Architecture Commons^™

Phasing Permanence Through Flux, Estefania Maldonadov, Andrew Filkoff

Architecture Senior Theses

The "post-industrial revolution" has, in its wake, given rise to a swath of cities suffering economic decline and social deterioration. These "shrinking cities" have experienced a loss in population to their surrounding suburbs and other dormitory settlements. Once thriving cities have been reduced to functioning as overdeveloped business parks where people come to work for five days a week - but then leave each evening to return to suburban ideal. It is unreasonable to assume that any masterplan alone can promote the future success of a shrinking city. Rather, this thesis contends that by dissecting the historical narratives and spatial …

The Seed | Urban Vertical Farming Germinated, Michael Lima

Architecture Senior Theses

A city works as an ecosystem in many ways. However, we currently do not live within that ecosystem, as the difference between an ecosystem and a city is the waste output and food input . Nature and society do not exist independently because there are no spaces of nature unaffected by man. With this in mind we need to reestablish our relationship with nature. Architecture and engineering can be used to create buildings that will allow humans to turn cities into ecosystems. This thesis argues that Urban Vertical Farms will produce social and economic hubs that will be a new …

Redeveloping Commerce | Comuna 20 As The Commercial Gateway Of The City, Carlos Restrepo

Architecture Senior Theses

Colombia has long been suffering a debilitating civil war. Lasting more than 51 years, this continuing conflict has brought suffering and hardship to millions of people. Indeed, countless civilians have been forcefully displaced from their rural homes into informal settlements on the outskirts of major cities. These densely populated, ad hoc constructions surround the cities as unstructured enclaves festering with crime and disease exacerbated by isolation and government indifference. The vast social, economic, and cultural divide between these settlements and the contiguous cities pose a major problem for contemporary Colombia that must be addressed. In spite of these conditions, the …

Philep | A Self-Sufficient Pod, Brenna Merola

Architecture Senior Theses

Since 2011 civil war has erupted in Syria causing many Syrians to flee the county. About 9 million people have been internationally displaced causing disruption to the surrounding countries, which have had to create new accommodations. Primary issues have been shortage of basic such as shelter, food and water. Through analysis of disaster situations and refugee conditions, the types of infrastructural systems needed for survival can be better understood. This analysis can determine how to integrate systems into an architectural solution to this global issue: temporary housing pods.

Michael McDaniels, EXO Reaction Housing founder, has created a prototype of a …

China's New Weird, Bangyuan Shi

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis offers a critique of the diminishing communal life int he contemporary Chinese city which is created by the gap between large-scale master planning strategies and the contemporary need to focus on the individual instead of the structure of communities.

China's New Weird proposes an alternative to large-scale urbanism through the use of micro-urbanism strategies that preserve the relative scale and character of traditional urban settlements, like those of the "hutong", while also addressing the contemporary need to increase inner city population densities. The intention is to adapt the patterns of space and use that are found in these …

Two Lands, One System | Redefining The Border Crossing, Matthew Trulli

Architecture Senior Theses

The Israeli and Palestinian populations each have their own distinct infrastructural system, which operates independently and fails to connect the people in this region. This thesis contends that if a two-state solution is implemented under the guidelines of the 2003 Geneva Accord, new connections can stitch the populations of Israel and Palestine together through a reimagined border system.

These divisive infrastructural networks, which are a result of tense relationships, have also sparked increased violence throughout the region, particularly in Jerusalem. The French Hill, located north of the Old City in Jerusalem, is positioned at a critical point in the infrastructural …

The Ottoman Han: Recovery Of A Lost Typology, Asli B. Germerli

Architecture Senior Theses

Developing countries around the world are coping with rapid population growth, the negative effects of globalization and the resultant political stress. Many of these cities have unique historical heritages and cultural identities that are being compromised by the monoculture and sameness of architecture that has come along with globalization. To preserve this historic fabric and cultural legacy, these cities must be willing to shape their future through self-expression driven by the local context. Yet, change is inevitable. The challenge is to find a balance between safeguarding the historical heritage while building new layers of history. In brief, the challenge is …

Parity, Hamza Hasan

Architecture Senior Theses

Digital data contributes to an increasingly alienated aspect of our infrastructure. The complex practices of the Internet produce highly specified, engineered objects. Though their forms are ‘optimized,’ their intentions are not: the two primary considerations for the development of the infrastructure of the Internet are energy and security. Each category presents its own deliberations, but both often produce non-architectural, infrastructural elements beyond public visibility. The hidden infrastructure of data storage and mining (the indexing and analysis of data and traffic) produces spaces outside the agency of normative architectural discourse.

