Mobile: +1 (347) 9316252 | +8613702556102
Email: jianyuzhengwill@gmail.com | jz3686@columbia.edu
JIANYU ZHENG
Selected works
2017-2024
Master of Science in Advanced Architectural Design
Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Columbia University
Jianyu (Will) Zheng
Education
Columbia University. GSAPP
M.S. Advanced Architectural Design
Changsha University of Science & Technology
Bachelor of Architecture
Professional Experiences
Email: jianyuzhengwill@gmail.com
jz3686@columbia.edu
Phone: (347) 931-6252
New York, United State
May, 2023- Present (Graduate in May,2024)
Changsha, China
Sep, 2017- June, 2022
Hunan Boke Architectural Planning and Design Co., Ltd. | Architecture Office
Changsha, China Intern Architect Jul-Oct, 2021
Collaborated with professor Xie in design phase of a government project and some advice of mine were adopted.
Used Enscape to create renderings for bidding conference and our firm was committed to do the project.
Produced 2D and 3D architectural drawings using AutoCAD and Sketchup.
Conducted research on local building codes and zoning regulations to ensure compliance in design proposals.
Tian An Cyber Park (Group) Co.,Ltd. | Real Estate Firm
Intern in Design Management Department
Dongguan, China
Jul-Sep, 2020
Collaborated with the design management team to coordinate the architectural aspects of a business parks project.
Participated in design review meetings with an architect firm to gather feedback and make necessary adjustments.
Created initial massing models based on market research by using sketchup and reported to design director during proposal presentations, successfully was adopted of the proposal, leading to its progression into subsequent phases.
Used Sketchup to create 3D models for ongoing construction projects, and subsequently forwarding them to a rendering company for inclusion on the company’s official website.
Competition
Graduation Design Joint Competition | Individual
Honor : Third Prize
Hunan, China
Jun, 2022
This is a graduation design competition jointly organized by eight colleges and universities in Hunan Province, in which each school draws the best works to participate in the competition. My individual design work was honored to participate and won the award.
The 3rd “Dream Home” Architectural Festival in Hunan Province, China | Teamwork
Honor : Second Prize
Led a team of 8 members and the project by proposing the main concept.
Hunan, China
Oct, 2019
Used Rhino to make a 3D model and advocated for the implementation of “Mortise and Tenon” joints, a Chinese traditional joint methodology of furniture, in constructing the 1:1 physical model.
Professional Skills
Modeling
Rhino, Revit, AutoCAD, Sketchup, Grasshopper
Rendering Graphics
Enscape, Vray, Lumion, Twinmotion
Language
English | Mandarin | Cantonese
Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop
Others
Adobe Premiere, Microsoft Office, HTML
Contents
Selected works 2017-2024
01 B.O.S.S Future
Headquarter of “B.O.S.S” (Bamboo, Oyster, Seaweed System)
A Container of Office, Manufacturing and Housing
02 Shore, City
An Community in the Extension Built between a T-shaped Abandoned Building for Immigrants to New York City
03 The Love Museum
A museum commemorating the love stories of soldiers in “The Battle of Hengyang”
04 A Suspended Lodge in Mount Everest
“falling asleep on the edge of a cliff”
05 The “Mountain”
A construction simulating the concept of mountains.
06 Other Works
Architect Internship
B.O.S.S Future
Headquarter of “B.O.S.S” (Bamboo, Oyster, Seaweed System), A Container of Office, Manufacturing and Housing
Individual Work
Columbia University GSAPP
2023 Fall Advanced Studio_Reset Studio Site: Gowanus, Brooklyn, NY
Instructor: Prof. David Benjamin | davidbenjamin@gmail.com
Approach to AI : AI was most useful as a narrative tool to generate images to convey early conceptual ideas that would otherwise have taken the whole semester to produce with great effort. This allows my efforts to start at the next chapter in the story, rather than ending with our thesis or question.
