The Great Indoors Sean Chia
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there. When the soul lies down on that grass, the world is too full to talk about language, ideas, even the phrase “each other” doesn’t make any sense.” - Rumi
“My first instinct when I see an animal is to say ‘hello’. My first instinct when I see a human is to avoid eye contact and hope it goes away.” - Unknown
The Great Indoors Sean Chia
Fall 2016 M.Arch Thesis Advisor: Mack Scogin Harvard Graduate School of Design
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Hide-and-Seek You Animal Caged Up 500 Years of Solitude Three Nights The Great Indoors Exposé
13 19 69 91 169 243 265
Appendix 335 Acknowledgements 349
1. Hide-and-Seek
“10… 9… 8… 7…” You scramble to look for a spot to hide. Somewhere tight. Somewhere dark. Somewhere safe. Somewhere unpredictable. At the same time, you do not wish to completely hide yourself. You know that the fun is not in hiding per se, but in the fact that you can see your seeker seeking you out. You know that the sweet spot is to hide from the seeker, but not to hide the seeker from you. “ 4… 3… 2… 1… Ready or not, here I come!” You hear footsteps. Doors opening. Doors closing. Cupboard doors opening and closing. At the same time, your hear the wind howl, the birds chirp, and perhaps the rustling of leaves as you continue to tune your ears to your surrounding. Your sense of hearing heightens. You ponder about what is going on outside, before bringing your attention back to the breathing that is getting louder and louder. 17
Peering through a crack, you see your predator entering the room, craning his neck to look around the bathroom door and under the bed. The only thing that separates you and him is the cheaply-made closet, and of course, the shroud of camouflage that is your mother’s clothes. Even so, these become your cozy haven of darkness. Your crucible of thrill. And in that moment, for even the briefest of moments, you experience what it is like to be… invisible. This experience of seeing without being seen is perhaps, one of the sweetest pleasures you, of all six years of your life, could experience. The pleasures of hide-and-seek shed light on a fact that is innate to all of us: We are animals. Hide-and-seek is essentially hunting for prey or fleeing from predators – it is raw, primal, and instinctive. We live or die by the very act. Yet, each time we are put in this situation, we feel most alive, and often feeling alive is pleasurable even when painful. 18
At the same time, because it is instinctive, it lurks in the subconscious. And when it does threaten to reveal itself, usually in an eruption of lust or aggression, it gets suppressed because society prohibits the raw and primal. But it is there all the same. Let us posit that architecture can, and should bring out the animal in us. By building on our inclinations, impulses and intuitions, an architecture tuned to our nature is perhaps an architecture that is a step closer to being delightful. All that is pleasurable answers to the animal in us. But wait. Us? Animals? Really?
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2. You Animal
People are just animals who have forgotten. What if we started to design for the animals that we are? Maybe we’ve been relying too much on the human ability to adapt. What if people were animals? When we study people like the way we study other life forms, we start to realize that we too, appear to behave like animals.
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Is it simply a question of the lens, the methodology that we use to study animals, that make us appear as such, or are we really animals? After all, John Dewey says that language shapes thought, or our method of thinking forms our thinking.
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Or are we are just too proud? We believe that we are above animals, and yet we are not.
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Darwin tells us that we are advanced apes.
“Tree of Life”, On The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin, 1859
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Edward T. Hall through his study of proxemics, says that we are essentially animals...
The Hidden Dimension, Edward T. Hall, 1966
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...and William Whyte concurs.
The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces, William Whyte, 1980
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And then we have everyone from evolutionary psychologists, who suspect that our aesthetic preferences in architecture are grounded on a primal basis of survival.
What we find attractive or pleasurable, are perhaps the same things that help us survive. 28
To individuals like Pallasmaa, who say that everything is wrong unless we use all our senses, just like how an animal would in the wild. To phenomenologists, we crave sensations of heat, coolth, texture, our eyes respond best to contrast and rhythm… and some even go as far as to say that the golden ratio is ‘golden’ because it matches the aspect ratio of our bifocal vision.
The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Caravaggio, 1602
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Or Christopher Alexander: understanding human habits and documenting habitat tendencies. According to him, we feel most whole and alive when we are in tune with our forces, just like a tiger or horse would.
A Pattern Language, Christopher Alexander, 1977
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Richard Neutra tried to attend to our biological makeup, to clinically appease the caged creatures that we are, but got too enamored by the shimmer of steel, glass and Modernism.
Survival Through Design, 1954 and Lovell Health House, Richard Neutra, 1929 31
Why do we shun theories on behavior like the way we do with the horoscope? Are they too general and not specific enough? But if they became too specific, would they be of any use?
Kalender of Shepherdes, 1556.
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What if they do work, even if indirectly, very much like placebo, as in the case of Charles Jencks and his Maggie’s Centres? He asks, “How do we license witch doctors?”
Can Architecture Affect Your Health?, Charles Jencks, 2012
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Why do we avoid superstition—isn’t it better to be safe than sorry? Is there more to feng shui than mere superstition? After all, a lot of this stuff is descriptive, not prescriptive.
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Why do we shun the touchy-feely? Why do we trust our brains more than our bodies, when we in fact, are built to operate on primitive instincts more than those of the intellect? Does Zumthor quietly know this?
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Perhaps we are too proud, instead, believing in the superiority, spontaneity and autonomy in the human spirit. But are things really different, with so many buildings looking the same, doing the same thing, or playing the same game?
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Are we deluding ourselves with an illusion of choice? Is everything only worth what people are willing to pay for? Is it simply a matter of professional and/or intellectual anxiety, or is it something that runs far deeper?
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Would it be upsetting if we were told that we were biologically wired to find pleasure in responding to the “same-same-but-different effect�? That babies smile, or rats get excited most, when presented with something that is familiar enough to be comfortable, but foreign enough to be interesting? And that this is an instinctive way of learning about our environments?
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People are dictated by the old brain, but we try to explain things through our new brain, and this is where complexity and contradiction is born.
Triune brain theory, Paul D. MacLean, 1952
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Categorically, our experience of life falls apart when we forget, or choose to forget the fact that we are biological creatures, and treat ourselves as sentient yet abstract and disembodied entities. This is seen as being “weak”. We are told that the “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”. But isn’t it through an acceptance of weakness that we find strength?
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When we make a mistake, we say we are “only human�. This is the last line of defence from admitting the fact that we are animals. That entertaining the limbic brain is pleasurable, rewarding, and exciting. That we love doing things that make us feel most alive and animallike. That we are only animals.
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In fact, humans are worse off than animals, considering the despicable acts we are capable of committing. What do we mean by “behaving like animals”? Why the condescension? Are acts of “humanity” and being “humane” limited to being practiced by humans? Obviously not.
Harambe, 1999-2016
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We take delight in watching animals behave like us, at the zoo, on National Geographic‌ or in our pets. Do we see us in them or them in us?
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Some even wonder: what is it like to be a dog, or bird, etc. We attach Go-Pros to them to vicariously become them.
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Daido Moriyama, putting the dog above human, in his experience of photographing sub-par Tokyo, and “wandering through back alleys in search of fulfillment.�
Memories of a Dog, Daido Moriyama, 2004
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How do we explain our obsession, curiosity and fantasy with the “first-animal perspective�? What did The Crocodile Hunter and The Grizzly Man die for?
The Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, 1996, and Grizzly Man, Timothy Treadwell, 2005
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The things people do for pleasure: Be it going to a club, to “let loose�, to have an excuse to be animalistic. Or a retreat in nature, to feel once more what it is like to be in the wild.
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Or to go to church, to sing as a group, and acknowledging the fact that we are social creatures makes us happy. We die from the disease of loneliness.
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To seeing faces in everything, from cars to clouds, to feeling affection for inanimate things. To even our love for stories which help to place us in our world and provide existential comfort. Something is up: there seems to be a need to empathize with not only other animals, but with everything around us.
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Why do we even go to the gym to build muscles that we really never have a need for most of the time?
