CREATIVE WORKS | Contents
ira Winder
4
BALLOON BOSTON
Urban Systems and Transporation Planning
Prof. Eran Ben-Joseph
DEVELOPING JINAN’S NEW
LOW CARBON CITY
6
PERSPECTIVESECTION as informational legend graphic
Beijing Workshop
Prof. Dennis Frenchman and Jan Wampler
Team: collaboration involving Urban, Environmental,
and Architecture specialists
2
1
i
Avg. Daily Traffic
Car
Bus
Light Rail
Bicycle
Pedestrian
Main Street
Haren, The
Netherlands
Avg Motor Speed
Streets as Great
Public Spaces
8500-1200
yes
yes
no
yes
yes
25mph
53 Deg, 11 Min North
INTRODUCTION
This portfolio is meant to be a cross section
of my creative work, spanning 5 years, 6
internships, countless studios, workshops
both international and domestic,
competitions, and individual projects. While
there are 6 brief ‘studies’ in this portfolio,
I’ve chosen to highlight two of my more
substantial projects on pages 6 and 20.
Score
should use this
portfolio
to
IWalk
consider
my involvement
with
the Beijing
judge
my
capacity
for
creativity,
extent
of
Workshop to be my most influential
experience
related
to
urban
livability,
and
experience to date, not only because of the
general
for graphicalbut
representation.
richness talents
of the explorations,
because of
the inherent collaborative attitude that goes
hand in hand with the workshop. It is this
collaborative attude that I wish to emphasize
as an Urban Designer, always bringing new
diciplines to the table.
LIVING UP
Advanced Architectural Design Studio
Prof. Jan Wampler
home/
office
COMPLETE GRAPHICS
FOR COMPLETE STREETS
Senior Project
Advisors: Tim Love, Eran Ben-Joseph, John Ochsendorf
A ‘CITY’ OF SCULPTURES
Advanced Architecural Design Studio
Prof. Dan Chen
BEACON HILL & SOUTH END
INSERTION STUDY
Advanced Architectural Design Studio
Prof Dan Chen
MASS CUSTOM
HOUSING
Hong Kong Senior Design Studio
Prof. Tom Verebes
THE BLOSSOM HOUSE
ira Winder | Creative Works
5.6 Lighting
5.7 Street Furniture
4.2 Multi-modal
Performance
Evaluation
5.8 Street Activation
6
4.3 Crosswalks
4.4 Geometric Designs
3
Landscaping
4.5 Signals
5
6.1 Principles
Sidewalk Realm
6.5 Rain Gardens
5.1 Principles
6.6 Bio-swales
5.2 Sidewalk Zones &
Widths
6.7 Paving Materials
3.3 Bicycle Facility Types
3.4 Transit Lanes
5.3 Accessibility
3.0 Principles
3.1 Travel Lanes & Widths
6.2 Street Trees
6.3 Planting & Plant Lists
3.2 Motor Vehicle Speeds
3.5 Medians
home/
office
6
4
7
light commericial
light com
3
5
6’
5.5 Vehicle Crossings
4.1 Principles
all paving uniform height
2’6”
21’
travel lane
17’
right of way
20
Velux Design Competition
Prof. Marilyne Andersen
Team: Collaboration with one fellow design student
2
12
14
16
18
8’6”
Mostly brick pavers
Granite details
Minimal asphault
Roadway
Design
Light Commericial
Bldg-Bldg Width
55’
Intersection Spacing 500’
Density
160 ppl/sqmi
5.4 Materials &
Construction
Intersection
Design
Multimodal
Green
Smart
Average
Daily Traffic
Location
4
Vision
26
Contents
3
What if a city adopted balloons as a
secondary mode of transit? Can they do
more than move people?
Harbour Islands
Fig 5. Mem. Drive
What if one could appreciate
Boston through an iconic
network of specialty aerial
transports? Boston residents
can finally emerge from
their dank underground
corridors and take to the skies.
Balloon Boston is a new civic
attraction, rivaling the gondoliers of Venice in its ability to
provide passengers with a truly
revealing city experience. Not only
are passengers delighted by the
cityscape, balloons themselves are a
wonderful addition to the skyline, a site
to see by the public for miles around.
