Exploring the architectural embodiment of forms of ‘structure’, national identity and personal ‘agency’
Through a process of self-reflection, this study identifies the influence of ideas about national identity on specific design decisions and interests in the author’s wider body of work. This reflection culminates in an elaborate model that confirms the network of influences and includes speculations on future practice. The model represents connections and values promoted by family and friends, normative ‘structures’ such as institutions and government, and those shaped by, and associated with, ‘British’ history. The relationship between forms of ‘structure’ that lead to a sense of national identity and ‘agency’ (the capacity of individuals to act independently) in design decision-making is also explored within the model.
A key aspect of the thesis is the way in which encounters with ‘other’ cultures have resulted in changes in habits and thought patterns. Included also are specific moments which adjusted the personal sense of national identity away from one that may have been the author’s primary cultural reference. A supplementary diary acts as a record of decisions made during the project which affirm or problematise the influence of British identity (including its confusion with ‘English’ identity) on design projects.
In identifying parallels, negotiations and confrontations between the subject and British culture, the project does not present what British architecture ‘stands for’ or what it should be. Rather, it reflects critically on intuitive interests by cutting ties, affirming links and projecting future practice. The study also relates to broader fields of debate, such as the ability of architecture to respond to ambivalence and changing cultural contexts, and how, where and by whom certain notions of Britishness are being constructed.
