"There is a sense of ambiguity here that asks us to question our identities..."
Architecture imposes geometry on nature, creating and defining non-natural spaces that are inhabited, at least for a time, by individuals and communities. I am interested in what defines a “sense of place”—how we move through and negotiate our relationship to place, and by extension, to each other. In particular, it is vernacular architecture that draws my attention, as it signifies nobility in the ordinary. Whether in suburbia, working-class urban areas, or temporary shelters around the world, unplanned patterns of juxtaposed form, materials, light, and color reflect the character of local cultures and environments. Not only is there a formal beauty revealed in unexpected places, but also the beauty of human potential to survive and adapt in ever-changing environmental, social, and material conditions. There is a sense of ambiguity here that asks us to question our identities and locations in our own time.
