2020 M.Arch Graduate Thesis: Archive of Knowledge by Jake Lessard

Archive of Knowledge:

The Poetic Junction Between Knowledge and Human Experience Created Through Narrative Design

By: Jake Lessard

DEDICATION Through the good times and the bad, a journey that has changed my life, I dedicate this thesis: To my Meme and Pepe who always believed in me. To my Parents and my sisters who supported me along the way in all aspects. And to the best of friends Adam, Dassha, Jenny, Matt, and Matteo who encouraged me and pushed me to be my best self and showed me the best of times, who were there for me at the worst of times, and who always showed me how to have fun.

And a special thanks to my Professors and Academic supporters: Anne-Catrin Schultz - Thesis Advisor Chala Hadimi - Thesis Prep 1 Professor Dan Hisel - Thesis Prep 2 Professor Stephen DeMayo - Independent Advisor Weldon Pries - Professor and Critic

ABSTRACT This thesis examines libraries as a container of knowledge and memory and how they can be transformed into a narrative that manifests knowledge and human experience. This intervention in the Boston Public Library explores two key narratives: The Tower of Knowledge and The Hall of Education. In The Tower of Knowledge, the Patron meanders through the space, seeking knowledge on their own terms, guided only by light and their own curiosity. The Librarian in this space will not have direct contact with the Patron. In The Hall of Education, the Patron and Librarian will have a direct interaction as the Librarian guides the Patron through structured, choreographed spaces. By creating these narratives, this design provokes a discourse about how libraries can start to become about the user experience of these spaces.

Keywords: Knowledge, Human Experience, Narrative, Ascension, Transition, Memory

CONTENTS: CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION - THESIS STATEMENT - FRAMING THE NARRATIVE - SETTING THE CONTEXT - AUDIENCE - STRUCTURE

CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW - INTRODUCTION - NEUROLOGY IN ARCHITEC- TURE - MEMORY AS MEANING - MEMORY IN DESIGN - CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 3

THE ARCHIVE - DESIGN TEST 1: NARRATIVE - DESIGN TEST 2: SITE - DESIGN TEST 3: CHARACTERS - DESIGN TEST 4: SYMBOLIC SPACES

CHAPTER 4

THE NARRATIVE - CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT - MATERIALS - TOWER OF KNOWLEDGE - HALL OF EDUCATION

CHAPTER 5

CRITICAL REFLECTION

10 11 12 17 17 22 23 24 28 31 36 40 54 60

66 68 80 90 100

â&#x20AC;&#x153;When we speak of man and space, it sounds as though man stood on one side, space on the other. Yet space is not something that faces man.â&#x20AC;? -Martin Heidegger in Building, Dwelling, Thinking

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

THESIS STATEMENT Designing library spaces by considering the different processes of attaining knowledge shapes a narrative that actively engages the users experience of space and intuits the knowledge which is inherently embedded within the library by providing a discourse between existing and new, and book and technology.

Introduction

FRAMING THE NARRATIVE As a Junior in high school, I was tasked with designing an addition for a courthouse in my home town of Leominster, Massachusetts. The addition consisted of a simple enclosed garage bay with an accessible entry into the courthouse from inside the garage. While I didn’t know much about design at the time, I learned quickly about the process of a public project from a design perspective. This project was never completed, however in the short time I had to work on it, I developed an interest in public and civic design. Fast forward four years to my Junior year of college, I was in an Adaptive Interventions concentration, which was focused on theory. My interest in experiential architecture and designing for the human experience comes from this theory class. One article stands out to me from this class because it introduced a new theory to me that has become the basis for my designs. This article was titled Peter Versus Peter: Eisenman And Zumthor’s Theoretical Throwdown. It introduced me to Peter Zumthor and the topic of phenomenology in architecture. Since this introduction into Zumthor’s work, I have taken an interest in studying his work, his process, and his theory in architecture. My interest for civic design has only grown since my first encounter in high school. The discovery of Zumthor and other architects like him has made me passionate in designing for the human experience. This thesis gives me the ability to explore both these passions together, providing me with a framework for design I can utilize beyond my education.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

SETTING THE CONTEXT Experience Much of today’s contemporary architecture tends to focus on originality and technology, which tends to shift the focus away from sensory experience. Technology is a great influence on the new generation of architecture and has the power to assist great design. However, the downfall of technology is that it can limit the detail in the design process. Harry Mallgrave explains the impact technology has on design,

“The aspects on which one focuses one’s effort during the design process largely determine what the final result will be. When one is enamored with formal exploration, one may well devote less attention to issues of scale, materiality, or detailing... one is bound to be less concerned with how the user experiences elements of appraises the ambiance of design”1

By remembering this and not allowing technology to overcome the process of experiential design, architecture can be very successful in responding to the human experience. Mallgrave cautions designers to be weary of the potential technology has to remove people from design. As one designs, their brain goes through a repetitive process: sensation, perception, conception, expression. Sensation is the stimulation of senses through which you perceive something. Perception happens almost simultaneously, which you visualize what you feel. These two steps happen subconsciously. Conception is the conscious recognition of what you feel and perceive, giving meaning to your perception. Finally, expression is your way of expressing the meaning which you have conceived through your perception. Peter Zumthor explains the process in his book Thinking Architecture,

“Our perceptive faculties...reach beyond signs and symbols;they are open, empty. It is as if

we could see something on which we cannot focus our consciousness. Here, in this perceptual vacuum, a memory may surface, a memory that seems to issue from the depths of time. Now our observation of the object embraces a presentiment of the world...”2

This process also happens through experiencing architecture. The experience of a space may spark a memory through the stimulation of senses and perception of space. This process is engrained in Zumthor’s designs. He specifically designs spaces based on the memories and feelings he has had. Zumthor’s Therme Vals in Switzerland is a great example of a sensory experience created to stimulate multiple senses. [Fig. 1.1] The building is designed as a journey through the senses, using local materials, light, sound, to create a variety of atmospheres. The occupants follow their own path through the building that is guided by the senses. The building consists of a series of baths that range in size, temperature, and sound. Between them are large voids, meant to imply a transition from one bath to the next. The relation between each bath was carefully thought out to be arranged in contrast to one another so the transition is evident. Complimenting the contrasting experience of the baths are views, sound, and light which as a tool for wayfinding. There are slits in the ceiling of the structure that allow strips of light to seep into the building. Each view is guided by the light piercing through the structure. Among Zumthor, there are many architects who consider the experiential journey of senses in their design. One project worth noting is the MIT Chapel in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [Fig. 1.2] The MIT Chapel was designed by Eero Saarinen as a non-denominational, spiritual, chapel. He intended to create a spiritual journey for the user. He uses subtle design decisions to impact the user’s sensory experience through their journey. He utilizes trees, brick, and the hierarchical method of raising the building off the ground. These decisions were made to create a separation from the

Introduction

Fig. 1.1 Analysis by the author of Therme Vals, Switzerland by Peter Zumthor

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

building to the surrounding atmosphere. The exterior condition is as much a part of the journey as the interior condition as well. The entry corridor uses stained glass to blur the user’s vision from the outside world. Upon reaching the main room of the chapel, the user has been secluded from the outside world and immersed in a spiritual world. The white marble alter was raised off the ground. Directly behind it are strands of zinc plates that are placed to disperse light from the skylight above. As sunlight comes in through the skylight, the light reflects off the zinc plates and creates a glimmering effect almost like rain falling. Along the walls, there is a gap where the sunlight is allowed to reflect off the water in the moat that surrounds the chapel. The ripples of water reflect up the sides of the interior walls. To enhance the acoustics and to replicate the rippling water, the interior walls undulate to make the space feel more enclosed. This architecture is successful in providing an experience and journey for its users. Architecture’s purpose is for humans to use and experience it. In the process of experiencing space in the conception stage, memories can be triggered based on a remembered qualities of space. Frances Downing says,

“What is significant about a memorable place experience is not the actual feeling, but the ideas of feeling which present meaning to designers, who may find in the experience the stimulus for creating new places.”3

Architects have an opportunity to transcend memory and imagination by creating something for the world to experience. It is the responsibility of the designer to use memory to create architecture that is meaningful.