NORTHERN
AVE
Bunker Hill Monument
BALLOON BOSTON
N
The city is gifted with Boston Commons (Fig. 1),
providing a green space large enough for the
daily inflation of large hot air balloons. From
The Commons, balloons begin their circuit
of the city (Fig. 4), ending at any number of
destinations. For the tourist, this is the perfect
way to traverse the city, even if they’re looking
to reach Harvard Yard.
AVE
NORTHER
RICHMOND
STREET
HIGH
STREET
NEW
STREET
WHARF
AVENUE
STREET
OLIVER
STREET
STREET
INDIA
STREET
L STREET
COMMERCIA
STATE
BROAD
CENTRAL
MILK STREET
STREET
ATLANTIC
STREET
HOUSE
NORTH
STREET
CUSTOM
STREET
STREET
RCH
STREET
BATTERYMA
STREET
MILK
CHATHAM
BENNET
STREET
STREET
FRANKLIN
FULTON
HIGH
NORTH
STREET
PEARL
STREET
STREET
STREET
BROAD
STREET
RICHMOND
STREET
CONGRESS
STREET
NORTH
STATE
R STREET
PARAMETE
STREET
WATER
CLINTON
STREET
STREET
OLIVER
STREET
HANOVER
STREET
NORTH
STREET
CROSS
STREET
SALEM
STREET
STILLMAN STREET
HANOVER
STREET
COOPER STREET
NORTH MARGIN
ENDICOTT STREET
Boston City Hall
STREET
CONGRESS
NEW
CHARDON
NEW
STREET
SUDBURY
STREET
NEW
STREET
CANAL
By selling advertising space on the balloons
(Fig. 5), Boston may expect to make a tidy
profit, while keeping fare relatively low.
Businesses have more advertising space,
passengers have a new way to experience
Boston, and the public enjoys an intriguing
addition to a once monotonous skyline.
Boston Commons
(Staging Area)
John Hancock
Tower
Cambridge Merriott
Fig 4. Scenic Balloon Route
Fenway Stadium
Harvard Yard
Fig 1. Prep in Commons
4
ira Winder | Creative Works
Fig 2. Boston, USA
Fig 3. Venice, Italy
Studies | BALOON BOSTON
5
How can China develop high density,
low carbon, yet livable cities?
DEVELOPING
JINAN’S NEW
LOW CARBON CITY
The rapid pace of China’s urbanization,
although outstanding, has created a landscape
of centrally planned cookie-cutter super
developments.
Many of the elements of sustainability, as we
know them, have been neglected in these new
cities. Instead of walkable streets, ever wider
roads encourage car-commuting culture and
destroy urban outdoor environments. Instead of
durable, passive architecture, building are built
cheaply and with a maximum life of only one or
two decades.
This studio exercise seeks to generate new
urban forms that address issues of livability
and low-carbon lifestyles, as well as provide
the high densities that China demands from its
developments. The use of an energy pro forma
was important for gauging whether our designs
made meaningful cuts to carbon output.
6
ira Winder | Creative Works
Projects | DEVELOPING JINAN’S NEW LOW-CARBON CITY
7
180m
180m
LOW CARBON |Key Strategies
FAR: 0.5
Mobility
Diversity
Outdoor Living
FAR
Room coverage
Ecology
Urban
FAR: 1.0 Footprint
coverage: 50%
coverage:
25%
Typical Hutong
Typical Hutong
Traditional Hutong
Pedestrian and transit-oriented
Reduce car use
Typical Hutong
Preference is given to
pedestrians increasing
livelihood and
decreasing emissions
MIXED
USE
Ground floor commercial provides access to
goods and services
OPEN SPACE
Open space equals built
space footprint.
Mix of uses
Creating Community
Small Unit Size
Geothermal
>50%
Multiscale approach
Using sun, wind and water
180m
Building spacing and
contours
Mix of uses
NATURAL
Variety of densitiesVENTILATION
Building depth allows
for cross ventilation.
Creating community
Small unit size PEDESTRIAN
PREFERENCE
d
Geothermal
coverage
>2.0
Preference is given to
pedestrians increasing
livelihood and
decreasing emissions
Typical Hutong
>50%
<10%
New Form-Energy Cluster
<0.5
MIXED
USE
Mulitscale approach
Using sun, wind and water
Ground floor commercial provides access to
goods and services
<10%
High-rise Towers
New Low Carbon
Cluster
New Form-Energy Cluster
Typical Hutong
OPEN SPACE
Open space equals built
space footprint.
