Mary Beth Robbins | Portfolio Spring 2022

P O R
MARY BETH ROBBINS
T F O
SPRING 2022
L I O

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HELLO!

MARY BETH ROBBINS,
ASSOCIATE AIA
www.marybethrobbins.com
marybeth1798@gmail.com
302.242.5396
Instagram | mary.beth.robbins
LinkedIn | mary-beth-robbins
Growing up on my family’s small farm in rural
Delaware, agriculture was ingrained into my
daily life. I helped sell produce many summers
at our roadside stand and showed animals
at the state fair. My father, a lifelong farmer,
always was an inspiration to me. He has one
of the most brilliant minds when it comes to
care and precision. I believe it was his passion
for thinking critically and creative problemsolving
that inspired me to study architecture. I
wanted a career that would allow me to channel
innovation. Studying architecture has opened
my perception in terms of design, critique, and
viewing the world. I had the opportunity to work
on projects of various scales and disciplines,
including art installations, high-rises, and now
pursuing my master’s degree in Landscape
Architecture. I appreciate the diversity of where
design can take place - from a regional scale
down to a doorknob. I love the challenges
design presents, not only solving problems but
something that is beautifully executed. Overall, I
am a passionate, hardworking individual who is
always looking to challenge myself and beautify
the world, one design at a time.
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RESUME

EDUCATION
University of Tennessee | Knoxville, Tennessee
Master of Landscape Architecture | Class of 2022
Bachelor of Architecture | Class of 2021
University of Arkansas Rome Center | Rome, Italy
Study Abroad Semester with a focus in Architecture | Spring 2020
EXPERIENCE
StudioJAED | Bear, Delaware
Architecture, Engineering, and Facilities Solutions Firm
Architecture Intern | 2019 - 2022
Delaware State Parks | Dover, Delaware
Office of Design and Development
Landscape Architecture Intern | Summer 2021
INVOLVEMENT
SKILLS
Adobe Creative Cloud:
Indesign, Illustrator, Photoshop,
Lightroom, AfterEffects
3-D Design:
Revit, AutoCAD, Rhino, Sketch-Up
3-D Rendering:
V-Ray, Enscape, Blender
ArcGIS
Digital Photography
Microsoft Office Suite
Hand Drafting
Hand Sketching
Graduate Student Senate
Campus-wide council representing the graduate student body at the University
of Tennessee
2021 – 2022 Landscape Architecture Departmental Senator
Equity and Diversity Committee Member
Student Environmental Initiatives Committee
AKA the Green Fee Committee at University of Tennessee, Knoxville
2021 – 2022 Student Committee Member
American Society of Landscape Architects
Student Chapter at the University of Tennessee
2019 – 2022 Member
Dean’s Student Advisory Council
Council representing the Student Body of College of Architecture and Design
2016 – 2022 Student Representative
Alpha Rho Chi | Theodorus Chapter
Professional Fraternity for Architecture and the Allied Arts
2020 – 2021 Worthy Architect (President)
2019 National Convention Secretary
2018 – 2019 Worthy Scribe (Secretary)
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CONTENTS

RE-ESTABLISHING THE AESTHETIC
OF ACCESS
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ANTHROPO[GENIC]
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REGENERATED LEISURE
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ELEVATED EDUCATION
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DIGITAL RECIPROCITY
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AUTOMATED MILK MANAGER FOR
ROUTINE COWS
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RE-ESTABLISHING THE AESTHETIC OF ACCESS
Knoxville, Tennessee | Fall 2021
Tennessee River Studio
Group Members: Erika Guenther,
Nora Jacobs And Kelsey Jones
Knoxville, the first major city on the 652-mile
stretch of the Tennessee River, has a number
of access points on the river’s edge. When we
think of the term “access point”, we think of this
moment when a person would be exchanging
from land to river. Oftentimes “access point”
also refers to the adjacent site of where this
moment happens.These sites are more than
just “points” of access, but rather hubs of
exchange and connection, usually connecting
to greenways and providing some sort of
greenspace. Though we find that these sites
are failing, often by the lack of users going to
the site for various reasons relating to safety,
inclusivity, and engagement. Through this, we
aim to challenge the connotation of access as
more than a point or a moment, but faceted
into 3 categories - access as network, access
as perspective, and access as place. For our
study, we focused on the communities of
Knoxville and how this system connects these
communities to the Tennessee River.
