3. Henry Chuang4
education
work experience
awards
skills
Cornell University
Bachelors of Architecture, Thesis semester
Nine Semesters Studio Two Semesters Structures
Two Semesters Representation Two Semesters Environmental Systems
Three Semesters Building Technology Five Semesters Theory
Four Semesters History GPA: 3.3
Intern at Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. New Haven, CT
Summer 2013 Under Principal Mark Shoemaker
Summer 2014 Under Principal Gregg Jones
Shop Teaching Assistant at Cornell University. Ithaca, NY
August 2013 - May 2016
Train and supervise students who use the woodworking and metal shop
Coup de Coeur Award:
Jacques Rougerie Foundation for “Origami Suitcase”
With Edbert Cheng (Cornell ‘16)
Software:
Rhinoceros Adobe Creative Suite
V-Ray AutoCad
Grasshopper Processing
Microsoft Office Python
Fabrication:
Woodworking Metalworking
Laser cutting 3D printing
Fluent in English
Fluent in Mandarin
resumeHenry Chuang
324 Thurston Ave
Ithaca, NY 14853
+1 607-351-4238
chc64@cornell.edu
5. Rooms
(August - December 2015)
Professors Ramon Bosch and Elizabet Capdeferro
Henry Chuang8
Ebro River Delta, Catalonia, Spain. Barely a meter above sea level, the delta is a
seemingly flat plane of rice patties. Such a strong horizon is broken by telephone
poles, trees, low houses, and most prominently, the bell tower in the center of the town.
I began my investigation of the site through different scales, from the geographic to the
human scale. I present my interests in a grid of intersecting elements (Water, Sound,
Salt, Rhythm, Intervention, Retainer, Nature, Visibility) and conditions (Rationality,
Boundaries, Texture, Movement, Confusion, Proposal). Conditions I’ve highlighted
include devices that control water: canals, gates, shoreline, retaining walls. Indications
of movement: streets, the canals along side them, telephone poles. Different existing
typologies of the site: the town of Pouble Nou, the gridded rice patties, the oyster
farms, and the relationship between human and water.
Of particular interest is a one kilometer long dock that extends from the south border
of the delta opposite of my chosen site. Seeing such a strong intervention, I decided
to create my own, accentuating and incorporating my interests within the design. The
radicality of this proposal lies in the amplification of the Ebro River Delta. Elements
are taken to their limits and drive the design on all scales.
These are eight rooms: Cook, eat, store, read, write, bath, sleep, and daydream. The
two meter wide dock opens up to the cooking in the main space to the left with storage
shelves to the right that run along the length of the main space. Cook turns to eat
with the introduction of the long table, which gradually changes function into read
and write. Each side of the envelope responds accordingly to the site. The northern
face consists of cupboards and windows, one the inverse of the other. The east is
punctuated by openings akin to that of the north side. The west is a glass facade with
operable louvers on the exterior. Above the long table is a skylight designed to provide
indirect light to the space.
The corridor continues, with a double height bath to the left. The final destination of
the one kilometer long dock is daydream. Once again, the inhabitant is outside with
nothing obstructing his view allowing the mind to wander without limits.
Breaking the directionality of the corridor is the stairs up to the most private sleeping
room and a secondary elevated horizon.
10. Henry Chuang18
Boston Inverted
(August - December 2013)
Professor Inaqui Carnicero
Upon examining the details of Boston’s North End, very interesting geometries
emerge. Not from the North End’s buildings, but rather the remaining spaces
left from the blocks of housing.These abstract geometries serve as the basis of
my design.Taking the silhouettes of the North End, I overlayed them. With this,
I discovered patterns: circulation, housing units, gardens, and courtyards. Just
from simple lines drawn from circulation cores, the components of the building
fall naturally into place. This lays the basic structure for the rest of the building
to take shape.
From the predetermined structure, housing units could be changed to each
tenant’s specifications. Based on a 10’ x 20’ module, the interior units can be
divided to fit different numbers of people, ranging from a single studio to a three
bedroom apartment. Combined with this flexibility, each tenant can also design
their own garden space which would hang off from the main structure. This
natural growth, dependent on Boston’s own inhabitants, generates the inverse
of North End.
This way of generating space creates a building that is in its own sense, organic.
