Zain Kossous
Architecture++ Portfolio
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HOTEL
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OASIS
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MUSEUM
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PAVILION ORNAMENT FABRICATION
I H O T E L S Y M B I O S I S Location: Old Montreal Howard Davies Studio Fall 2017 Partner Project with Alexander Sterlin-Altman Programs: Rhino, Revit, 3ds Max, Illustrator, Photoshop The core concept for this project was to create an architecture that bridged a symbiotic relationship with the guests and nature, inspired by the park currently located on the site. The color green was chosen instantly as a symbol of both well being and nature. The facade is wrapped with aluminum sun shade louvers that are motorized to be personally adjusted by the hotel guests, allowing the hotel to have a different face throughout the day creating an interesting play of dynamics. Aside from creating a striking aesthetic, these louvers significantly reduce cooling costs and therefore provide an environmental benefit. The hotel is organized around a series of outdoor green terraces that encourage the guests to experience nature at a close proximity. The shifting form and terraces allows for more surface area to plant vegetation on the exposed ledges. The program infused into the hotel is that of a vegan eatery that utilized fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs grown in the terraces and roof garden.
SITE PLAN
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
WEST ELEVATION
SOUTH ELEVATION
5th FLOOR
10th FLOOR
HOTEL ROOM INTERIOR
LOUVER ORIENTATION OPTION DIAGRAM
ALUMINUM SUN SHADE LOUVERS
SECTIONAL PERSPECTIVE
LOUVER % APPLICATION
EATARY INTERIOR RENDERING
CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCE
II D E S E R T
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Location: Wadi Rum Desert, Jordan Studio Winter 2018 Individual Project Programs: Revit, Rhino, Grasshopper, Illustrator, Photoshop This project was driven by a personal agenda that was supported by a studio with no restrictions or boundaries. This agenda being a desire to alleviate political tensions and challenge cultural norms in the Middle East using architecture in hopes of influencing long term empathy between people and communities. By responding to geo-political, gender-specific, and cultural issues in the region using the body and architecture as creative activists, the datehaus came to birth. The project began with exploring the body as a tool, that can be both useful or used against you. In Phase 1 which emphasized fine arts, I transposed my body onto the walls of Montreal buildings, leaving behind an uncategorized, unidentifiable human figure. I continued my study of the body with the theme of transparency that was explored through the play of fabric as a tool for concealing the body. For the phase 2 translation into architecture, I wanted a secluded sight that would gather people together into a temporary utopian society. The barren landscape of the Wadi Rum desert allowed the exploration of sustainable methods and resources. A space in the form of a festival would prove a spectacle intended to create a temporary utopian society. In an effort to revive the 1960s campaign of “ Make Love Not War� , the architecture in question is a residential unit designed for a couple. The architecture is built around the sacred date tree, thought to be a fruit from the heavens. The floors of the datehaus are reserved for the notions of eat, pray, love, and nurture. Lastly, the entrance of the datehaus is marked by an outdoor shower emphasizing the act of ritual cleansing as a prominent practice in many different cultures
If you cut me with a knife I bleed red blood don’t you? So tell me something then What colour is the blood Under the colour of your skin I fight for what I believe Yet all races and creeds cry out All I feel is hate All I see is profanity All I see is violence All I know is pain All I know is anger Poverty teaches us to endure Ridicule teaches us to fight And people say Ignorance is bless Odd isn’t it? No matter what colour skin you are We all bleed the same colour blood People judge you on your appearance Or how you speak Or just the way you are We all may have our differences In our cultures, in our backgrounds But under the colour of our skin We all bleed and breathe the same And if that’s the case Why are there so many bloody wars? ? ? -Kaila George
إذا طعنتني بسكين ماذا عنك؟،ينزف دمي أحمر ًإذ ًا قل لي شيئا ما هو لون الدماء تحت لون جلدك؟ أنا أقاتل بما أؤمن به لكن كل العروق و المعتقدات تبكي كل ما أشعر به هو الكراهية كل ما أراه هو الشتم كل ما أراه هو العنف كل ما أعرفه هو األلم كل ما أعرفه هو الغضب الفقر يعلمنا أن نتحمل السخرية تعلمنا القتال ويقول الناس الجهل نعمة أليس هذا غريب؟ بغض النظر عن لون جلدك كلنا ننزف دماء ًا بنفس اللون يحكم عليك الناس من مظهرك أو من طريقة تحدثك أو لمجرد طبيعتك كلنا لدينا إختالفاتنا وفي خلفياتنا،في ثقافاتنا ولكن تحت لون جلدنا كلنا ننزف ونتنفس مثل بعضنا البعض و إذا كانت هذه هي القضية لماذا كل هذه الحروب الدموية؟ ؟ ؟ كيال جورج
CONCEPTUAL COLLAGES
As transparency increases, more of the skin begins to appear and so the body is seen as more vulnerable. Depending on cultural norms, this is either celebrated, or harshly frowned upon.
