Mohammed Abdulhabeb

This project is shaped by movement through the site and by a commitment to preserving the existing landscape. A path climbs along the steepest part of the topography, leading to a high point that opens up views across the entire site. Rather than imposing on the land, the design works with it, allowing the terrain to guide both the placement of the buildings and the experience of moving between them. The proposal is organized as three distinct buildings, each carefully oriented to engage the site and frame broad views of the landscape. Set partially into the terrain, the buildings appear to emerge from the earth. Soil excavated from the building footprint is reused as fill to create the circulation path, establishing a direct relationship between earthwork, architecture, and movement. Circulation is central to the project’s spatial experience. The path leads visitors through the landscape and into the first building, where it connects the primary interior spaces. It then continues outward, linking to the ramp of the second building and ascending once more along an exterior ramp to the roof terrace. This sequence creates a constant exchange between inside and outside, blurring the boundary between building and site. Two structural systems reinforce the project’s relationship to the landscape. One uses double-stacked beams that create openings large enough for existing trees to pass through the roof, preserving the site’s mature canopy. The other uses beams and columns to support the roof terrace while incorporating a skylight. Together with summer shading from the trees and winter solar gain from the southwest orientation, these strategies create a building that is both site-responsive and environmentally aware.

Faculty Diego Romero Evans