By using a basic structure, the details of both the interior and the exterior can
be changed to the specifications of those living within. This project becomes a
microcosm for the North End, in which each building defines its own boundaries
which are different from the rest.
11. Henry Chuang20
plan - second floor
plan - third floor
plan - fourth floor
plan - fifth floor
14. Henry Chuang26
Changeability Overlapping
(January - May 2014)
Professor Lily Chi
Situated on the brink between Old Rome and Outside, Porta Portese in Trastevere
served as a gateway into the city through the Janiculum Wall. The intrinsic marginality
of the site, located between the Janiculum and the Aurelian Walls, has persisted to the
present day. Included within the third century Aurelian wall as part of Ancient Rome,
it was then excluded by Pope Urban VIII’s walls in the seventeenth century. This
occlusion of such a small part of land has led that place to become liminal, a location
that has sustained much change over time.
Adjacent to our site is a series of bike shops, which transform into a teeming flea
market on Sundays. This transformation, along with its once proximity to the Ripa
Grande port and past function as a military arsenal, marks the essentiality of the site
in both past and present. A neighboring building, the Ospizio di San Michele a Ripa
Grande has also seen great transformation throughout history, serving functions as
orphanage, hospice, and jail.
Just as these different functions have gathered in one spot, I have placed an
amalgamation of commercial, exhibition, atelier, and office spaces within this liminal
junction. There are zones of program blocks from which each are concentrated,
extruded, and extended. Commercial storefront runs along the main path through the
site from Porta Portese to Viale di Trastevere. Corridors invite people into the building
itself, where exhibition spaces displaying products and creations from the ateliers
can be found dispersed throughout. Each area merges seamlessly with each other, the
bottom two floors containing flexible public spaces, exhibition and commercial, and
the top two consisting of office and private workshop spaces. Atelier spaces come off
from the spine lining the back of the building and the office space occupies either end
of the site concentrated on the top floor. These program blocks are shifted, stacked,
cut, to produce a variety of spaces and courtyards to allow natural light penetration to
the floors below.
The piazza in front of the building is a multipurpose space, able to be used by anyone,
for performances, installations, or commercial. It is an extension of the spaces within,
being pulled out and placed between the pedestrian paths. These spaces are flexible,
pushing and pulling to suit the need of program, whether it be extra exhibition space
or an extension of the Sunday flea market.
16. Henry Chuang30
plan - first floor
red - storefront
green - exhibition space
yellow - atelier
blue - office
plan - second floor plan - third floor plan - Fourth floor
18. Henry Chuang34
Museum of the Unexpected
(October - November 2012)
Professor John Zissovici
Located in Binghamton, hometown of Rod Serling the creator of The Twilight Zone,
this museum is dedicated to Mr. Serling and his television series “The Twilight Zone”.
By combining two different horizons, the top of an abandoned railway and the ground
on the banks of the river, remnants of my memories formed the basis of the museum.
Thegroundfloorconsistsofonlythelobbyofthemuseum,whichleadstothemezzanine
level cafe or down to the basement level. Descending into the basement reveals the
nature of the Twilight Zone. Two long walk ways flank either side of the basement
with small enclosed dark rooms venturing into the center of the museum. These rooms
create an atmosphere that suits viewing of various episodes of the Twilight Zone: a
small enclosed space much like how many of the episodes themselves were filmed. At
the other end of the two walkways is a round theater where actors could perform live
editions of the Twilight Zone.
The cafe then leads upwards, onto a long cantilever, whose walls extend past the
floor and wraps around the seemingly floating tower. This creates an access to the
tower and an area for relaxing during the day, lowering during the night to provide
seating for projections of The Twilight Zone onto the side of the tower. This opens up
the lowered ramp to the public, which is accessible from both the ground level and
the railway. A spiraling ramp inside the tower brings the visitor chronological events
in Rod Serling’s life and The Twilight Zone. Punctuated by three levels, the tower
contains not only a biography of the creator, but also sets that would be used in filming
episodes on each of the three levels.
The three different heights form three perspectives of Binghamton. The view from
below ground, into the high skies provide an optimistic view of Binghamton’s future.