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Or have movies about us turning into animals, or animals into us, or even better, turning everything around us, into us: an incessant desire to identify with our surroundings, but denying the fact all the same?
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How many of us strip away our clothing the moment we get home? We are stripping off more than just clothes, but the baggage of societal conduct; we are most at home in our own skin.
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Why do we relish the thought of being a child again? Is it the natural cycle of things that people grow old and eventually become fragile, senile and child-like again?
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We do a lot of things to pretend that we aren’t animals, but we are. It’s more than just an uncanny fantasy. All these things seem to corroborate the thought: we should dance the way we feel.
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Meanwhile people who think like that, people who know that we are animals in disguise, exploit this loophole. Sex sells. But also, drugs, flavours, smells, sounds, the whole kawaii industry; retail traps, junk food, like pizza: fat, salt and sugar in the perfect ratio.
Mouth-watering smells from the kitchen are exhausted straight to the sidewalk in Tokyo, Japan.
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Or even the rat race: to “one-up� the guy next door. Our competition for survival in the manmade jungle that we call society.
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The animal in us is exploited to no end. However, can we use this thinking to do something more benign?
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A simple game of hide-and-seek encapsulates so much of the pleasure that we feel in architecture.1 The very pleasure that we subconsciously know of, but are too ignorant or embarrassed to acknowledge.
In The Origins of Architectural Pleasure, Grant Hildebrand identifies a series of architectural schemas that appear to manifest in human environments across time, space and cultures. These schemas are spatial concepts built upon evolutionary psychology. See Appendix.
1
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Obviously, I am not saying we should give up being civilized and respond to every animalistic impulse. What I am saying is that we shouldn’t forget and remind ourselves that we too, are animals. I might not be able to convince you, since you probably take too much pride in independent thought.
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But all I am asking is for you to just consider it for a moment, since after all, one of the greatest things that we humans take pride in, is the ability to empathize.
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We are born wild. It is as humbling as it is liberating. Is this the light beyond the cave that Plato speaks of? Or the perfect memento mori?
61
A mix of humanistic and animalistic things makes us feel alive. By acknowledging our animal-ness, is perhaps a step further in advancing our humanness. What does this mean for architecture? What if we approached design from the perspective first, of the limbic brain?
62
Much of the architecture that is propagated today, especially in institutions like ours, is for the new brain. Instead of cages, what if we started to design buildings as if they were a well considered habitats?
House VI, Peter Eisenman, 1975
63
How important is dignity? Is being an animal any less dignified as a human? I mean, we treat some animals better than humans. Dignity has nothing to do with classification. Dignity is not whether you are a dog, or cat, or gorilla, or homo sapien. It is a bearing: how one conducts him or herself.
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I would argue that designing without the thought that we are animals, and ignoring the limbic brain, is no less undignifying than putting ourselves in cages. And then placating ourselves with HVAC, smartphones, Netflix, and other modern-day pacifiers.
A Home is not a House, Reyner Banham and Franรงois Dallegret, 1965 65
Speaking of being caged-up, I began looking for situations where one might feel restricted or constrained. The idea of self-contained buildings as selfcontained enclosures; it is as terrifying to go out into the blistering cold as it is to let the tiger roam free in the zoo.
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How boring can it get? How do we design for involuntary captivity, perhaps a kind of conscious hibernation? We can’t possibly alienate the user here can we? This might be the sweet spot between the mixed-use building that we see everywhere and arcologies that we don’t see anywhere.
Future Cities: Homes & Living into the 21st Century, Kenneth Gatland and David Jefferis, 1979 67
The prison is a poor excuse of a humane environment, or perhaps that was the point: to treat people who behave “like animals� as animals. But it is also surprising how inhumane an environment like a hospital can be.
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But what about the rest of us who are involuntarily imprisoned, by circumstances, benign or otherwise? How do we live with the cold, and how do we live with each other?
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3. Caged Up
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The search for answers brought me to Alaska, where I discovered the town of Whittier.
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Located an hour’s drive south of Anchorage, it is between the faraway and the far-out.
Anchorage
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It is also only accessible through a 2.5 mile-long, single-lane tunnel.
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As such, the tunnel switches directions every hour, with cars and trains taking turns to go through it...
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...and it also closed after dark. As featured in 101 Places Not to See Before You Die, I thought that this was perfect.___
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First, we have the climate, where snow falls on average up to 240 inches per year—a stark contrast to the mere 40 inches in Boston.
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Next, almost the whole town lives in one building—all two hundred or so residents, within fourteen floors.
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Complete with a church, post office, city office, grocery store, clinic, school, police department, video store, tanning salon... the list goes on.
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Extreme weather and social dynamics aside, the people here seem to take their hide-and-seek seriously.
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Also, note that Alaska was polled as the shyest state in the country.
Introverts Prefer Mountains, S. Oishi, , T. Talhelm, M. Lee, 2015
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After all, the town used to be a military facility during the second World War, where the extreme geographical features of the place aided in tactical concealment from the enemy.
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And even up to today, the town is only accessible through a lone tunnel. All of which made no sense for the average Joe.
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All of this begs the question: How did such a place come to be?
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4. 500 Years of Solitude
Whittier’s origins could be understood as the rise and fall of three main eras, all of which were defined by three significant events:
Fur
1741 Russian Landing
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Gold
1867 Alaska Purchase
War
1939 World War II
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The Fur period began with the landing of the Russians on Alaska’s shores in 1741.
1750 1741 Russian landing and founding of Alyeska by Alexi Chirikof's expedition
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1778 British arrival; Foundin and Prince William S James Cook's e
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Impressed by the incredibly soft and thick sea otter pelts the natives had, they began a full-scale skinning of Alaska.
1790 Spanish arrival
g of Cook Inlet ound by Capt. xpedition
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1789 Founding of Russian American Company, RAK. Full-scale skinning of Alaska began
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1799 Shortage of sea otters; Russ head of Passage Canal m trading post between Tain
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sians move south; maintained as nana and Sitka
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The area around present-day Whittier was known as Portage Pass, which formed part of the main pelt-trade route.
Portage Pass
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It was a gateway between two vital bodies of water: the Inlet on the west, and the Sound on the east. And daunting a gateway it was.
Pr i n c e Wi l l i a m So u n d
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To cross, one would climb 700 feet, traverse three slippery miles across a glacier‌
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... and hike another eleven miles on ice, before finally getting back on water.
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Even early British explorers declared the Pass “impassable”. After all, this trip was possible only in the coldest months of the year, when the glacial crevasses were filled with snow. Otherwise, one would either fall or froze to one’s death.
Spa
1778 British arrival; Founding of Cook Inlet and Prince William Sound by Capt. James Cook's expedition
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178 Founding of Rus Company, RAK skinning of Al
1790 anish arrival
89 ssian American K. Full-scale laska began
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1800 1799 Shortage of sea otters; Russians move south; head of Passage Canal maintained as trading post between Tainana and Sitka
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By the 19th century, sea otters were close to extinct, and the Russian were running low on its supply of fur.
1825 Alyeska's south border were defined to limit Russian expansion
1830 Sea otters close to exintinction; Russian trade suffers
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1850 1850 Russians discover traces of gold in the Kenai Peninsula
1860 Political instability in Russian homeland
1 Massive unemploym
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Facing pressures from home and abroad, the fur era ended when Russia was forced to sell Alaska to the United States for 7.2 million dollars, or 2.5 cents per acre.
1860 Political instability in Russian homeland
1867 Russia sold Alyeska to the Americans for $7.2m; Territory was renamed 'Alaska'
1863 Massive poverty and unemployment in Russia
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1874 Alaska's first gold rush in Juneau
1 Alaska was d regions: Nome
1897 Klondike Rush
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1895 Sunrise and Hope founded as gold rush towns
1898 First USGS survey
1899 HAE surv glaciers na 1897 Campground at head of Portage Bay now known as Sullivan's Camp
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Although the Americans were initially mocked for purchasing what appeared to be frozen wasteland, it all paid off when they hit paydirt.