Memory Architect Daniel Libeskind does this successfully through The Jewish Museum in Berlin, Germany. [Fig. 1.3] The challenge in creating architecture that is a memorial is that the architecture has an underlying meaning. The architect has to carefully craft the design so that the architecture responds to the memory, rather than being overcome by it. The museum was designed under 3 pretenses: understanding of the history of the city of Berlin including all the Jewish contributions, the Holocaust as a memory, and the acknowledgment of the erasure of the Jewish people. The building was designed with three specific journeys the user could follow, each leading to a path of one of three pretenses. The plan

Connection to the World Connection to the World Separation of Sound

Separation of Vision Fig. 1.2 Collage analysis by the author of The MIT Chapel, Cambridge, Massachusetts by Eero Saarinen

Introduction

of the Jewish Museum is a zigzag shape, intentionally designed that way to leave the user with a feeling of disorientation. Among the plan are several voids that lack heat or air-conditioning, which emphasize a feeling of emptiness in the user. To further emphasize the feeling of disorientation, the windows are cut in a diagonal, criss-crossed way for the outside viewer looking in. These windows make it impossible to distinguish where each floor is within the building. Before being opened to the public, and before exhibitions were in place, nearly 350,000 people toured the architecture alone, which evoked a feeling of insecurity, emptiness, and disorientation in those users.

Narrative One theme between each of these precedents is the idea of narrative or journey. There is a purpose for the way one experiences the building which is guided by the architecture. Without a narrative, there seems to be no purpose for the experience. Architecture is about telling a story through design, allowing the users to experience the story. A collection of projects that focus on narrative from students at The Cooper Union are compiled in a book

titled Education of an Architect creates characters that will use the architecture they design. This provides a foundation for creating architecture for fictional people that will translate to the experience of the users in its final, constructed form. This method of creating a narrative will be useful in the design process to consider the details of how the users will move through space, experience space, and interact with one another. The architecture guides the journey of each character through a building, which shifts the attention toward the experiential aspect of design.4 This pedagogical approach for design was adopted by John Hejduk, who writes poetry and designs architecture in a similar process in his book Mask of Medusa.5 The exploration of program and site are important when considering what architecture will be designed. Libraries are a collection of memories and scripts from history. The short story The Library of Babel by Jorge Luis Borges creates an infinite library, where every book is 410 pages and each is organized in every possible combination of letters. The library is a series of hexagonal rooms with twenty stacks in each room, the bookshelves stretch floor to ceiling at the height of just an average librarian. [Fig. 1.4] The idea behind the fictional library is that it contains every piece of history

Fig. 1.3 Collage analysis by the author of The Jewish Museum, Berlin, Germany by Daniel Libeskind

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

and every book that has ever been written and has yet to be written. It is a container of memory which has every textual resource.6

The Poetic Junction This poses libraries as a site for a poetic junction between memory and narrative. Libraries are a collection of memories that have been produced by authors over centuries. They provide us with context and history to understand the past. As civic buildings, they serve the patrons who use them not just functionally, but experientially. Libraries present a strong potential for creating an experiential narrative that responds to the memories it hold while creating new memory.

Fig. 1.4 Illustration of a gallery in The Library of Babel by Jorge Luis Borges

Introduction

AUDIENCE This thesis aims to inform designers of the tasks that architecture has to serve the people. Every building and structure is designed for the occupants to use and experience. I would like to challenge the reader to consider this thesis as a new way of thinking about experiential design. The many factors of our minds and bodies play a role in architecture that is often not recognized. My goal is to reveal and introduce a discipline in design that is underutilized in order to create architecture that responds to the experience of its occupants.

STRUCTURE Chapter Two of this thesis will act as a literature review which begins to build a base of knowledge and provide evidence of memory from a neurological and philosophical point of view. These two viewpoints will connect back to memory in architecture and the process of design. This will create a dialogue in which this thesis begins the exploration of a narrative approach to design in chapters three and four. Chapter Three begins to introduce a series of design methods which have been tested to provide context for understanding the goals of this thesis. The content in this chapter provides the reader with an understanding of the process which begins to respond to the thesis statement. These tests will include a process of creating narrative design, investigating site research, character development, and symbolic space design. Chapter Four implements the methods tested within chapter 3 to design an intervention within the Boston Public Library. This implementation is a preliminary test of a series of methods highlighted in the previous chapter to defend the goals of this thesis.

Chapter Five provides a critical reflection on the

preliminary testing as represented in chapter 4. This will include key critiques of the process, next steps in

the process, and influences along the way that guided certain decisions. It will also outline the challenges and obstacles throughout the process of testing these methods.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Notes: 1 Peter Zumthor, Thinking Architecture (Birkhauser, 2006) 2 Harry Mallgrave, Cognition in the flesh...The Human in Design (Tyler Stevermer, Thresholds 42 Human, 2014.) 3 Frances Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space (Texas A&M University Press, 2000) 4 John Hejduk and Elizabeth Diller, Education of an Architect (Rizzoli, 1996) 5 John Hejduk, Mask of Medusa (Rizzoli, 1989) 6 Jorge Luis Borges, The Library of Babel (David R. Godine, 2000)

Introduction

“Neuroscience can inform—but should not determine—what architects do, given the range of issues that influence the form of buildings.” -Thomas Fisher, Assoc. AIA Keynote at ANFA Biennial Conference

CHAPTER 2 -

LITERATURE REVIEW

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Introduction This literature review explores the various work of architects, philosophers, and neuroscientists to discuss the role of memory in experiencing and designing architecture. These sources have been curated to explain the process of the mind, how memory is tangent to the mind, and how design can be significantly enhanced for the human experience. The reader will get an understanding of the theory of memory in architecture supported by scientific research. Along with this understanding, a series of methods are presented in the ways memory and the mind impact the design process. Frances Downing presents her research of remembering and design through a sample of architecture students and professors. Her research is supported by other notable architects and theorists such as Mark Johnson and Juhani Pallasmaa. The claims made by Downing have qualities of experiential design which introduces the senses into design. The senses and the human experience have a large impact on the way architecture is designed. One architect who is particularly successful in explaining his process of designing is Peter Zumthor, who writes a series of essays in Thinking Architecture. He offers insight that bridges the gap from the theoretical, philosophical discussion to the practice of design and construction of a physical building. The final method discussed is the creation of a memory palace. The discussion of a classical memory palace from the Greeks is introduced and interpreted to become a design method. This method analyzes the process of design and concretizes a set of rules for successfully designing using a memory palace. This discussion will provide the framework for using and testing the methods of designing experiential spaces while considering how memory is affecting the process.

Literature Review

Neurology in Architecture Professor Michael Arbib has analyzed the written and architectural work of architect Peter Zumthor. One analysis he makes is a comparison of the written explanation of Therme Vals and the personal experience of his son, architect Ben Arbib. Based on the results of his analysis, he questions the role of neuroscience in the design process. Arbib doesn’t delve into this analysis, however, he offers that this it can prove to be useful to architecture students by equipping them with the understanding that neuroscience is essential in the design process. While Arbib acknowledges that Zumthor isn’t thinking about neurology at the forefront of his designs, he offers that architects do think about what they can do to stimulate the human experience. Thomas Albright, Ph. D. and professor at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies suggests that we think of the brain as an “information-processing device” and that it is the most powerful storage device known to man. He explains the process of the brain,

“The brain acquires information about the world through the senses and then organizes, interprets, and integrates that information. The

brain assigns value, affect, and potential utility to the acquired information and stores that information by means of memory in order to access it at a later time” 1

Zumthor explains his theory of a similar concept of perception. When we look at things, we see them simply for what they are. There is no symbolism attached to the object, there isn’t a message behind it, it is just there in the open. We perceive it as it is until a memory is surfaced. Suddenly, what we are looking at becomes more than just an object. “Our observation of the object embraces a presentiment of the world in all its wholeness because there is nothing that cannot be understood,” explains Zumthor. It is after we understand consciously that we attach a meaning to architecture.2 [Fig. 2.1 and Fig. 2.2] Mallgrave suggests that, even if architecture lost all its meaning, we would still experience feelings, moods, and emotions provoked by the architecture.3 Neurologically, there are two systems that work simultaneously to elicit a reaction to an experience. The first is the sensory system. This system reacts to a stimulus

