Architecture Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2743
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Item NATURE | BEING | CONTEMPLATION: Framing Human Experiences in Zion National Park(2014) Heyworth, Rochelle; Rockcastle, Garth; Architecture; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)For almost two centuries, people have traveled to America's National Parks to experience the majesty and grandeur of nature. In a physical search for renewal and truth, many people turn to the American landscape to reap the benefits of nature's revitalizing qualities. These spiritual and enlightening experiences unite humans to a particular place and invite them to perceive their environments through all their senses harmoniously. This analysis will characterize the contributing perceptual systems and natural phenomena to explore new ways of instigating powerful experiences in Zion National Park in order to create a set of architectural principles that can improve the transcendent experiences in the splendor of nature. Through the introduction of a welcoming interpretive center in the Kolob portion of Zion, this thesis will set a framework for future generations of artists and architects to continue to enhance the phenomena of the park with minimal disruption.Item Nature, Culture, Craft: Re-thinking the National Park Visitor Experience(2012) Rubenstein, Michele L.; Eisenbach, Ronit; Architecture; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This thesis explores the role that architecture might play in the experience of wilderness. This case study focuses specifically on how architecture in the National Parks serves as a threshold to nature. The National Park building tradition began in the 19th century with the grand lodges of the west sponsored by the railroad. With the advent of the automobile, the visitor center typology was developed and the architecture shifted to focus on personal visitor needs. This project attempts to demonstrate how the architecture of an Interpretive Center can provide a destination and launching point into the National Parks. By combining ideas of a "traditional" visitor center with a science and research component, the program can become both educational and participatory. This thesis proposes a design in Apgar Village in Glacier National Park. The design reaches beyond the confines of the Interpretive Center complex to create connections throughout the landscape helping to strengthen Apgar Village as a place.