the Residence of Uncertainty Matt Shara, Thesis Work
San Luis Obispo, California Summer 2013
statement of purpose
...
My name is Matt Shara and I want to be an
The last four years have inevitably marked a
with a feeling of immense potential and I want
in my life, both inside and outside of school.
architect. Architecture has always filled me my studies as an architecture student to reflect and expand my awareness of this potential as it
relates to people and space in our built and natural
environments. I am uncertain and uncomfortable within the profession of architecture and within the institution in which I study. I have many doubts about the profession of architecture,
my own place within this diverse yet highly specialized discipline, and my own abilities as a student of architecture.
significant period of growth and development My personal values, life goals, and creative and
intellectual capacities have evolved immensely.
I am very grateful for the many incredible experiences I have had in this time that have
inspired me and have revealed so much positive direction towards my wildly uncertain future. I will outline a few such experiences as they
clarify the statements above and serve as a place
of reference— a segue into the work presented in this book.
Hargrave Studio, Fall 2010: The room was
Studio I felt my own abilities and confidence as a
we followed in this space and only lamps were
lost. Such a space I yearn to return to in my final year
always dark. There was an unspoken order that used to illuminate the studio. We pursued issues
between our consumer culture and the natural
student grow immensely, a confidence I have since of study at Cal Poly.
environment. On the first day of class we watched
San Francisco Urban Design Program, Fall 2011 and
There are two key points that I would like to
full immersion into one of our country’s most diverse
Edward Burtynsky’s Manufactured Landscapes. mention from this design course: the content of the work pursued in the studio and the resulting space that each student was given to explore this content.
Architecture is inevitably connected to the many social, political, and environmental issues of our
time and it is important that as students we begin
to shape our own attitudes towards these realities.
I cannot deny the importance of fundamental practices in architectural pedagogy, but I can emphasize the importance of a young student’s
awareness within a cultural context and the importance of space to explore this relationship.
In the Hargrave Studio I found fulfillment and meaning in my work, space to explore alternative mediums of representation, and ultimately space to be uncertain; space for failure. In the Hargrave
Spring 2012: My experience in San Francisco was a and geographically stunning cities. More importantly,
it was a direct confrontation with the professional practice of architecture and realities of our culture of which I was entirely ignorant before. Again it is important for me to mention two key points from my experience in San Francisco: my collaborative efforts
in design class and the incredible firms in which I
conducted my internships. Throughout second and third year I struggled, it seemed with progressive
intensity, to capture my ideas in design class. I left projects unfinished, succumbed to states of creative possession, and by the end of my third year I was
entirely discouraged and fully without confidence in my abilities. In San Francisco I immediately embraced
the opportunity to put aside my radical idealism and
acknowledge my relationships with other students as
the grounding foundation from which my ideas
Summer 2011 Design/Build: In the summer of 2011
degrees of success in my collaborations they
a group of friends outside the context of school,
could grow. Although I experienced varying nonetheless impressed upon me the importance
and joy of collaboration within the process of
design. This is a means of design I would like to embrace in my final year of study at Cal Poly.
I interned at David Baker + Partners in the fall and Interstice Architects in the spring. My work at
each firm varied in my role within the office, from graphic creator/editor at DB+P, to conceptual designer/model builder at Interstice; each firm strove to integrate my attributes into their work
process. I enjoyed both office environments, but after each internship I was left with a desire to express myself more through my professional
work. I look forward to taking the necessary steps
towards licensure, but after my experiences in San Francisco I know that these are not steps that I will take immediately upon my graduation from Cal Poly.
I had the opportunity to build several structures with
without the expectation of critique, without the desire for perfection. Our intentions were simply to build;
to build something which we could enjoy, something
that might augment its site and that others could enjoy as well. As an architecture student design tends to manifest in a vacuum. This vacuum is the artificial reality that the academic context creates. Although
one might strive to consider “real world� forces such
as a budget, client preferences, and site constraints and opportunities, this consideration is incomparable to the reality of actually designing and building; of
going to the lumber store and the local quarry, of cutting, measuring, and assembling ideas once born
on paper. The knowledge I gained working in this
period grounded many of my unbound architectural ideas and expounded new ones into the areas of
building materials and construction assembly. This is
a dimension of design I would like to pursue further in my final year of study at Cal Poly.
