4/23/2026
Approach
From Architectural Research Methods by Linda N. Groat and David Wang, Chapter 11: Logical Argumentation: "When a broad explanatory theory is itself the targeted outcome of a research endeavor, most likely the strategy used to get there is logical argumentation."[379] "Logical argumentation tends to take a set of previously disparate factors...and interconnect them into unified frameworks that have significant and sometimes novel explanatory power. In other words, systems of logical argumentation tend to be innovative ones."[387] "...it comes with practice in a particular way of seeing connections..."[392] "...the...model is not a stepping stone towards new knowledge; the model itself is the new knowledge of [ ] research efforts."[383] "A first principle is a fundamental proposition that is so self-evident that it need not be derived from even more elemental proofs. First principles are therefore logical building blocks by which, or upon which, broad explanatory theories can be constructed."[379] "a priori principles of logical argumentation are often so basic that they transcend disciplinary boundaries."[388] "in design, logical frameworks, once made clear, can apply at different scales."[388] "Domain here is simply the conceptual area that a logical framework defines—and that area can be of a significant scope." [382] "...they needed to describe this knowledge categorically such that no aspect of it is left out, and no category overlaps with another." [382] "-exemplified by the chapter headings themselves-" [387] "Abduction is a logical operation that is different from deduction and induction...We see a condition which we take to be a representative case of a larger rule, without (yet) the hard evidence to make that larger assumption."[393] "Put another way, the researcher asks the question: What larger system is this case an instance of?"[393] "Because the larger domain is thus and so, therefore architectural action must be thus and so."[396] "We consider this identification of entities, events, or concepts as neither arbitrary nor obvious, that is . . . it is justifiable by argument."[399] "...definition in itself can be a persuasive enterprise..."[399] "...logical systems often depend on analogy. A new system is predicated upon a likeness between the attributes of its contents and the attributes of some other domain."[401] "At the strategic level, when broad explanatory theories are being framed, the implicit aim is the creation of a logical framework."[384] "It can also provide the basis for the design of new structures."[388]
4/15/2026
Background
Palimpsest can be defined as something having diverse layers or aspects apparent beneath the surface. (Merriam-Webster 2026) Common use of the term was about ancient writing that had been cyclically semi-erased and written on top of over a long period of time, leaving traces of old writings underneath the new. In other words, a palimpsest contained many layers of history at once. Common understanding of palimpsest in terms of architecture is an architecture in which different stages of its history are evident, for example, the many renovations and additions to the Met, or, at an even larger scale, the city of Rome as a palimpsest of its entire lifespan. But these typical assumptions do not serve the meaning of palimpsest as well as what it unconditionally exists as. The fundamental essence we can extract from this word is a convergence of variables into a simultaneity. This is the furthest this thesis will delve into the understood definition of palimpsest. Little survives of Heraclitus’ writings other than fragments quoted by later ancient Greek philosophers and writers. He is known by his paradoxical philosophy of strife, or the unity of opposition of elements. “The way up and down is one and the same,” goes one of his fragments. (Kirk 1954) The road there is the same as the road home. These starkly opposite entities are oximoronically coexistent. This paradox echoes the convergence of variables into a simultaneity. There are multiple ways in which this simultaneity exists in the universe. One can be found in the realm of quantum physics. Principally, quantum physics defines the duality of light or matter as both particle and wave, as both a discrete quantity or a continuous quality. (Baxter 2007) This is one of the most foundational exemplars of contradictory simultaneity. A few fundamental principles of quantum physics can be put into relevant terms. Superposition is the term that describes a combination of all possible states of light or matter at one time. This is analogous to overlapping waves, or an equation that has more than one solution. Objects in entanglement are connected in such a way that it is impossible to describe the state of one without information on the state of the other. Additionally, a quantum system will collapse into a single reality by way of observation. Because all possible states of light or matter cannot be observed at once, the act of measuring fixes the outcome. Therefore, an uncertainty principle results: when measuring one of two properties, the other inexorably cannot be known. (Heisenberg 1927) Ultimately, these various aspects of quantum physics are a means by which the throughline of simultaneity can be transposed to other frameworks of understanding. One such framework is architectural understanding. Quantum physics is revolutionary for its uncovering of properties and behaviors of the most fundamental building blocks of the universe. If this phenomenon is happening to units at the smallest scale, how can this be connected to life on the large scale? Peter Eisenman instrumentalized the concept of superposition in theorizing on the state of architecture, particularly in his Diagram Diaries. (1999) He posits that architectural forces interact in much the same way the building blocks of light and matter do. Specific aspects of the built world can coexist and be experienced by people in a duality, quantitatively and qualitatively. Essentially, architecture exists in a multitude of possible states beyond our understanding, and to observe or define it diminishes its existence by fault. Now, can these properties exhibited by the most indivisible units of our universe operate at all scales? This would be an armature for an infinite subdivisibility across scales. Marco Frascari’s “Tell the Tale Detail” outlines the idea of legibility of architectural intent imbued down to the very detail. (1984) To be able to read architecture after totally reducing it to its core would necessitate something essential to the existence of the architecture that is hard not to distill in the process of designing, building or experiencing. To achieve it would be a paradoxical simultaneity. Once the fundamental essence of palimpsest is extracted, it is true that variables converge into simultaneity. It is how this simultaneity exists in architecture that begs to be inquired. How can the simultaneity fundamental to palimpsest be a framework through which to understand architecture?
