Where the River Flows Fast

Kashechewan, a flood-prone remote First Nation in northern Ontario, is the focus of this thesis. It is an exploration into the factors that have contributed to the community’s decline and current state. By looking at how these factors influence built form, the principles, possibilities, and concepts...

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Main Author: Barei, Andrea
Language:en
Published: 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10012/6459
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spelling ndltd-WATERLOO-oai-uwspace.uwaterloo.ca-10012-64592013-01-08T18:55:13ZBarei, Andrea2012-01-13T16:58:43Z2012-01-13T16:58:43Z2012-01-13T16:58:43Z2011http://hdl.handle.net/10012/6459Kashechewan, a flood-prone remote First Nation in northern Ontario, is the focus of this thesis. It is an exploration into the factors that have contributed to the community’s decline and current state. By looking at how these factors influence built form, the principles, possibilities, and concepts that are latent within it are used to re-establish ways in which the people can view, value, and act upon the land to create lasting change. The discussion has larger implications about how we, as Canadians, live with the land and built forms, and react to one another both as a collective, and as individuals. It is an attempt to dissolve the distinction between ‘aboriginal’ and ‘colonizer’ to open up greater design possibilities. Composed as a series of explorations into the physical and spiritual form of the community, this thesis weaves together three parts of its larger story connected with the thread of narrative poem. Part I opens a discourse that considers the impact of the system and establishment of Aboriginal Reserves on the community. Part II explores the notion of remoteness alongside methods of movement and transportation of people and materials. Part III engages the ephemeral, discussing memory and the meaning of transient moments. Stemming from these streams of exploration, three individual designs are proposed. The first explores flood-resilient architecture as a sensitive response to the river and engages the future expansion of the community beyond the walls of the dike. The second envisions an integration of movement into a centralized community hub. The third lays out an approach to abandoning the site while preserving its sacred spaces. In each case, the design explores built form as a tool for fusing back together the spirit of the land and the narrative of the people. Through the metaphor of flooding as a conversation between the light and the dark, this thesis looks at the history of abuse between aboriginal and colonizer, and the current abuse of substance and soul from which an architectural premise moves forward. The thesis attempts to embrace the complexity and difficulty of designing with such inherent obstacles to overcome by taking inspiration from the simple and sublime beauty of the place and distilling it into built form.enFirst NationaboriginalKashechewanreservearchitectureamphibiousfloodingdikeWhere the River Flows FastThesis or DissertationSchool of ArchitectureMaster of ArchitectureArchitecture
collection NDLTD
language en
sources NDLTD
topic First Nation
aboriginal
Kashechewan
reserve
architecture
amphibious
flooding
dike
Architecture
spellingShingle First Nation
aboriginal
Kashechewan
reserve
architecture
amphibious
flooding
dike
Architecture
Barei, Andrea
Where the River Flows Fast
description Kashechewan, a flood-prone remote First Nation in northern Ontario, is the focus of this thesis. It is an exploration into the factors that have contributed to the community’s decline and current state. By looking at how these factors influence built form, the principles, possibilities, and concepts that are latent within it are used to re-establish ways in which the people can view, value, and act upon the land to create lasting change. The discussion has larger implications about how we, as Canadians, live with the land and built forms, and react to one another both as a collective, and as individuals. It is an attempt to dissolve the distinction between ‘aboriginal’ and ‘colonizer’ to open up greater design possibilities. Composed as a series of explorations into the physical and spiritual form of the community, this thesis weaves together three parts of its larger story connected with the thread of narrative poem. Part I opens a discourse that considers the impact of the system and establishment of Aboriginal Reserves on the community. Part II explores the notion of remoteness alongside methods of movement and transportation of people and materials. Part III engages the ephemeral, discussing memory and the meaning of transient moments. Stemming from these streams of exploration, three individual designs are proposed. The first explores flood-resilient architecture as a sensitive response to the river and engages the future expansion of the community beyond the walls of the dike. The second envisions an integration of movement into a centralized community hub. The third lays out an approach to abandoning the site while preserving its sacred spaces. In each case, the design explores built form as a tool for fusing back together the spirit of the land and the narrative of the people. Through the metaphor of flooding as a conversation between the light and the dark, this thesis looks at the history of abuse between aboriginal and colonizer, and the current abuse of substance and soul from which an architectural premise moves forward. The thesis attempts to embrace the complexity and difficulty of designing with such inherent obstacles to overcome by taking inspiration from the simple and sublime beauty of the place and distilling it into built form.
author Barei, Andrea
author_facet Barei, Andrea
author_sort Barei, Andrea
title Where the River Flows Fast
title_short Where the River Flows Fast
title_full Where the River Flows Fast
title_fullStr Where the River Flows Fast
title_full_unstemmed Where the River Flows Fast
title_sort where the river flows fast
publishDate 2012
url http://hdl.handle.net/10012/6459
work_keys_str_mv AT bareiandrea wheretheriverflowsfast
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