PortfolioThomas Wen

CONTACT

2620 Severance St Apt 6Los Angeles, CA 900007Email: usc.thomaswen@gmail.comTel: (213) 300-6460

OBJECTIVE

Seeking a full time position following my graduation to explore the wide range of possible learning experiences and career paths that architecture is able to offer.

EDUCATION

2008 - 2013 University of Southern California Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies Minor in 3D Animation2002 - 2007 Brisbane Grammar School

WORK EXPERIENCE

Jun - Aug 2012 Noel Robinson Architects Architecture Intern

SKILLS

Autodesk Suite AutoCAD / Maya / RevitAdobe Suite Photoshop / Illustrator / IndesignMicrosoft Offi ce Word / Excel / Power PointMiscellaneous Rhinoceros

LANGUAGES

English FluentMandarin Native Language

Thom

as W

en

ContentsLIGHTING STUDYLes Bains Des Docks

MATERIALITY STUDYMobius Bench

MATERIALITY STUDY2x2 Sculpture

HOUSING STUDYThe Proletariat

CHARACTER MODELLINGGiant Robot

MATERIALITY STUDYSpace Truss Carwash

INTRODUCTORY MAYACityscape

CHARACTER RIGGINGAstronaut

LIGHTING STUDY Les Bains Des DocksSpring 2009| Plexiglass | Wood | Museum Board | Foamcore |

My first group project in Freshman year we were tasked with the replication of the lighting conditions in Jean Nouvel’s Les Bains Des Docks. To achieve this, we constructed the interior out off foamcore in order to replicate the reflectivity of the pristine white walls. Plexiglass was used to represent the individdual pools and a hot glue gun was applied to the underside with the plastic still attached to create he water texture. The children’s play area was assembled with painted wooden blocks. Lastly, an enclosure was constructed out of museum board in order to prevent excessive light leaks. The images below compare the existing promotion shots (above) with our replicas (below).

MATERIALITY STUDY Mobius BenchSpring 2010| AutoCAD | Illustrator | Rhinoceros | Timber | Screws | Paint | Lacquer |

As a group project we were tasked with creating a full scale functional bench as a part of our materiality exploration studio. After experimenting with paper study models involving curves and Mobius strips, we concluded that we would manufacture a bench consisting of a closed loop which runs the length of the bench before doubling back on itself to the starting point. This loop was then contorted with varying angles in order to generate a form that would be able to accommodate three users both sitting and lying down.

Wood was our material of choice as it provided the structural strength we required to support all three individuals. We procured large plans of wood which we then cut and sanded down to the unique angles required for each bend in the loop. The pieces were assembled and then subsequently sanded prior to application of lacquer stains on the interior and white paint on the exterior.

Assembly Diagram

Assembly Diagram

MATERIALITY STUDY 2x2 SculptureSpring 2010| AutoCAD | Illustrator | Rhinoceros | Douglas Fir |

The Douglas Fir sculpture project prompted us to explore both materiality and modularity by creating a sculpture out of three modules derived from pieces of 2x2 Douglas Fir. The conditions of the project limited the amount of cuts we could apply to each module. I decided to explore a possible method of replicating the fractal nature of a tree’s branching pattern through the creation of varying joint conditions. Two modules were designed to achieve branching in two dimensions while the third module offered the opportunity to expand into the third dimension.

End Condition 1 End Condition 2

12.0”

1.5”1.5”

1.0” 0.5”

End Condition 3

132°

End Condition 4

132°

End Condition 4End Condition 3End Condition 2

End Condition 1 End Condition 1 End Condition 1

Module 1 Module 2 Module 3

Node Configuration 1 Node Configuration 2 Node Configuration 3 Node Configuration 4

Node Configuration 5 Node Configuration 6 Node Configuration 7 Node Configuration 8

Node Configuration 4Node Configuration 7

Node Configuration 1

Node Configuration 2

Node Configuration 1

Node Configuration 3

Node Configuration 6

Node Configuration 6

Node Configuration 8

Node Configuration 5

MATERIALITY STUDY Space Truss CarwashSpring 2010| AutoCAD | Illustrator | Rhinoceros | Paper | Plaster | Balsa Wood | Museum Board | Plexiglass |

The materiality studio during Spring of Sophomore year culminated in the final design project of visualising a carwash. Our studio section approached the project by experimenting with a variety of materials to assist in formulating our parti. This encompassed paper folding exercises, plaster casting before reverting to traditional wood and museum board study models.

