About snails, Franciscans, homelessness, and the city : a contribution to the culture of "college thinking"
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Contribution to the culture of "college thinking"
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture.
Advisor
Mark Jarzombek.The objective of the thesis is to study how fragments can be connected along their fringes to produce productive results. Parallel to this experiment the focus of the research investigates the development of the Franciscan movement with respect to its contribution to the urban fabric. From the start, Franciscans encountered the problem of alienation both personally and at a larger scale of the city. In Germany, Franciscan settlements flourished with the urbanization in the 13th century. Acceptance of the city as a place for a Christian life by the friars and the consequent welcome by the burghers for the Minorites made it possible that Franciscan settlements became an integral part of the historic city. The contemporary friaries in Boston and Providence R. l. demonstrate the continuing activities of the Friars in the city. These friaries started several programs which center around the questions of alienation and reconciliation. The design proposal is an extension of St. Francis House which contains a fully automated parking garage, an ambulatorium with benches and pin up boards and several platforms for public appearances. This facility commemorates Franciscan tactics and provide a space in the city for homeless citizens. This thesis challenges traditional research models that try to produce a totality. The design proposal serves as a correlating part between the other fragments.
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Four fragments constitute the focus of analysis of this study; at the same time they are used as objects in the experimental set up of the thesis. This set up investigates the possibilities of a collage as a model for a research. The Vitruvian notion of the architect as a person standing between a variety of subject fields is connected to Kurt Schwitters collage techniques. The four pieces researched with four different research modes: Art, scientific research, report and design: 1. A collection of images and collages. This collection consists of images of snails, Franciscan architecture, personal memory and allegorical objects. 2. A historic research of the initial state of the Franciscan Movement and St. Francis with respect to their attitude towards buildings. 3. Three case studies of Franciscan Facilities in Boston and Providence. 4. A design proposal for an extension of the homeless day care center St. Francis House, which is located at the Boston Common.
Description
Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1997. Includes bibliographical references (p. 123-124).
Date issued
1997Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of ArchitecturePublisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Keywords
Architecture.