This project begins with a feeling: a longing to escape from the city and the sensations of being in a city. From the crowded streets, the polluted air, heavy artificial materials, jarring noises and harsh lighting. From the controlled egotistical nature of a city that makes one feel unsettled. On escaping, one imagines themselves in nature; the sense of feeling small and absorbed in a landscape or a forest. Comparing oneself to something that is immeasurably large is calming. A sense of place and connection in the world, and in awe of the sublimity of nature.

This project questions if architecture can be more like this feeling and how it can project these effects. It examines what these qualities are, influenced by the symbiotic capacity of glass, utilising drawing and photography. It then takes this research to create a language that informs the character and effect of the design for a community centre in Bermondsey.

This research challenges the fundamental purpose of architecture as a barrier between people and the natural world. An invented barrier, representing the qualities and character of the natural world, evokes a symbiotic connection to matter, to the Earth and to the sublime forces of naturisms.