Abstract:
Alofagia means to love and be loved and personally viewed as
the reflective quality that epitomizes the Samoan way of life for
many generations. Nations across the world have distinct lifestyles,
histories, and cultures. My thesis emphasizes narrative architecture,
designing in ways that depict the stories and values of Samoan
people that reflect Oceania ancestors. Oceanic cultures prioritize
oratory, display value in words, discourse, and activity. My thesis
highlights and architecturalizes Oceanic values passed down
from generation to generation, and Samoan values of fa’amalosi
(empowerment), filemu (peace), aganu’u (culture), and alofagia (to
love and be loved).
Alofagia explores what design principles inform Oceanic Futurism,
a term I have developed to describe architecture that synthesizes
technology and culture to create Oceanic time and space, evolving
traditions and practices, and Oceanic advancements and how it can
be implemented to design an architecture of significance for Samoa.
The final design aims to critique Oceanic architecture’s representation
through mere surface treatment and the superficial use of Pacific
patterns, proposing which architecture that meaningfully embeds
Oceanic value systems, conceptions of space, and practices using
cutting-edge technology is Oceanic Futurism.
In developing the final design, the process involves pairing
indigenous methods: sketching and digital model making, creating
abstractions of traditional tattooing, with non-indigenous frameworks:
Place Attachment theory, and non-indigenous methods: Use of
cutting-edge technology, with indigenous frameworks: Ta/Va theory,
to demonstrate a decolonizing methodology exemplified through an
Architectural example of Oceanic Futurism.
