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PhD - Newfoundism

2021
University of Newcastle
School of Architecture + Built EnvironmentMy thesis title is Newfoundism. It looks to unearthing sampling as a generative praxis methodology in architectural pedagogy. If I may borrow from Ben Nicholson, the act of giving my thesis title a made-up name is in the hope to make the unfamiliar thing seem more familiar and more plausible. The idea is that by calling something a name, it can be somewhat tamed.

It addresses the idea that architectural design continues to be haunted by the modernist canon of 'Tabula Rasa': that its best ideas begin with gestures upon a clean and empty slate. This 20th-century concept has penetrated architecture in Western society as a cultural norm. 

As we navigate a post-pandemic era heavily influenced by digital disruption and artificial intelligence, this study explores this tension between the gesture and the copy, and the role that the intuitive assembly of parts of existing buildings plays in expanding creative horizons and the practice of architecture. 




















Paula Birch

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Paula’s creative experience is cross-channel. She has immersed herself in creative arts and architecture for two decades. Her practice, teaching, learning, research and exhibiting across these fields equip her for critical thinking.
 
Current

In recent years, Paula’s interest has focused on researching emerging radical pedagogical methodologies and the convergence of architecture with blockchain technology, artificial intelligence and sampling.