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ANTHROPO[GENIC]
Knoxville, Tennessee | Spring 2021
The word anthropogenic is defined by the USGS
as “environmental change caused or influenced
by people.” This definition uses “change” as a
neutral term, yet the word anthropogenic is
often used negatively about effects caused by
human interaction within the environment.
Looking at the etymology of Anthropogenic –
“anthro—” refers to humanity, and “—genic”
refers to generation and creation (think Genesis).
This could suggest a different way to reframe
what has become an almost universally
negative concept. We need to reconsider how
we intervene in our global systems, while also
giving more responsibility for how we stress the
environment as opposed to the word “change”,
which could imply that the effects caused by
our actions are not necessarily our “problem”.
My goal for this project is to tell the story of anthropogenic
progression in ways that are surprising,
unexpected, and engaging. The most
dramatic part of the design is the continuous
pedestrian paths that dip, elevate, and sprawl
along the site, with the intention to connect the
fragmented parts of the existing site, engage interaction
into the surrounding neighborhoods,
and potentially create a new greenway system
for First Creek. These interactive walkways act
as a book binder composing the story of old
and new, or, good and bad human interventions.
The idea of elevating the walkway is to
instil a brief moment of separating ourselves
from the site just long enough to understand
it, to then be re-emerged. All this together is
meant to cultivate a specific dialogue between
the power of the Anthropocene and how we
perceive landscapes.
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RIPARIAN BUFFER
TRELLIS COVERED PATH
OPEN RECREATIONAL SPACE
RIPARIAN PATH
RIPARIAN FOREST NATIVE FLOWER GARDEN
ELEVATED WALKWAY EXCHANGE
SUNKEN GARDENS
COMMUNITY FARM
COMMUNITY FARM
0 10 50 100
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REGENERATED LEISURE
Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah | Fall 2020
Partner: Rachel Albee
REGENERATIVE LEISURE is a landscape
architecture studio project that focuses
on creating a temporal and ever-changing
experience of trail skiing at the Alta Ski Resort
in the Little Cottonwood Canyon, outside of Salt
Lake City, Utah. Expert skiers are attracted to
the “un-touched” conditions that exist in the
Canyon, but the area presents high-risk areas
for avalanches. REGENERATIVE LEISURE takes
vegetation and maintenance practices to create
expert trails while breaking up the dangerous
paths of avalanches. This project considers
the ecology of the mountain, integrating
thriving tree species - the Quaking Aspen,
the Engelmann Spruce, and the Utah Juniper,
as well as modern agricultural practices like
pivotal irrigation systems, to create a rotational
ski lift system that plants and maintains the
mountain’s ecology and engages skiers in a
new experience season to season.
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ELEVATED EDUCATION
Montréal, Québec, Canada | Fall 2019
Integrations Studio | Partner: Michelle Blackwell
Elevated Education is the idea that education
can be elevated...literally, as well as figuratively.
Using the sky as “elevation”, the teaching world
can be greatly improved upon, or elevated, if
the space around them encourages discovery,
learning and joy.
Biophilia is the love of life and nature itself, in
its climate, environment and inhabitants. The
intention of this studio is to promote biophilia
in educational institutions within cold climates.
Given the site of an existing school, all aspects of
integration are expressed via accessibility, LCA,
natural daylighting and more. Cold climates
generally suggested to be unwelcoming and
harsh, especially in locations where snow can
pile up to over 3 meters each year. Snow is a
great part of biophilia, which can attest to many
different factors: the sky, the sun, the wind,
rain, trees, grass, animals and humans alike.
