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corpo-real Master Interior Architecture
Image by Ying-Ting Shen
Corpo-real / ArtEZ
Corpo-real provides a lab-based community, located in Zwolle, where we investigate the implications of the idea of corpo-real. Here, ‘corpo’ stands for bodies in a general sense, not just the physical, but also the psychological, digital, virtual. And ‘real’ for the reality to which they relate. The French phenomenological philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty argued that the body-subject (“le corps propre”) is more than merely an object; it is in fact an ongoing necessity for experiencing and understanding the world in which we live. We thus focus on researching this endless changing relationship between body and space. This is the foundation of our work with students: the body as repository of social reality and spatial truth. Corpo-real is a two-year, full-time master programme in the field of interior architecture, with a particular focus on exploring the connections between theory and practice-based research. During the first year, students develop a theoretical research question, which they will then consolidate during the first half of the second year in the form of a written paper, while also exploring and challenging during this second year their theory through artistic and practice-based research. For their final thesis, as presented here, students are asked to demonstrate how the theory and the practice-based research are interconnected, and how this has led to new findings and insights. We live in a time of large-scale, fast and urgent transitions, perhaps even in a world in crises. The Covid-19 pandemic has an immense impact on our societies, it increases social inequality, and has already changed our perspective on health care and the way we live together or travel. The current events within the Black Lives Movement stress the importance of social inclusion and economic equality. Meet eight resilient students who have proven to be able to continue their studies during difficult circumstances. And are able to relate their research practices to everchanging societal circumstances. W www.corpo-real.artez.nl E corporeal@artez.nl I corporeal.artez
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Research of space through intuitive physicality focusing on bodies and their environment is the main theme of the units. In the first year, students get acquainted with research by making. Different methods and ways of working are introduced within a year theme to experience different approaches to practice-based research. In the second year, the intertwining of the theoretical research and artistic experimentation will consolidate into the final thesis of the graduation phase. Connecting theory with practice is the main theme of Unit 3 in the course, finding relevant information by making, doing, filming, experiencing. An artistic research question is extracted from the personal paper of each student. Criteria for the research questions are that answers and new perspectives can only be found by your own experience of the body. Different media and approaches are tools in this journey: film, drawing, digital building, making or participating. The research must be reproducible and verifiable. Research is therefore embedded in a structure of theoretical thinking. An interior researcher is confronted with at least two theoretical domains: the fundamental knowledge of methods and techniques, and the ever-changing framework of the interior architecture field. Concerning the different artistic research questions of each student, we work with a broad range of research methods. Such as research through making, performing observing, analysing, performing or curating. Based upon the, for each student same ,working method: • • • • •
we only think one week ahead every week the work is presented as if it was the last during the making, we don’t think, during the thinking we don’t make an in-class peer-to-peer review is used to find useable information the students formulate what they will do the next week
Knowledge of the paper and the outcome of Unit 3 are jointly formulated into a research question for the finals thesis. Formulating a case where newly found knowledge is tested and deep-end. Therefore, in an interaction between the idea and the real new provocative, and challenging questions awaken through design. These questions are the starting point for the graduation thesis in the last semester. In this way, we try to understand the fundamental elements of space. Understanding; “what is interior architecture?” Eric de Leeuw
July 2020
In this finals report, the artistic research of second years graduate students is explained and showcased. We are proud to present the work of the following new Masters of Interior Architecture: An-Yue Deng Paloma Franco Hempenius Kaylyn Jedliński Zehra Kahvecioğlu Elif Liman Sila Öztekin Ying-Ting Shen Lisabell Zint
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New Form of Small Housing Inspired by Jazz Improvisation An-Yue Deng 7 Prototype 1: Concept of Jazz Characteristics as spatial elements
Music is information, the wave of sound, spread through the air, and getting into human being’s ears. Then the sound is processed in a human’s brain to let us know this is music. Meanwhile, space spread its information from eyes to human’s whole body, and it contains information in a very different layer as compared to music. The lighting, the atmosphere, the temperature, all have the potential to convey various information. The research has two sections, theoretical and artistic research. The theoretical paper aims to gain knowledge about improvising space by using jazz music as a base. It, therefore, can suggest how openness can be applied. Learning from the form of Jazz music and trying to figure out what method used by Jazz musicians can contribute to architectural design. Furthermore, from studying improvising space a more vital design approach could evolve, which provides a closer and more interdisciplinary communication method for architects, or between the architects and users. Improvisation is a form of creating which contributes to insight regarding the human creative potential that can be enabled in the interplay of dynamic systems— filled with risk, diverse durations, fleeting boundaries, and varying qualities of media. By the form of individual creativity within a collaborative environment, it emphasizes its vitality and inclusiveness. But why does the research focus specifically on Jazz? This is because Jazz has always had the possibility of changing instantly The secret of appreciating jazz improvisation could connect to a powerful concept in contemporary aesthetics which is openness. The immediate and unrepeatable methods of creation we define as improvisation
could generate openness of not only in music and literature but also architecture. As American jazz critic Ted Gioia wrote in How to Listen to Jazz: “ [Classical music] perfect entertainment for people who want to live in the realm of perfect replication. Jazz, in contrast, is for those who want to be in attendance when the miracle happens.” Openness is a characteristic of improvisation; it is the essence for spatializing it into the architectural design language.Through this paper, in the progress of improvising space, there will evolve a more vital design approach which contributes to a closer and more interdisciplinary communication method for architects, or between the architects and users. During the time of thinking and writing the above text, the artistic research had started and from this very metaphysical topic. I kept asking myself, is there any chance to find a way to apply the research outcome to a world continually changing and gradually becoming more comple? How can personal interest and my academic education guide me moving forwards to the future? The second part, artistic research would aim to find methods to spatialize music elements and through that, apply the improvisation into a scenario of small housing. This could provide a different way of thinking towards this urgent global issue. After a series of explorations through making and reflection, the central question of my artistic research is decided as: How could Jazz Improvisation help to develop a new form of small housing?
