The document outlines Abraham N. Rodriguez's academic and professional work, including case studies for low-cost housing in Cambodia and the United States, as well as school and recreational building designs focused on sustainability and responding to site conditions. Details are provided on Rodriguez's role in several of the projects and sketches from his study abroad trip to Europe are included.

2. ABRAHAM N. RodRíguez woRk

3. INDEX
acaDEmIc
cOmPETITIONS
KaSe Study
Khmer Housing cORE
milwaukee River Projects
equinox skin boat school
caesar’s park boathouse
PDX alternative High School
PROFESSIONaL
SKETcHES
Irene c. Hernandez middle School
Europe Sketch Journal
Sunnyside Reading Room

4. kHMeR HousiNg CoRe
Phnom Penh, cambodia
Low cost mass Housing
w/ Peter Barich, copeland Downs, & Eric Nielsen
CORE CONCEPT
Because of these issues, we designed the housing CORE to address all of these
issues in a single unit that could be used in both new construction, and retrofitted to
existing housing. The addition of a CORE to a home will sufficiently provide the basic
daily needs for a family of six. Along with benefitting the family, the Core is linked
to the ecology of the site with the intake of rainwater and production of fertilizer for
crops.
ADAPTABILITY & SCALABILITY
Adaptability and scalabilty are important aspects of the Core and allow the Core to be
used beyond new construction. The Core can function as an integral element to new
construction, or alternatively as an addition to existing homes. At a community level,
the Core can be scaled larger or duplicated to provide services to multiple families.
CORE + NEw hOuSINg
CORE + ExIST hOuSINg CORE + NEw & ExISTINg
COmmuNITY
A locally sourced material palette works
well for a variety of wooden and woven
grass wall assemblies that are innovative
in keeping weather out.
It is common practice to have a house on
stilts in response to the seasonal floods.
This interstitial space provides important
storage and gathering space during the
dry season.
Open floor plans allow families to adapt
to a variety of family sizes, storage needs
and activity support. The open plan also
allows free flow of natural ventilation.
In starting to look at the design for this Cambodian
Sustainable Low Cost housing Competition,
be studied the characteristics of rural Khmer
vernacular housing. we discovered that this
housing style often has the following three primary
characteristics (illustrated in the diagram to the
right); a locally sourced material palette, open floor
plans, and housing on stilts. Rural Khmer housing
tells of the long history of living in a cyclically
flooding area with stilts, stairs and floating housing
illustrating the adaptation Cambodians have made
to living in their unique ecological conditions.
while the living conditions may seem dilapidated
to an outside eye, the major physical structure of
Cambodian housing is rational, well ordered, and is
rooted in the family’s customization of their home
to meet their required spaces. Our research shows
that It is not the vernacular housing unit that must
be improved, but rather the key to addressing issues
of health, safety, and affordability is to provide
sustainable solutions to the following key points:
water collection & filtration, waste management,
and cooking. All of these issues must be addressed
in ways that take into account the drastic changes
between Cambodia’s dry and wet seasons, where
flooding can reach a meter deep. Thus we need to
design for both the dry, and wet seasons.
typiCAl kHMeR RuRAl HousiNg
RAINwATER COLLECTION
wATER fILTRATION
BIODIgESTER:
fuEL fOR COOKINg
BIODIgESTER: fuEL fOR CROPS
CoNCept diAgRAM

5. wATER wASTE COOKINg
The housing core serves as a way to efficiently deliver lacking sanitation, storage and fuel services. water
from the rooftop collection is stored in barrels which is routed to a toilet and spigots for cooking and bathing.
waste is deposited and flushed into a biodigester set into the ground which allows anaerobic decomposition
treatment as well as producing methane fuel. This methane is used to supplement fuel needs for cooking.
The cooking areas also contain rocket stoves that make more efficient use of wood fuel for cooking.
ELEVATED mONSON wATER LEVELS
A cooking area on each the first and second levels of the housing core make it possible to enjoy preparing
and gathering for meals under the shade of the house in the hot, dry seasons while maintaining an elevated
cooking space accessible year round. Both share a brick chimney that reduces the chances of respiratory
harm.

