A photograph of the earthquake-damage to the Quinn's clothing store on Papanui Road. The front wall of the building has crumbled, the bricks and other rubble falling onto the footpath and street below. The inside of the second storey can now clearly be seen from the street.
A photograph of the former Municipal Chambers Building on Worcester Boulevard. Damage can be seen on the top of the chimney, the roof and the tip of the gable. Tape and road cones have been placed around the building to create a cordon.
A photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The basement of the Louis Vuitton Building on the corner of Colombo Street and Cathedral Square, exposed now the building has been demolished. The Christ Church Cathedral can be seen in the background".
A damaged house with a red sticker on its front window. The sticker indicates that the building is unsafe to enter. To the side, the brickwork has crumbled and in the front the broken windows have been boarded up. A woman in a florescent vest can be seen to the left, inspecting the house.
Water tanks on the Sumner Esplanade. Both have prominent notices advising that water must be boiled before use. On one tank is a notice advertising a community hub where residents can get assistance, and on the other is written "Free use of for Christchurch earthquake. Please return to Wymers Domestic Water Carriers, Hamilton".
The intersection of Colombo and High Streets with Hereford Street to the left. The 'Flour Power' statue stands in the centre of the intersection with wire fencing placed around it. Three cranes can be seen in the distance.
A view down Cashel Street from the Bridge of Remembrance, showing earthquake damage to several buildings along Cashel Mall. In the background the Hotel Grand Chancellor can be seen, a Christchurch hotel that was badly damaged in the February 2011 earthquake. The collapse of a key supporting shear wall caused the building to visibly lean to one side.
A view down London Street in Lyttelton, looking east from Canterbury Street. To the left, the damaged Volcano Cafe can be seen, with bricks from the side wall still on the road and wire fencing around the building. A road sign reading, "Road closed" has been placed in front of the street ahead.
A view down Maling Street in Avonside showing damage to the road surface and the footpath that has resulted from the 4 September 2010 earthquake. Beside the footpath the blue lids of septic tanks can be seen. These tanks were installed in front of Avonside properties to allow residents to use their toilets after the earthquake.
A photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "A view from Cambridge Terrace across the Avon River to Victoria Square. The demolition of the Plunket House and the Oxford on Avon on Oxford Terrace has opened up this view so that Victoria Square can be seen".
A PDF copy of an image created for the 2015 Summer Starter. The image features an All Right? 'tip of the week', which reads, "Do what you can and enjoy what you do. Every little bit counts." The image was published in The Press in the lead-up to the 2015 Summer Starter.
A PDF copy of a poster from the Let's Talk About Parenting project of the All Right? campaign. The caption reads, 'Felise, Parklands: "I know I can make a difference. I'm just finding out how." Real families aren't picture perfect. They're messy, playful and so much better'.
An image designed for use as a downloadable screensaver. The image depicts an 'All Rightie' in a fluorescent vest standing by a road cone and gazing at the night sky. The image reads, "When was your last moment of wonder? Sometimes the quietest moments can really change our perspective".
A photograph of a stretcher with blankets and pillows sitting in the corner of Cowles Stadium. In the background, boxes full of supplies from the Red Cross and wrapped-up mattresses can be seen. The stadium served as temporary accommodation for refugees from the 4 September earthquake.
A photograph of a sign outside St Paul's Parish on Gayhurst Road. The sign reads, "St Paul's Parish Mass, Sunday 10am, Marian College Hall, North Parade". The church was damaged during the 4 September earthquake. Tape can be seen around the building in the background.
A garden in Sydenham created by Greening the Rubble, a community project in Christchurch which aims to create temporary public parks and gardens on the sites of demolished buildings. To the left, the 10 square metre office building can just be seen as well as a mural in the background.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the former Canterbury Public Library on the corner of Hereford Street and Cambridge Terrace. The bricks in the corner of the building have crumbled and masonry can be seen on the footpath below. Wire fences have been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of the Cranmer Centre on Armagh Street. Bricks have fallen off one of the gables onto the concrete below. The remaining gables have been braced with wood to limit further damage. A cherry picker can be seen below, and there is fencing around the building.
A photograph taken near the intersection of Manchester Street, Lichfield Street and High Street. A mural has been painted on a brick wall. Behind this, the old Post Office building which now houses C1 Espresso can be seen with Ronnie Van Hout's sculpture on the roof.
A photograph of several half-finished mosaic designs sitting on a table. Pieces of broken china are scattered around the mosaics.Crack'd for Christchurch comments, "As a trial we made pavers for the temporary Bus Exchange on St Asaph Street. You can see the paper plan folded to the right."
A view down Robson Avenue in Avonside showing damage to the road surface and the footpath that has resulted from the 4 September 2010 earthquake. On the left the blue lid of a septic tank can be seen. These tanks were installed in front of Avonside properties to allow residents to use their toilets after the September earthquake.
