Dominic Senska | Design Portfolio

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University of KansasProfessional Master of Architecture

Lawrence, KansasFall 2006 - May 2012*

• Graduate with 194 credit hours• Studio GPA - 3.33

• AutoCAD 2012• Revit 2012• SketchUP Pro 8• 3Ds Max 2011

• Photoshop CS5• Illustrator CS5• InDesign CS5• Rhino 3d 4.0

Software Experience

www.dominicsenska.come: [email protected]: 507.259.3843

Dominic Senska

• References available upon request

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Willow Creek Golf CoursePro Shop Staff

Rochester, MinnesotaApril 2004 - August 2009

• Worked as part of a team while interacting with and helping customers individually• Helped to fluidly run tournaments and large group outings • Trusted to work alone nightly and close the business

The Urban StudioArchitecture Intern

Rochester, MinnesotaMay 2007 - January 2008

• Created and edited construction detail documents in AutoCAD• Set up and corrected finish material schedules and documents for final approval• Tasked with projects to complete by strict deadline without help

Spatial PracticeIntern Design Architect

University of Kansas ITPhysical Infrastructure | AutoCAD Student

Senska ConstructionRoofing and Residential Construction Labor

Beijing, ChinaSeptember 2011 - December 2011

Lawrence, KansasJanuary 2009 - July 2011

Rochester, MinnesotaMay 2003 - August 2009

• Worked at a high level of detail in an extremely fast-paced, real-world environment• Built and photographed models in the concept and schematic phases of design• Acted as part of a team to conceive and develop project design

• I updated as-built AutoCAD drawings to meet current specifications• Completed work with a team surveying, documenting, and detailing existing field conditions • Followed detailed instructions while working independently and on schedule

• Ripped off roof materials and re-applied building materials working as a team member• Small construction projects including decks, garages, drywall hanging and finishing• Was trusted with crew and final decisions on built projects

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Kaohsiung Light TowerKaohsiung, Taiwan

Taichung Light BoxTaichung, Taiwan

Dallas Fashion Institute + MuseumDallas, Texas

Global Studio CollaborativeBeijing, China

ReSetKansas City, Missouri

Design | BuildLawrence, Kansas

Montblanc InstallationBeijing, China

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Architecture can and should be beautiful design inspired by efficient use of space, solid organization and purpose along with meaningful intent. Sustainable practices, intelligent use of materials, thorough research of environmental conditions, site context, and user-functionality provide inspiration for my design. I am in the infancy of my architectural career. I let the path on which I am about to embark influence, modify, and improve my philosophy and outlook on architecture so that it becomes not only rooted in theory, but also in real world practice. I have been fortunate enough to undertake two fantastic architecturally rooted experiences worldwide. In the summer of 2010 I was able to travel western Europe with a group of architecture students led by Professor Wojciech Lesnikowski. Our time there included extended stays in Barcelona, southern France, and Paris while touring and experiencing both classic and modern architecture. During the fall of 2011 I was able to obtain an intern-ship with Spatial Practice while living in Beijing, China Over the course of my time living and traveling throughout China, I was able to visit and experience ancient Chinese architecture standing beside some of the world’s best modern architecture. While living and working in Beijing I was able to experience the incredible pace, tenacity, and rigors of life in the flourishing Chinese culture. I am interested in learning and furthering my knowledge of how aesthetic and environmental design concepts develop and coexist within budgets, codes, clients and the constraints of architectural practice.