Statement : In 2040, the world grappled with severe natural disasters, prompting governments to declare states of emergency. Conventional materials like steel and concrete proved vulnerable, leading to strict regulations. Governments incentivize innovation by offering tax breaks for builders adopting sustainable alternatives. Bamboo emerged as a key material due to its short life span and low carbon emissions. Teaming up with oyster cement and seaweed-based insulation, a resilient system called “B.O.S.S”, replacing traditional materials. The “Resilience Revolution” transformed construction practices, making sustainable materials and disaster-resilient designs the new norm. This shift not only reduced carbon footprints but also fortified communities against the impacts of climate change, marking a pivotal moment in architecture and construction.
A building that made by BOSS system, but it is also producer of that, it is a container of manufacturing space for processing raw materials coming from outside, private and public office area provided for employees who produce and invent boss, and also studios for them to live, some public gathering space and lab area.
B.O.S.S Embeded in a Building
Teaming up with oyster shells and seaweed, a resilient system called “B.O.S.S”, replacing traditional materials, oyster shells could be mortar and tabby concrete and seaweed could be insulation after processing.
The Site in Gowanus, Brooklyn, and is currently in its early stages of development. It may be beneficial to consider conducting practical exercises and tests within the open spaces available in New York City. Additionally, the vicinity boasts numerous truck garages for potential transportation needs and seafood restaurants that can supply oyster shells.
Almost all the columns in conventional frame structure are all the way up until the top.
The strength of the bamboos is not as good as the traditional material, but instead of put more bamboos together to make thicker columns, I put more columns in lower floors and along with the floor being upper the span of the bamboo made columns became wider, and through truss to transfer load, which could make the space inside more dynamic so that we could apply functions with different dimensions inside.
Multiple single bamboo structural units to form a bamboo structure on a bigger scale which is more dynamic than the conventional frame structure in terms of each floor plan.
4th Floor: Public and Private Office Area
You can see public office space where people could have some conversation and the relatively private office and conference rooms which visually interact with the public office space.
5th Floor: Sight-seeing Corridor
A corridor connecting both sides of the building, and could also be for investors to visit how to manufacture these different materials, but not go into it.
Shore, City
An Community in the Extension Built between a T-shaped Abandoned Building for Immigrants to New York City
Teammate: Ziyi Zhu
Columbia University GSAPP
2023 Spring Advanced Studio_City Island
Site: Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY
Instructor: Prof. David Eugin Moon | d@nhdm.org
Context: New York City has accommodated a substantial influx of immigrant shelters designed to cater to individuals and families newly arrived in the United States. Regrettably, owing to the insufficiency of designated facilities for refugees and immigrants, these newcomers often find themselves compelled to utilize public spaces as makeshift dwellings, including school gyms and parks. This situation has engendered tensions between the immigrant population and the local residents, prompting protests within the community that advocate against further immigration to New York City.
Program: This project endeavors to manifest our conceptualization of an extension integrated between the wings of a T-shaped abandoned building on Coney Island. This architectural endeavor combines elements of immigrant housing with a public area intended for the joint use of both immigrants and the local community. Serving as an experimental prototype, this innovative concept holds the potential for application in diverse urban settings. The primary objective of this undertaking is to transform Coney Island into a more dynamic locale, fostering a sense of welcome and integration for newcomers, who will hopefully find themselves more embraced by the existing local communities.
This collage depicts our initial vision of a grid structure that seamlessly integrates a building with a pier, serving as an entrance and temporary residence for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers arriving at Coney Island and could also be considered as a starting point of them to be engaged in New York City.
Extension Building is Attached and Interact to the Existing One
In the primary design illustration, the newly constructed extension seamlessly integrates with the existing “T”-shaped building. A discernible gradient delineates the transition from private to public, progressing from left to right. Black architectural elements serve as connecting gestures, linking various levels of the extension.
The extension’s walls extend into the interior of the existing building, giving rise to captivating public spaces. This architectural approach facilitates a dynamic interaction between the new and the old, creating a harmonious blend of contemporary and established elements.
