VALERIETARANTO
VALERIE TARANTO valerietaranto.com +1.732.615.8046 | vtaranto@usc.edu
EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA; Los Angeles, CA Class of 2022 Bachelor of Architecture, Comparative Literature Minor Design Studios: Prefabricated Housing for CA Farmworkers, Co-living Apartments, Adapting LA Sheds UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY; Berkeley, CA emBARC Summer Environmental Design Program 2016
PROFESSIONAL
USC INITIATIVE TO ELIMINATE HOMELESSNESS; Los Angeles, CA Architectural Intern, June 2020 - present Researching innovative housing typologies; visually representing information using drawings and diagrams; interviewing architects and developers SETTEMBRINO ARCHITECTS; Red Bank, NJ Architectural Intern, Summer 2019 Developed renderings of on-going projects; worked on schematic & construction documents; edited shop drawings; executed color boards for active projects; communicated with clients and assisted with administrative duties KEITH GLASSMAN PHOTOGRAPHY; Tel Aviv, IL Photography Assistant, Summer 2018 Set-up studio lighting; photographed client’s material for magazines and websites’; edited photographs using Adobe Photoshop CLEAN OCEAN ACTION; Highlands, NJ Nonprofit Intern, 2016 - 2017 Planned and organized beach sweeps and environmental festivals; designed graphics for events and social media; educated the public about sustainable practices through speeches and tabling
LEADERSHIP
USC UNDERGRADUATE ARCHITECTURE STUDENT COUNCIL Director of Communication, 2019 - 2020 Interviewed and photographed students and professors for the newsletter; designed and wrote content for the monthly newsletter USC I AM THAT GIRL Chapter President, 2019 - 2020; Outreach Director, 2018-2019 IATG is an organization that aims to create social change through discussion. As Chapter Leader, I initiated discussions about relevant societal and campus topics with students; as Outreach Director, I organized collaborations with other organizations.
PROJECTS
GENDERED PLACES, FEARED SPACES September 2020 - present Questioning citizens’ relationship to the built environment of Los Angeles, in an online publication featuring architectural diagramming. Focusing on the experience of women and gender minorities, this project aims to highlight exclusionary urban spaces in a series of exhibitions in Los Angeles by fostering curiosity, questions, and conversations.
AWARDS
NATIONAL SMITHSONIAN COOPER HEWITT STUDENT #THINKOUTSIDE DESIGN CHALLENGE Finalist, March 2016 Designed an outdoor chair inspired by Cooper Hewitt’s world-renowned collection that is functional, comfortable, and unexpected. https://www.cooperhewitt.org/education/student-design-challenge-2/
VOLUNTEER
MFS’ PROJECT, DESIGNED BY NLÉ WORKS; 2020 Project unfinished due to COVID-19 Constructed the fourth iteration of the floating school, to be built in MacArthur Park, LA. IF NOT NOW; 2019 - 2020 Educating the American Jewish community about the Israeli occupation through community events.
SKILLS
Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Indesign; Rhinoceros 3D; Autodesk AutoCAD and Inventor; Sketchup Time and Resource Management, Verbal and Written Communication, Research
PROJECTS ARCHITECTURE NESTING BLOCKS URBAN GARDEN APARTMENTS KINDER-GARDEN EAMES ADDITION THE FIELD LEIMERT PARK COMMUNITY CENTER
POTTERY WHEEL-THROWN HAND-BUILT
NESTING BLOCKS USING THE STAIR TO CREATE AN ADAPTABLE PREFAB HOME FOURTH YEAR FALL, PROFESSOR JENNIFER SIEGAL The Nesting Blocks are prefabricated modules, imagined as life-size building blocks that come together to create a home. They are intended to suit the lifestyles of a variety of migrant California farmworkers, from families to groups of temporary summer workers. There are three adaptable prototypes, designed for one or more functions of sleeping, working, eating, cooking, hygiene, and living. They have various configurations according to the needs and lifestyles of the inhabitants. The modules all exist within a 12’ cube, and were designed using staircases that vary in scale as objects to define spatial division, provide storage, and distinguish privacy thresholds within each module.
Top row: “Stage” module axonmetric (kitchen or bedroom), and configurations in plan Second row: “Split” module axonmetric (kitchen or bedroom), and configurations in plan Third row: “Social” module axonmetric, (kitchen or community space), and configurations in plan
Various configurations of the stage, split, and social modules.
