An Investigation of the Process Approach in Use
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
TRACING THE WILD BEAM: AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PROCESS APPROACH IN USE AT PRICKLY MOUNTAIN, VERMONT by KELSIE M. GREER A THESIS Presented to the Department of the History of Art and ArchItecture and the Graduate SchooL of the UnIversIty of Oregon in partiaL fuLfilLment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts March 2014 THESIS APPROVAL PAGE Student: KeLsIe M. Greer TitLe: TracIng the WILd Beam: An InvestIgatIon of the Process Approach In Use at PrIckLy Mountain, Vermont ThIs thesIs has been accepted and approved In partIaL fulfILLment of the requirements for the Master of Arts degree In the Department of the History of Art and ArchItecture by: Albert Narath ChaIrperson Brook MuLLer Member Ocean HoweLL Member and KimberLy Andrews Espy Vice PresIdent for Research and InnovatIon; Dean of the Graduate SchooL OrIgInaL approvaL sIgnatures are on fILe wIth the UnIversIty of Oregon Graduate SchooL. Degree awarded March 2014 II © 2014 KeLsIe M. Greer III THESIS ABSTRACT KeLsIe M. Greer Master of Arts Department of the History of Art and ArchItecture March 2014 TitLe: TracIng the WILd Beam: An InvestIgatIon of the Process Approach In Use at PrIckLy MountaIn, Vermont ThIs thesIs attempts to shed LIght on the process approach deveLoped at PrIckly MountaIn, Vermont by InvestIgatIng the InfLuence of YaLe professors Robert Engman and ChrIs ArgyrIs. As a scuLptor, professor Engman influenced the way in which PrickLy MountaIn buILders Interacted wIth theIr materIaLs, aLLowIng space for dIscovery. On the other hand, professor ArgyrIs from the IndustrIal AdmInIstratIon program InspIred PrIckLy MountaIn buILders to consIder the element of human behavIor in interacting with their structures. Argyris’ teachIng aLso InspIred critIcaL engagement wIth the practIce of archItectural educatIon. Together, Engman and ArgyrIs present a more In depth pIcture of the desIgn process at PrIckLy Mountain and thus heLp to provIde an academIc footIng for thIs otherwIse eccentrIc practIce. iv CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: KeLsIe M. Greer GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: UnIversIty of Oregon, Eugene UnIversIty of CaLIfornIa, Santa Cruz DEGREES AWARDED: Master of Arts, HIstory of Art and ArchItecture, 2014, UnIversIty of Oregon BacheLor of Arts, HIstory of Art and VIsuaL CuLture, 2008, UnIversIty of CaLIfornIa Santa Cruz AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: History of ArchItecture Urban DeveLopment PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Program Coordinator, San Luis Obispo RegIonaL RIdeshare, 2009-2011 GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS: Roger KeIth SwIm InnovatIon Award, UnIversIty of Oregon, 2013 Ina McCLung SchoLarshIp, UnIversIty of Oregon, 2013 Ina McCLung SchoLarshIp, UnIversIty of Oregon, 2011 v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wIsh to express sIncere apprecIatIon to ALbert Narath, for InspIrIng my research topIc and for hIs contInuaL support and encouragement throughout my graduate studIes. I aLso am gratefuL for the support of Brook MuLLer, whose enthusIasm encouraged my progress and to Ocean HoweLL for hIs assIstance In compLetIng thIs project. In addItIon, specIaL thanks are due to DanIeL Sagan for sharIng hIs personaL research and wIsdom on the subject as weLL as to David SeLLers, JIm Sanford, LouIs MackaLL and the many others In Warren, Vermont who gave me theIr tIme. FInaLLy specIaL thanks to Jordan KoeL, RacheL Barth, Janet Northey, KatrIna Kuglar, May SchLotzhauer, Kate Beaver, KatIe D. HaLL and Sierra Tanner for providIng a foundatIon for my LIfe In Eugene. vi To my frIends and coLLeagues who kept my spIrIts LIfted throughout thIs process and to my famILy, who aLways checked In. viI TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 1 II. ROBERT ENGMAN: LEARNING HOW TO SEE ................................................................................ 9 The BegInnIngs ......................................................................................................................................... 9 What They DId There ............................................................................................................................. 10 Bob Engman: EncouragIng InventIon ............................................................................................. 14 Why ThIs Matters to PrIckLy MountaIn .......................................................................................... 19 III. CHRIS ARGYRIS ......................................................................................................................................... 26 PersonaLIty and OrganizatIon ............................................................................................................ 28 InterpersonaL Competence .................................................................................................................. 31 Theory In PractIce ................................................................................................................................... 33 SteeLe’s Work ............................................................................................................................................. 37 IV. BEING ............................................................................................................................................................. 43 Dimetrodon ................................................................................................................................................ 43 The Wadsworth House .......................................................................................................................... 47 Where DId It Go from There? ............................................................................................................. 49 YaLe ................................................................................................................................................................ 52 Dear Joe ................................................................................................................................................. 54 APPENDIX: FIGURES ...................................................................................................................................... 59 REFERENCES CITED ...................................................................................................................................... 71 viII LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Tack House, 1965 .................................................................................................................................... 59 2. Tack House InterIor, 1965 ................................................................................................................... 60 3. MackaLL House InterIor, 1967 ............................................................................................................. 61 4. Construction No. 1, Robert Engman, 1961-1962 ........................................................................ 62 5. Tack House AddItIons, 2013 ............................................................................................................... 63 6. Pinhead House InterIor, 1967 ............................................................................................................ 64 7. CyLInder Room, PInhead House, 1967 ............................................................................................ 65 8. Dimetrodon, East and West ExterIor, 1971 ................................................................................. 66 9. Wadsworth House ................................................................................................................................... 67 10. DesIgn Center, 1971-1977 ................................................................................................................... 68 11. DesIgn Center InterIor, ScuLpture Center InterIor .................................................................... 69 12. New Zion CommunIty Center, 1967 ................................................................................................ 70 ix CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Tack House (FIg. 1. See appendIx for aLL fIgures). BuILt In 1966 as a joInt project between DavId Sellers and WiLLIam Reineke, two recent graduates of the YaLe School of ArchItecture, It was the fIrst of severaL homes to be constructed on PrIckLy MountaIn In Warren, Vermont. The name of the buiLdIng adequateLy descrIbes its shape, as the house bends to one sIde, comIng to a sharp point that pierces the aIr. ShortLy after the compLetIon of the Tack House, Progressive Architecture publIshed an IntervIew wIth SeLLers and ReIneke and author C. Ray SmIth that framed these designers as “renegade architects,” turning away from the traditions of the profession. The article describes the Tack House with a sense of curIosIty and a bIt of sarcasm, caLLIng It a “scuLpture for LIvIng”.1 At the same tIme, SmIth proposed that the house mIght IndIcate a potentIaLLy revoLutIonary development In archItecture. What was so IntrIguIng was not just the home’s eccentrIc appearance but the fact that thIs home and those to foLLow, were buiLt wIthout the use of plans. The buiLdIng materIaLs were sImpLe, consIstIng maInLy of concrete, pLywood, two-by-fours and whatever other Low cost Lumber they couLd purchase from the Local yard. The houses, however, did not come together In a typicaL buiLding procedure. LookIng back on the work at PrIckLy MountaIn, SeLLers