This model illustrates the connecting section between the extension and the existing building. It delineates both public and private spaces, employing two acrylic plates to symbolize ground and sea levels during high tide at Coney Island. Consequently, the first floor predominantly comprises public areas. Chunk Model of the connection between Existing Building and Extension
The Love Museum
A museum commemorating the love stories of soldiers in “ The Battle of Hengyang”
Individual Work | 2022 Spring
Changsha University of Science&Technology Graduation Design
Site:Hengyang City, Hunan Province
Instructor: Prof. Jinsong Xie | +8613975855429 | 2359191853@qq.com
Awards: Graduation Design Joint Competition by Eight Universities in Hunan Province, China
Honour: The Third Prize
“Two main buildings intertwine by space corridor like lovers.”
Hengyang is an ancient city with a long history, Located in Hunan Province, China. The Battle of Hengyang took place in 1944. Many soldiers in Hengyang fought bravely, and many gave their lives for the country. Until now, many different museums commemorate their exploits. But rather than this, I want to tell the love story of these warriors by designing a building.
They met, fell in love, separated during the war, and finally reunited after the war. I think these are memorable stories. So, I would like to let visitors better feel these stories through the shape and interior space of the building, and feel the changes of the moods of lovers in different stages of the loves during The Battle of Hengyang.
According to the development process of a pair of lovers in the war, from their acquaintance, separation to final reunion, this state of separation and reunion can lead to four curves surrounding each other, which serve as an important basis for this project.
Storage&Cafe “Reunion” Gallery
“Engagement ” Gallery
“Separation” Gallery
“War” Gallery
Delight in the Enchanting Beauty Beyond
Visitors can enjoy the scenery outside when going to the next theme gallery. And can also make eye contact with the people upstairs, which makes people’s spatial experience more interesting.
“Love” Gallery
Staff Offices
“Meet” Gallery
Vertical Circulation
Visit Circulation
Explosive Section Perspective: “Time Tunnels between galleries”
Visitors shuttle back and forth between the main buildings through space corridors, which are not only passages connecting different theme galleries, but also “time tunnels” that connecting different stages of the love stories.
Make Eye Contact with Visitors in Opposite
Visitors can go to the next gallery through the space corridors, and they can also make eye contact with visitors walking in the air corridor on the other side.
The gallery in the atrium is the first themed gallery, placing large exhibits, filled with flowing natural light from the central “sky well” to the exhibition spaces.
Curved walls imply the visiting order of visitors, and this gallery is illuminated from the top.
Atrium Gallery Rendering “War” Gallery Rendering
A
Suspended Lodge in Mount Everest
“falling asleep on the edge of a cliff”
Individual Work | 2021 Spring
Changsha University of Science&Technology Architecture Design 8
Instructor: Prof. Di Zhou | +8615907317789 | 541438730@qq.com
Mount Everest expedition is a pinnacle of mountaineering. It is an adventure of a lifetime that involves the harsh challenges and dangers of Climbing Mount Everest.
There is a “death zone” above, 8000 m. It is the most dangerous section of the route. Extreme freezing weather at high altitudes is one of the top challenges during this climb. Avalanches and falls can be fatal for climbers as they are quite unpredictable. Substandard management, summit fever, oxygen deprivation, are also dangers of climbing Mount Everest.
So, The project is a small house suspended in the mid-mountain of Mount Everest to provide a shelter for passing climbers or those who have encountered difficulties in the climbing process so that they can be buffered. It’s a good way to help them better climb to the top of Mount Everest.
The
The roof that can be accessed is formed above the building, and four cables are used to fix the main body of the structure.
Fix
The main structure of the building is a steel plate inserted into the mountain, and the steel plate is fixed by four ropes. Fix the structural walls on both sides to the trusses, and fix structures such as floor slabs and glass windows to the structural walls.
Stepping Room
Use different floor heights to divide different functions in the room, so that people can enjoy the scenery of snow mountains in every position of the strip-shaped room without blocking the line of sight.
Different Use Areas are Divided by Heights
The interior is designed in a stepped shape, and different use spaces are divided by height, so that every position in the room can enjoy the snow mountain scene without being blocked.
