An investigation into a possible counter strategy that challenges destructive spatial practices in contested urban territories by cultivating networks of opportunity. The study focusses on interventions that deal with the micro level and is applied in a South African urban context, specifically Festival Street in Hatfield, Pretoria. / Dissertation (MInt(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Architecture / unrestricted

People’s authentic sense of place is being overshadowed by less authentic experiences referred to as placelessness. Consequently, a demand for experiential interior environments has surfaced. Experiential environmental and place attachment theories suggested that the relationships between self, others, and the environment are what encourage users in creating meaningful authentic experiences. This qualitative study explored the roles of the experiential interior architectural features in affording users of hospitality environments higher-level needs, such as meanings of place. For the case study, ten participants stayed at a hotel for two nights. Participants were given a guided list of ten facets of an experience, which was insidiously structured by both experiential environmental and place attachment theories. The participants used photographs to document each of the facets on the guided list. The photos were then used during the photo elicitation interviews, which evoked additional qualitative information. Participants identified specific interior architectural features and described them using the themes associated to place attachment theories. The findings revealed that the interior architectural features might enrich the meanings a person associates with a given place. Possibly affording users higher-level needs. As a result, if an experiential interior environment allows users to foster relationships between self, others, and the physical environment, they may experience more authentic experiences and give more meanings to a place.

Throughout time nature has been a prescribed healer of stress on the human condition. Its vital integration into our daily lives has been proven by scientific evidence. The majority of Americans spend approximately 1/3 of their life working, whatever that job may entail. Therefore, it makes sense that the environments that we spend so much of our life in for work at extremely important to our physical and mental health, however, current workplace models are not acknowledging that. Redefining the workplace to integrate nature would start to change work life in this country and how work itself is viewed. This thesis focuses on creating healthy and holistic production spaces for workers in areas like Western Massachusetts. Because this area shares urban and rural qualities while being primarily suburban of major Northeastern cities such as Boston and New York, it provides unique ground for a wide array of work occupations and work types. On a chosen site of Northampton, MA, a new work model will be developed around the exposure to nature integral to a collaborative co-op/ incubator space for small businesses in the area who need office and production spaces in a community setting. The progression of this research will lead to a developed incubation space with a positive environmental impact. Precedent research of archetypes such as Michael Singer’s Alterra Atria, and Miller Hull’s Bullitt Center exemplify sustainable criteria in relation to office architecture. By using concepts underlying an even further integration with the community ideas from John Dinkeloo & Kevin Roche’s Ford Foundation Headquarters, Candilis, Josic and Woods’ Freie University Berlin and BIG & Heatherwick’s New Google Headquarters. By creating a building that addresses the diverse makeup of the larger community of Northampton, MA, this co-op space would become an example of how a workplace can work with nature towards a greater impact on the environment post-occupancy.

