Ephemerality

Contemporary architecture in New Zealand faces the challenges of the diminishment of its soul and identity. This thesis attributes this diminishment to universalisation, the absence of the body and favour of the digital: that confines inhabitants’ emotional and mental capacities into utilitarian accepted symbols and ornaments. This thesis looks at Dolbel Reserve in Napier. Once a barren hill, the Reserve has transformed drastically with the continuous development and maintenance of the local community. A landscape that carries many memorial trees looks out to the entirety of the Napier region that was heavily affected by Cyclone Gabrielle at the time of writing this thesis. This thesis argues that translating sensory experiences can create a storytelling memorial that speaks of a unique contemporary identity. It also contends that artistic endeavours can be the means to translate such experiences. The thesis proposes an iterative process that consists of three Design Experiments. From Drawing to Painting, each Design Experiment expresses different outcomes in excavating natural forces within Dolbel Reserve. It aims to encapsulate and celebrate each axis of nature in the thematic field of Identification, Reflection and Healing in the memorial context. Ephemerality suggests a method of translating the experiences of nature for contemporary New Zealand architecture that focuses the attention back to the considerations of the emotional and mental capacities of inhabitants.