1867 Russia sold Alyeska to the Americans for $7.2m; Territory was renamed 'Alaska'
1874 Alaska's first gold rush in Juneau
rty and n Russia
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1900 Alaska was divided into three regions: Nome, Eagle and Sitka
1897 Klondike Rush
1900
1895 Sunrise and Hope founded as gold rush towns
1898 First USGS survey
1902 Oil discovered
1899 HAE survey; glaciers named 1897 Campground at head of Portage Bay now known as Sullivan's Camp
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This was the beginning of Alaska’s Gold Rush. Steamship companies started offering trips to Portage Bay, where the first wave of Gold Rush towns, Sunrise and Hope, were located.
1900 Alaska was divided into three regions: Nome, Eagle and Sitka
1897 Klondike Rush
1900
1895 Sunrise and Hope founded as gold rush towns
1898 First USGS survey
1902 Oil discovered
1899 HAE survey; glaciers named
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1897 Campground at head of Portage Bay now known as Sullivan's Camp
1914 Founding of Anchorage
1912 Alaska gained territorial status
1911 Copper mining began
1914 Study made for a rail line to Portage Bay; nothing built
1923 Railway system was complete, linking Kenai Peninsula to the Interior (Seward to Nenana)
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The Klondike Rush in 1897 saw the peak of this era. Portage Bay began to swell with activity, and soon a campground community formed. This was known as Sullivan’s Camp, perhaps a foreshadowing of Whittier.
1900 Alaska was divided into three regions: Nome, Eagle and Sitka
1897 Klondike Rush
1900
1895 Sunrise and Hope founded as gold rush towns
1898 First USGS survey
1902 Oil discovered
1899 HAE survey; glaciers named
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1897 Campground at head of Portage Bay now known as Sullivan's Camp
1914 Founding of Anchorage
1912 Alaska gained territorial status
1911 Copper mining began
1914 Study made for a rail line to Portage Bay; nothing built
1923 Railway system was complete, linking Kenai Peninsula to the Interior (Seward to Nenana)
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However, just like the fur trade, the gold rush came to a halt in 1899 when gold deposits were all mined out. Hordes of hopefuls packed up and left, and the place was dead once again.
1900 Alaska was divided into three regions: Nome, Eagle and Sitka
1897 Klondike Rush
1900
1895 Sunrise and Hope founded as gold rush towns
1898 First USGS survey
1902 Oil discovered
1899 HAE survey; glaciers named
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1897 Campground at head of Portage Bay now known as Sullivan's Camp
A
1914 Founding of Anchorage
1912 Alaska gained territorial status
1911 Copper mining began
1914 Study made for a rail line to Portage Bay; nothing built
1923 Railway system was complete, linking Kenai Peninsula to the Interior (Seward to Nenana)
119
This was until when the Second World War came to Alaska’s shores in 1942, when two islands in the Aleutians were bombed and captured by Japanese forces. War was declared, and the fortification of Alaska ensued.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
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194 Whittier's population
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
B co
1952 Construction on Hodge began
1947 - 1991 Cold War
43 s record n: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1954 Buckner ompleted
n the n
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings boug by the city; Hodge bu renamed as Begich T
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Essential to defences was a secure railroad for military supplies to be transported, but the existing route from Seward to Anchorage was far too long and precarious.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
122
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
Constr Ho
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
0
1954 Buckner completed
1952 ruction on the odge began
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1 Military buildi by the city; renamed as
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Anchorage
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Sullivan’s Camp
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Seward
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Inevitably, Sullivan’s Camp was chosen to be the the site of a new military seaport, since it was much closer to Anchorage.
Pr i n c e Wi l l i a m So u n d
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Moreover, tall mountains and constant bad weather concealed the base from enemy aircraft. Accessibility however, posed a serious challenge, since it was mountains on three sides, and water on the fourth.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
126
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
Constr Ho
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
0
1954 Buckner completed
1952 ruction on the odge began
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1 Military buildi by the city; renamed as
127
The urgency of war called for a two-and-a-half mile long tunnel through mountains that began construction from both ends simultaneously. When the last charge was detonated ten months later, the two teams miraculously met less than a foot off-center.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
128
Whit popu
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
195 Constructio Hodge b
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1943 ttier's record ulation: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1954 Buckner completed
52 on on the began
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings b by the city; Hodg renamed as Beg
129
Being in this dead-straight tunnel has been described as “being outside at midnight and seeing only two stars—one in front, and the other behind”.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
130
194 Whittier's population
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
B co
1952 Construction on Hodge began
1947 - 1991 Cold War
43 s record n: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1954 Buckner ompleted
n the n
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings boug by the city; Hodge bu renamed as Begich T
131
Wooden-framed barracks and a railroad dock were completed soon after, and Sullivan’s Camp soon became Camp Sullivan.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
132
194 Whittier's population
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
B co
1952 Construction on Hodge began
1947 - 1991 Cold War
43 s record n: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1954 Buckner ompleted
n the n
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings boug by the city; Hodge bu renamed as Begich T
133
The war revealed new weaknesses in the country’s defences, and this exacerbated a paranoia to further fortify Alaska. Whittier was thus slated to be developed into a full-blown military port.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
1940 Plans for a military seaport at Portage Bay announced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 Construction began on Camp Sullivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
134
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
Hodg last bu th
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 ge completed; uilding built by he military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
"Ki P bou wit
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
135
Ten state-of-the-art concrete buildings were planned, eight were built, and modern Whittier was born. Of these, two stood out: The Buckner, and the Hodge.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
940 r a military at Portage nnounced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 nstruction began on Camp llivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
136
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gaine statehood
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
196 Whittier mo military pu
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
ed
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 60 othballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake ulled out
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
137
These buildings were named after men of war: General Buckner and Colonel Hodge. Little did they know, that was the last time they stood next to each other as men. Gen. Simon Bolivar Buckner (leftmost in picture) with Col. Walter William Hodge before they board a plane.
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
940 r a military at Portage nnounced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 nstruction began on Camp llivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
138
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gaine statehood
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
196 Whittier mo military pu
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
ed
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 60 othballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake ulled out
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
139
1939 - 1945 World War II
1942 Japanese attack the Aleutians
940 r a military at Portage nnounced
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
1941 nstruction began on Camp llivan and access tunnel 1942 Tunnel completed
140
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gaine statehood
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
196 Whittier mo military pu
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
ed
Today, they stand as buildings.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 60 othballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake ulled out
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
141
The Buckner was the biggest building in Alaska when it was completed. At 273,000 square feet distributed over six floors, it had: Housing for 1,300 540-seat cafeteria Bakery Hospital Classrooms Library Post office Bank
Photography darkroom Radio station Church Grocery store Barber shop 350-seat theatre 4-lane bowling alley Hobby shop
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
943 n retaking Aleutians
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
p
142
Commissary Snack bar Guardhouse Day rooms NCO lounges 2 rifle ranges 6-cell jail Tunnels
1964 Great Alaska Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revive days after qu military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1947 - 1991 Cold War
an
ed 25 uake
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
143
By contrast, troops with families were housed separately. They lived in a trailer park that usually get buried in snow overnight.
- 1945 d War II
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
942 se attack leutians
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1950
1943 American retaking of the Aleutians
n on Camp ess tunnel
942 completed
144
1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
Gre Ea
1960 Whittier mothballed; Whi day military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
196 Whittier le Alaskan R (Pop.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1964 eat Alaskan arthquake
1964 ittier revived 25 ys after quake
63 eased to Railroad 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1984 Plans for tu conversion announc
145
This is where the Hodge came in. This concrete matriarch rose fourteen stories to become home to 177 families. All buildings were connected by an intricate network of underground tunnels in hopes of keeping its inhabitants safe from bullets, bombs and blizzards.
