A Wall Building

This thesis investigates a constructive technique, within the materials and methods of conventional practice, which allows for a common building material such as concrete block to carry form and beauty. Furthermore, this project seeks to demonstrate the role human ingenuity, patience, attention, and perception can continue to play in architecture and construction.

The project focuses on an experimental wall type consisting of regular eight inch concrete half-block masonry units, stack-bonded in elevation and subtly transformed in plan to reveal a gradual shift of the exposed faces of the units. A wall was constructed at the Building Research and Demonstration Facility to investigate one example of this wall type.