PORTFOLIO OF ARCHITECTURE SHADI AFSHARNEZHAD MASSACHUSETTS COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN
2012 - 2015
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CONTENT 01
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A WOMAN’S PLACE
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UP ACADEMY SCHOOL
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BOSTON,MA THESIS PROJECT, ADVISOR TAMARA METZ
DORCHESTER, MA TEAM WORK, ROLE: DESIGNER, BUILDER
03 INTERFAITH WORSHIP CENTER
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GENEVA LIBRARY
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FURNITURE DESIGN
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BOSTON,MA COMPREHENISVE STUDIO, ADVISOR PAUL PATURZO
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BOSTON, MA ADVISOR HANK REISEN
ADVISOR MITCH RYERSON
RESUME
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A WOMAN’S PLACE A WOMAN’S PLACE
A Center for Women’s Empowerment in Boston’s South End
BOSTON,MA THESIS PROJECT, ADVISOR TAMARA METZ
Historically, access to space has been associated with social status and power. Those in control, usually white men, are allocated the most prominent and public spaces. Therefore, the spatial arrangement of our buildings reflects and reinforces the nature of gender, race and class in society. As an architect, I want to challenge the social, political and economic hierarchies that have shaped our public buildings today. I chose to focus specifically on gender discrimination in architecture for a number of reasons. First is the underrepresentation of women in positions of power in both the private and public sectors. Second, the creation of the city environment by those in power serves to reinforce that hierarchy, and to support the creation of spaces that are not welcoming to women. In addition, women face security concerns exacerbated by the design of urban space. But it should also be noted that women are only one of many minority groups who face persistent inequality and discrimination.
View from Third Floor to the atrium.
Page 4 - View from the corner of Washington Street and East Berekeley Street
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The building I chose to create is a Center for Women’s Empowerment. This center would provide support to enable women to engage in society to their full potential, and would also serve as a model of inclusive, non-hierarchical architecture. My design explores issues of public and private space and security, in order to create a new type of public building and a reimagining of urban public space. 5
PROJECT BACKGROUND
MIXED INCOME
SINGLE MOTHERS
MIXED ETHNICITY
EASY ACCESS
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AT THE URBAN SCALE
SOUTH END
VISIBILITY
SOUTH END
EAST BOSTON
I analyzed the relationships between public zones and private zones in the South End. The section diagram below shows the layers of public and private space and the elements that are typically used to define the transition between zones. At East Berkeley Street, The Castle Square Apartments define a semi-private zone with a wood fence and trees along East Berkeley street. On the other side of the street the edges of the garden are defined and protected with a perforated fence. The ground adjacent to the fencing was planted with a variety of plants and shrubs, both further defining and softening the edge.
PUBLIC PLAZA ROXBURY - DORCHESTER
ROXBURY - DORCHESTER
> 40 % 30 - 40 % 20 - 30 % 10 - 20 % < 10 %
> 50
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Through my research I looked for a site that would have the potential to improve womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s status. Site selection also relied heavily on a locale that mixes women at different levels of status, position and income and with a diversity of skills and backgrounds. In this way, the center I am proposing would not only help underprivileged women, but would also enable those already mid-career to attain real positions of power. In looking for my site, I searched for a location in the Boston Area with certain characteristics that supported diversity. These were mixed income, high population of single mothers, mixed ethnicity, easy access, visibility, and a new public plaza. This brought me to the South End -neighborhood of Boston.
Continuing to Dwight Street (on the left side of this section), there are different methods used to define levels of privacy. The brick row houses in this neighborhood are elevated off the street, creating a stoop and providing a semi-private zone for each building. This concept of gradual change between public and private areas will be applied in my design.
> 80 % 50 - 80 % 30 - 50 % 10 - 30 % < 10 %
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1 Family income -Percentage below the poverty line Income Map 2 Percentage of Children in Single Mother-Headed Families At or Below Poverty.