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Kaohsiung Light TowerKaohsiung, Taiwan

Architect: Spatial PracticeClient Xu Guang (Taiwan Lighting)

District: Nei Wei Pi Park AreaMain Program: Showroom, HotelSize: 160,000 sq. metersHeight: 100 meters - 25 storiesWork Date: 09.2011 - 12.2011

area. At 100 meters tall, KLT will be the tallest building in the immediate vicinity. Based on this fact there are some unique advantages that will be used to make KLT an icon in the Kaohsiung skyline. The entire front of the building has an open view to the park across the street while only the upper third of the building has an unobstructed exterior view to the rear. Using these view limitations we de-cided to create some sort of shift in the building to allow maximum views to the park and to the city in the rear. To solve the problem we eventually ended up with a crack-like opening throughout the building. This crack was fully exposed in the front of the building and only at the bottom and top in the rear of the building. By creating an open atrium, we maximized views in both directions on a narrow site.

The Kaohsiung Light Tower (KLT) is a project I worked on during an internship with Spatial Practice in Beijing, China. The project was late in the concept phase when I started and continued into the schematic design phase during my time working. The site for KLT is a long, narrow parcel directly across the street from Nei Wei Pi Park. The design is for the recently purchased Xu Guang company. The new ownership wanted to create an immediate “splash” in an already saturated market. The building will house a lighting showroom on the lower levels, be home to an upscale hotel at the upper floors, and a restaurant on the top floor. The design of KLT is founded on the basic ideas of exterior views from within a building and the building itself becoming an architectural icon for future designs in the

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Top: Cracklike space at the top of the building.Middle: Cracklike design as viewed from ei Wei Pi park.Above: Cracklike design viewed from the rear of the site displaying showroom space at ground level and open atrium design on upper floors.

Left: Site plan showing surrounding area.

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As seen on the previous spread, study models were a large part of our design. The crack-like atrium throughout the building posed a variety of problems. The largest was how to keep the design intent and have the building stand up in a high frequency earthquake area. We had to slightly angle the columns towards the rear of the building creat-ing a “foot” which we used to our advantage and made it a part of the showroom on the ground floor. The circulation diagram to the right and the rendering on the bottom right display this special circumstance along with the open-mindedness and teamwork involved to solve these design problems creatively.

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Taichung Light BoxTaichung, Taiwan

Architect: Spatial PracticeClient: Xu Guang (Taiwan Lighting)

District: West DistrictProgram: Showroom, OfficeSize: 3,500 sq. metersHeight: 30 meters - 8 storiesWork Date: 09.2011 - 12.2011

a great opportunity because we had the first design, one that will influence future designs in a bustling part of the city. The client wanted an icon building that was nothing like KLT. This design was to be a showroom and office space for Xu Guang administration. With these requirements in mind, we decided that the smaller range of this project would work to our advantage. We wanted to create a “perfect” and clean shape outside that would explode into a completely unique universe inside. A plain, clean look outside would also allow us to work the client’s lighting products into the exterior of the building.

Taichung Light Box (TLB) is another project I worked on during my internship in Beijing, China with Spatial Practice. This design was also created for Xu Guang (Tai-wan Lighting), a recently purchased com-pany looking to rejuvenate itself in the mar-ket. I was fortunate enough to work on nearly all of the concept phase and all of the schematic design phase of the project. The site for TLB posed many problems and created many opportunities for us, too. The site is part of an older part of Taic-hung that the city is looking to completely renovate and turn into more up-to-date business district. This project provided

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Left: site contet, clockwise:iew south down Feng Shun Street.iew west down Wen in South th oad.iew of Feng Le Park.iew east down Wen in South th oad.

Opposite: Site plan showing traffic and vehicular entrance from Wen in South th road.

Below: Collage displaying building concept against Taichung skyline and site contet.

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The idea of a unique universe in-side the building proved to be a chal-lenge. We were, however, able to devise floor shapes and sizes to allow for maximum customer viewing. From different floors customers could view products from varying vantage points, rather just at eye level. To make up for lost floor space, we worked with a waffle slab structural system on the walls. This created display spaces both at a distance and interactively.

