Perpetual Care

Cemeteries are spaces where life and death are rendered materially. Despite death’s omnipresence, American burial customs are rooted in outdated traditions that push burial spaces to the outskirts of our cities and the grievers into spaces of isolation. Attitudes toward death have changed radically, and we need more democratic practices and new spaces for grief. This thesis imagines a new architectural typology and department within the Boston city government, the Department of Death, to provide an expanded set of death-related services.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Architecture

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Architecture

Grantor

Rice University

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Author dc:creator

• Van Velden, Jane M

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Utting, Brittany
• Finley, Dawn

• Death
• Garden
• Scattering Garden
• Archive
• Collective
• Cremation

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise indicated. Permission to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exemptions to copyright law must be obtained from the copyright holder.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1911/114925

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.rice.edu:1911/114925