Presented in the following pages is a collection of work that proceeded this statement in the 2012-2013 school year. The work reveals my dedication to the collaboration I share with my partners Paul and Kory, my dedication to the intentions that I set for myself as outlined in the Statement of Purpose, and my desire to make connections between the diverse and fragmented results of the these intentions.
architecture is collaboration
...
Unless one hopes to design, fund, and build a
and importance of the individual. A conversation
will always be a collaborative endeavor. All of
structure, for us, has inevitably transcended into a
work of architecture entirely alone, architecture the built work shown in this book is a result of
the triple-threat team dynamic of Kory Worl, Paul
Schumacher, and myself. My personal work that I have selected to place in this book is, in a way, also a reflection of the shared values, beliefs, and
perspectives that my friendship and collaboration
about the role of the individual within a given societal
conversation about deeper moral and spiritual values. This discourse is vital to us as aspiring architects and has inspired a direction, a direction which we are to
practice and find meaning in our discipline within a world imbalanced.
with Paul and Kory has inspired.
These explorations parallel those that have plagued
For the last three years Kory, Paul and I have
We are very fortunate for the positions that we have
reached an increased level of discontentment with the institution of architecture within which
we study and also the professional practice of
architecture that we have confronted through our
various internship experiences. Our relationship has been an outlet for the three of us to engage in a constructive dialogue about a healthy vision
for ourselves as individuals and also to envision the affects and arenas in which our future manifestations might best be placed in the world
around us. There are and have been consistent themes in our rejection to the cultures of school and the professional practice. Most of these
themes are centered around the passion, beliefs,
our most gifted creative individuals in the last century.
fallen into in our lives, with the opportunity we have as students, and as individuals to even pursue a career
as architects, but we have also experienced glimpses of
the isolation, depression, and addiction that has been the downfall of those many muses that have come
before us. Our awareness of the past foreshadows a
dark and lonely future, one that we hope to amend
with our commitment to a meaningful and fulfilling practice, one inspired and fueled by a healthy creative community of like-minded individuals. Throughout the pages of this book you will find the first inceptions
of this practice, glimpses of insight, and attempts to
make connections in hopes of developing a sustainable lifestyle as creative avant-gardes.
“The rhythm of collective work is hypnotic; the sound of work turns physical labour into a shared performance, a dance, that carries itself forward without apparent effort; the work works on itself and completes itself. Diligence and the rhythm of work are contagious. The body and the hand of the maker fuse work and thought into a singular action. Construction work both fatigues and rejuvenates, humbles and makes one proud.� Juhani Pallasmaa, The Dance of Construction
/
/
ice break er letting into the sky letting go gointo thenight night sky
//
10.08.2012
Into the night sky we climbed; twelve bags of
anchored in place, suspended in uncertainty.
and a garden hoe. We ascended to the roof,
to embrace the significance of our ideas.
concrete, an empty trash can, a wheelbarrow, our terrace, and found the horizon bound by twinkling lights and the distant hums
and creaks of idle machinery. Above our
Tonight we had taken on the responsibility Tonight we had let hesitation go into the night sky. Tonight we had broken the ice.
dying campus the moist fall air forebode
The extension chord was our connection to
aggregate still. Bag after bag, pour after
and steel, around chairs and through table
rain and caught clouds of sand and rock
pour, our optimism shot through fatigue and
our physical exertion brought us together: our bodies pulsing sweat into the cold,
a masculine intimacy unknown before,
the source. It wandered over scraps of wood legs, and fueled our weapons which cut and
drilled into the night. Each action demanded
a reconfiguration of space and systematically we adapted, organized and stumbled through
///
//// processes. chaos
somehow and
and
Somehow
we
somehow
we
maintained tripped
we
into
perfected
orchestrated
direction... determined though we were to
discovery,
our ideas embodied in the stone characters
momentum, our
craft.
It took nine hundred and sixty pounds of
concrete to fill the forms and despite the effort, the shear weight of our endeavor,
we never once stopped to determine our
see our visions manifest, determined to find they would soon become. Childish naivety subdued our mistakes and intuitive impulses guided
our
empirical
methodology.
Fragments from a forgotten education flew into situation; together we knew everything.
