Sketchbook
Vertical Villa
Nicholas Coffee
Analyzing the sprawling trends and housing typologies within Atlanta, I found that greater density was the highest priority when creating a sustainable environment. Prefabricated micro apartments show the most promise to increasing density in the city while reducing both construction time and labor costs. Focusing on the aesthetics of Japanese housing, I created a simple prefab module that focuses on vertical circulation. The garden core and the circulation core act as anchors within the unit, structurally bracing the floating floor plates between them. The garden core is open air, allowing rain for the plants and natural ventilation for the apartment. Operable sun screens help maintain heat gain.
Black Museum Board & Basswood | [ Full Project ]
Dwell on Design Expo
Nicholas Coffee
Dwell on Design LA, curated by the editors of Dwell magazine, opened at the Los Angeles Convention Center June 20-22, 2014. With three full days of dynamic exhibitions, unparalleled educational opportunities, cutting-edge technologies, 90 onstage programs, 200 speakers, and more than 2,000 innovative modern furnishings and products, Dwell on Design LA is America’s largest design event.
The exhibition was a great success! Working with Georgia Tech to design and promote the studio work we did this year, demonstrating the need for sustainable housing in Atlanta.
Micro Housing
Nicholas Coffee
This apartment unit is part of my current research analyzing micro housing and prefabricated modules. The unit is less than 600 square feet and includes a small garden which overlooks a larger courtyard. The 5 floor plates vary in height between 8' and 12'' depending on the program. This apartment would be on the top level within a larger apartment complex.
Basswood & 3D printed furniture | [ Full Project ]
Museum of Design Atlanta
Nicholas Coffee
"Based on the idea that design is a way of looking at the world with an eye for changing it, Design for Social Impact offered a look at how designers, engineers, students, professors, architects, and social entrepreneurs from the Southeastern United States are using design to solve the problems of the 21 st century."
East Side Steps
Nicholas Coffee
Gen-Y residents and business owners seek smaller spaces. They will forsake suburban lifestyles and willingly move into “shoebox” apartments near retail districts and parks. The East Side Steps, located near the new Atlanta greenway and rail line, is a mixed-use development incorporating retail, housing and hotel functions. Each residential unit is subdivided into two, mimicking the typology of a carriage house. The sub-unit can be rented out or used for family expansion.
Business Card
Nicholas Coffee
The tactile sensation of wood relates directly to the material palette of an architect.
1/32" plywood veneer used for its strength and flexibility.
Design Like You Give A Damn
Nicholas Coffee
The Design LIke You Give A Damn conference in San Francisco, hosted by Architecture for Humanity, was a great opportunity to present the current prospects of zero energy housing. The top students were able to exhibit the work from the research studio to explain how densification in cities creates a more sustainable and livable environment. Focusing on Atlanta as the current research demographic and analyzing the urban design and housing prototypes within the city.
Presentation work with Bunny Tucker.
Parametric Façade
Nicholas Coffee
I utilized grasshopper to create a parametric shading system. The breaks in the sunscreen vary at random intervals between 15%-85% of each shoji panel.
Basswood & Mylar.
Theory of The Detail
Nicholas Coffee
“Finishing ends construction, weathering constructs finishes.”
- Mohsen Mostavi, On Weathering.