The hermeneutics of architecture as a means for transposing public perception : towards the design of a transport interchange in the Durban Central Business District.
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Date
2011
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Abstract
In South Africa today, railways, along with other forms of public transport have lost or in fact never had the same sense
of sanguine appreciation that European stations embodied. Instead South African public transport systems, especially
its railway networks, are perceived negatively by a large portion of the population and the vast majority of visitors to the
country (Donaldson and Ferreira, 2008).
The problem with the perceptions and judgments made by people with regards to architecture is that they often stand
in contrast to each other. These disagreements are not only limited to laymen, as disagreements among critics often
go beyond the mere subjectivity of taste or opinion, even extending to matters of fact (Bonta, 1979: 11).
By extrapolating the process by which humans interpret the world around them, Hermeneutics attempts to define the
determining factors behind subjective thought when making an accurate interpretation of text. In recent years these
same techniques have been applied to the built environment in what can best be described as an investigation into the
meaning of architecture, this investigation became known as ‘architectural hermeneutics’
(Bonta, 1979 and Snodgrass & Coyne, 2006).
While hermeneutics does provide a method to deal with the problems associated with subjectivity, the tools needed to
assess the validity of the resultant interpretations of architecture have not developed. In order to confirm the adequacy
of any resultant interpretations the researcher must define and abstract the parts, which contribute to these
interpretations, according to quantifiable guidelines that can then be measured and compared. The Guidelines utilised
in this study are defined through the work of Norberg-Schultz, Thiis-Evensen, Alexander and Handa.
Through the ensuing case studies this paper demonstrated that by designing architecture in accordance with its
relationship to the surrounding environment and context, the designer becomes capable of generating a supportive
architecture that can reaffirm its associated functions under a positive light. By creating a continuous structure between
the new architecture and its context – that is in accordance with the ‘parts’ which make up the meaningful ‘whole’ – an
architect of any background can create meaningful architecture in any context.
Description
Thesis (M.Arch.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.
Keywords
Terminals (Transportation)--KwaZulu-Natal--Durban--Designs and plans., Transportation buildings--KwaZulu-Natal--Durban--Designs and plans., Sustainable architecture--KwaZulu-Natal--Durban--Designs and plans., Hermeneutics., Theses--Architecture.