Works Cited
Baxter, Todd A. “Meta-Classical Architecture: Thinking Beyond the Box.” Meta-Classical Architecture: Thinking beyond the Box, University of Cincinnati, 2007. Eisenman, Peter. Diagram Diaries. Thames & Hudson, 1999. Frascari, Marco. “Tell-the-Tale Detail.” Perspecta, no. 20, 1984. Heisenberg, Werner. “Über den anschaulichen Inhalt der quantentheoretischen Kinematik und Mechanik.” Zeitschrift für Physik 43 (1927): 172–198. Kirk, G. S. Heraclitus: The Cosmic Fragments. Cambridge University Press, 1954. Merriam-Webster. “Palimpsest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/palimpsest. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
3/31/2026 9:24 am been a while! i found a really good source. it is entitled Meta-Classical Architecture: Thinking Beyond the Box. it's a graduate thesis by Todd Baxter from the University of Cincinnati written in 2007. it's covers many topics, but is chiefly proposing that architecture be informed by theory, more specifically scientific theory, more specifically, quantum physics. quantum physics is about the duplicity of particles and waves, meaning that light can exist simultaneously as particle (quantitative) and wave (qualitative). why couldn't architecture do the same? the experience of architecture could be simultaneously quantitative (a building) or qualitative (movement, interaction). the paper heavily cites peter eisenman's diagram diaries, which i will read next. eisenman termed the interaction of forces, or waves, in architecture as "superposition." waves can interect in three ways: interference, reinforcement, or cancellation. "when two or more waves overlap, the resulting wave is qualitatively and quantitatively different from its parent waves. Yet, the parent waves remain intact and can reappear as soon as the overlap is discontinued."
anyone who knows anything about quantum physics knows that observation fixes reality. all potentialities of the outcome of the interaction of waves in the quantum realm collapse into a single reality by way of observation. the fact that this is physically happening at the microsopic scale of our world is so cool!! if the most indivisible units of our universe exhibit these properties, then so must operations at all scales! through my best friend jackson, im learning about all kinds of properties found in the smallest building blocks from which everything is made. maybe i'll talk about more next week. anyway, this translation across scales is written about in frascari's essay i read last week, which this paper cites, too, funnily enough. not only does this reinforce the theory of palimpsest as an infinite subdivisibility of scales, but in fixing reality by way of observation, so too is design fixed by way of process. in reference to eisenman, baxter says that palimpsest as design process offers a means to convey, in the form of traces, some indication of the generative forces at play within the site, building and program.
ok. the thesis brings up yin and yeng, the age old paradox of the coexistence of nothing and everything. this duality could also be configured to suit the proposition of designing and building as congruous.
Baxter, Todd A. “Meta-Classical Architecture: Thinking Beyond the Box.” Meta-Classical Architecture: Thinking beyond the Box, University of Cincinnati, 2007.
