Portfolio Eva Meirsschaut
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Transcript of Portfolio Eva Meirsschaut
Hello, and welcome to my portfolio.
This booklet represents a selection of academic works and side projects realized in the
past 6 years. I currently live in Ghent, where I passed and completed my architectural
education at the faculty of Sint-Lucas.
The decision of becoming an architect was made quite late. Although I was confronted
with the concept of ‘home’ from an early age by moving around a lot and getting in
touch with other, mostly African cultures, I was only certain at about the age I was
ready for university. I realized that I wanted a profession where I would not merely be
part of society, but where I could also contribute something valuable. It occurred to me
that human life is to a large extent determined by architecture and vice versa, which
gives architects the privilege of having the power to change our built environment and
by that, even entire ways of living.
With this awereness in mind and stimulated by the increasing environmental problems,
I developed a particular interest for sustainable building during my study. In my opi-
nion, it is unthinkable for the modern architect to build without any attention for our
current environmental situation. By using our environment as motivation and our pri-
vileges as tools, I want to become an architect who contributes to make the world a
healthier, happier and more conscious place.
“We are all victims of the architect. Architecture is the only art you can’t help but feel.
You can avoid paintings, you can avoid music and you can even avoid history. But good
luck getting away from architecture.” - Philippe Daverio
3
RESUMEpg. 6
THE FISHERS’ PORTpg. 10
HYBRID BUILDINGpg. 18
FROM BUILDING TO CITYpg. 24
WASTELANDpg. 30
SIDE PROJECTSpg. 42
ROJM EXTENDEDpg. 36
Bachelor Dissertation
Master Dissertation
5
Name Eva Meirsschaut
Contact +32 (0) 477 76 56 36
Address Oude Houtlei 116
9000 Gent
Date of birth 11th of August 1990
Nationality Belgian
CVBA-SO De Okelaar Wolvertem, BEArchitect assistant and construction supervisor: drawing plans, searching and comparing different materials, managing safety
and organization on the construction site, dividing and executing tasks, leading the construction team, 2013-2014.
Wibra Belgium NV Ledeberg, BECashier and shop assistant: attending the cashier, helping and serving clients, maintaining the shop, unpacking and arranging
of store products, 2011-2013.
Carrefour Belgium NV Oostakker, BECashier and shop assistant: attending the cashier, controlling the daily income, helping and serving clients, preparing and sto-
ring food products, 2010-2011.
Brasserie ‘t Stropke Ghent, BEWaitress: taking and executing orders, serving clients, maintaining the restaurant, helping in the kitchen, attending caterings,
2010.
Eet- en theehuis Molé Ghent, BEWaitress: taking and executing orders, serving clients, maintaining the restaurant, helping in the kitchen, attending caterings,
2006-2009.
Autodesk AutoCAD
Google Sketchup
Adobe Photoshop
Indesign
Illustrator
Dutch
English
French
3DSMax
Microsoft Office Word
Powerpoint
Excell
Microsoft Windows
PROFILE
WORK EXPERIENCE
COMPUTER SKILLS
LANGUAGES Italian
German
8
Koninklijke Universiteit Leuven Ghent, BEDiploma: International Master of Science in Architecture, 2012 - 2014,
graduated magna cum laude
Università degli studi Roma Tre Rome, ITErasmus program, Dipartimento di Architettura, February - July 2013
Hogeschool voor Wetenschap en Kunst Ghent, BEDiploma: Bachelor of Science in Architecture, 2008 - 2012
Middelbare school Sint-Franciscus Evergem, BEDiploma: Latin and Modern Languages, 2002 - 2008
Model making
Sketching
Teamwork
VRP Afstudeerprijs 2014 Antwerp, BEWinner of the graduates of 2014 at KULeuven for best urban strategy and contestant in the competition of VRP (Vlaamse
Vereniging voor Ruimte en Planning), June - September 2014.
Building Workshop De Okelaar Wolvertem, BEResponsible for the organisation, leading and participation of a building workshop on the construction site of CVBA-SO De
Okelaar with international volunteers and architects, August 2014.
Ar. Maarten Martens: “Eva is a very motivated, conscientious and assiduous young woman. Even at this young age, she acts as
a fully fledged future architect. Especially the enthusiasm in research, design and coordination is a paragon!”