For this particular project, many intentions
were considered. Firstly, biophilia; second,
sociability; thirdly, perception. These three
factors were crucial to producing an effective
design that connects the existing school to the
proposed addition that was designed in this
project.
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NORTH COURTYARD
CAFETERIA
GYMNASIUM
CENTRAL COURTYARD
LIBRARY
CLASSROOM
PRESCHOOL
COURTYARD
PRESCHOOL
CLASSROOM
ADMIN SUITE
EXISTING SCHOOL
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FLOOR PLAN

0
30
60
90
Metal Finish Roof
Roof Rafters
Plyood Sheathing
Metal Roof Decking
Truss System
Gypsum Board
Vapor Barrier
Spray Foam Insulation
Direct LED Luminaire
Structural Steel I-Beam Column
Air Barrier
Wood Sheathing
EXISTING SITE CONDITIONS
N
1” = 30’
Air Gap
Brick Ties
Contextual Buildings Existing School
Hardscape Street
For this project to be truly imagined, the
project was considered under the five senses
and the perspective of the child as well as
teacher. This school needed to be seen,
touched, smelled, heard and tasted in every
room to completely understand it. Most
importantly, the school needed education
at its forefront- that meant understanding
what a teacher requires and how they
achieve the necessary requirements to
teach children. However, the students
there also make an impact. This school
houses pre-school and elementary school
children who see the world differently than
teachers and designers. There was careful
consideration of safety and guarding those
who go to the school and use the facilities
within the building.
Brick Veneer
Steel Channel
Window Header
Gym Window
Window Sill
Exterior CMU Block
Wood Finish Floor
Floor Decking
Concrete Floor Base
Gravel
CMU Block
Foundation Wall
Floor Supports
Foundation Footing
0 2" 4" 8" 1' 1.5' 2'
Drainage
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September: 7 AM
September: 12 PM
September: 4 PM
September Wind
February: 7 AM
February: 12 PM
February: 4 PM
February Wind
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This project was submitted to the AIA COTE Top 10 competition for students. This competition awards to the best projects designed for environmental
performance based on a series of measures. A few of those measures include: Design for Integration, Design for Community, Design for Discovery, and
Design for Change.
Design for Integration:
Integrating education is not the only component for this school, but
also community, perception and biophilia. Community supports
education by providing friendliness and enthusiasm to children. Using
perception, schools are able to teach in different methods, whether
children are listeners, readers, doers or thinkers. Lastly, biophilia is a
strategy in which nature is the ultimate teacher: through climate and
weather, through plants and animals, and through the natural cycle of
the seasons.
Design for Community:
The level of a child’s eye is a critical view to understand and investigate.
Along with that, there are teachers, nurses, administrators, cooks and
other adults who make the school work to the best of its abilities. All of
these people need opportunities to make a difference not only in the
educational field, but also to give back to the earth. Almost everyone
already moves to and from the school on food, but to further that
notion, the school’s expansion includes a large, open entrance that
welcomes all those who enter inside.
Design for Discovery:
This school provides learning for 31 preschool and 165 school children.
But this is only a single moment in time. The people flowing through
the building will fluctuate, and this school will most likely do the same.
The expected amount of growth for this school and its addition is
at least 150 students. It is important to value the experience in the
building beyond all other aspects, because a school is one of the most
valuable buildings of the future.
Design for Change:
The original school was first built in 1902, then required two additions:
in 1922 and 1960. Change is not foreign to the teachers that work in
the building as well as the families that send their children there. It
expects a revision if it is meant to remain resilient. This time, these
additions bring more than just a code update and some classrooms.
It encourages the outdoors as a beautiful and proactive place where
plants, like kids, can grow.