Fig. 2.1 Interior view of the Bruder Klaus Chapel, Germany by Peter Zumthor (left) Fig. 2.2 View of Entryway of the Bruder Klaus Chapel, Germany by Peter Zumthor (right)

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

and assigns a “value” or feeling to it. The second system is the visceromotor system, which is a chemical and behavioral response to the stimulus. The mind and body are interconnected and work together to produce a reaction to a stimulus which results in an emotion or feeling about the space. Emotions are triggered as a response to our environment before we are consciously aware of it. This emotional response is an embodied experience in which we feel our presence in the world through our bodies.4 Pallasmaa echoes this by explaining that experience is embodied in the surrounding context of ourselves. He elaborates by giving the example of walking through a city or a place. We experience the city (or place) as we move through it. By moving through it, we are understanding it as we are experiencing it.5 As Albright explains, the way we experience space is through our senses. However, architects tend to prioritize the sense of vision, although every architectural experience is measured by many more senses than just vision. [Fig. 2.3] Psychologist James Gibson categorizes senses into five systems: basic orienting, auditory, haptic, taste-smell, and visual.6 Architect Sarah Robinson explains each of the five categories laid out by Gibson. The “basic orienting system” is related to the vestibular organs. These organs are located in your inner ear and work simultaneously with our eyes to perceive horizontal and vertical planes. The “auditory system” orients us to soundwaves and vibrations. She suggests that a focus on the auditory would both enhance the experience for the blind, who rely on sound to navigate the world, and shift focus away from visuals in the design process. The “haptic system” is the sense of touch. This sense isn’t limited to the skin, it relates to our muscle fiber and joints, through contact with the earth. The haptic sense is also the main sense that connects mind and body. The “taste-smell system” is the oldest perceptual system. Robinson uses the research of neurophysiologist Walter Freeman, who claims that this system plays a central role as an organ which provides for the sense of time and space. The final system, the “visual system”. This system is where the eyes, brain and body all work together to visualize or perceive. Eyes register levels of

light and the contrast between intensity of light, meaning they register light and dark. This system is an active system which allows us to record and store images and give meaning to these images.7 In addition to these five sensory systems, Mallgrave presents a more recent emotional model which recognizes that our emotional responses are integrates with our nervous system. These subsystems are known as the sympathetic subsystem, which Mallgrave describes as being the “wow” factor, and the parasympathetic subsystem, which tends to result in a more calming and relaxing mood. The sympathetic subsystem actually physically increases the heart rate as a result of reacting to a stimulus. The parasympathetic subsystem is associated with the feeling of nourishment, relaxation, and other similar emotions or moods. Architects can use this information in the design process. These subsystems allow for architects to create two different types of environments. One environment an architect can create is one that is highly stimulating, creating an overwhelming mood, which the occupant must come to terms with the intensity; the other is a more modest, peaceful, place for rest and comfort or a place for a more private feeling.8

Memory as Meaning Pallasmaa claims that the task of architecture is to create an embodied experience that allows the user to create a sense of meaning of a space. Architecture is the medium which people can understand their connection to the world. In this experience of architecture, we can identify ourselves in a place or moment, which we start to understand our existence in the world. Our memory is attached to these places, giving meaning to those who experience them.9 Downing claims that the significance of memory in design comes from the idea of feeling, not the feeling itself. Johnson expands on this idea, “The meaning of any object, quality, event, or action is what it points to by way of some experience. Meaning is relational, and the

Literature Review

Fig. 2.3 Eye enclosing the theater at Besancon by Claude Nicholas Ledoux

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

meaning of a certain object would be the possi ble experiences it affords us – either now, in the past, or in the future.”10

Johnson uses a cup as an example of this. A cup is meaningful based on the experiences it affords us, both physical and mental. You can pick up a cup, grab it, feel the texture and temperature of the cup’s material. The cup also has the capacity to hold something within it. The experience of holding a cup or simulating the experience of drinking from the cup gives it meaning. However, there is more to the cup than physical and mental properties. There is societal and cultural impact on the meaning of a cup based on its uses in that society or culture. There is then a sentiment which may give the cup meaning that doesn’t relate to its use, but to a memory.11 According to architect Peter Zumthor, architecture isn’t necessarily successful based on just form or originality. Successful architecture comes from form and the semantic content that has the capacity to make people feel something.12 [Fig. 2.4] According to architecture professor, Harry Mallgrave, architecture is often thought of too conceptually or formally. The introduction of technology in design tends to encourage designers to create something new. The ability to create new forms in a digital world gives designers a platform to experiment with innovation. However, this tends to shift the focus in design process away from the experiential qualities and potential that give the design meaning.13 Johnson hypothesizes that architecture is experienced by humans as making sense of the world and providing meaningful cultural and material affordances. The first thing that tends to happen when an occupant experiences architecture is the understanding of the context in which the building exists. The user takes in the sensory input from the site or building and perceives the space, which happens subconsciously. Almost immediately after the perception of space, the user starts to understand the meaning of the space. They register their perceptions consciously and become aware of the Fig. 2.4 Platform Model by Peter Zumthor

Literature Review

Fig. 2.5 Exhibit of “Do Ho Suh: 348 West 22nd Street” at LACMA by Do Ho Suh (top) Fig. 2.6 Exhibit of “Do Ho Suh: 348 West 22nd Street” at LACMA by Do Ho Suh (bottom)

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

various elements which give the architecture meaning.14

Memory in Design As a designer and author in architecture, Frances Downing claims that memory is important in the design process because it central to one’s identity, rationale, and thought process. Memorable images are stored in the brain and are revealed through the way we live our lives. These images become symbolic because they have become engrained in the process of our rational thinking. As Downing states, “memory and all its consequences are central to our identity, our ability to reason and value, and to both our semantic and our image-based thought process.”15 This theory is supported by Philosopher, Mark Johnson, who argues that people are a product of their environments. His claim is that all feelings, emotions, perceptions, thoughts, and action are conceived through our physical surroundings and experiences.16 Downing states that memory is directly and holistically tied to our bodies. We know that our brains retain memory, but our bodies, organs, and cells all retain memory too. These two, body and mind must not be separated.17 Architect and theorist, Juhani Pallasmaa supports Downing, saying “The body is not a mere physical entity; it is enriched by both memory and dream, past and future.”18 Our bodies are the source of remembering and imagining; our bodies remember feelings and sensations just as our minds do. Philosopher Edward Casey also argues that memory cannot simply exist without body memory.19 Imagery researcher William Brewer defines three categories of memory: personal memory, autobiographical facts, and recollective memory. Architects are more inclined to focus on personal memory, which is the experiential aspect of memory. This is one’s ability to have a memory of a specific experience of a place or space. The experiential aspect of memory can be designed by an architect whereas the other categories cannot. Autobiographical facts are the memory of specific people, places, and events where experience is absent. Recollec-

tive memory is, in the broadest sense, the memory of periods or episodes in one’s life. These two categories of memory aren’t as important to the architect because they don’t have design implications as they aren’t attached to spaces or experiences, but moments in time.20 However, the separation of these categories comes from the importance of certain memories. Downing investigates the importance of these memories that stick with us through our entire lives versus the memories that aren’t as clear. Personal memories are remembered more vividly and experientially, where recollective memories are simply those which we recall, but don’t have any particular attachment to.21 Personal memory is also attached to specific moments in time just as autobiographical and recollective memory are. In fact, memory can only exist in a specific moment in time according to architect, Aldo Rossi. He states, “Specificity cannot exist without memory, nor can memory [exist] that does not emanate from a specific moment…” Over time, we collect memories of our experiences. It is in these moments of experiencing the world that we are grow our sense of self and shape our identity. These past experiences build an understanding of memory after we experience things in the present.22 The way in which architects design draws from their memories.23 According to Zumthor, architecture and buildings are the way we live through our memories and experience them. Architecture acts as the background to the way we live our lives. He offers that architecture should respond to the context of the site to create a meaningful dialogue that allows one to understand its purpose and meaning. For instance, an architect remembers a feeling they had in a space, they draw from that memory to remember the qualities of space that made them feel that particular way. The task then is to take the remembered qualities of space and transcend their original meaning, creating a new meaning.24 The design process is a highly stimulating process for

