maggie hanna professional portfolio

biodesignarttravel

weak design transforms the aesthetic experience of the artwork, and specifically of architecture, into event… in contemporary thought the objective and the subjective are not different and opposing fields but constitute what is called ‘folds of a single reality.’ for architecture, this notion of the folds proves exceptionally illuminating. reality immerges as a continuum in which the time of the subject and the time of the external objects go round together on the same looped tape, with the encounter of objective and subjective only occurring when this continuous reality folds over in a disruption of its continuity…an acceptance of a certain weakness, and thus of relegation to a secondary position, may possibly be the condition of design’s greatest elegance and, ultimately, its greatest significant import… this is the strength of weakness; that strength which art and architecture are capable of producing precisely when they adopt a posture that is not aggressive and dominating, but tangential and weak.

-ignasi de sola-Morales

theory of weak

design

biographydesignarttravel photos

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cover letterthank you for considering me as an employee for your firm. after years of education i have honed my increasing fascination and understanding of design in architecture, graphic design, landscape architecture, and urban design. my approach to designing responsively, in the built or graphic environment, will support your firms continued commitment to high quality design as a result of creative and intelligent ideas.

i have found that the use of diagrams, digital and physical modeling is the best way of communicating, and for that reason i strive to stay up to date with techniques and software that support, reinforce, and represent the value of responsive design. my frequent use of adobe products; illustrator, photoshop, and indesign, as well as digital modeling; autocad, sketchup, and revit, has allowed me to thoroughly communicate my ideas and processes. my understanding and knowledge of design communications as well as the techniques i use to resolve design problems would be a great fit within your firm. it will give me great pleasure to collaborate with you and the clients you serve.

thank you for taking the time to consider me as a member of your team. i would greatly appreciate an interview. i am confident that i can prove to be a valuable asset to your firm.

sincerely,

______________________________________________

maggie hanna-elattar

inforMation and

references -----skill set

archicad (advanced)-sketchup pro (moderate)-

revit (beginner)-adobe cs5 products (moderate)-

illustrator photoshop indesign

microsoft products (advanced)- windows

powerpoint

personal characteristicslanguages-

english arabic

hobbies- international travel

volleyballcooking

photography

Maggie hanna-elattar3307 caspian drivepalmdale, ca [email protected]

objectivecommitted to improving the quality of life for all people by focusing on the urban environment, and how existing conditions can be adapted to create more pleasant places for adults and children. references-deborah powell office of the executive vice president and provost702.895.3777 [email protected]

-fr. youhanna mourisarchangel raphael & saint mina coptic orthodox [email protected]

-andrea hamilton (m.arch)graduate; university of nebraska, [email protected]

education and involveMentnewschool of architecture and design -masters of architecture (2009 - 2011)deans list (fall 2010, winter/spring 2011)thesis think tank (2011)

university of nevada, las vegas -bachelors of science in architecture (2005 - 2009) american institute of architecture students 1st year representative (2005-2006) 2nd year representative (2006-2007) secretary (2007-2008) active member (2005-2009)national organization of minority arch. students active member (2005-2009)sketch up workshop student teaching students (2006-2007)meals on wheels food preparation and delivery (2007)freedom by design 3rd year representative (2007-2008) active member (2006-2008)

university studies abroad consortiuM -architectural history and italian cuisine (2007) torino, italy

work and independent

experienceMdM architects

draftsman (internship)- palmdale, california (2008-2009)

garage remodel--------- autocad architectural drawings---------

communicated with clients---------report on sustainable architectural construction materials and methods---------

unlv office of the executive vice president and provostfile clerk -

las vegas, nevada (january 2007 – june 2009) organize files pertaining to all academic faculty--------- monitored all documents entering and existing the department---------

archangel raphael & saint Mina coptic orthodox church landscape reModeldesigner, project manager, coordinator-

palmdale, california (2009) total landscape and play area remodeling--------- volunteer project---------

beshoy boulous landscape reModeldesigner, project manager, coordinator -

palmdale, california (2010) backyard remodel for palmdale resident---------

deltahookah lounge and retail center

adaptive reuseinfill

medium scale

the centerlive | work | play

urbaninfill

large scale

undergraduate

farMers plusmarket | retail | picture show

adaptive reuseurban

medium scale

open-ended design for interstitial play reviving detroit

infillexploratoryextra large

graduate


project backgroundthe abandoned sears building, located on vibrant fremont street, is the starting point of blight in the east village neighborhood. made of brick, and lacking any sort of connection and relationship to the pedestrian environment, this historic jewel

building forM

building interior

is critical to seaming together the existing gamming districts and the rest of east village. creating a 24 hour environment that is conducive to urban walkablity was an important programmatic necessity, while maintaining the building’s integrity was a personal design goal.