why the date tree? During my research phase, I was inspired by an offspring of nature that symbolized a gesture of peace. Dates are a good source of various vitamins and minerals, energy, sugar, and fiber. They also contains calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and zinc. I have found that the date tree has been glorified by many cultures starting from Ancient Sumerians, Akkadians, and Babylonians, to Jews, Christians and Muslims today. The first wild date trees were found in the North of Iraq and were part of the cave dwellers essential diet. The Book of Genesis describes the Garden of Eden as what is modern day Iraq which produced almost 100 different kinds of dates. On Palm Sunday, Jesus was welcomed into Jerusalem with people greeting him with the leaves of palm trees. In her short story, I Saw the Date-Palms, Egyptian novelist Radwa Ashour writes: I remember my father God rest his soul- used to say that the date-palm is a blessed tree; with it the Lord graced His servants, and by mentioning it in the Quran He bestowed honour upon it. And my father said that the Prophet-Gods blessing be upon him-said: "Honour your paternal aunts the date-palms." And that he called them our "paternal aunts" because they were created from the extra clay left over after the creation of Adam, and that they resemble human beings. They were creWWated male and female, tall and straight of stature, palm cores growing on their tops like the brain of a human being in his head. Should evil afflict that core, the date-palm would perish. The Quran tells the story of Mary's birth to Jesus under the protection of a palm tree while eating dates to ease her pain. Mary delivered her child right there, at the foot of the date tree. She was exhausted after the birth, and filled with distress and fear, but nevertheless she heard a voice calling out to her: "Grieve not! Your Lord has provided you a stream of clear water under you; and shake the trunk of palm tree towards you; it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon you. So eat and drink and be glad..." (Quran 19:24)
A house with a date palm will never starve - prophetic saying
SITE PLAN
Using modern day technology, it is possible to desalinate the sea water with the use of a solar powered desalination system. This system operates at a low pressure, low energy consumption and requires little maintenance. Liquid wastes from the system can also become a useful biproduct for salt tolerant crop. The date tree is not only a salttolerant plant, but it also favors salty soils as it helps produce sweeter, juicier, and more aromatic dates.
drink NURTURE LOVE PRAY EAT
SECTIONAL PERSPECTIVE
INTERIOR RENDERING
CUSTOMIZED TRANSLUCENT BIOGRADARABLE PLASTIC SHEETS
FLOOR PLANS
To cleanse the body is also to cleanse the mind.