Literature Review

Fig. 2.7 A piece from the exhibit “Memory Palace” at the Victoria and Albert Museum by Luke Pearson

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Fig. 2.8 Section drawings of “Temple Forgetful” by Douglas Darden

Literature Review

the mind. The designer or architect must reach deep into their memories while also providing reasoning for their design decisions. The number of contingencies that must be considered while also providing reason is one of the most challenging parts of design. There is an experiential force driving the design, but there are forces driving the design that must be given a form in order to create a space. There is a constant interplay between feeling and reasoning.25 Professor James Burch offers a different way of thinking about memory in the design process through memory palaces. Translating a memory palace into the design process is simply taking the theory of familiar places and attaching them along a pathway – taking remembered architectural qualities and applying them along a pathway to create a building. [Fig. 2.6] Burch poses four “memory rules” to create architecture from a memory palace. First, you must dispose remembered qualities of architecture in a particular order. Next, you must adhere to these qualities in this particular order. You find similarities between them and you connect and extend these similarities. And finally, you repeat this frequently. 26 While this isn’t the typical use of the classical memory palace from the Renaissance which remains in the imagination, this type of memory palace bridges the imagination with a physical form. The memory palace constructs a specific narrative within the spatial arrangements in architecture. This narrative is drawn from memory of past experiences of architectural spaces. You draw from two types of memory in the design process, recall memory which is memory of physical elements in architecture remembered and reverie, which is the imaginary memory in which physical memories get skewed from how the exist in the world versus how they exist in your mind.27 Downing calls this imaginative remembrance. This type of remembrance creates history and shapes our present and our future by interweaving perceptions, conceptions, memories, and imagination. Basically, the mind fills in gaps in physical memory with imaginative memories through other past perceptions.28

Conclusion Considering that neurology is so intertwined in the experiential aspect of architecture, it is important to learn about the way our mind and body work inseparably. Memory plays a key role in the processes of experience and perception. By looking at this collection of work together, a common theme reoccurs; memory, senses, and perception all work together to understand the experience of space. [Fig 2.7] By understanding this, architects can work out methods of design that result in successful architecture that responds to the experience. By comparing the narrative driven work of Burch and the memory palace, and the attention to detail in the sensory experience of Zumthor, a new method can be created that responds to memory, the senses, and creates a narrative.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Notes: 1 Thomas Albright, “Neuroscience for Architecture” (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2015.) 2 Peter Zumthor, Thinking Architecture (Birkhauser, 2006) 3 Harry Mallgrave, “Mind in Architecture” (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2015.) 4 Juhani Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin (Chichester: Wiley, 2012) 5 Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin 6 Albright, “Neuroscience for Architecture” 7 Sarah Robinson, Nested Bodies (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2015.) 8 Mallgrave, Mind in Architecture 9 Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin 10 Frances Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space (Texas A&M University Press, 2000) 11 Mark Johnson, Embodied Meaning of Architecture (The MIT Press, 2015) 12 Zumthor, Thinking Architecture 13 Harry Mallgrave, Cognition in the flesh...The Human in Design (Tyler Stevermer, Thresholds 42 Human, 2014.) 14 Johnson, Embodied Meaning of Architecture 15 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space 16 Johnson, Embodied Meaning of Architecture 17 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space 18 Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin 19 Pallasmaa, Eyes of the Skin 20 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space 21 William Brewer, What is recollective memory? (Cambridge University Press, 1996) 22 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space 23 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space 24 Zumthor, Thinking Architecture 25 Zumthor, Thinking Architecture 26 James Burch, Memory Palace (Architecture and Culture, 3:3.) 27 Burch, Memory Palace 28 Downing, Remembrance and the Design of Space

Literature Review

â&#x20AC;&#x153;When I work on a design I allow myself to be guided by images and moods that I remember and can relate to the kind of architecture I am looking for.â&#x20AC;? -Peter Zumthor in Thinking Architecture

CHAPTER 3 THE ARCHIVE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Design Test 1: Narrative PERSONAL MEMORY COLLAGE As a child, one of my favorite things to do was go camping with my family. The campgrounds were always buried in the woods. They were small enough for me to explore alone, but big enough for me to discover and feel free. In the woods, there is a narrow dirt path, just wide enough for me to ride my bike down. The mix of dirt, mud, and various size rocks make the ride tough, but the further I go, the more rewarding the ride becomes. Hidden along this path is an old cemetery from the 1700’s that seems to have been forgotten. A large boulder obstructs the pathway before entering the more dense forest. There is a crack in the boulder just low enough for me to grab onto and pull myself up. At the top of the rock I feel like I am the king of this forest. The absence of people give me ownership of the entire forest, it is mine to explore. Nearby I can hear the water from a creek. Following along the creek leads me back to the campground, where it lets out into the campground’s fishing pond. This design test analyzes my memory, the qualities of the remembered experiences, feelings, and emotions,

and creates architectural spaces. The qualities of remembered experiences can translate into qualities of designed spaces. The collage map of my memories acts as a backdrop for creating a narrative through spaces which I have remembered from my childhood. The interplay between imaginative and physical is one method of exploring a memory palace in the design process. These memories start to organize themselves spatially based on the remembered experience.

LESSONS LEARNED This process is too personal to my own experiences. Moving forward, the testing needs to become less personal to specific memories and relate more to the collective user. Ultimately, the collage map won’t matter in the final product. It is used to dictate a narrative, but becomes too restricting on the creation of a narrative. People won’t understand the final product as an experience through the designer’s memory. To take this one step further and make it less personal, a building should be created. Seeing a building and how a user will experience their journey through the building will create architecture for a collective people and become less dependent on the individual designer.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

IMAGINATIVE SPACES

‘Aperture of Discovery’

As an expansion of the previous design test, these vignettes respond to the lessons learned by using a less personal (to me as an individual) design approach. Drawing inspiration from John Hejduk, these vignettes are stories of a past experience or memory in someone’s life. In a few words, these memories are translated into architectural spaces which have the potential to be combined in a sequence to tell a narrative.

‘The Hall of Isolation’

LESSONS LEARNED This process was a good start but needs to be pushed further by creating more spaces and combining them into an architectural form. These imaginary spaces are a good test, but their representation doesn’t fit their intended function. The designs are too timid and need to become more provocative. Perhaps the lack of a physical site is causing these spaces to be too ambiguous and artificial. Next steps would include applying this process to a physical site.

The Aperture of Discovery is a small hole in an endless wall, just big enough for one to pass through to see what is on the other side. This marks the entrance into the subsequent design vignettes.

The Hall of Isolation is an seemingly endless hallway that continues to a confined, dark room with a single window, just big enough to let a minimal amount of light to pierce through.

‘The Discovering Box’

The Discovering Box is a room within a room which conceals the program of the space. A continuation of the Aperture of Discovery, which controls the narrative of these spaces.

‘The Control Room’

The Control Room is atop a staircase which overlooks the entire project. From this vantage point, the user sees each intervention within the space, however cannot see inside each space. This gives the user of the control room minimal control while still providing them with the feeling of control.

‘The Sandbox’

The Sandbox provides an area for the user to play. This play area allows the user to explore themselves physically and mentally. This acts as a space for the user to create and imagine anything, just as a child in a sandbox would.

