UC Berkeley Graduate Thesis
Academic, 2024
Indivudual Work
Instructor: Neyran Turan, Mia Zinni
Academic, 2024
Indivudual Work
Instructor: Neyran Turan, Mia Zinni
MONOLOGUE
I returned to school to complete my graduate degree after spending 15 months interning in New York, Switzerland, Austria, and Denmark. As an architecture student who had been studying the field for six years, I finally had the chance to explore so many incredible places. I was drawn to these experiences and embraced all kinds of events, while architecture remained a constant, though somewhat secondary, focus. This journey broadened my perspective on architecture, letting me connect it to fields such as history, geography, politics, and social ideologies - not through distilled opinions from books, but through my own experiences.
By the time I returned to school, my thesis topic had expanded into much broader and more complex themes. I eventually narrowed it down to something more specific. It's natural that many of my original ideas didn't make it through this process - but isn't it also a bit naïve to expect a thesis to encompass all the travels and experiences I had?
STATEMENT 1
Architecture has long been trapped in a heroic manifesto - we must design something beautiful, precise, original, timeless, and eternal. The reality, however, is quite the opposite: architecture is underappreciated, misused, duplicated, abandoned, and demolished. It is a paradoxical profession. Many projects pursue precision, yet most stop making sense within a few years.
Duplicate Beauty is an architectural fiction based on the palace Petit Trianon in Versailles, France, and its duplicate in San Francisco - Le Petit Trianon (Duplicate No. 1). Both are historic landmarks. Duplicate Beauty imagines this copying process repeated over and over, describing the contradictions that arise along the way: the pursuit of luxury and the localization of materials, the fidelity to the original, and the actual life of the user. The story of these replicas highlights unrealized design ambitions and questions the position of the architect.
Petit Trianon, Versailles, France, 1768
Le Petit Trianon, San Francisco, US, 1902
The Petit Trianon, located in Versailles, France, was constructed in 1768 for King Louis XV. Today it is a significant historical building and a popular tourist destination. A similar structure, named Le Petit Trianon, was built in San Francisco in 1902 and is also recognized as a historic landmark (Duplicate No. 1). The two buildings share similarities in design, particularly in their facades and floor plans, but their construction methods differ. Unlike the original Petit Trianon, built with traditional masonry, the San Francisco version uses modern steel and concrete, finished with stucco. Its masonry patterns are rendered through engraved grout work rather than solid stone.
STATEMENT 2
Duplicates go to great lengths to look like the one they are derived from, yet they can never be the same. I am interested in this never-satisfied obsession, this never-realized success of the duplicating process. I want to reveal the paradox through uncanny moments seen from the user's perspective. This thesis describes a fictional story of that copying happening over and over, in different places and at different times.
Entrance, Duplicate
Entrance, Duplicate No.1
Starting from the entrance of Duplicate No. 1, we arrive in the same space in Duplicate No. 2. The entrance retains its domed ceiling, framed by dark green marble. On the left, the peeling wallpaper subtly references the essence of the marble; on the right, a movie poster contrasts with the original "beauty" of the material. The door frame has been repainted, though the color does not match the original. Ahead, multiple layers of doors suggest a progression of opulent spaces. But an umbrella rests on the floor, drying, and shoe racks, clothing racks, and a table are haphazardly placed throughout.
Ballroom (Storage), Duplicate
Ballroom, Duplicate No.1
We are now in Duplicate No. 3, originally a ballroom. This subterranean space has the dimness of an underground room, with no openings for natural light. The once-elegant piano is now tilted, and a bicycle leans against the wall - transforming the space from a ballroom into storage. Although the chandelier still retains its shine, it no longer functions, so the user has added another light source. To preserve the room's original grandeur, mirrors continue to line the walls; yet the user has covered them to reduce excessive glare and reflection.
Bedroom, Duplicate
Bedroom, Fireplace, Duplicate
Bedroom, Duplicate No.1
The narrative continues with Duplicate No. 4, a fireplace.
Objects, unlike buildings, can be more easily replicated with modern manufacturing techniques - but in the process, they may lose the original function embedded in their geometry. Their use may also shift as lifestyles and building codes change. Here, the fireplace no longer holds fire. The walls remain "thick," yet now conceal voids between their layers. The fireplace is embedded within this artificially thickened wall, forming a symmetrical niche in a similarly symmetrical room. The ceiling, too, is artificially thickened. The fireplace "supports" this thickened ceiling, yet stands on two slender legs - an example of anti-gravity geometry. The user has repurposed it as a bed headboard. And why not? After all, it is, in essence, a decorative sculpture.
Shroom, Duplicate, Section
Shroom, Duplicate, Plan
This set was inspired by a friend who grows mushrooms in his bedroom. To ensure proper ventilation, he drilled a hole through his bedroom closet into the bathroom for the pipes. His bedroom is filled with racks and machines, and he documents every observation of his plants. It's a one-bedroom apartment, and he's given the bedroom over to the mushrooms, sleeping in the living room himself. I was initially shocked by his unconventional hobby, but it prompted me to reflect on the limitations of current housing design. Many housing standards assume that everyone follows the same routine and needs the same kind of space. It's true that, to some extent, our lives are similar. But I couldn't help thinking that - while it may not be easy - it isn't unreasonable to want housing to reflect its owner's individuality, and to serve as a vessel for their dreams.
Penthouse, Laundry Room, Duplicate
Penthouse, Laundry Room, Duplicate, Zoom in
Penthouse, Duplicate No.1
Returning to the narrative of duplicates, we now arrive at Duplicate No. 5, located on its rooftop. What is the value of a rooftop? What do we mean when we refer to a penthouse? A penthouse traditionally symbolizes social status and success - elevated above all other floors, commanding unobstructed views. But what is such a space actually worth? In this case, the user repurposes the penthouse as a laundry room, stripping it of its traditional prestige. Small modifications follow - covering the carpet with plastic, for instance. And what happens if the duplicate loses its prime location, as with the one in San Francisco? The answer is simple: even a view can be replicated. A photograph offers a view that remains perpetually in its prime.
Public Amenity, Duplicate. No. Whatever
The surroundings of this duplicate are less maintained, allowing grass to overtake the yards until they have essentially disappeared. The mansion simply stands there, unclaimed. A sign permits passersby to continue using the space as a public amenity. Discarded cigarette butts and cans are scattered around it.
Rendering of All Duplicates
STATEMENT 3
The efforts made to preserve original beauty sometimes go unrewarded, as values are redefined, lifestyles change, and users differ. By staging these moments of duplication and embracing their unexpected outcomes, this thesis aims to open a discussion - about the distance between design ambition and the lives buildings actually hold.
Model
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Zoom in_Entrance, Fireplace
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Zoom in_Penthouse, Mushroom
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Zoom in_Penthouse, Ballroom