Visualization of Melody
Prototype 1: Jazz Characteristics as spatial elements
Prototype 1: Lighting of Jazz Improvisation Characteristics.
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Prototype 2: Clay model, Interior landform.
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Shelves and Panels units.
Entrance and Division units. (Section view)
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Entrance and Division units. (Perspective view)
“A space that may people feel joy, exitement, relexation and so on, absorb the experience of life, contain the past, and hold the potential of the future.� The structure of this research will be a process of deconstructing the main research question above. Thus showinghow it was gradually clarified and answered during the making procedure. Jazz Improvisation: Firstly there will be a process of trying to explaining Jazz Improvisation as an inspiration of the spatial design. The research is mainly focusing on how to possibly apply some of the music elements to space, thus making the attempting to transform Jazz Improvisation into a system of spatial design language. Small Housing: Starting from my personal dwelling experience, the scenarios to explain the reason why the concept of Small Housing should be introduced to this research and how it referenced the Japanese tatami style layout to clarify its definition. New Form: The next step will show how this research moves to design aspects in quite an untraditional way. Because the primary method was chosen mainly based on experience and sentimental choice, this not is a very rational design process. This results in the format of nearly the stream of conscious, which can also present some characteristic of improvisation. Moving to the development of the final design strategy, the improvising space would base on an organic landform interior for a more ambiguous spatial experience. Compared to the more familiar architectural design, which is usually full of cubic space, this new form should have a relative
curvy space, and there is less trace of edge. It could visually match the openness of jazz improvisation’s form better. But with the combination of two straight walls, it shows there are still some rules to follow. Moreover, a specific aspect of sharpness created by their connections could also probably perform the tension of improvisation. Meanwhile, it should also be a space without an obvious indication of function but with some adjustable division units and storage units. These units allow users to involve in the improvisation of space; this adapting to each other could also be a metaphor of musicians playing with the instruments. Among the changing of these units within the space, the atmosphere is changing by day and night, sunny or gloomy etc. These interactions of spatial elements might also be like the relationship when the musicians are in a jam session*. Welcome to the New Form of Small Housing inspired by Jazz Improvisation. *Jam Session: A improvisational musical activity, which is usually casual and mainly instrumentalists involved.
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The Restricted Space Redesigning the interior of public buses Paloma K. Franco Hempenius 13
From my personal experience of riding overcrowded buses for approximately 3 hours every day in my hometown BogotĂĄ, Colombia, I was motivated to learn what was possible, as a designer, to change in the interior of the buses to make the commuters experience a more pleasant one. Although this is an issue that started from a very specific location, one of the purposes of the project is to, hopefully, offer a solution that can be adapted to numerous situations that occur within public transport vehicles all around the world.
1. Access: A balanced number of access points vs number of people. 2. Personal adaptability: Creating a space that adjusts to each p assenger’s needs. 3. Ownership: Allowing the user to possess a given area for a certain period of time. 4. Control: In general terms bringing control to the passengers is particularly important since it gives the feeling of comfort.
Aimed at obtaining more knowledge and a better understanding of the interior spaces of vehicles a comparative analysis of different types of vehicles was done in the research paper. The types of vehicles analysed were a lift, a mid-range car, a train, an airplane seat, a cable cabin, and a Vaporetto. The employed method for the analysis was the use of hand drawings of the interiors of the vehicles, which was essential to get a deeper insight into details and main elements that compose the interior architecture of vehicles. Through these drawings and analysis, it was observed that some of these elements become invisible to the users, since they are part of the daily routine or simply are what our bodies are used to. Despite the fact that they might be generally unnoticed, these elements do take an important role in the commuter’s experience, each of them in a specific way and with a specific function.
To approach the design process and continue doing the artistic research it was fundamental to abstract the study to understand the essence of the research, which was the restricted space within an enclosed space. This was key in order to comprehend the difference between restricted and enclosed.
