San Juan, Puerto Rico
I was born in the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. As a child the majestic fort, called “El Morro,” was where my imagination blossomed. The vast grass fields were inhabited by colorful flying kites and an abundance of families bonding over the history of Old San Juan.
El Morro is a main vessel of Puerto Rican culture and mythology. One of the first stories I was told growing up was the legend of “La Garita del Diablo,” which tells of a haunted sentry box on the fort where soldiers were said to have disappeared while looking out for ships during the war.
Blending childhood memories and mythology this project explores four interventions across the edges of El Morro where wall cavities, textures, colors, and lighting are interweaved to create spaces for story-telling. These spaces spread out across the length of the fort each have different spatial characteristics for different types of story telling.
There is a spatial intervention with textured “guirro” walls that allow for interactive musical numbers and dances to convey stories through these art forms. There’s a place to tie kites down and create a different filter of color for the space. There is a space for filtering lighting conditions from above so as to express stories through colored light. There is a spacial construct consisting of sentry box inspired spaces to explore spaces for a single person to inhabit and reflect.
San Juan, Puerto Rico | Trollstigen, Norway
PUERTO RICO | THE LEGEND OF THE CHUPACABRA
The Chupacabra is a popular Puerto Rican legend that has been passed down for many generations. The legend talks of this mysterious creature, whose appearnace is constantly debated, who comes out at night to suck the blood of goats. The creature’s attacks are depicted as it leaves two teeth marks on its victims.
TROLLSTIGEN, NORWAY | THE LEGEND OF THE TROLLS
Trolls have been an integral part of Norwegian culture. They have been referenced in fairytales, myths, and stories living in a variety of isolated locations such as in caves or under bridges. Trolls are said to turn into stone when they are exposed to sunlight, and therefore hide during the day.
COLLISION
These individual myths were explored in their opposing climate regions. Each intervention was placed on a mythologically charged site (El Morro in San Juan, and a mountainside in Trollstigen) in order to explore spatial and material relationships that would allow visitors to experience the respective myths as they walked through the interventions. Each intervention would act as a way to convey these myths through architectural relationships such as space, materiality, and color.
Seattle, Washington
For this project, I gathered tales of different ghosts that are said to haunt different parts of Seattle. With these descriptions I designed three connecting spaces each inspired by a ghost. Their names are Arthur, Lady, and Angeline. These spaces were designed with the purpose of serving as workshop and display spaces for art installations. Taking the qualities of these ghosts I created my own story to describe the journey through this haunting series…..
The Haunting Of The Public Circulation
Arthur is a calculated, mathematical mind. Even as a looming apparition he takes a linear route to his of ce every morning. He keeps to himself, al- ways with his head down, only glimpsing at his surroundings ever so of- ten. Once he reaches his of ce he is comfortable, calm, and high above the rest. His quiet demeanor does not deter him from keeping an eye on things below since it is his duty. From his of ce he thinks he sees Angeline and makes his way toward her to see what she is doing in his workplace.....
Angeline walks out of Arthur’s of ce easily blending with the public since her ghostly form is almost identical to that of a human, unlike Arthur who must hide from the public so as not to cause panic. As she casually strolls amongst the masses, she nds herself settling deeper into the lower levels of the market and catches a glimpse of Lady in the darker depths of the space....
Lady is gradually descending into the lowest level of the market where she resides. She distracts people from her ghostly appearance by fo- cusing their view with a ceiling installation. She lulls them into a calm de- meanor so that she can rob them and lead them to her small space....
The Underworld | Greek Mythology
The stories of Charon in Greek mythology are conveyed in this project through an architectural scape and vessel. I began studying boats and the Greek mythology of Charon, a mythological creature that navigates the ferry of the underworld. I was intrigued by the ambiguity of Charon’s vessel, which proved to be a vital in- strument in navigating the souls into the underworld. By studying different interpretations of the ancient tales of the mapping of the underworld I investigated a collaborative landscape that would tell the story of the geography of the Underworld. This eclectic landscape alluded to three possible sites for a vessel to dock. I am proposing an intervention inspired by Charon’s vessel that locks into three parts of the cumulative site to create three different spatial experiences and orientations. The interlocking vessel and site experience was determined by the emotions and characteristics that corresponded with the geography at that point. The vessel locks into the rivers of lamentation and sorrow, into the point where the underworld shifts from Erebus to Tartarus, and into the river of intense darkness.
Avebury Ruins, Scotland
The legend of the Serpent Temple surrounds the form and pathway of the Avebury stone monument. The tale describes the circular organization of the ruins as the rising sun with a snake-like path that people walk through in order to reach the rising sun and gain a new life.
This project began with the diagramming of the legendary tale that talked about a snake entering the rising sun. The project includes two distinct interventions with a connecting site that, together, implement elements such as studies of erosion, natural lighting, and shedding of snake skin that relate back to the tale.
New York City, New York
While visiting New York all of the forms, colors, and building organizations created a story in my imagination of the interweaving aspects of the city rising into a tower.
This tower incorporates a layered study of Manhattan and its grid system and the impact that central park has on the city’s urban planning as it acts as a dominant anchor. Layered ribs, a central glass core, and three interventions interlace with each other to inhabit the vertical circulation of the tower.
Charleston, South Carolina | Dance Studio
A variation of parametric studies were developed through the use of techniques such as voronoi, folding, puncturing, and occupying a grid. The facade studies from the parametric workshop were further developed by implementing them into this model for a dance studio in Charleston.
The bending hexagonal arrangement on the facade allows for filtering of light into a black box theatre to evoke the story of dancing lights that coincide with the movements of choreography and colored lighting of the sets.
Jacksonville, Florida | Art Gallery Model
A variation of parametric studies were developed through the use of techniques such as voronoi, folding, puncturing, and occupying a grid. The facade studies from the parametric workshop were further developed by implementing them into this model for an art gallery in Jacksonville.
The bending hexagon arrangement allowed for a unique lighting condition for the inner gallery space. Th e lighting condition changes allow for an open circulation space where one feels transferred to a different, whimsical space for reflection and admiration of art.
Desert
Research on how to survive when stranded in a desert informed the main concept of the design. The survival guide placed great importance on choosing the right path to travel. Therefore, in the model and drawings, great emphasis is placed on three main paths. The first path leads directly to the edifice, symbolizing the easiest (safer for survival) path to choose in order to reach civilization. The second path, which runs through the oasis, symbolizes a mirage. This path is where nature, in the form of the oasis and grotto, is experienced. The mirage deviates from civilization, as travelers are eventually led into the chapel. The third path is the longest path and it is the most difficult path to choose. It allows for a secondary entrance into the edifice and secondary and tertiary entrances into the chapel. This path symbolizes the difficult decision to either adopt the ideal of civilization, by traveling to the edifice, or deciding to search for enlightenment and for one’s own beliefs, by deciding to travel through rough terrain towards the chapel. The three paths are placed at different levels in the model, which is exemplified in the drawings as each path is highlighted in a different plan.
In this design, the edifice is a government building, with a courtyard that acts as a place where people can take a break from their hectic lives; it is a place to gather and develop a sense of community. The chapel is a private meditating space whose courtyard acts as a place to get in touch with one’s spiritual side by shifting attention onto the vast sky.
Museum Road Bus Stop | Gainesville, Florida
This bus stop investigates the use of components that undulate within a layered grid to create a unique lighting experience. The hexagonal components were developed by folding a simple hexagon shape to create a three-dimensional surface that would manipulate incoming light. The rib structure and layers of the facade were assembled together in a way that would filter light and provide people with a whimsical environment that contrasts the surrounding natural light conditions.
