Northern Ontario camp informing architecture

Abstract

This thesis explores the idea of Camp in Northern Ontario and how it can inform architecture in the region. The work examines Camp through four categories: History, Community, Placemaking, and Sentiment. Six types of camps are analysed through drawing and text, which is based on personal experience, and through text-based research. A set of site and building design guidelines are developed from this analysis. A speculative cohousing project at Whitewater Lake in Azilda, Ontario, is chosen as an architectural typology and site to test an architecture informed by Camp. Using these design guidelines, the cohousing project contributes to maintaining a sense of place through its history and its making processes, providing a shared sense of community and creating a sentiment that is rooted in the collective memory of Camp. The final result indicates what an architectural regionalism can mean for Northern Ontario and how it will improve the way people interact with their built environment and communities.