The Archive

The Aperture of Discovery

The Hall of Isolation

The Control Room

The Discovering Box

The Sandbox

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Design Test 2: Site BUILDING

PLANS/SECTIONS

PROGRAM - ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - PERIODICAL - STACKS - CATALOGUE - COURTYARD - READING ROOM - BINDERY

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

- ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - RARE BOOK STACKS - EXHIBIT - INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH ROOM - STUDY ROOM - STACKS

BEINECKE RARE BOOK LIBRARY

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

- ENTRY HALL - ROTUNDA - READING ROOM - NORTH/SOUTH COURTS - CATALOG - STACKS - GALLERY/EXHIBITION - BINDERY - LIBRARY SCHOOL - ENTRY HALL - READING ROOM - MEDIA PRESENTATION - STUDY ROOM - STACKS - EVENT ROOM - MEDITATION ROOM - GALLERY HALL

STUTTGART LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

- PLAZA - INFORMATION - LIBRARY - GALLERY - STUDIO

SENDAI MEDIATHEQUE

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

The Archive

CHARACTERS THE PATRON - Visits to gather and retain knowledge or memory - Builds memory from THE AUTHOR - Audience for THE AUTHOR THE AUTHOR - Produces their memory - Creates collection, but rarely visits it - Needs audience to produce memory THE PATRON - Visits to view collection of memory - Observes the exhibits of ‘rare’ memory THE RESEARCHER - Produces their memory in private - Direct connection to collection of memory THE PATRON - Visits to gather and retain knowledge or memory - Builds memory from THE AUTHOR - Audience for THE AUTHOR THE AUTHOR - Produces their memory - Creates collection, but rarely visits it - Needs audience to produce memory THE PATRON - Visits to gather and retain knowledge or memory - Builds memory from THE AUTHOR - Audience for THE AUTHOR THE AUTHOR - Produces their memory - Creates collection, but rarely visits it - Needs audience to present memory THE PATRON - Visits to gather and retain knowledge or memory - Builds memory from THE ARTIST - Audience for THE ARTIST THE ARTIST - Produces their memory for exhibit - Creates collection, but rarely visits it - Needs audience to produce memory

ANALYSIS OF PROGRAM ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - Circulation, dispersment, gathering PERIODICAL - Recurring memories STACKS - Collection of memories CATALOGUE - Network of collective memory COURTYARD - Place for contemplation, remembering READING ROOM - Place for concentration and learning BINDERY - Stitching together memories ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - Circulation, dispersment, gathering RARE BOOK STACKS - Collection of memories EXHIBIT - Curation of memories INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH ROOM - Private place for concentration STUDY ROOM - Place for groups to create memory STACKS - Collection of memories

ENTRY HALL & ROTUNDA - Circulation, dispersment, gathering READING ROOM - Place for concentration and learning NORTH/SOUTH COURTS - Organization of memories for collective use CATALOGUE - Network of collective memory STACKS - Collection of memories GALLERY/EXHIBITION - Curation of memory for display BINDERY - Stitching together memories SCHOOL - Education about memory production/collection ENTRY HALL - Circulation, dispersment, gathering READING ROOM - Place for concentrartion and learning MEDIA PRESENTATION - Digital representation of memory STUDY ROOM - Private place for concentration groups STACKS - Collection of memories EVENT ROOM - Presenting memory through physical form MEDITATION ROOM - Gathering and concentrating thought and memory GALLERY HALL - Curation of memories for display

PLAZA - Circulation, dispersment, gathering INFORMATION - Place for learning, gathering memory LIBRARY - Collection of memories GALLERY - Curation of memory for exhibition ART STUDIO - Place for making, creating memory for exhibition

THE PATRON

PERIODICALS STACKS CATALOG

THE AUTHOR COURTYARD BINDERY

ENTRY READING ROOM

THE PATRON

THE RESEARCHER

EXHIBIT

RARE BOOK STACK RESEARCH ROOM STUDY ROOM STACK

ENTRY

THE PATRON

STACKS CATALOG COURTS EXHIBITION

THE AUTHOR ENTRY

BINDERY

READING ROOM ROTUNDA SCHOOL

THE PATRON

STUDY ROOM STACKS GALLERY HALL

THE AUTHOR ENTRY

MEDIA PRESENTATION MEDITATION ROOM

READING ROOM EVENT HALL

THE PATRON

INFORMATION LIBRARY GALLERY

THE RESEARCHER ART STUDIO

PLAZA

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

DESIGN CHARRETTE: BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY This design charrette explores the Boston Public Library as a potential site for an intervention that uses the ideas from the previous design tests. The charrette analyzes each of the major programs within the library and finds how memory is embedded in each program. This process sets the foundation for creating characters that will occupy and experience the library and design intervention. Each character has a set of rules that they will follow which will start to dictate what program they are using and how they will interact. From the analysis, the path of each character is determined.

‘The Patron’

The Patron is the average, everyday visitor of the library. He comes to the library to gain knowledge and learn from reading the books, the memories of The Author. He is the audience for The Author. His pathway through the building starts at the entryway and continues to either the periodicals or stacks, where he selects the books he wishes to read. He would then continue to the reading room where he will study each book in his selection.

‘The Author’

The Author is the one who is filling the library with content for The Patron. He is writing down his imaginations or memories for them to be read. His pathway simply starts at the entryway and splits around the staircase directly out to the courtyard where he will be focused, isolated, and concentrated for him to write his book.

‘The Librarian’

The Librarian is the facilitator between The Patron and The Author. He organizes the memories, files them, and catalogs them for The Patron. He also binds the books for The Author as they are completed. The Librarian doesn’t have a specific pathway, as he is the keeper of the library. He is where ever he needs to be.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

The Archive

DESIGN CHARRETTE: BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY From the analysis and creation of characters, there were two possible outcomes: 1. A new library was created from the program that exists in the Boston Public Library in a new scheme to fit the paths of each character. 2. An intervention within the library is created to guide each character through the building based on their predetermined pathway. Below is the test of creating a new building. The program for The Patron happens around a central courtyard where The Author is put on display. This responds to the requirement of The Patron being the audience for The Author. There is a direct connection between the courtyard and the stacks. The bindery happens in the intermediate space before The Librarian can organize the newly bound books. On the left side of the courtyard is the reading room. On the way to the reading room, The Patron is guided toward the central courtyard to view The Authors once again. To the left is the test of intervening in the existing library. The interventions are guiding the characters to each of their desired pathways.

LESSONS LEARNED The analysis of this design charrette proves that it is worth defining and selecting physical site to intervene in. Creating a new building from a small and subjective set of rules will be difficult to defend. There arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t any set rules or criteria if the site is non-physical or imaginary as the previous narrative tests were. This charrette also advanced the process of designing spaces for a narrative. The creation of characters allows a narrative to become more defined and gives it a purpose. With these new insights, designing spaces for a set of characters within a narrative will be less subjective.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY ANALYTIQUE This analytique is a response to the previous analysis matrix and design charrette. In the library, the role of ‘The Patron’ (in red) is to be the audience for ‘The Author’ (in yellow). The stacks surround a central courtyard with a raised podium where ‘The Author’ goes to produce their memories. There is a ribbon around this giving a visual connection at all times for ‘The Patron’ to view the ‘The Author’ as they are creating their memories. ‘The Librarian’ (in blue) is the facilitator between these two characters and the keeper of the library where he is seen at a checkout spot between ‘The Patron and ‘The Author’.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

SITE ANALYSIS MATRIX BUILDING

PLANS/SECTIONS

PROGRAM - ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - PERIODICAL - STACKS - CATALOGUE - COURTYARD - READING ROOM - BINDERY

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

- ENTRYWAY/VESTIBULE - RARE BOOK STACKS - EXHIBIT - INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH ROOM - STUDY ROOM - STACKS

