An Act of Opening: thesis project by SCI-Arc graduate Abdullah Tahseen. Thesis advisor: Kristy Balliet. Image courtesy of Abdullah Tahseen

The pandemic has influenced students in more ways than one, further questioning their views on the state of architecture today. For this iteration of Archinect's Thesis Review series, SCI-Arc graduate Abdullah Tahseen (M.Arch) explores the opportunities of "openness in a contemporary urban setting."

In his thesis project, An Act of Opening, Tahseen uses Downtown Los Angeles as a backdrop to explore the question: "How can architecture establish openness by encouraging environments that cultivate creativity, human engagement, and collaboration through the design of captivating and inventive spaces?" During this interview, Tahseen explains how his thesis was inspired by the transformation of workspaces during the pandemic. He also shares his thoughts on the topic of "thesis" itself and how he feels about the industry today.

Archinect's Spotlight on 2021 Thesis Projects: Archinect's commitment to highlighting student work doesn't stop at simply sharing projects. Our editorial team focuses on connecting with students and asking questions to learn their process, architectural perspectives, and their take on the industry as young designers. 2020/21 has been a challenging year for all architecture graduates; to support the class of 2021, we've launched our summer series iteration of Archinect's Thesis Review to highlight the work of thesis students during this unique time of remote learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Be sure to follow our 2021 thesis tag to stay up to date as we release new project highlights.

This project aspires to create a shift in how architects think and address buildings in the 21st century and beyond by introducing a design framework and techniques that revolve around the idea of openness in a contemporary urban setting.

Please provide a brief summary of your thesis/final project. 

This thesis revisits and reimagines openness as a catalyst for engagement on various levels within and around architecture. Openness is not just from a formal approach but also a spatial, cultural, and ecological response. How can architecture establish openness by encouraging environments that cultivate creativity, human engagement, and collaboration through the design of captivating and inventive spaces? This project aspires to create a shift in how architects think and address buildings in the 21st century and beyond by introducing a design framework and techniques that revolve around the idea of openness in a contemporary urban setting. 

This territory of exploration is not foreign to architectural discourse, we can find traces of several attempts to react to these questions throughout history. The enfilade, for instance, back from the Baroque period is an example where different spaces and rooms were made to open to each other along a linear axis as a transitional and organizational element that helped facilitate large movements within buildings. Similarly, interests in formal fragmentation, material exploration, and open-plan design have also attracted a lot of attention in recent times that create the fertile ground in which the arguments in this thesis take root. Open architecture is defined in this thesis within a multi-faceted discourse, that deals with a variety of architectural issues from aesthetics, formal qualities, experiential qualities to material choices and assembly. To navigate these ideas, this thesis adopts three design principles to redefine openness and help guide the design process in a meaningful way while remaining generally flexible to allow for a multitude of design readings, interpretations, and thinking to take place. These include breaking up building constituents, opening outwards to the surroundings, and allowing room for gaze and collaborative engagement. 

Openness is not just from a formal approach but also a spatial, cultural, and ecological response.

This renewed interest in porous architecture places this thesis in juxtaposition to the traditional more conservative approach in the design of buildings which promotes monolithic, solid, and enclosed architecture which has swept large parts of our cities today and is largely governed by our dependency on electro-mechanical building systems and the desire for climate-controlled spaces. This is particularly true in Downtown Los Angeles, a district that has seen rapid development over the last decade and yet still awaits real substantive change. The freedom of movement, interaction, and the abbreviation of thresholds are the main areas of exploration, particularly in the way how buildings respond and readapt to changing ways of living and use of the built environment. By opening the building up spatially, not only does it change the perception and experience of the architectural space but also creates a sense of togetherness and community through collaborative engagement which is much needed in our buildings today. Likewise, implementing different formal techniques that open the building outwards to its surroundings, specifically tailored to address the pedestrians on the street produces new ways of approaching and engaging with architecture in cities. Notably, in the act of entering and exiting spaces. How could openness be imagined to operate in other ways in the city? Can openness as a design tool of architectural form and space help architects create new innovative typologies and design frameworks?

...this thesis adopts three design principles to redefine openness and help guide the design process in a meaningful way while remaining generally flexible to allow for a multitude of design readings, interpretations, and thinking to take place. These include breaking up building constituents, opening outwards to the surroundings, and allowing room for gaze and collaborative engagement. 

How does your thesis fit within OR challenge the discipline of architecture?