The ground level is a view of Binghamton’s present state, one that can be so much
more. The view from the railway presents Binghamton’s beautiful past and a promise
to restore the glory of Binghamton.
section collage
19. Henry Chuang36
plan - basement
plan - ground floor
plan - mezzanine
plan - ramp level
22. Henry Chuang42
The Network
(January - May 2015)
Professors John Zissovici and Andrew Lucia
IMAGINATIONS OF (NON) REALITY
In 2015, the city of NewYork began renovating antiquated technology abundant
within the city: payphones. Renovation has already begun with the introduction
of Wi-Fi hotspots. These new payphones contain screens and provide
information for people around them. Eventually, the entire city will be covered
by the Network, allowing for free calling and wireless internet throughout the
island. By exploiting this technology, the city can begin to take on a new reality.
My investigation begins with this. Through experimentation with 123D Catch,
a photogrammetry software developed by Autodesk that allows the user to
three dimensionally scan a space through photos, I began to investigate the
possible future developments of technology. Due to the nature of the software,
inaccuracies are inevitable and thus capitalized on to create the beginnings
of an alternate reality. Through the renovation of payphones, I propose my
own: screens that give local information about traffic, weather, road conditions,
events.
A glitch occurs in the system, incorrectly displaying the space behind the
screen, removing movement from the observable reality. As this phenomenon
becomes more wide spread, the Network expands across the city. Paralleled
by bio-technological advancements, the Network begins to inhabit the space
beyond the screen. Sensory augmentation allows Users to view the alternate
movement free world without constraint to the screens (Sight). Further
augmentation of the human mind allows for physical sensations (Touch) and
adding to another layer of immersion into the world of creativity. The final layer
is the greatest step (Thought).
With Thought, ideas are transmittable in its purest form.People can understand
eachotherwithnoerrorsincommunication.TheNetworkbecomesaparadiseof
Creative Commons knowledge. Anyone can contribute and use the knowledge
base to further the creativity of the city.The alternate reality exists in parallel to
the physical reality. Art becomes a form of play in every day life accessible to
everyone.
23. Henry Chuang
--2015
The antiquated payphones of New York are beginning to be
renovated. Replaced by a screen that provides free calling and
wifi, the city is aiming to create greater connectivity on the
island. Standing 70 centimeters wide by 180 centimeters tall and
positioned on a circular base allowing it to rotate, these devices
also serve as a local hub for information of the surrounding
neighborhood; traffic information, public transit, road and weather
conditions, etc.
--2016
The screens have been updated to include a forum for the
surrounding inhabitants. Inhabitants being defined as people
who spend a considerable amount of time in the area. The forum
contains both anonymous and user-identifiable sub-sections. Created
as a means to generate ideas for changing and improving the
neighborhood, these new devices encourage local discussion of
issues and problems. The forum is regulated by the inhabitants
themselves.
--2018
An interactive element, the real-time removal of people from the
framed views, has been added. Screens are beginning to display
empty scenes of the city behind them. More and more inhabitants
have become aware of these “irregularities”. Standing and looking
at a screen long enough will trigger a change in the city depicted
on the panel; the removal of everyone who passes through the
screen. This was at once shocking and intriguing. Inhabitants
would experiment with the screens, creating new views of the city
as the news spread like wildfire. Soon, everywhere, people were
looking through screens at the new spectacle of the empty city.
--2020
This “scrubbing” has instigated another purpose. In response to
a user’s comment, inhabitants are now able to use the screens
to interact with each other, a calling between screens. Active
devices in the vicinity are now visible to each other through
the screens and allow for a connection to be made. Beginning
with units closest to each other, inhabitants connected devices,
leading to a new order of districts generated from the devices.
The forum has also become a parameter in the expansion of
districts. A connection will be made when devices close together
share similar concerns about the area.
--2022
Lines have begun to sector areas, creating a network of spaces
devoid of people. This network continues to expand as people
connect more and more devices to each other. The forum shows
some changes as synchronization between personal devices and the
network emerges. More and more inhabitants utilize the forum as a
way of communication, not only of changes and improvements, but
also as an exchange of intellectual ideas and artwork. Range of
submissions includes installations, new commercial businesses,
events, renovations, and such. Inhabitants can upload desired
images to the forum, able to be adjusted and manipulated on the
screen itself.
--2024
Public works of art began to emerge in the screens. Prototypes
submitted by inhabitants, nothing but an image on the screen. The
forum has grown into a spatial dimension, allowing inhabitants to
virtually see their own creations. Walking into another district
allows for an exploration of creativity. Throughout different
areas of the network, different styles (of representation,
spatial use, technological use) emerge and through the movement
of inhabitants from district to district, ideas are spread and
refined.