19 C
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1950 1949 Construction on the Buckner began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
146
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
Whittie a
Marin opera
1967 Whittier port became busiest in stat
947 - 1991 Cold War
1969 er incorporated as a city
1969 na and fishng ations began
t
te
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Val oil spil
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
Cruise and (Pop 13
147
At this point, Whittier’s population peaked at 1200, marking the apex of the Military period. However, let us be reminded that Whittier was only a garrison, and troops were either waiting to go to war, or go home.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
1950
949 ction on the er began
1954 Buckner completed
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
148
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorpor as a city
1969 Marina and fish operations beg
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
M
1
rated
hng gan
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
1991 Cruise head tax and removed (Pop, 275 off-s 1300 on-sea
149
And go home they did. Fours years after completion, the base was mothballed. Officially, post-war budget cuts were blamed; unofficially however, was the invention of the intercontinental ballistic missile, which made military installations like this obsolete.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1943 Whittier's record population: 1200
1959 Alaska gained statehood
950
1954 Buckner completed
on the gan
1952 Construction on the Hodge began
150
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
Militar by th renam
1973 ry buildings bought over he city; Hodge building med as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
City incl S
1991 Cruise head tax impo and removed in 19 (Pop, 275 off-seaso 1300 on-season)
151
The silence left behind by the military was broken by The Great Alaskan Earthquake of 1964. Although it was a disaster for most, the earthquake was blessing for Whittier. Built to survive enemy fire, its port was the least damaged in the state.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1959 Alaska gained statehood
cord 1200
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
954 ckner pleted
e
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
152
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought o by the city; Hodge buildi renamed as Begich Towe
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1991 Cruise head tax imposed and removed in 1993 (Pop, 275 off-season / 1300 on-season)
over ing ers
153
Resultingly, it was chosen to be the main port for recovery efforts. Within 25 days, Whittier was up and running again, and it soon became a thoroughfare for people, goods and services into the state. The quake had a defibrillating effect—it shook Whittier back to life.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1959 Alaska gained statehood
ord 200
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 1960 Whittier mothballed; Whittier revived 25 days after quake military pulled out
54 ner eted
1957 Hodge completed; last building built by the military
154
1963 Whittier leased to Alaskan Railroad (Pop. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
1973 Military buildings bought ov by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Tower
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1991 Cruise head tax imposed and removed in 1993 (Pop, 275 off-season / 1300 on-season)
ver g rs
155
Since then, Whittier has been living in the shadow of its military past. After incorporating as a city in 1973, all of the buildings, except the Buckner, were converted for civilian use. The Hodge was also given a new identity: Begich Towers Incorporated, or “the BTI� as residents call it.
1947 - 1991 Cold War
1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake
1964 Whittier revived 25 days after quake
963 leased to n Railroad p. 65)
1969 Whittier incorporated as a city
1969 Marina and fishng operations began
1967 Whittier port became busiest in state
156
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
198 Plans for conversio announ
84 r tunnel on were nced
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1991 Cruise head tax imposed and removed in 1993 (Pop, 275 off-season / 1300 on-season)
2000 2000 Completion of Whittier Access Project; tunnel now accepts automobiles
157
One third of Alaska’s freight passes through Whittier’s port, and to this day still gives Anchorage a run for its money. Its marina houses recreational boats that belong to “big city people”, with a waiting list that is almost seven years long.
- 1991 d War
969 ncorporated a city
969 and fishng ons began
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
158
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
Cruise he and rem (Pop, 27 1300
z
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1991 ead tax imposed moved in 1993 75 off-season / 0 on-season)
2000 2000 Completion of Whittier Access Project; tunnel now accepts automobiles
159
The largest of cruises call twice a week in the summer, and originate from as far as Singapore.
91 r
1980 Cruises began to call at Whittier
orated y
ishng egan
1973 Military buildings bought over by the city; Hodge building renamed as Begich Towers
160
1979 "King of Strip Malls" Pete Zamarello bought the Buckner with plans to turn it into a resort
1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill
1984 Plans for tunnel conversion were announced
199 Cruise head ta and remove (Pop, 275 off 1300 on-s
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
91 ax imposed ed in 1993 f-season / season)
2000 2000 Completion of Whittier Access Project; tunnel now accepts automobiles
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This results in a seasonal influx of commercial activity and a transient majority that quadruples the year-round population in a matter of weeks.
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dez
Despite the flurry of activity, the only way to get into Whittier was by train or boat. Cars had to be loaded on to trains before they could enter. All this changed in 2000, when the tunnel was finally modified to allow cars and other automobiles to pass on its tracks.
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1991 head tax imposed emoved in 1993 275 off-season / 00 on-season)
164
2000 2000 Completion of Whittier Access Project; tunnel now accepts automobiles
1994 City lines expanded to include Emerald and Shotgun Cove
1 ax imposed d in 1993 f-season / season)
2000
2016 2000 My visit Completion of Whittier Access Project; tunnel now accepts automobiles
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Locals were worried about the tunnel ruining the “small-town� atmosphere but instead of new residents flooding in, old ones left. It became as easy to enter as it was to leave.
166
This phenomena had a polarizing effect, and it soon became clear: those who were still here, want to be here. Unlike most remote towns, there was no practical reason to be in Whittier.
167
I was told that Whittier was only ever a terminal, but never a port-of-call. And if we think about it, this had always been true. Whittier was never a destination, but merely something to pass through. After all, it is between: Two bodies of water, the Inlet, and the Sound; Anchorage, and the lower 48; Alaska, and the rest of the world.
168
Yet, it serves its purpose and it is there. Whittier was made to be invisible. Like a vestibule, it barely registers a blip on your radar. You see it, go through it, and don’t think much about it. Whittier sees without being seen, while offering the choice to be found. After all, no one wants to hide forever. And for some, this was perfect. Who are these people? I just had to visit.
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5. Three Nights
Prior to my trip, I trawled the internet for everything I could find on Whittier. The top 3 themes I could find relating to the place were: 1. Zombie apocalypse movies 2. J.G. Ballard’s High Rise 3. “Dating must suck” Also, it turns out that there was already a B-grade novel which combined all of the three: A visitor falling in love with a resident whom together with the rest of the town, turn into animals at midnight during a full moon. Not too bad a start perhaps?
172
After a twelve hour flight across the country, followed by an hour’s drive from Anchorage, I finally arrived at the entrance to the tunnel. And of course, it lived up to the hype. The incredible anticipation to enter; the seemingly endless dead-straight drive; and finally, the stark difference in weather upon exiting. The tunnel felt no less than a portal into another world. However, even more exciting was my first meeting with someone who had lived in Whittier for more than three decades.
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The Reindeer Lady was an icon in, and of Whittier. Being the town’s notary public, she was ready to deal with outsiders like myself. “Whittier is its own little world. It’s a lot of individuals doing their own thing and then it kinda comes together. Most people here really don’t need too many rules, they’re self-governing. Whatever your personality is, it intensifies here. That’s from lack of distraction, small amount of people, plenty of time to do whatever it is you wanna do. And just which direction you go kinda depends on which direction you were headed when you got here.” She suggested that I head over to the Anchor Inn, the only place in town that was open all yearround.
175
I went over and met the owner, The Asian Businessman. While passing through Whittier thirty years ago, he caught wind of the tunnel conversion, and saw huge business potential here. He explained: “They had a dock, got barge come in, got a railroad, got everything. And people told me they gonna build a road to here. I said what! This place is gonna boom! I decide stay here. They lied to me. It took 20 years.� Despite that, he bought into the dream and now owned a hotel, museum, and half the BTI. It was my first inkling of an optimism I had not expected. The Asian Businessman left for an errand after introducing me to his son, The Fresh Grad.
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Born and raised in Whittier, The Fresh Grad went to college for civil engineering at UCLA, and returned to help run his family’s business. During our conversation, he could barely hide his disdain for my apparent lack of preparation. Him: “Are you gonna compare and contrast Whittier with some other town? Or just gonna be within Whittier?” Me: “Uh so...” (laughs embarrassingly) Him: “What are you trying to do for your masters? This is a very important question!” Me: “Yep, I don’t have an answer for you yet.” I could sense his deep judgment at how utterly unpointed my research was, and his even deeper concern that I could come all this way simply to look around.