BEINECKE RARE BOOK LIBRARY

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

STUTTGART LIBRARY

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

- PLAZA - INFORMATION - LIBRARY - GALLERY - STUDIO

SENDAI MEDIATHEQUE

THE PATRON THE AUTHOR

The Archive

THE PATRON

PERIODICALS STACKS CATALOG

THE AUTHOR COURTYARD BINDERY

ENTRY READING ROOM

THE PATRON

THE RESEARCHER

EXHIBIT

RARE BOOK STACK RESEARCH ROOM STUDY ROOM STACK

ENTRY

THE PATRON

STACKS CATALOG COURTS EXHIBITION

THE AUTHOR ENTRY

BINDERY

READING ROOM ROTUNDA SCHOOL

THE PATRON

STUDY ROOM STACKS GALLERY HALL

THE AUTHOR ENTRY

MEDIA PRESENTATION MEDITATION ROOM

READING ROOM EVENT HALL

THE PATRON

INFORMATION LIBRARY GALLERY

THE RESEARCHER ART STUDIO

PLAZA

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

STUTTGART LIBRARY ANALYTIQUE This analytique is a response to the previous analysis chart to provide an alternative test to a narrative intervention in a library. In this library, the role of ‘The Patron’ (in red) is to approach the building from the right and immediately enter the stacks. In the stacks is a beacon, or light well which illuminates when ‘The Author’ (in yellow) enters the meditation room below. The illumination attract the attention toward the light well while intuiting that another character is present in the space. The Librarian (in blue) is the facilitator between these two characters.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Scene One

Scene Five

Scene Two

Scene Six

Scene Three

Scene Seven

Scene Four

Scene Eight

The Archive

STUTTGART LIBRARY STORYBOARD This storyboard tells the narrative of the Stuttgart Library as analyzed in the analytique. In the first scene, The Patron enters the atrium. In the next scene, The Patron enters the library stacks. The third scene shows The Patron browsing through the stacks. The fourth scene is when The Author is introduced as they enter the long hallway toward the meditation room. The fifth scene, they enter the meditation room. In the sixth scene, the light in the beacon is turned on by The Author who entered the meditation room below. The Patron sees this beacon turn on and knows there is someone present below. In the seventh scene, The Author is producing memories while the Librarian comes in and takes those memories for final production. The final scene shows The Librarian filing away the newly produced memory into the libraryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collection.

LESSONS LEARNED This design test further proved my discoveries from the Boston Public Library design charrette. A physical site will set up a narrative for these characters to interact and create spaces for them to respond to the narrative. However, in this test, the role of the character was pushed and questioned. The character needs to become more defined, with roles, characteristics, and personalities. There needs to be more design of an intervention within an existing space. These drawings are also not working as a method of representing an experiential space. They are too realistic and specific, leading to no real sense of what the space is like. The programmatic element is also detracting from the images.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Design Test 3: Characters LIBRARY CHARACTERS In this design test, I have narrowed in on the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Patronâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; character to represent the potential uses of a modern library space. Based on each character, I assembled a list of program for the library to determine the paths that each character would take within the building to develop a narrative. The narrative in this test is broken into each of ten characters: The Writer, The Reader, The Artist, The Cameraman, The Musician, The Maker, The Student, The Teacher, The Child, The Socializer. The program was also broken into groups: Public/Social, Creative, and Library. This gave the design the ability to have three separate narratives within the same building.

The Archive

Program Matrix

Librarian: Reference Librarian: Circulation Librarian: Stacker Librarian: Archivist/Curator

The Writer The Reader The Artist The Musician The Cameraman The Maker The Student The Teacher The Child The Socializer

Public Wing Traditional Library Creative Wing

Entry Hall

Gallery

Broadcast

Supplier

Performer

Supplier Viewer Viewer Viewer

Live Prod.

Observer

Courtyard

Café

Meditation

Stacks

Reading Room Study Room Digital Lab

Catalog

Circulation Offices Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private Private

Studios

Recording Lab Film Lab

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

LIBRARY CHARACTERS In order to design spaces for each character, I had to determine what the experience would be for each of the potential paths these characters would follow. A series of collages explore these experiences for each character in the narrative in terms of color and materiality. Based on these collage studies, the design can explore the spatial experience with these architectural qualities in mind.

WRITER READER ARTIST CAMERAMAN MUSICIAN MAKER STUDENT TEACHER CHILD SOCIALIZER

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

ENTRY HALL

LIVE PRODUCTION MEDITATION

STACKS READING ROOM

CIRCULATION

STUDY ROOM

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

BROADCASTING

The Archive

COURTYARD

ENTRY HALL

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

BROADCASTING

RECORDING LAB

ENTRY HALL

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

LIVE PRODUCTION

MEDITATION

STACKS

STACKS READING ROOM

CIRCULATION

FILM ROOM

CAFE

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

READING ROOM

STUDY ROOM

CIRCULATION

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

THE WRITER

THE READER

COURTYARD

ENTRY HALL

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

BROADCASTING

RECORDING LAB

ENTRY HALL

LIVE PRODUCTION

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

LIVE PRODUCTION

MEDITATION

STACKS

STACKS READING ROOM

CIRCULATION

FILM ROOM

CAFE

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

READING ROOM

STUDY ROOM

CIRCULATION

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

STUDY ROOM

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

THE ARTIST

THE CAMERAMAN

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY COURTYARD

FILM ROOM ENTRY HALL RECORDING LAB

CAFE

LIVE PRODUCTION

BROADCASTING

MEDITATION

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

STACKS READING ROOM ENTRY HALL

LIVE PRODUCTION MEDITATION

CIRCULATION

STACKS

CIRCULATION

THE MUSICIAN

COURTYARD

STUDY ROOM

THE MAKER

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

ENTRY HALL

RECORDING LAB

MEDITATION

STACKS

STACKS READING ROOM

READING ROOM

STUDY ROOM

CIRCULATION

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

STUDY ROOM

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

THE STUDENT

COURTYARD

THE TEACHER

COURTYARD

FILM ROOM RECORDING LAB

CAFE

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

GALLERY

ENTRY HALL

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

LIVE PRODUCTION

MEDITATION

CIRCULATION

FILM ROOM

CAFE GALLERY

ENTRY HALL

LIVE PRODUCTION

RECORDING LAB

BROADCASTING

CREATIVE STUDIO

LIVE PRODUCTION

MEDITATION

STACKS

STACKS READING ROOM

CIRCULATION

FILM ROOM

CAFE GALLERY

ENTRY HALL

LIVE PRODUCTION

READING ROOM

STUDY ROOM

CIRCULATION

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

STUDY ROOM

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

THE CHILD

STUDY ROOM

DIGITAL LAB CATALOG

READING ROOM

THE SOCIALIZER

BROADCASTING

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

CHARACTERS DESIGN TEST The design test of this process focused on one of the three potential paths; this path is â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The Creatorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; path which generalizes the group of characters, The Artist, The Cameraman, The Musician, and The Maker. These four characters would follow a similar path through the building, going from the Entry Hall to the Creative wing. In the Entry Hall, there are two paths you can choose. One path is an open, free flowing lobby area, and the other is a tight, dimly lit, crevasse created by a slanting wall. The crevasse has been designed to insight a sense of curiosity in the user, activating their brain to start thinking creatively. Once the user proceeds through this small corridor, they are opened to a wider hallway providing a relief from the cramped corridor. The scale of the hallway makes the movement feel much slower, to allow the occupant to contemplate again activating their creative thinking. At the end of the hallway, there is an aperture which the user passes through to get into the creative wing where they are met by the studio spaces.

LESSONS LEARNED From this design test, my thesis could go one of two directions: 1. This project can remove program and focus on the spaces and experience within space, devoid of program (for now). This then has to become a discourse between characters (Perhaps Librarian and Patron). 2. This project has to take form on a site and rely on the site contingencies to inform the spaces. This can have more of pragmatic approach, looking at program while still questioning/critiquing the role of libraries in our society.

