Virtual Bauer Wurster

UC Berkeley XR Lab: Reimagine architectural education during COVID-19.

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My Role

User Experience Designer

Team

1 Project Manager
1 Frontend Engineer
1 Backend Engineer
2 Architectural Model Maker

Tools

Figma

Timeline

Jun 2020 – Mar 2021

Description

A VR experience was created explicitly for architecture students at UC Berkeley to collaborate in a virtual studio and share projects.

Context

I led the design of Virtual Bauer Wurster, a virtual reality platform transforming the architecture studio experience to an online environment during the pandemic.

Starting with an urgent ask to “bring the studio online,” I helped define the product vision, shaped the onboarding and spatial UX, and collaborated closely with faculty, developers, and researchers to design an immersive environment that could support peer feedback, exhibitions, and critique.

We moved quickly, designing and shipping the experience within six months to minimize disruption to students’ education during shelter-in-place.

Impact

Designed and shipped the entire VR experience within 6 months during the height of the pandemic.

Recreated core aspects of studio life—pin-ups, feedback, and peer exploration—in a virtual space that felt familiar and personal.

The platform became a social anchor for students and was even used to host a virtual graduation celebration, offering a shared sense of closure during an otherwise disconnected academic year.