179
While peppering me with random facts on reinforced concrete buildings, the Buckner came up. He told me that the despite the earthquake and fifty years of abandonment since, it was still structurally sound. I expressed interest in seeing what the building was like, and The Fresh Grad suggested that we had lunch there.
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As we drove over, I looked at the Buckner and could scarcely imagine it being inhabited. On the ground floor, there was a new-looking storefront in an otherwise dilapidated building.
183
“The Common Aroma is the only place in town where you can get pizza year-round,” The Fresh Grad told me. “As you’ve probably noticed, the restaurant’s built into former jail cells. Tourists love stopping by for photos.” “Speaking of tourists,” he continued, “there’s another tourist magnet on the roof. We should take a look after lunch.”
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Entering the Buckner was just like entering Whittier; it was another world upon itself. Vestiges of inhabitation made it both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
187
I followed him upstairs and along a corridor, before arriving at a room with its floor removed. The Fresh Grad, excited to impart more knowledge, explained that these were structural tests that had been done on the building not too long ago.
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As we worked our way up the building, The Fresh Grad continued to share his expertise. Him: “One failure is that your steel yields first before your concrete. Well concrete crushes…” Me: “Yep, yep, I think I’m pretty familiar with this.” Him: “Umm.. do you know the second failure? I think it will make you a strong architect...” As I began to tune him out, other thoughts seeped in: I couldn’t help but notice how nature had taken over the building.
191
And of course, the rampant destruction and graffiti, perhaps evidence of the frustration felt by those who lived in Whittier and came here to let it all out.
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The fourth floor was once where the sleeping quarters for army officers were, and most of the original drywall had crumbled. Within them were wooden “cabins� that appeared every now and again. Apparently, these were built by the IT company for their offices, while others, private B&B rentals. According to my guide, Whittier was an ideal place for programmers get buried in their work. The pizza restaurant on the ground floor of this seemingly abandoned building started to make more sense.
195
When we arrived on the roof, I finally understood why tourists flocked here despite the horrid conditions: A bath on the roof, against the spectacular backdrop of Prince William Sound. The Fresh Grad explained that hot water was pumped up from a nearby geothermal spring. After pizza, tourists would came up here for a soak, before heading out of Whittier—a common ritual among those who flow through.
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On the way back down, The Fresh Grad pointed out a gap in the building that ran from the roof to the ground. Using far more words than necessary, he explained that the Buckner was made of seven blocks, separated by 8-inch gaps. Whittier was prone to earthquakes, and these gaps allowed the blocks to sway independently of each other. As we passed by one of them on the lower floor, I looked up and noticed that some of them seem to have grown a lot larger, making certain corridors impossible to pass.
199
As we approached the ground floor and exited the building, The Fresh Grad ran off to attend to his dad’s new gift shop just across the street. Exhausted, I headed back for the day.
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The BTI was a tad more colourful than when I had left that morning. A man aboard a gondola struck a pose as he descended. The Painter introduced himself. As a young man, he was in the Air Force, and today he was in the air painting the BTI. He did it once every 17 years. In his words: “This is my legacy, my baby… it’s the largest paintable building in Alaska. Doesn’t get any better than this.”
203
I made my way into the building and rode the elevator to the top floor, where I met The B&B Lady, a cheerful long-term resident in her 70s. She started in Whittier by running fishing charters and while doing so, found that her guests had nowhere to stay. Long story short, The B&B Lady now owned half the units on the top floor, while the rest belonged to The Asian Businessman. I sensed a rivalry. I asked who the longest residents were, and she told me about The Lovely Older Couple, who loved having people over. “Let’s see if they’re available tonight”, she said while picking up the phone.
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Two minutes before dinner time, I got on to the elevator, and went down to the fifth floor. Upon knocking, The Lovely Older Couple opened their door almost immediately. We exchanged greetings, and they began to show me around. Their condo was surprisingly homey, although perhaps this was what to expect after having lived there for 28 years. While showing me around, I noticed that their plants took up as much space as they did.
207
The Lovely Older Couple hated big cities and “big city people”: “They think they know more than you; they’ve got more than you, so what? As long as I’m comfortable, I don’t care.” I asked them about the inconveniences presented by living here, such as the weather and a lack of privacy, and all that stuff that I had read on the internet. His reply: “So what?! Anywhere you go you’re gonna have something.”
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The next morning I awoke to a dark room. It was just past 4am. Groggily, I stuck my head out of the window to look for stars, just like any city folk would do when in the country. My eyes landed on a wisp of greenish cloud dancing just above the mountains beyond. It took me a while to realize that I was staring at the aurora.
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I began to understand why anyone would live here. Whittier is a place of magical realism, where the distinction between fact and myth is blurred, or even irrelevant. When the strangeness of the background overwhelms the foreground, one’s fantasies are no longer held in or put down, but lived up and played out. Whittier is where one’s inner animal is free to roam. 213
I had lunch at The Wild Catch Cafe. There, I met the owner, The Bottled Water Chef, who dropped out of architecture school and moved to Whittier to run this family-owned cafe. When he first arrived, he was suprised that no one was tapping the glacial springs there. As soon as the opportunity arose, he built a bottling plant in the Buckner and was now the proud owner of a bottled water business. He warned me that if I was interested in further exploring the building, I should get a cop to show me around. Bears have been sighted in there, and tourists often got lost when they ventured off the beaten path.
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The Mayor overheard our conversation, and was eager to introduce himself. Originally a computer engineer from Houston, Texas, Whittier was a writer’s cabin for him. But instead of poetry or prose, he wrote code. The Mayor believed that Whittier was the perfect place for the “digital nomad”; one who lived anywhere, but worked in cyberspace. According to him, two major undersea cables connecting Alaska to the lower states ran through Whittier. His efforts paid off recently when an IT company set up their satellite offices in the Buckner. Like The Bottled Water Chef, he suggested that I explored the Buckner. He made a call and told me to meet my escort back in the BTI.
217
The police station was located in a two-bedroom condo on the ground floor. They were already expecting me. Here, I met The Friendly Cop, a young man who moved from Fairbanks, Alaska for a fresh start after breaking up with his fiancee. I asked him if it was any different policing a town under one roof. For him, the greatest difficulty was establishing and maintaining professional distance, since the people you were policing lived in the same building as you.
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We hopped into his cruiser and headed over to the Buckner. Just as we pulled over, The Friendly Cop received an emergency call. He motioned to go ahead and told me he would catch up with me later. I asked him for his number, and he told me to dial ‘9-1-1’ since it went straight to his phone.
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Directionless, I made my way into the Buckner and began wandering around. The architect in me tried to trace my path against a mental map to ensure that I wasn’t going in circles. However, I was soon thrown off by the relentless repetition of rooms and corridors. This, together with the sheer scale and state of dilapidation within, left me disoriented and I went wherever my instincts led me. Then, I chanced upon a door which still had its sign on, and I peeked inside.
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Nothing seemed to be showing, save for a blinding glow from the screen, and a few silhouettes basking in its radiance. One of them then yelled over enthusiastically: “This is way better than sunlight... We have this whenever we want!� I wondered if there was a joke I was missing. As I got closer, I realized that all of them were halfclothed. This oddity began to fuel my curiosity, and I decided to search for the bottled water plant.
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Up a floor and down a corridor, I ran into The Lovely Older Couple peering into a doorway. As I got closer, I realized that this was the same room The Fresh Grad had shown me yesterday. Just as I stuck my head in to look at the floor below, the gentleman told me that the name of the pizzeria, “The Common Aroma”, referred to the greasy scent that attracted not only people, but bears as well. It turned out that they were trying to spot bears wandering below. I couldn’t help but laugh at the idea. But then again, why were the diners behind bars?
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I continued down the corridor, and found myself blocked by what looked like two pipes. Were these for the bottled water plant? They seemed too purposefully obstructive. I recalled the seismic gaps that had grown much bigger than they should be. I headed back in the opposite direction, went up a floor, and found similar gaps that stopped me from venturing further. This confirmed my suspicion—that these obstructions were meant to keep pesky outsiders like myself out. Being the serial trespasser that I was, I took that as a challenge.
