The Amateur Scale | Linking East Boston Mike Wojnarowicz
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[Linking East Boston]
Acknowledgments A significant amount of recognition is due to my Thesis Prep I advisor, Zenovia Toloudi, my Thesis Prep II advisor, Jenn Lee Michaliszyn and my Thesis Studio advisor, AnneSophie Divenyi. They have been remarkable sources of information and inspiration and have immensely contributed to the development of my thesis. Thank you.
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Abstract The work of an amateur is derived from an alternative means of expression through a developing, improvisational nature of discovery and exploration. The work portrays the process and human quality in the final product through an underlying narrative that is left open to the viewer for interpretation. The amateur has the ability to translate their intentions at a more human scale of understanding and awareness because they are not working at a professional level of interpretation and execution. The produced work has a strong sense of truthfulness and raw, unrefined human quality to generate a connection with the audience that does not lend itself to an established practice or standard of comprehension.
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Contents Question 20 Research Essay 28 Process 40 Project 76 Thoughts 108
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THE INFLUENCE OF
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AMATEUR
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COLLABORATIVE
INDEPENDENT
FLOW The ultimate result of a production that has been translated into a finished product through a group or an individual. The art has undergone an intense process of creativity, risks, dreams and efforts that collectively create a finished product to exemplify stages of the process.
UNREFINED QUALITY
-development -limitations -imperfections
AMATEUR
-personable Otherside, Macklemore/Jason Koenig
CRAFT
Wash, Bon Iver
EXPERIMENTAL
Michicant, Bon Iver
PROCESS
Editing
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[Professional] trained | compensated | standard One who agrees to stay within the collectively accepted and established zone of “the concretely known�
[Amateur] truthfulness | instinctive | impulsive An individual who breaks the boundaries of the preconceived notions of the norm, established by a professional, by way of their spontaneous, improvisational nature of exploring methods for discovery
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The arrival of the Amateur came about from a fascination with amateur film and photography works, along with my personal collection of footage from travels and day to day experiences. There is a sense of freedom present in the final product of the amateur, resonant of the maker’s human level of rigor and improvisation, or lack thereof. These works contain an almost unfinished quality that has enough of a foundation to convey authorship and intention, yet has a level of incompleteness that allows the viewer the ability to assert their opinions, interpretations and imaginations. The result is not so dissimilar to that of a ruin in the sense it has an underlying story, not eminently present at first glance, but ultimately felt after it has been experienced without ever having revealed all of its inherent elements. Taking a step beyond my basic interests of film and photography and beginning to apply myself in a more direct and intentional manner, the question arose between the distinction of the Amateur and the Professional. By looking at the amateur, not as an individual who is incapable or a novice, but instead as one who has an alternative background to influence their process and products, a strength is revealed that is not typical to the norm of the traditional approach. It is here that the amateur can breach the bounds of what was thought to be possible and surpass preconceived notions of what the professional would be expected to achieve.
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[Language]
portrayal | expression | intercourse
A common medium of representation that communicates an intention or desire
[Narrative]
personal | episodic | revealing
A dialogue that exists between the user and originator, creating a medium for the two to phenomenally interact
[Story]
factual | structured | impersonal
A subjective description of a condition with a distinct beginning, middle and end
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user’s
of the building and architect understanding | awareness | appreciation
architect’s
of the user’s inherent needs
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Can the human process in amateur film and photography inform architecture on how to establish a symbiotic relationship with the user in its final form? Furthermore, can this relationship aid the viewers awareness of the building’s impact upon themselves as much as their impact upon the building?
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AMATEUR
TRUTHFUL
UNREFINED
CRAFT
ARCHITECTURE The realm of engagement in which the idea converses with the user through sensory relationships in a point in time
The process is portrayed as a result in its most pure form: the human touch
EPHEMERAL Can the human process in amateur film and photography inform architecture on how to establish a symbiotic relationship with the user in its final form? Furthermore, can this relationship aid the viewers awareness of the building’s impact upon themselves as much as their impact upon the building?
USER
COMMUNICATION
RELATIONSHIP
AWARENESS UNDERSTANDING INTERPRETATION
INTERACTION
Y.E.S. Your engagement sequence - Olafur Eliasson 22
A Critique of the Current Use of Film & Photography in Architecture
A Literal Translation During the design phase, the professional realm of architecture uses film and photography as tools for capturing specific physical and logistical characteristics of the site in order to inform methods and techniques to be used in the design process. The camera functions as an additional set of eyes that captures data to be quantified into a specific decision that will remediate any issues or variances that need to be addressed. A documentarist works in a similar mindset with the intention of capturing specific shots and scenes in order to create a tone that portrays the subject matter in a particular light. Despite the amount of emotion that may be invested into this capturing process, there still lacks the intent of discovery and exploration that does not judge, but instead seeks to openly observe the surroundings in an immersive state of phenomenal transpiration. Ultimately, these two conventions of capturing are beneficial to the final product, however they seem to miss out on the potential assets the site may have by not taking an amateur style approach or actually bringing the content of the image to the built form.
