ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN PORTFOLIO

ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN PORTFOLIO

What is architecture? What factors affect aesthetic and structural tectonics? What is the role of human in built environments?

These are all questions that preoccupy the architectural field. We can use words to answer them, the-ories and references. But how could we answer architecture-related ques-tions with architecture itself?

This pavilion, with a site of my choice, is the answer of nature’s role in architecture, including users and site factors. Conceived as one building, the pavilion is a series of four spaces, each presenting a differ-ent piece of information, as well as perceptive experiences.

PAVILIONOn top of a mountain

NATURE INSPIRES,NATURE DIRECTS

TOPOGRAPHY

ABSTRACTION

CONCRETISATION

2009Third Semester

UndergraduateInstitut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

INSTRUCTORS:Arch. Divina AbouJaoude

Arch. Georges BesharaArch. Grace Rihan

01

FACADE ENTRANCE TECTONICS OF A HILL PLAN AND SECTION

PULL APART MODEL SHOWING SPATIAL PROGRESSION

1. ENTRANCE 2.EXPERIENCE 3. CONNECTION WITH NATURE 4. ULTIMATE CORNER: THE END

02

The Beaverton Arts Founda-tion is attempting to bring a per-forming and visual arts center to the community. The studio explores the architectural potential of a Perform-ing ArtSpace within the suburban and evolving context of Beaverton.

The site located in an eco-dis-trict, exhibits multiple latent forces and vectors that permeates the sur-rounding urban fabric, offering a rich collage of elements.

Primary programmatic com-ponents include: versatile perform-ing art space for theatre, dance, in-strumental and choral performances, dynamic multi-form theatre, visual arts gallery, meeting and event cen-ter, arts education space, and inte-grated landscape / civic arts plaza. The building draws inspiration from the attributes of place and commu-nity values and aspire to create an architecture that is both appropriate and iconic, celebrating Beaverton’s unique identity.

ARTSPACEBeaverton, OR

the underlying image of a burgeoning cultural art scene

03

2013Spring Studio

University of Oregon, Portland

INSTRUCTORS:James Kalvelage and Joe Baldwin

(OPSIS architecture- Portland)

PHASE 01:Partnered urban design

PHASE 02:Individual building design

04

Community is at the heart of healthcare design in places like Haiti. The layout gives priority and ownership to the people in the community running and using the clinic. Spaces will accommodate volunteers and nurses.Safety and acceptance by the community are top priorities to ensure successful and active operation after its construction. The building is designed following a consistent structural grid. Familiar construction methods of concrete post-and-beam with CMU infill are finished with a brightly-colored, painted stucco. The building is anchored by a central spine of services which provides core structural support. The separation of programmatic spaces allows the wings to function independently if needed. Local pride is incorporated into the detailed tile floor, window iron work, and open masonry screen walls through commissioning local craftsmen.

SANT SANTEJacmel, South of Haiti

jacmel, Haiti:arcHitecture for cHange

2013REvive Jacmel Competition

Submission team:Grace Aaraj, MArch '14Jackie Davis, MArch '14

First Prize for overall design; Winner of best constructible design and

People's choice award.

05

06

The northwest neighborhood of Portland is undergoing an urban design phase. Phase 01 of the studio focused on designing a square and the buildings on its edges. Phase 02 is a programmatic research focused on demographics and projected identity of the neighborhood.

Portland is one of the richest cities in the us in the culinary and community agriculture. Deriving from that is an atmosphere of festiv-ity and celebration of different cus-toms and skills. As a project, I chose to develop a culinary institute and greenhouse with annexed housing. The design aim to maintain balance between the diverse values of adja-cent neighborhoods and potential developers.

CULIN-ARTPortland, Oregon

community,food And idEntity

MAIN MASSING AROUND PLAZA

2012Fall Studio

Graduate studiesUniversity of Oregon- Portland

Phase 01: Square Urban DesignPhase 02: Project development

INSTRUCTORS:Don Genasci

Sean Chou07

08

The studio designed urban installations for sites in both Bar-celona’s 22@ district and the North Park Blocks between the Pearl Dis-trict and Old Town / Chinatown in Portland, Oregon.The studio in-vestigated how public services may be a valuable place brand for these cities that provide what Bruno La-tour called the ‘attachment’ of archi-tecture to the living city over time. This understanding of attachment was supported with material affect to empower participation and the communication of values within a district, neighborhood and urban room from the bottom up.

Principles of bottom-up ur-ban design were explored at the scale of analytical tools and installation scale interventions using systems as unit organization acted on by exter-nal forces. Interaction with stake-holders in the Creative Corridor of Northwest downtown Portland in food and public services assisted us, students, to understand place and culture.

