Farm Design: Functional Architecture in a Family Farming Enterprise

Abstract

This thesis challenges the argument that farms must grow larger and more specialized in order to survive. The root of this thesis stems from my disdain towards current mainstream industrial methods of farming, attempting to compete in the world market. In theory, current government farm policies are meant to assist and protect farmers on the global market but typically result in protecting the large companies responsible for manifesting the problems in the first place. These key factors have changed the face of the agricultural landscape of North America and have lead to a lost connection between society and their food. These factors have lead me to build upon more sustainable and value-added farm philosophies. Such practices highlight the benefits of small farm enterprises for the farmer, the animals, the environment and society as a whole. The design is in combination a response to the landscape and the local economic niche it functions within. Through physical connection, the architecture highlights the cycles of individual farm elements working together to strengthen the whole farm as system.