We sought to create form through an We We sought sought to to create create form form through through an an illusory negative in a material with its illusory illusory negative negative in in aa material material with with its its own intrinsic alchemy. Surface and plane, own own intrinsic intrinsic alchemy. alchemy. Surface Surface and and plane, plane, proportion and weight, these characteristics proportion proportion and and weight, weight, these these characteristics characteristics developed an unknown spirit. We centered developed developed an an unknown unknown spirit. spirit. We We centered centered potential with intention, and plywoodpotential potential with with intention, intention, and and plywoodplywoodpronounced voids eagerly awaited our pronounced pronounced voids voids eagerly eagerly awaited awaited our our grey medium. Mix after mix, pour after grey grey medium. medium. Mix Mix after after mix, mix, pour pour after after pour, heave after heave we released our pour, pour, heave heave after after heave heave we we released released our our heavy batches. Released and then... let go. heavy heavy batches. batches. Released Released and and then... then... let let go. go.
/
/
//
/// /// ///
Bold
statements
and
ambiguous
declarations; a conversation lost in the sea
of
images.
sound. So
And
many
images,
beautiful
images,
images!
Standing naked with our hearts on the altar, the clergy dragged on and past, stopping for glimpses, a few deeper roots were discovered, but the rest was lost in... interaction? Shallow,
explored
self-centered, amidst
interaction.
misunderstanding
We
and
pulled from the curiosity surrounding us. Push. Pull. Slide. Stand. Grab. Glimpse. Turn and twist. Discovery was made together in
that space through movement, those fragile
moments when childlike emotion connected our bodies and compelled us to play. Discovery revealed our intention for all to
see in the madness that ensued. Discovery
revealed our intention captured in stone.
pot ential unbound
////
the architect as phenomenologist
...
into the:
1
Eyes of the Skin
a meditation on Juhani Pallasmaa’s
eyes of the skin
10.19.2012
Profound architecture makes us experience
are brought into the situation of experience.
spiritual
the
ourselves great
as
complete
beings.
function
of
In
embodied
and
meaningful
art.
fact,
all
this
is
the
It is our responsibility as architects to create meaningful experiences. This, however, is a
challenging task for the architect because it requires us, as creative individuals, to not only understand our mediums of expression, but also to embed this expression with
profound knowledge: metaphor and beauty
that transcend cultural values and reflect the physical boundaries that allow our visions to
manifest. It is essential for the architect to observe the psychic realities of the user that
From here the architect can begin to translate existing
conditions
into
meaning,
meaning into space, space into experience. It is through a creative process of investigation
and fascination that the architect will
eventually confront the existential problem
at hand, the personal and collective task in their work. Pallasmaa quotes the philosopher Ludwig
Wittgenstein
to
embrace
this
condition, ʻWork on philosophy— like work
in architecture in many respects— is really more a work on oneself. On oneʼs own interpretation. On how one sees things...”
Without a personal presence in their work
the architect is susceptible to forces outside 1 Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses. Chichester: Wiley-Academy, 2005. Print.
and
mostly
unrelated
to
the
essential
meaning in the work itself: the confines of time, the limitations of money, and ulterior pressures from conflicting interests that
exist within the professional paradigm today. “How
would
express his
the
painter
anything
encounter -
with
Maurice
other
or
the
poet
than
world?�
Merleau-Ponty
It is easy for the architect to reproduce, to
re-verbalize
ideas
with
systematic
efficiency. It is a cognitive trick that soon
creates ideology; a major shortcoming in all styles in art and architecture. Ideology fails to acknowledge, and in fact disengages itself, from the essential forces that created
In the experience of art, a peculiar exchange takes place; I lend my emotions and associations to
the space and the space
lends me its atmosphere, which entices and emancipates my thoughts...
it
also
perceptions
and
incorporates
and
integrates physical and mental structures, giving
our
existential
Space
integrates
experience
a
strengthened coherence and significance.
flows
of
integrates
daily
experience
life
experience
and
with
the
architecture
with
space.
Through a spatial transaction architecture holds the potential to point, reveal, and shape
our understanding of the world. The architect
intends the direction in which we are heading.
it in the first place. It is more difficult,
The timeless task of architecture is to create
ideas/perceptions/beliefs/teachings
that concretize
however, to adapt; to evolve and sculpt our into
the environment at hand, the context of the
situation. Although a potentially ideological approach
to
design,
phenomenology
holds the potential to place the architect at a point of consistent questioning in pursuit of an essential understanding in their work. It is through this essential understanding
that
personal
exploration
lends itself of value to the collective whole.
embodied and lived existential metaphors and
structure
our
being in the world. Architecture reflects, materializes and eternalizes
ideas
and
images of ideal life. Buildings and towns
enable us to structure, understand and remember the shapeless flow of reality and, ultimately, to recognize and remember who we are.
