Abstract:
This thesis discusses the importance for people within the confines of high-density, metropolitan
cities to find a collective moment of retreat through an architectural landscape of silence.
Silence is becoming a desired and yet difficult to obtain commodity in modern western society.
Due to intensified work and home commitments combined with overwhelming sensory
manipulation in the urban environment, stress and psychological overloading is common. Stress
and psychological overloading is problematic with regards to a sense of connectivity to other
people. With constant sensory onslaught it is becoming increasingly important to create moments
of stillness, which in the course of controlling and manipulating external stimuli allows for mental
and physical retreat through contemplation. Historically places of silence and contemplation in
western urban settings were places of worship. These spaces are designed to encourage groups of
people to congregate and experience internal reflection while establishing a sense of togetherness.
As western society moves towards secularisation, finding moments of silence collectively becomes
even more significant in harvesting and maintaining a sense of belonging.
Through referencing Juhani Pallasmaa and philosopher Max Picard an in-depth exploration into
sensory design and what silence embodies is established. This, in combination with a critique
of the detrimental current situation in modern society, asserts reasons for the need to revert to
simplified sensory experiences in order to increase personal awareness of self and others.
Nature and its pivotal role in stimulating a sense of silence is investigated through current theory
and personal design explorations. This research is reinforced by case studies into successful modern
places of retreat, for example Dominique Perrault’s Bibliothéque Nationale de France. Such schemes
are used to understand notions of ritual and removal within a city setting. By incorporating
silence (both visually and aurally) into an everyday city park in London, opportunities are created
for the wider public to encounter and benefit from Stille.(1)
(1) — German: English translation is Silence
