This thesis seeks to investigate how architecture can utilize different techniques to introduce people to landscape, specifically those who have an uncomfortable relationship with nature due to inequities in access to quality green space, a cultural distancing from nature due to historical acts of violence, or an increasingly urban and work focused lifestyle. A proposed Visitor Center in Rock Creek Park, in Washington, DC, acts as a slow transition from park to city and back again, breaking the landscape into more digestible pieces before putting it back together as a whole. The building's strategy for introduction can be broken up into two categories, what the building reveals to visitors, and what it tells visitors. The building reveals the surrounding landscape in a rhythmic way of spaces of rest and spaces of activity, utilizing entrances on different levels, screened views, and glass corners to frame the landscape and topography. It is also designed to reveal the power of the environment, the sun, the rain, and the snow, in weathering the materials and creating a dynamic appearance and exposing the ways in which water runs through the site. In addition to showing the park, the building also is responsible for educating visitors about the important cultural and natural history of the park. The architecture supports the education of visitors in a flexible and non-technological way, using a variety of surfaces to display information to be seen and touched, to encourage the slowing down of minds and bodies to facilitate the transition from the bustling city to the restorative nature of the park. The proposed building utilizes design concepts present in nature and integrates them into the architecture of the building, to create an introductory experience into the landscape that touches the senses and the mind, preparing the visitors to enjoy the park. / Master of Architecture / This thesis, Taking Root, seeks to investigate how architecture can utilize different techniques to introduce people to a landscape, specifically those who have an uncomfortable relationship with nature due to inequities in access to quality green space, a cultural distancing from nature due to historical acts of violence, or an increasingly urban and work focused lifestyle. Research shows that time spent in nature improves mental and physical health outcomes, and the disparity of access or quality creates an issue of injustice. A proposed Visitor Center in Rock Creek Park, in Washington, DC, seeks to remedy that by acting as a slow transition from park to city and back again, and down into the canyon and back again. The building’s strategy for facilitating an introduction can be broken up into three categories: how the building relates to the environment, what the building reveals to visitors, and what it tells visitors. First, the building is designed to reveal the power of the environment, the sun, the rain, and the snow, on the façade through the careful selection of materials specifically for their weathering properties. In addition, the use of a native vine allows the building to change colors through the four seasons of the park, and mirror the forest that surrounds it. The combination of these techniques, plus minimizing the environmental impact of the building through stormwater management, a green roof for local pollinators, bird-safe glass, and reducing solar gain exposes the critical relationship between architecture and environment. Secondly, the visitor center reveals the landscape through the adoption of techniques found in nature that facilitate a powerful introduction to a place, and formalizes them into the architecture of the building and experience of the visitors. The techniques to promote familiarity with the park include controlling the pace with a series of long, curving paths and embracing the rhythm of the topography with ramps and the seasons with a pattern of spaces for activity and rest, teasing with glimpses through the tree-like screen and through the glass gills, framing the view into the park. In addition, the building strives to amplify liminal space, a threshold between the old and new, architecture and nature, which exists in the glass corner gills. These corners jutting into the park, lit by a skylight, and fed fresh air by automated ventilation louvers, allows for a person to have a more intimate experience, in a way that really exists outside of the building, but in a way that provides the comfort of familiarity and not being quite all the way in nature either. Finally, the building also is responsible for telling the visitors what they need to know by educating them on the important cultural and natural history of the park. The architecture supports the education of visitors in a flexible and non-technological way, using a variety of surfaces to display information to be seen and touched, to encourage the slowing down of minds and bodies to facilitate the transition from the bustling city to the restorative nature of the park. The proposed building utilizes its interaction with the physical environment, design concepts present in nature to reveal the landscape, and conveys information in a way and pace that is reflective of the way time moves in the park. All three strategies combine to create an introductory experience into the landscape that touches the senses and the mind, preparing the visitors to enjoy and appreciate Rock Creek Park.

The following thesis project explores the design of a nature center and planetarium within Rock Creek Park, in Washington, DC. The project evolved from a desire to re-imagine a relationship with nature in a way that allows conversation, reflective thinking, and allows one's sense of wonder to enter a place which is between science and myth. The design of the nature center and planetarium was developed by investigating the dualities which exist within and around the site, such as earth and air, day and night,and winter and summer. The goal was to create a building which is fully embedded in the site around it, to create a unique environment for exploration and conversation, and a place to contemplate one's relationship with nature. / Master of Architecture

Mental health struggles and suicide rates in athletic populations have been on the rise for the past two decades, with an even bigger increase since the pandemic. Disorders such as stress, depression, and anxiety have been the main causes for these struggles and fatalities. The growing rates of mental health disorders and suicide within this population indicate that athletes do not have the adequate resources to restore and improve their mental health. In some instances of presenting their troubles to coaches, staff, or teammates, their only advice is to seek help with on-campus resources or resources at home. Although this can be sound advice in some cases, this can also create the sense that there is no escape from what may be the cause of these mental obstacles. The purpose of this thesis is to create a mental health retreat for collegiate, professional, olympic, and retired athletes. Tucked away at the edge of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C., in between existing amenities such as the Carter Barron Amphitheatre and the William Fitzgerald Tennis Center, the retreat allows for the continual use of existing amenities along with other resources and practices provided on-site. This retreat aims to provide spaces and resources at a location that teams or individuals can visit to allow for healing and education about these mental health disorders. This serene space in the middle of a chaotic big city will provide space for resting, performing, healing, and overall restoring which begins to break the barriers between what can be overcome in the feelings that may seem indomitable. / Master of Architecture / Mental health struggles and rising suicide rates among athletes have become increasingly concerning over the past two decades, with a significant spike since the pandemic. Stress, depression, and anxiety are the primary issues affecting this population, and current resources appear inadequate to address their needs. Often, athletes are advised to seek help from on-campus or home resources, which may not always be effective and can sometimes exacerbate feelings of entrapment. This thesis proposes the creation of a mental health retreat for collegiate, professional, Olympic, and retired athletes. Located at the edge of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C., near amenities like the Carter Barron Amphitheatre and the William Fitzgerald Tennis Center, this retreat offers a peaceful environment for healing and education. By utilizing existing amenities and providing additional on-site resources and practices, the retreat aims to support athletes in their mental health journeys. This serene space in the heart of a bustling city will offer opportunities for rest, performance, healing, and overall restoration, helping athletes overcome mental health challenges.

This project consisted of the design and presentation of a monastery in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C. The scheme developed consisted of a church, library, refectory(kitchen and dining space), campanile(bell tower), four chapels, individual cells and gardens, and exterior connecting spaces including a central and sub-plaza. The monastery design was developed in terms of the circulation of the monks from their individual cells to the various communal centers at the top of the hill. Both visual and topographical means were examined in this development. This volume includes the completed monastery as well as some of the stages reached in the development of the finished design. / Master of Architecture

All material in nature, the mountains and the streams and the air and we, are made of Light which has been spent, and this crumpled mass called material casts a shadow, and the shadow belongs to Light. Louis I. Kahn¹ I like complexity and contradiction in architecture. I do not like the incoherence or arbitrariness of incompetent architecture nor the precious intricacies of picturesqueness or expressionism. Instead, I speak of a complex and contradictory architecture based on the richness and ambiguity of modern experience, including that experience which is inherent in art. Robert Venturi² / Master of Architecture