Xiaoxue Huang
Landscape Architecture Portfolio
Bring Nature Back to Cities:
Exploration on the Potential and Possibility of Urban Nature
Project Statement Creating a new system to join fragmented pieces of urban nature with strategies based on reevaluation of the vacant lots and reuse of the influence of surface flow.
Mindmap
Schuylkill River
Overbrook Wynnefield
Mill Creek Mantua Haddington
Co
ld S
Jan.
Co
ld S
eas
on Cobbs Creek
Dec.
Dec., 3rd
Jan.
eas
on
50%
Location: West Philadelphia
Nov.
Feb.
40%
Powelton
Feb.
30% Mar., 5th
Mar., 5th 20% Oct.
Mar.
Mar.
10%
Cobbs Creek
40 F 50 F
High temperature Apr.
Sep., 16th
Heavy rain
Apr.
70 F 80 F
Thunderstorm
Heavy rain
Moderate rain May
University city
High temperature
60 F
Sep.
Thunderstorm
Moderate rain May
Aug. Light rain
Light rain
Mill Creek Main Sewer
Cedar Park
0.1 Mile 0.2 Mile
Kingsessing
0.3 Mile
June
May., 29th
Drizzle
Wa rm
July
Se
June
May., 29th
Drizzle
as
on
Layout of Clustered Vacant Lots
Probability of Precipitation & Daily High Temperature
0 0.1
0.2
0.5
0.8
1Mile
Layout of Clustered Vacant Lots
Vacant Lots A. Tooth missing It conducts stormwater into or out of the larger lots and drains and into the road drainage system.
Typology A Within the range of 0.1 to 0.2 mile, the cluster should include connectors and tooth missings (more than 5). The surface runoff in these vacant lots should flow down to a relatively narrow street in the center.The purpose of this design is to facilitate surface flow within site, and to distribute water to different parts of the system. By conducting stormwater from adjacent roads to plants’ filters, the amount of dirty water will be reduced.. Different types of water storage infrastructure will store cleaned water and allow it to later be reused for agriculture and recreation.
TEST SITE : Haddington Site
B. Corner lot It cannot be conveniently reused, but is a good place to capture the stormwater before it flows into the sewer.
Legend Vacant corner
C. Connector It has the potential to link parallel streets as a way to create convenient passages and to also facilitate the flow of surface water through blocks. D. Vacant block It is the biggest in size among the four types, and is also most suitable to be developed as an outdoor gathering space for the entire community.
Connector Tooth missing
Site Analysis
This cluster of vacant lots is mainly composed of different sizes of vacant tooth, vacant corner, and connector. Those vacant lots are distributed on both sides of N. Frazier Street from north to south. The other two streets, Ithan Street and N. 57th Street, are connected by two connectors.
Roof runoff (Front )
Existing Program
Plan
Requirements
Vancant lot
Back yard
Street
Scale of Different Streets
Community Garden
Type A
Roof Water 3240 sqft 3705 sqft Road Runoff 6373 sqft
School
5928 sqft Roof Water 17668 sqft
Roof Water 6307 sqft Roof Water 3629 sqft
Road Runoff 11179 sqft
Type B
4446 sqft
Community Gathering Type B
Roof runoff (Back )
Concept:
Existing Suface Runoff Tree Community Farm Trench Drain
Proposal Bioswale Rain Garden Rain Garden with Underground Tank Underground Tank Plant Island Pervious Pavement
Combine the water system with community farms, a small park and an outdoor gathering space.
Roof water Storm surface flow
Surface Flow Interruption Rain Garden System Potential Habitat
A big elm —— A naturalized community park Street culture —— Street planter filter
A vacant house —— A rain garden for kids
Plan Clean Water Dirty Water Back yards drainage —— Flower border strip
Infiltration garden
Rain garden + Underground tank + Cistern A white wall —— A outdoor movie center
Diagram of the System
Iris versicolor
Impatiens capensis
Aster spp.
