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What is a memory? What is the past? A memory is not happening in terrain, in section or in plan. All what matters is taking place in a range of our sight. I reject a „unlimited“ surface of a drawing as well as a tyrany of a scale. Instead I start designing from details, from lost memories of an inhabitation of places. In my mind I am walking through rooms and houses, which are part of a fluid space of my memory. The time creates relationships among things, furnitur, buildings. When the layers are overlapping, peculiar moments of fusion are emerging. Forgotten objects, blinded windows, things that are laying on the same spot for decades without a „function“ just of a habit. Memories are similar to an unfocused view of a camera. Although this is not the case of romantic nostalgia but a existencial need for a continuity. The narrative of early Modernism about a rejection of either the past or a illusion of the ornament, which was replaced by a „truthfulness of a material“, later took the direction of an abstraction, optimalization and effectivity. Apart of a mass-production, norm dimensions of spaces and a prefabrication this made a paradoxical opportunity for a material’s return as a decoration and ornament. The project is happening in-between the paradoxes of a Modernism: it neither masks the present nor it rejects the past.

A public square provides for a social cultural life to take place. The square ought to be located in the part of the city where human activities are the most intense. The edges of the square consist of the buildings that define its space. The architectural style of these buildings shapes the character of the square and embodies the social cultural circumstances of a society. The experience of a public square goes beyond its structured aspects. In fact, each man-made place is located within a natural landscape that changes its appearances during the rhythm of the day and the seasons. It is the combination of the natural phenomena and the architecture that creates the atmosphere of a place. A total integration between these two elements constitutes the "spirit of place" or genius loci. According to Heidegger, human settlement has an enclosure and any enclosure has a boundary. This is also true for the square, the boundary of which is formed by its surrounding buildings. However, this boundary is not continuous, as it is interrupted by pedestrian paths and streets that lead to the square. The quality of a square’s enclosure is related to the characteristic of the openings. The aim of this design thesis is to conceive a public square for today’s social-cultural environment; a public square that is located within a cultural center at Shirlington, Arlington County, Virginia. The buildings of the center form an architectural unity that sets the stage for community events to take place. The articulation and the form of the buildings related to the natural environment make people feel that they were designed for them. This means a place where people can experience a strong feeling of location. / Master of Landscape Architecture

I have organized this paper into four chapters: "The Environmental Situation," "Space and Place," "Art and the Natural Environment," and "Creating Work of My Own." Chapter 1 explains human beings' intrinsic interconnection to the natural environment, outlining why humans should be concerned about the current degraded state of the natural world. Chapter 2 discusses the concepts of space and place. It analyzes how human beings interact with and experience spaces, developing their sense of place - within physical, theoretical, and spiritual realms. It finally illustrates the importance that spaces and places have in humans' lives. Chapter 3 describes the Land Art phenomenon: its development, the different forms within it, and artists producing Land Artworks. The forms and artists included are those that have been inspirational for the development of my own work. It also emphasizes Land Art as a fundamental form for improving humans' relationship with the natural environment and the new realm of eco-feminism that resonates with Land Art ideals. Chapter 4 recounts the development of my art throughout my college career. It describes my work as site-specific, sculptural installations that use natural materials. It also states why this format is the most effective for my senior art thesis project. Focusing mainly on "Ecological Reawakening: organic DNA," it explains the mentality in designing, creating, installing, and completing the work. Overall, Chapter 4 emphasizes the work's two main goals: to demonstrate a new avenue for comprehending humankind's place within earth's environmental spaces, and to advocate for an environmental paradigm shift during the twenty-first century. Finally, Chapter 5 describes the transformation of "Ecological Reawakening: organic DNA" as it developed over time during the spring honors senior thesis course. It details my mentalities in adding living plant matter to the structure, incorporating a stool into the piece, and creating "Evolution," the digital photography composition that documents "Ecological Reawakening" and was included in the Scripps Senior Art Exhibition in the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery from May 1 – May 17, 2009.