MADE BY NATURE

Just 20 km north-west of the city of Arles, in the rocky region of the Alpilles I discovered the historic village of Le-Baux-De-Provence. A French commune perched within the rocky limestone landscape. It was in the ancient chateau, enveloped in eroded limestone, that I recognised the transformed textures, colours and forms, coming together to tell a story of time.

The material acts an intermediary between man and the natural environment. It is a medium in which the two powers are forced to converse. Man requires the specific environmental conditions in order for the stone to become available to him. He shapes it into building blocks to be able to construct the structures he desires. But over time nature reclaims its indigenous fabric.  

This project proposes the concept of planned emergence; meaning to build consciously for the future, employing erosion as a facility for production. Rather than striving for static environments we could consider facilitating and encouraging material weathering in order to add complexity to our constructions long into the future. Over time materials habitually become richer in colour and texture and the altering forms can even begin to present new functions.

The samples are developed through manipulation of the limestone surface through man-made acceleration of natural erosion patterns.

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