SHAIMA

[shaimyarchcore]

Curated by curiosity… let's see where the water takes this design🌊

@feststudio5-26

[archista]

This view... Just magical with the dappled light 😍

@shaimyarchcore @notmalakkkk @jauuuus

[shaimyarchcore]

What months of work being reviewed looks like... A glimpse into tonight's crit session👷‍♀️🏗️📐

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

AND More than the final outcome, this project taught me how to question, observe, test ideas, and trust the design process. It taught me that architecture is not only about creating spaces, but about understanding people, place, and experience specially with how much different the scope of this project was comapred to the usual challanges. Had a great time enjoying the crazy process when i think back to it.

A huge thank you to my lecturers for the guidance, challenges, and critiques that continuously pushed me to think deeper and refine my work. Looking back now, many of the lessons that felt difficult in the moment became some of the most valuable parts of this journey.

To my friends and studio mates, thank you for the countless discussions, encouragement, honest feedback, shared stress, and laughter along the way. This journey would not have been the same without you.

And finally, to everyone who supported me throughout these months, thank you. This board represents not only a project, but a journey of growth, learning, and memories that I will carry forward long after this semester ends 🏄‍♀️🏝️

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

The final model for the final submission

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

And just like that... the final board, final submission 🌊

Months of research, sketches, failed ideas, model-making, redraws, panic, revisions, and sleepless nights all leading to this moment. Looking back at where the project started and where it ended, it's hard to believe the journey is finally complete.

Framing the Flow — a project rooted in the everyday encounters between people and the lagoon, and a reminder of how much can grow from a single observation.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Rather than hiding infrastructure, the building profile channels monsoonal rain directly into the core using sculpted roof geometries and exposed rainwater chains.

Spatially, this void acts as a porous microclimatic chamber. As water cascades down the chains into the open deck below, it provides immediate evaporative cooling to the surrounding breeze, while transforming standard resource collection into a dynamic, auditory, and visual installation. By placing the circulation bridge directly adjacent to this system, occupants are invited to intimately experience the natural elements as they transition between the private and social zones of the dwelling.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Exploring the interface between the rigid glass viewing floor and the flexible timber superstructure.

Because the residential module floats in a dynamic marine environment subject to constant tidal movement and extreme humidity, the connection cannot be rigid. The glass pane rests within an insulated, marine-grade aluminum channel lined with EPDM setting blocks to isolate it from structural deflection. The flush seam is finished with an elastic, weather-sealed silicone joint, absorbing the natural expansion of the timber decking while maintaining a completely watertight, continuous floor plane.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

This was my very first time diving into D5 Render, and I wanted to use it to capture the soft, atmospheric qualities of the lagoon rather than just stiff, hyper-realistic boxes. I spent hours tweaking the environmental settings to test those delicate glimpses of light through the screen facade

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Mapping the invisible rhythms of the island before drawing a single line.

This diagram made for my my final presentation board tracks how daily life, heat, and movement shift across Thulusdhoo from morning to night. By studying the island's current grid, it became clear how heavily the intense tropical sun dictates social habits,forcing people into air-conditioned pockets during the afternoon peak, and causing a massive outward migration to the island's edge once the evening heat breaks.

My masterplan, Framing the Flow, acts as a direct architectural response to this behavioral map. Instead of trapping heat behind thick masonry walls, the floating lagoon units create an open, porous ecosystem where the sea breeze is naturally harnessed, allowing community life to spill outward safely at any hour.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

This Exercise focused on translating the project into a comprehensive architectural pamphlet, bringing together concept development, site analysis, technical systems, drawings, details, and visualizations into a coherent narrative. The process challenged me to communicate not only the final design proposal but also the thinking, testing, and decision-making that shaped its development.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Physical floating tests were conducted to evaluate the stability, buoyancy, and balance of individual dwelling units. These studies helped understand how the proposed form responds to movement on water and informed subsequent design refinements to the floating platform and hull system

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Floating test -Cluster-scale floating models were tested to investigate collective stability, spacing relationships, and the interaction between multiple floating units. The studies explored how clusters could remain connected while adapting to changing water conditions and environmental forces.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Base mass - Maps daily routines on the island, anchoring a solid baseline volume onto the floating platform

Microclimate Split- Splits the volume to open a central breeze corridor, bringing light, rain, and air into the core

Shift & Lift=Elevates the upper tiers to capture cross-ventilation, maximize shade, and frame horizon views

Connective Loops- Stitches the pods back together with light-touch bridges and open decks for shared circulation

Tidal Step-Extends the footprint below the main deck into water-level zones, merging the architecture with the lagoon

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Shifting levels to break the monotony of a flat walkway. 📐🌊

When you’re designing entirely over water, a simple path can easily become boring. In this sketch for the lagoon masterplan, I’m experimenting with a split-level boardwalk system to deliberately disrupt the pace of movement and create distinct spatial experiences.

Dropping down brings you right to the water's edge,closer to the boats and the splash of the tide. Stepping up lifts you into the shade of the tree canopy, giving you a wider view of the horizon. It’s a simple shift in altitude, but it completely changes how you interact with the landscape as you walk through the cluster.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

These sketches originated from mapping daily routines observed in Thulusdhoo. Areas of movement, gathering, and recurring activity were identified to understand where environmental encounters naturally occur. The overlapping of these nodes became the starting point for the project's spatial organization and conceptual direction.

Finding the geometry for the lagoon modules. I wanted to move away from rigid boxes and explore these fluid, organic forms that respond directly to the climate. It’s all about creating a sequence of experiences: pinching the entry to create a "compressed zone," forcing a deliberate pause, and then letting the interior gradually open up entirely to the water's edge.

Spatially, the lower floor handles the heavier, communal programs (workspaces, kitchen, hydroponics), while the upper level transitions into something more intimate, shielded by a screen facade to keep out the harsh tropical sun.

Still refining the thresholds, but loving how the structural rhythm is coming together.

@feststudio5-26

[shaimyarchcore]

Early cluster explorations tested different relationships between dwelling units, communal spaces, and circulation routes. The sketches investigated how residents could move through the settlement while maintaining visual connections to the lagoon and opportunities for social interaction ... was trying to create different level of experience( eg change in surface material to make them notice the change or slow down movement or the sudden glimpse through light through shaded canopy ) as they move through tthe cluster while they maintain the daily routine they have with intergration of work places along the cluster itself as well.

@feststudio5-26