NATHAN HALIMI

NATHAN S. HALIMI

BRICOLAGE DESIGNIntern – Santa Monica, CAJune - August 2012

Designed children’s bedroom units and building facades for single family house in Mar Vista, CA

Communicated with contractor and oversaw construction for small house renovation

Researched material options for design of residential proj-ects (e.g. hardwood types, skylight systems)

AutoCAD - Five years of experience in 2D computer draftingRhinoceros - Five years of experience in 3D modeling; Vray renderRevit - One year of experience in 3D modeling and CD developmentAdobe Suite - Seven years of experience in Photoshop, InDesign, and IllustratorModel Making - Five years of experience in model making; laser cuttingDrawing - Five years of experience in ink and pencil drawingMicrosoft Office - Eight years of experience in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

CENTERCAL PROPERTIES, LLCIntern – El Segundo, CAJune - August 2011

Drafted merchant plans and leasing site plans for internal development use

Designed site plan prototypes for shopping center develop-ments throughout California and Oregon

Rendered building elevations and compiled leasing packets for prospective tenants

ABRAMSON TEIGER ARCHITECTSIntern – Culver City, CAJune - August 2010

Collaborated with architects to solve design/logistical is-sues for single family house in Pacific Palisades

Prepared AutoCAD drawings for construction documents, planning approval, and client meetings

Crafted scale models of Synagogue project for design analysis and client meetings

THNKJL INTERNET AND DESIGN SERVICESIntern – Hollywood, CAJune - August 2009

Worked on digital marketing and design for the music and film industries

Illustrated key art for HBO television series in preparation for presentation to production companies

Built and designed a Wordpress blog as an online portfolio and brand identity for ThinkJL’s services

16309 Royal Hills Drive • Encino CA 91436 • (818) 919-1990 • NHalimi@usc.edu

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIABachelor of Architecture – Los Angeles, CAAnticipated Graduation: May 2013

USC SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMBarcelona, SpainSeptember - December 2011

EXPERIENCE

EDUCATION SKILLS

PART I - DWELLINGChannel House (Solar Decathlon Competition Entry)

South Pasadena Low Rise Housing

PART II - EDUCATIONThe Geode School for the Blind

Echo Park Institute of the Culinary and Performing Arts

PART III - FABRICATION AND SKETCHESBench Design and Fabrication

Architectural Sketches

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

DWELLING

CHANNEL HOUSE - SOLAR DECATHLON COMPETITION ENTRY

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is an award-winning program that challenges collegiate teams to design, build, and op-erate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency. The first Solar Decathlon was held in 2002; the competition has since occurred bi-ennially in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011. The next event will take place Oct. 3-13, 2013, at Orange County Great Park in Irvine, Cali-fornia. The competition houses will be open to visitors on eight days over two weekends. The Channel House was one of 4 design schemes for USC’s competition entry, generated during the preliminary de-sign phase. USC’s final sumbission for the competition incorperates various architectural and systems elements of the Channel House.

Designed in partner with Christine Tanguay

Decathlete Way

116

115 113

114 112

111 109

110

107 105 103 101119 117

120 118 108 106 104 102

VUT

SIT

CTUASUNM KENDC

SCU MIDD TEX

WVU

ONT

USC

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ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING DESIGN NARRATIVE

In its first U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, the University of Southern California proposes an entry that seeks to remedy the energy and water shortages common in Southern California. The house is an illustrative tool that demonstrates a lifestyle that restores the environment and saves on precious natural resources. In response to the “concrete jungle” of Los Angeles, this prototype transforms an unsus-tainable building precedent into a typology of regeneration and renewal complete from the xeriscape gardens to the high-recycled content materials. The house employs evaporative cooling techniques with multiple types of planting including large interior and exterior vertical gardens, a rain screen and capture system to prevent stormwater runoff, and a combination building integrated photovoltaic and photo-voltaic thermal array to make Channel House the primary example of how to harvest the sun and promote sustainability in one efficient package.

DESIGN PHILOSOPHY

Channel House is designed to challenge the pre-conceived notions of suburbia. The Southern California suburban household has a front yard divided from the backyard and generally planted with grass, a water-guzzling, inefficient plant for a desert climate. However, in this reimagined scheme, the “three channel” diagram splits the public and private areas of the house with one cohesive garden space. A glass box foyer bridges the channels, and its transparency serves to visually connect the interior spaces of the house with the exterior gardens.

In order to take advantage of the natural site features, the house is rotated to take advantage of the prevailing wind conditions and to maximize the solar radiation on the photovoltaic array. The photovoltaic array also doubles as a skylight that connects the user to the energy-producing ability of the house while maintaining diffuse daylight throughout the public spaces. In the use of the house, the user is constantly connected to the garden space by floor to ceiling glass panels and a designed infiltration of the garden into certain spaces.

