A Trail Center Reimagined: An Intrinsic Relationship Between Architecture and the Natural Environment

The exterior environment has been created by its own natural architecture- pulling, pushing, and shaping the earth?s surface to create ecosystems brimming with life. Historically, architects have used this natural landscape as a muse for design, creating structures that often overwhelm the inherent beauty of the site and lessen its cohesion to the natural environment. I believe modern-day conventional architecture struggles with its intrinsic connection to the natural landscape, a connection that in the past has inspired great works by poets, artists, and architects alike. The typology of the thesis project will be a newly designed and constructed trail center located in Duluth, MN. This building will provide a shared meeting point for outdoor enthusiasts who, as they interact directly with the structure?s interior and exterior touchpoints, become immersed seamlessly into the natural environment of the site. Through the comparison of similar project case studies, along with select subject-matter readings, this thesis seeks to discover, confirm, clarify and implement learnings from the natural world?s own design of shelter and place. And in doing so, answering the question - Can utilizing the natural landscape as a primary design influence enable a more connected, built architecture that is deeply intertwined with its surrounding environment