Abstract:
This thesis focuses on the Mosque and explores its role and importance in the community in today’s society. The Mosque is the most critical institution in the Islamic religion, being the predominant built form of Islamic architecture. The unique style of the Mosque is derived from the essence of Islam itself, simplicity and purity. One might argue that major terrorist attacks by extremists throughout Western countries have led Western societies to question the meaning of Islam. This has allowed a large festering of hate and Islamophobia to spread across the world, leaving the Mosque in Western countries vulnerable to attacks and questions arising regarding their purpose in local communities. People today need to begin to understand the Mosque in Western society has a higher purpose in terms of its use and meaning than just a regular Mosque serving a singular purpose of providing a space for praying. It needs to showcase itself as an institution through a built form in a society that is diverse and changing, through the development of a conceptual architectural framework, looking into its spatial organisation and architecture. Nowadays, we find a tendency for the Mosque to be more of an architectural symbol that caters mostly for the religious purposes of Muslims, rather than providing for the everyday lives of the wider community. The purpose of my thesis is to explore the possibility of taking the Mosque typology and extending its traditional use to design a Mosque/Community Complex at the site of Porchester Islamic Centre, in Auckland, New Zealand. It will aim to create and encourage an environment of integrating Muslims and Non-Muslims in a Western context catering for the day to day activities of the whole community. The architecture will act as a service to the community that aims to develop and strengthen Islam as a positive identity within society. It will strive to achieve a place where every individual of any religion is welcome, to help spread a positive light in the local community, New Zealand and the world in hopes to become a “Beacon Towards Change” for Islam and Muslims.