Our built environment shapes the way we feel while enabling a sense of place. Cultural history, materiality, and expression are multifaceted aspects of architecture and the meaning that is embedded into the community. To reflect the culture and community of Chinatown, one must understand the cultural ideals. My research delves into modern Chinese society and their historical past in Los Angeles while implementing the Chinese philosophies of form & function through harmony and balance.

For this project, I dove into Chinese culture to understand what it means to build a community and come together. Chinatown desperately needs a cultural hub to celebrate the culture, history, & community aspects within the area. By curating a communal built environment, connection of local can be established.

The analysis of noise and sound within the area will be researched as a main driver for the design. Noise and sound play a large role in defining how the layout of internal spaces relate to one another. By designing with material, program, and functionality in mind, architecture can have significant meaning. The cultural hub will be a beacon of hope that reflects the ideals, values, and philosophies of the Chinese community and culture. The program will reflect the arts of Chinatown by providing a theater. The program also provides community support that is desperately needed in the Chinatown community with a library & technology center, a wellness center, a tea & coffee garden, and a communal meditation garden.

Harmony & balance are strong Chinese ideals present within the design of the cultural hub, where noise has a large impact on the harmony within interior and exterior spaces.