The Atmosphere of Joinery

Abstract

Being one of the most fundamental elements of architecture, joints are indicators of the perpetually changing space of our perception. It is these joints that connect the architectural scale with the human scale, allowing us to perceive different architectural atmospheres. As Peter Zumthor wrote in Thinking Architectures: Buildings are artificial constructions. They consist of single parts which must be joined. To a large degree, the quality of the finished object is determined by the quality of the joints.1 The thread of inquiry for this thesis is to investigate the potential of using a repetitive timber joint as a vehicle for designing architectural atmosphere. It examines how the joint itself can be an alternative approach to designing architecture, and how it can give a new perspective for investigating material, form and craft. A small shelter built for Henderson High School provides an opportunity to blur the boundaries between these properties. Through the design process, the conscious manipulation of atmospheric components can enhance the connection between the user and the architecture, and to envisage the place as an informational catalyst. While this thesis is mainly an exploration of the joinery of the built structure for Henderson High School, the ultimate goal is to demonstrate the role of the joint as not merely synonymous with ornamentation or technical necessity, but also its possibility to be the communicative essence of architecture. Most importantly, its aim is to show how I discovered this possibility through the process of designing, making and constructing at a tectonic level.