Morphosis Machine: Architecture for the Slum Dwellers
The spaces where people live, says much about them, about their lifestyles, dreams and their needs. Architecture from primitive age evolved from satisfying the basic needs of humanity. Obvious truth that exists is how does the living spaces adapts the various needs of people. To adapt is to react, to be responsive with our rapidly changing needs and environment, develop new forms which could adopt the changing necessity, stimulating the passage to social life, inspiring it, encouraging it, rather not being mandatory or obligatory. It must serve the desire, the desire of the building, what it wants to be and desire of human being and how they fit in- “a machine of evolutionary process”. What matters could be the minimum necessity of a people’s life , a change in story, to what architecture owes being open, approachable, reactive, to be receptive to the -crying needs, or the contented needs.
The reason of thinking about the basic and minimum needs and necessity is because of underprivileged people who are lacking proper shelter, where the conditions are below the level of human decency. These unfortunates are expected to adjust to the surroundings that are provided. Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, is one of the fastest growing city in the world, not just got urbanized by the pace of time but the ugly truth of growing densely populated slums and poor living condition of the slum dweller is remarkably evident. The Korail slum covers an area of approximately 150 acres and houses nearly 300,000 people. Architecture being responsive to the need of these unfortunates is a very complex matter.
The thesis will try to address their actual needs, the desire of their realm. The study will focus on how architecture can be a tool morphing its nature with the changing necessity, environments, people, behaviour and desires. The aim is to explore architecture playing on the concept of how these people will fit in, to figure out how it could sprout as a matter, in a seamless way or abrupt chaotic manner yet in an orderly means of having characteristics of a better living environment; Architecture could thrive for knowing how minimal the necessity of life could be, having a continuous self changing aspect towards a more humane environment, thus being perceived as morphosis machine, a process than a product, a creation of social condenser, taking consideration how architecture can form a dialect of the way of life.