8
ira WinderSUNLIGHT
| Creative Works
OPTIMIZATION
Building spacing and
contours
MIXED
USE
GREEN
Ground floor commerROOF
cial provides access to
VARIETY OF
DENSITIES
diversity
and reduces
Building
spacing and
elevator
use
contours
GEOTHERMAL
NATURAL
VENTILATION
Open space allows for
geothermal wells for
Building depth allows
natural heating and
for cross ventilation.
cooling
WATER
MANAGEMENT
Grey waters enter a
double cycle of filtration
and solar heating.
>2.0
>50%
HUMAN
SCALE
VARIETY OF
DENSITIES
SUNLIGHT
A mix of building heights
OPTIMIZATION
and types
allows for
High-rise Towers
<10%
FAR
coverage
PEDESTRIAN
PREFERENCE
WATER
Preference is given to
pedestrians increasing
MANAGEMENT
livelihood and
Proportioned
streetscapes favor
pedestrian activity.
>2.0
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
>50%
Open space allows for
geothermal wells for
natural heating and
cooling
OPEN SPACE
HUMAN
Open space equals built
SCALE
space footprint.
FAR: 2.0
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
coverage: 10%
180m
<0.5 1.0
FAR:
FAR
coverage
FAR coverage: 25%
FAR: 0.5
coverage: 50%
GEOTHERMAL
goods and services
Reduces urban heat
island and provides
insulation
180m
<0.5
VARIETY OF
DENSITIES
decreasing emissions
Grey waters enter a
double cycle of filtration
and solar heating.
180m
180m
FAR: 1.0
coverage: 25%
coverage: 25%
180m
180m
Proportioned
streetscapes favor
pedestrian activity.
180m
FAR: 1.0
FAR: 0.5
coverage: 50%
coverage: 50%
New Form-Energy Cluster
Typical Hutong
Pedestrian and transit-oriented
SUNLIGHT
Reduce car use OPTIMIZATION
High-Rise Towers
<0.5
Variety of densities
HUMAN
SCALE
A mix of building heights
and types allows for
diversity and reduces
elevator use
Mid-rise Slabs
Mid-Rise
Slabs
FAR: 2.0
High-rise Towers
coverage:
10%
High-rise Towers
High-rise Towers
FAR: 0.5
d
Mid-rise Slabs
Mid-rise Slabs
180m
PEDESTRIAN
PREFERENCE
180m
Proportioned
streetscapes favor
pedestrian activity.
New Form-Energy Cluster
Typical Hutong
High-rise Towers
A mix of building heights
and types allows for
diversity and reduces
elevator use
GEOTHERMAL
FAR: 0.5
coverage:
180m50%
Grey waters enter a
double cycle of filtration
and solar heating.
180m
Reduces urban heat
island and provides
insulation
FAR: 0.5
coverage: 50%
FAR: 2.7
coverage:180m
35%
FAR: 2.7
coverage: 35%
FAR: 0.5
coverage: 50%
WATER
MANAGEMENT
GREEN
ROOF
180m
180m
Open space allows for
geothermal wells for
natural heating and
cooling
FAR: 0.5
coverage: 50%
180m
180m
FAR: 2.7
coverage: 35%
FAR: 2.7
coverage: 35%
High-rise Towers
The footprint of the New Low Carbon
Cluster is unique in that it does not follow
the typical inverse relationship between
FAR and land coverage. Instead, if both
FAR and land coverage are kept high,
a new urban form is derived to address
issues regarding low-carbon lifestyles and
increased livability (next page).
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
180m
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
180m
180m
180m
60,140 MJ /HH (per year)
180m
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
FAR: 2.0
coverage: 10%
Projects | DEVELOPING JINAN”S NEW LOW CARBON CITY
9
LOWCARBON CITY |Unit and Cluster
VENTILATION
STACK
Towers create pressure
differential to ventilate
OPTIMAL
SQUAREFOOTAGE
Compact efficient units
save up space and
increase energy performance.
