The Arational Rationale

Author:

Bothra, Shwetanc

Area of Honors:

Architecture

Degree:

Bachelor of Architecture

Document Type:

Thesis

Thesis Supervisors:

Darla V Lindberg, Thesis Supervisor
James Gill Cooper, Thesis Honors Advisor

Keywords:

Arational
Housing
AI
Architecture
Cohousing
Co-Habitation
Fluid Societies
Atypical Families
Housing Strategies

Abstract:

Most of us grew up in a house that we did not build. Some of us had a home where the rooms were not enough, while for some the emptiness was a reminder of the missing members of the family. Some of us grew up in a changing family, where we moved from having two parents to one; from living with a sibling, to growing in a foster; from a family of one to a group of 6 colleagues; from a room painted pink to one that finally refused to impose a gender upon us. The house, however, did not change with us. Stagnant, stuck in a past that refuses to acknowledge the future. Houses in the United States have been fabricated following some architectural standards, set forth by developers to reflect society’s needs. These architectural standards were set to cater to the ‘typical family types’ that existed in the United States, that is of the 2 parents- 2 kids, with possible small modifications. These standards are no longer the norm: America has changed, and continues to change (Cohn 2015). With the use of artificial intelligence (A.I), we can reimagine what programming can look like for the future. We can live in the atypical, and embrace the arational – something, that was once ignored. We can create a fluid architecture, to facilitate a fluid society. A redevelopment framework through generative design allows for the creation of responsive community living. This study focuses on re-adjusting an ever-evolving style of houses that is abundantly available across the nation to create a unique form of housing. That is, to re-imagine how we live together in a community. It is time to build a new home. A house I don’t remember.