SHAUN DOHERTY
Architect - MRIAI, ARB
Thesis Project - A Literary Triptych
To appreciate literature one must experience it directly. These experiences emanate from the spoken word, the written word and the encounter with the book. The European Literature Centre located in Belfast creates an urban triptych dedicated to each of these experiences. Woven into the fabric of the oldest part of the city, the buildings create a literary journey where one experiences the cultures of European literature in turn finding the ability to express their own.
"Before I started the main thesis project for my MArch, a number of smaller projects where carried out, including the 'Terra Nullius'. This was about exploring and making observations of an area without a program or use in mind.To define my Terra Nullius, I explored the link between the docklands and the city hall. Historically both sectors were essential to the development of the city.
The docklands are significant as it created the birth of Belfast city from exporting and the ship building industry, while the city hall, which was once the site of the white linen hall, created the industry that the city thrived on. The city hall is now the nucleus of Belfast while the Docklands are currently undergoing immense cultural regeneration.This link over time has disappeared; therefore I found it interesting to investigate this relationship though my Terra Nullius.
To explore this area, I reincorporated the literary device from my journey project back into the city to help emphasize the layers of the territory. I was using the device to provoke thought on how we perceive different environments, through our individual experiences and interpretations"
Year 5 Project - The Farm Yard
Portrane was once perceived as the heart of market gardening in Leinster and many people were employed in agriculture. However, horticulture and agriculture have now been replaced by the settlement's role as a commuter belt town.
The central principle for the Farm yard project is to revive the relationship between the building and its outside space, and the connection with the surrounding environment.
Emphatic with tradition, innovation and respect for the landscape. The project is a spatial and architectural quest for methods to offer new perspectives in the relationship between landscape and architecture.
Final Year Dissertation -
SHELLEY MC NAMARA GENUIS FABULAE
Is there an expression of identity within contemporary Irish architecture through the poetic narrative of Shelley McNamara?
The purpose of this dissertation is to explore 'identity' in Irish Architecture by recognising the poetic language of place as an aspect of 'Irishness'; and how the local narrative can contribute to an identity in design. It will debate a perception of the relationship between physical form, cultural characteristics and ‘belonging’ drawn from the work of Shelley McNamara. To successfully complete this dissertation it is central to underline, and question identity by understanding the history and preoccupation with identity in architecture and Ireland, while also understanding the conditions that influence the change in the approach to architecture.
