THE PLACE-FORM: Space of Circulation

This entire project is a “Place-form”, referring to Kenneth Frampton’s Critical Regionalism. The form in this project doesn’t come from the building but from the site, the topography and the landscape around it. The Janss steps is the epitome of how people move across a hill on the UCLA campus. The iconicity, axiality and monumentality of it create a strong sense of legibility yet allude to its indifference to the topography. It’s not hard to find a totally different type of man-made circulation in the woods all around Los Angeles that the meandering pathways following the topography of the landscape create a sense of proximity with nature and ambiguity of itinerary. When we apply this notion of movement to architecture, a smooth and elongated experience of traveling is essential as it’s not only a mood producer but also challenges the phenomenon of universal placelessness by cultivating the site with experiences. It is clear that the liberative importance of the tactile resides in the fact that it can only be decoded in terms of the experience itself: it cannot be reduced to mere information or representation.