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An Inherent Expression The amateur approach to capturing a site through film and photography relies upon the amateur’s ability to enhance their understanding with their improvisational means of exploration. This technique stems from their informed reactions attained during this process of discovery and is translated into a language of a narrative that introduces the basis for generating an authorship that will continue throughout the design. In order to attain this immersive state of phenomenal transpiration, the amateur becomes absorbed by this new world where everything outside of it fades away and only past instincts remain. By entering this realm of unfolding occurrences the amateur discovers their understanding of it through an immediacy of these informed reactions. It is the witnessing of these revelations that instills a deeper meaning within their captured footage. With this powerful state of engagement between the amateur, camera and site, comes the opportunity for the amateur to reflect upon their journey and continue it into the next step of revealing their findings and translating them into a language that can be understood by others.
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Framework of Application | Current Documentation | quantitative | objective The traditional documentation of a site with film and photography seeks to objectively capture specific characteristics and conditions in order to process them in an archival record of rigor and finite information. The recorded visuals contain very literal descriptions of the circumstances and do not require in-depth contemplation or visionary interpretations to recognize what is shown in the image. The strategy of using film and photography in this manner is very factual and lends itself to solutions that do not reveal underlying opportunities that can push the limits of the design. The use of this media on a strictly informational basis lacks the ability to focus on the more intrinsic expressions that the site is capable of generating. Documentary | glorification | rehearsed The documentary has the capability to deceptively express a building in such a manner that glorifies and expresses only the positive characteristics of its composition, or even just the opposite. There is a script for the dialogue and the scenes are carefully selected in order to portray the building in the visual presence desired by the director. They are ultimately combined to create a compelling visual representation that places the building in a manipulated, partial light. By painting an image of the building in this sought after landscape, the truth of the architecture is masked and does not express the genuine nature of its disposition. Instead those truths are never shown or talked about and their confrontation is neglected by the filming crew in order to avoid any sort of contemplation or debate that would offset the scripted composition of the film. In turn, the documentary deceptively presents to us an authentic world that is actually not authentic at all.
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Framework of Application | Proposed Discovery | exploration | immersion The total immersion of one’s self within the site develops an informed reaction, which is captured through the camera that behaves as an extension of their phenomenal being. The camera has the ability for the user to manipulate what is captured, where the focus lies and what is emphasized through its other adjustable features. By incorporating the camera during their discovery, the user is able to emphasize the important qualities they see or emotions they feel by adjusting what is captured in real time. This interactive form of documentation also lends itself as a supplementary memory that can tell of one’s subconscious experience as they choreograph the scene to capture general or specific moments of importance. It is here that the inherent capabilities of the site are brought to light and are ensured a proper opportunity to be seen and explored later on. Interpretation | contemplation | revelation The compilation of the captured footage into a compositional orchestrated film is a process itself in which the [operator] studies their images and clips and arranges them into a language that shares a continuous dialogue of sequential or related events. It is through this arrangement of the substantial memories that a narrative can develop to introduce the inherent capabilities in a revealing manner, just as they were experienced while capturing these moments. Part of what makes this a powerful methodology is the fact that a new site can be very overwhelming and difficult to process when everything is within view. The idea of being able to work with this supplemental memory in a personal manner allows one to revisit and create a story of the past to help them realize why the present is here. A purpose and meaning grows from this involved relationship that has been invested into the process of discovering, helping to develop a framework for an authorship of understanding and appreciation.
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RESEARCH ESSAY
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The creator speaks through the language of craft that is translated to us in the built form.
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Amateur film and photography are mediums of perception and portrayal that aim to relay an experience of discovered events to an audience from the eyes of the director. This image or scene has been thoughtfully composed and holds an identity generated by the director that gives it the attractive, personable quality of the unrefined human touch. It is through a phenomenal discourse of impulsive, informed reactions from the audience that establishes an understanding of how the piece physically contributes to their focus and transparently enhances their experience. The common element between the amateur’s portrayal of their piece and the architect’s portrayal of their building is the presence of the human quality, translated in the perceptible form. The act of making this craft develops an intercourse from the creator to the user that intends to convey awareness and appreciation through stimulating mediums of visual and physical entities. There is the sense of “de-familiarization” 1 between users and the building that develops disconnects, misunderstandings and discontent because of the lack of a discernible intercourse from the architect. Though attempts have been made to mend this issue through film with the inclusion of the architect in a documentary to provide a face and dialogue for the design, it is too literal of a method. This approach requires a forced participation of the audience and only addresses the basic, perceived interests of an assumed lay audience. Another issue is this medium is utilized as an ex post facto rationale in an attempt to universally justify the design and its intentions after it has been created. Conversely, there is the issue of the architect losing sight for whom they are designing because their vision can foil their ability to address the user’s inherent needs. Instead, this thesis aims to utilize amateur film and photography as a method of exploration and development in the design process in order to benefit the user and building by composing an informed understanding of the site and human context through their inherent capabilities of focus and representation.
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Blau, Eve. “Transparency and the Irreconcilable Contradictions of Modernity.” Praxis 9 (2007): 52.
