Architecture Commons^™

Urban Transient Spaces: [Re] Appropriating Knoxville, Tennessee's World's Fair Park, Kathryn Dupree Greer

Masters Theses

Transient Space: An urban site that was developed for a temporary event or short-term program.

In this thesis, I will explore urban gaps created by transient events, such as the Olympics, World Fairs, and the World Cup. I believe urban environments created to accommodate for these transitory events present an interesting predicament for planners and architects. In several cases, these sites are not properly developed or programmed for post-event occupancy and create gaps in a city’s urban fabric.

I will specifically be examining World’s Fair Park in Knoxville, Tennessee. This site once hosted the 1982 World’s Fair, Knoxville International Energy …

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 …

Working With Paul Rudolph To Make Rudolph Work: Reclaiming, Conserving, And Adapting Sarasota High School (1958), Katherine Marie Armstrong

Masters Theses

Sarasota High School, designed by Paul Rudolph in 1958, physically embodies the central ideas of Regional Modernism that developed in Sarasota, Florida in the 1940s and 50s. Covered breezeways, monumental sunshades, deep overhangs, and sliding glass doors promote natural ventilation and sun shading as ways to deal with Florida’s hot climate. As an example of progressive architecture of the time, it is a seminal work of Rudolph’s and significant to Sarasota’s architectural legacy of climatically responsive, modernist buildings that captured international attention.

Sixty years later, Sarasota High School is now unoccupied and in a state of disrepair. The school board …

The Architect As Developer, Samuel David Funari

Masters Theses

The current architectural landscape of strip malls and big box stores is the antitheses of what nearly every practicing architect avails to while in the security of the academy. Upon entering the real world of budgetary constraints and hard deadlines, it seems that most architects are content to simply earn a paycheck rather than produce meaningful work. This destructive method of designing is a result of a supposed lack of choices, and can only be combated when architects have more to lose than their principles. By architects playing the role of both designer and developer, it is possible to see …

Enhancing Community And Place Through A Suburban Retrofit, Luke Daniel Murphree

Masters Theses

Suburban sprawl, characterized by low-density, scattered, single-use development, is an ever-increasing concern for the environment, economy, and sense of community and identity of cities today. Sprawling communities have been designed with poor neighborhood connectivity, a lack of walkability, and in isolation from public space, jobs, and schools, creating a place that is virtually devoid of social interaction and a distinguishing identity.

Suburbia constitutes roughly 75% of contemporary development in the United States. Many buildings in these suburban areas are either vacant or out of date, and demographic and market shifts indicate a growing demand for more diverse housing types and …

Architecture As Pedagogy: Designing Sustainable Schools As Three-Dimensional Textbooks, Ester Ehrlich Schwartz

Masters Theses

The importance of school buildings has been recognized as a fundamental element of modern society. Today, roughly a quarter of America’s population, including our youngest citizens, spend the majority of their days in school buildings. Still, many of our nation’s schools are in disrepair, with systems in need of repair or replacement.

Over the years, strong evidence and research have shown that school building impact student’s health and their ability to learn. Green schools mean healthier environments for students and staff. Pragmatically, we also know that that green schools save money. Energy-efficient buildings help reduce energy costs, which in turn …

Revitalization Through Rehabilitation: Enhancing Communities Through Re-Use, Jason Stuart Pimsler

Masters Theses

The densification of an existing community through the implementation of sustainable design principles, such as adaptive reuse, promotes revitalization. The re-inhabitation of the proposed abandoned structure along the BeltLine can lead to further development of the existing arts complex. As part of this revitalization, linkages established along a citywide master-planned path provide nodal connections between the local art district and the artists of the Goat Farm and educate visitors of the significant industrial history of the area. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the positive impact that sustainable architecture, adaptive reuse and proper planning can have on a …

Encapsulating History Of Place, Ashley Linn Lenentine

Masters Theses

Architecture has the ability to reveal the culture and history of a place, to support the community and educate society. The design becomes the vessel that retains the history of the place and increases cultural appreciation throughout society. This thesis looks to reinterpret how design responds to a historic context and incorporates culture and memory into the method for new design. A place is an accumulation of layers that tell a story of the past and overlay conditions of the present that enhance the experience of the place. The site, context, history, and culture can be identified as various layers …