Jonathan Lainundergraduate portfolio | ball state university 2009-2013

The iproject was perhaps one of the most challenging assignments of my undergraduate study. It was the first studio in which we were given total freedom to choose our own process and project outline. Through reading and researching precedents, I became attracted to the notion of “container” in architecture, specifically the nature of exterior vs. interior, enclosure flexibility, and product. As a studio we also examined the crucial need for flexible and changeable spaces as the traditional concept of space and program continues to change due to the growing ingenuity of technology. During this studio I also developed a humanistic view towards architecture, specifically regarding art and philosophical approach.

It was not until the first semester of my junior year design studio that I really began to synthesize my own methodology and philosophy in architecture. The ideas that were presented in this studio had a profound influence over me and were continually expanded upon in my subsequent projects.

Fall 2011professor: Ana de Brea

This semester greatly enhanced the way in which I approach architectural design problems. For the first project we formed groups of four students to go about redesigning a series of buildings on Ball State’s campus. We were individually responsible for our own design which needed to fit within a cohesive scheme developed by the group. This project helped me to learn a more collaborative approach to designing while also introducing me to iterative modeling techniques as a primary tool in the design process. In my design for the Estopinal competition project, I tried to see the container as a way to foster intrigue on different sensory levels. This studio also had a tremendous focus on user-centered design and how to consciously design for user experiences.

After building a personal methodology and philosophy, I was able to further explore my interests in humanities and technology with design. The Farmcloud project was an opportunity to address a real world design problem in a neaby farming community. Cooperatively, we developed a scheme to be protoyped and presented to the potential users. This project really examined architecture as an interface to our own human interactions while, with technology, we can also design for experiences within a vitual space. The next project, Somnium, is presented as a culminaion of the ideas gathered in my studies. The project was also done with a teammate who shares many of my views in architecture. We sought to challenge the notion of preservation and to design a unique tectonic form.

Spring 2012 Fall 2012professor: Pamela Harwood professor: Kevin Klinger

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i project

bsu business college

estopinal compeition

farmcloud

somnium

[ project ]

September - November 2011

[ design ]

[ details ]

To explore and design a flexible and adaptable space to

enhance the existing Ball State University art museum. The

pavillion explores the notion of the container to provide an art that is accessible and relatable to the average college student.

professor: Ana de Brea

2,000 sq. ft.

lounging spaces, multi-media display, art display space,

museum information, public grafitti.

[ project ]

January - March 2012

[ design ]

[ details ]

To expand the notion of academic learning spaces in order to create unique

opportunities for immersive and collaborative learning in a technological environment. To

create a new recognizable face and presence on campus for the existing business building.

professor: Pamela Harwood

100,000 sq. ft.

interactive classrooms, collaborative learning areas,

cross-disciplinary connections, department offices, faculty

offices, atrium space

[ project ]

March - April 2012

[ design ]

[ details ]

Integrate diverse opportunites for activity in a mixed use setting.

Engage and intrigue the public through the senses. Pedestrians are drawn through a building rich with experiences, encouraging the re-activation of Pan-Am plaza in Indianapolis, Indiana.

professor: Pamela Harwood

2,000 sq. ft.

boutique hotel rooms, bake shop, wine tasting, restaurant, teaching

kitchens, demonstration labs, classrooms, lecture hall, market

vendor spaces, plaza

INTRIGUE: THROUGH THE DISPLAY OF A DIVERSE INTERIOR

CURRICULUM, ENGAGING THE

PUBLIC WITH SENSORY ACTIVITY,

AND DIVERSE OPPORTUNITIES TO

EXPERIENCE THE SPACE.