The outcome from this analysis is that, within the other types of vehicles researched, four main characteristics exist that cannot be found in the interior of bus vehicles, which make the experience of riding these other types of vehicles a more comfortable experience.
Through the experimentation with different restricted space situations, it was found out that it is possible to find yourself in a large enclosed space and feel restricted or in a smaller enclosed space and feel unrestricted. Opposite to the enclosed space, which is somehow fixed, the restricted space can be very flexible in the sense that it can be affected or conditioned by three main components: 1. Body- space relationship 2. Control 3. Context
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Long distance
Short distance
Short distance
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“Rethinking how we design the restricted space within the bus.� Within the enclosed space of the bus, I studied the restricted space and what it implied as a spatial matter and the relationship with the human body. Through this, I was able to understand which elements within the bus space were important to alter the feeling of restriction. This step lead to the observation of how passengers’ body positions are shaped by the elements that are present in the standard design of a bus, therefore creating a rhythm. People standing side by side makes the space feel more restricted since there is no space for recovering the ownership of personal space. This triggered the curiosity of finding out if by breaking the rhythm it could potentially create spaces that can change the feeling of the restricted space since physical positioning regarding other people was being shaped in a different way. Through the creation of volumes that offer the possibility to control the rhythm to position the passengers, the design concept was able to change the feeling of the restricted space through physical boundaries, as well as invisible boundaries between other passengers bringing a sense of control and comfort. The rethinking of the space with the design proposal not only affects the experience of riding the bus, but it will also affect how people access and move through the bus which, if overcrowded, can feel very restricted. If the floorplan of the current bus design is observed, it is noticeable that the hallways are very rigid since they are defined by the existing fixed furniture. By creating a more fluid circulation using the positions of the furniture and the way in which passengers make use of the space, potentially results
in a less restricted feeling while walking through the bus in between the people. Combining the results of the theoretical research and the artistic research new guidelines and design parameters to approach a new interior of a bus were created. Resulting in a conceptual design for the restricted space that consists of six 6 volumes that can be combined between them, allowing flexibility to create different spaces that adapt to different scenarios. To show this, three different buss scenarios were thought of. The first of them being a long-distance journey, this combination considers the number of sitting spaces a priority. The second scenario is a short-distance one which offers more standing space. And the third one considers the current situation related to COVID-19 and social distancing, which adjusts to the new guidelines that the governments and health care authorities have established for the use of public spaces. It is necessary to acknowledge that there will always be many variables such as time, amount of people, types of people and volume of the vehicle that can affect the journey experience within public transportation that are out of the control of the designer. But through the conjunction of the theoretical research and the artistic research, it is possible say that there is an opportunity to create a new design concept that is more suitable for the specific needs of passengers. Considering the needs of the passenger as a unit but also as a collective occupation of a reduced and enclosed space.
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Framing Patterns
Kaylyn Jedliński 19
What is the spacial potential of a two-dimensional pattern? As a child born in South Africa to two European parents I always wondered where I be-longed. Raised in South Africa I continuously surrounded myself by other fellow Europe-ans, often not embracing and fully understanding my identity as a South African. As I longed to understand what it means to be a South African - I found myself wanting to grow my knowledge and share its beauty with people so unfamiliar to it. Through con-ducting my masters research over the past two years, centred around identity and the cul-ture of South Africa, has allowed me to learn and love the place I can finally say “I belong to, the place that is my home”. I delved into the beauty, intricacy, curiously, adventure and colourful world of my culture, through the artistic research of pattern making and ways in which we can find spacial potentials within it. Through conducting theoretical research on the effects of globalisation in the interior de-sign of local brands. I found myself particularly interested in how Starbucks’s café styled stores try to make a connection between customer and brand. Starbuck’s president of Design for Starbuck’s in America says that, “ What you don’t want is a customer walk-ing into a store in downtown Seattle, walking into a store in the suburbs of Seattle, and then going into a store in San Jose and seeing the same store. So how do you make the world’s largest coffee house feel like a neighbourhood haunt? (Stinton; 2014) ”. Star-bucks’s café styled store interiors present many ornamental nodes towards their sur-roundings, which in essence can become clearly relatable to customers familiar with the city and or area of the Starbuck’s placement. However, where I saw opportunities within this kind of brand concept, was ways of
more authentic cultural portrayals which can reach beyond that of the city dwellers and in turn become a relatable aspect of culture which came to be found through pattern. Every culture and or country has their own pattern which can be read somewhat like an identity. A cultural pattern were originally created as kinds of tribe symbolisms, identifica-tions and also in some cases as secret languages. By using the culture and country that I am most familiar to, I am able to use my knowledge as a South African. Combined with theoretical research conducted within Starbucks I am able to research into the spacial potential of a two dimensional pattern with use of Starbucks as a case study. My research started by looking at what makes a South African pattern particular and unique to South Africa. Through research by making I was able to conclude that the most significant factor was the use of black and white as an equal entity to any other colour used, while the excess number of colours used exceeded no more than seven colours. Geometry and symmetry also play an essential part in making a South African pattern South Africa. Giving rise to the research question of What is the spacial potential of a two -dimensional pattern?