229
Picking up courage, I decided to bite the bullet and venture into one of the pitch-black rooms off the corridor. While shining my torch around and amusing myself with the remains of a bathroom, I chanced upon something close to an Alice-in-Wonderland moment—a hole in the wall with a hint of something beyond.
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Enticed, I climbed through, and found myself in another corridor. “What an anti-climax,” I thought to myself. But this was until I noticed steam slowly drifting out from under the doors to the right. I slowly pushed the otherwise nondescript door open and was greeted with a room flooded with steaming water. “That’s the local’s bath,” a voice boomed from behind. I turned around and saw The Friendly Cop emerging from the hole in the bathroom. “Let’s go,” he said, “there’s more to see.”
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He brought me to the fourth floor, just like The Fresh Grad did. But this time, we walked past the cabins dotted along the once rooms, to the end of the corridor. We stopped at the last one on the floor, and he knocked: “This is The Friendly Cop, open up!�
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The knob turned and to my surprise, The Painter greeted us, albeit with a hint of annoyance. As we entered his cabin, he opened another door on the opposite corner of the room, which led us straight into another corridor.
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We trudged along, avoiding large pieces of debris along the way, before arriving in an attic filled with an array of massive industrial trusses. The Friendly Cop told me that above us was a tank for harvesting snow, and the bottling plant used it in the summer to cool its equipment. He jokingly added that this was the actual water that was being bottled and sold.
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The Friendly Cop asked if I had seen the bowling alley or the firing range, but I told him that I needed to leave by the next tunnel in order to catch a flight. He insisted that I follow him to one last destination. Countless flights of stairs led us straight down into the tunnels that ran under the building. At the end of the tunnel, The Friendly Cop pushed on the wall, and it swung open with a loud creak.
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Under a heavy breath, he said: “This is our hidden gem… a chapel for those who need it. When it’s in session, you don’t see it; and when it’s not, you don’t see it either.”
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6. The Great Indoors
246
On the journey back, I couldn’t help but keep thinking about what I’ve seen, yet to see, or will never see. How do I make sense of it all?
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On one hand we have the BTI—a concrete highrise transplanted from the city into the wilderness. It was designed to be anywhere, and here it is. Towers in the park that free up the ground plane, but also, sterilize and eradicate the unknown. There is nowhere left to roam. On the other, we have the Buckner—a foil to the BTI, or the BTI’s other. For some, it is where the brightest of ambitions are realized; for others, the darkest of secrets hidden, or brought out. And for everyone else, to watch these unfold. It is Whittier’s Whittier; or the escape’s escape.
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We can escape from people, places, and sometimes, even ourselves. But we can’t escape from the creatures that we are.
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It is in our nature to be curious, to wonder and wander, to hide and to seek.
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While Alaska is about dealing with the great outdoors, Whittier is about the great indoors.
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To drift, prowl and to roam.
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To hunt and be hunted, but not killed.
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To feel boundlessness while being bounded...
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...and to go out without going out.
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This is the promise of The Great Indoors:
An architectural wilderness that is created not merely by bringing the outside in, but by bringing our inner animal out.
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7. Exposé
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From left to right: Blocks G, F, E, D, C, B, A
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Pizza Restaurant...
Basement, Block E
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Basement Plan (Blocks D, E, F and G) 273
274
South and North Elevations (Blocks D, E, F and G) 275
Block E
276
“...then again, why were the diners behind bars?�
277
278
Outsiders’ Bath...
Roof, Block C
279
280
Fourth Floor Plan (Blocks A and C) 281
282
Sections (Blocks A, B and C) 283
Block C
284
“A bath on the roof, against the spectacular backdrop of Prince William Sound.”
285
286
Daylight Theatre...
Ground Floor, Block B
287
288
Ground Floor Plan (Blocks A, B and C) 289
Block B
290
“This is way better than sunlight... We have this whenever we want!”
291
292
Bear Watching...
Ground Floor, Block D
293
294
Ground Floor Plan (Blocks D, E, F and G) 295
296
Sections (Blocks A and D) 297
Block D
298
“It turned out that they were trying to spot bears wandering below...�
299
300
Bottled Water Plant...
Ground Floor and Basement, Block F
301
302
Sections (Blocks D and F) 303
Block F
304
“This confirmed my suspicion—that these obstructions were meant to keep pesky outsiders like myself out.”
305
306
Insiders’ Bath...
2nd Floor, Block A
307
308
Second Floor Plan (Blocks A, B and C) 309
310
South and North Elevations (Blocks A, B and C) 311
Block A
312
“...a room flooded with steaming water.”
313
314
Gatekeeper’s Cabin...
4th Floor, Block D
315
316
Fourth Floor Plan (Blocks D, E, F and G) 317
Block D
318
“...he opened another door on the opposite corner of the room, which led us straight into another corridor.�
319
320
Snow Tank...
4th Floor, Block F
321
322
Longitudinal Section (Blocks A, C, D, E, F and G) 323
Block F
324
“...he jokingly added that this was the actual water that was being bottled.�
325
326
Atheist Chapel...
Lower Basement, Block G
327
Basement Plan (Blocks D, E, F and G) 328
East Elevation (Block G), Section (Block F) 329
Block G
330
“When it’s in session, you don’t see it; and when it’s not, you don’t see it either.”
331
1. Pizza Restaurant
2. Outsiders’ Bath
3. Daylight Theatre
4. Bear Watching
5. Bottled Water Plant
6. Insiders’ Bath
7. Gatekeeper’s Cabin
8. Snow Tank
9. Atheist Chapel
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R 2
4 8
7
3
2 6
1
3
G
5
4
B1 1
B2
2 t# si vi
vi
si
t#
1
9
insider outsider
333
Why do we go out? Because we are animals. We go out because it is in our primordial disposition to do so. To go out, or to roam, explore, and wander, is to be survival-advantageous. The opportunities out there is what keeps us going as a species. What lies beyond could be food, water, shelter, a mate, or even a predator. Some favourable, some less so. Regardless, the experience enthralls us, and that is why we go out.
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How do we go out, without going out? By creating the promise of more, even when there isn’t. Buildings are finite, and thus the thrill of unfamiliarity while exploring within is limited as well. Meanwhile, the human imagination is anything but finite. This, coupled with our instinctive need to explore, is harnessed to construct boundlessness within the bounds of the Buckner. By rewarding exploration with a myriad of curiosities, one is enticed to keep going.
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Appendix
Notes from Origins of Architectural Pleasure by Grant Hildebrand, 1999
Introduction 1.1. There is a growing interest in what people like in their physical surroundings; they are interested in how our preferences today may be shaped by survival behaviors of our evolutionary past. 1.2. Environmental psychology mainly examines the natural environment because our species has spent most of our time in a natural setting, and it is only recently that we have shifted into a dramatically artificial setting. Stephen Kaplan, among others, found that people consistently chose images of natural settings over man-made ones. The popularity of recreational outdoor activities (camping, hiking, etc.) attests to this. 1.3. Hildebrand, however, is not convinced that nature surpasses the artificial environment all the time. Citing Kaplan’s study, one’s preference for either setting depends on the quality of images shown, and that a visually high-quality artificial setting has the ability to trump a low-quality natural one. What this tells us is that it isn’t necessarily whether a setting is natural or artificial, but there is a quality beyond the nature of its construct that is at stake. There thus is a possibility that we can like what we build. 1.4. We have to look deeply into artificial environments because they make up most of the human experience today. 1.5. Based on studies, there are perhaps archetypal characteristics or schema that are sought after in nature that we may re-create in our artificially constructed environments. 1.6. Caveat: Obviously, this is not the only way to understand our 338
surroundings. However, it is insightful where it is relevant, and that there is work from related fields that inform it. For these reasons, it merits attention. 1.7. The approach of focusing on the relationship between characteristics of our surroundings (natural or artificial) and innate survival-supportive behaviors is defensible: (i) External support from an abundance of investigation and observation in the field (ii) Same approach scientists use in studying habitat selection by other animals (iii) Supported by principle of reasonable probability 1.8. This is an attempt to find out, qualitatively, instead of quantitatively, what we as a species, across cultures and time, universally have a spatial preference for.