Architecture enables us to
perceive and understand the dialectics of permanence and change, to settle ourselves in the world, and to place ourselves
in the continuum of culture and time.
Matt Shara Pallasmaa
emphasizes
architecture’s
basketball idols, we wear the dresses and
Whether it is on a pier that reaches out into
stars, we chase dreams that are not our’s and
potential to reflect our place in the cosmos. the sea at sunset as the marine layer envelopes
the coast, or a light filled marketplace
mock the personas of our favorite television accept roles that suppress our individuality.
surrounded by the echo of commerce and
At the end of the day do we know who we
us, or the flutter of a tree’s leaves shadowed
to say? Anything to do? Have we spent
the movement of people brushing alongside against our bedroom wall in a thin sliver of light that only reaches our side of the house at a certain time of day, these are experiences that remind us of our geographic location on
earth, that make us feel connected in our
cities, and give us solitude in our bedrooms. These experiences connect us to an archaic
set of values and remind us of our place and our devotion to our environments. A
phenomenological
approach
to
architecture is absolutely vital, especially in
the context of challenges that contemporary man finds himself in today. Meaningless jobs, scaleless cities, and the constant
pursuit of external objects and fetishes has severed contemporary man from his roots. In
a bombardment of images and information
we can feel the vast complexity and chaos of the universe unfolding in a single moment.
We are in Hong Kong, New York, London,
really are? Do we actually have anything any valuable time anywhere at all? In the vacuums of our cars we move throughout our cities without feeling the textures of
the ground or the turbulence of topography. With buds in our ears we let sound server connection to the outside while we create
our own utopias free of sirens and honking and the roar of traffic and begging of the homeless. Through our fascination with
science and technology we have created a world where contemporary man lives
without meaning, without mystery, and without reflection of his own experiences in the world around him. Unless contemporary
man wishes stay in this disillusioned state
of neurotic demise he will need structures to
organize
his
attunement
with
his
environment, he will need space to remind him of his deepest values, and he will have to acknowledge his place as man in the universe.
Los Angles, the Sahara Desert and the
depths of the Mariana Trench all at once.
Juhanni Pallasmaa
We live inside the live’s of our football and
the:
desert
whispers hot blue
a voyage through paniment springs, ca.
november 10/12, 2012
a landscape intervention
montana de oro state park november 30, 2012
dune womb ~ the
between the sea and the sky: down came the wind screaming
running through eucalyptus tree cross the road cut towards the sea
hailing white flags
momentary salutations thrown up in the sky running
faster and faster faster and faster screaming sand into the sea
the wind and the sand: a fold in the dunes
our womb for response open palms to the sky in forgiveness ask warmth
before the heavens fall down
woven pieces atune: an impulsive collision of elements actions frozen in form interlocking medium petrified still
holding back the shrill screams blasts and hails
and created by us right then: shelter from the storm
the architect as alchemist
...
Waste, waste, waste! Every process and practice
to attract attention from vulnerable green consumers.
and after an absurdly short existence each material
of recycled products, broken down and re-formed into
in the built/material world today generates waste, object that we touch will break down or will no
longer be of any use. There are very few solutions (burying underground is the most commonly
practiced) to deal with the vast amount of waste that our consumer lifestyles create each day. As
architects
and
other
tradesmen
battle
with the contradiction to create meaningful
Many solutions use bio-aggregates, foreign mixtures a new product that is rarely full of character or reveals the material’s original history. Both are solutions that allude to steps out of the burial ground of waste that we
create for ourselves, but we have yet another proposal
that deals with the intrinsic beauty of a found object
and also dares to exploit its usability to the greatest potential.
spatial experiences, rich with unique material
Alchemy is the practice of transforming a substance
and our culture struggles to find solutions to what it
value. Every discarded material has its own inherent
characteristics, at an affordable price to clients, deems as waste, a new paradigm for building must emerge to resolve this conflict. In the past many
solutions have highlighted the use of a recycled object in a particular design, romanticized it even
with little or no value into something that is of great structural capability and intrinsic material spirit.
Acknowledging these phenomena within the material is what makes the following projects conceptually rich. They are not simply examples of “green�
architecture and design, recycled objects tacked
forgotten, these are the areas that no longer hold value
are examples of a stealth sustainability, where
hold tremendous potential for change, and if the
onto an existing method of construction, they material reuse is integrated into the very essence of the projects being.