The key consideration for the design of the Internet is redundancy, …

Hacking The Urban Village | Architecture As Board Game, Xuyun Liu

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis proposes the board game as a new research methodology and platform for the study of southern China's urban villages.

Hacking the Urban Village examines the urban villages that have, in recent decades, become a common but informal settlement type in China as a result of China's unprecedented period of urbanization.

This research forms the contextual core of a board game where game settings present the current urban conditions and players may explore alternative forms of urbanism. The board game offers players the opportunity to investigate both he formal conditions of the urban village life along with it attendant …

Sponge Logics | Rethinking Thresholds Through A Porous Mass, Tanvi Sanghvi

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis contends that the separation and distinction between the envelope and the mass in contemporary architecture is to be resisted. Architect and theorist, Greg Lynn, argues that mass “is not only the outward shape of a building; it’s also the projection of shape, plan organization, spatial and sectional type, and façade”1.This critical reevaluation of the mass, and its relationship to the interior spaces and the building’s face, is particularly pertinent to the modern construction in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. The character of the historicist and postmodern buildings that make up Jaipur is made solely based on the applied façade. This …

Releasing The Unconsciousness | Visualizing The City, Taihui Li

Architecture Senior Theses

This thesis explores how subway stations lost their identity as strategic node of connectivity which constructed the prevailing image of New York City. In Civilization and Its Discontents (1930), Sigmund Freud famously compared the human mind to the city of Rome. He argues that both contain strata of memory and history which have accumulated over the years through a messy and ad-hoc process. Like Rome, New York City also has a layered history, albeit not as deep.

This thesis contends that the subway entrance serves as an experiential entre into the unconscious experience of the unknown elements of the past. …

Network-Based Development In Chattanooga, Tennessee: Processes And Potentials, Kathryn Ansley Taylor

Masters Theses

Chattanooga is a city of networks. The goal of this project is to provide examples of how developers, by tapping into Chattanooga’s most vital networks, can create buildings that speak to the city’s unique character, build interest in the city, and foster a stronger future for Chattanooga.

Chattanooga has four networks that serve as its backbone. They are the Cultural Network, the Blue Green Network, the Fiber Optic Network and the Dwelling Network. These networks are linkages between people and places, bound by common hopes and affinities. They are platforms for social connection, economic growth and physical change.

Three developments …

Expanding Hope In Payatas, Rhea Cristine S. Bautista

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Informal settlements, also known as slums or squatter settlements, are a way of life for millions around the world, especially within urban centers. The challenge is to provide a better quality of life, both physically and socially. This thesis provides a critical look into the conditions, limitations, strengths, and hopes of the community of Payatas in Metro Manila, Philippines, with recommendations of measures to support and strengthen the community, by building upon the community’s positive elements to develop social impact.

Landmark Report (Vol. 32, No. 2), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

Agri[Culture]: An Alternate Paradigm For The American Landscape, Melissa Erin Morris

Masters Theses

Throughout the Appalachian region, one can experience the vast disappearance of the American landscape as we know it. Whether driving through the rugged coal mining towns of Virginia, or the suburban sprawl taking over the rural farmland of Tennessee, it becomes clear that this is a spreading epidemic. Without an appropriate balance of urban, suburban, and rural areas, we begin to loose the landscape which has always been so closely linked to this country’s cultural and physical identity.