Solidago spp. Vernonia noveboracensis
Mid to late summer Community in the Sunshine
Acer
Chelone glabralinifolia
Carex spp.
Monarda ďŹ stulosa Iris versicolor
June to September May to July Model and Diagram of One Part of System
Landscape of Memory and Exiperience:
Project of ruin and interial landscape studio
Proposal
A space to connect the history of city to its own, and also to provide a way to perceive the macroscopic geographic features from the microscopic perspective.
Landscape Memory and Experience Mindmap
1. Studio Assignment 1.1. A "Platform" for an Artist Residential Program in La Antigua, Guatemala
Site and Inspiration
Concept Diagram Model 0.6 mile
Higher View-city history
0.5mile
La Merced Church 0.4 mile
Santa Rosa
Cathedral Los Techos
Lower View- ruin
0.3mile
Las Capchinas
Casa Santo Domingo
La Calle Princeple
0.2 mile 0.2 mile
Casa
Del Carmen 0.1 mile 0.1 mile
San Juan de Dios
City Hall La Casa De Espana
La concepcion
Campanas Cathedral
Vasquez
Palace University Casa De Acuarelistas
Hospital
0.1 mile
Santa Clara
San Francsico 0.2 mile St Joseph San Jose Church
North View-Ruin 0.3mile
La Escuela 0.4 mile
0.5mile
Los Remedios 0.6 mile
Relationship with City's Historical Site
Geographic features
Formation Diagram
Master Plan
Roof and ramp system
Roof + ramp system Roof and ramp system with outdoor gatherring spaces
Ground Plan
Section
View and Experience
Valcano Ruins Historical Sites Geographic Feature
Position and Niche
-Landform and Habitats Design in Indian Point Park
Project Introduction Position and Niche is a project in constructed landscape studio guided by Shauna Gillies-Smith. This design focuses on creating physical connection among human, wildlife and their habitats by reshaping the landform in the corner of Indian Point Park. Natural creatures, such as human and wildlife, have their own positions and niches in the open spaces. Compared with their original habitats, urban green spaces we created are much more compact and condensed for wildlife. According to their requirements, allocating them in the appropriate niches horizontally and vertically would form a harmonious ecosystem and benefit species inside of it. At the same time a closer physical relationship to the ground which is established by landform might help people find their positions in this system, and read and enjoy it.
Part I: Position
Site Analysis + Concept
A No Access for people
B
Wild Grassland Wild Woodland
C
Easy Access for people Manmade Woodland
D E
Sea Inshorewaters
Intertidal Zone: waterfowls sea turtles
A
B
Intertidal Zone: aquatic plants fish
Master Plan
C
D
E
Part II: Niche
Analysis and Improvement of Site-specific Habitat
A
A’
Existing straight edge
Fall Winter Spring Summer
Curvilinear edge
Turbulance
Oxygen
Food Chain of Site specific Marine creature
A-A' Section Position and Niche
Producer
Primary Consumer
Secondary Consumer
Balancethe requirement - “Youth Garden� reconstruction projects Project Introduction The Youth Garden, a 2.2 hectare of community field which was built by the senior citizens at their twenties who still live around the site, is composed of a 13000 sqft rectangular square, an octagon path and woods lot in between. After serving as the core play grounds for 50 years (19582008), the Youth Garden is too old to function well. Conflict appeared, between dynamic activity and static activity, traffic flow and pedestrian flow, the elder and adolescents. Through the process of identifying the main problem, recording the lifestyle of the users, and evaluating the future requirement of the site, I proposed a design focus on multifunctional use of the spaces.
