Architecture Commons^™

The Moving Image, Eujean Cheong, Andrew Kim, Sol Yoon

Architecture Senior Theses

Form in architecture has become synonymous with geometries as opposed to the philosophical Aristotelian notion of form. This thesis rests on two beliefs: space and form are co-present, as space without form is nothing and likewise form without space leaves no room to materialize itself. An object results when space and form are co-present; architecture as an object then subsequently reveals itself when a third element of human movement is introduced.

This thesis contends that if architecture is perceived through the introduction of human movement, then it is peculiar that architectural representation has historically been represented through means of …

Another Milstein Hall, Daniel Lin

Architecture Senior Theses

A certain Chinese encyclopedia wrote: Animal are divided into: (a) belonging to the emperor (b) embalmed (c) tame (d) sucking pig (e) sirens (f ) fabulous (g) stray dogs (h) included in the present classification (i) frenzied (j) innumerable (k) drawn with a very fine camelhair brush (l) et cetera (m) having just broken the water pitcher (n) that from a long way off look like flies. –– Jorge Louis Borges

Jorge Louis Borges’ list of animals supposedly drawn from his fictional Chinese Encyclopedia the Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge, highlights the potent absurdities and lacunae to be identified in …

Performative Architecture | A Measurable Means Of Evaluating Formal Systems, Garrett Marini

Architecture Senior Theses

The Gothic, Baroque, and Rococo architectural styles relied on perception and an underlying adherence to classical formulas to provide merit and deem an architecture valid. Up through the 19th century before the emergence of modernism these established canons would reemerge both in isolation and as an amalgam of styles. Henry Russell Hitchcock describes this latter episodic phase of building as exhibiting an eclecticism of style, where features of different styles are used together on a single building like those in the Beaux- Arts tradition. In the early 20th century, Louis Sullivan’s modernist dictum of “Form Follows Function,” while seemingly providing …

Curated Disorders, Nathanael Bengio

Architecture Thesis Prep

By using the techniques of contradiction that existed in Dadaism fused with those of psychoanalysis and defamiliarization in Surrealism and Nouveau-Realism, my thesis examines the possibility of an architectural typology that critiques hyper-functionalities, anonymous ornament and the general facelessness of most commercialized architecture today. Within the context of a Haussmannian facade will be created a simple matrix that allows for the displacement of architectural elements in and out of their intended contexts leading to the curation of the reverse, the disordered twin.

The Creation Of Sense Of Place: Negotiating The Divide Between Nature And Culture Through Phenomenological Architecture, Gabriel Nolle

Architecture Thesis Prep

"The project I am proposing seeks to explore phenomenological architecture as a medium between culture and nature in order for humans to regain a sense of place in the natural world. While recent trends in architecture, namely sustainability, seek to emphasize environmental consciousness, the subjective relationship to the environment – how it affects our senses – remains the one we know least about. The process of designing and constructing buildings in the natural world must respond to conditions of nature in terms of site, material, purpose and form, to answer the demands of the human-nature condition. At …

Twenty First Century Form: Disrupted Continous Surface, Wiqas Ahmed

Architecture Thesis Prep

"In order to respond to the needs and demands of the twenty-first century, dual architectural thinking must be abandoned in favor of form & multiplicity. Here form should act as a canopy under which multiple functional aspects including programmatic, performative, cultural, economic, historical, geographic, infrastructural, and climate considerations can coexist simultaneously. Form can no longer be thought of as a counter argument to function, visa versa, but rather as an independent medium in which function operates. Since function is now defined as multiplicity, consequently, form becomes the study of the method of articulating multiple conditions. There may be several ways …

Performative Design: Investigating Form In The Natural And Capitalist Environment, John M. Santoro

Architecture Senior Theses

"Rethinking the design process from conception and allowing natural forces, such as wind, solar exposure, and rainfall to drive the initial design will generate a structurally and environmentally efficient form."

Speculative Housing, Jaret Steinagle

Architecture Thesis Prep

"The purpose of this thesis is to understand architecture as a semiotic "sign system" with the ability to communicate information through form; constructing a rich, meaningful built environment. A study of the history of this language and the meaning of form within suburban contexts indicates the disassociation between the complexities of the lie of the contemporary middle class and the architecture in which they live."

Sensitive Urban Mass, Thomas Zoli

Architecture Thesis Prep

"The issue to be tested is the notion that the formal structure of a multidisciplinary building of this type is analogous to the formal structure of the campus itself; buildings and departments organized strategically to promote a collective, academic atmosphere.

The program is a Center for Nonlinear Research on the campus of Princeton University."

A Paradigm For The Construction Of Architectural Narrative, Sarah F. Holmes

Architecture Thesis Prep

"How does one develop a relevant architectural narrative within a society that traditionally has been and remains highly pluralistic? ... This proposal concerns the inquiry into the physical and metaphysical structure of place. In this thesis I propose a system of analysis resulting in the creation of a structure from which an architectural narrative may be revealed."

Symbolism Versus Abstraction: Architectural Representation In A Post-Modern Society, Nina Ebbighausen

Architecture Thesis Prep

"This thesis poses an investigation into the work of Karl Friedrich Schinkel and Mies van der Rohe as elements of a formal architectural tradition in Berlin; It proposes the institution of an architecture based up on a chosen set of historical models, with the aim of providing one possible foundation for architectural renewal (of unified Berlin) implying cultural continuity. To this end, the thesis poses an investigation into the representative qualities of architecture while examining the informative potential of artifact.

Urban Stadium, Eric Moss

Architecture Senior Theses

Certain major urban elements have been pished into suburban environments to the detriment of cities. The thesis proposed that through investigating the implications of reinserting such a building into the urban condition, it can be demonstrated that both the city and the facility will benefit. The vehicle is the design of a public building which must mediate between its needs and its urban conditions. The project therefore should have a program which has specific requirements and the site should have a strong urban dynamic.