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AMATEURISM “Belief that when everything is possible, the possible is merely another part of everything.” 2. It is the amateur who goes beyond what was thought to be possible and surpasses any preconceived notion of what a professional would be expected to achieve 3 by way of their spontaneous, improvisational nature of exploring methods for discovery, opposed to searching for results in the form of textbook answers. Shumon Basar’s, The Professional Amateur, argues the worth and relevance of an amateur in a society that views the professional as superior through revealing the valuable characteristics of truthfulness and essential instincts that embody the disposition of the amateur. Embedded in the amateur’s process of making, an unrefined human quality is produced with visible passion and identity, creating a genuine, personable piece with a truthfulness others can appreciate. Basar touches upon the idea of the reliance and belief an amateur must have for “the primary logic of survival” in order to justify their drive and impulse to pursue aspirations and desired intentions of their explorations. This does not necessarily mean there must be a strong sense of direction or level of comfort, but instead for one to have the spirit to push forward and trust the instincts and inclinations which stimulated the idea in the first place. The principle intent of The Professional Amateur is to convey the idea that the amateur represents the outlet for exercising passions in order to realize their potential and most importantly, the essential character of one’s self. It develops a framework from which invested personal desires can teach one how to explore questions through their own means of understanding.
variation through an understanding and appreciation of a basic coherent focus that is applied to their overall composition. Working within this framework, The Craftsman, and specifically the chapter, “Resistance and Ambiguity”, talks about the importance of “befriending ambiguity” in order to work with found and seen resistances 4, utilizing them as explorations for implementing new methods. Sennett points out that the key to working with challenges is the perseverance of working with resistance in terms of “reformatting”, “sustained concentration” [patience], and “identify[ing] with the resistance”. Realizing one’s capabilities, coupled with the understanding of the problem’s confines, opens up the strategy for the maker to “reorient one’s expectations” in order to accept the presented issue and “the temporary suspension for the desire of closure” 5. With this level of recognition, the maker can effectively work with the restrictive elements and actually use them to their advantage by establishing a well-structured, methodological strategy that has an underlying set of guides for development. Whether it is sought after or not, Sennett’s description of the resistive path towards success does not happen from the start, and instead is a progressive development of skills that follow the direction of the framework of the issue at hand. When this process has been effectively executed, Sennett describes the satisfaction of it as “…the craftsman’s emotional reward, the sentiment of competence”.
THE EMERGENCE OF PROCESS The major element of a successful composition is the underlying process of making that leads up to it. A well-crafted piece takes pride in revealing the complex nature of its makeup by allowing these important moves to be visible in the final product as a way of telling the story of its creation. Developing the process of a craft, especially for a beginner, should not be spontaneous and arbitrary, but instead what Richard Sennett perceives as improvisational because of its nature of discovery and
PHENOMENAL TRANSPARENCY With this established framework of an amateur invested in finding their own way through discovery by making in their explorations, comes the conception of “transparency” as a means of informing the contradictions that occur in architecture. These contradictions, like the resistive occurrences in The Craftsman, seek to work with conflicting elements by way of a developed, strategic discourse of action. Conversely: “transparency is a concept that can hold contradiction. It does so in a way that neither negates nor resolves the contradiction, but instead continuously opens it up to new meanings.” 6. Transparency and the Irreconcilable
Basar, Shumon, and Markus Miessen. “The Professional Amateur.” In Did Someone Say Participate?, 34. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2006. 3 Basar, Shumon, and Markus Miessen. “The Professional Amateur.” In Did Someone Say Participate?, 33. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2006.
4 Basar, Shumon, and Markus Miessen. “The Professional Amateur.” In Did Someone Say Participate?, 33. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2006. 5 Sennett, Richard. “Resistance and Ambiguity.” In The craftsman, 221. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008. 6 Blau, Eve. “Transparency and the Irreconcilable Contradictions of Modernity.” Praxis 9 (2007): 50.
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The Gardner Vs. Michicant video was the beginning of the exploration of combining personal site footage with sampled media from other artists. This short film takes the natural phenomenon of nature in the Bon Iver piece and the detailed craft of the Gardner addition, originally in juxtaposition, but as the video progresses, unites them, complimenting each other and creates this new environment expressive of the two atmosphere’s powerful traits as one.
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Contradictions of Modernity, by Eve Blau, discusses the concept of indicating an element of order and strategy in a conflicted environment that brings new meaning to the contradiction and portrays it in a new spatial manner. This idea of adding a level of complexion to the issue in order to offset the negative overlapping of separate elements is interesting because it achieves its success through a continuum flux of significant happenings 7. With this argument, Blau introduces Colin Rowe and Robert Slutzky’s article “Transparency: Literal and Phenomenal”, which further depicts transparency as “that which is clearly ambiguous”, while still maintaining the notion that there is a detectable system of reason 8. It is the established system of reason that these authors stress as being the core attribute of maintaining order in an otherwise frictional atmosphere that lends itself to apply to significant works, such as Le Corbusier’s Villa Stein and Walter Gropius’ Bauhaus. Rowe and Slutzky present the compositional elements of these two works as highly communicative components that talk about the organization of the building and how one understands its configuration based upon their immediately discernible qualities of integration and relation 9. These two examples, defined as “phenomenal transparency” because of their distinct organizational methods, use this form of transparency as means of revealing the opportunities to recognize the meanings and misunderstandings that occur in architecture in order to inform the viewer of intended complexities and design traits created by the architect.
potential to occur even if the architect in question had the best intentions in mind. “In the Mind of the Architect: Representation and Authorship in Documentary Film”, by Naomi Stead 10, brings about the idea of representation of architecture through film and talks about the importance of the user’s understanding of the building. Stead discusses the use of the “In the Mind of the Architect” documentary as method of introducing the architect to the public eye when it was broadcasted on the Australian Broadcasting Commission. This documentary allows the architect to explain his building and the methodology behind it, and even includes an actual tour of it in real time. The issue with this type of representation of architecture through film is the presentation of the documentary and the role the architects play within it. As said before, this is a very literal method that hands out the concept of the building to anyone who will listen and does so after it has already been built, as if they were trying to justify its existence.
