Roman Pohorecki

Program: Cafeteria & Kitchen
Location: Curenavaca, Mexico
Date: Spring 2004
Professors: Sergio Palleroni & Jim Adamson

Led by Sergio Palleroni and Jim Adamson of Jersey Devils, our group of students designed and built a solar powered kitchen and cafeteria for an elementary school near a developing neighborhood on the outskirts of Cuernavaca. One of the most valuable lessons was understanding the time frame in which designs are built. The kitchen walls did not spring up in two days as they do in a cardboard model. We had to dig out the hill side, cut trenches, build foundation walls, build a concrete beam, pour a slab, and then finally build the brick walls. I read and heard about structural hierarchy but by doing it I came to understand how it affects efficiency of material and labor. One of the final parts of the design involved installing a solar array which is now being used for cooking.

Roman Pohorecki / architecture & web design