> 50 % 25 - 50 % 10 - 25 % < 10 %
4 Brick house in Dwight Street South End Boston Brick row houses in Shawmut Avenue South End - Boston
C H I NATOW N
Public Plaza B A C K B AY
SOUTH E ND
S O U T H B O ST O N
Proposed Design Plaza
3 Percentage of Children in Single Mother-Headed Families At or Below Poverty.
R O X B U RY
DWIGHT STREET
BRICK ROW HOUSE
BERKELEY COMMUNITY GARDENS
EAST BEREKELEY STREET
CASTLE SQUARE APARTMENTS
4 Family income map-Percentage below the poverty line
PUBLIC PRIVATE CHANGE ELEMENT
5 Ethnicity Map 6 Transportation map
Section showing the relation between public and private zones in South End
HISPANIC AFRICAN AMERICAN ASIAN WHITE
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Project Site
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PROPOSED SITE
SILVER LINE SILVER LINE CITY POINT -SQUARE COPLEYVIA SQUARE VIA BROADWAY CITY POINT - COPLEY BROADWAY STATION STATION CITY POINT DOWNTOWN CITY POINT DOWNTOWN BATVIEW BATVIEW POINT POINT GREEN LINE GREEN LINE
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CENTRAL SQUARE CAMBRIDGE
East-West Section Through Site
HARBOR POINT / KENMORE STATION RUGGLES STATION - PARK & TREMONT ST ORANGE LINE
CASTLE SQUARE APARTMENTS
SHAWMUT AVENUE
PROPOSED DESIGN
WASHINGTON STREET
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PRELIMINARY DESIGN
Conceptual exploration helped me to articulate the idea of ambiguity and hierarchy in space. HIERARCHY In order to question the existing social hierarchies that discriminate against women, it is essential to address the issue of hierarchy in architectural space. Through my early design work, I looked at how to challenge established hierarchies between public and private space and hierarchies of placement (i.e. lower floors vs. higher floors or ‘front’ of building vs. ‘back’ of building). AMBIGUOUS SPACE My interest in ambiguous space followed from the exploration of hierarchy. In order to create a built form that was as accessible as possible to as many people as possible, it was important to design for flexibility and user control. The ‘inbetween’ spaces I included in the program to facilitate greater interaction between users also derived from the exploration of ambiguous space. SHIFT Similar to ambiguous space, shift is an approach which challenges rigidly defined spatial forms. This allows for greater freedom for inhabitants and the possibility of multiple readings of the physical space. By shifting adjacent spaces into and through each other, intermediate spaces are formed that provide a place for programs and users to merge. The shift also questions assumed notions of use and suggests new relationships between diverse pieces of program.
Site Plan 8
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Ground Floor Plan
0 4’
8’
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Education Mentorship Public Outreach
North-South Building Section
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1 Stairs to Plaza 2 Plaza
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6 Kitchen
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9 Gallery 10 Curator’s Office
East-West Building Section
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11 Ramp to Day Care 12
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Day Care Storage Gallery Storage
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Private Entrance for Day Care Day Care Reception
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Break Room
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8 Fountain
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Washington Street
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3 Green Ramp to Plaza 1
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Second Floor Plan
Forth Floor Plan
Third Floor Plan
Fifth Floor Plan
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1 Flexible Workshop Spaces 2 Reception
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Lounge Area
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Legal Aid Garden
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Lecture Classroom
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Lounge
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Library Circulation
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Legal Office
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Storage
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Media Lab
3 Flexible Conference Area 4 Atrium
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Reading Room (Double height) Legal Aid Reception
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Break Room
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Hands-on Classroom
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Staff Kitchen
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Atrium
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5 Gallery Balcony
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Lounge
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Stage
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Auditorium Seating (Lower Level) Storage
7 Roof Garden
Library Reception
11 Open to Lower Reading Room 12 Individual Reading on Balcony 13 Library Reading Area
8 Conference Room
13 Break Room
Office
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Atrium
9 Career Counseling
14 Staff Kitchen
10 Stacks
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Lounge Area
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6 Cafe 7 Storage
3 Flexible Lecture HallEvent Hall 4 Atrium 5 Lounge Area
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ORGANIZATION
EDUCATION MENTORSHIP
PRIVATE
PUBLIC
PUBLIC OUTREACH
The final design is organized so that the three cat-
egories of program â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Education, Mentorship and Public Outreach â&#x20AC;&#x201C; are distributed throughout the building, creating flexible spaces between that allow for less formal interactions among different groups of people. The public and private spaces are also distributed in such a way as to challenge the traditional vertical hierarchy of public buildings. The spaces dedicated to public outreach, - the cafes, gallery, roof gardens and auditorium - are distributed throughout the building on all floors.This is also true for the mentorship and education spaces. This distribution encourages a mixing of different groups within the building. Spaces belonging to more than one program are distributed between the dedicated program spaces. To blur the lines between programs and to create transitional spaces, I distributed the programs between floors to encourage visitors to move through the entire building. This can be seen in the building sections below. Shown in green is public outreach, as at the first floor cafe and gallery. The blue indicates the education programs and yellow is for mentorship.The remaining colors illustrate the transitional, shifted spaces in between that can be used by all categories. These latter spaces can have a range of uses: lounging, overlooking or informal meeting areas.
