Vikash Parbhoo_Undergraduate Arch. Portfoliio

VikashPARBHOO

Architecture Portfolio

Selected Undergraduate Work 2017

INTRODUCTION

This architecture portfolio includes a selection of my undergraduate university work as well as a few key projects which I have worked on in practice.

My experiences have taught me that there is a surplus of creative and technological possibilities in the world. It can be found in aspects of history, theory and design in architecture. During my undergraduate studies, my passions in the above-mentioned aspects were reflected in my achievements, being a recipient of the top student for my studies in 2014, awarded two Deans Merits of excellence and awarded best National Diploma student over 3 years.

Architecture has also enabled me to flourish on a mental and emotional level. My aptitude within the field has expanded by gaining work experience at dhk architects. I was able to engage in numerous projects ranging from small to large mixed-use developments.

My passions in the built environment have always encompassed the connection that nature has on humans and their behaviour. This involves the relationship that people have through interacting with a site, a certain material, light and dark spaces, small or large spaces as well as the elements that offer sustainable value to communities. This is a similar thread that I had envisioned to create through my work, seen in this portfolio.

All images indicated have been produced and belong to the authour of this portfolio, unless otherwise stated. This portfolio or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the authour.

vparbhoo94@gmail.com | +27(0) 76 6045 234

CREATIVE LEARNING HUB

The aim of the ‘Creative Learning Hub’ project is to challenge our preconceptions about how we learn and what kind of learning spaces are required to meet the contemporary needs of students and educators. It is the intention of this project to explore innovative alternatives which respond to the relationship between pedagogy, space and technology.

I trusted one of my passions, to design a film institute. The programmatic brief for the institution includes understanding the pedagogic technological and spatial requirements of the chosen program, bearing in mind that the intention of the project is to challenge conventional models of educational spaces. The proposed institution is required to respond to appropriate proposals of urban landscaping, public linkages, economic activities as well as architectural massing.

LOTUS PARK

The brief was to design an early childhood development centre in a dense informal settlement in Lotus Park. The proposal had to link with the surrounding urban fabric facilities such as an adjacent sports field, neighbourhood centre and surrounding transport routes.

This project focuses on social understanding and tectonic innovation. As such this project aims to expose you to architectural practice in an informal context, where the role of the architectural professional is much broader than in traditional commercial practice. The proposal accommodates indoor and outdoor learning spaces for various age groups of up to 80 children, staff offices, prep rooms and necessary servant spaces. The design contributes to the positive making of quality space, not only for itself but for the area and street that it is situated in. There was a need to exemplify defined pedestrian paved areas and seating hubs around the proposed structure - creating a sense of safety as well as forms of interaction with the structure and community member.

Sustainable technologies are employed, including natural ventilation mechanisms, solar energy, a windmill pump and rainwater harvesting tanks. The design technology is mainly labour intensive, to provide work for the local community, comprises of light steel frame structures, which are ideal for further expansion, accompanied by mainly mass monolithic rammed earth walls with intermittent mosaic artwork cladding.

SCULPTED LANDSCAPE

The brief was to design a public facility along the Sea Point promenade through a landscape thinking process, employing the sculptural plastic properties of concrete as a robust material to enhance the chosen urban space.

The challenges of the project was to work in an existing public space and to redefine the landscape to accommodate a public facility which includes public ablutions, refreshment area, WiFi hotspots, bicycle hire shop, flower seller and performance spaces(s). It was required that concrete be mainly used as a plastic/ sculptural material and to explore ways in which it might define indoor and outdoor spaces, private and public, static and dynamic. The design had to tie into the existing site fabric, while being aesthetically pleasing to the users and broader public.

SANCCOB

The brief was to design a rehabilitation and rescue centre for the South African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds, SANCCOB. This organization has achieved prestige for their work in rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing back into the wild birds that had either been polluted or harmed. As SANCCOB currently occupy temporary and inadequate facilities, there was a need to design a permanent structure at the tip of the V&A Waterfront man-made peninsula. The site combines features which reflect the raison d’etre for SANCCOB.

My core concept was derived from the term Biomimicry, which describes the process of humans borrowing designs and systems from nature to create their own technology. Relating to my design, it is based on a polyhedron structure, comprising of numerous tetrahedron panels along many faceted axis. These panels essentially create five of the individual Geodesic dome structure – Geodesic, meaning “earth dividing” in Latin.

Part-time Photography

707172Thank you

Copyright © 2017 by Vikash Parbhoo Cape Town, South Africa

vparbhoo94@gmail.com | +27(0) 76 6045 234