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DIGITAL RECIPROCITY
Knoxville, Tennessee | Spring 2019
Fellowship Seminar Project
DIGITAL RECIPROCITY, a seminar lead by University
of Tennessee’s 2018-2019 Architecture
Fellow Nate Imai, focused on responsive architecture
in terms of temperature, humidity, and
air. The 84-square-foot Mobile “T House” reads
live data and sensors placed at each corner to
display lights in an array of colors between Blue
and Red. The color the house glows tells the difference
between the interior and exterior conditions.
This built project explored many skills
and design techniques by taking inspiration
from Japanese Tea Houses to modern digital
fabrication. This project was on display at the
Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum in
May 2019 and is now on display in the gardens
of the College of Architecture + Design.
My fellow classmates who participated in
the seminar:
Nicole Capps
Roni Feghaly
Christopher Rubio
Jessica Shremshock
Zachary Standley
Akshata Dusa
Tyler Forsberg
Diana Kraczkowska
Mary Beth Robbins
Anastasiya Skvarniuk
Izabela Szumniak
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ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN
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AUTOMATED MILK MANAGER FOR ROUTINE COWS
Forest Park, Georgia | Spring 2019
Studio: Farm to Table
This project challenges the current operations
of dairy farms. As farming increasingly becomes
a more difficult profession, farmers are looking
towards automation to save time in their daily
operation. My approach was to design in a
way that appealed to the natural behaviors
of the cows, by playing with lights, contrast,
scratchers, etc. The cows are also equipped
with RFID tags that collect data, and help keep
track of milk production, consumption, and
movement. This data not only helps the farmer
keep track of his herd, but the data is used on a
constant updating twitter feed, adding a direct
connection to the consumer. The farm is set
up to be a profit/benefit system to those who
play in part: the farmer, the distributor, the
consumer, and most importantly, the cow.
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Collaging helps to discover truth, relations, and
information about a certain subject. In order to
understand the daily process of producing milk, I
started to compare the cow to the machine. The first
machine to producing milk is obviously the cow - the
udder as the main mechanism. In order to produce
milk, the cow must be fed to produce energy, and
must regularly calf. The milk is then pulled from the
udders to holding tanks, then goes through a series
of processes like pasteurization and homogenization
before bottling and being shipped to the store.
Collaging also helps layout the workings for my
design, as in what triggers “Bovine Behavior”, the
different functionalities in “Routine Milking”, and
using technology as a “Automated Manager” for this
new farm.
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In the section perspective, you are able to see
the different “tiers” or roaming spaces for the cows.
Each tier has rows of automatic-filling food and water
troughs, an outdoor pasture, automated manure
clean-up, and brush scratchers. Each cow is RFID
chipped to control eating times, movement, milk
production, and “reward” system.
The slanted “core” connecting the levels features
a lift that will host pipage that serves to food, water,
and waste. The ramp that circulates around the core
are for ease of movement for the cows when it is
time to milk.
The majority of the milking cows live on the
second and third levels. The fourth level hosts sick
or separated cows (cows who may be treated with
antibiotics for a certain time) and the calf huts are
on the top level. Located on the first level is the
automated rotary “rotating” milker, and processing
machinery to pasteurize and bottle milk.
The aim of this project is to have the entire milk
cycle exist in one location, and pushing boundaries
to elevate this experience.
CONSUMPTION
TROUGHS COVERED WITH SENSORS
TRACK AMOUNT OF FOOD + WATER
CONSUMED
PROCESS
ON-FARM PASTURIZATION,
BOTTLING + DISTRIBUTION
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REWARD
SCRATCHERS RELAX COWS
HAPPY COWS = MORE MILK PRODUCTION
MILKING
50-HEAD
ROTARY MILKER
EASE OF FLOW
FEED
BLENDED FOR HEALTH + PRODUCTION
OF HERD
DELIVERED BY ELEVATOR
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Mary Beth Robbins
Portfolio February 2022
www.marybethrobbins.com