The Aesthetics of Survival 2.1. Natural selection: Behavioral attributes which are survivaladvantageous will be brought down to the next generation. Prehistorically speaking, humans have only relatively begun to live in buildings. As such, we may still share evolutionary traits with our ancestors. 2.2. Being “feeble and almost defenseless primates�, we thus rely on ingenuity for survival. This explains our large brains. And with survival comes pleasure—we act to avoid discomfort. 2.3. Since all natural settings differ over time and place, what we respond to is an abstracted image, an archetype, or schema of a place, rather than the actual place itself. Thus it is possible for us to respond similarly to not only natural settings, but artificial ones as well. 2.4. Hildebrand is thus seeking to identify these characteristics and settings. By focusing on abstract rather than exact features, they transcend beyond the examples that illustrate them 2.5. This attempt to suggest a survival-advantage approach to the universal question of sensory appeal is not new: 339
(i) Marc-Antoine Laugier in the mid-18th century and Gottfried Semper in the mid-19th suggested that such an approach might be pertinent to architecture: Semper wrote, “I see myself forced to go back to the primitive conditions (Urzustande) of human society.” (ii) John Dewy in Art as Experience (1934) pursued the idea of primordial purpose behind the aesthetic experience. He wrote, “The nature of experience is determined by the essential conditions of life...” (iii) Most recently, Michael Benedikt, addressing a somewhat different purpose, has considered architecture as “re-creating, re-collecting, re-constructing and re-producing the structures of the vital settings and situations of our primeval past.” 2.6. Survival depends on four main activities: ingestion, procreation, habitation, and exploration, and the last two are directly manifested in architecture.
Finding a Good Home 3.1. We like nature because early Man lived in nature. Keeping in contact with nature is essential to our physical and mental wellbeing. This penchant for nature is reflected in our architecture, and these buildings declare their references to any observer. 3.2. But nature is not always preferred—it also terrifies us. Hence it’s more than just nature that we’re looking for. 3.3. We always need a place of protection to shelter us from predators and the elements. Especially during sickness, sleep, copulation, childbirth, infancy, and childhood. The latter is the longest for humans than for any other species, except the elephant. 3.4. This place of concealment and protection is called the refuge. The image of refuge appears throughout instances of poetry and painting. 3.5. We also need a place to hunt and forage in safety - this means a space that gives us open views and and is well-lit. This is prospect. 340
3.6. Refuge and prospect are opposites, but we need them simultaneously. They cannot coexist in the same space, but they can occur contiguously. From the refuge, we must be able to survey the prospect, and from the prospect, we must be able to retreat into the refuge. This explains the appeal of al fresco seating—it flickers back and forth. 3.7. Primary refuges or prospect are those that we are in now; secondary are those that we see from a distance. 3.8. A pure manifestation of primary refuge is the cloister. Not that it mimics nature, but there is an archetypal image present: the “edge of the forest” condition. Our distant ancestors were attracted to such a scene because it offered a settting for protection against threats and exploitation of resources. Since these traits maximized their chances of survival, they were passed down over generations, reinforcing them over time. There is scientific evidence that the “edge of the wood” is where people are innately drawn to; ecologists also say that this area contains the richest life forms. (Kaplan, Aesthetics, Affect and Cognition) 3.9. The exterior elements of a building—windows, alcoves, recesses, balconies, eaves—can suggest potential prospect and refuge. 3.10. Water is a complement to prospect because it provides drinking water, food (both in the water—fish; and out of it— attracting animals that could be hunted), as well as a source of calm. Coss and Moore (1990) suggest that the ability to find water is a major factor of being selected for during evolution; it is obvious that he who finds water, survives. “As far as I recollect, without a single exception, every Homeric landscape, intended to be beautiful, is composed of a fountain, a meadow, and a shady grove.” - John Ruskin 3.11. An interior refuge and prospect (i.e. prospect while in refuge from the outdoors; a nested condition) is possible through the manipulation of light and opacity, scale and orientation, and circulation. 3.12. The ceiling plane is more important than any other in 341
creating a sense of containment (recalls discussion in Charles Moore’s Place of Houses) because the floor to ceiling dimension is usually relatively much smaller than length or with of a room, and hence we notice the difference immediately. 3.13. Interior prospect, like exterior prospect, is opposite of interior refuge. A window seat is especially appealing because it collapses boundary between interior and exterior refuge and prospect: looking into the room, we have interior prospect, and out of it, exterior prospect; and the space of the seat itself, is both an interior and exterior refuge. 3.14. Frank Llyod Wright’s Edwin Cheney house offers a nested hierarchy of refuge and prospect at three scales, seamlessly transitioning from one to another. Siting of the house itself (at the edge of the woods, with refuge zones withdrawn into the woods and prospect zones reaching forward into the meadow), the house’s relationship to the exterior (alcoves, eaves, bands of windows, terraces and balconies), and the house’s interior spaces. Wright called it the “destruction of the box”; perhaps we now understand the utility of such a gesture. 3.15. Le Corbusier’s Pessac project failed because its offering of prospect and refuge were in a non-simultaneous, disjointed manner; prospect was offered in the roof terrace, while refuge in a floor below. The terraces were rarely used, if at all. 3.16. Although the prospect-refuge model is most appropriate to the dwelling, our primordial conditioning for it has allowed it to transcend building types: schools, offices, museums, etc.
Exploring 4.1. Scenes that withhold information interest us because they invite us to explore. They have been boiled down by Stephen Kaplan to two particular scenes in nature: (i) A trail that disappeared around a bend; (ii) A brightly lit clearing partially obscured from view by “intervening foliage” Note that the latter is close to the definition of refuge and 342
prospect, but the difference is in the concealment or withholding of significant information from the viewer. Hildebrand calls this quality “mystery”: a promise that more information could be gained by moving deeper into the depicted setting, and one has control over the rate of revelation. 4.2. We explore because it has evolutionary benefits: we may find food, water, shelter, a mate, or even threats. It increases our chance of survival. We also explore for pleasure—rewarding discoveries are pleasurable. 4.6. A path from dark to light is more pleasant than light to dark. This is because in the former, we can see without being seen (refuge and prospect), and vice-versa. This, together with a scene depicting withheld information, is what Hildebrand calls “enticement”. 4.7. Examples of enticement: Ryoanji—brightly lit clearing partially obscured from view by intervening foliage; Great Mosque of Cordoba— forest of columns; Hanna House, FLW (1936)— hexagonal plan; Castelvecchio Museum, Carlo Scarpa (1975) and Flight and Pursuit, William Rimmer (1872)—a series of parallel planes that through pespective and movement, first conceal, then reveal; Cathedral of Notre-Dame—we are perpetually in the dark moving towards the light and we remain shielded by shadows, seeing without being seen. 4.8. Atmosphere (fog, shadows, etc.) can also withhold information. Being at a distance on an elevated vantage point does the same. 4.9. The path of enticement must be free of spaces where “danger” might be concealed. Alcoves along a long dark path thus usually have windows in them. 4.10. Thrill is the pleasure you derive from fear. Hazards are interesting because they heighten our awareness of what keeps us safe. Think of being under a warm blanket around a fireplace while a storm rages outside. During a storm we experience dwelling most intensely. “Faced with the bestial hostility of the storm... the house’s virtues of protection and resistance are transposed into human virtues The house acquires the physical and moral energy of a human 343
body ... it is an intsrument to confront the cosmos.” - Gaston Bachelard, Poetics of Space (1957) 4.11. It is necessary for us to experience danger in order for us to know what it is. Being acquainted with threats make them more manageable. Out of all the hazards, most are transitory (landslides, earthquakes, fires, floods etc.), while bodies of water (drowning) and heights (falling) are always visible and are on permanent display. These are called “peril”: visible, serious, immediate dangers that are most relevant to architecture. 4.12. Being in control during such situations are thrilling. (i.e. scary yet pleasurable all at the same time—think roller coasters, horror movies, etc). Witnessing danger reminds us of the position of safety we are currently in. 4.13. Fallingwater: A haven of safety, precariously perched over a multitude of hazards. We approach through dense vegetation, along a steep ravine, and across a bridge over tumbling water. Even when we do not see the danger of falling while in the house, we hear the rapids. 4.14. Peril is often a function of height. Examples: Acropolis, Meteora, Saint-Michel-du-Puy, Mont-Saint-Michel, Laon Cathedral... etc. If terraces signify refuge and prospect, balconies signify peril. Peril can be interior as well—elevated walkways, stairs, atria, glass elevators, etc. Examples: Lincoln Cathedral (1311), Bradbury Building, George H. Wyman (1893), LawsonWestern House, Eric Owen Moss (1993) 4.25. Apart from heights or water, we may invoke pleasure by essentially contrasting a hospitable environment next to an inhospitable one. An example in materiality and scale would be contrasting anthropomorphically dimensioned wood details (handrails etc.) against harsh, abstract concrete surfaces (think Kahn’s Exeter Library, or Salk Institute). Or Ng Seksan’s work— refined craft—a sign of the human hand, perhaps symbolizng care and resassurance, against a backdrop of crude dilapidation—the absence of inhabitation. Something is thus more comfortable if we remind ourselves of what discomfort is.