The 'Beyond' as Bhaba1 (1994:1) conceives it, is "neither a new horizon, nor a leaving behind of the past"; rather it is the borders to the present. These boundaries of the present are the "that from which something begins its essential unfolding", according to Heidegger (1978:356). Unfolding as a consequence of the intersection of time and space, produces complex, as opposed to unitary or reductive, figures of difference and identity in Bhaba's (1994:2) view. It is with these 'complex figure of difference and identity' which enact 'hindsight' to re-describe our cultural contemporaneity; to re-inscribe our human, historic commonality, that this study is interested in. Within the context of nation branding, these figures offer an alternative to the archetypal western approach to identity construction. The western approach to nation branding is based on two critical assumptions; firstly, that modern nations are composed of homogeneous societies, and secondly, that these societies share a common culture. It is here that the problem lies, for at its essence, South Africa is pluralistic. We are a multicultural rainbow nation. We do not have typical shared myths, historical memories and a mass public culture due to historical and more recent political struggles within our country. Consequently, we do not follow the typical western approach to nation branding. It is therefore the intention of this study to make use of Bhaba's (1994) theory of the 'Beyond' and his notions of Interstices and Cultural Hybridity as adjectives and means of complex culture production, introduced above, to propose an alternative multicultural South African identity to be spatially transcribed into the South African pavilion at the Expo 2020, Dubai UAE. To this end, the study conducted a Hermeneutical, Social Visual Semiotic and Lexical analysis of I-JUSI, the selected hybrid culture. The results of the examination produced seven brand indicators. These indicators in conjunction with a set of design principals; established via a precedent study of artifacts, interiors, buildings and landscapes that explored or expressed the nation's new emerging collective national identity, will be used to spatially embody the design concept for the pavilion. / Die "Anderkant" (1994:1) soos Bhaba dit verstaan, is nie 'n "nuwe horison" maar ook nie " 'n vergeet van die verlede" nie, dit is liewer die grense van die huidige. Hierdie grense van die huidige is "dit wat waarvan iets sy noodsaaklike ontplooing begin", volgens Heidegger (1978:356). Ontplooing, as 'n gevolg van die kruising van tyd en ruimte, skep komplekse beelde in kontras met die unit?re of reduserende, beelde met verskille en identiteite uit Bhaba (1994:2) se oogpunt. Dit is met hierdie "komplekse beeld van verskil en identiteit" wat "nawete" implementeer dat ons ons kulturele tydelikheid kan her-definieer; om ons menslike, historiese ooreenkomste te her-graveer, dit is die studie waarmee ons onself mee bemoei. Binne die die begrip van handelsmerking bied hierdie beelde 'n alternatief tot die argetipiese westerse benadering tot identiteits konstruksie. Die westerse benadering tot handelsmerking is gebaseer op twee kritiese aannames: eerstens, dat moderne nasies van homogene samelewings saamgestel is, en tweedens, dat hierdie samelewings 'n algemene kultuur deel. Dit is hier waar die probleem l?, want Suid Afrika is wesentlik pluristies. Ons is 'n multi-kulturele re?nboog nasie . Ons besit nie tipiese legendes wat gedeel word onder ons nie en historise herinneringe en 'n massa publiek as gevolg van historiese en meer onlangse politiese stryd in ons land. Dus as 'n gevolg, volg ons nie die tipiese westerse benadering tot nasie handelsmerking nie. Die doel van hierdie studie is dus om gebruik te maak van Bhaba (1994) se teorie van die "Anderkant" en sy nasies van tussenruimtes en kulturele hibridisasie as byvoeglike naamwoorde, en wyses van kompleks kultuur produksie, soos hierbo bekendgestel, om 'n alternatiewe multikulturele Suid Arikaanse identiteit voor te stel en om die studie op 'n ruimtelike wyse op skrif te stel binne die Suid Afrikaanse Paviljoen by die "Expo 2020, Dubai UAE". Vir hierdie doel omvat die studie 'n hermeneutiese, sosiaal visuele semoitiese en leksikale analise van l-JUSI, die verkose hibried kultuur. Die resultate van die ondersoek het sewe handels indikators gewerf. Hierdie merke, tesame met 'n stel ontwerp beginsels ,het deur middel van 'n presedent studie van artefakte, interieurs, geboue en landskappe wat die nasie se nuwe ontluikende kollektiwe persoonlike identiteit uitdruk, gaan gebruik word om die ontwerp konsep van die pawiljoen ruimtelik uit te druk. / Mini Dissertation (MInt (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Architecture / MInt (Prof) / Unrestricted

The number of single-family residences in the Nederlandsche Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg- Maatschappij (NZASM) heritage area, to the east of the Pretoria Train Station, has decreased over recent years. Due to the pressures of the Tshwane Compaction and Densification Strategy (2005) and the addition of high rise apartment blocks positioned between the houses, the area’s density is certain to increase further and the future of these heritage structures are in jeopardy. A fragmented urban environment has resulted, which is further emphasised by the discrepancy in scale and density of the built structures. The few remaining houses have been altered in varying degrees to suit the needs of their occupants, with no regard to their heritage value in most cases. An approach to maintain the cultural and historical value of the area would be to introduce a new function which would attract diverse visitors in a bid to regenerate the area. As a catalyst to generate interest, tourist interventions are proposed in and around selected houses, with the intention of stitching the fragmented urban fabric from the interior outwards. The vision for the site is to create the NZASM Tourist Precinct, with different amenities and accommodation options for tourists. / Mini Dissertation MInt(Prof)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Architecture / MInt(Prof) / Unrestricted