“One of the most significant elements in the creation of South African patterns is the treatment of black and white as colours.�
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“By removing traditional architectural boarders we are able to imagine pattern potentials in two-dimensional artistic portrayals of space.” By using knowledge gained in physically understanding and making of a South African pattern I am able to transform and experiment, with ways in which patterns can be ap-plied to space through using rules, acknowledged rules found in the making of a tradi-tional South African pattern. I am able to identify parameters which can be used to apply patterns to space in the context and case study of Starbucks. Patterns in space can be described in the following five parameters: the first is two-dimensional pattern three-dimensional space. This is where flat two-dimensional patterns can be extruded in space to mould three-dimensional elements in space such a coffee counters, furniture and addi-tional spaces such as ablutions or kitchens. The second parameter is layering, which al-lows for the ability to create new patterns and shapes as well as introducing new colours (for example by layering primary colours the result will be secondary colours). The third parameter, Black and White, is probably one of the most profound and important parame-ters as it is one of the essential elements defending a South African pattern. As black and white are contrasting colours they are able to both create new pattern potentials by morphing shapes and create distance in space. A fourth parameter is, repetition of ele-ments in space, which can be repeated by scaling up and down - repeating does not go as far as just repeating elements but the repetition of colour to make new patterns as well as achieve symmetry. The fifth and final parameter which can be used is that of reoccur-rence which is similar to that of repetition, however besides of having the exact same el-ement or colour reoccurrence allows for a slight variation allowing room for depth of a two-dimensional pattern to be achieved.
By combining rules found in traditional South African patterns, along with parameters for two-dimensional spacial potentials as well as keeping in mind the the brand of Starbucks by use of colour as well as elements symbolic of café environments allows for the devel-opment of a floor plan. With this traditionally read two-dimensional drawing we are able to view the spacial potential of the two dimensional (the floor plan) through making sec-tions. By blurring the lines of traditional architectural drawings we are able to celebrate and imagine patterns in a different way. This allows for curiosity and imagination of space, by a wider audience. By the practice and implementation of the found parameters and linkage to South African pattern as Starbucks’ specific colour for brand we are able to create spacial potentials for specific Starbucks locations tying brand, culture and pat-tern together.
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A Welcoming Space of Paper Zehra Kahvecioğlu 25
Some spaces are more inviting than other spaces. What is the reason that we feel more welcome in some spaces, houses, neighborhoods then others? What are the characteristics of an actual welcoming space? My interest for a welcoming space started as a frustration with the typical narrow Dutch entrance hall. Writing my paper about the entrance hall made me think about hello-goodbye ceremonies, user’s need, function and spatial associations. Doing research about something that I have a lot of assumptions and judgements about taught me to put my “architectural ego” aside in order to learn from being wrong. I was convinced that architects fill in our lifestyle, by for example designing a type of entrance hall to fill in our awkward hello-goodbye ceremony, because the space is very restricted. By filling in the space, I imagine an architect taking control about the space. But, according to the Dutch studio Jo Janssen Architects , the building or space is meant to serve the user, not to dominate. I decided to completely step out of the controlling, dominating design method and let the material and the process flow towards a nice welcoming space. First, I tried to define a welcoming space. To me it is very important that a space has light and that the material in the space catches the light in a uniquely beautiful way. The welcoming space offers openness and at some point transparency. Nature is a very inspiring, inviting space to me; walking through a forest is a spatial experience that we can’t imitate as designers. Yet we can learn to look carefully at the nature and find ways to interact with it, using the nature as a source. I found myself making mod-
els out of paper because of the crispy noise it makes, which I associated with the sound of leaves. The moment I hung sheets of the thinnest paper I could find, it started to wave at the moment I walked by. Like a tree with hanging branches and randomly placed leaves, waving and saluting me. During the research it became clearer that my process would become more in-depth at the moment that I make rules for myself. The smaller the topic, the deeper I can dig. My journey about a welcoming space and paper had started. I asked myself the following question: Is it possible to build a welcoming space out of paper?
