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Pastoral Machines: Architecture and the Mediation of Nature

Patterson, Caleb L.

Abstract Details

2010, MARCH, University of Cincinnati, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning : Architecture (Master of).

Man’s relationship to nature has been mediated through the lens of technology since the advent of the first tools, which offered the first technical engagement of one’s surrounding natural environment. These simple tools were transparent in character providing for a resonance between the physical energy embodied in their use and the resulting physical or phenomenal outcomes, thereby facilitating a dialog between man and the surrounding environment. This interaction between man and technology was determined by the specific nature of the place and the human activities involved. Everyday interactions with technology have since become more opaque. In the built environment this translates into an architecture, which offers little ability for a dialogue to be established between the occupant and the natural environment.

If architecture is to become a transparent technology that aids in the creation of a dialogue between the occupant and the natural world the building itself must become a transparent machine. If we consider the building itself as a machine that will both facilitate the use of technology and one’s engagement with the natural world, the building in Heidegger’s terminology must ‘do something’. This must go beyond just providing shelter from the surrounding environment, and must facilitate the user’s awareness of the natural world.

The ability to physically move, adjust, and manipulate architectural elements, with site and activity as determinants, has the capacity to reconnect the occupant and building to the surrounding natural environment. More than simple operable architectural elements, these transparent technical devices allow for the surrounding natural environment to come to the experiential foreground. This concept will be explored through the examination of operable architectural elements, their ability to alter the occupant’s experience of a place, and how these elements speak to a larger site context. Further, an exploration of specific movements, revolving, folding, bending, sliding, and pivoting and their direct connection to spatial quality and user awareness will be examined.

Patricia Kucker, MARCH (Committee Chair)
Michael McInturf, MARCH (Committee Chair)
69 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Patterson, C. L. (2010). Pastoral Machines: Architecture and the Mediation of Nature [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1277141931

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Patterson, Caleb. Pastoral Machines: Architecture and the Mediation of Nature. 2010. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1277141931.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Patterson, Caleb. "Pastoral Machines: Architecture and the Mediation of Nature." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2010. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1277141931

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)