Opacity in transparency : from drawings and photographs of the modern domestic spaces by Mies van der Rohe

Building with glass, Mies van der Rohe expressed his singular vision of glass---almost nothing. Among the few things that remain in his minimalist domestic space, the body of a female sculpture holds conspicuous opacity. To seek the signification of this opacity in the transparency of Mies's architecture, this thesis analyzes his design drawings and the photographs of his buildings through a phenomenological reading. The juxtaposition and a parallel development between the presence of the opaque body and the view of glass throughout the evolution of his glass house are discovered. The discovery brings to light the finding that the opaque body is an irreducible substance in fulfilling Mies's ideal of modern house. This opacity in transparency reveals the maternal materiality that is the essence of human dwelling. Three chapters constitute this thesis, Chapter 1 introduces Mies's vision of glass and its representations; chapter 2 examines various views of the architect's glass house designs in drawings and photographs; chapter 3 explores the significance of the inherent opacity in Mies's design philosophy of modern house