THE MEMORIAL
The act of memorializing the AIDS epidemic with a physical gesture goes beyond remembering and honoring the dead. AIDS is not a war, nor a disease conquered. There are no definite dates or victims. In our design process, we emphasize the changing and varied ways through which AIDS affects us personally and as a society. It is important to create a space that conveys our sense of solemn respect, remembrance and loss, without resorting to symbolism around a date, image, or names.

THE PARK INSIDE
An infinite forest, generated by having 3 facing mirror walls along each side of the triangular block, defines the park and the memorial. There are no separate statues, sculptures or plaques. The memorial lives within the infinite reflection of the white birch trees. We hope this park will be all things to all people: the children playing in the bounds of the mirrored forest, the weary commuter seeking a respite in the midst of the city and those visitors coming in memory of their loss.

THE IN-BETWEEN CENTER
The walls isolating the park from the city act as light wells and access to the Learning Center below. By bringing sunlight into the basement via skylights, the raw utilitarian space can be transformed into a welcoming and open area for exhibition, learning and performance. The walls also taper in width, housing stairs and ramps. The main entrance is located along Seventh Avenue, continuing the now lost storefront and bringing pedestrian activity to the street through the inclusion of a bookstore and café.

THE OUTSIDE
Along the sidewalks, three walls clad in slate create a forum for the voice of many. Through an ephemeral nod to the chain link fence at Greenwich and 11th Street, visitors are able to give life to the stone walls through messages and images written in chalk, creating an ever-changing mural which is refreshed with every rain.

Embracing Amsterdam’s symbiotic relationship with water, our proposal seeks to bring about interaction with the Amstel on a more intimate level where the water becomes an experience for the user, not merely an object to cross over. By floating the bridge at water level and allowing a thin sheet of water to pass over it, we leave the site’s beauty intact while creating the illusion of walking on water.

Designed as an encounter with the canal, the floating bridge captures a beautiful and fleeting quality of a calm, rainy day, where one is biking slowly through shallow puddles while little kids stomp in their rain boots and the sky’s reflection is caught in glassy surfaces.

The canal’s edge approaching the bridge is carved into steps, inviting lingering strolls and pauses. Gateways mark the otherwise invisible crossing while sheltering a cafe and a bike shop. With a hinged midsection, the bridge opens to allow boats and barges to pass.

We are not designing a bridge, as much as an interaction with the water. The bridge provides a new kind of passage over the Amstel, one with just a touch of magic.

The design of a waterfront museum is also part of the larger context of integrating the waterfront into part of the city’s new expansion of cultural and recreational use in what used to be a port and industrial neighborhood. The proposal museum is a series of open/closed boxes connected both by outdoor and indoor pathways, creating a cultural space that becomes part of the surrounding park, unhindered by the physical constraints of the usual art-in-box museum setting.

Competition entry for the New England Biolab 150,000sf headquarter. In order to minimize the building foot print and reduce the impact of the new building in this beautiful site, the design intent was to create a linear extrusion with a series of labs, offices and public space following the natural curve of the landscape. Raised above the grounds it shelters the staff parking and the loading dock, and at the same time is low enough as to not obstruct the views from the existing Main Mansion. A bridge becoming a tunnel connects to the existing Main Mansion.

The Robbins Elementary School is situated in one of poorest sections of a once vibrant city. The old stately building is not only overcrowded but scarred after years vandalism and fences and bars have been erected to fortify the school against the neighborhood. The proposed design more than doubles the classroom areas all in one floor in the existing carpark and playground and creates a new elevated playground area on the roof, eliminating the need for ugly fencing and security features.

California housing trends are headed towards disaster with increasing water scarcity, tillable land scarcity, farmland scarcity and influx of residents. This study looks at the problem from a larger context, investigating the use of marginal farmland for use, and creating a new density to support public transportation. On the micro level, the design uses the most abundant parts of California – sunshine and dirt – to create the housing units that are low in ecological footprint.