Both the rooms and the public bathrooms sandwiched between the rooms by structural walls can enjoy the snow mountain scenery outside the window, allowing climbers to feel where they are.
Looking at the Snow Mountain Scenery outside from Indoor
Looking at the Snow Mountain Scenery outside from Public Bath
The “Mountain”
A construction simulating the concept of mountains.
Group Work
2019 Spring
The 3rd “Dream Home” Architectural Festival in Hunan, China
Team Members: Chuyi Lao, Xiwen Deng, Yajuan Fan, Yongxin Mai, Yi Gao, Hongye Qian
Role In Team: Leader, Concept Development, Physical Model Construction
Instructor: Prof. Di Zhou | +8615907317789 | 541438730@qq.com
Honour: The Second Prize
“This is a 1:1 construction work, which can be used as an exhibition, but also has the function of sitting, and it can also be a space for children to crawl or play.”
We extracted the elements of mountains and caves in a Chinese painting, and we drew different shapes according typology to interpret these two elements, then we scanned and inputted them into the computer to form different 2D pieces. We also got inspiration from the structure of traditional furniture, borrowed the traditional joint structure “mortise and tenon” and applied it to our construction works, clamped different boards, and got a good result.
We finally made the appearance of a rockery through this way of clamping the panels, and hollowed out the interior with the concept of a cave to establish an interesting space where people can walk and sit. Making changes in the height of the roof so that there will be line of sight interaction and barrier when people walk or sit inside. There are also many children crawling and playing in this space.
A mortise and tenon joint connects two pieces of wood or other material. Woodworkers around the world have used it for thousands of years to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at right angles. Mortise and tenon joints are strong and stable joints that can be used in many projects. They furnish a strong outcome and connect by either gluing or locking into place. The mortise and tenon joint also gives an attractive look.
Mountain
Hand sketch
Hand sketch
Column Chair Table
Different Activities in this “Mountain”
We finally made the appearance of a rockery, and hollowed out the interior with the concept of a cave to form an interesting space where people can walk and sit. Making changes in the height of the roof so that there will be line of sight interaction and barrier when people walk or sit inside.
Harmony | Dissonance | Break (Mid-term) Architectonics of Music
ADVANCED STUDIO VI Spring 2024
Advisors: Steven Holl and Dimitra Tsachrelia
Teammate: Chi Chung Yang
Composition: Locus Solus (2024) is a three-part architectural project which takes conceptual inspiration from the dialogue between consonance, dissonance, and break throughout the musical piece Locus Solus (1978) by Tomás Marco. Consonance and dissonance harmonies refer to moments in the music where more than one pitch is played at the same time, creating either a sense of stability and repose as a consonant harmony or a sense of impermanence and discord as a dissonant harmony. When the interaction between consonance and dissonance turns too intense, Marco inserts breaks, monotonic piano at a steady pace, to disrupt and reset the balance. Locus Solus (2024) first translates the dialogue of consonance, dissonance, and break into a line language of curvature and rectilinear structure, then from the diagrammatic into three-dimensional spatial language.
Space: By musical definition, both consonance and dissonance are harmonies, except one sounds sweet and the other tense. Co-existing, they perform together and continuously exchange the notion of impermanence. In spatial language, Locus Solus (2024) envisions the buildup and release of spatial impermanence through circulation on and off the two central curved ramps. Surrounding the curved ramp are boxed shaped walls retaining the outer turns of the wave, connecting them in elevation, and creating circulation throughout the structure. As one walks through the curved ramp, one experiences permanence and smoothness, while the connection to the rectilinear spaces infers impermanence and detouring.
The three-part architectural project sequences its spatial experience similarly to the three extractions of Locus Solus (1978). The main building of the project follows the concept of dissonance, while consonance and break tangles off the two facing ends of the project into the landscape.
Architect Internship
Time_2019-2020
Status_Built
Site_Dongguan, China
Company_ Dongguan Tian’an Digital Mall Co., Ltd.
Role_Assisting Modeling, Rendering