The discourse investigates the relationship between the hierarchical structure of the formal and the network of the informal at both a socio-economic and programmatic level and as the generator of an approach to the design problem. The site is located in the Health Precinct between Braamfontein and Hillbrow, in an area characterised by a thriving informal economy and much illegal activity. During the Apartheid years, Hillbrow came to symbolise the breakdown of racial segregation. Today, the prominence of the foreign population makes Hillbrow a hot-bed of xenophobic sentiment. A study of the social context points towards the emergence in Hillbrow of a new mode of spatial regulation - tending towards the spatial regimes prevalent in African megacities such as Lagos and Accra - which becomes a critical determinant of the entire discourse. The project is a Cultural Centre for the Foreign Community, providing a refuge for the foreign population; a place of meeting and interaction; a platform for an anti-xenophobia campaign, and a wellspring of economic opportunity through the integration of the programmes of the formal and informal economy. / Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Architecture / unrestricted

The experiences of the past can serve to enrich the knowledge of the present and progression to future generations. As such architecture should be viewed in accordance with literature, music, art and film as a collective depiction of the transition from past ideals to the contemporary values and future aspirations of a living city. Sites of historic importance within the Central Business District (CBD) will be investigated as qualitative research to determine the significance of these sites to current citizens. This will be used to determine the best location and manifestation of an intervention that will create a dialogue between the citizens of today and the urban landscape, encapsulating Pretoria’s history of social transition which indicates heritage as a living time line. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted

This thesis proposes an architectural design for a public cultural centre for the diverse Chinese immigrant population in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It addresses the history of Chinatown’s formation and how this ethnic community came to be, as well as analyzing how waves of Chinese immigrants contribute to the evolution of Calgary’s Chinatown. The reinterpretation of traditional Chinese architectural concepts and elements in ancient courtyard houses is essential to searching for identity. This reinterpretation studies the spatial organization and structural system, the generation of solids and voids, and the relationship between nature and the built form. This thesis explores a new design for Calgary’s Chinese Cultural Centre by combining traditional Chinese architectural concepts with successful existing and proposed programs to express culture and immigrant integration. It proposes functionality of different courtyards and includes cultural programs such as a performance theatre, heritage and cultural museum, Chinese school, restaurant, exhibition gallery, gymnasium, and a public library.

The project investigates features of Romani Architecture

Diploma thesis is about new town hall for the district Brno-Kohoutovice. The part of it is small hall for multiple uses of local community, commercials areas and common rooms. The place can be called the square. Kohoutovice is really special - they are almost whole from prefab houses from 70s. This affected creating of building and whole thinking about how should the building look like. Functionalism urbanism is mostly like randomly scattered garbage. It is not right if we try to make the new buildings to fit in. I have designed buildings, which are responding to qualities of place and which are creating a new senses of the area. The new town hall is symbol of local community.

Skeppartorp Film - Peoples House is a cinema situated along the canal in the city of Torshälla just north of Eskilstuna. The city has 10 000 inhabitants and is currently lacking a cinema. The building has three auditoriums with 96, 52 and 40 seats where the larger auditorium also can be used for theater. There is also an open outdoor cinema on the ground floor. Except for the auditoriums there are studios for film and foto that can be used by both amateurs and professionals. Next to the studios there is an exhibition area with screens where studio creations can be viewed. This area is passed by visitors before they enter an auditorium. The building consists of wood and concrete and has a copper facade on the two upper floors. / Skeppartorp Film - Folkets hus är en biograf placerad längs kanalen i staden Torshälla strax norr om Eskilstuna. Staden har 10 000 invånare och saknar i nuläget biograf. Byggnaden har tre salonger om 96, 52 respektive 40 sittplatser där den större salongen även kan användas för teater. På markplan finns också en öppen utomhusbiograf. Utöver biosalongerna erbjuder byggnaden tre studiolokaler för kreativt arbete inom film och foto för både amatörer och professionella. I anslutning till dessa finns en utställningsyta med bildskärmar där det som skapas i studiolokalerna kan visas upp. Denna yta passeras dessutom av biobesökare med syfte att uppehålla människor i byggnaden. Byggnaden har en stomme i trä och betong och har på de två övre planen en fasad i koppar.