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We also worked the building core into the design. We expanded the building core to include an open void that would travel the length of the building. This void would be the center of circulation for the building. Air would be drawn in through the ground floor and up the void, providing cool air to the entire building while pushing hot air out of the roof. We felt that this design was environmentally responsible and consumer wise. User circulation would begin by entering this ‘void’ on the ground floor and allow views up and into the ‘fu-ture’ of what would be seen throughout the building. As the customer trav-eled further up, circulation would exist alongside the exterior of the central void with only a brief reminder that it is still there. Upon reaching the top floor of the building, the circulation path would enter back into the void so the customer could look back at what has been seen on the visit.

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Dallas Fashion Institute + MuseumDallas, Texas

Professor: Denton NicholsClient: Heidi Dillon/The Fashionistas

District: Arts DistrictMain Program: Education, Fashion Show RunwaySpecial Program: Display ShowroomSize: 50,000 sqft.Work Date: 01.2011 - 04.2011

and support spaces throughout the lower levels. On the top floor is a spacious ballroom designed to host large events and fashion shows. When people come to DFI for events, they will proceed through the building and encounter the scattered display space while viewing the process and work that goes into the making of the finished product seen in the show. Located in the downtown Dallas Arts District, Dallas Fashion Institute and Mu-seum (DFI) is a project designed to give men’s fashion a home in an industry where men are seemingly forgotten. DFI will also become an intermediary hub in the fashion world between New York and Los Angeles, as well as a worldwide destination in the fashion scene.

Comprehensive studio is the culmi-nation of four years of studios and results in a project that displays our skills and covers all of the design phases that we have learned. This particular project was unique in that it was the first studio project for which we were able to have someone who would act as an actual client. We were fortunate enough to have Heidi Dil-lon, founder of the Fashionistas, and Rob Brinkley, editor of Dallas Fort Worth style and fashion magazine FD Luxe. They not only met with us prior to starting the design, but continued to act as a client influence throughout the design process. The program on which I decided to focus for this project was men’s fash-ion education and display. The building houses a cafe, offices, classroom, studio,

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Left (clockwise): Scale models built throughout design process.Bottom: Programming and concept development.

Opposite: Sketch of proposed design as viewed from street level.Opposite below: Floor plan development showing implementation of structure.Opposite below right: Sectional sketch showing main program spaces.

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Top right: Section B1Middle right: Section A1

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In choosing materials for the building, I kept the men’s fashion concept in mind. The majority of the building will be covered in a precast black glass that resembles the staple of men’s fashion, a black suit. To top it off, the event space at the top of the building is white paneling like the collar of the shirt above the coat. In the middle of the building are wood louvers covering nearly floor to ceiling windows that allow as much of the indirect northern light as possible into the classrooms and studios. This serves to break up a mo-notonous black building as an accessory would do in men’s fashion. The core study and em-phasis during the comprehen-sive studio is on structure and detail. In other words, how and why is a building constructed the way it is? To display this I built a five foot (1.5 meter) tall section model at 1/16”=1’0” scale. The model displayed a wall section cut through the building from roof to footer and included structural and material details. The emphasis on de-tail and structure really helped push this project past the con-cept and schematic phase into the design-development phase. This project enlight-ened me as to what it takes for a conceptual design to transi-tion into a completed design and into a built project.

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Global Studio CollaborativeBeijing, China

teams across the world. The idea of the program, while small in scale, was to design a space where future students would be able to live and work. We also included a market, café, and gal-lery for community interaction along with an area for a visiting professor to stay. Working with teams across the world, com-munication and idea sharing proved dif-ficult but not impossible. Ultimately, we decided that the most important piece of design was to create community interac-tion and the best way to go about it was to place the café and market at the two ends of the site to draw people into the gallery and open space in between, creating a more traditional Chinese neighborhood.