nile and delta cutout reference to nile

pyramid planes insertion of multiple floors

weak theory design processnot wanting to make aggressive changes to this historic architectural jewel, the method of using gestures which allude to the egyptian landscape became the prime means of redefining and repurposing this building. using the nile/delta to dictate

how the building physically opens to address the pedestrian environment created an indirect link between gaming on fremont and the rest of east village. meanwhile, referencing the pyramids of giza within the building created an interesting urban edge and dynamic multi use facility.

northern delta entry building and sea convergence

pyramid wall and floor path pyramid alluding interior


N 0’ 150’ 300’ 600’

fremont street 6th street fremont street experience

sitecross roadsgamming

F6

Fx

east village redevelopMent (phase 1):this studio wide project studied east village in order to determine

building envelopeinverse pyramid

pyramid envelope vertical circulationconcept integration

hookah lounge urban edge retail Multi use restrooMs

what its weaknesses are; abandonment, lack of pedestrian environment, and awkward transition between gamming

and residential zones. phase one of redevelopment provides a medium scale project that would be

a sensible start to the redevelopment of downtown. the adaptive reuse of the

sears building rehabilitates many of the weaknesses that are present.

nile river and delta | final exterior forMpyraMids of giza | final interior design


kaleidoscope revolution

interior MoveMent

project backgroundblight in downtown las vegas’ east village is the result of several factors of the built environment; the most prominent being empty lots. in this case several residential neighborhoods and educational facilities surround this vacant lot. the addition of

a residential high-rise was determined an insignificant improvement for the area early on in the analysis of east village. as a result, this site became focused on live|work|play. the goal here is to provide a central point for all age groups to congregate any time of the day.

physical rotation repetition of rotation

dropping of urban public space dropping of office spacedropping of play space

design process the design of the structure is based on the deconstruction of a kaleidoscope. both the applied motion and natural gravitational pull of pieces are represented and rotated around a central point or ‘looking tube.’ the applied motion is represented by a spin

wheel design. meanwhile, the gravitational pull on inner materials is represented by sections of the building falling during the rotation process. as a result, the structure fulfills several of the sites needs; urban edge, playful aesthetic, public space, and legible breakdown of the building’s program.

city block application removal of excess

dropping of housing mirrored building proportionsremoval of focal point


N 0’ 150’ 300’ 600’

fremont street s. maryland pkwy. fremont street experience

sitecross roadsgamming

F

m

Fx

office residential student housing

coMMunal balcony urban edge retail play space

east village redevelopMent (phase 2):the final phase of this studio wide project focused on bringing density

to downtown las vegas. in doing so, this phase required large scale projects to be placed throughout fremont street

with an enforced housing standard. the centers’ design and program fulfilled the density goal

for east village and the personal design goals for a multi use facility that can be

used by different age groups 24 hours a day.

cross over bridges | outdoor public spaceeastern perspective | raMp to center roller rink


project backgroundjust outside of downtown san diego is the residential neighborhood of east village; an older latin community suffering from a lack of mixed uses and public space. although most of this neighborhood does not suffer from vacant lots, it does suffer

from poor appropriation of public space that could be conducive to a self sufficient community. this project is meant to redefine how public space can be appropriated in an established community. the goal here is to provide easily accessible activities for families and improve the local market.

appropriation of public space

adaptive reuses of roof space

existing city block sized building footprint

original farmers market

traditional pedestrian level public space

addition of three retail levels

weak theory design processsince the farmers market is still in use and the building itself has become a community landmark, it is important to take advantage of its form and size. rather than replacing the building with public space an opportunity was discovered on

its rooftop, which is nearly the size of a city block and contains wheat sifting chimneys. instead of allowing the roof to remain unused, appropriating it with an outdoor picture show and additional retail provides the neighborhood with much needed use diversity and public space.

elevated public space

rooftop theater and public space

building roof used for elevated public space

commingling of retail and public space


21st st. commercial st. east village

sitecross roadsdowntown

original farMers Market

vertical circulation

retail

stepped theater seating

food and beverage

picnic and theater seating

downtown san diego urban infill:located on one of san diego’s major corridors, this site boarders downtown san diego and barrio logan. although density is not an issue in this part of town, accessibility to public and family friendly environments is. for this reason an innovative approach that combines infill and adaptive reuse is needed to improve this dynamic neighborhood.