3/16/2026 10:35 pm
motivation -
i have a strong personal conjecture. it is my intention to try on new perspectives for size, and see how they hold up.
impact -
i think i'm the only person who will ever understand me, and then i read a novel, and an old white man from a hundred years ago has thought the exact same thought as me, word for word. and i realize, if he can be honest about what he's feeling, not knowing that a little girl a hundred years later will understand him, then maybe i can do the same for other people.
audience -
me, and because me, anyone
pa·limp·sest noun
:something having usually diverse layers or aspects apparent beneath the surface | | The ancient city is an architectural palimpsest. [Merriam-Webster Dictionary]
theory -
methods -
- consume literature, literature, literature. right now i am trying to research one article, architect, project, city, typology, or any of these things. one per tier on my pyramid that will serve as a testament to that part of my theory of palimpsest
- synthesize a comprehensive analysis situated within a theoretical framework that points toward an architecture guided by the question...
-> in what ways can palimpsest be defined as a foundational framework through which architecture can be understood?
reflection- i was told to be less ambitious. this is a career-long question. scope it down, bring it down to earth. i added the part about researching one case study per tier on my palimpsest pyramid. i feel like that will scope it down, make it do-able. this week i've collected sources for tier 1: Frascari, Marco. (1983). The Tell-the-Tale Detail. In: Deely, J.N., Lenhart, M.D. (eds) Semiotics 1981. Springer, Boston, MA. Heraclitus. The Cosmic Fragments. Edited and translated by G. S. Kirk. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1954.
3/3/2026 11:39 am Class on thursday- took a turn. with Professor Holland's help, i basically realized my thesis cannot be about the church. there are too many variables id be trying to control when they are out of my control. the odds of it working out would be slim to none. and maybe deep down i always knew my thesis was supposed to be about theory anyway. i am a builder, i like to build, i was trying to find any way to be able to build. but i was just twisting my arm. so now it will become what everyone is just dying to read, a giant paper of maria theorizing. i will be developing my theory of architecture as palimpsest. i'm always reading, consuming, theorizing, out of habit. it's what i do. not intentionally. i guess i need to be better about being intentional about it. i am going to have to choose literature that is explicitly applicable to my design inquiry. im going to have to get concrete. i am not very good at this. i am researching what i care about. and i am always seeing patterns, connections, fundamental relationships, but i'm not good at showing it. i dont have any proof. i feel like a baby in this class, learning how to walk and talk like a normal person.
2/24/2026
Renzo piano is probably my current G.O.A.T. His work, particularly his adaptive reuse projects, have the most obvious manifestation of palimpsest I've found. in the images above, you can see early iterations of form, or the original buildings. and then you can see RPBW's additions, another iteration. theres a clear derivative underlying all stages of the project, and yet not a finality in the built solution. the architecture acts as an intermediary on the way toward these eventual, potential great edifices, absolute forms that architects can only attempt to reach. anyway, i wanted to experiment and test this theory in my church renovation in my home town. 1. i would test my theory of palimpsest in the design process, in how successfully i can overlap the design concept with the building process, in how well i integrate awareness of building methods into the design scheme, and inversely, in how well i integrate awareness of the design scheme into the act of building. i would outline an experiment, and would test that experiment in my execution of the church renovation. i plan to be on site with my dad and other parish volunteers, managing the construction. 2. i would compare the built project to other projects i've been studying, like Morgan Library by RPBW. i plan to research other architects/projects, as well. i would outline aspects that these architects' work have and evaluate my final renovation against these points. i guess my uncertainty lies in where room for conjecture is. i am not sure if this thesis is supposed to be a reproduction of research ive collected from many sources with a streamlined theme or conclusion. i am not sure if my renovation project will make it too much about my own work and not the research of other work. yet i find if there is no room for one's own conjecture, the effort will be ultimately substanceless. another road bump--idk when st. teresa will be able to pull funding together. i may have to pivot if this thesis and this renovation can't coincide.
"everything that nature makes, it records in what it makes how it was made." - louis kahn
2/5/2026 now that ive said i hate research, let's come up with the research questions i have to ask. just kidding. we will no longer be using the word research. i think the narrowing down of a topic until you have a question that is so specific that you could only get one answer is a waste of time. if you spend your time just being generally curious, you end up allowing for so much more discovery. now that ive framed my thesis under this paradigm, i know that it will be making-based. creating is asking questions with your fingertips. if you ask a question under the assumption that the answer belongs to you, that is when it doesn't. knowledge refuses to be bought. only the innocence of curiosity is ever fruitful.
