Thesis Studio, Spring 2020

Faculty : David Leven

As individuals, and more specifically New Yorkers, we often move about our city at a fast pace. Our repetitive commutes are all about efficiency; we map our way through the streets and subway tunnels from point A to point B. This experience of movement results in mindlessness or an “autopilot” mode, where one does not pay attention to where they are in space. There is a profound disconnect from what’s happening above ground when we are down in the subway stations. Furthermore, we travel through the familiar spaces of each station unaffected, without noticing much or experiencing novelty. My thesis is a reformulation of the commute experience. The intention is to use architecture to stimulate mindfulness - awareness of one’s self and his/her surroundings. The goal is to create meaningful moments amidst our movement through a subway station, where we inhabit our bodies, feel a sense of unexpected calmness or reflection, and for a change, feel connected to place (nature and the city). My project seeks to rethink and design a new subway station at 14th Street Union Square - a station rich with complexity and opportunity.