Abstract:
This thesis initiated from the apperception of the disconnection between the ageing body, mind and building. Age related changes that occur to body, mind and building has meant that modern architecture often fails to translate the passage of time effectively, therefore, cannot adhere to needs of the ageing occupant. Largely due to the fact that human bodies and building bodies age at different rates. This has led to the negative perception ageing due to the loss of mobility and identity that built form reiterates. Consequently, the question is raised; can architectural aesthetics be used as a medium to celebrate the process of ageing to enhance the relationship between both body and building? Focusing on three areas of investigation, this thesis aims to enhance the relationship between time, body and building. Initially the temporality of materiality is examined, noticing the various life-spans of a range of materials. This leads to a reflection on the way our bodies and buildings wear, and are treated and mended. Thirdly, the connotations of later life, reflected in Western view of shadow and death are challenged. The design also focuses on these three areas, proposing the integration of these aspects of time with the neglected body of the Odeon cinema part of the St James Theatre complex in Auckland's central business district. The brief covers implementing an ageing-in-place apartment typology that hopes to enhance the life of user, building and city, by exploring materiality, repair and life. Three design strategies have been implemented in response to these three investigations. Firstly, a surgical approach to mending has been followed, with a 'spine' structure inserted in to the body of the failing building. This human component began from an enquiry into how to support and strengthen a body, architectural and human alike. Secondly, a circulatory system of water connect user, material and spaces, driven from the investigation in weathering and wear that mimics our own relationship with built form. Lastly, 'memory cabinets and walls' are constructed in order to create layers of memory, shadow and spirit built into or forming, the walls of the spaces enclosed. Each serve as a method to connect the occupant with space, acknowledging its own transient nature as well as our own. Overall, the position of the thesis is that a building should be able to convey the time it has witnessed, while the body that inhabits it should be able to enjoy this later stage of life. By instigating a built form that embraces the changes of time, as opposed to suppressing it, it is hoped that the resultant architecture can reveal how ageing itself can be seen positively as the embodiment of all stages of life lived within it.