This idea of architect as alchemist has applications
to the over-culture’s desire. These areas do, however, architects of the future recognize the wisdom of those
that have paved the way before them, they will design where the need is needed most.
far beyond the material realm. Psychological
The following projects focus solely on built work, on
alchemy as society’s solution to healing and
the following pages are four projects that re-envision
entrepreneur Carl Jung saw applications of
change¹. If we look at the condemned sites and buildings within our cities— even within the most affluent of communities, we can see our culture’s
shadow: abandoned warehouses, factories, big box shopping centers, shimmering office towers that shun their surroundings, barren wastelands of
suburban homes: grey, brown, sitting in neglect, sitting in death. These are the areas that have been
1 Jung, C. G. The Undiscovered Self. Boston: Little, Brown, 1958. Print. s. Chichester: Wiley-Academy, 2005. Print.
the material realm of alchemical design. Shown on waste materials especially prevalent within the
building professions: the common 2” x 4”, corrugated
sheet metal scrap, standard shipping palettes, and off the shelf industrial shelving components. These projects attempt to synthesize material and form with extreme site specificity.
the frame and the sea spring/summer 2011
Originally conceived of in the spring of 2011
The Frame creates a system of construction based on
The Frame, is a nomadic structure built from
shipping palettes—a widely available, standardized,
for the Cal Poly Design Village competition, repurposed materials. The Frame consciously contains no disclosures about its origins; it opens itself to speculation and imaginative discourse.
Its anonymity and apparent lack of function only embellish its mystery.
The Frame transforms space into place. Where nothing
existed
previously
to
differentiate
this landscape, the structure creates a physical locality grounded within the landscape through architecture. By distinguishing itself in such a
way, the Frame reveals this location as an offering to house a multitude of events, experiences, and moments. Without the Frame the place is approximate and these actions could either occur elsewhere, or potentially not at all.
available materials and tectonic legibility. By utilizing self-supporting unit, The Frame embodies principles of architectural alchemy. It is not an adaptive reuse
of unique trash, but instead an easily replicable system of transforming waste into architecture. Each
connection is expressed honestly, so honestly that
the entire structure offers itself to deconstruction for anyone with a set wrenches. These details and
identifiable components form the building as a clear de-mystification of architecture. It is not designed
to awe, for its focus is not on itself, but instead on
becoming a simple companion within a beautifully lonely landscape.
[
shadows cast across the palette floor
[ a moment connection in sand
the frame and the sea glistening, horizontal shadows on the body lay,
forgiving motions of the null past’s prey
to look forward
beaming:
can’t you see!
yes, yes I can, but will forget...
it’s okay, says the sea, I am here
and you are me.
listen to the water’s rum and
the echo of the sand’s comfort touch.
take
a glance out, your vision framed,
and step,
with me in to uncertainty.
[
the bar
Caught here in a few spare analogues is our
kitchen bar, the first project that marked
our collaboration together this year. The
Bar employs a method of construction and
assembly, coined the Method of Strips, which
coordinates salvaged pieces of wood into a
spectral array of tones and grain patterns and
capitalizes on widely available wood scraps. Dissimilar parts are cut, planed, drilled and threaded together on a rod that serves as
the central spine, or organizer of the newly
serviced pieces of wood.The resulting form
is an ergonomic surface that withholds space for the leaning body.
douglas fir, pine,
birch, maple, oak, and redwood.
forgotten remnants
found. gnarled edges, splintered ends, a
buckled midsection. screws, nails, and
staples gone astray. discarded in
neglect— perceived obsolescence,
embedded in every piece of wood is a jewel of unknown dimension: the
substance of the
alchemist’s elixir.
saw, plane, drill:
the assembly process
left each man alone in his mechanic fascination.
idiosyncrasy combined
material
and a spirit arose: a
true celebration of
architectural alchemy,
achieved through a process of
collective discovery.