2013Winter Studio

University of Oregon, Portland

INSTRUCTOR:Philip sperenza

PHASE 01:partnered design

PHASE 02:design-build class work

BRIDGINGPortland + Barcelona

PARAMETRIC EXPLORATIONIN THE SERVICE OF A CITY

09

0411

enclosedrelationships

openess communication

startinga micro-network

of embracement and acceptance

generative pattern

IDENTITY

DIAGRAMMING THE TIME-BOUNDED RELATIONSHIP AND REACTIONS THROUGH A YEAR OF DESIGN IMPLEMETATION

enclosedrelationships

openess communication

startinga micro-network

of embracement and acceptance

generative pattern

IDENTITY

DIAGRAMMING THE TIME-BOUNDED RELATIONSHIP AND REACTIONS THROUGH A YEAR OF DESIGN IMPLEMETATION

0412

What is architecture? What factors affect aesthetic and structural tectonics? What is the role of human in built environments?

These are all questions that preoccupy the architectural field. We can use words to answer them, the-ories and references. But how could we answer architecture-related ques-tions with architecture itself?

This pavilion, with a site of my choice, is the answer of nature’s role in architecture, including users and site factors. Conceived as one building, the pavilion is a series of four spaces, each presenting a differ-ent piece of information, as well as perceptive experiences.

GLASS SCHOOLIndustrial district, Portland

INDUSTRY AS ART

Fall 2013Graduate studies

UOregon- Portland

INSTRUCTORS:Howard Davis

Matt Brown

13

14

1 3D View 4

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT PRODUCT

PRODUCED BY AN AUTO

DESK STUDENT PRODUCT

PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK STUDENT PRODUCTPR

ODU

CED

BY A

N AU

TODE

SK S

TUDE

NT P

RODU

CT

15

For architecture, structure can be an object for support. How can structure create spaces in hi-tech architectures intended for display?

For this project, the structur-al precedent was gardens by the bay botanical gardens project by Wilkin-son Eyre Architects, in Singapore. For the first phase, I developed de-tail drawings based on renderings and images of the precedent. The next phases included programmatic approach to fit exhibition and man-agement spaces under two types of structures.

The site is located at the in- tersection of a domestic road, and an elevated highway. The two struc- tures extend to the exterior of glaz- ing, creating outdoor public spaces, increasing the visibility of displayed cars and accessories.

SHOWROOMBeirut, Lebanon

2011Sixth Semester

UndergraduateInstitut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

INSTRUCTORS:Arch. Amine Iskandar

Arch. Hiami RaiArch. Tanios Bitar

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STRUCTURE,SPACESAND AESTHETICS

detail structure plafonddes ateliers

plan

coupe

coupetransversale

poteaucoupe

longitudinalepoteau

armature en acier

systeme en treillis

fondation

systeme accrochagedu mur rideau

systeme fixationde toiture

moly-grade stainless steel(technique utilise a ndia)

poteautransversal

detail structure plafonddes ateliers

plan

coupe

coupetransversale

poteaucoupe

longitudinalepoteau

armature en acier

systeme en treillis

fondation

systeme accrochagedu mur rideau

systeme fixationde toiture

moly-grade stainless steel(technique utilise a ndia)

poteautransversal

COUPE B-BSTRUCTURAL DETAIL OF SHOWROOM SPACE

STRUCTURAL DETAIL OF STORAGE AND ADMINISTRATION SPACES

0617

exterior plaza created by exhibition structuremodel

section showing the hybrid structure system

north elevation as seen from main street

ACCESS TO EXHIBITIONS AND STORAGE SPACES (COLLAGE)

EXHIBITION SPACE

P13P14P15P19 P16P17P18 P10P11P13P23 P21P22

COUPE A-A

The site is a 6700 sq m empty lot in the coastal region of Jal Dib- Lebanon. The only existing structure in the site is a traditional house on the side of one of the two site’s ac-cesses.

The design should address the shop-ping and entertainment venue as an opportunity for people to meet and engage in a social experience. The site’s prime location is an opportuni-ty to create a civic space, and reflect activities by boxes overlooking the highway and the shore. It is also the first step towards urbanizing the city in which it is located.

COMMERCEJal Dib, Lebanon

THE SKIN AS A COMMUNICATION TOOLAND THE SPACE AS A SOCIAL INTERFACE

2012Seventh Semester

UndergraduateInstitut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

INSTRUCTORS:Jean Yasmine

Michel BarmakiAntoine Kesserwani

18

MASSING

FUNCTIONS DISTRIBUTION

VIEWS AND ACCESS

VOIDS, CIRCULATION AND SKIN19

The project is a space for chil-dren to learn activities and engage with others to learn and discover.

The program is organized around a wide circulation overlook-ing the garden. Each colored box is related to an activity. The green box in a L shape pierces the facade to cre-ate display spaces, and surrounds a small plants garden.

The main facade act as a large display wall, color coded according to rooms of activities. This allows the facade to constantly change and adapts to events happening, and the children to feel they belong to this school of creativity and they appro-priate the space.

