Portfolio

Sevennicholas holbein

CLOCK 2

TCSL 9

STAIR RAIL 17

10 X 10 X 10 3SHAPING SPACE 5

EMBASSY 15AIRPORT 13PRECEDENT: DULLES AIRPORT 11

THE BEAT BENCH 19WESLEY’S TREE HOUSE 21

MARINA 7

This project was an effort to build a clock in the style of a chosen architect. At the time I was fascinated

with Richard Meier’s, J. Paul Getty Museum, and it was an easy decision to study his style. I attempted to duplicate the simplicity of his building skin system while developing a realistic fastening system. Welding the frame and attaching

the squares was diffi cult, however much more realistic and aesthetically pleasing than had I glued them to the frame. It was my attempt to give the structure some depth and meaning.

S T E E L & GLASS CLOCKYear: Second Year, Fall Quarter 05Professor: Howard Weisenthal

Nicholas Holbein Design Portfolio 2

This object was called, TEN. It was a joint effort between two studios to create forty models based on a 10 inch cube with a 6 inch base. After the models were fi nished we lined them up, almost like they were in a neighborhood. This gave each student the opportunity to collaborate with their ‘neighbors’ to make transitions between each unit. Each design was based on a concept of each student’s choice and infl uenced to some extent by a precedent study.

My design started with a quirky anecdote I wrote to develop concepts for the buidling form and program. I chose a concept of growth and independence and developed a residence that is perched high off the ground by a monolithic concrete wall.

This wall would have three levels of trays seperated by an air space and a fl ight of stairs connecting each fl oor to the ground plane. Looking back it kind of looks like a fortifi ed home with shields on one side, only one point of access, and levels that couldn’t be reached by climbing, but I imagined the walls would be of steel and glass construction, very transparent/translucent, and the shields would be perforated stainless steel, so eventually vines could take the place of metal.

Year: Second Year Winter Quarter 05’Professor: Carmen Trudell

S H A P I N G S P A C E

Somewhere in the windswept hills off Highway 41 east of Paso Rob-les sits the site for my Monastery project. The program included

housing for 7 monks, a refectory (a dining hall where monks ate in silence to the sound of prayer), a chapel, meditation spaces, offi ces, caretakers quarters, and so on. The uniting theme throughout the project is natural light. In the chapel, colored light would wash down the concrete walls from narrow slots in the ceiling. The descending walkway from the chapel to the refectory is enveloped by curving horizontal wood planks which cast shadows in the hall. The meditation space is underground for privacy and is accessed by stairs leading into the dark. All the monks quarters have natural light via a wall wash and views to the valley.

Second Year Spring Quarter 05’Professor: Guillermo Yanguez

Morro Bay is a small town north of San Luis Obispo where there is a long lasting maritime history and a

small fi shing industry. The Morro Bay Marina would honor that legacy by containing a museum and group all of the ships into a single harbor. This project also included com-mercial spaces, three caretaker apartments, and the marina offi ces. There is also two restaurants within the buiding. I wanted to elevate the visitors above the marina to see over the neighboring dunes, therefore I designed a large cantile-vering deck on the third level.

MMORRO BAY MARINA PROJECTORRO BAY MARINA PROJECT

Fall Quarter, third year 05’Professor: Patrick Hill

MORRO BAY MARINA PROJECT


This complex was both a research facility for light and a mu-seum holding six James Turrell light spaces. The program

also included offi ces, educational exhibits, a cafe’, and a cen-trally located model of Moholy Nagy’s “Light space modulator”, which by special means served to instruct and inform my design.

I thought it made sense to have natural daylight in all spaces, therefore I designed a central tower with several large light tubes to collect and distribute light throughout the building. Of course, by nightfall the building would transistion slowly to artifi cial lighting.

Third Year, Winter Quarter 06’Professor: Thomas Fowler IV

The Center for the Study of Light

Dulles Airport: Eero Saarinen

A s a warm up to a quarter long airport design project my peers and I studied existing airports. We were to construct a 3-D model and learn the buildings history. Thankfully this project is very well published, which helped me draw the structure accurately.


JAPANESE EMBASSY

Fourth Year Spring SemesterProfessors: Jahn Holt, Martin Harms

Study Abroad Program in Alexandira, VA

This project was part of a 4th year study abroad program I attended in This project was part of a 4th year study abroad program I attended in Washington DC. For the past 25 years an acaademy, called the Washington Alex-Washington DC. For the past 25 years an acaademy, called the Washington Alex-adria Architecture Consortium has been educating international students and ameri-adria Architecture Consortium has been educating international students and ameri-can students in 3rd year thru PHD curriculums. I attended the program in my 4th can students in 3rd year thru PHD curriculums. I attended the program in my 4th year. This was a second semester project when I designed a Japanese embassy. year. This was a second semester project when I designed a Japanese embassy. The site was on a small forested peninsula on the edge of the Potomac river. The The site was on a small forested peninsula on the edge of the Potomac river. The program included 14 offi ces, a lecture and cinema room, a large assembly room for program included 14 offi ces, a lecture and cinema room, a large assembly room for expositions and dining functions, and a customs processing center. I also added a expositions and dining functions, and a customs processing center. I also added a Japanese garden within a central courtyard, which borders a visitor center and the Japanese garden within a central courtyard, which borders a visitor center and the main vertical circulation space.main vertical circulation space.

B U T T E R F L Y S T A I R C A S E

For 12 years the Washington Alexandria Archi-tecture Consortium has not been able to use their

spiral staircase because no one ever built a hand rail. My professor and I thought it was time to take action and put the amazing metal shop and glass kiln to use. After plenty of conceptual designs we focused on building a full sized prototype. It came out so well we decided to continue with the manu-facturing through subsequent quarters.

T H E B E A T B E N C H

The vellum furniture competition was a school wide competition that allowed students to design and build a table, chair, lamp, or other common furniture item.

My concept was to design a bench that could also be used as a musical instrument. I designed three hollow boxes to fi t together and stand on removable legs. One side of the box would be fl at, the other was a tongue drum (an African type of drum). The bench could be assembled as three drums slipped together, a combination of bench and drum surfaces, or taken apart into three drums for a drum circle.

For this project I received top prize.

WESLEY’S TREE HOUSE


I got the opporitunity to design and build a tree house and fulfi ll a youngster’s dream. The project was advertised in the paper as a design job only, but after complet-

ing the design, I offered to build it over the summer in my free time after work. After three and a half months of building I fi nished and completed my fi rst design/build project.

The design features two levels: The lower deck is open to the tree canopy and is a perfect place to take in the surrounding landscape. The lower deck may have built in seats in the future, which would extend its use to a reading spot or a place for adults to converse, that is, if Wesley casts aside his “no adults” rule. The upper deck sits 12 feet above ground at its highest, and is accessed by a ladder. The room inside is 64 ft2, large enough for a slumber party or furniture to be placed inside.

As part of the project constraints we could not attach anything to the trees. The dynamic sloping site, extensive root systems, and wandering branches were just a few variables that drove decisions. We decided to use footings and build from the ground up. Although the upper enclosure sits on tall posts , we used plently of cross members to stabalize the structure. The end product turned out to be very safe and strong, and most importantly, very loved by Wesley.

Planning the project phases, shopping for materials, maintaining good craft, and playing it safe were all challenges of the project. Getting the family involved in the design and planning encouraged enthusiasm.

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