Top: section perspective with off-grid system details Bottom: section perspective with wall details
URBAN GARDEN APARTMENTS USING THE VEGETABLE GROWING PROCESS AS CIRCULATION THIRD YEAR FALL, PROFESSOR ANDY KU This task of this project was to create a co-living apartment building on the corner of Figueroa and Slauson in South Central Los Angeles. My coliving design is intended for but not limited to young families, and revolves around the circulation of urban farming. All of the shared components in the building revolve around the gardening process, from growing to selling, preparing, eating, and composting. The gardens are on the roof surfaces of the southern facade of each of the five floors. Each roof is 3’ thick to allow for soil depth. In plan the corridor is minimized by an open floor plan in which circulation goes through the common areas of living and cooking. Each kitchen has direct access to the gardens on each level. This co-living garden aims to bring fresh produce to the community and promote green space amongst the concrete jungle.
Top: exterior perspective Bottom: interior section perspective
Top: second to fifth floor plans showing the arrangement of bedrooms and community spaces. Bottom: section perspective revealing interior functions, form, and garden activity
KINDERGARDEN EVOLVING THE SAWTOOTH TO CREATE OUTDOOR SPACE SECOND YEAR SPRING, PROFESSOR ERIC NULMAN
Through analysis of the Sawtooth truss system, this project aimed to transform the building into a kindergarten. The kindergarten is organized to focus around an outdoors education and collaborative space. Semi-transparent surfaces are emphasized through geometric glass walls created by the truss form. The semi-transparent walls create ethereal shadows and light conditions that are captivating and inspiring to be under. The forms create walls that obstruct the original sawtooth and create classrooms while letting in natural light.
Top: section persepctive with pulled out details Bottom: plan perspective with pulled out details
Photos showing details and materials of model.
Photos showing details and materials of model.
LEIMERT PARK COMMUNITY CENTER DESIGNING THE FISHBOW TRUSS IN A BASKETBALL COURT THIRD YEAR SPRING, PROFESSOR CHRISTOF JANTZEN The focus of this project was to design a truss system inspired by LA industrial long span buildings while re-thinking the enclosure walls and roof membrane. With a project site situated in the South LA neighborhood of Leimert Park, an historically prominent African American community currently undergoing urban renewal and gentrification, I aimed to synthesize site context, program, tectonics, and environmental control systems. Through analysis of the urban fabric and environment surrounding Leimert Park, I created a community center focused on interactions in the shared gardens. I emphasized circulation by placing the entrance in the center of the structure and filters into the gathering spaces and gardens on the east side of the site.
Top: axonometric from north east part of site Middle: west elevation Bottom: west section displaying truss systems and circulation
Top: interior perspective revealing second floor galleries and circulation Bottom: interior perspective of truss system and basketball court
EAMES ADDITION ANALYZING VIEWPOINTS TO CREATE INTERSECTING FORMS FIRST YEAR FALL, PROFESSOR ERIN KASIMOW
This project was created to be an addition onto the site of the Eames House in the Pacific Palisades. The Eames House was constructed by Charles and Ray Eames to serve as their own home and studio. The forms were created from a study of the 2468 House in Venice, CA. By analyzing the intersections of overlapping viewpoints through the vantages in the 2468 house, I created volumes from the viewing territories. The structure takes advantage of multiple levels and wide windows to draw in natural lighting and inspiration. The addition is placed on the Southwest corner of the site facing the ocean, intended to be an artistic workspace for residents.
Left: axonometric Right: exploded axonmetric
Top: front view of model Bottom: side view of model against slope
THE FIELD EXPLORING FORMAL METHODS TO CREATE A PLAYFUL FIELD FIRST YEAR SPRING, PROFESSOR MYRNA AYOUB This project is based off of a field condition that was created from concentric circles. The field condition was developed to be an interactive space through various architectural operations, such as extrusion and subtraction. The dramatic space is meant for humans of all ages and sizes, to explore and feel as if they are on a playground.
Plan drawing of the field condition.
Detail photos of the field condition model.
POTTERY WHEEL-THROWN & HAND-BUILT 2019-2021 The creation of following pieces were exciting for me to explore clay types, glazes, techniques, and to form relationships with my pieces. I enjoy observing my work throught the evolving perspectives of the process from the raw clay to greenware, and after each stage of firing and glazing. Being a potter has allowed me to converse with the clay throughout various stages and scales of the user experience.
Handbuilt dessert plate series.
Top row: assorted wheel-thrown and handbuilt mugs Bottom row: (from left to right) handbuilt berry strainer, wheel-thrown pasta bowl, wheel-thrown pitcher