My initial approach adopted an Euclidean and rational approach towards the paper folding exercise. As I began to compound my formal explorations, I began to make alterations in the form of extrusions and scalar offsets in accordance with the existing site conditions.

As we continued the miniature material explorations, I adopted an idea of aggregating identical modules. These modules take on the shape of the tetrahedron, a continuation of the triangular formal language from the previous paper and plaster studies. These eventually gave form to a space truss comprised of tetrahedrons that functioned both as the primary structure and the space defining element in my final design.

1

2

3

4

Evolution of the design parti from paper models 1 and 2 to plaster casts of 3 and 4.

Clear Glass Panels

Blue Glass Panels

Perforated Aluminum Panels

Aluminium Panels

Concrete Tiles

Progression into tetrahedron modules constructed from museum board and balsa wood dowels.

Building envelope diagram.

A

A

B

B

C

C

D

D

13 2

4 46

5

7

8

9

10

FLOOR PLAN1. Parking2. Car Wash3. Detailing Station4. Toilets5. Cafe6. Interior Waiting7. Exterior Waiting8. Cashier/Retail9. Storage10. Pump Station

Section C

Section B

HOUSING STUDY The ProletariatFall 2010| AutoCAD | Illustrator | Rhinoceros | Wood | Museum Board | Plexiglass |

In the Fall semester of our junior year we concentrated on a varying degree of housing projects. This particular project sought to challenge us by asking us to design four units consisting of two two-bedroom units, one three-bedroom unit and one four-bedroom unit on a tight lot in South Pasadena. In my parti explorations, I was greatly intrigued by the idea of combining the limited exterior spaces on the site into a community space. This manifested itself in the community garden shared amongst all the residents as well as a shared kitchen for the two-bedroom units. As the project developed, I created another goal for myself which was to design an affordable residence through the use of elements such as wet walls and modular dimensions shared in all the units.

B

B

AA A

Site Plan Ground Floor Plan

B B

BB

A AA

First Floor Plan

Southern Elevation Eastern Elevation

Section A

Section A

Unit Model

INTRODUCTORY MAYA CityscapeFall 2011|Maya| Photoshop |

The goal of our final project in the introductory course to 3D Animation was to create a cityscape and render a short sequence of it. I chose to pursue a steampunk and sci-fi inspired atmosphere and used a plethora of online resources to help me conceptualise the buildings and texture the scene. The project was a crash course into polygon modelling which was drastically different to the NURBS modelling I was accustomed to in Rhinoceros. The project also allowed me to consciously position and experiment with lighting fixtures which were usually secondary considerations in my architectural renderings.

CHARACTER MODELLING Giant RobotSpring 2012|Maya| Photoshop |

My second 3D Animation course dealt with the issue of hard surface modelling and culminated in a final project in which we had to model, rig and animate a mechanical object. For my project I decided to create a giant robot inspired by the body language of a gorilla. It was a complex, semester long project and learning process compared to the smaller projects involved in the introductory course.

The modelling turned out fine and I have found hard surface modelling to be one of my key strengths in Maya but the rigging and animation process was very complex and hard to grasp. That portion of the project was filled with many technical difficulties which really set back my final product. The questions and confusion I had would then be remedied in the rigging course I undertook in my following semester.

CHARACTER RIGGING AstronautFall 2012|Maya| Photoshop |

My last 3D animation project was the amalgamation of a character rigging course and a visual effects course. Our group chose to pursue a science fiction theme in the visual effects course so I modelled an astronaut to complement it in the context of our rigging course. The character was modelled from scratch and then attached to a rig in order for me to animate it. The surrounding spaceship interior was a part of my contribution to the group project where I also worked extensively on lighting and rendering details.