1
S
SUNLIGHT
OPTIMIZATION
Building spacing and
contours
NATURAL
VENTILATION
Building depth allows
for cross ventilation.
SOUTHERN
EXPOSURE
3
Southern exposure is
meximized to increase
heat gains during cold
seasons.
WATER
MANAGEMENT
Grey waters enter a
double cycle of filtration
and solar heating.
2
TROMBE
WALLS
Tromb walls improve
overall building thermal
performance.
PRO FORMA PERFORMANCE
(MJ per HH per year)
1
Small unit size (75 m2) = 10,603 MJ
2
Natural ventilation = 2612 MJ
3
Percentage of wall facing south = 1404 MJ
1
CIVIC ENERGY
CENTER
Serves as an energy
dashboard to inform
residents on their
energy performance.
2
Heavy thermal mass
holds consistent
temperatures
5
SOLAR
HEATERS
Solar heating provides
warm water and zero
emissions heating
during cold seasons.
GREEN
ROOF
Reduces urban heat
island and provides
insulation
3
THERMAL
MASS
MIXED
USE
SUNLIGHT
OPTIMIZATION
Building spacing and
contours
Ground floor commercial provides access to
goods and services
4
PEDESTRIAN
PREFERENCE
OPEN SPACE
Preference is given to
pedestrians increasing
livelihood and decreasing emissions
Open space equals built
space footprint.
PRO FORMA PERFORMANCE
(MJ per HH per year)
BIOSWELLS
Filter grey water and
alleviate heat island
effect.
2
Civic energy centers = 2% reduction
Green roofs = 327 MJ
3
Ground level commercial = 357 MJ
GEOTHERMAL
4
Limited parking = 660 MJ
5
Rooftop PV and water heating = 15,539 MJ
Open space allows for
geothermal wells for
natural heating and
cooling
1
10
ira Winder | Creative Works
Projects | DEVELOPING JINAN”S NEW LOW CARBON CITY
11
What if one were to design their
future home among the rooftops of
The North End?
LIVING UP
Students are asked to imagine their home in 10
years, as if it were built into the fabric of Boston’s
North End. This project attempts to retrofit an
underutilized roof-top with a 1000 sqft residence
and studio that respects the existing architecture
below it. The building includes a courtyard.
12
ira Winder | Creative Works
Studies | LIVING UP
13
How can street design drawings be tailored
to a broad range of viewers and agendas, yet
still be a credible design tool?
COMPLETE GRAPHICS
FOR COMPLETE STREETS
TRANSECT as timeline
OVERHEAD VIEW as intersection detail
A study was performed to determine how
drawings for designing streets may be tailored
to a broad range of viewers and agendas,
yet still be viewed as a credible design tool for
architects. With a growing number of cities
designing their own guidelines according to the
complete streets movement, it’s necessary to
develop a graphic style that not only appeals to
the typical engineering aspect of streets, but is
also robust enough to include details for
various design components and spatial
as informational
qualities not before considered in street
design.
PERSPECTIVE SECTION
2
Fig 2. Transect Drawing: 100 yrs of a Boston Street
Past Trends
Traffic calming slows
overall vehicular
flow, but buses
report more reliable
stop schedules.
Shared Streets
Crossing the street is
a breeze, and there
are plenty of places
to stop, rest, and
shop!
Uniform paving for
pedestrian and
vehicle surface at
intersections
Dirt and Clay Pavement
Slow and Simple Travel Modes
Safe, vehicular
cycling in slow
rate of traffic
even though
not specifically
designated for bike
lanes.
legend graphic
4
7
5.4 Materials
&
Vegetation is
Nature as Commodity
Opaque Building Facades as
Wall to Sidewalk Realm
New drawings and information graphics were
Construction
invented to better describe multi-modal streets,
5.5 Vehicle Crossings
Vision
Intersection
Curbside
spatial qualities, and a fully conceived taxonomy
Design
Management
5.6 Lighting
Multimodal
of urban street types. It was discovered that
Green
4.1 Principles
7.1 Principles
5.7 Street Furniture
three drawing types are especially
useful for Smart
Average
4.2 Multi-modal
Fig
1.