The central theme of my degree project is the concept of solid and void, with each piece embodying a unique idea. The void element represents a container that can be filled with individual thoughts and perceptions. My goal is to create interactive objects that can be viewed from different perspectives, allowing for a personalised experience based on one’s expectations, experiences, and perceptions. I believe that the point of view from which we look at things (how we look at things) might be more important than what kind of thing it is. Through my work, I aim to induce people to change their perspectives on their daily objects and surroundings.  This thesis report is the story of my graduation work, which I worked on from December 2022 to May 2023. It contains the intentions and aims I was trying to convey through my work, the process of working on it, the difficulties I encountered along the way, and my concerns. I wrote this thesis report as a kind of working notebook or end-of-day diary, writing honestly about what I felt and learned during the process. / <p>KunSik Choi</p><p>www.kunsik.com</p>

This report discusses my exam project Entasis through four short essays. Through the project I have investigated and demonstrated how knowledge of and responsiveness to the properties of wood can generate a system for design and interior architecture. Through the project, I have described this process as a formulation of a material language, vocabulary or dialect. The metaphor of the dialect is used to highlight how materials is the language through which design and interior architecture is expressed. The project aims to demonstrate how proficiency in the language of wood makes new expressions - or dialects - possible. One important theme running through the whole work is the concept of invoking design. Through describing the objects I have built as machines, i demonstrate how the properties of wood can be an active part in the genesis of design. Design is generated by the machine through the tension between its parts. The aim of this method is to find designs that cannot be planned and to demonstrate how ideas is not outside the material - they are rather invoked from inside the material. The method is applied on different scales to generate both furniture and architectural elements.   Another important theme is Entasis - a word that during the project has changed meaning from historical curiosity to animating force. Through tensioning objects in various ways I try to demonstrate how objects can be simultaneously constructed and animated. The relation between the properties of the wood used and the non - material expression and atmosphere that the tension generates is demonstrated in an architectural system of long, tensioned pieces of wood used in the exhibition that the project was presented in.  In the ending reflection the relation between material efficiency and aesthetics is discussed. The outcome of the project is both wood - specific constructions and expressions but also general attitudes towards materiality, in the production of interior architecture and design.

Once upon a time there was a beautiful cinema in Stockholm called Draken. This story is about her, a lost public space that once boasted many qualities and expectations. Sadly, today, she is nothing more than a large storage facility where Stockholm residents can rent a few extra square meters. The awakening of Draken highlights the importance of adapting to changing behaviors in the context of cinemas and screen watching, to update the cinema room and to revive these public spaces for future use. The proposal focuses on contemporary behaviors of interacting with moving images, such as watching movies, dancing, sing-alongs and gaming, among others. By creating a narrative around it, and a spatial dramaturgy in the interior, I aim to tell an alternative story where Draken in the future is transformed into an atmospheric and thriving place for social interaction and screen viewing

The lives of graduate students are often insular and focused, with high workloads and resultant stresses. Beyond the unifying demands of academia, graduate students have a diverse set of individual challenges. Some students have families, some are visiting the US and learning to live in a new culture, and some are fresh out of undergraduate studies and living on their own for the first time. In addition to these challenges the graduate student body is a diverse and disparate group, representing varied cultures, experiences and generations. Due to these demands and circumstances the students have little time and energy to build a community with fellow graduate students, and therefore don't have a strong and supportive community when they need it most. The idea of creating and supporting intentional communities through the design of housing has been architecturally explored for many years. From the mass housing of the early modernist movement through contemporary cohousing, there have been varying degrees of success.The intent of this thesis project is to design a place of dwelling for graduate students within the campus of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. By analyzing examples of intentional communities and the actual needs of the graduate community at UMass Amherst, I intend to design a place of dwelling for graduate students that supports the development of community, and therefore the individual residents.

Through translations and transformations, my degree project aims to explore what makes something – space, or an object– charged. I am investigating ways to create objects with the starting point in two pieces of furniture, analyzing them both in their everyday contexts, and in certain works of art. This has resulted in the creation of two works that I have called an imprint and a bench and a bed. The quality that I have been searching for in this project is what activates a subjective feeling of recognition that will stay in the mind of the beholder, a charge in an object that affects memory or consciousness. The way I explore this quality is by analyzing the terms Eros and punctum and by investigating the relationship between the abstract and the figurative, examining the bodily connection to the objects and the surrounding.