T Experience Reflection

On the Surface

My awe of the natural systems and beauty of Lake Chelan inspired my thesis. Along the journey, I devoured information, deep diving into rabbit holes and often forcing myself to abort my Alice in Wonderland free fall so I could execute the design process I was gathering information for. I will be a lifelong learner, my curiosity is endless, and my fascination with natural systems is set in stone.

I set out to create an educational, engaging, and community-oriented space focused on ecological thinking, appreciation of nature, and stewardship of Lake Chelan. As I look back at my initial questions at the beginning of this project, some of my questions were pushed to my subconscious as I tackled more tangibleresultsthatcouldbegraphicallyrepresented.

I asked, ‘How can architecture activate ecological stewardship? What is the extent of my power as a designer in this situation? There’s Integrative Design, is what I’m considering Instigative Design?’ Without realizing it, this project became an experiment of treating architecture as its own form of ecology, using architecture to interact with already established social and environmental systems. Design became a system of influence on users’ mutual interactions and attempted to influence how users interact with their physical surroundings. It ultimately pushed my architecture to be an instrument of change within the already present and larger systems.

Hindsight

I almost wish I had thought to focus my thesis questions concept of architecture as ecology. But if I am being honest, I did not realize this was a concept I was circling around. This project required an intense focus never required of me to seek out and understand a wide variety of systems I was only vaguely familiar with. My curiosity helped me develop a more meaningful appreciation for the endless potential if we shift our perspectives to view the world as one system which contains infinite systems.

I am thankful for everything I extracted from my grad studio. This final project was probably the first I presented that I felt I had genuinely executed what I had set out to do. It is a delicious feeling, and I expect I will not settle for anything less in the future.