vilas between 180 and 200 m2. The concept of the complex started by us looking at plants root growth and branching of the root as it grows further into the ground. From there we started the design process. Capturing the beautiful views and dealing with the steep slope of the site was both the most interesting and challenging part of the project. The project is in its second phase of production.
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Emergence of Form
Added green space
End Result
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Entrance Mud closet Half Bathroom Utility closet Full Bathroom Master bedrooms bathroom Closet Master Bedroom Bedroom Diningroom Kitchen Livingroom Balcony bedrooms half level master bedroom half level
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Administration Building Professor: Loue Goodman
Administration Building Eaglebrook campus, NY
“A building advances through tentative answers to a series of more subtle questions which reach deeper and deeper into the essence of appropriate experience within constructed form” The studio is about the relationship of theory and practice. the development of a students ideas with the creative demands a building’s realization requires fulfilling a concept through the artful expressiveness of “craft”, it’s fabrication and detailing, is a focus of attention. The projects through which this information is explored is an Administration building on the Eaglebrook campus. The building is considered a result of the initial idea and the questions the reality of the project raises. It is an organic process, is that the initial concept is modified and evolves to it’s final form, a record of the process of change, responsive to circumstances, conditions and context. Underlying issues common to buildings are explored; The program, site condition, landforms, structural and geometric clarity, spatial hierarchy, private and public spaces, the building that “reads” or is ambiguous. The building is a form balancing internal and external conditions and requirements with aesthetic aspirations.
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Massing Diagram
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Student Entrance Waiting Area Offices Restrooms Main Entrance Indoor Garden Headmasters Office Employee Lounge Conference Room
B
B
C
A
C
A
First Floor Plan
Second Floor Plan
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Section A - A
Section B - B
Section C - C
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Kindergarten Professor: Gregory Merryweather
Montessori Kindergarten Staten Island, NY
Educating children, and especially young children, is one of the most important responsibilities of any society. Between daycare and elementary school, the kindergarten in particular represents a critical point in childs transition into society. Prir to the mid 1800’s, however, in open education system in general, and early childhood education in particular was virtually non-existent. Individuals like Juan-Jacques Rousseau and Johann Pestalozzi fundamentally reshaped education and proposed what became the basis of “child centric” modern educational philosophy. Freidrich Froebel began teaching young children at a Pestalozzi school in Switzerland, after himself studying mathematics, botany and crystallography at a time of profound changes in the sciences. Froebel, who coined the term “kindergarten”, was the earliest and the most outspoken advocate for early education and sought to systematize learning through the development of a series of educational tools that looked and felt like games but within each lies a lesson, or work. These lessons link together pedagogically and geometrically becoming a curriculum, progressing from the plastic and physical, towards the abstract and representational.
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We first were asked to design a machine. The contraption was a series of gears, arranged in two layers. Different power magnets were imbedded in five of the gears. Then a layer of plexiglass with metal shavings on top was placed on top of the gears. As I operated the gears, them magnets would attract the shavings based on the strength of the magnet below.
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The Froebel system was the conceptual basis of this project. The process began with the design of a highly intricate prototypical classroom. Using the machine for inspiration, these classrooms were then repeated or iterated and their strategies were extended to develope the larger interior and exterior environment of the overall kindergarten which was located on a steeply sloping site.
Library Bookshelves/stairs Library Study Area
Bookshelves/stairs
Study Area
Play Ground Offices Classrooms Music room Nurses Office Cafeteria
C
A
B
B
A
C
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Section C - C
Section A - A
Section B - B
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Library Professor: Richard Sarrach
Rare Book Library The Bowery, Manhattan, NY
Due in part to the abundance and pervasiveness of information, the library as an institution is in the process of shifting its status from what has often been assumed to be an absolute or complete repository of meaning and culture to something more limited and marginal. In parallel, In parallel, contemporary culture is generally focused less on the accumulation of knowledge and more on ideas, and so, the library is becoming less a museum or storage facility, and more a place to spontaneously and dynamically access and exchange information through a variety of techniques. Given these fundamental transformations, how can we re-evaluate and re-imagine the library today? What new functions does it need to take on and what can slip away? how can we enhance a library’s engaging a public dialogue with knowledge and history, both printed and otherwise? How might a library adopt to the spatial implications of a mediated environment and these new functions? What implications to “local” and “global” exist in this context? How might a library assert itself as an integral part of a neighborhood, a city and this omnipresent field of information?
