Mutualism : a means for creating an architecture of relationships

This study explores the idea of mutualism as a process of combining apparently oppositional elements into interdependent relationships. This combination creates an architectural system which provides greater value to its component parts and simultaneously establishes a larger more coherent whole. It is through this process that a zone of combination is achieved, a zone that is perhaps more real and which speaks to the complex fluidity of contemporary life. The method chosen for the exploration of this thesis involves the design of an architectural design/build school which focuses on a hands on approach to education to be located in downtown Chattanooga Tennessee