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A portfolio of selected works for my 4th year of Architecture at the University of Nairobi
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nicholas simwichi university of nairobi undergraduate architecture portfolio
CURRICULUM VITAE
Personal InformatIon comPetItIons
eDUcatIon travel exPerIence
comPUtatIon ProfIcIency favoUrIte archItects & InsPIratIon
hobbIes & Interests
NameD.O.B.Email Telephone
CAA 2015 Student competition- Visualize your City in 2065
UIA 2014 student competition
Nicholas Simwichi12th February [email protected]+254 711 676 607
University of Nairobi
Mang’u High School
Italy
South Africa
- Trip to Rome, Venice and Florence in June 2015
- Durban ( 2014 UIA Conference)- Johannesburg ( 2014 UIA Conference)
Archicad 18
Cinema 4D
Adobe Indesign
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Prelude
Microsoft Office suite
Bjarke IngelsOppenheim ArchitectsBoogertman & Partners associatesFrei OttoIssa Diabate
Competitive SwimmingFormula 1Rugby 15sMountain Biking
Bachelor of Architectural studies(awaiting results)
Kenya Certificate of Primary Education(2009)
__________________ 80%
________________ 65%
_______________ 60%
__________ 50%
________ 40%
_______ 35%
_______________ 70%
“When the intellectual realm, the realm of ideas, is in balance with the ex-periential realm, the realm of phenomena, form is animated with mean-ing. In this balance, architecture has both intellectual and physical intensi-ty, with the potential to touch the mind, eye, and soul.”
-Steven Holl
caselaP DesIGn
caselaP lanDscaPe DesIGn
naIrobI art Gallery DesIGn
mambrUI toUrIst centre
project 1 caselaP DesIGn
CASELAP BUILDING DESIGN
Projectyear of studytutorsoftwares
Centre for Advanced Studies in Environmental Law and Policy4th YearProfessor Robert RukwaroArchicad 18, Cinema 4D, Photoshop
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READIN
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SPACE
ISSUANCE DESK ANDLUGGAGE STORAGE
DOCUMENTATION OFFICE,BINDING AND REPAIRSPACE,COLLECTION SPACE FORNEW MATERIAL
READIN
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SPACE
LIBRARIANOFFICE
FIRE
ESCAP
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LOUNGE
240 PAX TELECONFERENCE FACILITY
FOYER
RECEPTION DESK
SWITCHROOM
E.D.
ENTRANCE
TRANSFORMERROOM ANDGENERATORROOM
SENTRY
PROVISIONS FOR RECREATION FACILITIES1. SWIMMING POOL2. SAUNA3. CAFE AND KITCHEN4. AMPHITHEATRE
MASONGA WAI RIVER
ARBORETUM ROAD
PARKING
PARKING
introduction
The Centre for Advanced Studies in Environmental Law and Policy is a department of the University of Nairobi School of Law.The department was in need of a state of the art facility that would nur-ture it’s vision and beliefs of sustainable and environmentally friendly development. The students were thus tasked with the responsibility of designing a building that is energy efficient but still encompasses within it an institution of higher learning within a very steep site with a slope of 1:7.
The accomodation schedule involved facilities such as conference halls, a library, postgrad-uate students’ carrels, research offices, workshops, cafe and the caretaker’s residency.Environmentally the site posed a serious challenge in terms of its orientation as the long axis lies within the north-south axis. Mature trees within the site were to be maintained and the use of locally available materials was highly emphasized.
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READIN
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ISSUANCE DESK ANDLUGGAGE STORAGE
DOCUMENTATION OFFICE,BINDING AND REPAIRSPACE,COLLECTION SPACE FORNEW MATERIAL
READIN
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SPACE
LIBRARIANOFFICE
FIRE
ESCAP
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LOUNGE
240 PAX TELECONFERENCE FACILITY
FOYER
RECEPTION DESK
SWITCHROOM
E.D.
ENTRANCE
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READING
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ISSUANCE DESK ANDLUGGAGE STORAGE
MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS,JOURNALS READING AREA
READING
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COMPUTER TERMINALS
E.D.
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REF
BOAR
DROOM
DIREC
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OFF
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ASST.
DIREC
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PROCUREM
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OFF
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ACCOUNTS
&
CAS
HIER'S
OFF
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STORAG
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LOUNG
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OPEN PLAN POST-GRADUATESTUDENTS' OFFICE
PROFESSOR OFFICE
PROFESSOR OFFICE
STORAGE
LECTUREROFFICE
LECTUREROFFICE
LECTUREROFFICE
LECTUREROFFICE
20 PAX SEMINARROOM
30 PAX SEMINARROOM
50 PAX SEMINARROOM
50 PAX SEMINARROOM
RESEARCHER OFFICE
RESEARCHER OFFICE
RESEARCHER OFFICE
RESEARCHER OFFICE
KITCHENETTE
EXHIB
ITION
HALLW
AY
PERG
OLA
COVE
RED
BALCONY
FIRE
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TRIPLE VOLUMEATRIUM
E.D.
