TED X - A Theater for 500 people
Critic: Joshua Prince-Ramus
Team: Connie Shu, Steven Tsai, Brian Thomas

In 1984, an annual conference named TED was formed to bring together thought leaders in technology, entertainment, and design with the mission to disseminate "ideas worth spreading." Over the ensuing 25 years, TED has grown to be an international phenomenon attracting the world's top thinkers,including Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and many Nobel Prize winners.

The studio investigates possible manifestations of a state-of-the-art, 500-seat, deployable Speakers' Corner. To focus attention on the presentation/performance space itself, teams were asked to design their venues within the Park Avenue Armory in Manhattan's Upper East Side.

31 Islands
Studio Critic: Work ac - Dan Wood and Sam Dufaux

Throughout history, the idea of the island as a world unto itself has remained firm in the public imagination - from Sir Thomas More's Island Utopia (a world of societal harmony) to Coney Island (a world of pleasure) to "Lost" (a world where anything is possible.) Within architecture and urbanism, the island city has also featured prominently in visions of a future world most particularly with the Metabolists, but also with thinkers such as Rem Koolhaas where the island motif has recurred, beginning with the projects and illustrations accompanying Delirious New York and continuing through to AMO's artificial island proposed for Schipol Airport.

Our studio began with research into New York's Islands, their history, condition and potential as well as these environmental issues and their impact on the islands and waterways of the city. Upon the completion of 4 weeks of research and analysis the resultant was 31 Islands, a survey of NYC and its surrounding islands.

CT LEED Prefab
Norfolk, CT

This 2600 sf home is positioned to absorb views of the surrounding mountains and quiet rolling landscape. Volumetrically, the composition reads as an up and over floating wood bar anchored to the ground by two paneled base volumes. As one approaches by vehicle, the cut out in the first floor serves as the carport and frames a view of the landscape beyond the home. The communal space volume intersects the two-story wood bar allowing several pockets of exterior deck space, reinforcing the connection between inside and out.

(Completed while employed by Resolution: 4 Architecture)

Artist Loft
New York, NY

Renovation of 3,000 SF live / work artist loft in Tribeca.

(Completed while employed by MESH Architectures)

Competition
Re:vision Dallas
Dallas, Texas

An open ideas competition calling for designers to reinventing the urban mega-block in ways that would improve its environmental integrity and embody the new economy of information and cultural exchange.

Public Utopia
New York, NY
Critic: Yehuda Safran

The ambition for this project is to re:define the current stigma surrounding public housing in the United States. Using Alphabet City, specifically the Jacob Riis House, as a case study; I hope to restore the utopian qualities that were once associated with this complex through series of aggressive interventions that break down the current site, reconnecting residents through a progression of domestically scaled interlinked interior and exterior courtyards that encourage both public interaction and promote social awareness.

Website
The Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture

Design of a new online presence for the Buell Center at Columbia University.

NY Design Incubator
New York, NY

Winning competition entry for the renovation of an existing 46,000 SF factory building for first New York Incubator exclusively for design professionals. The design included 36 artists studios sharing common conference rooms, bathrooms kitchen, large exhibit space and state-of-art digital workshop.

(Completed while employed by Resolution: 4 Architecture)

Competition
The Elements of Cotton Bay
Eleuthera, Bahamas
Team: Ben Mickus, Paul Coughlin, Brian Thomas

Open ideas competition for 3,000 SF single family, beach front house in Eleuthera, Bahamas.

[un]Buidling
New York, NY
Critic: Dan Wood, Sam Defaux - Work AC

Text coming soon.

RE:thinking BIM
Team: Tyler Johnson, Brian Thomas

The intention of this study is to develop a thorough understanding of BIM, most importantly how can we intervene in the process to not let it be strictly about efficiency. How is the time gained from these tools re-appropriated? How can the concepts of parametric modeling infiltrate the design process? Using software that forces rigor can we learn from it and re-apply those logics to other aspects of what we do? This study uses Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 to create a parametric architectural system with embedded variability. Once the system has been design, Revit will be used to create models which will translate into drawings for fabrication.

UNCOMMON
Parametric Eyewear
Team: Alexandra Kenig, Bernardo Garcia, Florence Schmitt, Brian Thomas

Using the software applications grasshopper and rhino-script, we designed a form generating application that allows the user to input facial dimensions into Mircosoft Excel. Through a series of computations the optimal eyewear configuration is generated via a link between Excel > Grasshopper > Rhino. After achieving the desired form, we export the geometry to AutoCAD for production via laser cutter.

Website
Vices of Our Virtues
Website for urban fashion design company.

Website designed in photoshop, coded in XHTML and CSS using javascript/ajax for custom lightbox gallery and e-commerce store. Custom php, mySQL content management system.

Website
Kimoy Studios
Website for NYC architecture firm.

Designed in photoshop, coded in Actionscript AS2 (flash) with XML backend.

Greenwich Street Loft
New York, NY

A solution for maintaining open loft space while creating discrete, programmed rooms. The major architectural gesture is to divide the private suite from the main space with a long, bamboo-ply-clad wall. This wall contains infrastructure, storage, and part of the kitchen. We activate a space in the back, without window access, by designing three rooms in one. A home office, media library, and storage room share the space with movable dividers on high-density-storage carriages and tracks. Each room is color-coded, and the dividers hold the functional elements that define the program for the space, including a built-in sofa in the media library.

(Completed while employed by MESH Architectures)

Website
Resolution: 4 Architecture

The website is design to act as a "catalogue of work" displaying over 100 projects and 1500 image / videos. A custom filtered navigational menu allowing the user to "drill down" project information and display only as general or details results as desired. The user also has the ability to drag and drop their favorite project images into a tray and export as pdf or just email to a friend.

Website designed in photoshop, coded in Actionscript AS2 (flash), custom php / mySQL back-end content management system.

Storycorps
New York, NY

StoryCorps, modeled after the Works Progress Administration (WPA) of the 1930's, through which oral-history interviews with everyday Americans across the country were recorded, is a national project to instruct and inspire people to record each others' stories in sound. The installation included a soundproof, mobile recording studio. It appears bright and engineered on the outside to let you know it is technologically advanced, packed with digital equipment. But the inside is warm, almost domestic in tone to help interlocutors feel comfortable. The outside is also a display, telling StoryCorps's story and inviting passersby to listen to some of the stories.

(Completed while employed by MESH Architectures)

Catskill Retreat
Palenville, NY

Weekend retreat for young NYC family.

(Completed while employed by Resolution: 4 Architecture)

Competition: Winning Entry Design Week Philadelphia
Movie Mobile, V1.0
Philadelphia, PA
Team: Steve Thomas, Ben Mickus, Paul Coughlin, Brian Thomas

A lightweight movie mobile, deployable in any parking spot, used for spontaneous urban gatherings.

A bike-powered projector runs from a simple magnetic level trainer, car alternator and capacitor to make a 44 watt generator.
- Just load your movie into your iphone hitch up the movie mobile to your bike and don't for get the popcorn.

This lightweight installation was fabricated from high density foam using a CNC mill and coated in a water based resin.

The sanded resin was painted with a high gloss spray. Simply unhitch from your bike, flip open screen, pedal, lounge and watch.

Brooklyn Duplex
Brooklyn, NY

Complete gut renovation of brownstone in Brooklyn, NY

(Completed while employed by Resolution: 4 Architecture)