6. wOOD
COLumNS +
JOISTS
PALm LEAf
mATTINg
wOVEN BAmBOO
ROOf
BAmBOO
SCREENS
wOOD wALL
CLADDINg
MAteRiAls/AsseMBly diAgRAMThe design of the house itself honors the vernacular of rural
Cambodian housing while at the same time being optimized for
modular construction and use of housing core. The roof pitch is
optimized for water collection to the housing core. It is constructed
of woven bamboo for water collection, while also allowing the
structure to breathe. wall construction is dimensional lumber,
allowing for modular construction, while window shutters are
constructed of traditional woven palm. Lastly, the house maintains
the open plan of the traditional Cambodian house; allowing the
occupants future flexibility and customizability in it’s use.
LONg SECTION ShORT SECTION

7. In 2007, greensburg, KS was hit by a tornado
devastating the entire town. In the extreme weather
conditions found here, the typical midwestern
house does not respond well. KaSe Study is
designed to greatly reduce the amount of damage
sustained in a tornado while being environmentally
sustainable. The design uses recycled limestone
blocks, providing a strong structure and breathable
walls. At the south elevation, the sun heats the
trombe wall used as the center spine; while sliding
doors in the main living areas maximize passive
ventilation. A cool roof system prevents interior
overheating. Rafter ties are utilized to secure the
roof down to the foundation. The butterfly roof
blocks sunlight in the summer; lets it pass in the
winter and allows rainwater harvesting. water is
conserved through smart land use practices and
energy efficient appliances. The design of the
home strives to be affordable, energy efficient and
sustainable.
KaSe STuDy
Greensburg, KS
Low-cost Housing
w/ Danny massaro & Gail cavanagh

8. fLOOR PLAN
IOwA AVE.
SYCAmOREST.
bioswale
native plants planted along rammed earth privacy wall
vegetable/flower planters
grey water filtration swale
nativetreesprivacyscreen
rainbarrel
raingardenandirrigationswale
SITE PLAN
wEST ELEVATION NORTh ELEVATIONSOuTh ELEVATION
PASSIVE hEAT ABSORPTION
PASSIVE VENTILATION TYPICAL SITE LOCATION
SPATIAL SEPARATION ROOf ARTICuLATION
EAST ELEVATION

9. white membrane “cool” roof with
r-30 glass batt insulation
recycled corrugated metal cladding
attached to recycled limestone wall
operable wood window assemblies
with low-e glass and thermal break
voc free interior plaster
recycled limestone blocks filled with
structural grout
recycled wood deck
rigid insulation and vapor barrier
under floor decking on top of
recycled aggregate fill , typ.
rigid insulation and vapor barrier
at exterior face of foundation walls,
typ.
engineered wood floor with recycled
content over fsc certified floor joists,
with r-30 glass batt insulation
recycled limestone trombe wall
wALL SECTION

10. This school provides a space of refuge and learning
for the disenfranchised youths of the city of Port-
land. The project is sited to create an educational
campus along with the existing harriet Tubman
school dividing the site in half for park and educa-
tional use. The school’s entry is located on an axis
with Tubman’s strengthening the connection be-
tween the two schools. from here one has access
to the school main commons space, daylight with
diffuse northern light. The classroom bar adjacent
to the commons is elevated, creating a shaded out-
door space that connects the school to the outside.
The existing berm of Tubman’s basketball court is
partially paved and stepped, creating an outdoor
classroom, gathering and event space that can be
used by both schools. The building is a long bar
oriented east-west for access to light, natural ven-
tilation, and passive heating and cooling. Diffuse
north light illuminated the commons space while
south light is controlled in the classrooms other
south facing spaces through the use of shading
devices. The floors are untreated concrete to allow
for passive heating and cooling.
PDX aLT. HIGH SCHOOL
Portland, OR
K-12 Educational

11. northern ligth
prevailing
summer winds
summer
equinox
winter
SECTION
EAST ELEVATION
summer
equinox
winter
stack effect ventilation
harriet
tubman
middle
school
(exist)
lillis albina
city park
n russell st
nflintave
SITE PLAN SOuTh ELEVATION
gROuND fLOOR PLAN
1RST fLOOR PLAN

12. wALL SECTIONPARTIAL ELEVATION
corrugated metal roof
curtain wall assembly
pv-panels
vegetated roof
metal ligth
shelves at
classroom
windows
wood
panel
cladding
curtain wall assembly

13. The two projects in the following pages sought to
explore the milwaukee River as a pocket of nature
within a dense urban environment. while these two
projects, the Caesar’s Park Boathouse and Equinox
Skin Boat School, share a common programmatic
element (skin boats); the academic focus of each
was quite different. Caesar’s Park Boathouse
focused on an aesthetic and spatial solution to the
program, while the Equinox used a simple program
to focus and materiality and skin options.
mILwauKEE RIvER SKIN BOaT
PROJEcTS
milwaukee, wI

14. The design is driven aesthetically by the site’s
variation, and pragmatically by the program’s
need of surveillance. when you approach from
the pedestrian bridge you pass a series of newly
constructed structures and if you descend the trail
from Caesar’s Park you will be surrounded by trees
as you go along. This is the main aesthetic driver
for the building’s parti. when you approach the
building from the park trail, you see the building
engulfed in nature; merging into the landscape with
its green roof. On the other hand, when one arrives
to the boathouse via the pedestrian bridge, you
see a strong rectilinear façade composed of cubic
volumes that echo the surrounding development.
Thus the cantilevered cube of the office becomes a
unique object within the park’s landscape.
caESaR’S PaRK BOaTHOuSE
milwaukee, wI
Recreational
SITE PLAN
ROOf PLAN
1RST fLOOR PLAN
BASEmENT PLAN