It was also important to address the issue of public and private zones within this building.The in-between spaces that I am proposing provide the opportunity for people to come together who are maybe there for different reasons. For example, somebody that runs the gallery runs across someone that come for legal aid. This provides an opportunity where strangers might meet and learn from each other. 14
1. Ground Floor Plan 2. Second Floor Plan 3. Third Floor Plan 4. Fourth Floor Plan 5. Fifth Floor Plan
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East-West Section
East-West Section
North-South Section
North-South Section
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View from the building entrace and atrium View from the second floor of Library to double height reading room
View from the Green ramp in plaza
View from the Berekeley Community Gardens
South Elevation Scale 1â&#x20AC;?= 16â&#x20AC;&#x2122;
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CONCLUSION
I began my thesis with an interest in the place for women in architectural space. Through research into feminist architectural theory, I discovered the concept of gendered space and the role that gender has played in the creation of space through history. As I further explored these themes, I came to understand the modes of exclusion architecture has traditionally employed, from the domestic to the urban scale. My goal in the design of a Center for Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Empowerment was therefore to create an inclusionary architecture, one of non-hierarchical spaces. Through the use of ambiguity and shift, the building encourages communication and social destratification while giving users control over their environment. Most crucially, my work here attempts to address the larger question of inclusion and exclusion in architecture, whether it be based on gender, class, ethnicity, orientation, or physical ability.
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PROJECT CREDITS
UP ACADEMY SCHOOL DORCHESTER, MA
TEAM WORK, ROLE: DESIGNER, BUILDER
SHADI AFSHARNEZHAD KYLE ALLEN JEFF EICHERT HAZEL RYERSON MICHAEL SACK ZACK SHEDLOCK LUCY SNYDER CHRISTINA TULLY ALEX WEBER
PROFESSOR SAM BATCHELOR
UP ACADEMY DORCHESTER
TEACHING ASSISTANT SHANE GIBBONS
COMMUNITY BUILD 2013
PHOTO CREDITS SHADI AFSHARNEZHAD
The project for this class was to design and build a new entry courtand identity for Up Academy in Fields Corner, Dorchester. Our project reflected the transformative nature of the change from The Marshall to Up Academy, and promoted a positive, welcoming environment for students coming to school. The concept behind the design of this project was to use the existing site conditions and develop a system of layering that would create a gradient that extended to both edges of the site. We developed this through the use of horiztonal lines that followed the long linear shape of the site. We feathered the edges to create a transition between materials. Using mostly wood and large landscape features, we created a more welcoming entrance to the school.The large UP Academy Dorchester sign helped to define the schools new identity. The east side of the site, which is the narrower side of the site largely focuses on the two outdoor learning spaces. The depressed spaces are wrapped in wood and feature synthetic lawn on the bottom. A perforated children sign and a family resource center sign are wrapped in wood on the deck. Small rectangular gardens and sawcut lines were designed on either sides of the deck to carry the horizontal linearity of the design through out the site. The west side of the site is the wider and higher part of the site. It features a large deck area, with benches wrapped in wood, as well as large rain gardens which feather into the deck.
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INTERFAITH WORSHIP CENTER
INTERFAITH WORSHIP CENTER
BOSTON,MA COMPREHENISVE STUDIO, ADVISOR PAUL PATURZO ,AIA
The goal of this project was to create a worship center for gathering people with different religions and make it welcoming for all. I started the design of this center with the concept of layering and interlocking elements such as its structure. The main space and it structure is sloped toward the interior sacred courtyard. All the interior and exterior courtyards slopes down toward the peacefull interior courtyard and pool and brings the special moment for people inside the worship space.The interlocking and layering concept can be seen also in the envelope of the main worship space as the glass building is covered with marble.This give the privacy to prayers and also penetrates lights and texture to the space.
