Zihan Wang Architecture Portfolio Selected Works, 2023 - 2026
Education
Competitions
Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
2026 Autodesk “Make it Spin”
Bachelor of Architecture Minor in Computer Science Expected May 2029 Cumulative GPA: 3.9
2025 Cornell AAP York Prize
Finalist in annual studio design competition
Experiences
2022 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
2026 Teaching Assistant
Exhibitions
Mentoring 80 students through weekly office hours and detailed technical feedback on problem sets.
2025 Cornell AAP Summer Exhibit
ARCH 1612 (Structural Concepts) Cornell University
2026 Student Researcher
Environmental Systems Lab (ES Lab), Cornell University
Zihan Wang
Judges Prize for advanced CAD integration
Generating a pilot urban energy model for Albany, NY using EnergyAtlas.io digital twin framework. Simulating carbon reduction scenarios for Tompkins County for NYSP2I Sustainable Competition.
2025 Building Energy Analyst
Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW), Cornell Chapter
Analyzed Olin Hall’s renovation efficacy and AHU performance using WebCTRL automation system. Collaborating with Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability to propose HVAC modifications.
2025 Student Ambassador Autodesk, Cornell Chapter
National Gold Medal in Architecture (top 1%)
Annual exhibition of exemplary student work
2025 Exquisite Corpse, Assistant
Fabricated and installed AI-driven co-design works
Skills Design Software
Adobe Creative Cloud, AutoCAD, ClimateStudio, Grasshopper, Revit, Rhino 3D, Twinmotion, V-Ray
Fabrication Tools
3D Printing, CNC Machining, Laser Cutting, Metalworking, Woodworking
Programming
C++, Java, JavaScript, Python
Languages
Directing fabrication workshops and authoring instructional guides for AutoCAD and Revit.
English (native), Mandarin (native), Spanish (intermediate)
2025 Club Secretary
Contact
Coordinated guest lectures and networking events for 150 member student body.
(778)-522-7851
Secured $3,000 in sponsorships from partners including Autodesk, Creality, D5, and eSUN.
linkedin.com/in/jimmywzh
American Institute of Architecture Students, Cornell Chapter
zw676@cornell.edu instagram.com/archi_wzh
Pg.
01. Matrescence House
04
Maternal Learning Center at Cascadilla Creek
02. Crawler
10
Kinetic Ecological Intervention in Joshua Tree
03. Folded Landscapes
16
Spatial Analysis of Flaking Sandstone
Table of Contents
04. Village Super Market
22
Structural Analysis & Tectonic Model
05. Dragon Day 2025
28
Event Branding & Documentation
06. Field Notes
30
Selected Visual Narratives
07. Xinlu Farm Ecological Breeding & Education Campus
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01. Matrescence House Fall 2025, Individual Work ARCH 2101: Core Design III Instructor: Jennifer Newsom Matrescence (mah-TRESS-uhns): the physical, psychological, and emotional process of becoming a mother. Situated where bridge, creek, and street meet, this project reimagines postpartum care as a spatial gradient between a resident mentor family and a recovering guest. The massing is composed of three evolving volumes that transition from a porous public porch to a protected private sanctuary, all united by a linear circulation spine that eliminates the need for vertical travel. This organization allows the architecture to control visibility and pace, creating a supportive environment where the physical and emotional process of “matrescence” is met with a dedicated space of rest. The project’s focal point is the seasonal guest suite: a double-height restorative chamber wrapped in a translucent glass-block façade. Functioning as a luminous lantern, this envelope filters the exterior world into soft, warm light, optimizing the space for the intimate rituals of feeding and bonding. Ultimately, the design balances the exposure of the street with the privacy of the bedroom, framing a quiet environment that honors the weight and beauty of early parenthood.