15. The cube of the office cantilevers out into the
loading level outside, allowing the manager in
charge of the boathouse constant views of all
patrons using the boathouse. This cantilever allows
for surveillance to the patrons out in the water,
ensuring their safety. A split level glazed wall
allows for constant surveillance into the skin boat
storage bellow and the observation deck above.
These simple moves come together to form a
design that is both aesthetically pleasing and also
highly pragmatic.
LONgITuDINAL SECTION
TRANSVERSAL SECTION

16. The EQuINOx project was conceived as a sister
project to the earlier Caesar’s Park Boathouse, and
as such they share opposite sides of the same site
along the milwaukee River. The program consists
of creating a school for the creation of traditional
skin boats, and a small residence for the owner of
the school in the back of the building. These skin
boats would then be transported across the bridge
in order to be rented out in the aforementioned
boathouse across the river. After much deliberation,
it was decided that the design exploration would
take its starting point from the idea that the program
can and would be best accommodated in a simple
double story box; that the architectural richness of
the project would be achieved via skin and material
options.
EQuINOX SKIN BOaT ScHOOL
milwaukee, wI
Light Industrial

17. NORTh ELEVATIONSOuTh ELEVATION
KIT Of PARTS DIAgRAm
structural insulated panel roof panels
long-span steel beam structure
corrugated metal screen wall
metal window frames & light shelves
structural insulated panel walls
steel truss
with this in mind I set out to create a long linear
box scheme that would allow plentiful natural
light to enter the space, while exploring different
high performance building skins. The double skin
facade is composed of Structural Insulated Panels
(SIPs) clad in cement board, with a corrugated
metal screen hung in front of them. This metal
screen adds articulation to the façade and allows
for clearstory windows with deep metal window
frames to punch through the SIP panel walls in
order to bring light across the workshop space
bellow. This corrugated screen is continued
over the railings of the balconies of the attached
residence, unifying the building’s façade. Above
the workshop space a suspended gallery, allowing
onlookers and students to view the creation of the
skin boats bellow. The workshop space is further
illuminated by low level frosted glass openings in
the walls. Because of these openings and double
skin when seen from afar, EQuINOx brings to mind
the idea of the classic modernist box on pilotis;
a long narrow box that extends into space and is
seemingly suspended in the air. SITE PLAN
gROuND fLOOR PLAN
1RST fLOOR PLAN
2ND fLOOR PLAN

18. green roof insert
structural insulated roof panel
long-span steel beams and columns
frosted glass window wall
structural insulated wall panel
fly ash concrete floor slab
corrugated metal screen
metal window frames & light shelves
wALL SECTION
low e-glass clearstory windows

19. Principal in Charge: Donald Copper
Project manager: Daniel Sumita
Project Team:
Elizabeth fragoso
Abraham N. Rodríguez
Eduardo Bodmer
Leah Lehr
126,507 Sf; 3-Story middle School.
Includes green Roof over 25% of the roof area,
1-1/2” Story Library, Science Rooms (5), Art Room
(1), Computer labs (2), multi-Purpose Rooms (2),
full service Kitchen/Dining and gym with Stage for
School Assembly functions. LEED gold Certified.
Recently completed.
Responsibilities Included:
Interior Design, Construction Documents, Design
and documentation of casework/furniture.
IRENE c. HERNaNDEz
mIDDLE ScHOOL
chicago, IL
K-12 Educational
w/ GREc architects, LLc.

20. fIRST fLOOR PLAN
ThIRD fLOOR PLAN
SECOND fLOOR PLAN

21. CASA BATLLO, BARCELONAEVRY CAThEDRAL
NOTRE DAmE Du hAuT
The following sketches represent some of the
sites we studied in the Study Abroad program I
participated in the spring of 2005. while we studied
historical, modern, and contemporary European
architecture; early 20th century modernism made
the most lasting impression on me in the trip,
thus these are the buildings that most frequently
appeared on my sketchbooks.
EuROPE SKETcH JOuRNaL
various countries in Europe
On Location Sketching
BARCELONA PAVILLION 1
BARCELONA PAVILLION 2 TORRE TELEfONICA,
BARCELONA

22. 503.953.3994
archinect.com/abrahamnr
abrahamn.rodriguez@gmail.com
ABRAHAM N. RodRíguez
AssoCiAte AiA, leed gA