Welcome to my portfolio. I'm Amrita Raja, a senior at Virginia Tech studying Interior Design and French. Im currently looking for a summer internship. When it comes to design, I am most passionate about design-build and architectural anthropology. I am currently pursuing an Honors Baccalaureate research project that looks at design and local identity. You can read more about my thesis at my thesis blog.
Take a look at my work, and let me know what you think. Or download my resumé and sample work in PDF format.
I can be reached via email at araja@vt.edu.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Photograph by Adam Kurihara. Click here to see what I was sketching.
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UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
SPRING 2009
I am currently working on my undergraduate thesis. My theoretical research delves into the relationship between memory and place in the creation of social identity; I am drawing on the research of sociologists, philosophers/writers, and designers. My site, Johnston Student Center at Virginia Tech, does not live up to its potential as a "Third Place." I am hoping that by updating Ray Oldenburg's sociological principles for the 21st century, I can create a space that is of our time and place. You can read some of my writings and access larger images from my thesis blog.
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CERN PLANETARIUM
FALL 2008
Designing an underground planetarium in Switerland provided me with the opportunity to explore contrasting experiences of space. To echo the "aha" moment of scientific discovery, I created a parcour through darkness that leads the vistors to a large, sun-lit atrium. The dark spaces are almost devoid of materiality; in contrast, the atrium incorporates the texture of stone and water from the site (Alps and Lake Geneva).
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MELANGE RESTAURANT & LOUNGE
SPRING 2007
I worked on a conceptual design for a restaurant and lounge in Dubai, U.A.E. These images illustrate a technique I developed to integrate multiple programs in the rendering process, creating computer generated drawings with texture and depth.
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FALANGEES!
FALL 2005-SPRING 2006
I designed a wooden toy for infants inspired by a childs fascination with the human hand. Working on the toy was an exercise in understanding a material and the tools with which that material can be explored. I also created packaging and marketing solutions for the toy.
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FONTAINEBLEAU
SUMMER 2007
Photography has been a hobby of mine since high school; these photographs document my five-week architectural study at the Ecole de Beaux-Arts in Fontainebleau, France.
FIND ME ON THE WEB: |
SITES I FREQUENT: |
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| Flickr Washington Post KEM STudio VT Workshop Designing Authenticity Blog |
Tree Hugger Web Urbanist Core77 MoCo LoCo Cool Home Pages |