SHA

RED

PRIV

ATE

BACKYARD

FRONTYARD

HOUSE

SPLIT THE HOUSE DOWNTHE CENTER

SYNERGY OF HOUSEAND GARDEN

ROTATE THE HOUSE30 DEGREES

“CHANNEL HOUSE”

House centered on site with street access front yard and public backyard. Car

parked in front driveway.

TRADITIONAL SOCALHOUSING TYPOLOGY

Spacial differentiation between shared and private zones. Area between

defines entrance into the house.

Frontyard and backyard bleed into middle buffer zone. Gardeen can be

seen from all areas in the house.

House rotated so that it is oriented towards the Southwest: the optimal orientation for prevailing winds. Car port mirrored to reject traditional

driveway orientation.

Three parallel channels that define different levels of privacy. Garden channel can be viewed from any area in

the house.

ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPT

ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING DESIGN NARRATIVE

In its first U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, the University of Southern California proposes an entry that seeks to remedy the energy and water shortages common in Southern California. The house is an illustrative tool that demonstrates a lifestyle that restores the environment and saves on precious natural resources. In response to the “concrete jungle” of Los Angeles, this prototype transforms an unsus-tainable building precedent into a typology of regeneration and renewal complete from the xeriscape gardens to the high-recycled content materials. The house employs evaporative cooling techniques with multiple types of planting including large interior and exterior vertical gardens, a rain screen and capture system to prevent stormwater runoff, and a combination building integrated photovoltaic and photo-voltaic thermal array to make Channel House the primary example of how to harvest the sun and promote sustainability in one efficient package.

DESIGN PHILOSOPHY

Channel House is designed to challenge the pre-conceived notions of suburbia. The Southern California suburban household has a front yard divided from the backyard and generally planted with grass, a water-guzzling, inefficient plant for a desert climate. However, in this reimagined scheme, the “three channel” diagram splits the public and private areas of the house with one cohesive garden space. A glass box foyer bridges the channels, and its transparency serves to visually connect the interior spaces of the house with the exterior gardens.

In order to take advantage of the natural site features, the house is rotated to take advantage of the prevailing wind conditions and to maximize the solar radiation on the photovoltaic array. The photovoltaic array also doubles as a skylight that connects the user to the energy-producing ability of the house while maintaining diffuse daylight throughout the public spaces. In the use of the house, the user is constantly connected to the garden space by floor to ceiling glass panels and a designed infiltration of the garden into certain spaces.

SHA

RED

PRIV

ATE

BACKYARD

FRONTYARD

HOUSE

SPLIT THE HOUSE DOWNTHE CENTER

SYNERGY OF HOUSEAND GARDEN

ROTATE THE HOUSE30 DEGREES

“CHANNEL HOUSE”

House centered on site with street access front yard and public backyard. Car

parked in front driveway.

TRADITIONAL SOCALHOUSING TYPOLOGY

Spacial differentiation between shared and private zones. Area between

defines entrance into the house.

Frontyard and backyard bleed into middle buffer zone. Gardeen can be

seen from all areas in the house.

House rotated so that it is oriented towards the Southwest: the optimal orientation for prevailing winds. Car port mirrored to reject traditional

driveway orientation.

Three parallel channels that define different levels of privacy. Garden channel can be viewed from any area in

the house.

ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPT

1/2" SCALE MODEL

FLOOR PLAN1/8” = 1’

DESIGN PROCESS

PHOTOVOLTAIC PANEL LOCATION SCHEMES

OVERLAPPING ROOF SCHEMES

Transverse band that serves as a skylight for foyer. overlap-ping roofs creates location for

PV Panels.

Center channel is replaced by diagonal PV array and adja-cent skylight. PV Panels define

outdoor entrance.

Transparent PV Panels act as a skylight over entire foyer,

living room, and kitchen.

Center channel replaced by full glass enclosure. Parti is

read as two channels with a gap in between

Overlapping roof section mim-ics the footprint of the kinks in the plan below. no skylights

Kinks in plan adjust to form a more orthogonal overlapping roof section. PV Panels act as

skylights.

Garden folds up to define a fully enclosed green channel between the two program-

matic channels.

Green walls enlarged to strengthen the channel dia-

gram. windows in center channel provide views of the

garden.

Better for sun-shadingAccess/views to garden

Views to gardenDisregard adjacency of path tothis window. I don’t like how itchanges the reading of the right band.

Opening for light

Breaking up the thick wall

Views from entry into living room/dining room and kitchen

Overall Garden Goals:

1. Create a unique, dynamic space2. Use the garden to frame the outer two strands3. Delineate three separate types of spaces

MOCK-UP OF OVERLAPPING ROOFS WORKING PLAN ADJUSTMENTS

KINKED PLAN SCHEMES

Kitchen kinks on one wall to create a wedge-shaped space.

