Of
the
thesis
entitled: History
of
failure
Abstract:
The ability to project a virtual vision on the world and give it physical form sets the human apart. By shaping his surroundings at will, the human holds considerable power not only on the environment, but on fellow humans and the world at large. The thesis discusses the different shapes the horror of architecture takes. Told as a loose history of civilization, it constructs a theory of horror from the primal confrontation to nature, lingers on the oppressive walls of contemporary society, and projects a future of labyrinthine sentient buildings. A chimera one part asterochronic[1] collage and four parts picaresque[2] novel, the resulting document recalls the failure of the thesis as building to dwell on the indefinable, uncontainable nature of horror, a dark internalized version of the world with an undertone of settled accounts.
[1] "[The
asterochronic] establishes
connections
between
events
that
are
heterogeneous
in
time
and space."
Muriel
Pic
as
quoted
by
Nicolas
Bourriaud, The
exform (Brooklyn:
Verso,
2016),
156.
[2] The
picaresque
is
often
characterized
by
the
absence
of
a
clear
plot
and
a rogue
hero
living
by
his
wits. William
Flint
Thrall
and
Addison Hibbard, A
Handbook
to
Literature (New
York:
Odyssey
Press,
1961).
The examining committee is as follows:
Supervisor:
Robert Jan van Pelt, University of Waterloo
Committee Members:
Anne Bordeleau, University of Waterloo
Marie-Paule Macdonald, University of Waterloo
External Reader:
Scott Sorli
The
committee
has
been
approved
as
authorized
by
the
Graduate
Studies
Committee.
The
Defence
Examination
will
take
place:
Monday
June
12,
2017
12:30
PM
ARC
Room
2026
A
copy
of
the
thesis
is
available
for
perusal
in
ARC
2106A.