There are currently too many characters to map all their paths. The story gets confusing with so many characters. By diluting them down and generalizing them, the story can become more ambiguous, but clear at the same time. Telling the story through literature will be important in architecturalizing space as well.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Design Test 4: Symbolic Spaces SYMBOLISM OF THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY This test focuses on the original building of the Boston Public Library as a symbolic space to create a narrative supporting the presences of memory, the acquisition of knowledge, and a sequence of spaces that tell a story. This test examines three distinct spaces within the library: The Courtyard, Bates Reading Room, and the marble staircase. The Courtyard has a direct connection to the outside world, to nature, while still being contained within the building. Nature has a direct connection to knowledge as all knowledge comes from the world - and nature represents the world. Therefore, the courtyard lends itself to being a space for this intervention. The height and verticality within the space offers the symbolism that knowledge is vertical. As you learn more and attain more knowledge, you ascend higher, becoming closer to the source of knowledge. Bates Reading Room is a massive open hall for Patrons to have a quiet place to study and attain this knowledge. It is the ideal location for Librarian and Patron to come together and have discourse. This space is one of the most precious spaces within the library to both the Patron and the Librarian. This offers a narrative that could be driven by the more linear and structured process of education. Librarians occupy a library to serve and guide and educate the Patron. A second intervention can be included within this space to provoke a narrative that juxtaposes the narrative that is created in the Courtyard. Finally, the marble staircase acts as the joint that brings these two spaces, interventions together. This grand staircase falls within an axis created from the existing design of the library. Without intervening, the marble staircase holds a particular symbolic meaning meshing the ideas of vertical knowledge and education together. This grand staircase will bring two otherwise separate narratives together in harmony. The following mind map studies how these spaces can be architecturalized in a new intervention.

The Archive

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

MIND MAP

The Archive

The library is a container of knowledge. This knowledge is at the disposal of the occupants of the library. Anything there is to learn, Can be learned within the confines of a single building. Learning comes in many processes. One can teach themselves, Or one can be taught by someone else. Attaining knowledge comes at oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discretion. The building must compliment these processes. Like the design process, The process of education never ends...

CHAPTER 4 THE NARRATIVE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT The outcome of the process above has produced two characters who will occupy the Library in this story. The Patron is the visitor of the library, one who seeks knowledge and education. Their curiosity drives them to explore the possibilities of what the library has to offer. The Librarian remains in the library and works diligently to keep their systematic organization of books and knowledge. However, the Patron is a disrupter of their system, so the Librarian who oversees this knowledge must continuously fix the disruption. The Librarian is also a guide. They help the Patron find answers to the questions they are unsure of. The Librarian remains a static figure, repeating their processes over and over.

What role does the Patron play in the narrative? - Visits Library in search of knowledge - Curiosity guides patron through the Library - Disruptive to the Librarianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s scienctific system Patron

What role does the Librarian play in the narrative? - Occupies Library at all times as a fixed feature - Holder/overseer of the knowledge contained within the Library - Educator and guide for the Patron Librarian

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

MATERIALITY OF EXISTING

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

SOLID PALETTE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

TRANSPARENT PALETTE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

MATERIALITY OF INTERVENTION

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

SOLID PALETTE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

TRANSPARENT PALETTE

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

TOWER OF KNOWLEDGE The Tower of Knowledge is a conceptual intervention in the Boston Public Library which offers a set of symbolic spaces for the process of self-guided education. The main character in the Tower of Knowledge is the Patron, who meanders freely through the spaces, creating their own path based on the architectural symbolism. Light guides the Patron through these spaces and is symbolic of knowledge. The natural light often comes from above, implying a vertical movement. The spaces in the Tower are: Entrance Tower - Symbolic of Knowledge Ascension - Symbolic of Knowledge “Book” Space - Intimate Space symbolic of attaining knowledge from a book. “Digital” Space - Larger scale space symbolic of attaining knowledge from modern technology (Searching query for keywords) Librarian’s Cellar - Symbolic of book as an artifact of the library, contained and protected underground. Book Elevator - Symbolic of the verticality of knowledge

The Narrative

“Book” Space

“Digital” Space

Ascension Entrance Tower

Librarian’s Cellar Book Elevator

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

TOWER SECTION

Ascension Entrance Tower

As the Patron enters the Tower, their eye is drawn up by the curved walls toward an aperture where a beam of light projects into the space. The Patron is drawn to the light as they proceed to the ascension where more light from the top of the tower pours into the space. They ascend toward the light.

The Narrative

SUN STUDY - SPRING/FALL

10:00am

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12:00pm

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Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

SUN STUDY - SUMMER

10:00am

11:00am

12:00pm

1:00pm

2:00pm

3:00pm

4:00pm

5:00pm

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The Narrative

SUN STUDY - WINTER

10:00am

11:00am

12:00pm

1:00pm

2:00pm

3:00pm

4:00pm

5:00pm

6:00pm

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

“BOOK” AND “DIGITAL” SECTION

“Book” Space

Book Elevator

“Digital” Space

Upon reaching the top of the ascension, the Patron is greeted by a large light well between the opening. On either side of the light well is a staircase. One leads upward, to an intimate “Book” space. The other leads downward to a narrow corridor, revealing the “Digital” space.

The Narrative

The transition reveals the options the Patron has upon passing through.

The light well transforms into a display case for the libraryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artifacts as an elevator delivers books up from the Librarianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cellar.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

LIBRARIAN’S CELLAR SECTION

Book Elevator

Librarian’s Cellar

Below the existing Library, the Librarians work to bring order to the disruption caused by the Patron’s presence in the spaces above. While the Librarians are hidden away from the Patron’s they maintain their scientific organization of the collection of knowledge. The books here are precious, treated as an artifact.

The Narrative

As the Patron requests a book, the Librarians search their collection and deliver it in the ascending Book Elevator. The artifact is returned to storage after use.

The attaining of knowledge has been fulfilled - for now...

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

HALL OF EDUCATION The Hall of Education is a conceptual intervention in the Boston Public Library which offers a set of symbolic spaces for the process of a guided education. The main character in the Hall of Education is the Librarian, who brings the Patron through a set of spaces provided for attaining knowledge. These spaces are structured and organized for the Librarian to move the Patron through a prioritized, systematic set of spaces that supports the scientific approach to educating. Light plays a role in guiding the Patron to the Librarian, even creating the perception that the Librarian is sacred. The spaces in the Hall are: Entry Hall - Marks the beginning of a journey Librarian Space -Sacred space that is symbolic of a higher power of knowledge Display Case - Symbolic of the book as an artifact of the library “Book” Space - Intimate Space symbolic of attaining knowledge from a book. “Digital” Space - Larger scale space symbolic of attaining knowledge from modern technology (i.e. Internet, mobile reading, etc) The Loop - Corridor for Librarian’s return to their space, symbolic of the process of education being endless. Exit Hall - Marks the end of a journey, mirroring Entry Hall Entry Hall

Librarian Space

The Narrative

The Loop Exit Hall “Digital” Space Display Case

“Book” Space

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

ENTRY HALL PLAN

Entry Hall

Librarian Space

The Patron is guided down a narrow hallway which opens up to a transition where light is used to pull the Patron into the main Entry Hall. As the Patron enters the hall, they approach the Librarianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s booth where they inquire about a service. The Patron is introduced to the Librarian.

The Narrative

A higher-being appears in the window. The Librarianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s booth appears sacred. A beam of light from above casts a shadow over a figure, who appears anonymous, unidentifiable. The Patron can only see the figureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s body and nothing else. They meet the Patron on the other side of their booth beginning the guided education process.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

DISPLAY CASE PLAN

Display Case

A large glass display is revealed in the center of the existing hall to display all the knowledge contained within the intervention. The Librarian proceeds to guide the Patron into the Display Case.

The Narrative

Inside the Display Case, the Librarian shows off their collection of books, helping the Patron find what the are looking for. Their is a view overlooking the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Digitalâ&#x20AC;? space only occupied by Patrons. The Digital and the Artifact come together, separated only by a thin layer of glass.

Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

“BOOK” AND “DIGITAL” PLAN

The Loop

“Digital” Space

Exit Hall

“Book” Space

The Librarian guides the Patron to a tight corridor, wide enough for just two people side by side. On the right are intimate “Book” spaces. At the end of the corridor, the space opens up leading to the “Digital” space. The Patron uses these spaces at their own discretion, only being guided by the Librarian. The Librarian does not follow the Patron into these spaces.

The Narrative

Outside the “Book” Space, the Librarian sits in a nook created from the wood cladding as they wait for the Patron. The Librarian then guides them to the next space where they have the choice to enter the “Digital” space or the exit hall. Once again, the Librarian does not follow. Once the Patron’s requests have been fulfilled, they enter the Exit Hall. The Librarian proceeds to The Loop returning back to the booth where they started.

