Identifying a Second Life

Abstract

The human ability to adapt to different situations and transition seamlessly between many social roles has provided for our survival for thousands of years as we deal with disaster as well as subtle changes in our daily lifestyle. More definitively, a person’s purpose and subsequent actions may change at any instance to better suit our current situation. For example, a person may go from the role of an architect, to a father, to a patron, to an entertainer, to a volunteer worker, and their actions will correspond to their current social role. Architecture has the potential to take on different roles as well. Sometimes it is a spectacle or symbol drawing society into it’s attraction, it can start a revolution or movement, or it can unite a community. At other times schools, libraries, and museums can take on the role of institutions of higher education, as architects continue to integrate better ways of learning into the edifice itself. Architecture can also exist as a place of community and renewal, whether that place exists for the benefit of society or the environment. Architecture can furthermore serve as a connection between multiple locations and offer a means to establish relationships between different sites. In a growing community, different roles must be fulfilled to satisfy the proper development of the area. The demand of each role in a community fluctuates over time and certain communities may require the use of specific roles at different times. To meet the demands that each community requires, the emerging architecture must be flexible and able to fluidly adapt to the needs of the community. Current architectural techniques create situations where a building outlives its original program which can often lead to abandonment and further deterioration of the community, but through this process, the life-cycle of the prevalent architecture can be perpetuated, resisting obsolescence and abandonment, and provide exactly what is necessary to continue to benefit the community. With the number of communities in need of drastic redevelopment suffering from a declining population, economy, and quality of life, is it possible to spark a new form of urban renewal through adaptive and productive design?