Can a house be a product? This thesis sets out to form a set of basic elements for a minimum house in light of this question that is both functional and aesthetic. The goal is to develop an efficient prefabricated system of construction analogous to a chart of chemical elements. The modular system is then applied to the most basic footprint for a house - a 400 square foot Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU). Through studying the fundamental parts of a house, a level of understanding emerges, which allows for a projection of the idea as a whole. The ideal of prefabrication posits the possibility of architecture as a system. This idea has attracted architects for decades, despite what appears to be an inherent tension between architecture as a system and the poetic iconicity of the house as a type. A study of the systemic introduced by considerations of prefabrication can offer a deeper understanding of the complex nature of architecture. Finally, can the essence of architecture endure amidst the necessary limitations of factory production and manufacturing in our post-industrial age? / Master of Architecture / This thesis consists of a system-generated 400 square foot prefabricated house, a catalog of the house's elements, an expanded catalog of small houses, and a series of studies conducted while traveling through Europe and upon return. The system utilizes a series of functional pods and frames the 'served' with panelized elemental compounds such as walls, floors, and roofs to meet the programmatic requirements of a house. By applying this limited catalog, the feasibility of production can be explored through an expanded catalog. Ultimately, the whole must be greater than the sum of its parts; through tectonic articulation, functional clarity and an additive approach, this can be achieved while meeting the strict constraints that prefabrication demands.

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The project presented here is a NCAA Division I capacity football stadium located on the campus of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. This stadium is a vehicle for exploring and expressing my ideas about the role of structure in architecture, and about an architect's realm of control in a building project. The typology of a stadium allows for a limited number of functional requirements while, at the same time, allowing for, if not demanding, a creative structural solution. / Master of Architecture

The Costume Museum of Canada (CMC) is the first of its kind in Canada. It works as a comprehensive repository where Canadian clothing and textile artifacts are collected, preserved, and presented. Traveling exhibits are important to the CMC to present the collection to a wider audience; however, the CMC’s financial limitations restrict how they can support traveling exhibitions. This practicum project addresses the desire of the museum for a facility to stage traveling exhibits by the design of a Traveling Exhibition System (TES) for the CMC. The practicum explores the concepts of cultural communication, narratology and mise-en-scene. It will facilitate Canadian cultural education through the exhibition of CMC’s vast collection of costumes and related accessories in a cost effective and sustainable manner. TES will be an exhibit system that can be set up within existing buildings and spaces. The project offers the possibility for the CMC to generate revenue and to facilitate dissemination of Canadian fashion culture and history regionally and nationally.