Making Place for Ritual: Creating Connection Through Communal
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Making Place for Ritual Creating connection through communal meals A thesis submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture in the Department of Architecture of the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning June, 2012 by Claire Shafer B.S. in Architecture, University of Cincinnati, 2010 First Committee Chair: Michael McInturf Second Committee Chair: Aarati Kanekar abstract Historically, in many cultures around the world, large communal feasts were enactments of narrative through ritual dining experiences that passed cultural values from one generation to another. These feasts were ritual acts that united communities by requiring everyone to surrounded food and dining have been adapted and broken down into of structure and meaning around dining. Because of there is no societal structure, we are at risk not only on rituals and food challenges the practice of maintaining personal connections to the family and community through food. With a are connected to certain values, our society has lost these moments of potential connection and understanding. This thesis explores the relationship between place and components of ritual that can be utilized to create an environment that evokes a feeling of belonging and community. Four aspects in creating a ritual— independently through a series of communal dining events to further variety of spaces and contexts, these meal events provide opportunity for research and experimentation with how the design of the space affects the dining atmosphere. Diners experience these effects during the meal, while participating in ceremonial activities that encourage interpersonal connections. Drawing from these investigations, the spatial qualities are categorized to create a framework for future designs. A new building typology—a place for meals—is needed in order to understand the effects of these qualities over a period of time, not just in one instance. The design of a place for meals in Cincinnati embodies the learnings from the dining events and explores how space can evoke a change in consciousness in a permanent structure. making place for ritual creating connection through communal meals claire shafer 1 2 making place for ritual creating connection through communal meals claire shafer critics michael mcinturf aarati kanekar vincent sansalone 3 table of contents 4 Author’s Note 7 Abstract 8 The Nature of Ritual 10 Ritual Meals 32 A Place for Meals 110 Works Cited 130 5 6 The deep connection I feel towards food and architecture was planted in my early childhood when my parents insisted we eat dinner together as a family at the kitchen table. They cooked for us almost every night, exposing us to new ingredients and different cultures, and we enjoyed, or at least tried, their efforts around the same round table. Their emphasis on this moment of pause and sharing transformed this mundane task of eating into an experience of dining. As I begin to shape my own life with other people in different places around the world, I have found that food is one thing we all have in common; everyone has their own traditions and food practices. Although for me, it not just the food. It is also the space in which the meal takes place. Sharing food with family and friends are some of the most pleasurable moments in my life because it creates unique memories and connection during our busy days. As I have traveled around the United States, I have discovered that everyone does not have the luxury or the desire to have such a positive outlook towards food. Many people also do not have an embedded awareness for where and how food is eaten. If the appreciation of ritual dining and the environments that stage these meals can begin to be part of our culture, we will be a healthier, more prosperous society, while also developing better relationships with each other and our community. 7 illustrations Last Supper Nov. 2011. 31.02 Brownscombe, Jennie. First Thanksgiving. 31.03 Bella, Gabriel. Banquet at the Casa Nani, Venice 25 Oct. 2011. Dia de los Muertos 1 Dia de los Muertos 2 Dia de los Muertos 3 Dia de los Muertos 4 Dia de los Muertos 5 Dia de los Muertos 6 Dia de los Muertos 7 Dia de los Muertos 8 Dia de los Muertos 9 54.01 Jones, George. Banquet in the Thames Tunnel 10 Oct. 2011. A Winter Meal 1. A Winter Meal 2. A Winter Meal 3. A Winter Meal 4. Dinner in the Dark 1. 11 Jan. 2012. Digital photograph. Dinner in the Dark 2. 11 Jan. 2012. Digital photograph. Dinner in the Dark 3. 11 Jan. 2012. Digital photograph. Shipping Container Meal 1. 27 Nov. 2011. Digital photograph. Shipping Container Meal 2. 27 Nov. 2011. Digital photograph. 129 128 abstract 8 Historically, in many cultures around the world, large communal feasts were enactments of narrative through ritual dining experiences that passed cultural values from one generation to another. These feasts were ritual acts that united communities by requiring everyone to of structure and meaning around dining. on rituals and food challenges the practice of maintaining personal connections to the family and community through food. With a are connected to certain values, our society has lost these moments of potential connection and understanding. This thesis explores the relationship between place and components feeling of belonging and community. Four aspects in creating a ritual— independently through a series of communal dining events to further variety of spaces and contexts, these meal events provide opportunity for research and experimentation with how the design of the space affects the dining atmosphere. Diners experience these effects during the meal, while participating in ceremonial activities that encourage interpersonal connections. Drawing from these investigations, the order to understand the effects of these qualities over a period of time, not just in one instance. The design of a place for meals in Cincinnati embodies the learnings from the dining events and explores how space 9 nature of ritual 10 11 12 Currently, in the United States, the word “ritual” is often used in place narrative of the word “habitual” or “routine”, implying a common, everyday phenomenon interaction Literature at Sarah Lawrence College and leading mythologist, Joseph Campbell, “… the function of ritual is to pitch you out, not to wrap you that rituals are “in some way symbolically differentiated from everyday of this separation from self and removal from the commonplace, participants in rituals are able to develop and learn the guidelines of to a larger morphological structure than that of his own physical body” of connections is the goal of this thesis project and is investigated through a series of communal meals. mythology, phenomenology, sociology, and psychology, the creation of a ritual develops through a four step process that includes a narrative, incorporation of phenomena, interpersonal interactions, and active intended to communicate a narrative or lesson to the participants. The society then incorporates phenomena, symbolic atmospheric elements, around the narrative in order to reinforce the intention. This aura of a common goal encourages interactions, whether physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually, between the participants. The interaction is the purpose of the ritual that connects the individual to is essential to understanding what effect the event had and solidifying the connection with others. are due to a combination of many complex factors. This thesis cannot solve or even assuage many of these factors because of the massive however, encourage conversation and thought about what role food has in our lives and the meaning of sharing that food with others. 13 Through the design of the spaces and a series of ritual activities, the into our society, but instead, are exploring whether contemporary contexts can provide a stage in which these connections can be made. rituals & dining Throughout history, large communal meals have served as one of the main ritual acts, alongside religion, that brought individuals in a monumental event. Collecting and preparing food to share with the modern technology and economies developed, the reliance on other members of the immediate group decreased. These ceremonial feasts a progression towards habitual, often solitary, eating routines inversely correlates with the expenditure of time and resources required to obtain and prepare food. Due to this shift in cultural focus, communal dining ritual experiences have evolved into routines that no longer serve their original goals of communicating a story or uniting a community. With the loss of communal ritual events surrounding dining, some sports team, religion, or popular culture icons. These associations pull the participants out of their daily lives and focus their attention towards communal food traditions, many of the common everyday practices are affected. Social scientist Janet Flammang studied the effects of family usually ate dinner together dropped by one third: from about 50 decreases the society’s priorities about food and communal dining. 14 in Japan shares her observations of how school lunches for young children are used in school as part of the Japanese education, not just curriculum in the classroom children. Following Japanese codes for food preparation—multiple