L U I S G A R C I A F L O R E S

Luis Garcia Flores was born in Guadalajara, Mexico and moved to Cal i fornia at the age of 6. Influenced by constant migrat ion, whether internat ional ly or local ly, Luis has been aware of and

fascinated by subt le contratst in design. Having different cultural backgrounds and always being respectful of

differences, he;s been able to find a suble aesthet ic of his own.

I have been fortunate to volunteer with organizat ions that address the issues that or iginal ly drove me to pursue a career in architecture. Low income housing is a topic that is dear to me, having witnessed first had the need for not only proper housing, but wel l designed housing.

Studying abroad was another great fortune I ’ve had. Been able to experience cultures outs ide of my own, and experience new takes on design and bui l t environments has helped me keep creat iv i ty unrestrained.

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PLAN_HOUSING_LIVEL 3

During a week-long workshop in Ascol i I taly, we were given an exist ing bui lding to redesign as a housing project. Our final design took a conceptual approach at morphing a skin system from ground cover, to c irculat ion, to what would eventual ly envolope the bui lding on one s ide.

We where tasked to work with I tal ian and American students al ike, making the design and product ion process an experiment not only in design, but in col laborat ion, cul tural sensi t iv i ty, communicat ion.

Generated from a s imple gr id, th is project evolved by blocking out spaces then extruding the boundaries. The purpose of the exercise is to show depth with shadows in a monochromatic color palate. A gray scale was used to maintain the s impl ic i ty of the project and reverberate the r igidi ty of the s imple gr id pattern and soft curves of the space.

The geometr ies of a Diebenkorn paint ing produced the shapes needed to create the topography of the s i te and the bui lding envelope for a resident ial house designed for a man with a benign obsession. Separat ing publ ic from private al lowed for the display of his obsession with maps. The house i tself begs to be traversed, l ike a map would imply, thought the main circulat ion space that devides the publ ic and private spaces.

The final project of fourth year was a group project that took a major design que from the surrounding space. The design takes into considerat ion the bui lding densi ty. Located at the interst i t ia l space between dense and sparse, the s i te acts l ike a mirror creat ing a sparse green space which transforms into a gastronomy center defying the sparse open space bordering the ci ty l imits . The Center contains an auditor ium, publ ic c lassrooms as wel l as pr ivate classrooms, and a large expandable market place under ground.

New Road

Wholesale Market

Mountain View

City Center

Restaurant

MarketSchool

An academic project, my thesis project was an exploration of resiliant architecture. Taking on the chalege of an adaptable, interchangeable architec-ture that proposed a solutuion for landslide plau-gues regions. The idea is to articulate a solid but minimal structure on which a program can be attached, and both seperate or integrate itself into the land, as to minimize the effects of a ladslide