A PDF copy of a poster encouraging people to connect, one of the Five Ways to Wellbeing. The poster image depicts three 'All Righties' catching up over cakes and reads, "When did you last really catch up? Quality time with good friends can be the best medicine".
Internal damage to a house in Richmond. A doorframe has visibly warped, leaving a gap between the frame and the door. Outside, cracks can be seen in the concrete patio. The photographer comments, "Sunroom - bifold doors are now separated from the frame. The doors on the left blew right out in a strong wind 2 weeks after the quake".
Trucks and diggers build large piles of liquefaction silt. One pile has been covered with plastic sheeting, weighted down with tyres. In the foreground can be seen the Bromley sewage treatment ponds. The photographer comments, "Looking NW from the causeway through the sewage wetlands. Mountains of liquefaction silt are being piled up near the corner of Breezes Rd and SH74-Anzac Drive".
Trucks and diggers build large piles of liquefaction silt. One pile has been covered with plastic sheeting, weighted down with tyres. In the foreground can be seen the Bromley sewage treatment ponds. The photographer comments, "Looking NW from the causeway through the sewage wetlands. Mountains of liquefaction silt are being piled up near the corner of Breezes Rd and SH74-Anzac Drive".
Though generally considered “natural” disasters, cyclones and earthquakes are increasingly being associated with human activities, incubated through urban settlement patterns and the long-term redistribution of natural resources. As society is becoming more urbanized, the risk of human exposure to disasters is also rising. Architecture often reflects the state of society’s health: architectural damage is the first visible sign of emergency, and reconstruction is the final response in the process of recovery. An empirical assessment of architectural projects in post-disaster situations can lead to a deeper understanding of urban societies as they try to rebuild. This thesis offers an alternative perspective on urban disasters by looking at the actions and attitudes of disaster professionals through the lens of architecture, situated in recent events: the 2010 Christchurch earthquake, the 2010 Haiti earthquake, and the 2005 Hurricane Katrina. An empirical, multi-hazard, cross-sectional case study methodology was used, employing grounded theory method to build theory, and a critical constructivist strategy to inform the analysis. By taking an interdisciplinary approach to understanding disasters, this thesis positions architecture as a conduit between two divergent approaches to disaster research: the hazards approach, which studies the disaster cycles from a scientific perspective; and the sociological approach, which studies the socially constructed vulnerabilities that result from disasters, and the elements of social change that accompany such events. Few studies to date have attempted to integrate the multi-disciplinary perspectives that can advance our understanding of societal problems in urban disasters. To bridge this gap, this thesis develops what will be referred to as the “Rittelian framework”—based on the work of UC Berkeley’s architecture professor Horst Rittel (1930-1990). The Rittelian framework uses the language of design to transcend the multiple fields of human endeavor to address the “design problems” in disaster research. The processes by which societal problems are addressed following an urban disaster involve input by professionals from multiple fields—including economics, sociology, medicine, and engineering—but the contribution from architecture has been minimal to date. The main impetus for my doctoral thesis has been the assertion that most of the decisions related to reconstruction are made in the early emergency recovery stages where architects are not involved, but architects’ early contribution is vital to the long-term reconstruction of cities. This precipitated in the critical question: “How does the Rittelian framework contribute to the critical design decisions in modern urban disasters?” Comparative research was undertaken in three case studies of recent disasters in New Orleans (2005), Haiti (2010) and Christchurch (2010), by interviewing 51 individuals who were selected on the basis of employing the Rittelian framework in their humanitarian practice. Contextualizing natural disaster research within the robust methodological framework of architecture and the analytical processes of sociology is the basis for evaluating the research proposition that architectural problem solving is of value in addressing the ‘Wicked Problems’ of disasters. This thesis has found that (1) the nuances of the way disaster agents interpret the notion of “building back better” can influence the extent to which architectural professionals contribute in urban disaster recovery, (2) architectural design can be used to facilitate but also impede critical design decisions, and (3) framing disaster research in terms of design decisions can lead to innovation where least expected. This empirical research demonstrates how the Rittelian framework can inform a wider discussion about post-disaster human settlements, and improve our resilience through disaster research.
Members of the USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team and New Zealand Urban Search and Rescue Team in front of a collapsed house in the Christchurch central city. In the background, the Newstalk ZB Building can be seen.
The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on Barbadoes Street, severely damaged after the 22 February 2011 earthquake. The domes on either side of the Cathedral have collapsed and are lying in the area in front. To the right, a crushed car can just be seen.
The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on Barbadoes Street, severely damaged after the 22 February 2011 earthquake. The domes on either side of the Cathedral have collapsed and are lying in the area in front. To the right, a crushed car can just be seen.
Smoke billowing from the remains of the collapsed Canterbury Television Building on Madras Street. Flames are visible through a gap in the intact section of the building. Below, emergency personnel can be seen searching the rubble for trapped people. On the right, two workers are using a piece of corrugated plastic as a slide to remove objects from the rubble.