[email protected] +32 (0) 486 69 66 08
Prof. Dr. Kris Scheerlinck: “Eva has proven to be a take-charge person who is able to successfully develop plans and implement
them: she fulfilled all the requirements in our programme and courses with success and high distinction. I feel confident that
she will continue to succeed in her future studies. It is for these reasons that I offer high recommendations for Mrs. Meirsschaut
without reservation. Her drive and abilities will truly be an asset to further projects.”
[email protected] +32 (0) 483 04 77 54
Coney Island Streetscape Territories Research Project Kris Scheerlinck, 2014, pg.84-92
Scouts leader 2009-2012
Traveling
Contemporary dance
EDUCATION
SKILLS/ACTIVITIES
AWARDS/EXPERIENCES
REFERENCES
PUBLICATIONS
9
The site chosen for my master disser-
tation project was Coney Island, New
York: an intriguing urban peninsula
with a rich cultural heritage, where
many communities coexist and face ra-
ther uncertain scenarios for the future.
In this particular area , it was the pur-
pose to explore, define and develop an
urban or architectural intervention by
using the research outcomes of autono-
mous research as well as research acqui-
red in the framework of the Streetscape
Territories project. Coherence, resilien-
ce, sustainability and feasibility were
important criteria for discussion, inter-
vention and reflection.
The project is situated in Sheepshead
Bay, a community in the north-east of
the peninsula and marked by a large,
two-kilometer long bay, stretching from
west to east. Once known for its thri-
ving fishing industry, distinguishing
the community with a very strong and
particular identity, Sheepshead Bay is
today abounded by commercial super-
stores, nightclubs, business ventures
and condominium development. Also
the frequent flooding of the bay and
increasing storms stimulated the area’s
infrastructural incoherence and econo-
mic deterioration significantly.
It is the purpose of the project to sti-
mulate the slumbering fishing tradition
in Sheepshead Bay in such a way that
the existing urban environment can be
sustainably regenerated, whilst giving
protection against climatological emer-
gencies. The urban regeneration pro-
cess is started by applying an economic
network that is effective on different
scales, as it is capable of changing the
built environment not only in an econo-
mic way, but also in an infrastructural
and social way. Simultaneously, a scien-
12
tific network is spread out over the acti-
vities in the economic network, passing
the knowledge that is indispensable
when it comes to the restructuring of
an entire fishing business. These inter-
ventions imply a complete rethinking
of the infrastructural fabric, in order to
improve connectivity and accessibility
to the different project functions and
inquire a substantial remodeling of the
shorelines to intensify the relationship
between the community and the water.
Built up around a strong core, repre-
sented by three architecturally detai-
led buildings collaborating to form a
well-managed small-scale network,
the urban intervention applied in
Sheepshead Bay, Coney Island, is able
to regenerate the built environment
both in an infrastructural, economic
and socio-cultural way, without having
major impacts on the existing society.
“How can an architectural intervention stimulate the slumbe-
ring fishing tradition in Sheepshead Bay in such a way that the
existing urban environment can be sustainably regenerated
and how can that intervention simultaneously give protection
against climatological emergencies?”
- research question
protecting the waterfrontspreading knowledge connecting and networking
13
Sheepshead Bay
boardwalk
recreational area
urban park
coastal greenway
resilient dunescape
economic network
Su
bw
ay
sta
tio
n
Belt Parkway
16
Controversial, subjective and
sustainable. Three terms that re-
present the essence of this pro-
ject, expressed in sections. The
main function of the building,
which is shopping, is working
from a complete different angle
than the commercial colossuses
that we are used to: not a closed
cube, where money rules, but an
interesting mix between diffe-
rent identities and atmospheres,
where sustainability is the main
concern.
The program contains only a
minority of large-scale compa-
nies. A variety of small-scale
shops, bazars, vintage fairs and
second-hand markets are spread
over the whole lower building.
Mixed with offices, changing in
function and shape, the public
can experience a balanced col-
laboration between recreation
and work. At the same time,
the offices function as a subtle
buffer between the commercial
zone and the residential tower,
between public and private.
By the use of different, but sus-
tainable materials, a variety of
atmospheres and feelings exists.