Overhead
view
with
captions
7.2
Vehicle Parking &
5.8 Street in-diagram
Activation
Daily Traffic
as Great
Performance
Loading Zones
conveying this type of information:
Perspective-Streets
Public Spaces
Evaluation
Avg.
Daily
Traffic
8500-1200
Sections, Overhead Views, and Transects.
7.3 Scooter & Motorcycle
Car
yes
Mostly brick pavers
4.3 Crosswalks
1
i
Main Street
Haren, The
Netherlands
creatively deployed
to calm traffic and
unify public spaces.
200 yrs of a
Bus
Light Rail
Bicycle
Pedestrian
Location
A New Urbanist’s
Dream! Appropriate
scales and small
shops allow for
relaxed, pedestrian
atmosphere.
Avg Motor Speed
yes
no
yes
yes
25mph
53 Deg, 11 Min North
BOSTON
URBAN
STREET
Granite details
Minimal asphault
4.4 Geometric Designs
3
4.5 Signals
Roadway
Design
Light Commericial
Bldg-Bldg Width
55’
Intersection Spacing 500’
Density
160 ppl/sqmi
3.0 Principles
5
1860
6
6.3 Planting & Plant Lists
6.7 Paving Materials
3.3 Bicycle Facility Types
5.2 Sidewalk Zones &
Widths
3.4 Transit Lanes
5.3 Accessibility
Alright, let’s give
the streets back
to everyone.
8
1916 City Planning of
Streets and Lots
Smart Technology
Principles
8.1 PTZ Cameras and
Fiber Conduit
8.2 Electric and Hybrid
Vehicles
1932 Peak in Urban
Greenery
1935 Parking Meter
invented by P.O.M.
1889 Sand Clay Roads
(South Carolina)
home/
office
7
light commericial
3
5
all paving uniform height
8’6”
6’
2’6”
Fig 2. Section Perspective with Table of Contents
21’
travel lane
1960
1961 Subdividing for
Traffic Safety (ITE)
1961 Parking Dimensions
(Automobile Manufacturers
Association)
1893 First Brick Rural
Road (Ohio)
4
1965 Traffic Engineers
Handbook (ITE)
1905 Coal Tar
Experiments (NYC)
1943 Great American
Streetcar Scandal
1908 Ford Model T
Introduced light commericial
1949 Federal Highway
Administration
1967 National Committee
on Uniform Traffic Laws
and Ordinance
1909 Concrete Road
(Michigan)
1952 Walk/Don’t Walk
Signs Invented
2006 New York City
Street Design Manual
17’Street Name Inspirations
right of way
ira Winder | Creative Works
1
2010
2010 Deployment of
Dedicated Cycle Lane
Network (Boston)
2011 Boston Complete
Streets Guidellines
Examples
1800 Landmarks , Heroes
Church Street, Washington Street
1850 Trees
14
Increasing Facade Permeability
to Sidewalk Realm
1910
1872 First Asphalt (NYC)
6
Nature as Drainage Infrastructure
7.5 Bus Stops
6.2 Street Trees
6.6 Bio-swales
home/
office
Fast and Diverse Travel Modes
Parking
Landscaping
5.1 Principles
3.5 Medians
Diverse and Durable Paving Types
No immediate
parking, but the
drive is pleasant and
the way is marked
by thoughful use
of materials rather
than painted lines
and signs.
1869 Tree Shade As
7.6 Meters
6.1 Principles
Ornamentation
(Ottawa)
6.5 Rain Gardens
3.2 Motor Vehicle Speeds
Lane Use and Ownership Designated
7.4 Bicycle Parking
1869 Steam Road Roller
Sidewalk Realm
3.1 Travel Lanes & Widths
Future Trends
Chestnut Street, Elm Street, Walnut Street
1860 Developers
1880 Avenues
Richards Street
1910 Boulevards, Park, Court
2060
BeaconGRAPHICS
Hill and South
Insertion
Study
Studies
| COMPLETE
FOR End
COMPLETE
STREETS
Commonwealth
Avenue
Onteora Blvd
15
Can a group of students
collaborate to make an
interconnected collage of
unique sculptures?