[ project ]

September - October 2012

[ design ]

[ details ]

Taking a technologist stance in intervention to provide a

cloud-based software network for Farmland, Indiana; with a layer of information and data interweaved into the existing

historical framework.

professor: Kevin Klingergroup members: Spencer Blaney, Bradley Hosfeld, Jon Lain, Vinnie

Montesano

responsibilities: collaborative development of concept, video,

blog documentation

1,000 sq. ft.

information screens, kiosks, digital hub, headquarters for

software developer, workspace, presentation space

While studying this small, rural town, we wanted to design something to enhance the community through technology. The idea of being able to plug into the system on any screen in the town where, over time, the system comes to know your interests. The system will then tailor your interests and your experience with the screen via the aggregate data that it has collected about you (i.e. how google profiles its users data). Essentially, these screens start as a blank canvas and they are colored by the people. Each profile created by each person’s lifestyle and actions becomes a part of the aggregate that becomes a larger artwork that is Farmland. The town then manifests into something more than just a name on a map, it is a digital organism that can grow, learn, predict, and gather. Its profile is now on the cloud.

Exploring a rural, “small-town” community

Farmland, Indiana: small town characterized by farmland, small shops, and a central rail line running through

the heart of town.

ARCHITECTURE AS AN INTERFACE TO OUR OWN HUMAN INTERACTIONS

Hub location for software developer and servers. Located near the town’s major rail line, the building incorporates digitally optimized acoustic panel wall to reduce noise disruption. The building also serves as the new agora: the central location for the town’s information and display.

video of prototype technology screens.watch at:

project process blog at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cb_msj1ZSW8

http://farmlandtechnologies.wordpress.com

[ project ]

October - December 2012

[ design ]

[ details ]

Address historical Castle Pinckney in the harbor of

Charleston, South Carolina. Preserve the site while

invigorating new uses for the island. Observe the effects of errosion and natural disaster while keeping small ecological

footprint.

professor: Kevin Klingergroup members: Jon Lain, Vinnie

Montesano

responsibilities: collaborative development of design,

digital/physical modelling, and visualization

4,000 sq. ft.

performing arts center, outdoor auditorium, exhibition space, welcome center, historical

displays

Somnium is an escape from reality. Often we are confronted with the horrors of the world: war, poverty, oppression. But art provides the means to counteract these forces. In the dream, vision and feeling inspire us to create, whether in the plastic form of architecture, or through the captivating performance of drama, music, and dance. Though not always utilized in times of conflict, Castle Pinckney symbolizes war in its heavy physical form. This edifice played a minimal role in the War of 1812 and the Civil War and was altered and built upon numerous times for non-military uses. This is why we feel that the fort does not warrant the need to be restored or preserved as a relic. Instead, we wish to contrast its historical function as a mechanism of war and destruction by transforming the site into a medium for expression and creation. The initial construction phase consists of an archaeological dig which will uncover the many layers of the fort to be studied and documented for historical purposes. Any artifacts recovered will then be displayed within the proposed welcome center. This process uncovers the castle to its raw state, ready to be built upon. The primary component of our program is planned as a dynamic, adaptable performing arts center. The structure takes form as a suspended auditorium enveloped by the rest of the building. Lifted, the auditorium is closed for more private events. The lower half of the auditorium can be lowered down into a tectonic layer that supplies additional seating and stage space for public performances.

Additionally, the auditorium can be utilized as a container of refuge during a natural disaster, such as a hurricane. The building’s valuable contents can be loaded into the auditorium, lowered, and secured in the heart of the castle within the faceted landscape. At its center, this faceted landscape serves as a basin to collect rainwater that will be reused within the building. The landscape then raises and escapes the confines of the castle, spilling out onto the island. The faceted structure transforms from a structural panel system into permeable mesh as it meets the bank of the island. This permeable mesh, along with planted cod grasses, are planned to control further erosion of the island, preserving the foundation of the castle and its addition. In its original form, the castle provided security to Charleston in times of war. Through its history, it has changed function many times. Somnium is the next layer, perpetuating artistic expression and creative thought, serving as an outlet for the community of Charleston.

WE HAVE ART SO THAT WE MAY NOT

PERISH BY THE “

“

-Friedrich NietzscheTRUTH.