“Paper catching the sunlight during the morning or emerging in the darkest hour of the night shows that a spatial model could look totally different when you change the context and time.�
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Paper is an incredibly surprising material that can only be discovered by allowing yourself to play with it. I started a diverse process in which I worked with only paper and tested the force and possibilities of it. I studied the strength, shape and quality of the paper and practiced to observe better. There were times that the material took over control, and at those moments I had to find new ways and push myself further. Designers have the ability and freedom to make decisions about material and construction. In my case the roles were intentionally turned the other way around. The paper had all the freedom and decided for itself if it would stand alone or fall down. During the process I have torn, cut, hung, tied, stacked, folded and drawn onto paper, in order to make a space more inviting, more fun. Because paper is flat, it forced me to work in a careful way. It sensitizes my actions. I ended up seeing more patterns in everyday things that I associated with the geometry and (at the same time) unpredictability of nature. According to the Chinese paper sculpture artist Li Hongbo, paper has been used for ages in the Chinese tradition to make festive decorations during celebrations, like the western world uses confetti and garlands. Which gives more and more meaning to use paper as a welcoming gesture in itself. While the association between nature and paper could be considered as very personal, most of the aspects that I chose for building, came from general characteristics of a space of positive feel. For example, height, looking up to the sky, having a sight towards above gives a sense of freedom. The white brightness of paper represents innocence, purity, peace
and calmness. The shape of a half circle is the abstraction of spreading arms, imitates the act of a hug. The gentle waving movement offers unpredictability and playfulness. The accumulation of all these different symbols would lead me to a welcoming space. Since the outbreak of the virus I had to improvise my experiments in my garden. This gave my process a whole new dimension, I moved my model from being inside to outside. My experiments interacted with the weather. The paper catching the sunlight during the morning or emerging in the darkest hour of the night shows that a spatial model could look totally different when you change the context and time. However, I concluded that paper always needs support or reinforcement to become a space. But this support should be as subtle as possible, because the simplicity of paper should not be overshadowed by a construction. So, the construction moves as a thin, fluent line around the paper. The model engages with the movement of the trees. This process forced me to bond with paper, being humble with the use of it and engage even at times that it falls down. My project attempts to question the power of an everyday material, fragility and the way we try to fit in the nature with our buildings. Letting go of the desire to build permanent and learn from limitless beauty of a model that is a temporary welcoming space.
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TIME PERCEPTION AT THE PLATFORM Elif Liman 31
The concept of time is related to other concepts such as experience, movement, human actions, consciousness and also the surrounding space. Therefore, an attempt is made to integrate the element of time into designers and architects understanding of analysing the social processes involved in creating space and place.
How does a person define the passing of time in a public area? Is it possible to let time appear to pass faster? In certain physical environments, you experience “time” that passes slowly. By physical environment, I mean the daily living environment of a person. This concerns the environment of a train station, the platform to be more specific, where the traveller is located. A public space where waiting is central. The physical environment at the station consists of all facilities on the platform and within the station itself. Passengers can spend their time at the station by making use of the facilities, such as shops, but sometimes, there is just too short a time to do so. What happens then, is that some travellers on the platform withdraw into their own personal environment, which is often their cell phone or laptop. I started to focus on the experience of time in a physical environment and how I could influence this. It turned out, that many people experienced the same feelings about the time waiting on the platform as myself. Almost all people interviewed, experienced the passing of time as annoying and very slow. The train station is the place where movement is of the essence, with an average of 1,000,000 travellers using the train as a travel services per day. The traveller usually plans to leave the station within minutes of arrival. The timetable can be affected, as a result of which there are train journeys that are delayed. You may have to wait 10 to 20 minutes for a
train that only runs every half an hour. Of course, you can’t speed up the ticking of time, but the experience of speeding up time can be simulated. You can divide time into two ways of experiencing, objective time and subjective time. Objective time means that time ticks away, as it were, like a clock. And subjective time is the experience of the passage of time, feeling time. On the platform, both objective time and subjective time are experienced and influence our perception of how quickly time passes. For this research the focus will be mainly about subjective time. From subjective time, Hereby I want to investigate how you can influence “time”. I want to focus on certain senses and their influence on time perception. Various research shows that some senses can be influenced to make a room feel more pleasant and safer. Therefore, the senses that could help me influence the passing of time are sound, sight, smell, taste, touch, and the feel of temperature upon your skin, a feeling.
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“Space can only be experienced by the movement within it. In other words, space = time x movement.� Jan Hoogstad In one of the studies by G. Smets, it appeared that after seeing a red colour, people estimated an interval to be shorter than after seeing a blue colour. This and earlier research encouraged me to find out more about the effect of senses on space and time. If the use of colour can influence the passing of time then maybe the use of influencing the senses in other ways, could also influence the space and the perception of time. The reason for choosing a platform of a train station instead to another waiting area is due to the fact that stations are special environments where time plays a central role in the service process and because speed is important. The quicker a traveller can get from A to B without having to experience the feeling of wasting time the better he feels. The rhythm of the heart and the influence it has on the perception of time inspired me to take this a step further by introducing a shape to enhance the feeling of breathing. Different shapes, squares, circles and triangles were used to experiment, resulting in the final shape of a circle as being the most effective. A static circle had less effect. When this shape increased and decreased in size, using motion as previously researched, in accordance to the sound of a beating heart, the effect was better but still did not achieve my desired effect. The heart rhythm was less important than the rhythm of breathing. This visual rhythm of breathing actually had the effect of becoming conscious with the actual action of breathing and this in turn had a calming effect on the subject.
From all the studies of different shapes, the visual circle of finals 1 caught my attention the most. This has to do with the fact that it strongly emphasizes breathing in terms of shape. To continue with this, I wanted to add a layer that makes it not only visual but also spatial so that the traveller not only experiences the visual but also the spatial. The research must show that (waiting) time can be influenced. The intention is that the travellers are not so much focused on the waiting time, but on the scenario that happens around them. The idea is to have a different movement of light and shadow every day.
