Third Mountain by Chinmayi Suri, Xinran Ge and Xue Zhao. Advised by Associate Adjunct Professor Jeffrey Inaba, Gillian Shaffer, and David Jimenez Iniesta

The iconic hills of Los Angeles not only play a role in the city's eccentric history, but also shape its land use trends over the decades. Chinmayi Suri, Xinran Ge ,and Xue Zhao are students in UCLA Architecture and Urban Design's Master of Architecture II (M.Arch.II program). Archinect connected with the trio to discuss their final project, Third Mountain. Studying within the school's IDEAS - Urban Strategy program led by Associate Adjunct Professor Jeffrey Inaba, Gillian Shaffer, and David Jimenez Iniesta, the students explore a the addition of new urban fabric for the city of Los Angeles. According to the group, "These new sites [Third Mountain project] create a different identity for Los Angeles’s urban fabric, inspiring new glamour and ideas of building with earth and landscapes." 

The research-based projects at UCLA's IDEA's campus, according to the educators, push students to not only conceptualize possible outcomes through data and prototyping but also to foster solutions for possible futures in landuse.

Archinect's Spotlight on 2020 Thesis Projects: 2020 has been an extraordinarily challenging year for architecture graduates. Students were displaced as schools shut down, academic communities had to adapt to a new virtual format, end-of-year celebrations were canceled or changed dramatically, and now these students are graduating into an extremely challenging employment market. To support the 2020 class we're launching a summer series of features highlighting the work of thesis students during this unique time of remote learning amid COVID-19. Be sure to follow our 2020 thesis tag to stay up to date as we release new project highlights.

With the increase of dangerous fires, monetary loss and a decrease in insurance for these hills, the Third Mountain project regrades the existing slopes to reduce the spread of fire. It brings these areas of earth down to the flatlands as a new, sustainable building material.

Please briefly describe your thesis/final project and your inspiration.

LA’s history has long been associated with beautiful hillscapes and the iconic case study houses on the hills. With the increase of dangerous fires, monetary loss, and a decrease in insurance for these hills, the Third Mountain project regrades the existing slopes to reduce the spread of fire. It brings these areas of earth down to the flatlands as a new, sustainable building material. These new sites create a different identity for Los Angeles’s urban fabric, inspiring new glamour and ideas of building with earth and landscapes. 

If the first mountains of Los Angeles were formed naturally and the second mountains by postwar clearance and demolition of mountain tops, then the third mountain synthesizes nature and artifice into an architecture made up of the materiality of land. The first mountain has found itself transported and transformed for life in 2050 LA, rising to the challenge of a new age of climate change threats. 

The greatest impact that remote studio had on our project was in the loss of homogeneity of our design [...] Constant updates and conversations may not be a substitute for studio culture but they help.

How did your project change as studios transitioned to remote learning?

The greatest impact that remote studio had on our project was in the loss of homogeneity of our design. Each of us worked on a different part of the site/project separately and bringing it together as a consistent project, in terms of design and graphic style, was a real challenge.

Keep checking in and sharing the status of your work with your teammates and friends. 

Any tips for students working through their final projects?

Be confident in your project and your teammates. The best part about having a team is that you will always have each other's backs. Keep checking in and sharing the status of your work with your teammates and friends. Constant updates and conversations may not be a substitute for studio culture, but they help. Don’t forget to remain positive, crack as many jokes as possible