Thesis Abstract

The product of modern progress has led us into a crisis of place. Our lives, as they are in constant flux, are confronted by edge conditions that facilitate our demand for prompt passage
between destinations. These edges act to govern movement, highlighting points of destination while simultaneously obscuring our journey in between travels. Because we are in a constant mode of travel and observation, the senses that define place become dormant by our own passivity and reluctance to participate in or communicate with our city. These sensorial experiences are explored only within the realm of what is perceived and thus become the makeup for a rather disconnected image of place. Therefore a condition is needed to awaken the senses and reaffirm memory of place in order that the essence of place can be reestablished within its cultural and physical context. As image occurs through the product of the perceived, the action that is necessary, conceptually speaking, must be a reframing of the image of place. Doing so will thicken the depth of our own sensorial experiences within the condition of place and establish oneself within the bodily as well as mental context of our city, home, and overall environment.