Abstract

This thesis is a research-creation project that aims to explore the veil beyond the controversial definitions and interpretations which have been ascribed to it, thereby to investigate the borders between inside and outside, men and women, human and non-human. This research, thus, speculates on the possibility of a composed veil, as a customizable boundary that can be personalized and co-created actively by its wearer through a performative approach. While the veil (chador in Farsi) negotiates privacy and interiority as a visible, personal space and boundary constructed directly on the body, at a larger yet still intimate scale, traditional Iranian architecture is also characterized by interiority and introverted spatiality as foundational principles. By positioning the body, the veil and Iranian residential architecture in mutual dynamic interaction, this research seeks to reconceptualize the veil as a ‘microcosmic dwelling place’ which defines an extension of privacy in public and emplaces the body within a context. Consequently, each phase of the research-creation project reveals particular material and spatial aspects of the veil, to constitute a multisensory environment that mutably reconstructs the boundaries between body and space. The composed veil, in this framing, no longer limited to any specific religion, or gender, or cultural context, could be redefined by that wearer as a means of individualized emplacement and engagement in a given social context.