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Build with Memory Exploded view drawing of Atayal house
Ying-Ting Shen 37
“Traditional Taiwanese building materials are undamaged by nail and glue, thus they could be reused when buildings are demolished.”
Application of traditional construction method in post-disaster shelter Alternative Stiffness Taiwan, my homeland, is a mountainous country and surrounded by the pacific ocean. For centuries, the inhabitants have been coexisting with nature and must face various kinds of natural disasters in their lives. In the 2018 Hualien Earthquake, concrete buildings collapsed after the quake. The sturdy buildings we believed in crumbled down. This shocking fact became my motivation to research alternative sturdiness for contemporary architecture. And it also drove me to study the resilience of the historical Taiwanese indigenous building. A resilience embedded in the hundreds-year-old indigenous buildings that existed on this island and are built with bamboo, rattan, wood, and other relatively fragile building materials. In my research, I study three cases in different tribes which are the Atayal, Paiwan, and Yami respectively. In the process of research, I found that they used simple and easy-to-learn construction methods to create sturdy buildings. Such sturdiness is not to establish the boundary with nature with a stone wall, but to reduce the frontal collision with the disaster in accordance with the rhythm of the environment. For example, each building node uses rattan as a binding to increase the resilience, so the building has room to withstand the impact of shaking when facing an earthquake. Build with Gravity-A Sustainable Building Method In Kengo Kuma’s Small architecture theory, he proposed that merely shrinking the size of building does not make small architecture. Small
architecture means looking for things of dimensions that can be handled by an individual(Kengo Kuma, 2015). This building strategy allows us to see the texture of the building and get closer to the architecture from a human perspective. He introduced four building methods to construct Small architecture: Stack, Weave, Lean-on, Float. According to my research, the application of the material scale in Taiwan’s aboriginal architecture conforms to the theory of Small architecture. In the early phase of artistic research, I sought a way that merges small building theory with Taiwanese indigenous building methods and to find a way to intergrade it with contemporary architecture. Due to limited ancient chemical technology, none of these indigenous buildings used adhesives. As a result, on the one hand, flexible intersection without adhesives creates resilience for the house. On the other, it also becomes a sustainable building method. Building materials are undamaged by nail and glue, thus they could stay intact and be reused when buildings are demolished. In this sense, I defined my research question as: How can we build a structure without using adhesive, nails, or interlock? In Atayal’s buildings, the pressure from the material’s self-weight and the tension generated by the bundled rattan are the key points to make the structure more stable. The following research focuses on weight and bundling, and this is my response to the question I mentioned above.
Stacked wooden sticks became a column
The column is fixed by the metal wire and metalware
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Two columns create a wall. Soft and hard material apply different building methods
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The principle of how to position recycled material in the column
“The living objects from the past become a shelter in the present.�
The final model of the column combines leftover material
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The community in a post-disaster scenario
Build with Memory - Earthquake Scenario According to my previous research, such a building method extends the lifespan of the material and makes architecture more sustainable. I want to apply this method to post-disaster reconstruction. In a post-disaster state where everything is destroyed and disorderly, how can we continue the lifespan of the material? And what value could we create in this scenario? During a journey of collecting stones by the roadside, I surprisedly found out that an inconspicuous stone can reflect the texture of the local context. For instance, many brick fragments can be found in the Netherlands, and marble and granite fragments can be found in Taiwan. The material I found tells a local story. In the post-disaster scene, there are many wreckages scattered around our feet. Wouldn’t these wreckages represent our memories of our homeland? I intend to construct a temporary shelter by a traditional building method and the remains of our home. The process of building a shelter, it is also a rebuilding treatment for our own memory. Furthermore, the completeness of materials is preserved by this method, thus the wreckages could be used in the permanent housing rather than be transported into landfill. Strolling between the crumbled houses, pick up a chair that may once have belonged to you or your neighbor and place it in the shelter you are about to live in. The living objects from the past become a shelter in the present. Then it can be transformed into furniture and partitions in the next permanent house. Gradually, while the fragments from the past are
montaged together, the embedded familiarity will appear and comfort you eventually. In this sense, we not only extend the lifespan of the material but also our priceless living memory. Improvisation and Resilience Uncontrollability is the most significant difference between stacking modularized wooden blocks and stacking used objects. But the uncontrollability also creates the possibility of improvisation. For example, in order to stabilize the stacking structure and level it, the extra object needs to be placed under the varisized wood. People have to improvise to utilize materials from the post-disaster scene. Such improvisation demonstrates resilience in life and is an ability to respond to uncontrollable conditions. However, it is necessary to set up rules to allow people to build their own temporary shelters within the framework, in order for the building to be effectively built in a short period of time and expanded into a community.
Thesis
Finals Report
July 2020
Going Out Of Binary: With Gender Expression Sila Öztekin 43
One is all, All is one.