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Main Lobby Worship Space Service Prep. Administration Secondary Lobby Mechanical Womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restroom Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restroom Conference Room Cafe
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Colonade Entrance Social Hall Terraced Landscape Storage Catering Social Hall Lobby Waiting Room-Counseling Counseling Center
Secondary Lobby Stairs to Basement 22 Library 23 Single Restroom 24 Office 25 Sacred Inner Courtyard 26 Witch Hazel Garden 27 Pool 20
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GENEVA PUBLIC LIBRARY GENEVA LIBRARY BOSTON, MA
STUDIO DESIGN 2012 ADVISOR HANK REISEN, AIA
A community library for the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston The library building is divided into three branches with courtyards in between. The roof is composed of curves that differ according to the spaces underneath. The ribs of the roof weave and intersect each other to create spaces with different levels of privacy. The courtyards between the branches are covered with the roof ribs to provide a welcoming outdoor space. The buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s roof acts as a transition between the interior and exterior spaces of the building.
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1. Library Entrance 2. Circulation Desk 3. Egree Stair 4. Restroom 5. Storefrton Space 6. Gallery 7. Reading Area 8. Stacks 9. Cafeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Kitchen 10. Cafe 11. Elevator 12. Children Area 13. Story Time Room 14. Children Restroom 15. Restroom 16. Egress Strair 17. Auditorium 18. Monument Stair 19. Fountain 20. Paver Path 21. Parking 22. Handicap Parking 23, Garden
UP
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1. Atrium 2. Reading Room 3. Stacks
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Third Floor Plan
Second Floor Plan
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Ground Floor Plan
UP
4. Classroom 5. Restroom 6. Egress Stair
7. Auditorium 8. Administration 9. Office
10. Teanage Room 11. Study Room 12. Elevator
13. Study Carols 14. Group Study Room
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FURNITURE DESIGN FURNITURE DEISGN FURNITURE STUDIO ADVISOR MITCH RYERSON
Natural branches were gathered in the woods and used as the starting point for a sculpture and a piece of furniture. In the first piece different curvaceous branches and roots created the figure of a seated ballerina on the ground. In the second piece the forked branches were selected to be the legs of a live edge cherry top table. Each of these branches has two or more contacts with the top and also creates a triangle at the base for stability.
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afsharnezhad.shadi@gmail.com 150 Myrtle Ave. Apt. 407, Brooklyn, New York 617.435.0974
SHADI AFSHARNEZHAD
+ MArch + BSc Electrical Engineering + Electrical Engineering
EDUCATION EXPERIENCE DESIGNER and BUILDER
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UP Academy, Boston
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Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston
Community Build Program, Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Document development,Model Making, Presentation Renderings, On-Site Photography, Construction
Team Member
INSTRUCTOR
Summer2013
Summer2015
• Architecture and Design Course - Creative Vacation Program • 2D Drawing Course - Summer Studios Program • Architectural Drawing Teacher in ARTWARD BOUND Program Prepared course materials, Taught courses for foundation and upper level curriculum, engaging and advising students in the conceptualization and technical drawings
TEACHING ASSISTANT
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SUPERVISOR ENGINEER
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Khorasan Electric Industrial Inc., Iran
2011-2012
ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
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Sepehr Parto Electronic Company, Iran
2010-2011
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Architectural 3D Modeling, Drafting and Architectural Visual Rendering
• Architectural Technical Drawing, Instructor: Paul Hajian • Light As a Sculptural Element, Instructor: Elaine Buckholtz • Studio for Drawing, Instructor: Juan Ormaza • Visual Language, Instructor: Juan Ormaza Coordination of semester end reviews, daily class preparation, curriculum development, fieldtrip Coordination, final review presentation and installation Attending weekly Critiques, Mentoring students.
Supervisor Engineer in Factory, Control Systems Qualification control of Electronic Boards, Designing Electronic Boards with Altium Designer Program
SKILLS SOFTWARE
CRAFTING 50
Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston 2012-2015 Purdue University, Indianapolis 2007-2010 University of Tehran, Iran 2005-2007
+
REVIT
AUTOCAD
RHINOCEROS
SKETCHUP
3DS MAX
VRAY
GRASSHOPPER
INDESIGN
PHOTOSHOP
ILLUSTRATOR
Model Making, Laser cut, Furniture Design and Wood Fabrication, Jewelry Design and Metal Fabrication, Sculpture, Free hand Sketching, Drawing, Painting (Color Pencil, Water Color, Markers, Charcoals, Acrylic, Pastel), Ceramic Art, Photography, Calligraphy
Spring2015 Spring2015 Fall2013 Fall2012
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SHADI AFSHARNEZHAD afsharnezhad.shadi@gmail.com 617.435.0974
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