Thesis: Susie Dole (Irene)
Susie Dole (Irene)
Susie Dole (Irene)
A Midden for the Future: A New Human-Geological Architecture for a Human-Geological Timescale in Portland, ME
There is a schism that exists between the extent of our lifespan and the given ‘lifespans’ of planetary changes - especially when we seek to comprehend and adapt to new and more extreme climate conditions. Our limited physical time makes it easy to experience environmental amnesia and feel overwhelmed in the face of perceiving massive change over geological timescales. Without awareness and a continuity of exposure, we give up our understanding, and our ‘sensual space’ is lost to disconnection.
Inspired by Shell Midden (a centuries-old human-made accumulation of broken shells and other cultural refuse often located near bodies of water and affected by human and environmental elements), The Midden for the Future seeks to provide its human users with a new architecture which expands and localizes the user’s perception of their own time relative to the time of their geological surrounds. In doing so, the user can be given the chance to deepen and reorient themselves through material and formal cues to the potential of changes in their environment.
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Eroding frames at different scales and densities provide a new porosity and habitat for the accumulation of reusable left-over materials common in Portland ME such as construction waste, while remaining susceptible to the natural effects to time. As materials accumulate within or are removed, the porosity and erosion of the structure waxes and wanes to provide different spaces of enclosure or openness for flexible occupation. The human timescale and the geological timescale begin to merge together.
Considering the site’s growing tendency to flood due to climate extremes, the eroding systems are intended for the water to spill through, promoting the return of natural growth to an industrial area, while allowing water to drain safely away without harming the nearby urban fabric.
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Susie Dole (Irene)