elly hallack portfolio

Crossroads: Senior Living Community Center

This project is located in the Chicago neighborhood of Roseland, a place full of history that has been slowly declining due to lack of resources and community.

I designed a Senior Living center to break the manipulative nature of many senior living businesses. This space brings together the entire neighborhood under one roof, and prioritizes the health and happiness of the residents. It also serves as a community center, connecting generations.

This concept follows the form of a traditional townhouse in Chicago. The types of spaces are carried over into the program to provide that feeling of being home. Each floor has a purpose, offering a variety of spaces for residents and guests to socialize, retreat, and feel safe.

The design of Crossroads is inspired by local abandoned buildings; they carry so much history and character within the walls. The neighborhood of Roseland has been systemically underfunded over the years, but hope can be restored. This community needs each other more than ever, and to be reminded of the history and stories of residents who have lived through it all.

model building

This model helped to define the relationship between the existing elements of the building and the new architecture. The atrium provides viewers on the all levels to see the other spaces, and the architecture that lies above them. It also allows daylight down into the first level dining room.

But some walls remain exactly how they were found, raw brick and weathered concrete.

[cement, wood, paper, plastic, and chipboard]

Double Take: A Writers Retreat

This project tasked me with diving into a material and exploring the minute details of my design. Check out some details here. I designed a writer's retreat specifically for a screenwriting duo.

All drawings are hand-drafted to scale and edited digitally.

Trace paper scroll used for all drawings during semester-long project.

conceptual foundation

(Process of a Script)

The life of a screenplay goes through many writing stages, requiring different things from the writers.

(Daily Rituals)

Each writer has unique habits and rituals that are fostered by the space. They are forced to share these with their writing partner.

(Conversation)

Communication makes for a stronger partnership. Conversation is encouraged in every corner of the space.

planning sketch of north wall

details

Hand-drafted detail drawings showcase elements of the design that would've gone overlooked. This drawing details the mechanism of the pull-down focus desk using an animated GIF.

This desk is meant to be pulled down when needed. When folded up, it opens up square footage in the main area. This is also intended to be "out of sight, out of mind", clearing the writer's mind from distraction.

Using animated graphics helps convey my design intent, which is great for client communication. Materials and dimensions are labeled and annotated.

There is an opportunity for conversation through the exterior wall between the interior and exterior tea patio. These sections detail drawings showcase the pantry construction and functionality.

inspiration wall

I constructed a full scale mock up of the Inspiration Wall in my project. For this I built a frame to hold an acrylic sheet with engraved circles mimicking the windows. A concrete mixture was then poured in to fill the gaps and show the texture of the wall.

The purpose was to show how projections interact with this design. The light seeps through windows and projects them onto the space behind it. This mock up only represents a small sections of this wall, but you can already see how powerful it will be.

A Refugee Community Center

conceptual modeling

This concept originates from the stories and journeys of Refugees seeking shelter in other countries. They are constantly tossed around, hoping that others will show them an ounce of kindness. I thought of the life cycle of a rock, how it can start as a pebble, peacefully sat on a beach until its thrown out to sea in a storm. It has no choice but to follow the waves, blindly going forward.

This model represents how rocks may seem unmovable, but they can also be the embodiment of balance. They are fluid but structured, heavy but adaptable. They can float above you but you can also step inside them.

site

In the heart of Ravenswood, Chicago this site is nuzzled between the Chicago River, a large empty lot, and residential homes to its South. The East side of the building offers a riverfront terrace.