////
/
wall the
(of critical transaction)
there is an inherent struggle between the individual and the institution
the individual seeks to be independent, autonomous and honest to their spirit
the institution seeks to organize, to consolidate and to direct
the individual needs the institution; its foundation
the individual needs guidance, support, resources and the institution needs the diverse contribution of every individual it withholds
the institution needs opposition and critical thought to prevent itself from becoming (the)
individual
This project, the Wall of Critical Transaction,
that this place will be a place of transaction between
and the institution. The wall attempts to mediate
the individual and their larger environment.
explores the struggle between the individual (through the creation of place) tensions between
individual and institution... a meeting place between
the inside and the outside: the inner world of the
The Wall employs the Method of Strips in a corrugated
embraced in sharing one’s ideas, and the outer
metal, rusted, wrought with holes, and covered in debris,
individual’s uncertainty, the nudity that must be world of the institution, stable in its support, age,
and certainty, convictions of approval that haunt the individual’s becoming.
A wall is an essential architectural element that
addresses both interior and exterior conditions,
but in our context a solitary wall also becomes an object, and once situated in an environment, an object that creates a place. It is our intention
sheet metal construction. Discarded pieces of sheet were sawed into six inch segments and organized on three horizontal rods. Two hole configurations create a non-planar sectional form; a wide base that cants slightly towards the Wall’s top. The resulting form is
a wall composed of many different parts, dozens of sheet metal strips organized to create a continuous spectrum of color and texture. Positioned eye level within the Wall’s surface is in an oculus, a window that greets viewers from the outside looking in.
oculus, inside
oculus, outside
wall, front elevation
/
////
/
wall, back elevation
place: the first residence
/
{
w
w
the
room of
welcome
The Room of Welcome is a threshold, a threshold that celebrates the movement of the human body in
transition from one space to the next. This room is a
three part construction: an exterior shell composed of industrial shelving components, an internal steel stud structure which holds the composition in form, and
an interior skin composed of two extensively textured OSB boards. The Room of Welcome is a pure form
revealed by its resonance in two different gallery settings: one white the other, purple and orange. An installation that hugs the body, an atmosphere repurposed, a declaration of architectural alchemy: The Room of Welcome.
in a light transformed
the architect as artist
...
The architect must communicate ideas and
extends the architects capability to be a total designer:
mind. Ideas may inspire the architect as flashes
in the diversity of mediums that are necessary to reach
concepts that come from the depths of the creative of inspiration, vague glimpses of light that devote
further exploration, or extensions of already
a creative individual capable of expressing themselves the completion of an embodied work of architecture.
connected threads into one’s own philosophical
In the following section I would like to share my own
an idea makes into one’s creative will, it is the
an aspiring architect, but as an aspiring architect who
understanding of the world. Whatever entrance responsibility of the individual to channel its emotional charge into a medium that can be
experienced by others involved in the collaboration of a design. This expression may manifest in the
form of an image, poem, painting, narrative, model, or a medium yet to be defined. Although
the resulting artifact may only be part of the
“process” of the overall design, it still nonetheless
pursuits as a “total designer”. I ultimately see myself as
wishes my work to reflect my growing understanding
of the world around me. I know that the following examples reveal connections that will always
inspire my work and I know that these mediums are synonymous with my work as an architect.
\ || cryptographs The following drawings were created during a single session using the readymade object
shown on this page. This exercise explores the idea of dissonance: using colors and techniques unfavorable to the artist. Each drawing evolved through a similar process in which the readymade was arbitrarily placed within the center of the page, a series of streaks, or paths were created from its clay bottom, and several outlines and shadows
were then traced from the resulting location of
the object and the consistent location of a nearby
drafting lamp. With these markings in place, each drawing then channeled its own currents, pastel
at first and then pen, with only small changes in color and technique made between drawings. The
resulting twelve drawings are shown in sequence: dissonance.
.
1
.
.
2
.
.
3
.
.
4
.
.
5
.
.
6
.
.
7
.
.
8
.
.
9
.
.
10
.
.
11
.
.
12
.
paraboloid, fall 2012
spine, fall 2012
?
perch the
The Perch is a seat for the adventurous. A composition of four hundred and eighty pounds of concrete, a found bike seat with an extended
seat post, and various metal scraps and fixtures, The Perch is a charming point to gather, and a
celebration of serendipitous construction. This
out of the ordinary seat features an abundance of surfaces and textures for the curious. Its monolithic base anchors its ambiguity to place,
unveiling an ancient past to the imagination. May perspective reveal an understanding— yet opened, to discovery?
scales:
1
/2
3
/4
5
/6
.... 1
.... 2
.... 3
.... 4
.... 5
scraps: 1 & 2
16” x 22” ink doodles november, 2012
the architect as therapist
...