20

CITE DES ENFANTSBeirut, Lebanon

ARTISTIC ANDINTERCHANGEABLE

2010Fourth Semester Undergraduate

Institut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

INSTRUCTORS:Arch. Divina AbouJaoude

Arch. Georges BesharaArch. Grace Rihan

MAIN STREET ELEVATION

SECTION THROUGH GARDEN

SECTION THROUGH LEARNING ROOMS

21 MASSING MODEL MODEL SHOWING REAL COLORS

The site is an under urbanized part of Beit Mery, a Lebanese village overlooking the coast from an alti-tude of 700 meters above sea level.

The views are unlimited to-wards nature and the historic Phoe-nician ruins, roman ruins of Saint John monastery and the old church. Being in a traditional setting, the red tiles roof is required by the zoning code.

The individual villa sits on a 20% sloped parcel covering 800 square meters of land.

HOUSE ON HILLBeit Mery, Lebanon

2011Fifth Semester

UndergraduateInstitut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

INSTRUCTORS:Arch. Amine Iskandar

Arch. Hiami RaiArch. Tanios Bitar

22

TRADITIONS IN CONSTRUCTION

STRUCTURAL DETAIL OF STORAGE AND ADMINISTRATION SPACES

22

CHAMBRE 2CHAMBRE 3

S.A.M.

SALLE DE JEUX

COINCHEMINEE

SALLE DE JEUX DEPOT

PORCHED'ENTREE

VIDE SUR ENTREE

ENTREE

PATIO

SALONT.V.

SECTION THROUGH THE HILL

FIRST FLOOR PLAN

A VIBRANT GATEWAY TO DOWNTOWN EAST MINNEAPOLIS

The Downtown East neigh-borhood of Minneapolis is in need of a development plan connecting all scales. On the macro scale, this cata-lyst development can act as a bridge to other areas of Downtown. At the street level, a consistent pedestrian experience will connect the user to the neighborhood as a living organ-ism, rather than a set of individual components. Our program goal is to embrace four different life aspects:

First, a physical embrace of the surrounding districts through east/west gateway corridors, con-necting the site to Financial District.

Second, a social embrace of the neighborhood will encourage recreational activities.

Third, a fiscal embrace to im-prove the local economy and life in the neighborhood.

Finally, an ecological embrace to protect future generations and improve the quality of life for all.

EMBRACEMinneapolis, MN

2013Urban Land Institute 11th competition

Graduate Students Team:Grace Aaraj, Architecture , UOregon

Danielle Hoet, Architecture, UOregonDeven Young, Landscape Architecture, UOregonMohamad Nikzad, Business, Willamette University

Becky Kinsley, Historic Preservation, Columbia University

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18

Existing

Phase 02

Phase 01

Titanyen is a small growing informal settlement, where a project is guided by the vision of to teach street orphans not just the standard curriculum but the skills and ideas to become Haiti’s environmental stew-ards. In a country like Haiti where environmental degradation is some of the most severe on earth, restoring the earth’s capacity is both environ-mental and human rights issue.

Our project focuses on gener-ating a master plan and architectural services for the orphanages’ school, residential and agricultural facilities, which provide education for the or-phans and the community as well as adult education on sustainable agricultural practices, building and infrastructure. Our master plan in-cludes design and educational prac-tices to guide the restoration of the 30 acres of the school, orphanage and organic farm, bakeries, and mi-cro industries and includes and sus-tainable infrastructure to serve the water and waste cycles of the entire community.

DESIGN-BUILDTitanyen, Haiti

2013Travel Award project

Center for Public Interest Design Portland State University - Portland

Ecole Speciale d'Architecture- Paris

COORDINATORS:Sergio Palleroni- PSU

Todd Ferry- PSUMarie Aquilino- ESA

- ESA07

PUBLIC INTEREST DESIGN

08

23

2012Design elective

Institut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

ECOLOGICALFood Package

RECYCLEDBook Stand

2012Design elective

Institut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

Instructor:Mona Hecker

Competition entry at theLebanese Food Packaging

Conference- LibanPack 2012

2009Graphic Arts elective

Institut des Beaux Arts- Beirut

Instructors:Arch. Rim Zougheib

Arch. Georges Abi Nader

"Forgotton to reused"design topic

The package design is an ex-ploration of ecological means of food packaging.

Instead of relying solely on the materials used for packaging, like recycled cardboard, the design tries to include the user behavior into the ecological intent of the product.

The final product is an easy to use container for food, especially types that contains a post-consumed part. The container itself can be re-used and/or recycled.

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25

2010Oil on canvas

Fruits

GRACE AARAjMARCH UOREGON '14, PORTLAND

BARCH INSTITUT DES BEAUX-ARTS '11 BEIRUT

FULBRIGHT SCHOLAR

GRACE.AARAj@GMAIL.COMGRACE AARAj GRACEAARAj.WIX.COM/GRACEAARAj