ONE IS ALL Human race has multiplied from one transparent ball. It’s like split grass that spreads from a single seed to a large land. And you were a single beam of light, hit the prism and saw the spectrum. You saw the variety of colours. So when did you forget this diversity? Times have changed. The values that we used to have, are considered to no longer exist. They did spirit away the freedom of choice, discretely. A community of people, whose control was possible, was built. A generation of people programmed to do what is said. In the social structure, they said, stay in the binary. You are black or white. They said, you can’t achieve cause you are young; you are invisible cause you are old. They always give you labels. When they divide the human into two, they called us ‘Female and Male’. They put two boxes to choose from. You have forgotten or ignored the colours left behind. You have blinded or choose not to see. For the first and last time, I would lıke to describe you in a binary. Are you one of those who choose to follow others? Or, are you the ones who are looking for their own ways? I departed from the story of a ball, in one of the societies where being unique is considered as a negative manner. A ball that contains all the colours in itself and chooses to show different ones at different times. Ball is the symbol of unity in this research. Being one. To be all. Although; ALL IS ONE? While researching gender, I have witnessed that these balls are considered only pink and blue. However, Sam Killermann states about four different elements to identify gender which are biological sex, identity, attraction and expression. The expression, how one chooses to represent oneself to
the external world, is actually a concept that cannot fit into the boxes which are forcefully established by the society. Judith Butler refers to gender as a repetitive performance of the body and continues; gender, forms by the traces that we leave on the social construction. According to Butler’s theory of performativity, an individual learns the concept of gender from social behavior. In one’s perception, the idea of male and female starts to take a place in the gender binary framework; an absolute cultural interaction. If one considers that gender is a learnt behaviour, one should also be aware that it can be alterable. In the changing social order, I designed a simple diagram for everyone to exist. If gender includes only men and women, the area outside of the defined gender is considered as genderless? In order to bring an urgency to this issue, I examined the cases in theoretical research where the concept of gender was completely eliminated. Art and design are the tools that provide convenience for changing social norms that are superannuated. Theoretical research has included many illustrations on how genderless design addresses everyone without discrimination. The genderless design receives people as one rather than discriminate them, and neutralise the gendered design elements. Gabriel Maher’s De-Sign, which is the case study in the theoretical research, examines the signs we have bodily reflected. “The aim of De_Sign has been to deconstruct the gendered meanings inherent in these systems and explore the condition of the ‘mediated body’ in design. Our method involves an act of DE___SIGNing, which searches for and pulls apart a complex system of signs related to gender.” (Gabriel Maher, 2017)
Experimenting on ‘Not Normal’ Expressions with the hydraulic systems
“The main ambition is the normalisation of the sitting act which is a distinctive performance that is so-called ‘NOT NORMAL’ by the social norms. The ball chosen as the symbol of unity is a neutral ingredient for the representation of the body.”
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Finals Report
July 2020
Thesis
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Finals Report
July 2020
“I departed from the story of a ball, in one of the societies where being uncommon is considered as a negative manner. A ball that contains all the colours in itself and chooses to show different ones at different times.” Gabriel Maher’s De-Sign, which is my case study in theoretical research, examines the signs we have bodily reflected. “The aim of De_Sign has been to deconstruct the gendered meanings inherent in these systems and explore the condition of the ‘mediated body’ in design. Our method involves an act of DE___SIGNing, which searches for and pulls apart a complex system of signs related to gender.” (Gabriel Maher, 2017) In the theoretical research, genderless design has been examined as a movement against discrimination and concluded with the blurring the boundaries of the gender binary. To achieve genderless, it is necessary to disown the existing discipline which would only create another discrimination. This idea of creating additional bias is completely the opposite method of the research. While the boundaries are blurred, the socalled gendered areas will become one with the leftover genderless space. Conclusively, instead of ignoring the binary, going out of it becomes the aim. Expression, which is examined as one of the four elements in the concept of gender, took a place as another element that assists to go out of binary. On account of finding the colours that society considers contradictory, the basic act of sitting was examined as an expression of the body. The main ambition is the normalisation of the sitting act which is a distinctive performance is that so-called ‘NOT NORMAL’ by the social norms. The ball chosen as the symbol of unity is a neutral ingredient for the representation of the body.
I HAVE GOT BALLS, criticising the gender discrimination through body expressions. Due to the alteration of the balls’ volume, the design aims to provide a sitting experience which is out of the cultural norms. The change of the volume provides a vertical movement and takes control of the way of sitting by the users and gives it back to the object. The movement of the balls is provided by the Google search engine. With the words of ’feminine and masculine’ from the Google parameters which belong to the binary, the objective is going out of the binary. The words from binary go beyond its definition, with the expressive body that is provided by my balls.
