Richmond, Virginia has, through recent design proposals and projects, sought reconciliation with the countries in West Africa that were once the source for slave trade in which the city was such an active participant. These admirable works address the nations’ shared history, perhaps at the expense of understanding modern cultures. This thesis seeks to create this understanding through the development of an educational facility that would interact with Richmond’s current landscape. In pursuit of respectful relationship, I address the ways in which design can authentically teach about place. The study begins with the creation of a personal understanding of site through diagrammatic analysis. The research continues with case studies that relate to either the context, program or process of this project. The concepts this research generated led to a proposed design solution for the Southern Railway Freight building in Richmond’s Shockhoe Slip. Both design processes and the proposed solution are documented herein.

One of the most exciting aspects of traveling is the ability to, for a short time, experience what life is like in a different part of the world. Whether traveling fifty miles away from home or to another continent, cultures, landscapes, and the many nuances of day-to-day life change. The beauty of travel comes from curiosity, exploration, and discovery. It’s that moment when your heart skips a beat and your mind fills with pure delight because you’ve just discovered something new about the world that you never knew before. Another part of the traveling experience is having a place to stay at night. While there are many options, over the past decade, the boutique hotel has grown in popularity. Boutique hotels are known for being small and they distinguish themselves as luxurious and unique in addition to providing premium services and amenities for their guests. This thesis begs the question; can design be used in such a way that an establishment, such as a boutique hotel, can begin to signify more than just a collection decorated rooms so that it contributes to the story being told with respect to place? Through research and personal experience I have found that most small hotels that fit the definition of a boutique hotel do not market themselves as such while large, chain hotels that do not fit the same definition, do. This can be misleading. Many boutique hotels can offer a unique experience for their guests by differentiating room decor so that every room is different or by creating an elegant and intimate lobby or dining experience, however, none have demonstrated a direct connection between the hotel and the context in which it resides. The Power Plant at Lucky Strike, located at 2700 East Cary Street, will serve as the building for this project. The building was originally constructed in 1930 for the purpose of providing power to the neighboring Lucky Strike building which was used as a cigarette factory. The building is in a prime location and situated at the end of the historic and popular Shockoe Bottom strip with Church Hill to the north and the James River just south. With the building’s original shell still intact, my goal is to create a hotel experience that is unique in the sense that it too, will help to continue to tell Richmond’s story.

Mark-making captures movement and preserves gesture. Marks can reveal the motion behind their creation and convey thoughts through non-verbal, non-literal means.

This thesis documents the design process for an out-patient mental health facility for veterans of war. Here are some questions that drove my design work. How are stories told in design? How are stories generated from users within a designed space? Can users participate in contributing to a space's design? Many structures create psychological stories through graphics, color, and layout to involve users in their procedures. For example, commercial retailers will setup a story line to promote a more personalized connection with their customers which encourages repeat business, while places of worship also use this narrative strategy to evoke a spiritual experience. Many historical museums are also terrific examples of involving people in a story line to explain their contents. Thus, spaces can also tell stories and involve occupants within these set story lines, but this document and the resulting designed space explore the potential for interior design to generate stories from its users.

This thesis is an exploration of the way design facilitates people’s understanding of a place. Hermeneutic theorist Hans Georg Gadamer wrote that we belong to history in the “splendid magic of immediately mirroring the present in the past and the past in the present”. Hermeneutics is the study of how we interpret non-verbal communication. Researching the history of the site on multiple scales guided design decisions that will intuitively shape visitor’s comprehension of Pump House Park’s past, present and future relationship with the city.

This intent of this project is to explore the importance of handmade objects in the age of information.

The design of an urban retreat within an industrial building in Georgetown, DC provides an opportunity to experience water in the built environment. The location of the building between two bodies of water—the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and the Potomac River—creates an opportunity to connect water and the visitors. Management of the water to ensure responsible resource use was researched and accommodated in the design. Water is further used to shape the space and the moods created by the volumes, materials and finishes. The final project provides a luxurious shower and locker room, a series of pools, and a tea room, open to the sky, across three levels.

In the course of the modernization of Qatar, the need for camels has greatly diminished; herds have reduced in numbers and are now confined to enclosures. Overall, neglect of this valuable resource means that the camel is threatened with extinction. Currently, there is a need to address problems about sustainable development in Qatar by taking actions such as investing in the existing natural heritage to develop the use of indigenous animals like the camel. Through a review of past and present use of the native dromedary, a new type of sustainable agritourism will be developed that will provide a type of farm where visitors can learn about, and interact with, traditional animals. These farms will create a market for a range of camel products, thereby transforming the national symbol of the past into an icon of a sustainable future.

My search for creative inspiration often leads to explorations in natural and built environments. Being physically immersed in an environment offers endless vantage points, as well as points of focus; allowing all senses to function as receptors of surrounding data. Observations stimulate thoughts and ideas, which inspire experiments. Projects are born, sometimes out of the smallest details. In a series of projects I explore the possibilities of using physical environments as primary source of inspiration and input in the creation of tools that function in design contexts.

Hospitals can no longer be thought of as simply healing machines--they are healing organisms. It is Nature that permits every miracle of medicine, and it is Science that permits our understanding of medicine. By combining the two into a single idea, we aim to strike a balance between the duality of Nature and Technology, in order to design a space that relies more on the healing powers of Nature and less on the intrusiveness of Technology.