PREVALENT AUTHORSHIP Something important an architect must make sure is being executed in their project is the common thread of their identity throughout the project by way of articulated authorship and how it tells the story of the building. It is very common for the user’s understanding to come across as a misunderstanding in that they experience a disconnect with the building’s composition and develop a lack of appreciation and notion of credibility towards the architect. These negative sorts of impressions can lead the user to believe that the architect is detached from the important presence of the people and even to the point at which they could be deemed careless. All of this has the
Though a documentary exists to provide people with background about a subject matter that they are unable to physically reach, it provides a false identity of architectural authorship through a heavily scripted dialogue and supportive clips of the building that turn the space into a film set in order to get a “desirable shot”. Instead, authorship should be able to come through strongly enough that it does not need the architect to advocate their building’s relevance on screen. Stead quotes Roland Barthes saying, “the birth of the reader must be at the cost of the death of the author”, meaning once the building has been turned over to the user for interpretation, the architect can no longer explain it – thus the arrival of the documentary. Stead contradicts this statement by rebutting “what if the author never died?” and “why in architecture has the reader refused to be born?” 11 . These questions pose the issue of whether the essence of the architect can experience a resurgence of meaning and relevance through alternative uses of film and photography. If it is not the architects offering a rehearsed explanation of their intentions in front of a camera, then it needs to be the architects pushing themselves to have this total immersion within the project so that film can become
Blau, Eve. “Transparency and the Irreconcilable Contradictions of Modernity.” Praxis 9 (2007): 51. This statement of my own was developed through Blau’s statement of “space not only recedes but fluctuates in a continuous activity.” This piece talked about the idea of the implementation of a new optical element that produces “simultaneous perceptions” of changing spatial orders and how relevant meaning, regardless of placement. 8 Rowe, Colin, and Robert Slutzky. “Transparency: Literal and Phenomenal.” Perspecta 8 (1963): 46. 9 Rowe, Colin, and Robert Slutzky. “Transparency: Literal and Phenomenal.” Perspecta 8 (1963): 49-50.
Anstey, Tim, Katja Grillner, and Rolf Hughes. “‘In the Mind of the Architect’: Representation and Authorship in Documentary Film.” In Architecture and authorship, 50-59. London: Black Dog Publishing, 2007. 11 Anstey, Tim, Katja Grillner, and Rolf Hughes. “‘In the Mind of the Architect’: Representation and Authorship in Documentary Film.” In Architecture and authorship, 59. London: Black Dog Publishing, 2007.
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East Boston 1.0 takes the next step in developing the amateur film and photography techniques by implementing the idea of phenomenal transparency into its focus with the abandoned post-industrial sites along the East Boston harbor edge. The strong history and rough, aged characteristics of the site and its remnants provide a basis for which the site footage and introduced media can interact in the film to provoke an interesting series of relationships and conflicts to be contemplated.
East Boston 1.2 applies the same basic principles established in the previous film of representing transparency in context and makes the push to embed a stronger meaning and relevance within this film. The footage is strictly of the site and reveals an overall continuity with a series of underlying events that behave as regular variances, orchestrated in a balanced nature to contribute to the composition of the whole. Though the site is a result of the wear of time and natural elements, this unplanned deterioration contains a language throughout that the footage is able to arrange into a thoughtprovoking sequence of underlying ideas.
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a personal expression to the point at which it is second nature and exists as an extension of their phenomenal being. CONCLUSION The collective theme portrayed throughout these sources is the pursuit for a stronger, more informed meaning that wants to push past the norms of what has been established today and even tomorrow. The amateur begins as a dilettante – one who has a basic interest in a general field and engages with it to benefit from the leisurely nature of enjoyment it provides. As the dilettante’s interests grow and their focus gains depth, their interests develop into a more involved pursuit with a stronger established set of intentions and desires to learn more about the subject matter. They push their passion to explore and discover new ways of redefining the norms that limit or conceal our ability to effectively interact and exist with the current condition of our built environment. The Professional Amateur celebrates this mindset and commends the amateur for taking the initiative to confront and act upon these issues in ways a professional would not because of their defined means of execution. Sennett’s discussion about the paths of resistance one encounters during the design process brings about the important aspect of developing a strategy to turn the primary stimulating influences into a sensible methodology that materializes into a working entity, while still embracing the character of the original idea. By applying a rationale to the process of making and development, a methodology within the maker’s range of capabilities can reveal itself as an advantage when effectively applied to the resistive elements. It is through this discourse of informed decisions that the discovery reveals itself as a craft that is unique to the process. The topic of phenomenal transparency exists as an overall continuity of stimulating elements that can transform contradictions into regular variances which express the opportunity to contemplate the new condition. By using the principles of phenomenal transparency in the design process to reveal unseen conditions and conflicting elements, these components can manifest into an interpretative realm of development
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that has the ability to inform a project in previously unintelligible manners. By using transparency as a tool for development in the design process, the authorship of the designer can be strengthened through an increased depth of substantial understanding of the issue at hand. With a strong knowledge and comprehension of the underlying purpose, the designer can continue with their own expression of their “human touch” without overshadowing the important matter of designing for the user and their needs. Each one of these sources represents an essential step in the process of making, especially for an amateur seeking to develop a framework to help guide their exploratory techniques of discovery. Something that hasn’t been touched upon is impact the user needs to have on the design process in order to contribute to the overall success of the project. By effectively integrating the needs and the personal characteristics of the user’s daily lives, an architecture can develop that holds a shared language of appreciation through the built form between the user and architect.