--2026
The emergence of the augmentation of humans’ brains has
accelerated the ability to transfer information to the
continuously growing network. Suggestions became more elaborate,
full scale innovations that could change the neighborhood. Some
are completely fictional, some have a base in reality. Vision
augmentation research is progressing as well and incorporation
into the network environment is definite.
--2032
The ability for humans to be able to encode thoughts into
transmittable information has allowed the network once again too
morph the environment of the city. The ability to transfer raw
ideas between people radically changes the way information is
communicated. A submission, no matter how crude of an idea, could
be read, understood, and improved upon by other inhabitants (with
permission of the submitter). Complex geometries can potentially
be easily created through the technological augmentation of the
human brain.
--2036
Vision augmentation has become pervasive. The screen becomes
obsolete as it is largely augmented by the progressions in bio-
technology. Connection with the network is ingrained in the
inhabitants. The alternate world is recreated within the network,
viewable through the points from which it spans out. The only
limitation in this new parallel universe is the inhabitant’s
imaginations. The forum becomes a library of creativity.
--2040
The network has grown significantly, enough to encompass entire
areas of the island. The vision augmentation, in combination with
bio-technological enhancements to the brain, has allowed for the
network to grow beyond the limitations of the access points. The
proposals could be seen from within buildings. People looking
through windows onto the street begin to glimpse a view of the
parallel world populated with the proposals of fellow inhabitants.
The worlds now coexist.
--2050
The flourishing technologies have unleashed the power of the human
mind to create and change the environment. Published on the
network, the entire city becomes a museum of environments. The
ability for bio-technology to change perception has merged the two
worlds. Touch, sight, smell, sound, can be completely altered.
concept
24. Henry Chuang
00:50 01:01
“Scrubbing” Real time operation of the screen as a device that removes movement,
creating the alternate Reality.
video stills
03:3102:21
Thought communicationAbility of the Inhabitants to freely modify their environment.
25. Henry Chuang48
Origami Suitcase
(September - November 2014)
Collaboration with Edbert Cheng
Jacques Rougerie Competition
Coup de Coeur Award
Origami Suitcase is a habitat for the individual and community for
deep space where human comfort is usually distant and uncommon.
The suitcase, as a microcosm for the community, tiles together to form
the habitation quarters. Each individual ship folds into a tetrahedron,
consisting of sleeping space, working space, door, and living area. The
overwhelming solidarity is broken immediately upon the unfolding of
the “suitcase” containing the space traveler’s belongings to reconnect
and share the experiences throughout the community. The flexibility
of these modules can create different programs within the habitation
space, such as concentrations of green space, sleeping quarters, and
work stations.
The individual pods, as well as the entire space habitation itself, is
designed to be self sufficient. Whether it be power, food, or water, each
will have its own recycling function and way to sustain life.The structure
itself consists of seven exploded parts: from the top, communications,
laboratory, garden space, habitat, solar panels, power and computer
systems, and a telescope.
The space station is a vestige of the earth: people coming together
in collaboration to form a community that can’t exist without the
individuals. If all the pods are gone, there is no more habitat and only
an empty shell of its former glory remains.
26.
27. Henry Chuang52
Structures model
(September - November 2012)
Professor Mark Cruvellier
Collaboration with Rafael Martinez and Oat Leungvarinkul
As a study on structural elements for our structures course, my partners
and I decided to recreate the structural curved canopy of Shigeru Ban’s
Haesley Nine Bridges golf clubhouse. The building’s canopy consisted
of long pieces of CNC fabricated wood curved in two different axis. The
curved structure then comes together to form columns that reach to the
lower levels.
To recreate this structure, we soaked 1/16” basswood strips in water.
After the wood has absorbed enough water and is pliable enough to
bend along the curves, we then pinned the wet wood onto a CNC milled
piece of foam. This foam mold was milled in the shape of the upside
down canopy and by securing the wood to the foam, the shape of the
canopy could be recreated. Once the strips of wood dried, they would
retain its shape and allow the canopy to stand. After the strips of wood
were all pinned down and stabilized, the whole canopy was then flipped
over and attached to the rest of the model.