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Regional Plan
Top to Bottom:
Precedent Studies, Site Plan
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6
Top to Bottom:
Second, First Floor Plan
Aa
Side Elevation: East Facing
Ba
Front Elevation
Bb
Front Section
Bc
Middle Section
Bd
Back Section
The Neighborhood
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8
1/8” = 1’ Site Model
Glass Facade
Guest Suite 1/4” = 1’ Sectional Model
Guest Bedroom
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02. Crawler Spring 2025, Individual Work ARCH 1102: Core Design II Instructor: Catherine Wilmes Crawler reimagines the kebab stand as a kinetic intervention within the Joshua Tree landscape. Synthesizing the dispersed modularity of Ryue Nishizawa’s Moriyama House with the communal hearth of Balinese Kuren typologies, the design deconstructs the kitchen into five autonomous volumes tethered by a social deck. This infrastructure is mobilized by Theo Jansen’s mechanical linkages, which harness high-velocity desert winds to transform the structure from a static object into a nomadic organism capable of traversing the topsoil. Beyond its mechanics, the project acts as an active ecological agent, establishing a circular system where kitchen byproducts become resources for the land. As the structure walks, organic waste from preparation and consumption is distributed through its mechanical footprint, effectively tilling and fertilizing the soil to combat desertification. Ultimately, Crawler embodies playful experimentation, demonstrating how architecture can whimsically engage the human imagination while actively healing degraded ecosystems.
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Base
Roof
Exploded Axonometric
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Jansen’s Linkage 12
traces Crawler’s path of movement
Video Demonstration: www.instagram.com/p/DLFGveRyRqg
11.00'
11.00'
11.00'
11.00'
50.00'
11.00'
9.00'
A
FARM
B PREPARE
C COOK
Elevation & Section
D EAT
E
9.00'
9.00'
9.00'
WASTE
Floor & Site Plan
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14
1/2” = 1’ Sectional Model
1/4” = 1’ Kinetic Model
with single point of support
walking prototype
Crawler Walk Video Demonstration: www.instagram.com/p/DLOoKTHSUnV
push-activated walking mechanism
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03. Folded Landscapes Fall 2024, Individual Work ARCH 1101: Core Design I Instructor: Manuel Bouzas This project translates the geological logic of Utah’s “Flaking Sandstone” into architectural space, moving from the abstraction of tension to inhabitable structure. The investigation began by mapping hidden forces of erosion using paper and string, before formalizing this logic through CNC fabrication. Challenged by the machine’s planar limitations, I developed a modular assembly system where choreographed moments of translation and rotation allow the timber tower to achieve verticality, mimicking the natural layering of the stone. Expanding this logic into a site intervention, the design reads geology as topography: extruded contour lines become walls, carving out spaces between the constructed boundary and the raw landscape. The inhabitant is guided through a sequence of compression and release, traversing corridors that function as optical instruments. Through these apertures, the surrounding environment is framed, reflected, and distorted, curating a viewing experience that constantly evolves with the shifting daylight.
16
Original Geology
Rock Formation
Geometric Interpretation
Hybrid Transformation
Theatric Performance
in collaboration with Feronia Liang
in collaboration with Feronia Liang
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18
Transformative Drawing
Modular Wood Tower
Form-Finding Rigs
Lighting Installation
Speculative Drawing
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20
Site Plan, Elevation
Sectional Drawings
1/8” = 1’ Model
Interior Perspectives
21
04. Village Super Market Fall 2025, Group Work ARCH 2613: Structural Systems Instructor: Mark R. Cruvellier In collaboration with Russel Zeng and Pyros Cheng This project analyzes the structural logic of Village Super Market in Bangladesh by Tjep. Our team created a 1/8” : 1’ scale model to demonstrate the building’s structural system, focusing on the undulating supports and tensile canopies. The intricate roof system was represented through soldered joinery and woven elements to mimic the tension and compression forces of the original design. While fabrication was a collective effort, my primary focus was resolving the flying masts. I created a series of iterative study models to determine the optimal assembly procedure and material selection for the tensile system. Additionally, I engineered the model’s two elevated decks: measuring 42 inches in length with a thickness of only 1/8”, these concrete slabs required rigorous bending moment analysis to prevent failure. To achieve the necessary span and mitigate warping, I also integrated wire-mesh reinforcement and controlled the curing process.