A ‘CITY’ OF
SCULPTURES
A class of ten students was assigned the task
of creating a landscape of interconnected,
concrete components (Fig1). Not only an
exercise in aesthetics, each classmate had to
insure that their components would interlock
with their neighbors’ in manner that added
to the whole of the composition. Working
democratically, the students planned the layout
Fig 2. Excavation of concrete sculpture from
formwork of plywood and extruded foam. Note
that red dye was added to concrete mixture.
of this ‘city,’ as well as a design framework.
Not only an exercise in aesthetics, students
needed to constantly collaborate with each
other, ensuring that all of the pieces aligned
properly. This was an assignment with many
layers, testing our ability to work together
as uniquely motivated yet interdependent
designers.
Fig 1. Placement of my sculpture
(red) among those of classmates.
16
ira Winder | Creative Works
Fig 3. Intersection of sculpture(red,
right) with adjacent classmate’s
creation (grey, left).
Studies | A City of Sculptures
17
Fig 0.
Beacon Hill
Figureground
What if the fabric of Boston’s
Beacon Hill could be woven into
that of the South End?
Fig 1.
South End
Figureground
BEACON HILL
& SOUTH END
INSERTION STUDY
1500’
0’
500’
Fig 2.
Fig 5.
Planners must be careful, as the urban fabric of
a city might easily be taken for granted as some
immutable grid of ordained patterns.
This quick exercise demonstrates how an
otherwise alien fabric such as Beacon Hill-located only a short distance away--can
be used as a tool to quickly reimagine the
fragmented fabric of the South End in Boston,
Massachusetts.
Fig 3.
The original figureground (Fig 1), reveals how
modern development along Washington Street
in the South End has broken the traditional town
house grid in favor of larger, object-like buildings
such as a low-income housing project, a midrise condo, an electronics manufacturer, and an
elementary school.
Figures 2, 3, and 5 attempt to re-stich this
once strong main road running south-west to
north-east by using only the patterns available
in Beacon Hill. Figure 4, on the other hand,
juxtaposes the South End against a theoretical
city of Beacon Hill scaled fabric.
Fig 4.
18
ira Winder | Creative Works
Studies | BEACON HILL AND SOUTH END INSERTION STUDY
19
How can one utilize
computation to create
custom forms out of a kit
of simple components?
MASS CUSTOM
HOUSING
A design challenge for future architects is to
create unique and customizable spaces out of
increasingly standardized components. “Mass
customized housing” is a concept especially
relevant to China, where its enormous
population and wealth distribution creates a
market where small-scale custom buildings are
less prevalent.
The current image of mass-produced housing
is of highly regular and monotonous urban
forms. Therefore, the project strives to produce
natural, analogue forms and program
arrangements out of simple and uniform
modules of various scales. These modules
are integrated throughout the architecture,
providing components from primary structure
to facade detail and ornamentation.
20
ira Winder | Creative Works
Projects | MASS CUSTOM HOUSING
21
MASS CUSTOM HOUSING |Logic
1 tatami
1/2
sha
ku
1 shaku
1/2 間[ken]
1 meter
Tange System
Shape Logic
Analogue Shift
Fabrication
ormation: Traditional, Human Scale Units
Process of Transforming Analogue Surface into Discrete Units
1/2
sha
ku
Analogue Shift
METHODOLOGY
While traditional customization in architecture can lead to unweildy details and arduous
construction, the project strives to produce natural, analogue forms and program arrangements out of simple and uniform modules of various scales, inspired by the case
study of Kenzo Tange’s 1961 Rowhouses in Ichinomiya, Japan. These modules are integrated throughout the architecture, providing components from primary structure to
facade detail and ornamentation.
sha
ku
Analogue Shift
Stackable Course
Variations
While traditional customization in architecture can lead to unweildy details and arduous
construction, the project strives to produce natural, analogue forms and program arrangements out of simple and uniform modules of various scales, inspired by the case
study of Kenzo Tange’s 1961 Rowhouses in Ichinomiya, Japan. These modules are integrated throughout the architecture, providing components from primary structure to
facade detail and ornamentation.
Corner Treatments
22
Tange Unit Plan with Linear Row Aggregation
Tange Unit Plan with Linear Row Aggregation
Discrete
approximation
Tange Unit Plan with Linear Row Aggregation
n in architecture can lead to unweildy details and arduous
es to produce natural, analogue forms and program aruniform modules of various scales, inspired by the case
owhouses in Ichinomiya, Japan. These modules are intecture, providing components from primary structure to
on.
