Architecture of Scarcity

At the beginning of the 21st century. the challenge of Mexican contemporary architecture is that it
requires a different conceptualisation which is not reliant on Western design approaches. It is argued
that the resources. values. capacities and priorities of the Global South are very different from those of .
the developed Global North. and yet many of the concepts of architecture and sustainability have
been uncritically taken from one context to another. The result is that issues of sustainability in the
architecture of countries such as Mexico remain under-theorised. The context of scarcity -in natural.
human and economic resources of the majority of the population. multicultural diversity. rapid growth
and change. and 'chaotic' organisation highlights the very different conditions that exist in the Global
South and which demand a new architectonic and urban development based on an alternative
model of sustainable design. This thesis proposes that this tension should be addressed in a way that is
relevant to these unique local conditions. By defining an Architecture of Scarcity. this thesis aims to
develop a potential methodological approach that attempts to address economic. social.
environmental and technical issues in a sustainable way based on the idea of scarcity. Architecture of
Scarcity is defined as architecture created by the idea of not having sufficient resources to fulfil basic
needs. In other words rather than consider architecture from the perspective of commodity and
abundant control of resources to produce a 'perfect' product. the thesis recognises the value of the
features of production of architecture in a condition of limited in resources and open to 'imperfection'.
The thesis first investigates three typical conditions of scarcity production within the Mexican context:
the Vernacular. Informal Modernism and Semi-Informal Modernism. In the section Issues of Scarcity it is
considered the development of design principles suited to an alternative view of Sustainability which
differs from Western concepts. Next these principles are amalgamated as a set of possible Design
Tactics and tools to support a revised architectural design process and revised role for the architect.
Finally the dynamic nature of the process is captured through the development of a speculative
Architecture of Scarcity Game whose aim is to reveal and to make sense of rich possibilities inherent in
this design method.