Home In Your Twenties

Abstract

This thesis is about making home in your twenties; the process of turning a rented flat or house into a home. Often in our twenties, we are living in spaces that are not our own, moving and changing location often. It is a time when our own identities are forming outside of our family unit and childhood community. The process of making temporary space our own is a part of this transition. Home exists generally in the internal landscape as it is constructed not of walls, floors, and ceilings, but, of memories, lived experiences, and perceptions. A house is the physical foundation of a home. Houses contain homes. A large part of creating home is what you fill a house with. Using dance, this thesis explores how a sense of belonging (or ownership) is created through occupation and movement. This project reimagines representations of the three main functions of a home: resting, bathing, and gathering/cooking. The creation of these three spaces uses dance to explore the experience of the space. Dance is defined as an exploration of a physical body in space, acting within the limitations of both the body and the physical world. These choreographies - inspired by actions performed within each space - are used as the framework for design. The designs are situated in the ‘internal landscape’ or dreamscape. A choreographic framework is translated into multiple scales, providing landscape, structure, and object. A part of the final outcome is a personal object that someone can carry with them - something that represents home.