Every client, site, and collaboration has its own
revealed, through the activity of Sandplay Therapy,
especially, comes to the architect, as a patient
design process.
existing psychological conditions. The client, comes to the psychologist: with tremendous
vast potential for a therapeutic step applicable in every
uncertainty and an intense urge to create a better
Sandplay Therapy was developed by teacher and
results of their temporary collaboration, and if the
is a therapeutic practice used for adults and children as
future. Both architect and client do not know the
architect looks beneath the surface of their past stylistic triumphs then what stands before them is empty, pure empty space.
In order to create a more meaningful architecture, to surface, and to discover content that is potentially relevant yet currently unknown, we
posed a question— rather a series of questions, to ourselves when confronted with uncertainty regarding the direction in which to head in
psychotherapist, Dora Klaff, in the 1950’s and 60’s¹. It
a way of “identifying and reconciling internal conflicts that manifest as anxiety and depression, as well as
penetrating the depths of personality to experience the Self directly.”² The sandbox creates a safe venue
for emotional healing through the exploration of
an individual’s psychological content. The play, in
the sandbox, creates a physical landscape that the individual can document, digest, and understand in a way meaningful to their personal development.
our design process. Although our pursuits as
In a therapy session the client has the opportunity to
towards ourselves as both architect and client, we
current inner state. The format of play aspires to
architectural therapists were personal and directed
create a world in the sandbox that responds to their
1 http://www.sandplay.org 2 http://extension.ucsd.edu/programs/customprogram/documents/ whatisSandplay.pdf
manifest unconscious content through unfiltered
lives: creative, physical, faithful, and rich with content.
a singular scene created in the sand.
The Room of Insanity, The Room of Gluttony and
and unbiased actions. These actions then result in
We chose the sandbox as a medium to explore and
generate a direction forward when faced with our
current place of uncertainty in our thesis pursuits. We knew that we were on a path to create a residence of our own, we knew the rooms that would soon
become the spaces of this residence, but we also knew that this residence would manifest in a form
yet unknown. We needed to consolidate our ideas into figures and explore these isolated entities in
a meaningful arrangement that we hoped would guide our development moving forward.
Kory, Paul, and I conceived of twelve rooms;
these rooms evolved from our collaboration living and working together this year. Our rooms were
atypical and personal, vital to our multifaceted
Twelve spaces, one residence: The Room of Welcome, Eternal Desire, The Room of Growth, The Room of
Action, The Room of Detoxification and Release, The Room of Sustenance, The Room of Isolation,
The Room of Inquiry, and of course there is a Stage, there is a Powerhouse, and there is a Great Spirit.
After the rooms were collectively conceived of we isolated ourselves to explore the content in each room personally. This exploration resulted in a narrative and
a figure model that evoked the essence of each room.
By independently investigating the issues, the ideas and phenomena present in each room, we were able
to surrender ourselves as individuals and collectively conceive of a better future. The sandbox was our arena of exploration, and shown in the following pages are
our photographic and built resolutions that concluded our collaboration together this year.
sand p l ay t he r apy .
the stage, model
the sandbox
sketch and narrative
this is a sandbox it is a section of a sea much larger
embedded in its surface are figures: rooms of a dwelling yet fully defined each room: an opportunity,
embodiments of the characters they will soon become.
each room is autonomously symbolic, each room is a pure form. generated from our need to create a residence,
conceived and brought to this sandbox independently
the atmosphere of each room lies impregnated in its gesture but their relationships remain to be decided
right now the residence lacks context to define its walls
right now the residence lacks materiality to birth its forms, right now is the investigation of connection. so play with us right now and discover!
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the
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room
of
may 25/26, 2013
insanity
The Room of Insanity is a receptacle for the manic
mind, for those impulsive, yet overwhelming states of creativity, disillusionment, and total
uncertainty. Rather than failing to acknowledge that these emotions exist, the Room of Insanity confronts insanity with optimism.
The room rests on a timber base, a collection
redwood and cyprus, five and half feet from the ground. The room requires commitment to enter: one must ascend the room’s fifteen foot ladder in order to enter the interior volume. Once inside,
the insane have the space necessary to ventilate,
to express their manic minds, to articulate the absurdity that overwhelms. These actions are catalogued in the walls of the room, and slowly, over time the room’s walls will thicken.
.
ascent(to)madness.jpg
ins [
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faith in uncertainty...