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Location: The Mile End, montreal Studio Fall 2016 Individual Project Programs: Rhino, 3ds Max, Illustrator, Photoshop I was inspired by urban spaces that are unfamiliar to North America; spaces resembling "exotic" cities densely packed with culture such as Amman or Casablanca. I designed the architecture as islands that dispersed as smaller buildings rather than have a large aggregate. The result was an open space "village" that allows for the user to journey freely around the space while also surprising them at every corner with the use of the angled walls. Each individual hexagon of unique size plays a different film and thus allows for a different experience in each. A diverse neighborhood with a diverse population needs to be presented with an abundant amount of choices catered to specific demands. I found hexagons to be a bigger canvas to work with when it came to projecting the films on the inner walls. At the same time I wanted to distinguish the project from other residential looking buildings. In elevation, the buildings respect the height of their surroundings. The use of white brick as a material was also used as a means of respecting the neighborhood's architecture.
st. urbain elevation
conceptual collage avenue laurier o. elevation
AXONOMETRIC VIEW
AVENUE LAURIER O. SECTION
Avenue Laurier O.
Rue Clark
ground floor plan
Rue Saint-Urbain
IV P A V I L I O N
Location: The Mile End, Montreal Studio Fall 2016 Programs: Rhino, 3ds Max, Illustrator, Photoshop My project pushes the boundaries of what defines a column in our perception. Each column was granted its own personality by varying the height, radius of poles, width, and shape. By consciously deciding to make architecture without any walls, I am allWowing people to flow in and out and thus give them a sense of freedom in choosing their own path. Some columns are interactive in the sense that they provide a seating opportunity, while others are not. The pavilion provides shelter from the sun and rain due to its concrete roof structure, but not at every moment. By placing the columns in a certain order, they come together to form arches. I was also interested in studying the negative space created by the architectural structure.
COLUMN VARIATION
PROCESS DIAGRAM
AVENUE LAURIER O. ELEVATION
SITE PLAN
TOP VIEW DETAILS
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Digital Representation Fall 2016 Individual > Partner Project with Catherine Auger Programs: Rhino, Grasshopper, 3ds Max, Illustrator, 123D Catch My design process began by choosing a curve from my pavilion that I found the most dynamic, and with this curve I was able to build my ornamental object. I chose this element because it reflected the recurrent theme of curves in organic shapes. However, this object alone was not enough to create the desired effect I had envisioned. Due to its rational and geometrical shape, this object became an elemental tesserae to a larger organism. When multiplied into a repetitive pattern that was later organized into a more visually appealing design, an arcade of arches came to birth. In plan view however, an interesting pattern was created which almost looks like a geometrical puzzle that possessed rationality in its shapes. The next phase of the project was completed in a team of two. The original object was introduced into grasshopper as a "brep" and placed onto a grid that was later manipulated into our desired form. We especially exaggerated the z-direction to create a sense of verticality that is so predominant in gothic architecture. In doing so, it somehow suggests to the spectator to look above. In gothic definitions, this serves as a metaphor to forgetting the mundane earthly matters and looking up towards the sacred heavens, which is granted greater importance. The final element proves to possess a sort of intimidating yet majestic quality to it. The overall structure created columns and arches connected into one regal architectural element. Its effect is magnified by adding another layer to intensify it.
PHASE 1 PROCESS DIAGRAM
ITERATIONS
PHASE 2 PLAN
PHASE 2 ELEVATION
VI F A B R I C A T I O N This section of the portfolio is devoted to displaying an array of fabrication processes using different materials. A. 3D Printed Gothic Ornament Partner Project with Catherine Auger Digital Representation 1 Fall 2016 B. Chipboard Similacrum of the Aropolis Partner Project with Aly Stein, Alexia Harvey, Luke Angers Architectural History 1 Fall 2015 C. PlyWood and Plexi Glass Lasercut Experiment Individual Project Architectural Modelling 1 Winter 2016 D. Plywood and Plexi Glass lasercut castle individual project Architectural Modelling 1 Winter 2016 E. Wood, Glass, and Water Framing Device Individual Project Studio Winter 2017
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MAKING THE FAMILIAR UNFAMILIAR.. E
Zain Kossous zain.kossous@mail.mcgill.ca zain.kossous@gmail.com +15145497839 instagram: zaink.jpg 3450 Drummond Street Apartment 1124 H3G 1Y2