DESIGN MODELS

The thesis will analyze the significance of making space in the development of a person’s sense of self. Furthermore, the study will take place within the larger context of the reciprocal relationship between an individual’s consciousness and their external environment.

Design models are two architectural investigations that seek to further explore two common themes that have arisen throughout my very preliminary research that has encompassed my first term in the program. They are as follows:

1) That a person's sense of self is not a singular enitity as many people perceive but a unique combination of experiences that are bound together through a process of valuing and appraisal that occurs whenever we experience out external environment. This idea is maybe best visualized through the analogy of the cells that come together to form organs, and then the organs that come together to form the body. This resulting network of experiences is anchored to a common reality through its comparison relative to other people's inner maps (or bodies) as well as other characteristics and objects found within our external environment.

2) The other theme is prevalent in places of worship and deals more an individual's relationship to the infinite. Among the many architectural devices that are utilized to express this relationship, the most common is the framing of light. The way light sometimes pours into a building through framed openings in many ways is analagous to our perception of the external world through our eyes, which themselves can be seen as framed openings. I perceive these sorts of architectural experiences as amplified conscious experiences. Consciousness can be viewed as the contextualization of one self within a particular environment. Places of worship can be seen as houses for amplified conscious experiences because they serve to illustrate an individual's relationship to the infinite, which in my view is the ultimate context.

The Design models will essentially be architectural propositions that will address these two themes by making spaces that will serve as apparatuses for amplified conscious experiences.

Below is the first draft of my thesis statement, this is obviously a work in progess and will be reviewed and updated as necessary.

BECOMING CONSCIOUS OF CONSCIOUSNESS WITHIN THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT

One of the major motivational forces behind any act of design within the built environment is to elicit a certain type of experience within the occupier of that space. It seems logical that part of designing environments with fulfilling inner experiences would also include understanding how experiences travel through an individual’s emotional, psychological, and spiritual labyrinth. Following this line of thinking the study of human consciousness becomes crucial in the design and assessment of various built environments. Human consciousness is the most important mental faculty within a person. It is the conductor of our symphony of higher cognitive functions including the identification and development of the sense of self within an individual. Life for a person would be impossible without consciousness and its inherent sense of self, and can be severely affected when either is damaged. In addition, the interaction between an individual’s consciousness and the external environment often has profound effects on the development of a sense of self.

This thesis will analyze the acts of dividing and articulating space in the development of a person’s sense of self within the context of the reciprocal relationship between an individual’s consciousness and their external environment.

In order to investigate this rich and intertwined relationship the following methodology will be utilized:

1) Various examples of poetry, art, and film, as well as phenomenological, scientific, and religious texts will be reviewed in order to achieve a more detailed understanding of the development of a sense of self through conscious experience. Furthermore in order to study the development of the sense of self special attention will be attributed to emotional consciousness and appraisal.

2) This information will then be applied in specific case studies that will analyze built environments of various scales, functions and complexity.

3) The thesis will be further explored in more intimate detail through various creative acts including at least one short story and one design project.

4) The above research, case studies, and creative projects will be compiled and analyzed in order to determine the value of the information in relation to designing the built environment.