Thesis
Finals Report
July 2020
COLOR MATTERS: Color Becomes Space Lisabell Zint 49
“How can color break physical architectural boundaries and thus add multiple mental space to a given space?” COLOR MATTERS: Color Becomes Space is a design research project that came about due to the existing lack of quality of urban public spaces, particularly in transition zones (metro-/train stations, corridors in public buildings, etc.). The lack of quality leads to a reduction in use - but even more importantly to a decrease in the user’s mental well-being. This issue can be traced back to spatial based factors such as accessibility and attractiveness through lighting, materiality and color. Given the fact, that color has a great influence on the architectural environment and on the human response to it, color represents a powerful and important design tool that has to be used with care. That implies that one should be conscious about the purpose but also the consequences of its implementation in space by taking into account the given environmental conditions (e.g culture). Consequently, color has the ability to form the attractiveness and quality of a space which, as mentioned before, are important factors that can be related back to a user’s mental well-being. Having in mind this dependence and the impact of color, I started wondering about the spatial potential of color as a two-dimensional element. It revealed throughout my first research steps that color, whether it is being used in the form of light or the form of paint on a flat surface, can create a spatial perception. Due to this valuable discovery, my design research project is focused on and driven by the aim of creating additional mental space by using color as the only element to promote and support mental well-being. The spatial context of my project is based on the given architectural conditions of public interiors like prisons, hospitals,
stations, or schools that are distinguished by a certain oppressiveness and narrowness caused by their physical construction. Generally speaking, the purpose of color being used in my designs lies within the combination of three different approaches of color utilization. First of all, Color Becomes Space aims to change the perception of space by making it seem deeper, wider or higher (practical purpose). Secondly, considering the use of space through human movement, the implemented color designs create awareness of the given spatial conditions. Further, color has the power to redefine space by creating its new identity that is improving the user’s associations with it (interactive purpose). And thirdly, the composition of colors on architectural surfaces serves as an artistic element and therefore, can be seen as artwork (decorative purpose)
corrido r
scenario
window center edge
staircas e
10% 40% 70% 100%
center
stairs height vertical balustrade
s cenario
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Thesis
Finals Report
July 2020
53
“Shaping and defining space without fundamentally changing the architectural base.”
About the outcome of the research My final color designs - color spaces - are based on the application of certain methodologies and guidelines that I have collected and visually illustrated throughout my research discoveries. A very important part of my design process that has been decisive for the final result represents the “becoming” in Color Becomes Space – the emergence through the act of sketching (planning), painting (making) and the movement through space (use of space) as the perspective is constantly changing (perceiving). The guidelines and methods that I have developed for a conscious implementation of color can be seen as assistance to visually break architectural boundaries and thus add mental space to a physical space that is defined by a certain depressiveness. By following the composed instructions depending on certain spatial requirements, my final project also contains a sort of design manual that enables anyone to create a mental color space themself. The application of the described guidelines requires no knowledge about colors but in order to achieve the maximum spatial effect, it is indispensable to consider the meaning and associations of color cultures.
The project ‚COLOR MATTERS’ started with curiosity and developed into a valuable discovery. Driven by the spatial potential of color I experienced the great power and beautiful influence that lies within its usage. By shaping space without essentially changing the architectural base but exclusively using color as a tool, I gained innovative knowledge of how color behaves but also affects the sensory perception of the architectural environment when it’s being used carefully. With my collected design guidance, I intend to share this developed knowledge of mine and hope to help to spread conscious color implementation for more mental well-being. Once you have understood space and its conditions the matching color design can be significant. Also impressive about color is its simplicity in utilization but at the same time, it can transform the environment into something completely different. Color can create new space, space identity as well as awareness for existing problems which can be solved at the same time. Therefore, my appeal to you - COLOR MATTERS and must always be considered with awareness.
Colophon
Finals Report 2020 Editing Kai de Leeuw, Ingrid van Zanten Design Office for Design / Loek Kemming
Production Grafisch Bedrijf Wink, Doetinchem
ArtEZ University of the Arts
Rhijnvis Feithlaan 50 8021 AM Zwolle The Netherlands T. 038 4270500
corporeal@artez.nl www.corpo-real.artez.nl
Tutor of Finals, 2020: Eric de Leeuw Eric de Leeuw studied Interior Architecture, subsequently Architecture at the Academy of Architecture, Amsterdam where he graduated cum laude in 1996. During this he worked, among others, at Mecanoo Architects. In 1997 he was co-founder of DAAD Architects, where as an architect he was part of the management. Between 1997 and 2005 he worked on a variety of projects; housing, both private and commercial and utility buildings. In 2005 he founded dlvz/ studio. An interdisciplinary studio that has realised projects in almost every domain of spatial design like the award winning live-work houses in Groningen and Laag Keppel. The studio invests in research in order to enlarge the knowledge of the discipline. In 2001 he started tutoring at many different schools; the Academy of Architecture in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Arnhem and Groningen. Recently he has also been part of different workshops in Detmold and Antwerp, and at the Master Spatial Design at the KADK in Copenhagen. At the ArtEZ University of the Arts he started as a tutor in 2005. Currently he holds a position as head of the department of IN_architecture, in Zwolle.
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ArtEZ University of the Arts