Border as Refuge: Inhabiting the Liminal
Master of Architecture Thesis
Advisor: Catherine Venart
Supervisor: Cristina Verissimo and Steve Parcell
Location: United States and Canada Border
Dalhousie, Architecture
Spring 2020
Master of Architecture Thesis
Advisor: Catherine Venart
Supervisor: Cristina Verissimo and Steve Parcell
Location: United States and Canada Border
Dalhousie, Architecture
Spring 2020
The
project examines the relationship between the rise in global refugees
and current prohibitive migration policies.
Canada is facing unprecedented rates of irregular asylum claims at the U.S. border. Similar to the Underground Railroad, the thesis provides migrants with safe passage in their search for freedom. The thesis implements architecture as a means of resistance. Clandestine interventions are inserted into
the existing urban fabric along the route from NYC to the border. The
two sites of resistance are the Billboard Station and
Border Refuge. The Billboard
Stations inhabit the bones of existing billboards to create covert
overnight shelters. The inhabitation of the
Canada – U.S. border is an island refuge hidden in plain sight. A mirrored wall hides and protects migrants, while the interior was designed with careful thought to migrant needs, material comfort, and light.