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Initial Sketches
Test Models
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24
Modular Assembly
Structural Images
25
26
Construction Details
I. Solid Base
II. Undulating Supports
III. Ultrathin Slabs
IV. Tensile Roof
27
05. Dragon Day 2025 Spring 2025, Group Work Project Leads: William Day, Kuai Yu
Executive Board: Maddie Banks, Rachel Bender, Katie Cha, Brian Cocero, Andre Jiang, Sevara Khojamuratova, Soyoon Kim, Anika Kureyabashi, Lucas Leads, Christine Tang, Horen Wang, Jimmy Wang, Renee Wang, Isabelle Williamson
Instagram: www.instagram.com/dragondaycornell
Event Recap: www.instagram.com/p/DH3tmI6R03o
Event Website: aap.cornell.edu/news-events/function/dragon-day-2025
Team Members: Cornell Architecture Class of 2029
Dragon Day is a 125-year Cornell tradition where the first-year architecture class designs and builds a massive dragon to parade across campus. The 2025 iteration, “How to Build Your Dragon,” reframed the event as a visible performance of assembly, featuring a long, cantilevered timber structure and a canvas skin transformed by colored powders. As Director of Media & Photography, I defined the project’s visual identity, leading the documentation strategy and the merchandise campaign that served as our primary funding source. I coordinated collaborative content with Cornell’s official channels to maximize reach, while my photography captured the event as a complete ritual rather than a single climax. The resulting images trace the arc of emergence, collective labor, and dismantling, looking back at the weight of tradition while highlighting the structural details that made it possible.
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I. Fundraise
II. Design
III. Construct
IV. Parade
V. Commemorate
29
06. Field Notes Fall 2023 - Present, Independent Work Photography is my primary tool for active observation—a way of deconstructing the world into light, color, and geometry. This collection acts as a visual archive, capturing ephemeral moments to be revisited and analyzed. Beyond simple documentation, these images serve as rigorous exercises in visual hierarchy and color theory, exploring how composition shapes our memory of a place.
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Time Flies, Mar 2024
Amsterdam, Mar 2024.
Paris, Mar 2024.
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32
Grouse Mountain, Jan 2025
Garry Point, May 2025
Into the Multiverse, Jun 2025
Rule of Thirds, Aug 2025
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07. Xinlu Farm Summer 2025, Individual Work Chengdu Design & Research Institute 2-week Internship Location: Chengdu, China Role: Preliminary Design & Concept Development Xinlu Farm reimagines the traditional industrial farm as a transparent, civic destination. Located in Chengdu’s Eastern New Area, this proposal merges a 50,000 m² ecological breeding facility with a public educational campus, inviting visitors to witness the full food lifecycle—from breeding to processing. The site also functions as a regional hub for festivals, dining, and eco-tourism, championing a circular economy while catalyzing local rural revitalization. I was responsible for developing a distinct preliminary design proposal under the mentorship of senior architects, focusing on weaving public circulation through active industrial zones. This scheme was presented during the initial client review, contributing key spatial strategies to the final design direction.
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Proposed Design
35
Sample Presentation
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Long Section (Left)
16 5
6
3 4
7
15 2
8
P
1
P
14
P
P
P
13
P
12 9
11
10
17
P
1
入口 Entrance
2
农家乐 Restaurant
3
果蔬集市 Market
4
7
小火车 Mini Train
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太阳能电站 Solar Farm
9
苹果园 Orchard
10 野营区 Campsite
15 清水鱼塘 Fish Pond
16 猪猪乐园 Piggy Park
13 猪猪雕像 Piggy Statue
Proposed Plan
14 游客中心 Info Center
猪猪展厅 Exhibit
5
小麦田 Wheat
6
猪猪圈 Pig Barn
洗手间 Washroom
11 玉米田 Corn
12 社区中心 Rec Center
公交站 Bus Stop
17 咖啡厅 Cafe
18 加油站 Gas Station
P
18
停车场 Parking
Plan Guide
Long Section (Right)
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Zihan (Jimmy) Wang Selected Works, 2023 - 2026