Arbor Garden
PPVC Residential Building
Parallel Bathhouse
One-way Roof System Bathhouse
Architectural Design
TOP’S Memorial Center
African American Gun Violence Memorial
Musico-Living Building
Live/Work Co-houisng
Warped Surfaces
Robotic Hot Wire Foam Cutting
Morphological Fabrication
Fractal Polyomino Surfaces
Laser-cut Plywood Tiling
ARBOR GARDEN
Project Type: Residential Reconstruction
Location: 234 Sand Street, Brooklyn, NY
Collaborators: Aladin Lalicic, Derek Duran
Professor: Ajmal Aqtash
Arbor Garden proposes a Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction (PPVC) solution for redeveloping 234 Sand Street, replacing the NYCHA Farragut Houses. Utilizing the Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) approach, the project integrates a dedicated module assembly factory and Omniverse simulations to streamline workflows, offering a rapid, sustainable, and scalable response to NYC’s housing crisis. The project incorporated detailed simulations of both manufacturing workflows and on-site assembly sequences that informed the overall design, streamlining processes from singular timber strip preparation to full module fit-out. Arbor Garden presents a forward-thinking approach to urban housing by combining sustainable materials, advanced technologies, and innovative construction methods to create a scalable solution for the challenges facing NYC’s residential landscape.
PARALLEL BATHHOUSE
Project Type: Social Bathhouse
Location: Astoria Park, Brooklyn, NY
Individual Work
Professor: Maria Vrdoljak
Parallel Bathhouse is a modern reinterpretation of Roman bathing culture, situated in Astoria Park, Brooklyn. Inspired by the National Museum of Roman Art in Mérida, Spain by Rafael Moneo, the design features parallel vaulted spaces, rhythmic use of arches and the layering of roof systems, evoking Roman construction techniques while serving modern programmatic needs. Roof systems were carefully studied to optimize natural light and ventilation, incorporating elements like clerestory windows and skylights to create an open and inviting atmosphere. The bathhouse blends seamlessly into the park’s natural landscape, serving as both a community hub and a tranquil retreat, it reimagines ancient gathering spaces in a contemporary urban context.
Site: Astoria Park, Brooklyn, NY
19 19th St, Astoria, NY 11105, US
Astoria Park, located in Brooklyn, is a well-connected urban park with easy access via public transportation, including nearby subway stations and bus routes. The park features pedestrian pathways that lead visitors seamlessly to the Parallel Bathhouse site, allowing for smooth circulation from surrounding areas. The park’s natural landscape blends with designed circulation routes, offering both tranquil retreat areas and open spaces for community interaction. Visitors experience a gradual transition from the open park environment to more intimate spaces, guided by clear pathways and the surrounding architecture. The layout emphasizes accessibility, intuitive flow, and integration with the natural surroundings, creating an inclusive space for all.
Rendering
Rendering
TOP’S MEMORIAL CENTER
Project Type: Social African American Gun Violence Memorial
Location: 1275 Jefferson Avenue, Buffalo, NY
Individual Work
Professor: Scott Ruff
The Gun Violence Memorial Center honors the victims of the 2022 Buffalo shooting with ten rooftop memorials and three stones at the entrance, offering a space for remembrance and reflection across from Tops Friendly Market. Its design adapts to Buffalo’s seasons, with flooding in spring and summer symbolizing impermanence and freezing in winter representing resilience, while water features highlight healing and renewal in African American culture. The structure’s form merges natural contours with the Christian cross, unintentionally resembling a gun as a reminder of the tragedy’s cause. Through its symbolism, the memorial fosters unity and hope in the face of violence and division.
Subtracting Contouring Voids
a. interpretative center
b. Church: christian funeral/memorial service
c. catacombs
d. public restroom
e. food bank
f. auditorium
g. accesible rooftop
h. memorial platforms
MUSICO-LIVING BUILDING
Project Type: Social Housing
Location: 1275 Jefferson Avenue, Buffalo, NY
Collaborators: Christina Hu
Professor: Ronald Didonno
The Musico-Living Building is a co-living and working residential space designed to support low-income musicians in pursuing their artistic dreams. It provides affordable housing alongside shared amenities like rehearsal rooms and recording studios, fostering creativity and collaboration among residents. Central to the building is the Music Tower, a performance venue with a separate entrance that welcomes the community for weekly events, creating a bridge between musicians and the neighborhood. This dual-purpose design ensures privacy for residents while encouraging cultural exchange and community engagement. The building offers an inclusive and inspiring environment that enriching the local community through the power of music.
WARPED SURFACES
Project Type: Robotic Hot Wire Foam Cutting
Principal Investigator: Haresh Lalvani
Research Intern: Ahan Patil
UG Research Assistants: Sara Su, Teressa Freeman Robotics Lab: Greg Sheward
The Warped Surface Morphology Fabrication project investigates the creation of self-supporting architectural geometries derived from cubic forms, combining robotic cutting and 3D printing techniques. Using Rhino and Grasshopper, model surface profiles are modeled and translated into precise G-code for fabricating modules from white bead EPS foam stock. The research tests the structural feasibility of these warped surfaces by integrating a 3D-printed tension frame that eliminates the need for adhesives. This project advances the understanding of scalable and modular surface systems applications in architectural design.
The cutting process begins with modeling selected ruled surface profiles in Rhino and Grasshopper, which are then translated into G-code for precise execution by the robot’s cutting software. The cutting sequence is carefully organized to shape the top surface first, followed by the four side surfaces, and finally the bottom surface, releasing the module from the foam stock. White bead EPS foam stock is secured on a custom jig optimized for prototyping, which streamlines the workflow through three steps: lifting the foam stock, adding a 3-inch plate, and extracting the cut module. This method enables the efficient extraction of multiple shells from each module. Each 2-inch tall foam block produces 2–3 modules, depending on their scale and orientation. Six modules are assembled to create one full hex saddle, serving as a key structural and morphological unit. These hex saddles can also undergo fractal divisions into patterns such as 1x1, 2x2, and beyond, offering versatile and scalable design possibilities.
FRACTAL POLYOMINO SURFACES
Project Type: 3-Plywood Laser-Cut
Principal Investigator: Haresh Lalvani
Research Associate: Robinson Strong
UG Research Assistants: Natalia Rossi, Ethan Peng, Sara Su, Bell Wang
“We introduce fractal polymino surface structures and show one example using self-similar scalable triominoes as part of our continuing work on HyperSurfaces, Polyominoes are cellular structures composed of cells (like a square) that fit. For a square cell, a triomino has 3 fused cells, a pentamino has 5 fused cells, and so on. Two L-shaped triominoes can be folded into a cube, 4 to build the cell of a hypercube and 10 for the 6D cube. We used the 72-degree rhombus as the cell to drive tilted alphabet shapes which are tilted recursively to build fractal triomino surfaces. Image show a fractal triomino cube(3D), its tilted versions, and the outer shell of a 6D cube”(Lalvani).