Robert McCarter shares in his book The Space Within: “One of the primary themes of Modern Architecture, articulated at its beginning by Wright, is bringing the outside in and extending the inside out. We have no longer an outside and an inside as two separate things. Now the outside may come inside, and the inside may and does go outside. They are of each other. In the essay, The Dialectics of Outside and Inside, which closes the book The Poetics of Space, French philosopher Gaston Bachelard argues for a more intertwined understanding of these complementary concepts. Bachelard’s arguments serve to remind us that we cannot experience interiority except against the complementary space of exteriority and that architecture engenders and embodies experience through the provision of a layered overlapping of interior space and exterior environment.”

The thesis creates a foundational framework that revolves around ideas of opening architecture which has always been a topic of discussion among many great architects in the past, which then later architects, theorists, and thinkers could build upon in future times to come. This could be particularly useful when thinking of climate change and the ever-changing cultural and societal norms that recently engaged in discourse around inclusivity and public engagement, which architecture has a duty to yet react to. Our cities are in desperate need of change. Buildings need to convey powerful messages of togetherness and unity. Architectural form and space have a duty to elevate the human experience and quality of life. This thesis deals with all these issues on a fundamental level and continues the discussion around the role of architecture in the 21st century and beyond. 

Did your thesis change during the pandemic? What difficulties did you face? How did your thesis advisors help you during this time?

The thesis was inspired by many strange Covid practices that started to take place. For example, many offices buildings became largely empty, and people started working remotely from home. This presented a new challenge to architects and thinkers to rethink all architectural program typologies from houses, apartment buildings, offices, schools…and others. We now need to question whether stacking large high-rise buildings with floors is an ideal practice from both an architectural and economic standpoint. Similarly, Covid has forced us to stay for prolonged hours at home. Which opened a new discussion about the role of a house and what makes a house, a good house. It’s very important to use this time as an opportunity to rethink old practices and indulge in new discourse around advancing the discipline of architecture both theoretically and on a practical facet. Both Kristy Balliet, my thesis advisor, and Dr. Jasmine Benyamin, my cultural agent, have helped me tremendously both in formulating the argument and throughout the thesis process. I was very fortunate to have them by my side. 

What do you think the current state of "Thesis" is within architecture and how can it be improved?

There are a lot of challenges and hardships in the world today on an architectural level as well as on socio-cultural, eco-political, and environmental levels. The world is running out of time quickly. We need to utilize and leverage thesis studies to fast-track our struggle to solve the challenges and problems of today’s world. I believe in recent years, architectural thesis, in general, have shifted away from what is indispensable to something inconsequential. Institutions need to provide incentives to motivate students to develop thesis projects that can help actually make a difference in the real world. Otherwise, the state of cities and architecture will all be in jeopardy. But it’s very important to always stay optimistic and positive, and most importantly, to work diligently to make a positive impact in the world. This is at the end of the day what matters, and thesis is unequivocally part of that intellectual fabric. 

What are your next steps academically? Professionally?

The state of the world economy is changing on a rapid scale. If we don’t continue to innovate and envision new ways of approaching things, we would be left behind. It’s very important for young architectural graduates like myself to continue to learn and improve. It’s never a bad idea to learn something new and venture into new territories. Personally, I want to start by building invaluable professional working experience and aim towards becoming a licensed architect. From there, I have a lot of ambitions and long-term goals which I am looking forward to like part-time teaching, authoring books, starting my own practice…etc. I don’t usually like to talk about the future and any future plans, so I am going to keep it there. But I am very optimistic about what’s next and looking forward to starting the next chapter of my life. 

As a recent graduate experiencing the direct effects of the pandemic, how do you feel about the architecture industry right now?

It’s not yet there, but it’s slowing bouncing back. I am very hopeful that the pandemic will force everyone to think and live life differently from now onwards. Most importantly, we need to become much more mindful of our surroundings and our dependence on many external factors. But I also believe the architectural industry, in general, has a long way to go. Architects struggle with many hardships throughout their careers, which can hinder them from reaching their full potential. Every day is a "battle for survival" for many architects, and it shouldn’t be that way. There should be more opportunities for growth. Architecture has the potential to transform life for the better and drastically improve cities and human welfare. A world without "good architecture" is not livable or healthy. So investing in architecture should not be a privilege but a necessity. 

What has helped prepare you for the workforce?

To me personally, my reading habits and my strong desire to keep learning, evolving, and improving are my greatest strengths. I enjoy challenging myself to learn new things and ponder about new topics every day. In addition, my enthusiasm for other disciplines like science, philosophy, technology, sports, and others has helped shape my current understanding and position in architecture and overall as a human being.