The Rumi Cultural Events Centre explores how the built environment can reflect a cultural phenomenon such as the evolution of Muslim communities in Western secular society of Canada. The centre has been designed for second generation Muslims, whose simultaneous exposure to religious and secular values change their outlook on religion and culture (Greif, 2007; Amor, 2006, Hadjiyanni, 2007; Kohut, Allan & Wike, 2006; Akyol, 2011; Mandaville, 2001; Distin, 2001). They reinvent the notion of Islam in a secular context, and create a synthesis that embodies religiosity, culture and secularism. The Rumi Centre is a new typology of space that emerges from a need to synthesize the new Muslim identity and values in order to create a non-traditional cultural environment. The Rumi Centre is not a religious institution. It is a culturally appropriate and contemporary events venue where forward looking and traditional Muslims come together with the local community. The centre’s design language reflects the attitude of Muslims who embrace modernity and secular lifestyle but remain true to their culture. / May 2016

Globalization and the advancement of technology have made the world smaller. Boundaries that define nations and nationalities have blurred and the resulting sense of displacement has undermined assumptions of identity and conversely made the search for identity more urgent. This thesis investigates the dialogue between the contemporary arts and architecture through the lens of the Filipino culture as a way to recapture and bring to the surface the contemporary identity of Filipinos and the Philippines. It proposes an understanding of history, geography and culture as a complex floating archipelago out of which our identity as individuals and nations emerge. It suggests that the events of history and the characteristics of geography are the grounds out of which art, myths and legends continue to be formed and sustain their relevance. Today, these compelling narratives emerge through the works of contemporary artists. They help us view and understand our flaws, struggles, triumphs, and future as a society in a way that speaks of our culture and time. Architecture, as a container and stage for culture must be sensitive to this artistic contemporaneity if it is to be indexical to our time. The Philippines, as a culture of hybrid and regional identities, has long struggled to make sense of the Contemporary in a largely Traditional society. The thesis proposes a new Centre for Contemporary Arts in Manila to bring the diverse artistic activities of the country into focus. It intervenes at interface between the Traditional and the Contemporary, which bridges the gap between the two, thus heralding a Cultural Renaissance and help generate a sense of contemporary nationalism.

This thesis focuses on analyzing Cross Laminated Timber manufacture and use for the purpose of suggesting ways to enrich involved technology through the further application of digital fabrication techniques. Framed within the context of making and craft, product and processes are explored to search for opportunities where reevaluating current production methods may arise. It is also in this context that concepts of embodied/ embedded information and emergence are employed to suggest ideas for rethinking CLT, its fabrication and use. Based on research findings, new CLT panel types are prototyped and their required fabrication approaches proposed. The results are applied to a building design for a site in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

This research examines the process of memorialisation around the Indian Residential School System in Canada to draw connections between the fields of transitional justice and professional urban planning. For over a century, government and churches in Canada operated a system of residential schools that removed Indigenous children from their families and communities. Today, many Indigenous communities struggle with the intergenerational impacts of this system, and as a society we are attempting to heal the damaged relationships that have resulted. This research presents a comparative case study of two processes of memorialisation surrounding the residential school system. Through site observations, interviews, and analyses of documents, this research examines the transformation and memorialisation of the Mohawk Institute, a former residential school, into the Woodland Cultural Centre, a First Nations-run centre located in Brantford, Ontario. I compare this example with the national Commemoration Fund, set out in the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement (2006), which settled lawsuits filed by residential school survivors against the federal government of Canada and several church organisations. This research underlines some tensions inherent in memorialising the human rights abuses experienced in the residential schools. A significant difficulty is establishing balance between leaving ownership of stories of the residential school experiences with survivors, while acknowledging the responsibilities that the whole of society must carry if reconciliation is to be achieved. I conclude that the process established through the Commemoration Fund does not adequately reflect this balance, leaving a heavy burden on survivors and their communities without providing adequate support. I further argue that the timelines established through this fund do not allow for the longer-term evolution that may characterize effective memorialisation projects. These themes link to theories around collaborative planning, and considerations of social justice and procedural fairness. In recent decades, collaborative planning has been seen as a way to make planning practices more inclusive. However, in the context of planning with Indigenous Peoples, collaborative processes may not be a sufficient response to rights claims. This has important implications for professional planners, as we work towards decolonization, reconciliation, and establishing just-relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations in Canada. / Thesis (Master, Urban & Regional Planning) -- Queen's University, 2012-09-08 13:19:55.027