Light in Thai places : a cultural interpretation of Thai Buddhist architecture /
Through the prism of light, this dissertation studies the interrelationships between people and places. The goal is to understand the experiential quality of Thai traditional architecture as it illuminates architectural and cultural identity in current architectural practice. To fast-forward the pa...
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| Format: | Thesis Book |
| Language: | English |
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[Place of publication not identified] :
[publisher not identified] ;
2001.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://proxy.library.tamu.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=726089421&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=2945&RQT=309&VName=PQD |
| Summary: | Through the prism of light, this dissertation studies the interrelationships between people and places. The goal is to understand the experiential quality of Thai traditional architecture as it illuminates architectural and cultural identity in current architectural practice. To fast-forward the past into today's context, this study explores cultural meanings in Thai architecture through the sense of place and lighting that modern-day Thais experience in traditional Thai Buddhist monasteries. Within a Constructivist paradigm, an ethnographic inquiry in situ explored people's cultural accounts of a special place, reporting and interpreting their everyday experiences holistically. The field setting was the ubosoth (ordination hall) of the Thai Buddhist temple called Wat Yai Suwannaram (Wat Yai), in Petchburi, Thailand. Multiple research methods included in-depth interviews, participant observations, and visual documentation by photographs and videotapes. The field study revealed four experiential qualities of the ubosoth of Wat Yai Suwannaram related to different lighting conditions and light sources: light of kwaam sa-ngop, light of kwamm sak-sit, light of admiration, and light of modernity. These qualities illuminate the profound relationship between representative Thais and their sense of place, when they interpret and make use of light in this ubosoth. Detailed textual and visual descriptions of Thais' experiences of light in the ubosoth of Wat Yai presented different Thai voices and perspectives in a dialogue format as a thematic discourse concerning Thai cultural identity in architecture. Two pilot studies had explored Thais' and non-Thais' emotional responses to light in Thai religious contexts, through photo-elicitation interviews and rating scales. Findings suggested a cultural basis for people's responses, as (1) participants' appreciation of light was related to ritual experiences; and (2) interview data suggested that Thais and non-Thais had different concerns and preferences regarding lighting. This study concludes that focusing on lay people's interactions with architecture and lighting can reveal profound meanings of architecture in their lives. The results offer a new way of interpreting cultural meanings in Thai traditional architecture. Lastly, this study concludes that ethnography is a useful alternative research method to study cultural influences on people's subjective experiences of light. |
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| Item Description: | Vita. "Major Subject: Architecture". |
| Physical Description: | xiii, 283 leaves : illustrations, maps ; 28 cm. + includes 2 CD ROM disks. Issued also on microfiche from University Microfilm Inc. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 264-271). |