Food & Shelter 2
| Food & Shelter 2 |
| The Solar Oven |
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| Meet Big Maggie. |
| She may not be much to look at but Big Maggie is a wonder. |
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| Running on solar power alone Big Maggie will cook stews, potatoes, rice, scones or whatever else you normally use precious fossil fuel to cook in your conventional oven. Continue Reading » |
Food & Shelter 1
| Food & Shelter 1 |
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| James offered to build a clay oven here. I have wanted one of these for a while. |
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| The whole procedure was incredibly fast. First, I made a sturdy timber base. Then, the oven was built on top of this in just a couple of days. |
| Working with the clay and fire was pure joy. The feel of the moist earth was exciting. I remembered playing this intently as a child. Care-free. Judgment-free. Later, when the oven was fired up to dry it out, magic happened. The night receded into the background and a sense of ease descended around the oven. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE 14
| Architecture LIVE 14 |
| I am landed. Re-oriented. Half exhausted from keeping up with the pace of events. |
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| As soon as I hit the ground it was down to work on the EconoSpaceMaking DVD. There was more to this than was apparent at the outset. |
| In the end the project took on a life of its own, delving into the heart of things in no uncertain way. This was reassuring as it clarified many of the ideas that I had being juggling with for a long time. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE 13
| Architecture LIVE 13 |
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| After a crazy month of sheltermaking, including a LIVE EconoSpaceMaking Course and a visit from RTE1 Nationwide, the Irish EconoSpace is bundled up against the northern winter for the duration of my time in Australia. |
| The silver wings of ‘St. Arthur’ fly me across Europe to the threshold of new adventures. |
| Lost in the hushed confines of Frankfurt International Airport, I contemplate this future as documented in The International Herald Tribune. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE 12
| Architecture LIVE 12 |
| A visit to the Climate Change Camp to deliver an EconoSpace workshop confirms my worst fears. These are epitomised in a dream I later have of people pretending they have been drowned. A refusal to be fully alive appears to be at the heart of resistance to change. |
| The journey back and forth to the camp is through a countryside bereft of appeal. Towns, fields and houses resist efforts to meaningfully connect with them. The people scattered amongst this wasteland do indeed appear to be half-dead. This, I suppose, is the seed that birthed my dream. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE – ClayStraw Mixing
| A bird’s eye view of the clay-straw mixing process … |
| Thanks to Matt for this overview. |
Architecture LIVE 11
| Architecture LIVE 11 |
| I make the first door frame and install this. This portal offers access to the enigmatic interior of the frame. From there I view the broad exterior over which a gathering moon presides. I dream then of being immersed in clay slip, pressed upon and forced into a dark chamber where indeterminate debris pummles my body. |
| I take this as an allegory for my life, encouragement to push myself out into the world to source the straw which is becoming increasingly vital to the sheltermaking. I juggle this commitment with bouts of filming and travel planning, recognising in that endeavour the pull of the antipodes on my soul. Continue Reading » |
Invisible Architecture
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| THE CONCEPT |
| This energising mix of theory, fact, anecdote and real life drama is an invitation from Irish architect, teacher and writer Peter Cowman, to not only imagine your dream house but to experience it in all of its many dimensions. |
| Leading you on a journey to very edge of space, Peter encourages you to rediscover the architect of your childhood dreams and nurture this faculty back into life. Then, with feet firmly on the ground, Peter will demonstrate how your dreams and reality might together be used to shape a sustainable future for people and planet. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE 10
| Architecture LIVE 10 |
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| A beautiful load of daub, resembling a giant elephant stool, now resides in the yard. This prods the clay-straw operation into motion. I make a small test panel then watch over this like an anxious parent. |
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| Up on the roof I wrestle the last panel into place, secure it then stand back to admire my handywork. The protective hands of the roof glow in the light, radiating good energy into the space below. This invites formal opening up of this encouraging the flooring and walling work to proceed. This rhythm has its own momentum – first, relief that the roof has been completed, followed by a re-emergence of fear. Continue Reading » |
Architecture LIVE 9
| Architecture LIVE 9 |
| I am back at the quarry from which I gathered the initial clay sample in the company of the owner who understands exactly what I want. |
| “Aye, it’s daub you want. Sure I grew up in a mud house myself. Used to pull the horsehairs out of the wall and get in trouble for it too!” |
| We are mounted in a 4WD heaving through mud and devestation. |
| “Well that’s the trend now – to go back to the old ways and make houses out of natural materials like clay. Things that can decay naturally.” |
| “Just like ourselves you mean! Go back to the earth where we came from!” Continue Reading » |