HKS DESIGN FELLOWSHIP
REIMAGINING THE OLYMPIC STADIUM
I was chosen as one of nine design fellows for the 2017 HKS Design Fellowship. Three teams of three were tasked with using architecture to address global challenges identified in the United Nations Millenium Goals document. Several weeks of research and deliberation, followed by a weeklong design charrette at HKS headquarters in Dallas, culminated in each team coming up with a different design that we presented to the entire firm.
The stadium during the games.
The stadium a few months after the games, with modifications to cater the infrastructure for a refugee community.
Early on in our design process, my team became interested in how to make the Olympics more sustainable. We knew that many countries had not figured out how to effectively adapt the expensive structures for new uses after the games concluded. We were shocked to find out that the average Olympic stadium has a lifespan of 20 years before being demolished. We studied many precedents of sports venues that were later adapted for other uses. We thought it was illogical to design a structure to cater solely to the programmatic needs of an event that would last a few weeks. We flipped the equation, and designed a stadium that would cater to the programmatic needs of the stadium for the decades following the Olympic Games. Our stadium was designed to be converted into refugee housing with only a few adjustments.
A sketch I drew. Ink on paper.
My team presented our research and designs to the entire firm at HKS headquarters in Dallas.
PROJECT
Reimagining the Olympic Stadium
COMPANY
HKS Architects
YEAR
2017
TEAMMATES
Kaitlyn Badlato
Ryan Griffin