dining hall redesign & intervention
As part of the HARC0330: Intermediate Architecture Studio, we studied the theme of architectural activism and were allowed to pursue any design proposal under that overarching topic. Inspired by the spread of racial tension and consciousness on college campuses through micro-aggressions, dialogues, and the "We Are Harvard" movement, I decided to delve into how racial politics played out on Middlebury's campus and how to change that through physical space.
With help from alumni, faculty, and college archives, I collected data and created a precedent study on Middlebury and how it has historically dealt with race. Following that, I conducted polls and interviews with students from varying years and backgrounds to hear their personal experiences, thoughts on campus culture, and to discover what their desires and feelings were within the physical layout of the campus. Using geographic information system software (GIS), I mapped some of my collected results which led me to focus on restructuring the dining halls, one of the most "public" and "open" spaces at the college. Inclusivity is not built into spaces, especially in institutional spaces, and this intervention attempted to change the culture of one dining hall in order to become accessible and comfortable to a wider portion of the student body.