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Categorizing and Differentiating 5.1. This same-same-but-different characteristic is associated with many other aesthetic experiences, and it can be described in numerous ways: (i) “Likeness tempered with difference” - Gerard Manley Hopkins, poet (on the definition of rhythm) (ii) “Similitude in dissimilitude” - William Wordsmith, poet (on artistic pleasure) (iii) “A pattern that contains the unexpected” - John R. Platt, biophysicist (on beauty, pattern and change) (iv) “On the one side, order, regularity, simplicity and harmony, and, on the other, disorder, irregularity, complexity and discord” - Jay Appleton, geographer 5.2. Overwhelmed by the amount of sensory information in the environment around us, our brains have developed a capacity to handle this information. The most basic of this is recognizing fellow creatures, since this is essential for reproduction. We know this from our innate predisposition for seeing faces even in inanimate objects. 5.3. This also explains why we like surrounding ourselves with simulations and likenesses of ourselves. This is manifested in both literal and metaphorical references made to our bodies; we order things in our world the same way we are ordered - head, torso, legs etc. 5.4. But we have to do more than just identify our own kind. We need to identify sources of food, and distinguish predator from prey. According to neuroscientists, a sorting mechanism in our brain is built upon the abundance of repetitive and redundant information. The more information we have about something, the better the chance of survival. 5.5. Conditional expectancy postulates that the brain builds cognitive models based on a “what-leads-to-what” process. It automatically expects future events to be like what has been 345
previously experienced. When expectations are confirmed (i.e. cognitive consonance), the model is reinforced, resulting in a sensation of pleasure. Otherwise, the brain adjusts its model and the process is reiterated. This could explain the pleasure derived from poetic devices—rhyme, alliteration, etc. 5.6. This might explain why we like flowers, among other things that repeat at varying degrees of rhythm and order. Looking at one part of a flower prepares us for the next, and when the latter matches what we had expected, we experience satisfaction. This can happen hierarchically too, as in the case of fractal geometries. e.g. Italian broccoli, snowflakes, etc. 5.7. The appeal of repetitive intervals may have something to do with rhythms found in our bodies and nature: breathing, walking, our heartbeat, waves. These are complementary associations. 5.8. At the same time, comparative psychologists have found that animals will work to be exposed to novel stimuli. However, this stimuli must not be completely different from what was experienced originally. Human babies who have been made familiar with a particular visual pattern take pleasure in seeing new patterns which are minor transformations of the original, and are not attracted to stimuli which are completely different from what they have already seen. 5.9. This primal trait forms the fundamental mechanics of learning: it allows us to continuously build and refine a cognitive model of our surroundings. The better an understanding we have of our environment, the greater the chance we have for survival. 5.10. Ecologically-speaking, a complex natural surrounding is logically richer in its resources (e.g. tropical rainforest vs. desert), and creatures able to process this complexity are selected for. 5.11. Music is an example of ordered complexity. Complexity without order, is noise. 5.12. Order and complexity are not just comfortable allies; they are necessary allies. They are not opposites; the opposite of order is disorder; of complexity, simplicity. Order without complexity breeds monotony, while complexity without order, chaos. Neither 346
is preferred. e.g. American housing of the late 40s vs. older neighborhoods; the latter offers complexity through layers built up over time; explains the recent trend of gentrification, among other reasons. 5.13. At the scale of a building, complex order could be expressed through a kinship between the elements that define it. In the Exeter Cathedral, a modulation of similarities and differences: a repetition of groups of elements suggests order, while differences between the constituent elements suggest complexity; there is a consonance between the cluster of piers, arches and vaulting ribs, but neither are alike each other. Other examples: Self-similar grids, Palladian villas, golden section, tatami. The gothic is good example of having both something that interests us but also have some other philosophical/divine narrative and order through it. 5.14. At an urban scale, such as a town square, ordered complexity could be achieved through the facades of the buildings that define it. In Piazza San Marco, this is done through different permutations of a compositional theme - each of the buildings around it feature deeply shadowed arcades, modulated bands of wide and narrow arches, heavy superstructure, and elaborate skyline. e.g. Arlington Row, Bibury; Shophouses, Singapore. 5.15. At the scale of landscape, this could be achieved through modifying diffuclt terrain to make them habitable. In Machu Picchu, the imposition of regular striations over undulating landforms creates a condition of ordered complexity. This perhaps also explains the fascination with the discretization of topological surfaces in architectural discourse. 5.16. Instead of viewing multiple permutations of a theme from a single viewpoint, complex order can also be achieved through an introduction of movement. In the case of the Pazzi Chapel, variations of a compositional theme are only revealed when we move through its space. 5.17. Also, instead of creating multiple variations of a single theme, another possibility is to establish multiple vantage points from which a single motif is view from. Complexity is introduced via one’s movement through space, while the single motif acts as an ordering element that anchors one’s orientation within a space. This 347
creates a simultaneous experience of clarity within convolution. This is akin to a landmark that first appears, disappears, and then re-appears. People like to feel oriented, and even more so, having learned. 5.18. One might wonder what are the limits to complex order— how complex, or how orderly before dissatisfaction sets in? In nature, increasing visual complexity only increases appeal to a certain point (hinting at the fact that further complexity has certain orders that are invisible to us), beyond which satisfaction diminishes. In art and architecture however, there is a suggestion that there is no limit, as long as both characteristics of order and complexity are ostensibly present. This perhaps could be the function the arts - a sensory experience of complex order unparalleled in nature. 5.19. Accessibility is fundamental: the message of order and complexity has to be perceptible to the audience. In some cases, the absence of either would mean that the one would require to rely on cognitive knowledge to gain a full understanding of what is presented. Such work often require lengthy verbal explanations on the ordering concepts behind them, rendering them otherwise inaccessible. Examples: Miesian towers and the drawings of corner conditions; Less is a bore. 5.20. Ideally, we would like to have it both ways: a building that works both on the level of intuitive appeal, as well as one that reward further cognitive examination. The “Inception� method; something for everyone to chew on, from a casual tasting to in-depth mastication, or building up something we know, then subverting it ever so slightly, and finally revealing how it was subverted.
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Acknowledgements
My deepest gratitude to all who have made this journey possible.
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Sue Cogswell and Ted Spencer Directors, Prince William Sound Museum, Whittier, Alaska Interviewees: Wayne and Joe Shen George and Gerda Weamire June Miller Hai Han Ye Daniel Blair Cody Beauchamp
Mack Scogin Thesis Advisor, Fall 2016 Peter Rose Advocate, mentor, and friend.
Taylor Halamka For being the most handy angmoh. Jolene Lee For advice on my grant application.
Annie Yuxi Wang My fellow animal-in-crime.
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