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[Phenomenal transparency]
that which is clearly ambiguous 1
Asserting the presence of a conflict of interest between opposing entities by introducing a new element, not to resolve the issue, but instead to provide the opportunity to reflect upon it and search for new meaning.
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Blau, Eve. “Transparency and the Irreconcilable Contradictions of Modernity.� Praxis 9 (2007): 50.
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PROCESS
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THE AMATEUR & THE PROFESSIONAL A Journey of the Discovery
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Gardner vs. Michicant This film combines footage of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum addition and clips from Bon Iver’s music video, ”Michicant” to build upon my initial questions:
Can the human process in amateur film inform architecture on how to establish a symbiotic relationship with the user in its final form? Furthermore, can this relationship aid the viewer’s awareness of the building’s impact upon themselves as much as their impact upon the building? The unrefined human quality in amateur film and photography has an attractive presence because it expresses a truthful depiction of the process and intentions in the final product. Architecture has its own precise and refined, yet still human quality that also makes it an attractive piece of work for people to relate to. The natural phenomenon of nature in the Bon Iver piece and the detailed craft of the Gardner are initially in juxtaposition, but as the video goes on, they unite and compliment each other, creating this new environment that expresses the two atmosphere’s powerful traits as one. The Gardner vs. Michicant video was a first attempt at merging personal site footage with a different genre of sampled media into a short film to create a narrative between two unrelated environments and purposes. Each piece has their own introduction into the film and portrays their unique elements of composition and meaning, expressing the qualities that set them apart. By showing the two segments in juxtaposition, the film not only establishes a basis or a heritage for each of them, but also builds up an anticipation of the unforeseen bond to come. As the film progresses, the environments of the different videos are still separate, however they become much more parallel in the sense that they are preparing for the opportunity to overlap and eventually join each other. The Gardner begins to alter its professional, resolute composition and achieves a more mysterious and contemplative notion like Michicant, while Michicant begins to develop the idea that there is a structure to its scenes, much like the built form of the Gardner. Again, the anticipation builds, yet upcoming scenes still do not reveal themselves and the current string of events slowly unfold to allow the viewer to take part in the discovery of this relationship.
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Bon Iver “Michicant”
Bon Iver “Michicant”
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The distance between the Gardner and Michicant eventually closes and the two gently merge with each other. The viewer is brought through a journey of discovery and revelation as they see the balanced and powerful relationship that forms a deep, new meaning of immersive integration. It is here that the film has made its way into the realm of phenomenal transparency and creates the opportunity for the viewer to reflexively contemplate what is happening in this new synthesis that the overlaid videos have produced. The purpose of this film lies not in the desire to generate a definite meaning in the relationship between the two videos, but instead to create a narrative of the amateur’s position as they make the journey through these changing environments. The film experimented with alternating between clips of the Michicant video and scenes from the Gardner to introduce the different contexts and to develop relationships between the two through coordinated alternating scenes. Michicant was eventually overlaid on the Gardner footage to create a unique scene in which the two work with each other and tell a new story. CONCLUSION Gardner vs. Michicant was an exploration in learning ways to capture a selected site without taking the traditional architectural approach to documentation. Instead, the goal was to move through the spaces in a controlled, yet improvisational manner that sought to produce a phenomenally heightened awareness of the surroundings. With this mindset and gained exposure, the footage was moved into post-processing where it was combined with the Michicant video to produce the new experiences seen in the final film. The process of working with the two videos was an important step in the development of this thesis because it made the idea of phenomenal transparency relevant and it allowed the viewer to extract the embedded qualities within the film. In regards to the next frame, this film brought about the need for a site that was less refined and had more of a rough and raw character that would reflect the idea of the amateur and their sense of truthfulness that has little direct interference from exterior influences.
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PHENOMENAL IMMERSION Translating the Perception of Context
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East Boston 1.2 The latest film study of the East Boston Harbor Front seeks to strengthen the meaning behind the composition of these films by using the principles of phenomenal transparency to reveal unseen conditions and conflicting elements. The film produces an interpretative sequence of scenes that develops a comprehensive method of discovery and understanding from which the contextual elements inform the viewer about how the past has shaped the present. Some of the most successful scenes in this film are the fading overlays of the vertical elements into the harbor. It is within this moment that the two worlds join and portray a blended atmosphere that offsets the rigidity of the remains and brings a sense of order to the free-flowing harbor. There is an overall continuity in the piece with a series of underlying episodes and events that happen, establishing moments of contemplation and interaction within. They behave as regular variances that have a balanced nature, contributing to the continuity of the whole. This most recent film study brings the idea of ephemerality to the picture by orchestrating the fading scenes of the vertical elements with the harbor scene. The vertical pieces have been at the site for decades, some much longer than others, and have withstood the elements and time as seen through their visible deterioration, yet they still remain here, waiting for something to happen and bring significant meaning to them once again.