LEVEL 5
ground floor plan first floor plan second floor plan
Inspired by a library of books i sought to create elevations that were minimalist and very contemporary. The use of tim-ber sluts and staggered windows was key in developing a datum for the project by leaving the viewer with a simple but clear image of the building in its entirity.The external wall finish is white stucco to enhance the re-flection of sun radiation by the building to reduce heat gain in the facility.
elevation design
section design The main idea behind the sections was achieving a priva-cy gradient for the various functions to be accomodated.The most public functions were on the groung floor lev-el where we had the conference hall and entrance to thelibrary and support facilities like the reception lobby.The mezzanine level is occupied by the library while the first floor level is occupied by the most private functions that include management offices, researcher offices and the smaller lecturer rooms where lectures are conducted.The basement levels are occupied by the more tech-nical spaces such as the workshops, the server room, the switch room and the bulk storage spaces.The main entrance lobby is a triple volume space which is lit by the roof light
project 2 caselaP lanDscaPe DesIGn
CASELAP LANDSCAPE DESIGN
Projectyear of studytutorsoftwares
Centre for Advanced Studies in Environmental Law and Policy Landscaping Project4th YearProfessor Robert RukwaroArchicad 18, Cinema 4D, Photoshop
introduction
The succeeding project involved landscaping the CASELAP building site. I took a formal En-glish garden theme incorporating straight lines and well defined spaces for the various spaces and functions to be accomodated. The accomodation schedule involved providing recreation spaces, meditation gardens and sports facilities.Other spaces included a spa, a swimming pool, cafe and support facilities such as changing rooms. The sustainable implication of the project involved using indigenous plants and building materials. Additionally passive cooling methods such as use of the fountains to provide passive cooling for the landscaped gar-dens. a 50-50 balance for hardcape and softscape was key in achieving a balanced scheme.
The Hardcourt Garden is a contemporary Garden dorminantly paved in geopavers while incorporating sitting amenities and ma-ture trees to provide shading for the patrons.It is generally intro-verted in terms of views especially with the central fountain system within it. Outward views are towards the trellised outdoor restau-rant and the badminton court and ultimately the swimming pool area.
Located within the Hardcourt Garden is the Fountain of knowl-edge.This fountain system features a central fountain area with 4 nozzles that send jets of water into the air. As they come down they flood the central area and then flows into the side spill ponds that contain dwarf papyrus reeds.
This is symbolic to show how knowledge from the facility is ab-sorbed by the students and the researchers who then dispense it to the world and sustain the well being of the society represented by the dwarf papyrus.The water fountain is key in breaking the continous hardscape within the Hardcourt Garden and is very instrumental in enhancing the introverted nature of the space.
fountain design
The Wall of Fame is a feature wall defining the node created at the confluence between the main circulation path and the outdoor amphitheatre.This is the wall on which portrait mosaics of world reknown envi-ronmental protection activists are embedded. It strategically over-looks the whole site and is the main entrance node to the land-scaped area.
Since it is the highest point of the northern side of the site the phyl-osophical meaning is to show the epitome of the work going on within the facility. It is to provide an orientation for the researchers on the tough path of policy making in environmental law but also it is one with fruits.
Featured here are Nobel Laureates Al Gore and Wangari Maathai and Pritzker Prize winner and sustainable architect Glenn Murcutt.The Wall of Fame then introduces you to the transitory court which leads to the meditation gardens and the amphitheatre shown.
the wall of fame
project 3 naIrobI art Gallery
NAIROBI ART GALLERY DESIGN
Projectyear of studytutorsoftwares
Nairobi Art Gallery Extension Project4th YearProfessor Robert RukwaroArchicad 18, Cinema 4D, Photoshop
introduction
With the Nairobi Art Gallery I took a minimalist but expressive approach within the con-temporary theme too. The facades tend to express a vivid idea and so does the land-scaped forecourt but still a chilled tone is maintained due to the straight lines of the form.The accomodation schedule involved providing a variety of gallery spaces( painting, sculp-turesW), wood and metal workshops, a library, lecture theatre, a cafe, an array of stor-age spaces, artist interactive spaces, curator offices, administration offices, 20 num-ber basement parking and service rooms like refuse collection and the switch room.The sustainable attributes of the project involved using as much daylighting as possible for the office spaces while the galleries that required artificial lighting were served by solar pan-els that were installed on the roof. Additionally I provided minimal openings for the west-fac-ing facades and ensured the glazing on the north facing facade was adequately sunshaded.
