Pacific Visions Tour

Tour the New Pacific Visions Wing at the Aquarium of the Pacific

Learning Units: 1.5

Designed By: EHDD Architecture

Be one of the first to visit Pacific Visions, the Aquarium of the Pacific’s first major expansion, before it opens to the public on May 24, 2019. The 29,000-square-foot, two-story sustainable structure designed by San Francisco-based EHDD, will house a state-of-the-art theater, exhibition space, art gallery, and several new live animal exhibits. Pacific Visions will redefine the role of aquariums and science centers and help visitors examine humans’ relationship with our planet.

Join representatives from EHDD, Clark Construction, and the Aquarium for a tour of this unique project – and enjoy exploring the rest of the Aquarium public exhibits after the tour, at no additional cost.

The Pacific Visions building is a biomorphic structure that evokes the Pacific Ocean. Its façade comprises over 800 individually shaped blue glass panels that respond to changing light and weather conditions throughout the day with varying colors that imitate the effect of sunlight rippling on the ocean’s surface. The building has earned Two Green Globes certification from the Green Globes® building rating system for demonstrating leadership in best practices regarding environmental efficiency.

Visitors enter Pacific Visions through a 2,800-square-foot art gallery. Next, visitors enter a 2,600-square-foot orientation gallery showcasing an interactive virtual waterfall and a film that introduces main concepts. These concepts are explored further in the 300-seat Honda Pacific Visions Theater, which houses a 130-foot-wide by 32-foot-tall screen that curves in a 180-degree arc and a tilting floor projection disc. In Pacific Vision’s 5,000-square-foot culmination gallery, visitors can envision steps to create a better planet through interactive games, displays, and animal exhibits. Each space in the Pacific Visions wings uses innovative, high-tech multimedia displays to connect visitors with science and sustainability to help explore alternative pathways to a better future.

The speakers will cover the unique design properties of Pacific Visions, including the challenge of complimenting the original building, the innovative specialty glass cladding system, integrating digital platforms, and incorporating the Aquarium’s mission into the design.

Tour Led By:

• Quyen Luong, AIA, LEED AP – Project Architect & Senior Associate, EHDD
• Tom Farrar – Senior Project Manager, Clark Construction
• Fahria Qader – Pacific Visions & Architecture, Aquarium of the Pacific

Quyen Luong, AIA, LEED AP – Project Architect & Senior Associate, EHDD

With over twelve years’ experience, Luong served as project architect for the Pacific Visions expansion at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. She led all phases of research, design, documentation, and construction management on the expansion. Other recent projects include the Acuario Mazatlán in Mexico, the Alcatraz Island National Park Embarkation site, and a mixed-use student housing development at the University of Cincinnati, as well as multiple school, office, and library projects. Luong received her bachelor of arts degree with high honors in philosophy and art history from Wesleyan University in 1999; in 2005, she received her master of architecture degree from Rice University. Luong is a licensed architect, LEED 2.0 Accredited Professional with the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).

Thomas Farrar – Senior Project Manager, Clark Construction

Thomas Farrar is a senior project manager with Clark Construction and is responsible for the overall management and direction for the Clark team on the new Pacific Visions wing. Farrar collaborates with the Aquarium to establish the project conditions of satisfaction, objectives, and policies. He coordinates with the Aquarium stakeholders and design team to monitor construction and financial activity and leads the development of the Clark project team. Farrar joined Clark Construction in 2008, bringing with him over thirty years of construction experience. He has extensive work in the Los Angeles area working on technically complex, award-winning projects, including the management of the Tom Bradley Terminal Renovation at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse (Long Beach), and the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC). He holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from University of New Hampshire and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Northeastern University, Boston.

Fahria Qader – Pacific Visions & Architecture, Aquarium of the Pacific

Fahria Qader is the director of Pacific Visions & Architecture at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California. She is responsible for government grant administration, communications, and overall execution and management of construction and exhibits for the Pacific Visions expansion and other campus master plan projects. Fahria’s project management functions include planning, estimating, directing, supervising, compliance and certification with green building rating systems, and controlling schedule and budget. Fahria has project managed all the Aquarium’s green rated construction projects, including the LEED® Platinum Watershed Classroom and Three Green Globes® certified Pacific Collections gift store. Fahria received her bachelor of architecture degree from the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, India, and masters of business administration from DePaul University, Chicago.

EHDD Architecture Project Team:

• Duncan Ballash, AIA – Principal-in-Charge
• Quyen Luong, AIA- Project Designer / Project Architect
• Scott Arford, Robert Tranter, AIA, Katherine Miller, Amy Fashimpar, and Heidi Hanzawa, Chuck Davis, FAIA, – Principal Emeritus

Glass Panel Facade Engineers: BuroHappold Engineering, Los Angeles, CA
General Contractor: Clark Construction, Bethesda, MD
Glazing Contractor: Woodbridge Glass Inc.
Media Design: Cortina Productions, McLean, VA
AV Contractor: Edwards Technologies, El Segundo, CA
Exhibit Design: Bowman Change Inc., Irvine, CA
Exhibit Fabrication: K2 Design + Fabrication, Corona, CA
Art Installation Design: Convivial Studio, Germany
Owners Representative: TG Construction, El Segundo, CA
Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing: P2S Engineering, Long Beach, CA
Structural Engineering: Wheeler & Gray, Pasadena, CA
Civil Engineering: KPFF Consulting Engineers, Long Beach, CA
Lighting Design: KGM Architectural Lighting, Inc., Los Angeles, CA
Theater Design: John Sergio Fisher & Associates, Tarzana, CA
Landscape Design: Pamela Burton & Company, Santa Monica, CA
Geotechnical Services: GeoDesign, Inc., Anaheim, CA
Commissioning Services: Farnsworth Group, Claremont, CA

Photo Credit: ©2019 Tom Bonner

Photo for editorial use only in connection with the Aquarium of the Pacific. Not to be accessed by others not aware of this agreement to prevent unauthorized distribution or use. Downloading any or all of these images constitutes agreement to these terms.