| This Master's Degree Project explores the idea of expressing Prairie regional identity through architecture. It begins with an essay exploring the themes of globalization and Prairie regional identity. A critical history of Prairie architecture follows, and the project culminates in an architectural design for a Museum of Agrarian Culture in Westlock, Alberta.;In the introductory chapter, 'Global Culture' is identified as an aspect of globalization that must be resisted in order to preserve regional, ethnic, and national identities, while still enjoying the many benefits of living in an increasingly connected world. This resistance can be achieved by strengthening local identities. In Canada's case, a bolstering of regional identities will strengthen our national identity. Prairie identity has been made strong through political protest movements of the past. However, artistic expressions of this are more positive and enduring, and must be pursued further.;Although expressions of identity through painting and writing are well known in this region, architecture is often overlooked. The second chapter of the document is a brief history of the development of architecture on the Prairies. Special attention is devoted to postmodern investigations into developing a Prairie Architecture. Regionalism and Critical Regionalism are cited as the intellectual bases for these investigations. The works of several prairie architects are critically examined, and the section culminates in a series of specific guidelines for how to design Critically Regional Prairie Architecture for the new millennium.;In the final chapter, the Museum of Agrarian Culture was designed using some of the tenets of Critically Regional Prairie Architecture. An in-depth discussion of pre-design activity accompanies plans, sections, details, and models, as well as a detailed written description of the design. |