...the Librarian’s booth appears sacred. A beam of light from above casts a shadow over a figure, who appears anonymous, unidentifiable. The Patron can only see the figure’s body and nothing else. They meet the Patron on the other side of their booth beginning the guided education process.

They remain in this repetitive state and the process repeats...

CHAPTER 5 -

CRITICAL REFLECTION

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Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

KEY CRITIQUES AND INSIGHT The design process never ends... This preliminary test leaves a lot to be desired. The two distinct stories of the occupants in a library is an approach that has many successes and many failures. One narrative, the Tower of Knowledge, focuses on the use of a library from the Patron’s perspective. The success of this intervention is within the tower. The symbolism and the design of light in this space is compelling and provocative. The representation works well and draws the attention to the most important aspects of the intervention while clearly highlighting the symbolism in this intervention. The sequence of the Patron moving through the tower is clear and powerful, representing the full human experience. The tower, to me, was the first and most important element to this design from the beginning. I was able to put so much attention into the detail of this space even through multiple iterations. While the spaces around it changed, the concept of the tower ultimately remained the same. The symbolism and the characteristics of this tower were the backbone of the Tower of Knowledge as a narrative. All subsequent spaces were supportive. These spaces lacked specific detail and higher purpose within the narrative, with the exception of the Book Elevator. This was the second element of the narrative that was developed. Similar to the tower, it went through multiple iterations, but ultimately remained the same. As a result the detail and symbolism with this space became successful to the narrative of the book as an artifact. Some key critiques of the Tower of Knowledge throughout this process were about representation. While section drawings supports the symbolism of verticality in the tower, it was the only representation that was used to show this intervention. Per-

spectives and animations were also used to support the experience of these spaces, which allowed for a more clear image of what the space looks and feels like. Along the process, there became an ambiguity of what happens at the “end” of the narrative. Does there need to be an end? This question remains unanswered. A second narrative, the Hall of Education focuses on designing spaces that support the process of education in a conceptual or symbolic way. This narrative was a lot more provocative and offered a lot more discussion points than the Tower of Knowledge. It was important to take a stance on who the Librarian is and what their role is within this space. The design had to respond to the Librarian’s role while also supporting the education of the Patron. It had to be made clear that the Librarian was the main character in this story. With that said, the design of this space is open to subjectivity and critique. The successful elements of this intervention were heavily based in the narrative. The Librarian does not enter any of the spaces in which the Patron occupies to attain knowledge. It is a provocative stance; while some may agree with this concept, others may disagree. The design of spaces provided for this specific discourse were also successful. The detail that was put into spaces such as the cladding to create seating nooks, the floor pattern defining the Librarian’s path, or the booth the Librarian occupies all support the narrative of the Librarian very well. The other concept that is quite successful is the idea of education as a loop and that the Librarian and the Patron have their own loop or their own process in this narrative. While the Patron’s inquiry will always change, the Librarian’s approach to guiding the Patron will always remain the same. The Patron will always enter with an inquiry and exit with new knowledge while the Librarian will always remain in “The Loop”.

Critical Reflection

However, much of this space, like the Tower of Knowledge, lacks detail. The main critique of the Hall of Education was about representation. Through the many reviews, a common theme was about seeing the space more dynamically. Plans were useful to show the movement sequence, acting as a diagram, but some of the main ideas of the space weren’t represented. This caused the design to lack the detail it required to fully support the narrative and all talking points within the story. The process was challenging as it required more than just a building design and concept. This thesis required the creation of a narrative, the development of characters within the narrative, and a design approach that responded to the narrative. Whenever one of these three elements adapted, the other two elements had to respond. It was very much a cyclical process that required both design responses and literary responses. Writing was integral to the success of the design; without the literature, the design becomes arbitrary. The subjectivity was the most challenging aspect to overcome. Once I was able to accept that and form a fluid method of writing and design, the thesis was able to develop and thrive.

NEXT STEPS As I pursue the continuation of my work from this thesis, there are certain aspects I would push further to find a successful process of design. As times change and technology adapts, the meaning of this library will also change. What it means to be “digital” now does not mean the same thing it will in 10, 20, or 30 years from now. With that said, moving forward this thesis requires more attention to detailing and tectonics. This thesis isn’t intended to become a built intervention, however the tectonics are important to the human experience. In this iteration, tectonics and details were not pushed far enough. Without the development of these, it will be hard to pursue more iter-

ations moving forward. As this thesis allows me to discover the tectonic language of the interventions, I can pay more attention to the detail and expanse of the design. For example, the courtyard space has been neglected. What happens around my intervention that intrudes in this existing space? It will be important to examine the moments where my intervention affects the existing building. The thesis statement talks about the relationship between existing and new. However, this iteration fails to address that connection in detail. Once the tectonics have been examined and answered, this thesis can start to explore other narratives in different locations or sites. Libraries will always have relevance in our acquisition of knowledge. Even though the internet is taking over, the library provides the resources of attaining knowledge through any source. This provides opportunities to explore a narrative focusing on the book as an artifact, as the main character in the story. This thesis will continue to change as the times change, as technology changes, as education changes.

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Archive of Memory: The Poetic Junction Between Memory, Narrative, and the Human Experience

Just as the design process never ends, The acquisition of knowledge never ends...

Critical Reflection

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Image Reference: Fig. 1.1 Analysis by the author of Therme Vals by Peter Zumthor (Photo: Hélène Binet accessed Nov. 1, 2019 https://www.pritzkerprize.com/laureates/2009) Fig. 1.2 Collage analysis by the author of The MIT Chapel by Eero Saarinen (Credit: Author) Fig. 1.3 Collage analysis by the author of The Jewish Museum by Daniel Libeskind (Credit: Author) Fig. 1.4 llustration of a gallery in The Library of Babel by Jorge Luis Borges (Illustration: Unknown accessed Dec. 10, 2019 https://futurism.com/meet-the-digital-library-of-babel-a-complete-combination-of-every-possible-combination-of-letters-ever) Fig. 2.1 Interior view of the Bruder Klaus Chapel, Germany by Peter Zumthor (Photo: Aldo Amoretti accessed Nov. 27, 2019 https://www.archdaily.com/798340/peterzumthors-bruder-klaus-field-chapel-through-the-lens-ofaldo-amoretti) Fig. 2.2 View of Entryway of the Bruder Klaus Chapel, Germany by Peter Zumthor (Photo: Hélène Binet accessed Nov. 27, 2019 https://www.phaidon.com/agenda/architecture/articles/2015/february/04/sacred-stories-bruderklaus-field-chapel/) Fig. 2.3 Eye enclosing the theater at Besancon by Claude Nicholas Ledoux (Illustration: Claude Nicholas Ledoux accessed Dec. 10, 2019 http://www.wikigallery.org/wiki/ painting_256119/Claude-Nicolas-Ledoux/Eye-enclosing-the-theatre-at-Besancon) Fig. 2.4 Platfom Model by Peter Zumthor (Photo: Peter Zumthor accessed Nov. 27, 2019 https://www.pritzkerprize.com/laureates/2009) Fig. 2.5 Exhibit of “Do Ho Suh: 348 West 22nd Street” at LACMA by Do Ho Suh (Photo: Do Ho Suh, Lehmann Maupin accessed Nov. 27, 2019 https://unframed.lacma. org/2019/11/08/weekend-lacma) Fig. 2.6 Exhibit of “Do Ho Suh: 348 West 22nd Street” at LACMA by Do Ho Suh (Photo: Do Ho Suh, Lehmann Maupin accessed Nov. 27, 2019 https://unframed.lacma. org/2019/11/08/weekend-lacma)

Fig. 2.7 A piece from the exhibit “Memory Palace” at the Victoria and Albert Museum by Luke Pearson (Credit: Luke Pearson accessed Dec. 10, 2019 https:// lukepearson.com/Other/Memory-Palace) Fig. 2.8 Section drawings of “Temple Forgetful” by Douglas Darden (Illustration: Douglas Darden in Condemned Buildings)

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