This thesis focuses on the agrarian Appalachian culture with a proposal for a project rooted heavily in cultural identity. With programs based …

Landmark Report (Vol. 32, No. 1), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

The Steel Yard, Architecture Department, Sculpture Department, Bruner Foundation

Rudy Bruner Award | 30 Years of Urban Excellence

The Steel Yard redeveloped a historic steel fabrication facility into a campus for arts education, job training, and small-scale manufacturing in Providence, Rhode Island. The 3.5-acre property in the city’s Industrial Valley required extensive environmental remediation to meet regulatory requirements while retaining the industrial urban character of the site. The Steel Yard offers classes, workforce training, and fabrication space for local artists, creating an industrial arts incubator where they can share ideas, materials, and space. It has become a center for creative activity, bridging the gap between the traditional arts community on the affluent east side of Providence with manufacturing …

Landmark Report (Vol. 31, No. 3), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

A Walk Around Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda, Daniel C. Scott

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda aims to become a national center of distinction, a thriving new district in Bermuda, and a flagship in the economic regeneration of the West End. It will be a place unlike any other in Bermuda, offering cultural, residential, office and tourist amenities that are rooted in the fabric of Bermuda, and the diverse and vital history of the Royal Naval Dockyard.

Building on its history, and preparing it to fulfill its full potential for the future the Dockyard will need to transform to meet the changing needs of Bermuda’s economy. With a weakening tourist industry and …

Landmark Report (Vol. 31, No. 2), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

Interactions Between The Urban Environment And “The Homelessness”: Observations And Responses, Jeffrey Charles Stahl

Masters Theses

Homelessness and people living on the streets is a phenomenon that is facing every major urban center in the United States. These people are a commonality in the urban landscape and are often seen a problem to be fi xed. Due to the interactions between the urban environment and persons experiencing homelessness, there needs to be a paradigm shift in how policy is written and how we design an intervention for these forgotten people. The goal of this thesis is to gain a clearer understanding to what it is like to survive on the streets: how dose someone fi nd …

Thermal Envelope Substitution: Energy And Cost Implications Of Using Structural Insulated Panels In The Manufactured Housing Industry, Brendan Sean Dwyer

Master's Theses

Currently 10% of all single family homes produced in the U.S. are manufactured homes with 75% of these households making less than $50,000 in annual income (Manufactured Housing Survey). Manufactured homes typically use twice as much primary energy per square foot than site built homes yet there is no agenda within the industry or its governing bodies to address this excess energy consumption. The research presented in this thesis compares the thermal envelope performance of the typical wood stud framing used in the manufactured home industry to the thermal envelope of structural insulated panels (SIPs). This comparison examines the energy …

Landmark Report (Vol. 31, No. 1), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

From Carson Pirie Scott To City Target: A Case Study On The Adaptive Reuse Of Louis Sullivan’S Historic Sullivan Center, Lisa M. Switzer

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

This study provides an in-depth exploration of the adaptive reuse of one of Chicago’s most iconic structures over the course of a year from the Summer of 2011 to the Summer of 2012. The Sullivan Center was converted from a mid-scale retailer to City Target. Through extensive interviews with the Target development team, Chicago city officials, historians and Landmark Commission representatives this study documents the conversion and identifies the successes and opportunities of the project. The study follows the project from design development to completion, and provides insight on the local community perspective on the development.

Advisor: Mark Hinchman

Landmark Report (Vol. 30, No. 3), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

Landmark Report (Vol. 30, No. 2), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

Landmark Report (Vol. 30, No. 1), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentucky.

Rocky Hill [Kentucky] Station Architecture (Fa 75), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

FA Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 75. “Rocky Hill Station Architecture,” vernacular architecture class project concerning Rocky Hill, Edmonson County, Kentucky (est. 1859). Includes information on architecture, social life, economic life and railroads.

Landmark Report (Vol. 29, No. 3), Kentucky Library Research Collections

Landmark Report

Newsletter published by the Landmark Association; this local group advocates the preservation, protection and maintenance of architectural, cultural and archaeological resources in Bowling Green and Warren County, Kentu

Factors The Cause Growth And Development In The City Of Lincoln, Ne, Kaylene Tegtmeier

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This qualitative study looks at what factors may contribute to the outward growth and development of the city of Lincoln, Nebraska. The two main factors the study discusses are the Lincoln Public School planners and their placement of schools in the city, and the “American dream” of the people, looking at where the people of Lincoln want to be living throughout the city and what some of their daily habits are. This study also discusses some of the main visions of the city of Lincoln’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan how the plan’s ambitions may affect the two factors looked at in …