On the outside of the lower buil-
ding, a recycled cladding panel
façade creates a strong and uni-
form shell. This type of material
makes a direct connection with
the important, authoritative Eu-
ropean business district at the
end of the Wetstraat and gives
the building a strong body.
Two large courtyards are inser-
ted in the volume to give light
and air to the surrounding spa-
ces, but function also to attract
the public gradually from the
Wetstraat into the core of the
building. The courtyards are
open and upgraded with trees
and a pond, and form together
with the several green roofs and
terraces a green pattern through
the whole building. To express
this even more, the facades of
the courtyards are entirely clad-
ded with wooden, randomly cut
cedar planks. This creates a stri-
king contrast between the hard,
sober outside and the soft, natu-
ral inside.
This project forms a strong
contrast with the compulsive-
ness and objectiveness of the
business life in and around the
Wetstraat. A place to rest, think,
breathe, live in an atmosphere
that feels natural and confiden-
tial, a building that represents
sustainability and the possibility
of a perfect balance between re-
creation, work and living.
20
In a quiet street in the center of Ghent
there is a large, multi-purpose, tertiary
building. Within a few years, the admi-
nistrative functions that are housed in it
will move, making thousands of square
meters in a strange skin available the-
re. This existing structure denies the
however promising context, and mis-
ses the chance to offer dynamic public
spaces. Nevertheless, it is a rational ‘co-
lumn-beams’ structure with potential,
where certain existing local dynamics
can be used.
The project is intended mainly for li-
ving. Diversity in the typologies and
sizes, considered additional functions,
thoughtful amenities and pleasant pu-
blic and collective spaces must ensure
that a multicultural, transgenerational
entity can arise, that embeds itself in a
dynamic way in the neighborhood and
the city. Six housing typologies alterna-
te with each other between two layers
of multi-purpose public and collective
facilities, nurtured by green roofs and a
large multi-story common garden in the
center of the building. A large cutout
introduces the water of the Ketelvaart
into the courtyard and enhances the re-
lationship between the inhabitants and
the Ghent waterways.
The building is not necessarily active
or passive, but translates an innovative,
coherent and forward-looking position
in terms of ecology and energy. Green
roofs, separate piping systems for the
use of the nearby river water and reuse
of materials are some of the measures
taken to improve life quality inside the
community. In line with a sustainable
approach, the structure is not demolis-
hed, but is studied and understood to
function as the foundation of the ne-
wly constructed spaces around it. The
project is based on three main pillars:
public-spatial sequences in the context
of urban development, individual and
collective living and sustainability.
26
1
aa
ab b
b
2
3
1
a. FAMILY HOMEmean surface: 120 m²
capacity: 5 people
b. STUDIOmean surface: 45 m²
capacity: 2 people
2
a. COMMON DORMITORYmean surface: 13 m²
capacity: 1 person
b. PRIVATE DORMITORYmean surface: 22 m²
capacity: 1 person
3
a. COUPLES HOUSEmean surface: 65 m²
capacity: 2 people
b. KANGAROO HOUSEmean surface: 110 m²
capacity: 4 or 5 people
28
Wasteland is about going back to basics.
Today, western man is wasting beyond
limits: from materials, food and space
to energy, water and even himself. The
project manifests the awareness of how
every human act has consequences not
only on the physical environment, but
also on the life quality of the people
around, the climate and the ethos in ge-
neral. It is only by going back to the ori-
gin of living, thereby questioning, tes-
ting and outstepping our comfort zones,
that man can control its waste behavior.
Situated on a carefully analyzed was-
teland, the project rebels against urban
sprawl, an architectural waste pheno-
menon that seems to characterize Bel-
gium. It is the perfect example of infill
development: the filling up of empty
and forgotten, but still valuable space
in a modern urban environment. The
building covers living space for 10
non-family related people, provoking
an interesting tension field between
the individual and the collective. Six
private apartments are separated by a
common living room with kitchen and
a vertical circulation core. The second
floor represents the entrance to the buil-
ding and offers a modest, public urban
function in the shape of a bicycle par-
king and a small green roof park with
view on the adjacent river.
As the project is against waste, it focu-
ses strongly on sustainability, energy
efficiency and climate neutrality, by the
usage of as many as possible recupera-
ted and natural materials and adapted
technical systems that need to decre-
ase the energy consumption to the mi-
nimum. With this carefully balanced
combination, the building is able to set
an example for new ways of living in
the dense urban environment.
