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Thesis Idea!!

My thesis has been started and I am really struck in choosing the topic. I am interested in How architecture can serve the Humanity. My interest is in poor slums type buildings.

My idea is to design a model house in my region (Northern Areas of Pakistan), because the issue is it is major earthquake zone and mostly poor dwelling are destroyed in earthquake, So i want my model house to be earthquake resistant and made of cheap materials which poors can afford. Also  is no architectural style of the area therefore my model house incorporates architectural style which would also be eye catching.

But my instructor is saying if you are doing this on earthquake resistant it is more of a Civil engineering side. Need your help and suggestions.

 
Sep 2, 14 11:50 pm
lukeggg

If you are interested in that topic, watch this video. It deals with an ARCHITECT designing buildings in that region for that purpose.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yvAFis1FB0&list=UUNye-wNBqNL5ZzHSJj3l8Bg

Sep 3, 14 12:45 am  · 
 · 
bugsmetoo

Poors? Watch your crass vocabulary. 

And if you're hypothetically building to serve humanity, make sure you prioritize their aesthetics and desires. Doesn't matter if you want it to be eye-catching if the community itself wants something less. Do some research. 

Sep 3, 14 1:40 am  · 
 · 
Non Sequitur

Read "Planet of Slums" by Mike Davis. It's short but goes in great detail about how slums are created, grow, and eventually destroyed.

Sep 3, 14 8:09 am  · 
 · 
BulgarBlogger

Teddy Cruz

Sep 3, 14 9:08 am  · 
 · 
Carrera

Abdeenz, Your post reminded me right away of Samuel Mockbee FAIA and his work creating architecture in the poorest county in the U.S. Tell your professor that it is not earthquake structures you seek to design but housing for the poor that by location will be earthquake resistant.

Mockbee made it his life-work to find a way to help the poor through architecture. He created the Rural Studio at Auburn University and it continues today. Your thesis is not about earthquake structures it’s about using architecture to help the poor find dignity in their lives.

“The goal is not to have a warm, dry house, but to have a warm, dry house with a spirit to it.” —Samuel Mockbee   

http://www.nbm.org/exhibitions-collections/exhibitions/samuel-mockbee.html

Sep 3, 14 10:16 am  · 
 · 
Maestro

interesting topic, however as a thesis critic I would say that its "unprovable" as a student architecture thesis.

If the issue is dealing with design for the poor, then it is problem solving for resources, adquate size and program, material availability, re-use options, and typology.  Add to that the aesthetic value and innovation value that you bring as a designer.  Its likely that in the existing typologies a solution is already available.  its then your thesis to study these and extrapolate a method, or a prove that it can be continued or done in a different or better way.

Sep 3, 14 5:50 pm  · 
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Abdeenz

But my teacher is worried may be because its a thesis and i am designing just a house for poor people. He is worried about the pros and cons of the earthquake region and scale of project. 

Sep 4, 14 12:44 am  · 
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Non Sequitur

Abdeenz, what you have is a cute 1st year project, not a thesis. All you're doing is romanticizing favelas by thinking you can insert "housing" without negotiating all their other complex urban ecosystems. Your professor sounds correct given that most poor developments take place on land that was deemed unsuitable by local codes/regulations.

If you want to build a thesis on this subject, look at how Latin America is playing with permanent housing in these areas.

http://www.archdaily.com/10775/quinta-monroy-elemental/

http://www.u-tt.com/home.html

Sep 4, 14 8:42 am  · 
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