Lifts in living room and bed-room provide privacy.

removal of lifts reduces costs and improves channel diagram. Operable winds are added to

the end of the channels.

All walls facing the interior channel are glass, providing views into the gardens from every space in the house.

Kitchen channel is shortened to create an open plan between kitchen space and backyard. Channel diagram weakens.

EXTERIOR DAYLIGHTING STUDIES

INTERIOR DAYLIGHTING STUDIES

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES

”

””

1-1/2" WALL SECTION MODEL

’”

”

¾”

WALL SECTION1/2” = 1’

EXTERIOR RENDERING OF ENTRY SEQUENCE

EVENING RENDERING OF HOUSE ON DECATHLETE WAY

EXTERIOR RENDERING OF BACKYARD

INTERIOR RENDERING OF BEDROOM

INTERIOR RENDERING OF KITCHEN

DWELLING

The design for this multi-family low-rise housing proj-ect is situated on a typically sized South Pasadena lot. The site is developed with four sustainable dwelling units on it. The design caters to two different types of residents in South Pasadena: the family and the single college student or bachelor. The users are further di-vided into different categories. One unit caters to the family that is interested in socializing and opening up its home to guests, whereas the other family enjoys its own private, intimate space. The college students or bachelors also enjoy having their own private space. The design revolves around a courtyard with a very open communal kitchen, where all the users can meet and socialize. This project presents a new typology for multi-family housing norms in Southern California.

SOUTH PASADENA LOW RISE HOUSING

CIRCULATION SYNERGY OF OPENNESS AND ENCLOSURE

Analysis of the South Pasadena site shows how the context defines a series of thresholds before one gets onto the property line. These thresholds include the curbs, threes, and grass that line the front yard and setbacks of the site. The design continues this concept of thresh-olds into the site itself. The users are compressed between two units and are opened up into a shared courtyard. The units reflect the specific social narrative of the user types. By shifting the way in which living and bedroom spaces are stacked, the design creates different levels of privacy within the units. The less social family wants to be able to retreat to their respective bedrooms without be-ing bothered by the other people on the site. This unit has the bedrooms stacked on top of the living space. The social family wants the opportunity to social-ize throughout the unit; the bedrooms are placed adjacent to the living space. The college student units are similar to the less social one, yet the entire unit is hovered off the ground to add an extra layer of privacy. The site has a commu-nal kitchen in the courtyard that fosters social interaction between the users.

UNIT TYPE A:FAMILY THAT

ENJOYS PRIVACY AND INTIMACY

UNIT TYPE B:FAMILY THAT

ENJOYS HOSTING GUESTS

UNIT TYPE C:BACHELOR THAT

ENJOYS SECLUDED PRIVACY

PRIVATE

SHARED

SECTIONAL MODEL OF UNIT TYPE A AND COMMUNAL KITCHEN

EDUCATION

The design for this school is situated in Silverlake, CA, adjacent to the historic Silverlake Reservoir. The school serves approximately 300 blind and partially sighted elementary and middle school students. The campus provides dormitory housing for 32 students during the week, as well as 4 units for faculty during the week and 2 units for faculty full time. The juxtaposition of materials allows the blind students to easily navigate throughout the site. The design suggests the diagram of a geode: there is a rough, faceted concrete exterior that protects the program within. When the students arrive on the site, they are compressed between two canted concrete walls as they walk towards the water. Once on the site, an esplanade feeds a series of courtyards that provide exterior circulation to all the spaces. The dichotomy between the chaotic concrete shell and systematically organized interior enclosures creates an ideal environment for the blind students.

THE GEODE SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND

SITE PLAN

B B B B

C C

D D D D D D

D D D D D D

A

E

E

F

G G G G

G G G G

H

J

K

L

M

A - COMMUNAL KITCHENB - PART-TIME FACULTY HOUSINGC - FULL-TIME FACULTY HOUSINGD - PART-TIME STUDENT HOUSING E - OFFICES F - BRAILLE LIBRARY G - LEARNING/MUSIC CLASSROOM H - CAFETERIA J - AUDITORIUM K - GYMNASIUML - OUTDOOR RECREATIONAL AREAM - POOL

PLAN

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BUILDING MASS AND ADJACENT ESPLANADE

CIRCULATION AS EXTENSION OF THE ESPLANADE

The goal of the project’s building enclosure system is to strengthen the diagram of the geode and cater to the vi-sually impaired user. The con-crete structure encompasses every unit, providing sound and heat insulation. In addi-tion, the concrete provides ample storage, a much-need-ed commodity for the visually impaired. Wood roof planes cantilever over the units to provide ample sun shading and to reiterate the diagram of the infill units. The units are capped with a simple, single pane glass fenestration sys-tem and wood paneled aw-nings below. This frameless system provides air circula-tion and allows the “fingers” of the concrete units to pro-trude into the courtyards.