original structure

E 21

C

theater seating and retail coMMingling rooftop public space appropriation


thesis backgroundthe purpose of this study is to create socially valuable places where the urban fabric has failed to provide for the needs of residents. this study focuses on the omnipresent interstitial areas of a city; freeways, seas of parking lots, rail lines and abandoned

N 1/8 mi 1/4mi 1/2 mi 1mile0

N 1/8 mi 1/4mi 1/2 mi 1mile0

downtown detroit Macro analysis

buildings, which do not promote a social function and typically become the catalysts of blight as they physically divide and separate the urban fabric. rather than allowing these spaces to remain in a constant state of lack luster pro-forma and no nuance, the simple insertion of a

residential

N 1/8 mi 1/4mi 1/2 mi 1mile0

N 1/8 mi 1/4mi 1/2 mi 1mile0

mixed use

industrialfreeway

rail line

major street

detroit river

place for play is studied as a solution to a problem present in all urban cities.research processusing detroit as a test site, a thorough macro scale analysis of the city was conducted in order to locate possible sites to rehabilitate. the selections of ten

sites were made, ranging from rail lines to abandoned buildings, visited and analyzed on a micro scale. however, the process for designing open-ended forms required an approach that would expose layers of play first. this was done through child like and creative brain drawings.

N 1/8 mi1/4 mi 1/2 mi 1 mile0

URBAN CONDITION AS A RESULT OF INTERSTITAL SPACES

Parking Strand Formation..................................

Abandoned Cluster Formation...................

Infrastructural Setback...........................................

Infrastructure City Programming EffectResidential & Mixed Uses..................................

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IMPLEMENTING PLAY INTO INTERSTITIAL SPACES

Network for Volunteer Play...............................

Interstitial Play Sites..................................................

N 1/8 mi1/4 mi 1/2 mi 1 mile0






N 1/8 mi1/4 mi 1/2 mi 1 mile0






N 1/8 mi1/4 mi 1/2 mi 1 mile0

IMPLEMENTING PLAY INTO INTERSTITIAL SPACES

Network for Volunteer Play...............................

Interstitial Play Sites..................................................

response to interstitial spaces intervention network

parking strands

abandoned cluster formation

infrastructure setback

infrastructure defined zones

network

intervention sites

intervention example


1871/2’ 375’ 750’ 1500’0’N

weak theory design process:open-ended design allows for levels of play that are lightly programmed and yet created by users. following the designer’s creative brain drawings, which expose layers of play; form finding via three dimensional models can be extruded from each drawing. these models are used to dictate form and overcome open-ended design challenges. from this point on the user becomes the master designer of the site. it is up to them to program each site to their own liking according to the seasons and over time.

site analysis pedestrianvehicularparkinghubresidentialbusinesseducationreligiousparkrecreational

industrial neighborhood

creative brain exposure of playforM finding for open-ended play

isolatebuilding elementssurface shadows

reflections

collageseparatemodularredefine

traditional

Mergerelatemerge

composition

experiMental

isolateelements | shadows | reflections

building eleMent and shadow isolation series:inspired by the photography of lewis baltz, this series of graphite freehand drawings focuses on singular building elements that, when isolated, can be interpreted in several ways by the viewer. in this study, my focus was on shadows cast onto and from building elements. awnings, windows and fire ladders were used in my initial exploration of element isolation.

proMinent building eleMent isolation:architectural ribbons on the geisel library are isolated while four buttress surfaces are incorporated in this drawing for depth.

building reflection isolation:while windows on the library are another prominent architectural component, it is the reflections caused by the buildings angularity that is interesting in isolation.

collageseparate| modular | redefine

building reflection isolation deconstructive collage:using the unique shapes and shadows derived from the previous ‘building reflection isolation drawings,’ i was able to separate each reflection to act as a module that can be organized, repeated, and redefined. although, this collage is the product of an isolated moment on geisel library, it can stand on its own.

Mergerelate | merge | composition

Merging of isolated eleMents:the final graphite drawing in this series merges the ‘prominent building element’ drawing with the ‘building reflection’ drawing in a collage like fashion. since both were created from the same building an opportunity was discovered; building elements that are drawn could be merged to create an interesting composition.

internationalspain

franceswitzerland

italygermany austria

europe

doMestic washingtoncalifornia

nevadaillinois

michiganontario

north aMerica

internationaleurope

doMestic regional

maggie hanna professional portfolio

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