A Segregation
Connection&Flow
B Tangency
Spread
C Inclusion
Observation
D Tangency similar size
Communication
Multifuntional Space Organization Diagram
View of a common morning in summer
Master Plan
1 11 C 1 North Entrance
A
C
B
Resting Area
Path
play field
8
9 4
A Connection B 9 Accessory Square
Analysis of Typical space
Resting area + play field
Play field
C play field + resting area
Circulation
Grading
Section
Engineering Drawings
Detail Research
Detail Research
Strategy Diagrams
Move the building
Define the center and connect
Bus route between two entrance
Location of entrance plaza
Drainage system concept
Plants in infiltration planters should be aquatic plants. These containers collect the water from the roof, so the plants here need to be like living in wet conditions. Water lily and Cana could be put here, making here a beatiful gathering space when there is no school bus.
I wish to keep existing plants here as much as I could. Platforms are set between the woods and shrubs, creating more interesting spaces near the river. Bioswale: willows and halfaquatic plants Several aquatic plants which could filter the water are planted here. But the plants here need to bear the dry condition sometimes, so they need to be half-aquatic plants. Students could stay these small gathering place enjoy the scent of those beautiful plants.
Master Plan
+4 3. 5
43 1%
42
1%
TRENCH 42.5 .5 INV IN 39
.6
43
B
43
42.20 + C'
42.00 +
42.25 + 42.50 +
C
42.50 +
TRENCH +42.32 42.2 .2 INV IN 39 39 INV OUT
A
39.2 +
3.5
.5 +4 4 43.5 +
40
124' S.005
DI. RIM 39.9 .0 INV IN 38 .8 37 INV OUT
44 43.1 +
40
41
A'
38 39
40.80+
40.35 +40.50+
43
35 36
39
40.10 + 40 +
PIPE RIM 36.9 .38 INV IN 37 INV OUT 37.38
45
+4
41
35
31 2 3 3 3 4 3
36
55' S.002
+3
L.O.W.
TW45 + TRENCH RIM 44.5 43 INV OUT
41.50 +
5
7 8.
42
38
35 37
43
1.5%
39
43.56 +
N
50 TRENCH 44.5 43 INV OUT
+4 3. 5
40
43
TW45 + DI. RIM 43 .4 INV IN 40
1.5%
+
B'
36' S.002
40
41
Overflow 43.5
40.17 +
1.5%
41.3 + 41.3 +
43.1 +
43.5 +
40.8 +
Hp43.2 +
1.7%
2
40.50+
.
L.O.W
41
42
40
Scale 1”= 50’
+2 6.
Grading Plan
42.78 +
1.8%
43 +43.2
Circulation System
Legend Pedestrian School bus Traffic bike path Small gathering Large gathering
Circulation Diagram
Wetable Area Required InfiltrationPlanter 2250sqft Vegetated Swale 3600sqft Wetable Area Designed Infiltration Planter 1700sqft Vegetated Swale 4361 sqft
Legend Roof Water biofilter Ground Water biofilter drainage direction
Drainage Diagram
Bus route, bike route, pedestrian route and car route are seperated to make sure each part works well. Entrance plaza and center lawn are main gathering space in the site. A circle path in the middle connect all the buildings and seriers of gathering spaces lead peole work around the site. Parking lots are put on the south part of the site, connecting parking lots with the main buildings.
Drainage System A bioswale is put on the south of the center lawn to gather the water from parking lots and entrance plaza. Three infiltration planters are set near the entrance of main and proposed building to collect the roof water. Two parts of drainage systems are connected to the existing swales near the river. After staying in the pond near the parking lots, surface water will be led to the river directly.
Concrete Retaining Wall with 3 Rebar in it
Drainage Board (Wrapped by Canvas) Second Ground Fill
Woodblock 2”x 4” Concrete Retaining Wall 1 1/2” x 1’ -4 Brick Pavement 2” Concrete Aggregate
Landscape Fabric
Compact Soil
1
Bench and Tree Planter Scale 1:30 Top of the Wall (Stone) Textile 1 1/2 ”
2” Asphault Concrete
Brick Pavement 2 ”
Compact Soil Base
Concrete Drainage
2
Interactive Fountain Scale 1:30
Other Works
Rhino Design - USB Punk Style
Hybrid Drawing