ENCLOSURE LEVEL I:COURTYARDS THAT BRANCH OFF OF ESPLANADE ENCLOSURE LEVEL II:

INDIVIDUAL UNITS THAT ARE DEFINED BY THE POCHE OF SERVANT SPACE ENCLOSURE LEVEL III:

WOODEN CLOSETS AND STORAGE SYSTEMS THAT INFILL THE CONCRETE

EAST ELEVATION

WEST ELEVATION

NORTH ELEVATIONSOUTH ELEVATION

LONGITUDINAL SECTION

EAST ELEVATION

WEST ELEVATION

NORTH ELEVATIONSOUTH ELEVATION

LONGITUDINAL SECTION

DETAIL PLAN OF HOUSING UNITS

DETAIL SECTION OF HOUSING UNITS

PART-TIME FACULTY FULL-TIME FACULTY

DETAIL PLAN OF HOUSING UNITS

DETAIL SECTION OF HOUSING UNITS

PART-TIME STUDENTS PART-TIME STUDENTS

EDUCATION

ECHO PARK INSTITUTE OF THE CULINARY AND PERFORMING ARTS

The Institute of the Culinary and Performing Arts is located on the busy Glendale Boulevard in Echo Park, California. The site has a slope displace-ment of about 30 feet, with site access only avail-able on one edge. The project serves high school students who wish to receive specialized educa-tion in either the culinary or performing arts; the institute will be open in the late afternoon as a supplement to the students’ conventional high school education. In addition to the music prac-tice rooms and experimental kitchens, the project has a large theater and restaurant. In this way, visitors are encouraged to visit the site to view performances by the students in the theater and sample their culinary creations in the restaurant.

Site Plan

ADDRESS THE SLOPE

RESTAURANT AND THEATER BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN SCHOOLS

MASSING RESPONDS TO URBAN CONDITION AND VIEWS

The Echo Park Institute provides a compelling dialogue between the two worlds of culinary and performing arts. The grand staircase allows the visitor who is enter-ing the building to peak into the two types of practice rooms, that of the performer and of the cook. The visitor is introduced to the process of the arts as they enter the site; the staircase is culminated by a grand restaurant and theater which demonstrate the product of the stu-dents' work. The massing of the two schools responds to both the varying street condition of Glendale Blvd and the guided views into the practice rooms. The culinary school has long, horizontal views into the kitchen which foster views onto table tops and kitchen counters. The performing arts school has long vertical openings which foster views onto the three-dimensionality of the dances.

PLAN - FLOOR 1

SecondaryPerformance

Hall

Practice Rooms

Restaurant

Offices

Culinary School

RestaurantStorage

PLAN - FLOOR 2

Practice Rooms

Practice Rooms

Projection

CROSS SECTION

LONGITUDINAL SECTION

FABRICATION

The goal in designing this bench is to focus on the process of designing through making. The assignment called for the design of a bench in teams of three that can hold the body in three positions: seating, standing, and reclining. It must be able to physically and structurally accommodate three people sitting down and must hold the body off of the ground. This design implements the material of wood. In fabri-cating the bench in full scale, the project explores the process of uniting a series of wooden cross sections with wooden strips that were bent around the outer contours. The assignment accentuates the concepts of material fabrication and the function-al implications of a chosen material in full scale.

FULL SCALE BENCH DESIGN AND FABRICATION

Designed in a group with Jessica Chang and Chris Raimondi

ASSEMBLY SEQUENCE

SYSTEMS REVEAL

SKETCHES

For designers, drawing is a vehicle for design reasoning, and therefore the spontaneous marks made on paper during sketching form a partial record of the designer's thinking. Sketching is still the quickest and most direct means to produce visual representations of ideas. The ambiguity of free hand sketching allows multiple inter-pretations and thus stimulates the production of more design alternatives. The linked acts of drawing and looking invite designers to recognize new interpretations of the alternatives they propose. In addition, drawing the built environment presents the designer's commen-tary on the scene that cannot be found in a photograph. My sketches of the USC Campus and of my trav-els abroad allow the viewer to understand the way I see and interpret what has been placed before me.

ARCHITECTURAL SKETCHES OF LOS ANGELES AND ABROAD

BUS FROM ALGECIRAS, SPAIN TO MARRAKESH, MOROCCO

MUDD HALLUSC CAMPUS, LOS ANGELES CA

ALUMNI HOUSEUSC CAMPUS, LOS ANGELES CA

TUDOR HALLUSC CAMPUS, LOS ANGELES CA

PARIS, FRANCE

ALCAZARSEVILLA, SPAIN

SANT ANTONI LIBRARYBARCELONA, SPAIN