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The East Boston 1.2 and + [Human Context] films make a move in the direction of pushing these explorations and discoveries to enter the physical realm by focusing on the realistic qualities of the site and also the potentials it may hold in the future. The narrative is much stronger in this film and begins to take on a more significant presence by translating the memory of the amateur’s discovery of the site to the viewer through an orchestrated composition of the overlapping stream of experienced events. The overall continuity throughout the film generates a more convincing belief that this is a special place with so much relevant history, character and desirable potential that is waiting to be discovered through this phenomenal discourse that the films are able to capture. As stated before, these generated moments in the film are not possible through a single viewpoint at the site, however this film takes full advantage of the camera’s ability to act as the supplemental memory of the amateur’s subconscious. This is what allowed for the opportunity to realize all of the powerful moments within the site during the post-processing and analysis stage that were not immediately visible before they were revisited. Moving forward from here, East Boston 1.2 presents the opportunity for the breach into the physical realm to occur through modeling and +[Human Context] expresses the need to reach out to the community and capture their significance to the thesis.
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“The concrete construction of momentary ambiances of life and their transformation into a superior passional quality.� -Guy Debord
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[The Spectacle] Webster Dictionary Definition a visually striking performance or display an event or scene regarded in terms of its visual impact
[The Spectacle in context] Sharing an experience through a unity between self and place that becomes more than a getaway, but instead a realm of solace and release to reveal a new language with the landscape to exist with
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Breaking the passivity of the spectator towards the spectacle
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Q | What does it mean to regenerate and how do we do it? A | Breaking the spectator’s passivity towards the spectacle Creating a memory between self and place that becomes the bond, connecting the two to create a superior passional quality 1 derived from the interaction between the mind, body and place. We do it.
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Regeneration | Drifting Amidst the Spectacle The traditional composition of a spectacle consists of a venue with an audience placed in front of either a blank screen or empty stage that becomes populated with visual and audial stimulations. The performance of theater and cinema presents themselves as a one-way looking glass. The performance puts on a show for the spectators, but does not seek input from them – nor does it need to. The spectators take in the performance, but are not in a position to become physically involved – there is also no need or way for this to happen. Instead, the relationship of the spectator and the spectacle is quite distant. The passion for the performance is undoubtedly shared and very powerful, however exists in two different worlds. When the two do interact, it is not the spectator and the performance meeting. It is the handshake and congratulations after the show, the autographs and photos, and the other social affairs that happen with the actors, not the characters. Though it is hard to recognize this in the moment; everything is so immediate, so close and so real that the question of this disconnect does not seem to resonate until we look back and see where the seats are and where the stage or screen is. The performance is only a spectacle. The emotions that just ran throughout our bodies through moments of tension, bliss and passion all felt so real. Did they not just happen? Were they not reactions to something we witnessed? This means that there must be something more there – an unlocked potential of the spectacle that has many underlying capabilities that have not been tapped into. If so much emotion were to stem from a spectator simply sitting in a chair and witnessing a performance, then the question that arises is what happens when the two meet?
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Performance [beyond the spectacle]
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Guy Debord’s theory of The Dérive consists of an unplanned journey through a landscape, lead by the traveler’s subconscious inclination to follow the psychogeographical contours of the landscape to produce an authentic memory and experience of the place. There is a strong level of participation that occurs both at a conscious and a subconscious level to produce this memory stemming from the interaction between the mind, body and place. Here, the passivity between the spectator and the spectacle dissolves and a new memory in which the two unite emerges. The site and spectator come together to revisit the past to realize why the present is here and reveal where the future may lie. It is within the realm that the present exists as a trailing memory of the past and emerges to transpire into an integrated future relationship. It is through the dérive that the passivity of the spectator has been broken and takes on an active role. Bernard Tschumi’s “Manhattan Transcripts” introduce the concept of conflicting fields and the importance they share in producing a heightened level of engagement with our environment. Eve Blau’s perception of phenomenal transparency also shares this notion of interaction by seeking to create a situation by continuously opening the contradiction up to new meanings and interpretation. Tschumi’s concept of conflicting fields consists of a framing device – an element that is conformist, normal and predictable – and the framed material – the content that distorts, questions and displaces. When separated, each of the two pieces are a bit simple, singular and perhaps even uninteresting. They only become significant when they are combined and have the opportunity to interact with each other. The composition of parameters that remain constant and passive for a duration, coupled with changing elements allows for new and unexpected combinations to occur, signifying the ultimate desired relationship between the spectator and the spectacle. This is where the notion of the unrefined human quality of the amateur emerges and generates a presence of authorship and truthfulness that exists through the memory created through the interaction of self and place.
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[Memory] Revisit and create a story of the past to realize why the present is here and to reveal where the future may lie
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The [Active] Drift I wasn’t here with the ships and the wharves. I could not see the goods being slid down the railways, nor could I see hundreds of men taking the goods off the ships and working their shifts in the wharves. I was not there to see the construction project begin or become deserted.
