Trans-scalar Architectures for Earth: Rain Check

Water is a precious and contested resource in Colorado, the seventh driest state in the United States. Throughout its geologic history, this territory has seen innumerable configurations spearheaded mostly by uplifting and erosion. During its human history, the land has also seen several important infrastructural and other changes, especially as they relate to water usage. Responding to these conditions, this pedagogical exercise recontextualized “nature” by designing for and with geological systems. The studio combined models of design-build pedagogy, paired with a continuous focus on multi-scalar relationships, water-power relations, and speculative thinking. Students developed a prototypical pavilion made to treat water, host a number of plant ecosystems, and engage human publics by educating them about water and species collaborations.Through a combination of surrealist methodologies, environmental simulations, materials assessments, applied design/research work, and reading discussions, the class responded to the pre-existing site and climatic conditions much like a surrealist artist would respond to pre-drawn lines on a page. This allowed us to reimagine forms of authorship for architecture in the Anthropocene, welcoming new agents to the design of our shared planet while engaging the extreme dryness and desertness of our environment. Ultimately, the project aims to render the Colorado water and environmental crises visible through a public space-defining installation that can remediate ecosystems.

https://doi.org/10.35483/ACSA.AM.112.34

Volume Editors
Germane Barnes & Blair Satterfield

ISBN
978-1-944214-45-6