What started as a pilot project with ten students across three continents, Global Studio Collaborative turned into a very in-formative and wonderful learning experi-ence for me. While based out of Beijing, China five students and I worked a few hours a week with our adviser to develop a program and design a project. With the Global Studio concept in mind, and to in-troduce difficulty and a unique experience into the project, we enlisted the help of two students in Paris, France, and two students in Lawrence, Kansas. The idea was to rep-licate what is beginning to become a trend and a near necessity in the Architecture world today: working and sharing informa-tion and ideas on the same project with

Adviser: Michael CummingsIntent: Hutong Rejuvenation

District: Drum & Bell TowerMain Program: Education, LivingSpecial Program: Gallery, MarketSize: 2,000 sq. metersWork Date: 12.2011 - 01.2012Project Team: Michael Cummings, Dani Boyd, Lindsey Briceno, Lindsey Brisko, Chris Jenson,

Ryan Otterson, Theresa Sahrmann, Dominic Senska, Renae Slusser, Brad Thaw, Yong Zhang

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Left: Initial sketch diagram showing canopy roof idea.Below: Program diagram.Bottom left: Site circulation diagram showing public spaces.Bottom right: Site circulation diagram showing student spaces.

Opposite lower: Section AAOpposite bottom: Section BB

1. Cafe2. Gallery3. Market4. Studio5. Critique Space6. Professor Housing7. Student Dorms8. Shared Kitchen

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Working as teams in the global setting had its advantages and disadvantages. We were able to split up tasks in a way where one team could work on something during their work day, and it would be done in time for the next team to develop that work during their daily shift. Essentially being able to work twenty-four hours a day was great because it shortened the days spent on each phase of design. The most challenging problem we faced was communication. We found it especially trying to communicate site in-formation and observations to the other teams in France and America. Scale, pro-portion, and context were the hardest thing to communicate fluidly and without misin-

terpretation. Another challenge that was difficult was trying to analyze and further designs quickly and effectively. This experience really helped me learn to communicate ideas well. Using technology, we were able to have online meetings with the entire team. This forced us to quickly sketch and develop ideas and improvements in clear and concise ways that could be easily shared and understood by everyone. The skills learned during this collab-orative effort are essential. Having the opportunity to work on a worldwide team project that moved at a fast pace will be very valuable going into a profession that is moving in the global direction.

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ReSetKansas City, Missouri

So, in this project I used water to symbolize rejuvenation and a renewed sense of hope for the clients the building would serve. Water collected on site will be used to draw people in and then calm users in what is often a very rough time as they continue to rediscover their career paths. As the design ideas continued to develop, I decided working with material choices for the building would follow the theme of the project. I decided to work with particular materials that would infuse the design idea into the project. Recycled glass block was used prominently along with reclaimed wood louvers. This project helped me to think beyond simple pro-gramming and pretty materials. I learned that a project must have “soul” and sub-stance that support the main idea to make it worthwhile to build and sell.

The idea behind ‘ReSet’ was to de-sign a building that would be a community outreach building. The building would be a space that was open to the public during a challenging economy. The design would accommodate services that would help the jobless get back on their feet, help them find opportunities, and give them the ability to rebuild their lives. It was a fast-paced and unique project where I took the theme, developed it into a main idea and moved forward at my discretion. I decided to take the idea to the ex-treme and reuse a vacant building with ad-dition rather than demolition. Nicknamed the “City of Fountains” and having the Mis-souri River run through it, Kansas City is closely associated with water. Water is also considered the most often used sym-bol of rebirth and revitalization worldwide.

Professor: Phil HofstraIntent: Community Learning

District: CrossroadsMain Program: Office, EducationSpecial Program: GallerySize: 41,000 sqft.Work Date: 11.2010 - 12.2010

July 4, 2007 September 18,, 2007Water rejuvenating and revitalizing the Lake Chad basin in central Africa

rejuvenate: to return to life; to get or give new life or energy; to undergo regeneration

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RetailGalleryConference RoomClassroomComputer LabReading RoomLibraryWorkspaceLoungeLecture HallRoof Garden

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Design | BuildLawrence, Kansas

we finally narrowed our ideas to a single design. With most of the people on the team having little to no construction experience and little to no experience with second hand materials the project became espe-cially challenging. By the end of the se-mester, however, we had built an exhibition space based off the asymmetrical nature of the Barcelona Pavilion and the reflec-tive nature of the Tempietta. Throughout the built space we displayed process work including sketches, models, and prior de-signs that showed the path we took and how we ended at a finished product that was started from nothing.