my church back home is st. teresa catholic church in belleville, illinois. my father is the church handyman, in charge of the finances, and on the parish council. why? basically out of need for volunteers and because he wants to help, he cares. the parish wants to renovate the church lobby, and since my dad is basically in charge, he appointed me as lead designer of the renovation. this is a great opportunity, because i can basically do whatever i want. not only will i be designing but i get to build it with my own hands. this is a perfect scenario. its a small project with an even smaller budget, so i cant do much harm. nobody else wants to do it so they are glad to let it fall into my hands. this is my community, people who have known and loved me for a long time. this is a place that has shaped who i am. i get to design a space that has designed both me and people who have shaped me. the budget is a great constraint because my dad and i will be the ones building it, so it negates any desire to do something unsensible. its the perfect playground for me to design with the building methods and processes directly in mind.
how can an architectural palimpsest be redefined as a design method that collapses the timeline into a continuous present condition in the renovation of st. teresa catholic church in belleville, illinois?
2/1/2026 it's my brother joseph's birthday i just read an article called "slashed" written by joan ockman in 2017. it put into words what i have been trying to verbalize since high school. in my engineering class, we did research and it just felt so dumb. dumb is the only word i could think of. we laid a board across a hundred red solo cups and walked on them. i didn't understand what the point was. like we "hypothesized," which is too fancy a word for assumed, that we could walk on the board and so that's why we set up the experiment and then we just--walked on the board? like. i dont understand what that accomplished. we all know what happens when you assume. and its not like i was discovering new planets or anything! i dont like to do dumb things. thankfully, joan ockman gave me some clarity, some visuals. im a visual learner.
research is data, information, stuff. its like an item on the shelf at toys R us. history/theory is like a package. it is pretty. it makes you want to open it up, see what's inside. i didnt feel like a complete architect sitting through history of architecture 1 and 2. there was a factor to the content that was lacking. it was theory. i can look at a plan of the Pantheon, or memorize the architect and date of the chicago tribune tower. but i am not learning anything called architecture if i can't situate history through a theoretical lens. all the past is is an ideological trajectory, constantly changing. if it was my daughter's 1st birthday, i would not tell her that if she wanted a birthday present then she could just go to toys R us and buy the gift herself. she cannot drive and does not have a credit card. i would not even do that to my aunt, who can drive to the store and does have a credit card. that is morally reprehensible. if we didn't especially chose a gift to give to our loved ones, birthdays would lose their meaning. if it was my daughter's 2nd christmas, i would not leave a bunch of pretty wrapping tied with pretty bows under the tree with no gifts inside them. my daughter would scream and cry when she opened the gifts to find them empty. her grandmother would probably scream and cry too. that is morally reprehensible. not to mention physically impossible. how do you wrap up a bunch of nothing? research is like an item you can buy from the store. it is collectible, appeals to the market, produced to be consumed. history/theory is like wrapping paper and a bow. it is a container, encapsulates content, a way to present itself. if you have substance, and only if it has meaning, then you have a gift worth giving. this newfound position i take on research is satisfying. i hate it! research has never been inspiring. i dont speak that language. i crave knowledge. i want to experience to learn. when you trickle down curiosity into an empirical formula, you are limiting what you can know. we have no idea how little we know! i want to grab you by the shoulders and shake you! laugier says in his essai sur l'architecture that judging art and architecture makes us better. live obsessively, observe indiscriminately, revel intuitively, draw connections, and think always. make it your way of life.
1/27/2026 this is my first blog post. i will be using this blog to think.
pal·imp·sest
noun Latin palimpsestus παλίμψηστος, palímpsēstos (from AncientGreek πάλιν (pálin) 'again' and ψάω (psáō) 'scrape’) a compound word that describes the process: "The original writing was scraped and washed off, the surface resmoothed, and the new literary material written on the salvaged material." this is my tentative thesis for our adaptive reuse project in studio right now. This concept can be almost like removing time as a variable. instead of what a building Was like in 1953, and what the building Will be, everything the building ever Was and Will be just becomes what it Is. architecture demands a singularity. the Architect needs a singular idea, informed by history and context, and they need to execute design in only this language, and then they need to apply it and build it with only this consciousness. and they need to conceive the with execution and building in mind. all steps of the process are inversely proportional. you cannot design without the practical understanding of the methods with which it will be built. hell, get out to the site with a hammer in hand! and vise versa; you cannot build without the singular design intent in mind.