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Under the title 'Performative Architecture', this thesis draws on theories from performance studies and phenomenology in order to look beyond humanist practices that see the body as fixed and static. This thesis addresses two questions that I will be arguing are of increasing significance to contemporary architecture: Firstly, in the context of emerging digital and digitised spaces, how does the living body interact with the surrounding environment?; and secondly, what do these changing forms of human inhabitation and movement mean for the practice of architecture? The time frame spans from the work of Oskar Schlemmer in the 1920s to contemporary built works, examining the different ways that performativity has infiltrated architectural design. The case studies are divided into architectural performances that highlight the living body, and performative drawings that explore how to bring that body into the design process. In doing so a number of emerging paradigms become apparent that find built form in contemporary architectural examples. This approach is used to describe and analyse recent projects by Daniel Libeskind, Peter Eisenman, Diller and Scofidio and Lars Spuybroek, and to identify a common orientation through very different types of built environments. Acknowledging the change in both bodies and spaces in the Information Age, this research seeks to make room for the living body in the design of emerging, multidimensional, built environments.

This thesis has focused on the development of a design process to strengthen the human-environment relationship through emphasizing the identity of place. By exploring and researching a comjnunity's cultural context, some sense of societal identity can be uncovered. However, it is in identifying a culture's values and traditions through its folklore that architects can begin to comprehend the meanings behind the symbols, stories, myths, music and rituals present within a community.Secondary research into the cultural-architectural relationship revealed what was coined in the 1960's and 70's by such scholars as Ian McHarg, Amos Rapoport, Christopher Alexander, and John Zeisel as "man-environment relationships." This research spoke of timelessness and connections of architecture to anthropology, archaeology and sociology.The question that arose from this investigation was, "How does one find the identity or spirit of a p/ace?" Through its people? Through its relics? What is missing as an important piece of the puzzle in the connection? Merely looking at a context or culture does not provide one with the underlying meanings of symbols, gestures, rituals, building practices and social values. One needs to see, listen, comprehend and internalize the culture and context of a place if one is to understand the culture in which the building exists. The connection with folklore and folklore studies became an avenue to be researched in finding this missing piece of the puzzle.The research method used to identify folklore within a given parameter was of the participatory-observation approach. Living for six months in the community started to unveil traits, customs and actions only primary research can reveal. Music, art, stories, rituals, and myths are the means by which people cannot otherwise explain values, thoughts and messages. These instruments. of folklore are the segways into understanding the people of a place. The primary and secondary sources of research set the stage for the conceptual design development of a civic structure within the cultural context of the community. What evolved from this architectural design experience is a scenario for this process to be integrated into architectural curricula at the college level. In creating designers that value unique identities of "place," the building of unique places respective of cultural context foster identity and meaning in an ever-changing global society.Architects have the challenge of designing in areas of the world that possess a variety of differing cultural contexts. How architects respond through creating the built environment in the 21St century will have lasting affects upon the identity of those cultures and their communities. / Department of Architecture

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Includes bibliographical references. / This thesis analyzes the needs of particular users of airport: transfer passengers. The object of this work has been to produce a set of design guidelines for terminals. these guidelines are framed upon a user-need survey conducted at Boston/Logan International Airport. The investigation has been organized around three important aspects: 1) how present airport terminal environments affect human behavior; 2) what are the physical characteristics and consequences of terminal design on transfer passengers; 3) how can a broader approach to the design of terminals with passengers in mind be applied. Current terminal design solutions have been "satisfactory" in terms of offering alternations for incoming and departing passengers. Very few terminals though, are prepared to cope with an increasing number of transfer passengers. This study clarifies passengers' characteristics and highlights those issues important for those who need to changed airplanes at an airport. These issues are: time involved in the transfer, means of arriving to the departing airline and the impact of the environment on the waiting passenger. the design guidelines presented as the conclusion of this study are an attempt to accommodate a set of behavioral variables to a system of physical variables. This environmental design approach is a continuing effort to include the user into the programming and design of projects. / by Marie-Claire Brillembourg. / M.S.