Atolwa Shihika

I am an architect in training practicing in Mombasa with a focus on contemporary residential design for the East African climate. My design philosophy rests on honest material expression and clear massing and a disciplined relationship between built form and plot. Each home is composed from the plot boundary inward so that circulation and orientation and privacy are resolved before finishes are chosen.

DESIGN ABILITY
I design detached and semi detached residences from concept through to presentation drawings and visualization. My work addresses facade composition and spatial planning and interior detailing. I control proportion through projecting cornices and deep recessed balconies and vertical screening elements that give shade and rhythm to the elevation.

PROJECT EXPERIENCE
Two story residential villas with facing brick and rendered walls and charcoal framed balconies and vertical louvre screens and glass balustrades.
Masonry residences with stone cladding and double height glazed entrance volumes and accessible roof terraces with parapet walls.
Walled plots with paved parking courts and landscaped frontages and planted boundaries.
Interior design for compact homes with exposed timber roof structure and sliding glazed openings and timber veneer joinery in open plan kitchen and living and dining areas.

PROFICIENT SOFTWARE
Graphisoft ArchiCAD for modelling and documentation.
D5 Render and Lumion for architectural visualization.
Chat-GPT and Stable Diffusion for concept imagery and interior studies.

DESIGN STRENGTH
Material composition and photorealistic visualization and coherent exterior and interior design language. I give clients a clear view of the finished building through accurate renders and drawings before construction begins.

I welcome commissions in residential design and interior design and 3D visualization.