Stackable Course
Fig 3. Conversion of double-curved
Variations surface
to computationally manufacturable 2D
approximation.
Robust curvature
andDiscrete
elevation
Unitization
METHODOLOGY
Discrete Unitization
METHODOLOGY
Discrete Unitization
Slotted Masonry Units
1/2
Discrete Unitization
While traditional customization in architecture can lead to unweildy details and arduous
construction, the project strives to produce natural, analogue forms and program arrangements out of simple and uniform modules of various scales, inspired by the case
study of Kenzo Tange’s 1961 Rowhouses in Ichinomiya, Japan. These modules are integrated throughout the architecture, providing components from primary structure to
facade detail and ornamentation.
Orthogonal Base
ng Analogue Surface into Discrete Units
OGY
1/2 間[ken]
1 間[ken]
Utilization and Transformation: Traditional, Human Scale Units
ira Winder | Creative Works
Corner Treatments
Fig 4. Assembly
of prototype MDF
units onto ribs.
Panelization
Unit Plan with Computational Aggregation Pattern
Projects | MASS CUSTOM HOUSING
23
Analogue Shift
Discrete Unitization
STRAND DEPLOYMENT
METHODOLOGY
MASS CUSTOM HOUSING |Systems Diagrams
While traditional customization in architecture can lead to unweildy details and arduous
construction, the project strives to produce natural, analogue forms and program arrangements out of simple and uniform modules of various scales, inspired by the case
study of Kenzo Tange’s 1961 Rowhouses in Ichinomiya, Japan. These modules are integrated throughout the architecture, providing components from primary structure to
facade detail and ornamentation.
Tange Unit Plan with Linear Row Aggregation
line tracing landscape
spline tracing landscape
offset to contain housing row
spline adjusted to extruded topography to contain second story
secondary spline branch at discrete
unit intersection
m unit
line tracing landscape
spline tracing landscape
offset to contain housing row
spline adjusted to extruded topography to contain second story
oo
Two-bedr
secondary spline branch at discrete
unit intersection
tertiary spline branch at discrete
unit intersection
tertiary spline branch at discrete
unit intersection
applied to topography
Ground topology extruded
applied to topography
to roof landscape
Outward protrusion offers sun shading
Unit Plan with Computational Aggregation Pattern
m unit
o
Two-bedro
Ground topology extruded
to roof landscape
Outward protrusion offers sun shading
Flat envelope surfaces approximated b
larger block units for greater efficiency
and visual differentiation of facade
Privacy and ledge for balcony
0
5
Primary floor slabs support secondary ones,
allowing for discontinuity of envelope in multistory
structure
1/2 ken
One-level systems do not require extensive structural hierarchy
Varying Resolution of Surface Approximation
Flat envelope surfaces approximated by
larger block units for greater efficiency
and visual differentiation of facade
Privacy and ledge for balcony
Primary floor slabs support secondary ones,
allowing for discontinuity of envelope in multistory
structure
One-level systems do not require extensive structural hierarchy
24
ira Winder | Creative Works
Projects | MASS CUSTOM HOUSING
25
What if MIT had a guest house for
visiting scholars that utilized natural
daylight in a novel way?
Fig 1. Elevation of south-west facade with interior
sketch of dining room (above) and bedroom
corridor (right).
1
st place
Velux Design Competition, 2008
THE BLOSSOM HOUSE
Fig 2. Various rooms (or petals) from left to right:
dining space, lounge, bedroom wing. Ground floors
include meeting room and atrium.
An open flower with fanned petals has more
surface area, and can better utilize reflected light
to capture the attention of pollinators. Similarly,
the guest house is comprised of multiple wings
that fan into different cardinal directions, taking
advantage of the lighting opportunities specific to
each direction.
While each wing, or petal of the house
accommodates certain living spaces, they do not
operate autonomously. Rather, they make use of
adjacent wings for shading, reflected light, and
other effects.
Fig 3. Conceptual sketches culminating
in final proposal (top).
26
ira Winder | Creative Works
What if? | THE BLOSSOM HOUSE
27