But I can sense it. There are clues everywhere – traces of the past that are with me right now, telling me stories of their existence through their current state that is a result of time and the elements. I don’t know what really happened here over time, but I can see it. As I drift through this raw, untamed landscape, I am not taking in the sights and smells and sounds. I am seeing the battered, aged elements, I am smelling the rubble and sea salt, and I hear the ground beneath my footsteps. Here, I am active. I am free, I am involved and I am aware. I do not make my way at the mercy of the landscape, but instead, I follow it. Its details drive me to its masterpieces. There are no directions or beginnings or ends. Here I am on an active drift – a journey through the landscape that follows its psychogeographical contours and am lead by my informed reactions. I am the spectator who participates on this journey, drawing an experience and giving my interpretation both consciously and subconsciously. I seek to find my way to produce a work so others may find theirs. This landscape has a voice that remains silent, but only until it has been discovered by the untrained eye. Then – and only then – will it reveal itself when others have indulged in this state of phenomenal transpiration and translate their emotions and experiences into a new sensual language that they will share with the landscape.
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A series of events throughout the landscape
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A significant portion of East Boston’s harbor front has been inaccessible to the community for a number of years due to the stalled construction for a development of luxury apartments. The project was halted in 2007 due to the great economy crash and had been at a standstill until January of 2013. In the meantime, the site has remained off-limits and has denied the people of East Boston the opportunity to interact with the water’s edge over the course of a half-mile stretch for years. This expanse of land along the water’s edge was once a symbol of relevance and provision for East Boston from the 1800s to the mid 1950s as it had a thriving industrial presence with wharves and rail-houses. East Boston was also considered the “Ellis Island of Boston” because of the immigration station that was housed at its easternmost point when immigrants arrived to America by boat. It is said that 1/6 of today’s American immigrant ancestors came through East Boston. The majority of the newly-arrived immigrants worked on the harbor front at the wharves and rail-houses, which further established the edge’s meaning and their sense of belonging in East Boston. Since the 1950s, the infrastructure has faded away, leaving only traces of the East Boston railway and a solitary operational wharf. East Boston still maintains the character of a diverse, industrious community with many local businesses and a closeknit makeup of neighborhoods and shared space, though it has been limited to the inland. The expansive fill of Logan Airport has brought back a sense of relevance and provision to the community by providing local jobs, however, it has not helped with the disconnect to the water and also has had a negative impact with the level of noise it produces and the amount of transportation infrastructure that it has brought with it.
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Borders and Boundaries The new development of luxury apartments along the harbor front contains a very different language than the existing fabric of East Boston in scale, intent and civic receptiveness. Part of Richard Sennett’s lecture “The Architecture of Cooperation” given at the Harvard GSD discusses the idea of the edge in regard to borders and boundaries. Sennett discusses a project he did in Spanish Harlem called La Marqueta that was placed in the center of the community. Reflecting upon the project, he wishes that it had been placed at the edge of Spanish Harlem, a lower-class neighborhood, and East 96th street, a wealthier neighborhood. Placing La Marqueta at the edge of the two districts would have unavoidably created interaction through a manner of corporeal and bodily presence amongst the rich and the poor. This would have been achieved through the idea of creating a border, a place where life is much more intense because of the presence of different types of people and their interactions. Instead, this new development creates a barrier, not because of the upscale presence it will house, but because it does not provide a program or outlet for interaction for the existing East Boston community. Though there will be mixed-use program with retail shops and restaurants, they are superfluous to the needs of the existing residents and do not actually provide an additional amenity to add to the community. The best this new development will have to provide will be walkways and benches to allow people to pass through the currently inaccessible area, however it will lack a sense of permanence and the ability to allow people to spend time here.
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Mixed use is like ADA, it’s physically accessible by the consumers, but it isn’t civically accessible by the citizens.
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PROJECT
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Architecture as
relevance provision realization
through the visible human quality
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[Informed Reaction] Using judgement from past experiences to make instant decisions on how to interpret and act upon new experiences. These new experiences are not entered blindly or without reason, but are instead encountered with an alternative lens.
The intention is to develop a progressive extension of East Boston to create a narrative of the user’s position as they make the journey through the changing environments to break the boundary between the spectator and the spectacle
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Contribution & Involvement | Utility Translating the idea of amateur work to the professional realm of architecture relies upon the architect’s ability to maintain the same human scale of understanding and engagement that the work of an amateur has to offer its audience. Beyond satisfying the basic needs of the user and program, the constructed environment needs to have a sense of truthfulness and relevance to convey its direction and purpose to further benefit the user’s experience. Through this sense of utility, the architecture can express itself as a provider for the user and program to establish a relationship that exists through active participation from both sides. The emergence of this symbiotic relationship ultimately produces a realization on the user’s behalf to develop a visual, sensual language to generate a narrative based upon their process of passage.
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An architecturally constructed environment, enlivened by human engagement and embodiment of space.
