"Inspired Co-Existence"
Learning from animals is a demanding task that has not been explored to its fullest extent in the fields of design and architecture. Ecology and biology are generative and informative disciplines that can influence design projects in unexpected and interesting ways. A major challenge facing the field of architecture today is to go beyond the basic quest of aesthetics and to take a responsible attitude toward the built environment of the future. My work focuses on the research and application of adaptations from nature to improve design solutions. The resulting architectural concepts are performative and responsive; they take into consideration various dynamic environmental conditions and resources, supporting and enhancing them rather then exploiting them. The Model Community at Salton Sea takes a holistic approach as it considers interrelationships between all processes fundamental to sustaining life and preserving nature—in the same manner as ecosystems. Moreover, the project is inspired by the metaphor ecosystems offer: in nature there is no real waste, but rather a reallocation of means, and a recycling, where all is connected, efficient, and self-sustaining. Insects, in particular, have inspired my conceptual strategies of planning offering models of social, adaptive, integrated, and connected characteristics that often co-exist. In Building High Up, these concepts are extended to the co-existence of species—challenging the traditional notion of urban planning as a field preoccupied with protecting only human life—and offering a more integrated approach. This co-species/co-existence model has been inspired by the study of the “Weaver ants” (Oecophylla Smaragdina) and their tree colonies, which have produced an agricultural landscape that co-exists with the forest rather than replacing it. The resulting projects in my portfolio are concerned with my interest in the social aspect of living organisms in that they draw upon ideas from social organisms and apply them to humans in an urban setting. I seek to explore relationships between species and establish new connections between humans and nature as well as between humans. In a nutshell, my approach takes inspiration from nature and applies that to the compromised built environment with the goal of reversing, restoring, and healing the current situation, through holistic and cyclic processes and methods. Photo Credits: Oecophylla Smaragdina Nest by Shauna Price
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