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tree tie S
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In ancient history the library was established as a repository of wisdom and knowledge which was preserved for exclusive use by scholars and protected for the benefit of future generations. It is only very recent history, as populations became more literate and society became more democratic that libraries were established to provide people with the opportunity to access knowledge and information once only accessible to the wealthy, educated and elite members of society.
Private Study Rooms Computer Room Book Stacks Public Area Group Meeting Room Offices Entrance Public Study Area Cafe’ Area Auditorium
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Ground Floor
4th Floor Plan
B
A
A
-1 Floor Plan
B
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Section A - A
Section B - B
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Dormitory Professor: Suzan Wines
Pratt Dormitory Astor Place, Manhattan
The site, Astor Place, is home to the academic institutions of New York University and the Cooper Union, cultural institutions such as the New Museum, and housing types both contemporary and historical. The conceptualization of individual action as dwelling, assembly as housing, and the assembly of institutions as city, requires a cognizance of the movement from the self to the social collective.... from the formulation of an institution to that of the city. it is perhaps most particularly this nexus between dwelling and urbanism that gives rise to the necessity of places of exchange and interaction, and serves as focus of this housing proposal. Defined places of “serendipitous encounter” serve as formative programmatic agents in developing critical relationships between private and public constituencies. The goal in bringing the imperative of urban gestures, both external and internal, to program is to reinforce and support architectures important role in social practice. The program expands upon the requirements of residences by defining collective places that must negotiate relationships between residents and the larger community, drawing out relationships of the personal and the social. perhaps as Jane Jacobs reasons “there is no public acquaintanceship, no foundation of public trust without an active sidewalk life.”
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This diagram shows the potential I initially had seen in this site. The site is located at a major intersection and has the opportunity to become a place of gathering for the many creative institutions in the area. It can become a place for exchange of Ideas and innovation. With that in mind, the mass of the structure was shaped and middle was left open to serve as a passageway and a gathering area for public.
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The student dormitory is an experiment in new ways of designing and living in a communal space. it challenges the lifestyle of students in the age of globalization and social media. it supposes new ways of living and interacting with your neighbors. Thus the project provides a variety of public spaces that would encourage them to interact with one another as well as outsiders. It was important for me to create different room options for the occupants yet still inforce the interactions and preserve a level of privacy. Therefore I created smaller double rooms that share a central work space/library, there are larger double rooms that are more private and do not interact with others and there are triple spaces that interact through a central library.
Roof Plan
B
10th Floor Plan B
6th Floor Plan
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Section A - A
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Section B - B
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Dynamic System Professor: Mark Parsons
Educational Satellites Barranquilla, Colombia
The goal of this studio was to formulate architectonic strategies for the creation of dynamic learning environments in the rural and urban environments of Barranquilla, Colombia. An emergent global economic power and a free trade zone designation place colombia in a position for rapid growth in the world economy. Yet educational practices and standards in colombia have not served both urban and rural populations equally. One measure of this disparity is found in the literacy rates of the urban population (93%) as compared to that of the rural population (53%). How can low cost, responsive, and architecturally dynamic enclosures be designed to visually identify and programmatically support educational efforts in a diversity of locations in and around Barranquilla, Colombia? Educational Satellites studio is based on the premise that inexpensive, deployable, dynamically adaptable structures -designed specifically for educational and community purposes- and placed appropriately relative to the urban infrastructural fabric and or rural township organizations, would architecturally highlight and inspire a renewed commitment to education in Barranquilla.
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Where it all Started
Landscape Brian Ripel
We were asked to design a landscape using wood mullions. By creating a strict system inspired by ocean waves, I designed a landscape that integrates the material and the concept.
