Abstract:
Rituals, as a form of transcendence, have the opportunity to provide an escape from the mundane and to create moments of mental clarity. Every person will have a ritual personal to themselves in which they can experience mental relief and comfort. The continual practice and repetition of these routines become second nature, or habitual, and as such create ritual habitats. However contemporary day to day life is often stressful, busy and relentless. As a result, we have developed bad habits. We don’t always have the time or opportunities to engage in moments of personal nourishment that would counteract the anxieties and stress we face. A tension has developed between daily life and general wellbeing due to this lack of relief and relaxation which ultimately endangers people’s mental health. This thesis investigates how public spaces in the city can reintegrate better habits into our routines and encourage the habitual practice of these rituals. A series of architectural interventions, placed within interstitial spaces in the city, is proposed to revitalise people’s lives and the city itself. This project focuses on a common philosophy and practice in approaching the design of such architectural interventions. It borrows from Atelier Bow Wow’s Pet Architecture, as well as an urban design strategy known as Urban Acupuncture. Pet Architecture documents Tokyo buildings constructed in interstitial spaces, resulting in a collection of quirky and humorous architecture. Urban acupuncture is a strategy in which a series of architectural interventions are placed in a city to have a greater effect. A methodology is designed to create a network of pet architectures for Auckland, that afford rituals of wellbeing and through their collective design, encourage new type of inhabitation of the city. The ritualistic practice of anxiety-relieving activities within public spaces allow pedestrians to be nourished, whilst also revitalising forgotten and neglected areas of the cityscape. This enlivenment of self and the public realm together, propagates a happier and healthier city.