ground floor plan
first floor plan
second floor plan
third floor plan
My design approach was a contemporary minimalist language with an abstraction of an aspect of African art. I was inspired by the djembe drum which I coined into “the heartbeat of African art”. Being a key aspect of African social events during the precolonial period the drum best resonated with this project symbolically thus my decision to adopt it.I abstracted the drum fasteners to come up with a steel latice frame with perforated aluminium sheet panelling for use as sun-shading for my north facing and east facing facades.
elevation design
For the project interiors i decided to adopt a woody kind of ap-proach. This was in response to the existing Nairobi art gallery whose interiors feel very homely and feel like a home for the exhib-ited art.This involved adopting a very simple colour palette of brown,grey and white. Shades of brown would be achieved through use of different types of timber namely mahogany and mvule timber.Accent walls are done in aged brick cladding to give the space an aged kind of aura while welcoming a contemporary clientelle through the minimalist contemporary furniture.Within the galleries I introduced clerestory windows with perma-nent vent windows for cross ventilation mainly. The exhibits are well illuminated artificially using LED light fixtures powered by the solar energy harvested from the rooftop solar farm.The floor finish of choice for the galleries was heavy duty grey 600mm x 600mm ceramic tiles due to their hard wearing prop-erties. As for the offices and cafe though I opted for high density fibre board floor panels to provide a warm feeling but also not compromise on the durability of the floor.
interior design
model making
project 4 MAMBRUI TOURIST CENTRE
MAMBRUI TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRE
Projectyear of studytutorsoftwares
Mambrui Tourist Information Centre4th YearArch. Yusuf EbrahimArchicad 18, Cinema 4D, Photoshop
introductionMambrui Tourist Information centre is a onestop coastal architectural building dedicated to the service of the tourism industry in Kilifi county within the Kenyan coast. The design approach for the project was undoubtedly a coastal architecture one where we had to come up with a scheme that not only fit within the extremely hot and humid climate but also within the rich islamic architecture and heritage of the Kenyan coastal towns. This entailed studying how the local residents build their houses, the materials used locally, spatial arrangement of spaces and various activities that would conflict with the local culture if placed in a certain area.The activities to be accomodated included tours and travel offices,airline booking offices, re-tail shops, a restaurant and accompanying kitchen, an art gallery, banks and ATM lobbies, 20 number self contained hotel rooms and a biodigester plant for sewer treatment.
ground floor plan
first floor plan
second floor plan
For my elevation design I adopted a mushrabiya pattern that would be carved out of wood to make a screen that would be placed above the window openings on the facade to act as sunshading devices. They were offset from the wall by about 500mm and thus began to create a form for my building that was resonating with the local architectural style.The mushrabiya pattern has also been used for the balustrade design of the building to achieve a harmo-nious feel with the dorminant screening elements.Also the use of lime plastered walls to achieve a white finish was a key element in creating a building that fit in the context in terms of thermal quality and aesthetic quality.Landscaping around the building has ensured provision of tree planters that also act as shaded resting spots in the harsh after-noon sun. This also enables anyone seated on them to appreciate the building facade from a close but comfortable position.As for the accomodation rooms on the top most floor the main idea was to provide them with unparalleled views to the ocean while maintaining a high level of privacy for the guests who occupy the rooms.
elevation design
The Kenyan coast experiences hot and humid conditions all year round thus when designing within this climate then several mea-sures should be taken to ensure for natural ventilation and reduc-ing heat gain within the building.
1. All external walls are at least 500mm thick to provide a time lag of about 10 hours and prevent sun radiation from heating the inte-riors of the buildng directly.2. Use of small-sized fenestrations on the external wall to prevent direct solar radiation into the building thus preventing heat gain.3. The incorporation of a central courtyard which allows for cross ventilation of the building thus natural cooling can be achieved by trapping the sea breeze.4. The building is oriented with most openings towards the ocean to enable it trap the sea breeze that enables the building achieve natural ventilation.5. Since this climate experiences intense solar radiation throughout the year incorporating solar panels and solar water heaters is im-portant in lowering the energy costs of the facility.
The above points have been adopted within my design to achieve a sustainable and energy efficient building design for this project.
thermal design
model making
“I am not the most interesting architect out there but i’m still out there and I have maintained some position of integrity.”
-David Chipperfield