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Cube Phase Filip Tejchman
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Morphology Haresh Lalvani
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AA Tehran Visiting school Instructor: Omid Kamvari
AA Tehran Visiting School: The Third Place: Urban Machines
Tehran, Iran’s capital, ranks among the world’s fastest growing cities. In the early 1940s, Tehrans population was about 700,000, today, the metropolitan area has more that 10 million residents. This explosive growth has had environmental and public health consequences including air and water pollution and the loss of arable land and public realm. The ever increasing land value makes developments and the replacement of urban open space an easy choice. With a young population and cars the main mode of transport, the major highways of tehran come to a grinding halt during rush hour. Current solutions put forward to ease congestion have been the construction of more highways, but this will only resolve the issue in the short term. Our challenge will be to examine the possibilities of left over spaces and the potential for augmentation and reuse of such infrastructure in the future. We will be looking at infill sites, leftover spaces which have been generated as a result of inefficient use of public roads to examine the potential for the generation of usable public space, or in other words the third place (the first being the home, the second the workplace). Our ambition is to produce and implement these proposals on site across the city.
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The Urban Machine Funnism
"Usually, terrible things that are done with the excuse that progress requires them are not really progress at all, but just terrible things." -Russell Baker The Investigation for this site started from observing the lack of consideration for the human element. The massive structure is difficult for one to connect to because of it’s scale. As the city has become more and more populated with cars, the space dedicated to pedestrians has become almost nonexistent. This has pushed pedestrians to use the street to fulfill their need to walk from one point to the next, catch taxis and etc. This fact is especially visible under the second level of Sadr highway. The sidewalks are inconsistent and broken and public services are poorly connected. Walking into the highway to get to these public services are extremely dangerous. Now should our infrastructures adapt to us or should we adapt to our infrastructures? In my project I am suggesting that the human becomes the machine to take back what is theirs. This includes a change in scale so that human is no longer viewed as the small creature that doesn’t matter; and it also suggest increasing power and protection against cars and what’s to come. In reality, my project is introducing a new horizon for the pedestrian to view the bridge and also to protect them from the incoming traffic while walking in the street. By designing a recording device with an adjustable height, I viewed the site in both the existing condition and the elevation I am interested to work with. My interest in using recycled materials, got me thinking about a car that had gone out of cycle not too long ago, paykan. This car that once was an Icon for Iran, was discontinued in 2006 and was replaced by less durable pride. In result I used Paykan body parts to make a protective shell for the pedestrian.
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Furniture Professor: Mark Parsons
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Info Name
Sepideh Azin
DOB
02/27/1988
Address
558 Parkside Ave, Brooklyn, NY
Contact
347-205-5782 sepidehazin@me.com
Education 2013
The Architectural Association Tehran Global School
Tehran, Iran
2008-2013
Pratt Institute, Bachelor of Architecture
Brooklyn, NY
2007-2008
Queensborough Community College, Liberal Art Studies
Queens, NY
2005-2007
Bayside High school
Queens, NY
2002-2005
Adab High School
Tehran, Iran
Aug31-Sep14
The work was then exhibited in a museum for public to view.
Work Experience 2014 Mar-Present
Total Metal Resources (TMR) Fabrication Apprenticeship - Assisting the head Fabricator in different parts of the build process including
build, finishing and instalation; Mig and Tig welding, polishing, applying finishes, making sure the project is up to the expected standard before instalation.
2013-2014 Sep-Feb
Metamorphosis Architectural Design Firm Intern - Schematic design, concept design, production of drawings, 3D rendering and
graphical presentation - Conducted form study for aviation industry site (Havafanavar Competition, 1st place)
2008-2013
Pratt Institute Shop Technician - Wood shop, - Supervised completing - Maintained
Metal shop, Laser shop, 3D Printing Lab and trained use of equipment; assisted students and faculty with their work and other projects. a safe workshop and managed maintenance of tools.
Professional Skills Digital Skills Rhino 3D modeling AutoCAD Vray Maxwell Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign Hands on Skills Wood work, Metal work, Model building, Furniture building
Personal Skills - Self-starter; can work well as part of a team or independently - Ability to meet deadlines - Project management experience - Flexible and able to adapt to meet challenges - Good sense of humor - Fluent in Farsi and English
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