Inherited Dialogue
Interlocal Group: Studio XL | theme architecture and planning
Our material culture can be understood through the technical application of natural (raw and geo-based) substances as well as artificial (processed, crafted, or engineered) products. The critical approach to the mechanisms through which we consume, abandon, or regain a material is opening new perspectives for the transition to a low-carbon economy. In the Construction Industry, the revival of net-zero materials such as timber and earth have been developing based on the innovative methods merging inherited building culture with digital technologies. In this artwork, the term inherited recalls the vast technical heritage related to the use of alternative resources that we can still explore, assess, and re-invent for a resilient and net-zero future.
The dialogue is the fundamental act of any interaction. The proposed artwork will translate this act from different points of view. The morphological plasticity is defined from two separate but interrelating masses. This will question the epistemological relation between the unity of the exterior and the journey of the interior. This narrow passage may symbolize the not-easy and not-straight intention of using alternative materials in architecture.
The materiality of this piece could generate a synergistic momentum between straw thatch as a natural substance and a holographic iridescent mirrored film as an artificial product. The straw is a part of the bio-diversity – principally used in the food industry. It is one of the fundamental materials that we – the urban people – largely consume without often seeing its raw shape in our urban landscapes. Whereas, it has a significant presence in the farms outside of our cities. In the yellow hatched lands where it grows from the earth straight to the sky. Few other times, we may see it as a construction material in vernacular communities or contemporary bio-climatic architecture. Its specific properties offer or limit its application in construction. Straw thatched wall is rustic, thick, matt, yellow-to-brown, flexible, biodegradable, ephemeral, labor-based, textured, combustible, and thermal resistant. On the other hand, the holographic iridescent mirrored film reveals different characteristics. It is industrial, thin, smooth, reflective, “durable”, easy-to-install, and recyclable. The visual connections between these two elements vary when they meet each other from different angles of the artwork. This configuration aims to evoke scientific questions, philosophical thinking, and poetic interpretations with regards to the natural/industrial theme among visitors.
From the environmental perspective, the proposed artwork is designed to spread its visual interactions by the framing quality of the minimalistic thatched walls as well as the mirror surfaces of the mirrored film reflecting the visitors and other artworks in the exhibition hall.
@ Behrang Fakharian, Canada, 2020
@ Behrang Fakharian, Korea, 2011
Construction Process
The essence of the installation lies in the dialogue between the simplicity of the wood frame construction and thatching and sophistication of digital fabrication.
Wood Framing Structure
Artwork modelled inside the exhibition area
@ Behrang Fakharian, Bruce County, Ontario 2020
Exhibited at Beijing Urbanism and Architecture Biennale, Beijing Future Design Park, China, October, 2020