Using all reclaimed, found, and do-nated materials fourteen other students and I, along with the help of an ambitious professor, were able to construct and as-semble a temporary exhibition space that entertained over a hundred and fifty guests for an opening night display of process. In what amounted the first actual “team” proj-ect and no budget, what we accomplished in three and a half months was impressive. Using precedents such as the Bar-celona Pavilion and the Tempietta, along with the ideas of reflection, symmetry, and process, we designed and developed ideas as small groups. As we moved through the process, design ideas started to merge and

Professor: Bruce JohnsonIntent: Temporary Exhibition

Location: WarehouseDesign Influence: Barcelona Pavilion | TempiettaMain Program: Display SpaceSize: 2,000 sqft.Work Date: 01.2010 - 04.2010Project Team: Bruce Johnson, Melissa Anderson, Bethany Bonebrake, Abby Brandenburg,

Sean Christiansen, Curtis Calkins, Trevor Freeman, Jim Gregory, Alex Jones, Aaron Kalfen, Taylor

Mallon, Kasey Miller, Thomas Nguyen, Jen Redel, Theresa Sahrmann, Dominic Senska

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Left and opposite: Images from opening night display of process.

Below (left to right): Design process showing combination of ideas and influence from Barcelona Pavilion and Tempietta.

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Montblanc InstallationBeijing, China

Architect: Spatial PracticeClient: Montblanc

District: Sanlitun Village NorthProgram: Temporary InstallationHeight 17 metersWork Date: 10.2011 - 11.2011

together, as opposed to one person telling everyone else what it was like. The site, located in Sanlitun North, was a new, up-scale retail area in the commercial district of Beijing. There were four towers with a sunken central courtyard. Our “site” was in the corner of one of these buildings, facing the courtyard. The area for the installation was rather small, roughly six meters by eight meters but seventeen meters tall. Montblanc asked for a temporary piece that would draw attention to their store before their permanent installation was fin-ished. We decided to do this by taking advantage of the corner courtyard setting by drawing people in with suspended LED lighting that created an effect of “infinity and inter-activeness”.

The Montblanc Installation was the third and final project I worked on during my internship with Spatial Practice in Bei-jing. The project was very different from any other project I have ever worked on, academically or professionally. It was a temporary installation piece designed for Montblanc. Being in the fast-paced Chinese archi-tecture market was a challenge as we were contacted with the project and given a final submission date of just ten days. There were technically were no “phases” to the project. I would say, however, that I worked on the concept, schematic, and design de-velopment phases of the project. This project was a very interesting one for me. Because the site was in Beijing, we could go see it as a team and experience it

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Based on our concept of infinity and inter-activeness, we continued design develop-ment. Our design entailed LED lights strung from a couple meters off the floor to the ceil-ing. When viewed from above or below, the installation would appear to go on forever. We worked user inter-activeness into our design to draw people into the installation and into the store to become a part of the installation. The idea behind the design was to allow people to use technology to alter and change what was displayed on the installation. What was al-tered could be changed from a short statement of words running vertically through the lights to a shape or image moved and altered by interac-tive customers. The idea and design went very well. Whether it was a short video clip appearing in 3-D, a still image displayed to onlookers, or an interac-tive piece that allowed users to control the display, this project was certainly an unforgettable and unique experience for the team and myself.

•Cover image by Shinichi Maruyama•All images used are property of Dominic Senska and/or Spatial Practice and cannot be used without permission.

Dominic Senska | Design Portfolio

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