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[Structure]
Webster Dictionary Definition
the arrangement of and relations between the parts or elements of something complex
[Structure of provision] an integrated framework of elements which provide support, establish a system of reason and regularity and an overarching entity to provide a place for interaction to occur
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The Social The social is composed of a group of individuals, each with their own backgrounds, tastes and means of perception. The individuals provide a range of variances and fluxes to produce an event, rich with an eclectic blend of varied capabilities. The social creates a sense of wholeness and belonging while maintaining the identity of its distinct counterparts. The architecture of the ferry terminal is based off a framing device [similar to the idea behind the Manhattan Transcripts model], which establishes a system of order and regularity to provide spaces for improvisational program amongst its regularity. The repetitiveness of the structure, coupled with the transient nature of the ferry terminal and its civic program allows for it take on a less dictating role and become lighter and not a primary focus. It is simply there to provide a place for the social to exist and to define the presence for the ferry terminal to be populated by the individuals.
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The progression of time is a linear phenomena that does not change rate, stop, or move backwards. It is composed of a continuous strand of events that can follow its set cadence and its routine nature of cycles that it dictates in many ways. What breaks the linearity of time is the way we experience it and notice changes amongst a system of order. It is through these regular variances that we make a shift off the linear axis of time and have the ability to branch out and create an alternative narrative through the events we experience, engage with and create.
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Relevance | Appreciation A ferry terminal in East Boston is included in the city’s master plan and will fortify its connection to Boston by providing an additional point of entry to and from the city. The plan for the ferry terminal was a sole gangway without additional infrastructure or amenities. This new stop presents itself as an opportunity to be capitalized upon and become a new face and a proper gateway for East Boston. The ferry terminal can accommodate additional program to bring life and sustain it in an area that once had a great connection and meaning with the water’s edge. An important feature of the terminal is the fact that it is a classless entity that does not lend itself to favor the existing community or the luxury development. Instead it can become a strong common-ground for everybody to interact and be amongst one another regardless of class or demographic. Provision | Sustenance The secondary program that populates the ferry terminal includes artist’s studios and numerous food and specialty vendors that provide an additional function to the whole. A ferry terminal can either be full of users when the ferry arrives and departs or it can be completely empty when the ferry has left. To avoid an empty building, the secondary program functions to maintain the life and energy the ferry has brought by engaging the new arrivals with what it has to offer. Realization | Civicness The civic amenities of the ferry terminal represents the user’s ability to understand the capabilities of the architecture and program and to engage and interact with the provided elements, which is the heart and soul of this thesis. The architecture visibly annunciates the civic nature of the terminal through its tectonic articulation of program and circulation, as well as its autonomous, kinetic response to the changing tide. By visibly and physically stating its presence in a manner that adds to the user’s experience beyond their primary focus, the architecture can take on a greater meaning and relevance to establish a connection with the user at a more human scale of understanding.
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THOUGHTS
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Conclusion The current result of the thesis stemmed from my initial desire to create a link between the architect and user through the medium of architecture. Past experiences with works of architecture that made me feel a connection to its originator and the context, coupled with my filmic and photographic documentation of these works are what fueled my aspirations to pursue such a bond. An issue I saw early on was the fact that the majority of people who interact with architecture do not have an architectural background that can help open up their mind to interpret and become more aware of these works. What I found to have more of an effective impact engaging with the “non-architects” were the works of amateur artists. I specifically latched on to amateur film and photographers for two reasons: one being my interests and experiences with producing such works and the other being the ability I have seen in these works to portray their process and human quality in the final product. These works are developed with an underlying narrative, yet still leave it open to the viewer for interpretation. Something that I find hardest to do in amateur film and photography productions is to truly recreate the event for the viewers to see and feel what is happening in the mind of the creator. The phrase “a picture doesn’t do it justice” resonates in my mind all too often. The act of making through architecture presented an opportunity for me to search for ways to develop a work at the human scale of understanding and engagement, the amateur scale. This thesis was heavily process-driven and provided me with the most insight through my methods of interpretation and translation. It was through this iterative, hands-on process of making that I further reinforced my initial intentions and desires to produce a work in this amateur scale to better relate to the user. I feel that the project of my thesis, the ferry terminal, is full of my ideas and intentions but was lacking in development to fully execute these aspirations. For me, the ferry terminal was a useful tool to explore and push myself to work with variables and resistances that were both a part of my thesis and beyond its primary focus. Working within the context of East Boston brought a sense of realism to the thesis and consistently brought forth current issues and consistent variances as real changes to the site were made and revealed throughout the time I spent with the site.
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Reflections One of my primary interests of thesis consisted of an alternative means of exploration and discovery to translate the established zone of “the concretely known” into a new, interpretive level at the human scale of understanding. I would like to continue to apply this exploratory and improvisational nature of making as I have found much of my more successful pieces to come from times when I let my subconscious act and inform my decisions. The notion of creating a piece from one amateur for another amateur takes away the idea of “the fourth wall” of a theatre performance or the necessity to have a greater background knowledge to understand the work of an industry-standard professional. I would like to continue my work with film and photography to continue to further my understanding of conveying the essential substance of an event and also push my self to achieve this result by applying the mindset of this lens in the architectural realm. I believe that architectural design gains relevance and becomes a necessity when it is able to contribute to the user’s primary focus and also provide additional benefits that engage their element of interest. This method of making captures the simplicity and minimalism of a work that is both purpose-built and of complex, integrated relationships to provide a context of intention and continuum flux to be understood and investigated.
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The Amateur is in a state of epistemological escape into “the unknown� - Shumon Basar
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