32
The Tinel site, situated in the north of
the city center of Mechelen, comprises
many facilities and functions. Domina-
ted by the just renovated Dossinkazer-
ne and newly constructed Holocaust-
museum by bOb Van Reeth, the 25000
m² surface currently divides different
stakeholders, but needs to be remodeled
into an overall harmonic design. Alt-
hough much of the buildings on the site
are receded to empty remnants of his-
tory, there is still a lot of activity. Youth
house ROJM (Regionaal Open Jeugd-
centrum Mechelen) and children’s or-
ganization El Kantra meet weekly to
play, educate and work. The city’s main
police station also knows its residence
on the site, as well as a number of dwel-
lings. It is for these stakeholders of great
importance that a convenient balance
between private, public and collective
is created in the new urban master plan.
The project proposes a collision of the
two youth organizations and 23 dwel-
lings of various types and sizes, clus-
tered around a large, common garden.
The positioning of the different func-
tions brings the social surveillance to
a maximum and becomes even more
interesting by introducing the concept
of outsourcing: planting collective func-
tions between the private parts of the
building to be used by all stakeholders
on the site, connecting people of diffe-
rent levels through architecture.
The rest of the master plan is built up
around one main line that is sliding
through the area from west to east, gui-
ding the inhabitants and visitors from
function to function. Together with the
main project building, it forms an invi-
ting site where the city’s visitors as well
as the different stakeholders can coexist
in harmony.
SITUATION_CITY
SITUATION_NEIGHBORHOOD
SITE PLAN AND SECTION
38
BUILDING WORKSHOP DE OKELAARAugust 04 - August 29 2014
The housing and work community De Okelaar is a co-housing project with 18 housing units, implemented in the buildings of an old monas-
tery and school in the small village of Wolvertem, Meise, Belgium. The target groups of the project are singles, couples and families of all
ages, who will be living individually in their own private unit, but will also be contributing to the concept of a community through common
spaces and activities. In summer 2014, I was asked by my uncle, who is the owner of the property, to organize and lead two building camps
on the construction site. Two groups of about 15 students, young architects and sympathizers came from all over Europe to help out with the
first phase of the project’s transformation: the demolition works. Being very instructive, fun and architecturally challenging, I consider this
experience as the beginning of my practical knowledge on the construction site.
44
WORKSHOP DESIGNING THE MULTI-SENSORIAL CITY November 12 - November 16 2009
During my first master year I participated in a workshop that focused on social sustainability and universal design. Key questions such as
ageing and handicap were investigated from the viewpoint of architectural design. The workshop treated the protracted discussion about the
planned urban adaptations of Ghent’s Dampoort station and close environment, for which two universal design tools were used: aware-
ness training, based on bibliographical study and on-site analysis, and learning from practice by a post-occupancy evaluation. At first, the
area was carefully analyzed in collaboration with a group of visually, mentally and auditory impaired people, as well as wheelchair users.
In the course of the week, we developed in group a new design for the train station and traffic situation with special attention for the user
friendliness and daily challenges of the disabled among us. Finally, each group delivered its proposal to the target group by a tactile model,
complete with information in braille, and a digital presentation. This workshop really opened my eyes about how disabled people experi-
ence the architectural world around us. It became a great motivation for more thorough research about universal design and was used as an
inspiration source for some designs in my further study.
46
(GRAPHICAL) VISUALIZATIONSSkecthing, rendering and artworks
As a child, I’ve always liked to draw and tinker a lot. Those two skills turned out to be very convenient during my architectural training. Alt-
hough we live in a world where almost everything is digitalized, I am still convinced that an architect needs to know how to put something
on paper with his own hand. For me, drawing became a tool to understand and feel space. On that account, it became a whole new challenge
to express the ambience of an image digitally, by learning the use of new drawing and render programs. In addition, students were encou-
raged to integrate their designs into artworks and vice versa, in order to learn how it is sometimes necessary to ‘think outside the box’ and to
become familiar with the idea of designing a physical object in space. For more documentation about my works, feel free to contact me.
48
Eva Meirsschaut +32 (0) 477 76 56 36 [email protected]